`You Will Never Be One of Us` A Japanese Native Finally Admits It. The Merger of Nationalism and Race in Japan.

Howdy! I have not touched on this topic in a while because there are bigger things going on here on the island. Yet I`ll be damned if someone does not say something which forces it back on topic. If you have lived in Japan long enough, you will notice something about native Japanese. Many, but not all, feel they are special simply because they are Japanese. They do not feel they are special because they have a unique personality, are highly educated, have gain a certain level of success in life or anything like that at all. They feel they are special because they were born Japanese and the rest of the world was not. This type of mindset can also be found in the United States; yet it is a little different. In the states this type of nationalism is not so connected to race and ethnic background as it is in Japan. You will find many Americans who feel that simply because they were born in the United States of America they are special and just a little better than people from other nations. 

Let me make it very clear that nationalism is not a bad thing. Nationalism, when it comes organically(often referred to as patriotism) from the people, is an attempt by the people to protect their own nation is ensure their own collective survival. Although, when nationalism is promoted by `the state` it often produces hatred and elitism among the population toward those who are not a citizen of said nation. As we all know, a nation fully ran and controlled by the people is hard to create and even harder to maintain. While Americans have gone to great lengths to smash racism from their nation and now struggle to take back their own government, many people in Japan refuse to deal with racism and have never really had full control over their government. Such differences is exactly why the opinion which the person in the video below expresses is common in Japan.







As you watched in the video, he clearly says `You will never be Japanese.` His reasoning for this is not shocking for me due to the strong sense of tribalism in Japan which can be a pure bitch to deal with at times. Now, to give this person credit, he is trying to be polite. He does try to hide his own racism by mixing it with nationalism. He takes the position that because he was born in Japan(nationalism) and has Japanese blood(racism) that he is Japanese and someone who was not born in Japan and does not have Japanese blood can never be Japanese. Even if you master the language, pay taxes, maintain a job be a part of society and gain citizenship you can never be Japanese according to this person`s mindset. Of course, such a mindset is very silly when you consider the nature of human society. Human society has no choice but to change and evolve over time. For any human society to survive it must become more diverse and have fresh ideas injected into it. Japan is a society which is thousands of years old. It has been evolving for a long time into what we see today. Does anyone really think that Japan has survived this long without immigration? Koreans and Chinese have been immigrating to Japan for almost as long as there has been a Japan.  I know from my own experience that the average person in Japan feels a hard sting when ever you mention Korean or Chinese immigration. They hate to admit that Koreans and Chinese people have been influencing Japanese society for a very long time.  Bring up how they have treated Koreans and Chinese over the years and they feel the sting even deeper.

It seems to be that many people in Japan want to feel special simply because they have so-called Japanese blood and are born in Japan. Well, if they are so special then why has Japanese society depended on immigration so much over the years to inject fresh ideas into the society, increase the overall population, create a larger labor force and even provide for a larger military? It seems to be that this idea that native born Japanese are somehow special and unique started during the empire days of Japanese history. It was during the days of empire that Japanese society started to regard themselves as being better than other Asians and felt that it was their right to have dominance over them. Even today Japanese history refers to WW2 as `The War of Asian Liberation` as to somehow suggest that it was Japan which was protecting the `lower` Asians from the evil westerners. When in fact it was the Japanese empire which was exploiting other Asian cultures and using force to gain the advantages of mingling with other cultures.

In my opinion, post WW2 Japan only made the situation worse. For the first time, being exploited was on the other shoe for Japan; and it keeps going on even to this day. After being exploited by westerners powers for about 64 years the idea that Japanese are special are unique seems to be a way native born Japanese blind themselves to their own exploitation.  You know, `We are special so we get special treatment from America. We are not being exploited.` Many westerners come to Japan and exploit the hell out of this island. In order to deal with that it seens to me many Japanese say that, `We are special and unique which is why so many gaijin want to come and live here.` In reality, many westerners come to Japan because they can make a decent amount of money, behave with total disregard for what is happening around them, not have to get involved in any aspect of Japanese society and cherry pick the parts of Japan they like and create their own image of Japan to brag to their friends about. So, you can see how a lot of Japanese would create an elitist attitude about being native born in Japan even if it carries no real weight in the big picture. Their racism does them no favors but to give them piece of mind that they are `special.`

It would make far better sense, at least to me, to give up on nationalist racism and focus more on trying to find allies who understand their situation and frustration over what Japan has become. Maybe then they could start to break the chains which the post-war era and modern globalism agenda has placed on their society. Yet, to simply think that `We are Japanese and we are special` without the ass to cash the checks their mouths are writing, will put them in an even deeper hole than they already are.

The Redneck Knows Whats up! Asshole!

Howdy! It is me again. Everyone`s favorite gaijin rebel. Once again I take to writing on this little blog of mine to express things which are often not expressed when it comes to the topic of Japan. I know, some of you really fucking hate me. Some people out there even think that I am a dumb ass hillybilly without a clue. I am okay with such thinking these days because I am much stronger then when I first started writing this blog. For example, take a look at that picture there. Yeah, that is me. I must have been about 24 in this picture. It was taken in Vegas of all places. I was trying to look good for the lady. She was special to me, and still is, a big part of my life. In those days I was a rebel with no direction nor purpose. I hated the way things were but had no clear idea as to how to change things. All I knew was that I did not like the ways things were. I could feel it in my heart but had no way to clearly express the major problems I saw daily. So...what did I do? Well, I rebelled in every way I could.

I hated the massive amount of racism which surrounded me. So, I decided to refuse to date white women as a rejection of the thinking that white women were better than non-white gals. In fact, my best emotional and sexual experiences have been with non-white women. Taste the world boys, and you will never go back to white gals. I hated how everyone focused on money all the time. So, I started to barter with my friends and avoid exchanging money as much as I could. I offered `other` services in exchange for a bit of `the good life.` The power of the cult of personality became very clear to me at a very early age. If people `like you` you would be surprised what they will do for you in exchange for your time or company. If you can make people feel good either with your ideas or charm, they will give you all the `gold` you could ever want. It still amazes me how I can get people to do things for me just because they `like me.` Yet, all is not perfect in Never Never Land.

Something happened which I did not expect....I got older and my mind aged with my body.

Wisdom is a gift and a curse. I am sure it happened as I left my 20`s. I had spend the majority of my 20`s rebelling against the things I did not like at random. I had no clear plan nor direction. I reacted very naturally without fear of punishment or social backlash. In my late 20`s I got my first taste of hardcore establishment at the highest levels. Think about it, rebellious guy in his late 20`s given total control of an entire area of a company. I was given free reign to do as I wished as long as nothing went wrong. I thought I had achieved exactly what I wanted; having the power to change things from the inside out. Damn...was I wrong.

It did not take long for me to see that something was not as it seemed. I was told to do as I see fit but I also noticed that I got blamed for many things which I had nothing to do with. At first, I brushed it off as assholes being assholes...but that was my biggest mistake. You see, in the corporate world assholes run the show. There are no good people in management so you can get a good picture as to my situation. Shit really does flow in one direction...straight fucking down hill! If one of those assholes could blame me for something, they would do so gladly. So, in my rebellious nature I decided to fight. Little did I know that assholes always play dirty. I underestimated the slimy level assholes will go in order to save their own ass. I was shocked and beside myself by what I witnessed go down. They tried to set everyone up. It made me sick to my stomach and gave me nightmares for months! Yet, I survived it all and came out of it pretty clean. I did lose my so-called title but I did not care about that so much in the first place. I will never forget that experience for as long as I live because it was a turning point on my life. I finally realized what the problem was...greed hate and ego.

It all really comes down to these things; greed, hate and ego.

When I was a little bit younger, I did not realize the driving forces I was playing on to get the things I wanted. Now, I am fully aware, at the age of 32, exactly what drives men and women of power. Give them a chance to make more money; they will love you. Give them a change to take revenge on those they see as a threat; they will love you. Give them a regular boost to their ego; they will consider you as a half god. Yet, the moment you challenge the establishment or do something which puts their power in question, they will come at you with all the rage of hell. It is still shocking for me to see someone change so quickly in regards to their attitude towards me. I have seen men and women go from worshiping the ground I walk on to cursing the same ground to the fires of hell. If I do not make them money, help them destroy others or feed their ego, I must be against them. This is the mind set we, the common people, are dealing with. And in Tokyo, the seat of the national government, greed hate and ego rules over everything.

If you dig deep enough in this blog, you will read about my struggle to understand the darkness which surrounds me. It is a pretty interesting story to say the least. A mountain boy comes to the big bad city of Tokyo. He is amazed by all that he sees. People seem to `like` him. Then once his natural since of justice is exposed, the darkness comes to destroy him. Yet, the hate greed and ego did not destroy me. I am still here and standing taller than before. These days, I am fully aware of whats up and I do not approve. I could easily run but I don`t like the easy way. I would rather stand and fight. You would be surprised by how many good people there actually are in Tokyo. The problem is that they are scared of what is to come. Japan is damn near on the verge of revolution and many people are scared of such things. They don`t know if they should go for it or sit on the fence and wait it out. That is where my foreignness comes into play. If they see that I can break the so-called rules, speak my mind openly and live a life with meaning, well who knows what might happen. 

Until You See It For Yourself....Japanese ARE Trying to have Democracy

Japan has never been an easy place to understand. That may be a major understatement, but it is important to remind ourselves of that fact from time to time. If you have not noticed, Japan is unique even in Asia. Attempts at democracy are not the norm in Asia. Most of Asia has been, and still is, under the control of some form of directorship or fascist government often pretending to be socialist or communist. The closest thing to socialism any nation in Asia has would be Vietnam. Yet, even in Vietnam the process has had setbacks. Yet, here in Japan the people have been giving democracy the "old college try" since the post war days.

I know...we see all the massive corruption, lies, gang connections and total disconnect the government of Japan displays on a daily basis and we think to ourselves; "There is no democracy in this nation." That is easy enough to think and say. It is easy to see things that way because most people do not see the people of Japan fight for their rights and stand up for democracy. So many foreigners see the Japanese as meek defeated people who have decided to lay down and take it up the ass from their government. If you see the Japanese in such a manner, then it is very clear that you have not been paying attention.

I often wonder these days what is it everyone expects from the Japanese people on a daily basis. Do people want them to be loud, rude, direct and generally hostile to everyone they meet? I have done plenty of that in my life and I know the results of such a lifestyle. American style of rebellion is not the same as Japanese rebellion. Yes! Japan has a different culture and different history! They don't go about their daily lives in the same manner at people in the west do. Yeah, a lot of them want to scream and shout at all the ugly they see everyday. I am sure under all that sternness and seriousness there is a wild rebel begging to come out. Most Japanese have been brainwashed. You MUST understand that! It took me a long time to understand that fact. Until I did realize there has been some major brainwashing which has went down in this nation, I used to think Japanese are meek people as well.

But...times they are a changing...


An every growing number of Japanese people are getting pissed the fuck off. So angry in fact that can can no longer hold their peace about it. I know this because I have been right there with them. Do you wanna see what I am talking about? Here take a look and tell me what you think.







So that is what I have seen. Yes! I am the one filming and uploading those videos you may or may not have seen before. Times they are a changing in Japan. These people are not meek nor are they defeated. It just took them a long time, and the right major event to happen, to help them to get pissed off enough to take to the street and demand democracy work in their favor.

An Asshole Ghost in Tokyo

 It was bound to happen sooner or later. Hell, how long can an American live so detached and removed from all the Monday Night Football, Hot Dogs, guns, apple pie, rebellion, lame beer, arrogance, nationalist pride and raw aggression before something starts to change. Yeah, I have been to some pretty twisted places in my mind during my life in Tokyo so far. I started out as a hillbilly who was just happy to not be in the United States to something all together different. My path though Tokyo has led to places in my mind I thought did not exist. I have been damn near all the way to the bottom of hell in ones own mind during my time in this city. I have pretty much seen the beauty and the darkness of Tokyo and it has taken my mind right along for the ride. Yet, I have been able to notice something about me which I did not notice before. I am a bit less American than I once was.

Don't misunderstand me dammit! I am not turning Japanese or any lame crap like that at all. It is more of a change of perspective. If you dig deep enough in this blog of mine, you will find all the little pieces of this journey in all it's silliness, madness and illogical glory. It has took a lot for me to reach the point I am at now. There are post buried deep in this blog in which I go on and on about temples, food and little places I liked. You will also find angry rants on things which drove me mad. There are also a few post in which I express my loneliness while being stuck at a internet cafe for a night(I went though a period of sleeping in internet cafes just to escape from everything). There are drunken rants along with drunken tales. I even got a post or two about having a damn mental break down. I tried to stop smoking a few times, which ended in failure and promises to myself to stop drinking heavily.  I have wrote about teaching English and some of my theories about it. All of those things have led up to the point I am at now.

Not Anti-American; Not Non-American; Not Un-American but....less American.

Asia has changed me. I have learned that the soft American lifestyle, which many Americans still enjoy despite all the unemployment and desperation they are facing, is something truly odd in the world at large. The idea that someone can be without a job for years on end and still have enough to eat and a decent chance at not ending up homeless is very strange concept indeed. It is only in America that someone can be morbidly obese yet still demand and expect it to be, not only acceptable, but discrimination if someone calls them out on it. To call someone a fat ass in America is damn near a sin from what I have learned. In fact, to expect someone to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps and at least try in life is also becoming a sin. Now, I understand all about class struggle and how this effects a person's upward mobility. I am not talking about class struggle here. I am talking about the unique American ability to simply declare, "I don't care about anything but my own feelings toward anything. I like living in a bubble because the government, and society, must take care of me no matter what I do." This whole idea of "failure does not matter" and "everyone must accept me no matter what I do to myself" can only be found in such a nation as America. I used to think the exact same way because after all...I am a child of America.

Yet, these days I am less of an American than I used to be.

It is no secret that I grew up pretty damn rough. I know hunger and I know what it is like to fight to survive. But, even in my worst days in America, my life was far easier than the working poor in China or Vietnam or for that matter Japan. When you are poor in most parts of the world, you are really fucking poor. You really don't have shit! At least in America, I did have some food to eat. Bless the goodness of Regan cheese and Regan powdered milk. At least I had people around me who could provide me with some happiness. My parents were damn poor but there were others around who had enough money to give a little taste of what other kids had. I stole things just to take care of myself, but to some poor kid in China, my idea of stealing would make him laugh. Hell, you never see the kids that hang out in Yokohama? They are some rough bastards to say the least. I have seen those little fuckers fight over damn near nothing. Those same kids usually live in an apartment the size of a McDonald's deep freeze; and most likely just as cold in the winter. For fuck's sake, a guy in Vietnam came up to me with no arms asking me if I wanted to buy a book about the Vietnam war! After seeing and experiencing things like that, I have become less American.

Yes! It has become harder for me to accept people who are big as a Hummer screaming about how everyone should cut them a break. I have lost some of my ability to understand someone who leaves a comfortable life, with a decent place to live and a decently stable job yell about "my rights! my rights! Everyone is a fucking racist!" When I hear someone complain about how much society sucks and they hate it all, but do damn little other than bitch and point the finger without working towards making the situation better, are sad in my mind. Those who do little to add or enhance society demanding to be handed to keys to the kingdom all the damn time! What the fuck is wrong with you people? Really!? You want everything society has to offer without getting involved in society. You want to just walk into a perfect situation without having to earn your metal. That type of attitude and behavior has made me less American.

Yet, with all that said, I was not feeling this way them I first came to Japan. Yes, I bitched a lot and failed to understand some of the things which were going on around me.  Yet, the longer I lived in Japan, and traveled around the world a bit more, I started to see that the American way of life truly breeds weakness and arrogance. I feel that at this point the weakness of arrogance has all but been beat out of me. Yes, I am still human and have my moments when I cry, doubt myself and feel like the weight of the world is on my shoulders. Yet, now I have developed a distaste for those who have it all and still complain that they are not shitting pure gold.

Less American? Yes! Un-American? No!

Okay Gaijin. We Need to Talk About the Nuclear Issue and Your Need for Acceptence in Japanese Society.

Okay fellow gaijin....we need to talk. No! I mean really talk. In my last post, I shared a little bit of my take and experience of 'micro-aggression' or racism in Japan. Such social issues are very important and need to be talked about. Racism is ugly no matter what form it takes. Yet, it seems to me that a lot of gaijin are either blind, scared, brainwashed or simply don't give a fuck about the single most important issue facing Japan today. Did you know that nuclear power, and energy policy, is damn near tearing Japan apart? There is a massive battle going on over this issue and it seems very clear to me that most gaijin are choosing to put their head in the sand about this. Y'all are refusing to talk about it, notice it or even admit that it is actually happening. Many of you say you want to be apart of Japanese society and treated as an equal. You say you are being kept on the outer rim of Japanese society. I understand that...really I do. Yet, are you trying to be apart of Japanese society? We talk a lot about "accept me! accept me!" What are you doing to be accepted?

Right now, the people of Japan are fighting for, not only the future of Japan, but the future of the world. What are you doing to help the people in their fight? Are you blogging about what is really going on? Are you making videos covering this massive fight against nuclear power? Have you been to a anti-nuclear protest? Are you standing up for the same people who you demand accept you?

Call me a crazy hillbilly all you want, but I have been doing all of the above things I ask if you have done. I want to be apart of Japanese society as well and I actively involve myself in the society. Yet, what I see a lot of gaijin doing is demanding that Japanese accept them, bitch about other gaijin, refuse to get involved in Japanese society and still behave as if they deserve to be treated as an equal. You will be treated as an equal when you show you deserve it. You have to get involved in what is really doing on. The Japanese people need you now more than ever. Can't all of you see that? What the fuck is wrong with my fellow gaijin? Who is really selling who out? Who is really the racist?

Of course, there will always be a part of Japanese society which hates us. It does not matter what we say to those people; they will find an excuse to hate us. Yes! We should point out and expose such people. Yet, there is something much bigger going on in Japan than your fucking bitching and complaining about how "the Japanese treat me like shit because I am a gaijin." There is a time and place for that. Yeah, I have already shared with all of you my take on experiencing racism in Japan. Now, if you want to be a part of Japanese society, you are going to have to stand by the people and fight with them. The nuclear issue in Japan is not just a Japanese problem, but a human problem which effect us all.

You want to be a part of Japanese society, then fucking act like it and fight for these people who need your love and support now more than ever!

Link to my Youtube channel
 https://www.youtube.com/user/freedomwv

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Microaggression In Japan: Jealous and Spiteful Japanese Reactionaries

It is only a problem when we do it; right?

Howdy Y'all! It happened again it seems. Life, and other things, pulled me away from this blog. Yet, everyone's favorite gaijin hillbilly is back again. I have more things I want to talk about with y'all again. More things to share and more ideas to express. Make sure to read this and this before going forward to understand what I am about to bring up.

I hope you are ready because...here...we...go.


Anyone with a clue, and sadly there are not many, realize there is a major double standard here in Japan when it comes to us gaijin and Japanese folk. Just take a look at the pic to your left. I am sure that while Japanese men can be horny wolves who chase anything with a pussy, when gaijin men do the exact same thing we are the bad guys.  I have seen so many J-dudes treat women like shit yet these same men get pissed off when a gaijin man even raises his voice to a women in public. Truth be known, a lot of J-dudes don't help their lady friend out so much. Of course, I have talked to a hell of a lot of J-dudes during my time in Japan so far. When the topic of 'helping yo lady' comes up there are common responses such as, 'I don't cook, that is women's work, I don't know how to clean my own clothes, that is for women to do, It is better that women never give their opinion, Men make money, women serve men etc...' Yet, you dare let one of us gaijin mutter any negative opinion toward Japanese women and suddenly we are the lowest form of shit in the universe. I do not hold any of the attitudes or opinions about the opposite sex mentioned in the above sentences, but that does not matter to the average Japanese. It seems that because I am gaijin, I must clearly be a rapist and a women beater no matter what the truth may be. After many years of dealing with this double standard, it seems clear to me that the Japanese mindset is such that they can be dirty slime balls as much as they want but gaijin are expected to be the highest form of human perfection. It seems the agenda is to make it so hard to adjust to life in Japan that we will give up and 'go home.'

Although, the method to attempt to force us to 'give up and go home' is a complex one indeed. This is were microaggression comes into play.

I look at microaggression in Japan the same way as a dog and a bowel of food. Y'all ever see a dog guard his bowel of food when he is not really hungry? Y'all know, the little bastard does not want the food but he will be dammed if anyone touches it. Microaggression in Japan is very similar to a dog who wants to keep everyone away from a bowl of food he does not want in the first place. Gaijin are expected to be perfect because, in my mind, they want us to be what they are unable to be. They want to hold us up to a standard which most humans simply cannot live up to everyday. Even if you are somehow able to live up to even a fraction of that fantasy standard, be damned if we turn right around and expect them to live up to the same standard. That is when the mircoaggression starts.

It goes like this: "We Japanese hate ourselves and our nation. We know we are fucked up and treat you gaijin like shit. Yet, we like being fucked up because it gives us an excuse to blame you for not being as fucked up as us. So, we will guard our bowel of food with the up most aggression, not because we actually like the food, but because as long as we are fucked up and expect you to be perfect you can never get one over on us. We really don't want to live this way but it is better for everyone involved. After all, you are a gaijin, and as we all know, you have a natural advantage over us as being able to move in and out of our society as you please. Fuck you gaijin! Fuck you because due to your sense of liberty and equality people like you and don't like us. So, we must force you to be perfect and pure. As long as we can force you to try to be perfect and pure, we can fuck you over and get away with it. Your forced perfection makes it easier for us to fuck you over as we see fit. If you are actually able to live up to the standard we place on you...well this is Japan so we will turn around and expect you to be just as fucked up as us. As soon as you live up to one standard, we will change the rules and expect you to suddenly live up to a totally new standard which we will create out of thin air. Don't like it? You can always go back to the dirty liberal nation from which you came."

That is the core of microaggression in Japan.


I know, it may be hard to believe me. Fair enough. Due to the cute fucking image of Japan that westerns suck up like scarface on a coke binge, the reality of living in Japan...I mean really living in Japan, is often covered up by images of Shibuya hoes, High school Harajuku shallowness and old beat up temples. That is only the surface of Japan and not the real deal. So, what is it like to deal with mircoaggression? Please allow me to explain.

It usually starts with a look. They look at you with this kind of asshole smile usually followed by some under the belt shot at you verbally. I have pretty much heard it all,"Why do you speak English in Japan?, You don't really use chopsticks correctly; you know?, English is a noisy language, When are you going back to your country?,  Gaijin stink! Take a bath!, Japanese are peaceful people so we don't understand why gaijin are so violent?, You gaijin have too many opinions, Why don't you just do it our way?, Japan is a safe country unlike America were people kill each other for fun, We are farmers and you are hunters so you are violent and we are not, Gaijin all look the same, Why is your noise pointed?, Japanese girls only like you because you have a big dick, and my all time favorite: We lost the war so we have to give you fucking Gaijin visa to come and teach English and fuck stupid Japanese girls." All of these things have actually been said to my face here in Japan.

The above quotes are a perfect example of microaggression in Japan. They seem to have a hard time with holding us up to a fantasy standard, which if we actually live up to, pisses them off beyond belief. It makes me think that a lot of Japanese really do think, deep in their hearts, that gaijin are everything they love and hate about humanity. They hate themselves so in turn they want another group to blame and hate so they will feel better about being uptight assholes who are on a mission to sink their nation to the bottom of the ocean. They cannot admit that they really like us and our way of thinking. If they fully admit they like us then they must also look at themselves and how fucked up they have allowed their society to become. It is simply too much for the average Japanese to do so they often choose to be a nasty little cunt with an ego the size of Mt. Fuji. It makes them feel good to take a shot at a Gaijin.

...And that is microaggression in Japan. If you live here and cannot understand this daily bullshit then you are truly brain dead or brainwashed by the Japanese corp. machine.


And might I add...

There are still many really cool people here in Japan. I have seen things here which also inspire me and uplift me. Not everyone here fits the picture I have just painted. It is just that this post is a picture of a combination of several years living and working in Japan daily. There is a problem with racism and xenophobia in Japan. Still, Japan offers many things besides harsh realities of a semi-isolated society who have a distrust of foreigners.   

I'm a bad man: The Shit You Do When you are Poor

Howdy Yall! Yes, I have returned to this blog to crank out from more posts. You know, bring poor is tough. All I have known for the majority of my life is hardcore poverty. When I first came to Tokyo, I was shocked by some of the things a lot of Japanese are unwilling to do in order to survive. Hell, take away their cell phone and it is as if the end world just started to go down. So many people in this city fail to realize just how easy they got it. Maybe that explains why I struggle to relate to others here in Tokyo. A lot of them were born with a silver spoon in their mouth; while I have had to fight for everything I have. I am sure if I took some of them to West Virginia they would die within a week. They just don't know how to survive. In fact, the only group in Tokyo looked down on more than gaijin is the homeless. There seems to be a certain hatred in this city toward anyone who has to fight to survive. While I grew up with the thinking that you should always try to help someone who is struggling, it seems that in Tokyo someone who is struggling should be exploited, taken advantage of and hated. Capitalism Tokyo style takes one of the most cold blooded forms I have ever experienced.

Despite the cold blooded nature of Tokyo, I will never forget the things I have done in the past in order to make it from one day to the next.

Cigarettes as currency
When you are poor there is little difference between being in jail and walking around on the street. The most common form of currency is about the same as well. If you got cigarettes you can get other stuff which you need more than a smooth smoke. I remember trading smokes for all kinds of things. Everything from CD's and porn mags to food and beer could be bought for only a few cigarettes. Hell, in high school cigarettes were even used as protection money. If you wanted to get in the good graces of the current bully, just give him a few smokes everyday and he will keep the other rocks for brains bullies off your ass. I know that sounds crazy but when everyone around you is poor and hard as nails, you have to find something that folks are willing to be nice to you in order to get.

Not allowed to be smart
When you are poor you are not allowed to be smart. What I mean is if I try hard to drag myself out of a life of poverty, most folks will tear my legs off and try to pin me down. No one wanted me to be better than the mass of poverty stricken folks who have nothing to look forward to in the future. If I got good grades in school than I was, 'a nerd who thinks he is better than everyone else.' If I could hold an intelligent conversation about something other than beer, women, drugs or lame ass music then I was,'a uptight asshole who needs to drink more beer and fuck more bitches.'  And finally, if I go to college, expand my mind, and then get the fuck out of America the first chance I got then I was, 'a traitor who has no loyalty to anyone and does not deserve to be an American.' All of those things are what it means to be considered smart in West Virginia. Now, there are exceptions of course. I knew some really interesting intelligent folks back in the mountains. They were the ones I got high with and talked about politics, society and what we can do to make our world a better place to live. I remember each and everyone of those folks who inspired me to reach for the stars and escape a life of poverty. 

Stealing!
If you want to learn how to be a master thief, just ask someone who grew up dirt poor.  From the time I was a little dirty faced boy I knew how to steal. It kind of came natural to me for some reason. Hell, everyone I knew, family included, had stole something right in front of my eyes by the time I was eight. My earliest memory of rogue behavior was one summer in 1987. My grandpa had taken me on his weekly trip into town. He called me his 'shadow' or 'partner in crime' and I did not understand what he meant until that one day in the summer of '87.

We were at the supermarket when he took me around the corner and said, 'Today I am going to teach you the basics of stealing. It will be a useful skill though out your life. Better you learn now than later.' 

The plan was simple, I was to steal a tube a super glue for my grandpa. I had to grab a bottle of superglue, hide it in my pants, go to the bathroom to get it out of the packaging then find a way to head out the door before anyone noticed. Since I was really small back then, I had the advantage of not being noticed as much as an adult. I remember my grandpa providing cover while I stuck the superglue down my pants. I then walked away from him as if I did not know him. I made it to the bathroom and discovered a major problem. One of the workers was in the bathroom shaving and brushing his teeth. There were no stalls in that cheap ass supermarket bathroom. The best they could to was put up thin metal walls between each toilet. I had no choice, I simply started removing the glue from the package. Of course, the guy in the blue work jump suit caught me. Shockingly, instead of dragging me to the managers office he gave me some advice, 'Next time steal something with a plastic seal because they are easier to open.' From that day forward I understood the value of stealing.

Which brings me to my next point

How to steal food and whiskey without(almost) ever getting caught

When you are poor there are two things which are always true: You are always hungry and always want to get drunk. Poverty will drive you to drinking faster than any stressful bullshit here in Tokyo. When you are poor stress is never ending. After a while you accept that being in a constant state of 'fucked' is normal. Both food and whiskey cost money which is hard to come by when you are dirt poor. As you might have guessed, I mastered the art of stealing those magical items at a pretty young age. I had been stealing candy bars and sodas from the time I realized my mother did not have a lot of pocket change to give me. When you are little stealing candy bars and sodas is easy because you are really short and no one notices you reaching for a candy bar and putting it in your pocket. When I got older however, things got really tough and getting enough to eat was sometimes a challenge.

Seeing that the need to eat must be tamed, I came up with a unique way to score extra food. Where I come from, there are small farms scattered around. Nothing too large mind you. Usually folks would keep a half acre or an acre of land set aside for small time farming. Also, it was easy to steal an ear of corn, a few tomatoes or a juicy sweet watermelon. The deal would go down pretty smooth most of the time. I would gather a few buddies up and sneak into a path. One guy would be lookout while the rest of us would grab a few fresh veggies. I only ran into trouble once when I was 15. It was at night and my best buddy at the time and I wanted to steal a big fat ass juicy as fuck watermelon which I had been keeping my eyes on for over a week. When we went to steal it the damn old man growing the melon was on his front patio drinking moonshine. He was a mean old bastard who still kept his pistol with him at all times. My buddy grabbed the watermelon but ran in the exact wrong direction. He came flying out of the patch right into the direct line of sight of that old man. The old bastard fucking flipped! He threw the jug of shine at my buddy hitting him square in the forehead. The blow cracked his skull wide open. My loyal friend melted to the ground. I have never seen someone go down like that. It was like watching the slow motion death of daffy duck on crack. I decided to at least attempt to not bail on my buddy. I ran up on the old man and yelled, 'You just killed my friend! You fucking murdering bastard!' The old fart got nervous and offered me a bottle of shine if I would not tell anyone about the insanity that had just happened. The old man rushed into his house to fetch some shine. By the time he came back, my good buddy was struggling to get on his feet. It was actually pretty damn funny watching that old bastard trying to say sorry because my buddy was so fucked in the head I don't think he knew what was going on at that point. After that day, we decided that supermarkets were a much safer place to steal food from.

Yeah, stealing from supermarkets proved to be easier than stealing candy from a baby. The people who work at supermarkets really don't give a flying fuck what happens to the store. As long as they got a paid check every week, the whole place could be raided by a gang of starved field hands for all they care. I remember walking into just about any supermarket, grabbing anything I wanted, and politely walking out with a shit eating grin on my face. Sometimes one little asshole who was trying to get promoted would yell 'Hay you! Stop! Thief! Thief!' All I had to do was haul ass across the parking lot and off their property. The old grab and run method usually worked every time. Lucky for me, I no longer have to steal in order to survive. Thankfully my thieving days are over.

So now you know some of the shit people do when they are poor. It was actually kind of fun to be poor at times. Although, being poor usually sucked big fat green floppy donkey dicks. At least if I ever find myself dirt poor again, I will know exactly what to do.