Japanese Mayor Shot Dead

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

The mayor of the Japanese city of Nagasaki, a prominent anti-nuclear activist, was shot by a yakuza gangster on Tuesday, and news reports said he later died of his wounds.

Mayor Iccho Ito was shot twice late Tuesday outside the city's main train station by a gangster reportedly disgruntled over damage to his car at a public works site, according to Nagasaki prefectural (state) police official Rumi Tsujimoto.

Kyodo News agency and national broadcaster NHK said Ito died of his wounds early Wednesday.

Footage from the southwestern city of Nagasaki showed several officers wrestling a man to the ground and pushing him into a police car, and an ambulance leaving the scene as police shouted for bystanders to get out of the way.

Tetsuya Shiroo, a senior member of Yamaguchi-gumi, Japan's largest organized crime group, was arrested on the spot for attempted murder, police said.

Shiroo has admitted to shooting Ito with a handgun with the intent to kill, Nagasaki chief investigator Kazuki Umebayashi said in a televised news conference.

One of the bullets reached the heart of the 61-year-old mayor, who went into cardiac arrest, according to hospital official Kenzo Kusano. He underwent emergency surgery and was on life support, but reports said he later died.

It was the second attack in recent years against a mayor of Nagasaki, which was destroyed by a U.S. atomic bomb in 1945 and whose leaders have actively campaigned against militarism and nuclear proliferation.

In 1990, former Nagasaki Mayor Hitoshi Motoshima was shot and seriously wounded after saying Japan's emperor, beloved by rightists, bore some responsibility for World War II.

Tuesday's attack appeared to involve a more trivial matter, however.

Shiroo reportedly clashed with Nagasaki city over a traffic accident in 2003, when his car was damaged after he drove into a hole in the ground at a public works construction site.

The gangster tried unsuccessfully to get compensation for the damage after his insurance policy refused to pay up, according to NHK.

Shiroo had also sent a letter to broadcaster TV Asahi to protest recent money scandals linked to Ito, including hidden accounts and public works contracts, according to Kyodo.

Ito, backed by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, was campaigning for his fourth term. He was an active figure in the movement against nuclear proliferation, heading a coalition of Japanese cities calling for the elimination of nuclear weapons.

Peace activists expressed shock.

"Mayor Ito had a strong and boundless passion for peace," said Sunao Tsuboi, leader of a survivors' group based in Hiroshima, a city also flattened by an atomic bomb in 1945.

"The authorities must conduct a rigorous investigation and get to the bottom of this," Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said in a statement late Tuesday.

Commonly known as yakuza, Japan's organized crime groups are involved in real estate and construction kickback schemes, extortion, gambling, the sex industry, gunrunning and drug trafficking.

The yakuza are also behind most shootings in Japan, where handguns are strictly banned. Two-thirds of the country's 53 known shootings in 2006 were gang-related, according to the National Police Agency. Police estimate that there are about 84,500 gangsters across Japan.

The yakuza have had a long-standing political alliance with right-wing nationalists, though authorities gave no indication that Tuesday's attack was politically motivated.

Though attacks against politicians are uncommon in Japan, three have been killed since World War II, including socialist leader Inejiro Asanuma, who was stabbed to death by a right-wing activist at a rally in Tokyo.

Another opposition lawmaker was killed by a mentally unstable assailant in 1990, while a ruling party politician was fatally stabbed in 2002 in a dispute over political funds.

Last year, a right-wing extremist burned down the house of ruling party lawmaker Koichi Kato after the politician criticized a prime minister's pilgrimage to a controversial Tokyo war shrine.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/04/17/...in2695446.shtml

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

My dad used to work for a Japanese company during the 1990's and it surprised me how connected some of those Yakuza types apparently are. He tried to save the company money by recommending that they use a different vendor to ship electrical components, but was told that they "had" to use that company (which charged 3 times more than the nearest competitor) for "security" reasons.

[Ban Hammer 13,342]

The yakuza are also behind most shootings in Japan, where handguns are strictly banned.

but if handguns are banned, there won't be any shootings.........at least that is what some sheep would like for us to believe.

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

The yakuza are also behind most shootings in Japan, where handguns are strictly banned.

but if handguns are banned, there won't be any shootings.........at least that is what some sheep would like for us to believe.

Virginia Tech is a good example when guns are outlawed.... only outlaws have guns. It's a fitting cliche. The armed campus police were little help.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

The yakuza are also behind most shootings in Japan, where handguns are strictly banned.

but if handguns are banned, there won't be any shootings.........at least that is what some sheep would like for us to believe.

I would hazard a guess and say that for the most part - gangster violence is restricted to "their own kind". Moreover pulling a gun on one of those people would likely get you a one way ticket to the bottom of a river in several suitcases...

Also wondered about this...

The yakuza have had a long-standing political alliance with right-wing nationalists, though authorities gave no indication that Tuesday's attack was politically motivated.

I wonder if that holds true for the various Mafia groups in the US

Edited April 18, 2007 by erekose

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Would you also be surprised to know that while Japan has strict controls on projectile weapons it actually has a very low crime rate...?

[Ban Hammer 13,342]

Moreover pulling a gun on one of those people would likely get you a one way ticket to the bottom of a river in several suitcases...

you're still not getting it, are you? if they intend to bust some caps in your #######, what have you got to lose?

Would you also be surprised to know that while Japan has strict controls on projectile weapons it actually has a very low crime rate...?

most of which i attribute to cultural background.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Moreover pulling a gun on one of those people would likely get you a one way ticket to the bottom of a river in several suitcases...

you're still not getting it, are you? if they intend to bust some caps in your #######, what have you got to lose?

Hypothetically not much - but then (in Japan) it doesn't seem to be a choice you're likely to be faced with....

Would you also be surprised to know that while Japan has strict controls on projectile weapons it actually has a very low crime rate...?

most of which i attribute to cultural background.

Hence the ownership (or lack thereof) of firearms is really irrelevant to curbing crime. All of which says to me that certain cultures cannot solve their problems without resorting to increased violence.

Edited April 18, 2007 by erekose

[Ban Hammer 13,342]

Would you also be surprised to know that while Japan has strict controls on projectile weapons it actually has a very low crime rate...?

most of which i attribute to cultural background.

Hence the ownership (or lack thereof) of firearms is really irrelevant to curbing crime. All of which says to me that certain cultures cannot solve their problems without resorting to increased violence.

at least in japan. cultural differences between there and the usa probably account for a much lower crime rate in japan. yet that does not mean we should go the same route.

on another note, i have to also wonder if japan has a meth and crack problem too like the usa, which drives some of the usa crime.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Would you also be surprised to know that while Japan has strict controls on projectile weapons it actually has a very low crime rate...?

most of which i attribute to cultural background.

Hence the ownership (or lack thereof) of firearms is really irrelevant to curbing crime. All of which says to me that certain cultures cannot solve their problems without resorting to increased violence.

at least in japan. cultural differences between there and the usa probably account for a much lower crime rate in japan. yet that does not mean we should go the same route.

on another note, i have to also wonder if japan has a meth and crack problem too like the usa, which drives some of the usa crime.

I'm sure it doesn't - just seems to me that by the time you're relying on firearms to keep the peace its already too late.

[Ban Hammer 13,342]

Would you also be surprised to know that while Japan has strict controls on projectile weapons it actually has a very low crime rate...?

most of which i attribute to cultural background.

Hence the ownership (or lack thereof) of firearms is really irrelevant to curbing crime. All of which says to me that certain cultures cannot solve their problems without resorting to increased violence.

at least in japan. cultural differences between there and the usa probably account for a much lower crime rate in japan. yet that does not mean we should go the same route.

on another note, i have to also wonder if japan has a meth and crack problem too like the usa, which drives some of the usa crime.

I'm sure it doesn't - just seems to me that by the time you're relying on firearms to keep the peace its already too late.

true, but also denying firearms to the law abiding populace for self defense is criminal.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Would you also be surprised to know that while Japan has strict controls on projectile weapons it actually has a very low crime rate...?

most of which i attribute to cultural background.

Hence the ownership (or lack thereof) of firearms is really irrelevant to curbing crime. All of which says to me that certain cultures cannot solve their problems without resorting to increased violence.

at least in japan. cultural differences between there and the usa probably account for a much lower crime rate in japan. yet that does not mean we should go the same route.

on another note, i have to also wonder if japan has a meth and crack problem too like the usa, which drives some of the usa crime.

I'm sure it doesn't - just seems to me that by the time you're relying on firearms to keep the peace its already too late.

true, but also denying firearms to the law abiding populace for self defense is criminal.

I just don't subscribe to the "old west" Lone Wolf mentality. The guy who shot those kids obtained weapons somehow and by current info apparently legally - had this not been the case I think he would have had to find another way of exorcising his demons in all probability in a way that wouldn't have resulted in 30+ dead people.

[Ban Hammer 13,342]

I just don't subscribe to the "old west" Lone Wolf mentality. The guy who shot those kids obtained weapons somehow and by current info apparently legally - had this not been the case I think he would have had to find another way of exorcising his demons in all probability in a way that wouldn't have resulted in 30+ dead people.

you've made your thoughts clear on what you term the "old west" mentality, which also shows your prejudice towards such just by the name you label such with.

yes, it's sad that he was able to purchase such legally. yet is the real answer disarming everyone who is a law abiding citizen the answer? i refer you to the above, which shows that although handguns are illegal in japan, killings still do occur.

my question is - if everyone is armed, will we really have events like this?

Edited April 18, 2007 by charlesandnessa

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

I just don't subscribe to the "old west" Lone Wolf mentality. The guy who shot those kids obtained weapons somehow and by current info apparently legally - had this not been the case I think he would have had to find another way of exorcising his demons in all probability in a way that wouldn't have resulted in 30+ dead people.

you've made your thoughts clear on what you term the "old west" mentality, which also shows your prejudice towards such just by the name you label such with.

yes, it's sad that he was able to purchase such legally. yet is the real answer disarming everyone who is a law abiding citizen the answer? i refer you to the above, which shows that although handguns are illegal in japan, killings still do occur.

my question is - if everyone is armed, will we really have events like this?

I'm not sure I understand your point - that firearms will stop all murders? I doubt too many people believe that...

I don't dispute the statistics that CCH and the liberal firearm laws have lowered crime in certain areas, but I don't think the answer to stopping criminality is to give everyone a gun. I just don't believe its a clear cut case - of "give everyone a gun" and you'll stop crime. Clearly its not as clear cut as that - as in the case of Japan, which (cultural factors aside) has a comparatively low crime rate. IMO the firearm issue is a short-term fix, sure you'll cut crime initially - but on balance you can't dispute that the kind of craziness that took place yesterday happens with disturbing regularity in the US - more so than other countries.

Noone wants to deal with the tough issues - for example, why do so many people in the US live below the poverty line (poverty a major factor in criminal behaviour). Its a quick fix to avoid having to actually address many of the disparities (economic and otherwise) that exist in this country. If Japan has a less violent culture, why don't we? What do you think is the cause of this?

Edited April 18, 2007 by erekose

[Ban Hammer 13,342]

I just don't subscribe to the "old west" Lone Wolf mentality. The guy who shot those kids obtained weapons somehow and by current info apparently legally - had this not been the case I think he would have had to find another way of exorcising his demons in all probability in a way that wouldn't have resulted in 30+ dead people.

you've made your thoughts clear on what you term the "old west" mentality, which also shows your prejudice towards such just by the name you label such with.

yes, it's sad that he was able to purchase such legally. yet is the real answer disarming everyone who is a law abiding citizen the answer? i refer you to the above, which shows that although handguns are illegal in japan, killings still do occur.

my question is - if everyone is armed, will we really have events like this?

I'm not sure I understand your point - that firearms will stop all murders? I doubt too many people believe that...

I don't dispute the statistics that CCH and the liberal firearm laws have lowered crime in certain areas, but I don't think the answer to stopping criminality is to give everyone a gun. I just don't believe its a clear cut case - of "give everyone a gun" and you'll stop crime. Clearly its not as clear cut as that - as in the case of Japan, which (cultural factors aside) has a comparatively low crime rate. IMO the firearm issue is a short-term fix, sure you'll cut crime initially - but on balance you can't dispute that the kind of craziness that took place yesterday happens with disturbing regularity in the US - more so than other countries.

Noone wants to deal with the tough issues - for example, why do so many people in the US live below the poverty line (poverty a major factor in criminal behaviour). Its a quick fix to avoid having to actually address many of the disparities (economic and otherwise) that exist in this country. If Japan has a less violent culture, why don't we? What do you think is the cause of this?

not saying firearms will stop all murders - but it will give innocent people a way to protect themselves in extremis.

yes, those applying for a cch will need to pass certain background checks in order to qualify for such - and i do have some reservations about having to pay a fee for such anyways as the only way to exercise my right to bear arms is by paying a fee - but anyways, it seems to be a necessary thing nowadays just to be able to have that peace of mind should i be at the wrong place at the wrong time.

yes, the events of yesterday were crazy. my heart goes out to the victims of such.

as i stated earlier, japan has a different culture. honor and family and all of that. does such exist here? i also stated in a previous post that i felt drugs might be a contributing factor to the difference between japan and the usa's crime rate.

Edited April 18, 2007 by charlesandnessa