Homeless yakuza terrorize Tokyo parks
My f’ed gaijin buddy Bobo-the-Clown has a great story here in Mainichi today.
Homeless yakuza terrorize Tokyo parks
MDN-Mainichi
…Japanese who associate the yakuza with wealth, even if it is the result of ill-gotten gains, the idea of a gangster living on the streets is close to unthinkable. But the number of homeless yakuza inhabiting parks and living under bridges is apparently skyrocketing, especially in central Tokyo….”There are two tent villages in the park where I live, each of which is controlled by a different homeless yakuza…When it comes to the flower-viewing season (in early spring), they have these huge battles over who’s going to have the right to get paid by people to save a space for their company parties. The brawls they have are like the fight scenes in the old yakuza movies.”…more…
THis report set me to thinking of a better way to determine when the “Lost Decade(s)” is finally over, That is, there seems there no way to determin when Japan’s ongoing recession has ended. The new economic indicator for the Japanese economy finally has turned around is when the yakuza are hiring again.
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