The Japanese held another protest against the upcoming arrival of the USS George Washington (CVN 73) today. I wasn’t there, but they’re all the same. The gather by the local mall, then march down to the main gate. Unfortunately for them, the main gate is closed to all auto and pedestrian traffic, so no one actually sees or hears anything. Awesome accomplishment.
Regular reader i*heart*rice was kind enough to take some photos of the protest and send them in:
We had another long overdue First Class meeting today. The 15 or so, out of over 45, firsts classes that show up to all the meetings were there as usual. The topics were fund raising ideas, and uses for the said funds. I’m convinced that no one really wants to raise any money on this base, and instead just wants to throw some half-assed idea together to make others believe they’re accomplishing something. Seriously though, can’t anyone think of anything better than a car wash? Do you know how many times I’ve driven on base, with my filthy ass car, and just completely passed all the people trying to detour me through their car wash fundraiser? Too many to count.
It’s not that I don’t want to help out, it’s just I could go to the car wash for my car wash. At least there I wouldn’t have to worry about people washing my car with dirty water and used rags. Another idea, which must be a staple of fund raising, was the food on the pier idea. Whether it’s hot dogs and burgers or something else, too many people have done it, and not enough people are willing to buy an overpriced burger when McDonald’s is right down the street. Someone brought up the suggestion of patches, which wasn’t well received. The custom patches are going to cost $5,000 just to make. Sure they’d look cool on an 80’s acid-washed denim jacket with “Born to be Wild” on the back, but I don’t think we’re going to be able to sell more than a handful, which could be a big financial loss to our small organization.
I wasn’t much help at the meeting, since I woke up as soon as they passed the word. However, I think our fund raising ideas could be a little better than the boring stuff we normally do. Here are some of the ideas I proposed to the group via a follow-up e-mail.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, chaplains need to stay on ships. Back in 2006, the Navy planned to remove chaplains from small ships and consolidate them into one shore-based unit, which would deploy chaplains to ships getting underway. Nearly two years later, I asked my chaplain how the process was going, since she’s still on board. Apparently, the Navy ditched their original idea, but due to the resulting red tape, many chaplains are sitting around with no ship billets. I know it’s being worked on by people much higher than myself, but I just wanted to give my two cents.
In the three years I’ve been on board this ship, there has been a few times where I’ve noticed a Sailor was acting unlike their usual self. Since I talk to everyone on board, I’d stop them and ask them how they were doing. Once you do this, you can pretty much tell right off the bat that something isn’t right. Underway can be stressful, and many Sailors might be going through personal, financial, family, etc., problems, that just compounds the stress. Some times when you genuinely ask how they are, it’ll open the flood gates, and all their problems starts pouring out. Unfortunately, sometimes talking can only help so much. On a few occasions while talking with someone, I could see that the conversation was going in a pretty scary direction. I’m not a shrink, so what could I do? Send them to Chaps.
Sending them to the chaplain isn’t just a way to get them off my hands, but I know from personal experience, the chaplain can really help you make sense of problems you might be experiencing. When I’m in a good mood, I’m a productive asset to the division and ship. However, if I’m experiencing any type of problems, such as issues with my family back home, my whole day is preoccupied with the problem, and I’m utterly useless. If one ever finds themselves in that type of situation, the chaplain can really make sense of it all and help them to better understand how to deal with whatever is troubling them. This is something that can only be done by a chaplain who has been around for some time, and is familiar with the crew. Chaplains have to earn the trust of their Sailors, otherwise people would just rather let all their problems overwhelm them, and that could lead to a pretty bad situation.
The bottom line is the chaplain is one of the most crucial components to a good and healthy crew. Removing the chaplain, takes away from the already few options Sailors have to address the multitude of problems that may be hindering their productivity and success. Please, for the sake of all fleet Sailors, keep them billeted to ships.
Allison Batdorff and Travis Tritten, both Stars & Stripes reporters, did a story on MilBloggers and the thin-line they walk when it comes to free speech. I met with Allison a couple weeks ago where she asked me some questions regarding FEWL and the positive and negative aspects about being a MilBlogger. While technically I’m considered a MilBlogger, my content tends to be much different than my peers and our MilBlogging fore-fathers. A lot of the popular MilBlogs discuss issues about Iraq, politics, and tales of war. Me? I bitch. I’m fine with that. This blog is a way for me to talk about issues that bother me and others, all while trying to mature and become something better than what I currently am.
Writing, I think, is not apart from living. Writing is a kind of double living. The writer experiences everything twice. Once in reality and once in that mirror which waits always before or behind. — Catherine Drinker Bowen
I know I definitely walk a fine line, as many people outside of the FDNF think I just need to get out of “their” Navy, and while I have a lot of positive feedback from people in the FDNF, it’s not without the occasional criticism. It’s probably not the wisest decision I’ve made, and yes I’m aware I’m burning bridges at a frantic pace, but I feel it’s something I have to do. At this point in my career and life, I don’t know where I am, where I want to go, or how to get to wherever I decide to go. This is just the process I use to make sure all the confusion, misunderstanding, and resulting frustration doesn’t overwhelm me. All that sappy crap aside, I’d like to thank all the visitors I have, whether it’s your first time here or you’re a repeat offender, for the criticism, suggestions, and insults! Read the Stars & Stripes article here.
The beloved chu-hi stand, officially known as KADOYA, has been put on the off-limits list for the month of July. CFAY sent the owner’s a letter informing them that the establishment will be off-limits to all Armed Forces personnel, citing public drunkenness and noise complaints. This should come as no surprise to anyone whose taken a train from the Shiori Station at night, and could hear all the drunken happenings from below. The chu-hi stand, which right around the corner from the station, is a popular spot where Sailors stop for a few strong drinks before crawling the rest of The Honch, or heading to Roppongi or other farther away party areas. CFAY said the off-limits status will be reviewed at the end of the month, but I’m curious how the owners of the stand can really change anything. As you can see from the picture above, the stand can only accommodate about two people, so everyone just stands around outside and drinks. They have a sign that says “IF YOU WANT KADOYA TO STAY OPEN THEN PLEASE BE QUITE![sic]” and it’s even a regular post for Shore Patrol, but a few of those loud and rowdy Sailors will always ruin it for the rest of us.
As you may have noticed, the site was down for about 15 hours while I let the mob mentality of the NTWS people die down. My CMC noticed my site was down and had me come talk to him. I told him all the stuff that had been going on and he pretty much just said screw ‘em. He’s right too. Most of the people who were offended by my posts here aren’t even in the Navy anymore, and those who are still active, I don’t work for. I may in the future, but until then I’ll worry about pleasing my current chain-of-command.
He also addressed my original problem that led me to post a question on the NTWS forums. He said the Navy isn’t anyone’s life, and it certainly isn’t the end all, despite many people unfortunately feeling as if it is. The Navy, whether you’re in for four years or forty years, is just a stepping stone to get you where you ultimately want to be. He asked me some questions about where I saw myself after the Navy, and how old I wanted to be when I no longer had to work. Essentially I set some goals for myself, and now I’m trying to figure out how to achieve them.
The whole thing is now over in my mind. I won’t address the NTWS drama anymore (comments are closed), and I’m using the site solely to find shipmates, not interact with new people. However, I did learn a lot about where I’m lacking, both in the Navy and how I present myself here. My leadership in the Navy leaves a lot to be desired, and some of the things people were telling me not to do, I was unfortunately doing. I’m taking a hard look at myself now and I’m going to try to make the best of whatever time I have left and do something positive for the folks around me. I’m also guilty of some stuff with my blog. I am a professional complainer, which I am aware of…but I’m not entirely fair because while it’s easy to sit and bitch about things that suck, I could easily put a positive spin on something, and see that it might not be entirely unfair or unjust. I also don’t offer solutions, which should I decide to comment on something I find bunk, then I’m going to offer solutions as well.
Anyway, that’s it. We’re in Kure, Japan for a port visit. I’m looking forward to going to the A-bomb museum in nearby Hiroshima, and I’m going to try going to my first Japanese ball game. Posts to follow.
Stripes is running a story about human trafficking in Okinawa. A few years ago, after stories about rampant sex trafficking around Korean military bases were published, the US military has tried to take steps to distance itself from such activity. For one, George Bush signed an executive order making solicitation of prostitutes a crime, and at least the Navy, requires periodic training in human trafficking, especially when pulling into ports like the PI and Thailand. Sex trafficking in Japan, from what I can tell, is an ongoing problem. However, I don’t think it’s specifically a problem for Yokosuka.
When I went to Okinawa, a few buddies and I went to the bar area around Kadena Air Base. We went to a few buy-me-drink bars, where girls sit and talk with you as long as you’re steadily buying them drinks. It’s common in Japan, and since I’ve never seen an instance where sex was an option, it’s not something I thought was a problem. My attitude changed pretty quickly after talking with a girl one of the places we went. I asked her how she liked it in Okinawa, and she replied that she hated it. She was a Filipina and said she was promised she could come to Okinawa to be a singer. Instead she has to work the bar, and is required to get a certain number of drinks a night or she has to pay out of her pocket. I didn’t get into whether she had a bar fine and had to go with customers, as I was uncomfortable and just wanted to leave. I gave her money for some more drinks and then convinced my friends we should go somewhere else. It’s a shitty feeling when you see someone who is obviously in need of help, we all understand how trafficking works and this girl was definitely a victim, but really not able to do anything about it. I can’t save her or take her to some shelter, because it just doesn’t work like that. The best I could do is give her enough money that she would hopefully not have to worry about meeting her quota that day, leave the bar, and try to forget about it.
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Someone e-mailed me a PowerPoint presentation created by CNFJ, detailing recent incidents involving US Navy Sailors, and the punishments handed out by the Japanese government. There were some things I haven’t even heard about, and most of the consequences were pretty surprising. I think if there’s ever a deterrent to Sailors acting like drunken fools on liberty, this just might be a good one. I highly recommend that each and every Sailor currently on the USS George Washington, or any Sailor slated to transfer to Japan for the first time, take a good look at this presentation and understand that Japan does not tolerate, and in some instances excessively punishes, Sailors who commit crimes out in town. Below is a Flash version of the PowerPoint. If you can’t view it, download the PowerPoint here.
So I’ve finally settled into the whole First Class thing. I’ve gotten over the weird feeling of being called IT1, and now I’m just trying to figure out what I’m supposed to be doing. If anything, I actually have less work to do. Since my division has a total of four Firsts now, I assumed there wasn’t much of a position for me, which isn’t so bad. Up until today I figured I was relegated to just filling miscellaneous holes in our never ending to-do lists. We had an impromptu Career Development Board (CDB) with our Chief today, where I was told I’m still in the position I was, except I’m not the one who should be doing the work. Instead, I should be the one delegating the tasks to my junior guys and ensuring they get whatever training and knowledge they need and that I could provide. The lazy side of me thinks it’s a pretty sweet deal, but the other side, the one that would spend days without sleep recovering from equipment casualties and kicking the asses of the gremlins that like to make our equipment go ape-shit, sort of feels lost. As our CMC said “Second classes get paid to fix shit, First classes get paid to lead. The time for you to become a master technician has come and passed.” I liked being a technician.
The policy on our ship is if you’re a First, then you’re inherently a member of the First Class Petty Officer’s Organization (not the association, as you can’t be made to pay dues). We’ve had a handful of meetings, and I’m still not sure what they do. I was told that our overall responsibility was to help the junior Sailors, but aside from a few of the Firsts taking their own initiative with their collateral duties, I don’t see how we help anyone yet. Granted I’m still new, but all I’ve seen so far is a lot of people who aren’t interested in actually participating in anything, and a lot of talk. On the same note, I can’t really fault any of my peers, because I don’t even know how to help the junior folks. I mean know I want to do something to help out, but I can’t even listen to seamen talk to one another without wondering if I sounded just as retarded when I first came in. At this point I know I’m not trying to make Chief or make anyone think I’m someone I’m not, so in the interim, I’m just trying to participate in everything I can in hopes that it’ll make some kind of difference somewhere.
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Mary-Beth wrote me an e-mail asking for my perspective on her confusing relationship situation with an FDNF Sailor. Here’s her e-mail (ship name was removed):
My name is Mary. I really enjoy your blogs. Since you are in the military I would like to ask you a couple questions if you don’t mind. I have an ex boyfriend or boyfriend that is stationed on the USS [“Some Ship”]. I’m unsure of our relationship status because he has been very back and forth. He got orders to come to Japan 3 1/2 years ago. I am a recent graduate and during my second year of college I was suppose to study abroad in Japan so we could be together but ended up not going because I could sense over the phone he was acting very mentally different. I wasn’t sure if this is the result of another girl but was unsure. His entire family goes to my church and I had a great relationship with his mom until I decided not to go to Japan 3 times and study abroad. Now, I feel that if it was meant to be he would have come back for me but I’m quite unsure about this situation. I feel as if I have to beg him to email me back like once a week. He says he cares and he just wants to be friends but then he sometimes changes his mind. I really care for him because we were great friends since we were kids and now that I’ve have a great career he decides to show back up in my life. He will be getting out of the navy sometime this year but my question is, did he cheat on me? Was he saying he wanted to just stay friends because he didn’t want to cheat on me? I’m so confused and I know you’re not a psychologist but I enjoy your blogs and thought you could write a little about the double lives of sailors sometimes. The weird thing about this is we’ve never had sex and sometimes I think that’s it, he wants sex from other women or he either is just really focused about his duties in the navy. I know no one is perfect so I forgive easily. Can you help with a great blog?
Mary’s right in that I’m not a shrink, but I’ll still to give my perspective. I’m not sure the cause, but being out here tends to make you forget of everything you have back home. I go through it, and so do many of my close friends. You can even ask my mother who would agree that I don’t call or e-mail very often, or as often as I should. I think it has to do with the overall operational tempo with being in the FDNF. There’s a lot of work and stress associated with being on a ship out here, so when we have off, it’s usually spent sleeping or finding less than savory ways to blow off steam. Situational depression could also be a factor, as many people out here haven’t been away from home all that much, and it’s easier to just be distant with those back home so you’re not reminded of the people and things you miss. That’s at least my reason. It could also just be sheer laziness.
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Just a quick note here folks. If you happen to be the person who posted a previous comment under the nickname “OLD SALT,” please contact me via e-mail. I sent an e-mail to the address that was tied to the comment, but I suspect the author may be on a ship or somewhere else they can’t access web mail. If you happen to read this, send me an e-mail…you’ll still be as anonymous as you want to be. Thanks.
I know sometimes I can be pretty hard on the Navy and make it seem like my service has all been attributed to one big mistake. That’s not entirely true. When I was going up for my ESWS qualification and studying the section for Navigation/Administration, I started reading about the Battle of Midway. I heard of it vaguely before, but didn’t really pay much attention to it. After reading it, and further looking it up online, it’s one of the greatest prides I will ever take in calling myself a US Navy Sailor. Seriously, I’m not trying to turn anyone Joe Navy here, but to imagine the Sailors on one of those ships, heading toward what was the largest attack force the Japanese had ever assembled, not sure if they’d make it back home, and eventually taking out FOUR Japanese aircraft carriers, is one of the most inspirational and motivating things I could think of. Yesterday marked the 66th anniversary of this history making event. If you’re unaware of the Battle of Midway, here’s my horrible summary.
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A while ago a reader asked that I do a post on a silent ongoing struggle between DODDS teachers and their principle in Yokosuka. I had no idea that when I posted the blog entry about something I thought was a non-issue, whether teachers should have to stand lunch monitor duty, that it would become my most viewed and commented on post of all time. As the comments went on and people bickered back and forth, I invited the principle in question to post a rebuttal that I would post unedited. I never received anything from him, so I assumed he didn’t even know my little ol’ blog existed. Well, recently a couple little birdies told me that FEWL.NET may have been blocked from the Yokosuka DODDS school computer networks using filtering software. While I have noticed a decline recently in visitors originating from the DODDS domain name, I have no real confirmation as to whether I’ve been blocked. Would anyone be kind enough to confirm this? Should this be true, I wonder why “The Administration,” a.k.a. Mr. Dave Russell wouldn’t just send me an e-mail and have me post his official response. Sure, I’m not a mainstream media outlet or anything, but I get enough eyeballs that his words would go somewhere.
A few weeks ago I met offline with someone who had first hand experience dealing with the DODDS teacher versus principle issue, and they were talking about how the issue was more than just teachers not wanting to stand lunch duty. To my understanding, there was something about a Parent Teacher Organization (PTO…PTA is apparently trademarked) that had concerns with their children being monitored at lunch. It was decided that The Administration would hire, or delegate individuals, to fulfill the lunch monitor role. In the meantime, the teachers had agreed to do it until the appropriate people personnel were available. Some time passes, and no one is brought in to replace the teachers. Some contractual issues are coming up, and since the teachers have been doing it this long, The Administration sees no reason in keeping their original word, and decides to make it a permanent function of the teachers, something that supposedly violates some legal agreements. Now, I’m not a lawyer…I’m not even a sea lawyer, so whether this is true or not, I don’t know. I do, however, know that there are a lot of people smarter and much more familiar with the issue than myself. So can someone please shed some light as to how close to the truth the above statements are? Am I completely off? Has there been any resolution yet to the lunch monitor conflict?
Mr. Russell, the floor is still open should you wish to address the issue, Sir. I’d very much appreciate it.
A few days ago while crawling The Honch, I noticed Geodana’s, a popular “hip-hop” club was closed. Since it’s usually one of the busiest establishments in The Honch, I figured some stupid Sailors got it placed off-limits, but I hadn’t heard or read anything official. Stars and Stripes has an article confirming it was placed off-limits, and that a review board on Yokosuka Naval Base is discussing whether it should be taken off the off-limits list.
From the article:
The club, in the “Honch” entertainment district near the base, was made off-limits to active-duty military on May 23 due to recent incidents involving serving alcohol past a Navy booze curfew and “to overly-intoxicated individuals,” base security officer Lt. Paul Bradley said Monday.
If there’s one reason The Honch has such a bad reputation, it’s because of places like Geodana’s and Club US, another hip-hop club that was on the off-limits list in the past due to brawling and over drunken stupidity. These two clubs are actually permanent Shore Patrol posts. Anytime you walk by either one, there is at least two SP’s standing right outside getting ready to call base security. If it’s gotten to that point, why hasn’t the Navy just put them off-limits completely and make them close down?
I know what some of you are thinking, but this has nothing to do with race. It does, however, have everything to do with the hip-hop attitude and thug mentality many of the patrons of these establishments exhibit. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked down The Honch to see shore patrol or CTF70 Shipmates, a.k.a. undercover shore patrol, stop someone who was entering or exiting these places to tell them to take out their earrings or fake “grills.” Then when you’re in these places, you have hip-hop music that encourages violence and being a thug and whatnot, and I know from working out to hip-hop that it has the ability to make you feel like a badass for no apparent reason (maybe it’s just me). Add alcohol to the mix, and the fact that there are about three females around about 50 dudes who all have one thing on their minds, and you have a recipe for trouble. If the base is serious about putting pressure on these types of bars to fall in line with the Navy’s restrictions, then they need to make an example out of the places that cause most of the problems.
CDR Salamander recently blogged about a Washington Post article that reported only about 36.1% of active duty military are enrolled in the Thrift Savings Plan. While I agree with the CDR that the remaining 63.9% are screwing themselves, I can sort of relate to why it’s not so popular. I originally enrolled in TSP sometime in 2001, not because I wanted to, but because my command made me. Whether they could legally do it or not, they did, and I complied. At that time I didn’t understand anything about it, but they said they were looking out for me so I didn’t care.
A couple years later I’m hurting for money as I’m a junior Sailor who is still living paycheck to paycheck. I learned something new around that time…I could take a loan from TSP. I took out $3,000 and blew it on crap. A couple months later I stopped my TSP contributions all together. I was still paying back the loan, but as a young guy, it’s hard to put money into something you don’t understand and that doesn’t feel tangible. A year later I was looking to invest, but everything confused me. There was so much conflicting information on the Internets, that I just said screw it and started TSP again. I still knew, and to this day, still know very little about the inner workings of TSP, I just figure it couldn’t hurt to contribute to it.
So after reading CDR’s post about it yesterday, I went to the TSP.gov website to see if I could log-in and check my current account status. Needless to say, TSP has one of the coolest and user friendly websites…of 1994. I clicked on the link for my account access, but of course I don’t remember it. So I went to request my account number by e-mail. Problem…you can’t get it via e-mail or the phone. No, you have to have your account number mailed to your address on record with TSP. That would be mother’s house in the US. So I essentially have to wait until the letter gets to my mother’s house, hope she doesn’t throw it out, and then wait for it to be mailed to my ship. Since I didn’t know my password, I thought I’d have that mailed as well. Oh wait, I need my account number to request my password by mail. So, I have to wait for them to mail my account number to the US, then mail it to my ship. THEN I have to go to the TSP site, and request my password be mailed again to my mother’s in the US and then to my ship. So I should have everything in, oh, three months. At which point I’m sure I’ll have completely forgotten I even wanted access to my TSP account. Brilliant!
Sure, I know I should care more about my future, but right now I’m just too busy. I might be more inclined to take it seriously if I actually understood more about it. Whenever I ask someone about it, I just get a bunch of opinions and guesses. If I understood the different options I could select, or could calculate how much money I’d have if I saved for n number of years, then maybe I’d be way more involved. I know I should, but it’s much easier to just say I’ll learn the stock market tomorrow, or I’ll call NavyFCU and figure out what a Roth IRA is next week.
We recently took a DoD health survey that asked a bunch of questions about the lifestyles of military members. We were told it was voluntary, but most of us were made to take it anyway. The facilitator who was handing the booklets out said the survey was completely anonymous, so we should be as honest as possible. Oddly, as people were showing up, he would write their names down on a piece of paper and then hand them a book, each of which had a unique number on it. He said we didn’t have to answer any question we didn’t want to, so most of us skipped the questions about our weight, height, length of time in the service, zip code, etc…pretty much anything identifying. Yes, we’re that paranoid. As I was reading the questions, I imagined the headlines that might come out some time later in the NavyTimes. Things like “Commander’s ban alcohol citing health survey results” or “98% of Sailors want to hang themselves.” I do think this may be used to make some changes, so before that happens I’d like to give everyone a look at just what we had to answer, in case the results get a little skewed. Below is a Flash version of the document. If you can’t see it, you can download the PDF version here.
Someone in the Navy’s Department of Redundancy Department ran out of busy work, because the Navy is now seeking inputs on revising the “Navy Ethos.” From the message, here’s what they’re aiming for:
ETHOS GENERALLY IDENTIFIES THE DISTINGUISHING CHARACTER, CULTURE, OR GUIDING BELIEFS OF A PERSON, GROUP, OR INSTITUTION. THE PURPOSE OF THE NAVY ETHOS STATEMENT IS TO COMMUNICATE AND EMPHASIZE THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES AND VALUES WE WOULD EXPECT TO BE SHARED BY ALL WHO SERVE WITHIN THE NAVY TEAM,MILITARY AND CIVILIAN ALIKE, NO MATTER WHAT COMMUNITY, COMMAND, SPECIALTY, OR POSITION EACH OF US ARE ASSOCIATED WITH.
I figured it was just going to be another Sailor’s Creed, but after reading their initial draft, I was wrong…so so wrong. The Navy Ethos:
We are the men and women of the United States Navy — guardians of American sea power and maritime security.
We are Active Duty, Reserve, and Civilian professionals — a diverse, elite and agile force who aspire to the highest standards of service to our Nation, at home and abroad, at sea and ashore.
We are a disciplined and well-prepared team, committed to mission accomplishment on sea, land, air, and space. We are unwavering in our dedication and accountability to our fellow Sailors and Civilians.
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Jim: 25 year old American living in Yokosuka, Japan. Working for the US Navy as an IT. E-mail
Is your ship or command doing something crazy? Have a tip on something going on in the FDNF? Let me blog about it by shooting me an e-mail with the story!
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USFJ: Troops Commit Less Crimes Than Japanese.
I have to say I highly respect this man, as he’s shown he has the testicular fortitude to essentially tell the Japanese people to look at their own fucked up countrymen before acting like we’re the cause of all their problems. I know it won’t change much, and everytime we get a traffic ticket, we’ll have another thousand protesters at the gate screaming “Go Home USA!” That is, of course, right after they come to an open-base event and buy as much Anthony’s Pizza as they can carry home.
I got this story from one of the foreigner-in-Japan type websites I frequent, FuckedGaijin. Other posts in the thread question the math involved in Mr. Rice’s statement, since there are just under 50,000 US service member in Japan, and over 127 million Japanese residents. I have to agree that the numbers don’t quite add up, but I’d be willing to bet the percent of crimes committed by Japan-based US service members is substantially less than what USFJ stated. Unfortunately, there’s not enough solid data, such as breakdown per crime, etc., to really make an accurate analysis.
Additionally, one of the thread comments from “MeInJapanLongTime” brought up a good point, also arguing that the percentage of crimes by US military could be much lower when taking into account rotations, and lack of experience with living in Japan:
If leaders should get anything out of this, it’s that it’s OK to call bullshit when you see it, instead of just bowing and mumbling sorry.