Is it because of the existence of 漢字 (known as Kanji in JP while it's Hanzi in ZH) in both despite being different languages even though they're unrelated? However, some words & nouns outright look the same in writing (警察、死亡、軍人、明治維新、仲見世商店街、歌舞伎町) thus making it somewhat mutually readable although they don't inherit the same pronunciation. Does the same form of confusion also happen with languages with the same alphabets (English > French & Russian & Ukrainian for instance...)?

I know that in Japan, China & Korea along with SEA including the Middle East, it's definitely criminalized and you'll get arrested for bringing in weed (they're indifferent whether its for medicinal or recreational use) since they do not allow it on their turf. In some countries, that guarantees a death sentence as they have zero tolerance on allowing those substances. It's not like let's say Canada or Germany where weed is tolerated.

Travelers who are weed users aren't stupid to travel internationally with cannabis as they're aware the rules are different across borders. Then, if they crave for weed (but can't consume that as it's a crime in those countries) what's the alternative? Over the counter pills, maybe? Other valid substitutes that may give off similar vibes. I've heard a case where an American couple had their weed confiscated in Australia, where it's illegal.

I know that the main protagonists name is サトシ after Satoshi Tajiri (田尻智), the creator himself but his name was changed to Ash Ketchum (same with how タケシ became Brock, ヒカリ (光) was called Dawn, カスミ (霞) became Misty, and so on). ゼニガメ (from 銭亀 = "baby spotted turtle") was adapted to Squirtle or フシギダネ is renamed as Bulbasaur, ヒトカゲ is known as Charmander in ENG.

The same can be said in reverse for Japanese people on how they see the Western world: Do they assume the USA is like Hollywood or the UK being like British Television? They perhaps assume that all Americans live in a large home with a white picket fence depicting a nuclear family as if its 1950.

All they talk about US is California or New York since most movies and TV shows use either as their main setting. Is the US in real life similar to Hollywood (everyone having a nice car, big home & white picket fence)? That's the kind of response from non-Japanese assuming Japan is like anime.

They're not even the same currency at all, yet Steam or any other digital storefront decides to price a 80€ ($91) game the same as a $80 (69€) one when the conversions in reality are different to what the algorithm suggests. It's reflected on Steam DB that Euro has a higher markup in comparison to US Dollar because of this, since I hear EU players nagging about paying 80€ at launch the same as US players don't like paying $80.

Consider that Sony is phasing out discs on January 2028 and beyond, meaning any upcoming game after then is no longer being released as a physical copy (neither will the future PS6 contain a disc drive at all) marking the PS5 as the final iteration within the generational lineup on having a disc. All versions of the PS5 inherit the same performance regarding games but the PS5 slim is compact while the PS5 Pro has a better CPU.

During war or crisis, evacuation flights for emergency purposes usually organized by governments. However, those are intended for citizens of that country. For example, there were evacuation flights intended for French citizens stuck in the UAE during the initial stages of the Iran war following a drone attack, but what happens if the traveler has both a French & American passport? Which government takes charge on the situation?

Evacuation is straight forward when the person only has one nationality rather than two since that nation only ensures their safety & rescue while someone with two passports: let's say both the US & France want this person out of the danger zone, but who takes the sole responsibility if both countries want the same thing? It can't do both, has to be one or the other even if the French plane arrived first before the American one.

For example, 蠍 is written as サソリ. Even if they use the Kanji in text, they add furigana above it rather than letting the audience themselves decipher the meaning. It's the same with 榊 (サカキ), 仙人掌 (サボテン), 百足 (ムカデ), 蟻 (アリ), 鰐 (ワニ), you get the picture. Why can't they just write them in Kanji without furigana in the same frequency as encountering 本 or 日 upon encountering texts containing these types of words?

Instead of giving visitors visa free access who hold strong passports, rather make them require a visa prior to entry (meaning they can't just pack their bags and go, now having to pre-plan in advance and line up for getting a visa & paying money for it, they're not alone since hundreds more are doing the same thing. There's also the guarantee whether they'll be eligible or get rejected on the spot).

It may cause strain on visa applications that'll lead to mass rejections due to overload. If I were a country that's suffering over tourism, just rescind visa free access for ALL nationalities (including those who have strong passports like US, UK, DE, FR, AU or CA to name a few) as in when they check visa requirements: it'll be rewritten as "visa required" rather than "visa not required" prior to entry.

Or, they can apply for a tourist visa many times as they'd like but reject them. (Basically a real life travel "shadow ban" if that's the right way to say it), leads to them giving up as they'll know a visa will never be guaranteed regardless of numerous attempts. However, would this move alone reduce over tourism? Since you can't just show up in someone else's nation uninvited (illegal immigration).

It's originally a Japanese movie released in 1998, known as Ringu which an American remake came out in 2002 known as "The Ring", have you seen the Japanese original prior to watching the US version of what's supposedly meant to be an adaptation? If so, what are the differences between the original vs the remake? If you consider the US remake crap, why is that the case when comparing it to the original one?

First, if it was the CIA or NSA themselves in conjunction with the Feds or State LE conducting mass surveillance on the population rather than outsourcing it to either Flock or Palantir: they have the legal precedent on fabricating charges they deem as "dissident activity", imprisoning protesters including vigilantes who are critical of the state. Usually it's a politician who passes legislation under the guise of "protecting kids".

Second, if let's say Flock or Palantir is the one conducting mass surveillance: they can't arrest people themselves since they are not law enforcement. They would collect someone's data but still, cannot put people behind bars themselves. All they're doing is data harvesting rather than pursuing people based on their social credit score, but vigilantes who oppose mass surveillance can at least still roam around in the street.

I've heard a case about a group of vigilantes taking down Flock cameras since it has become another flashpoint of growing bipartisan anger against the tech industry (that's only speaking of tackling on a corporation spying on people) rather than the government themselves doing that to the population.

However, what happens if they did the same with government surveillance (as in the cameras are operated by the CIA / NSA in which they alert authorities)? The response is different since authorities & government can arrest, imprison or kill vigilantes on the spot if caught on tampering with the cameras.

I mean, the act of people scalping stuff has existed before the digital age. Even a century ago: scalpers would pay a third party to hold a spot in line on purchasing concert or theater tickets to resell at a higher price since the internet didn't exist back then. Like, in the 90s: scalpers showed up in person (paying someone to hold the spot for you whilst in line) for acquisition of the product, that's how they've done it.

At the time, pre-orders for an upcoming console or game were done in store (you physically went there placing an order after seeing an ad on TV or a magazine). But, how common were scalpers during that era? It would be like a group of scalpers pretending not to know each other or split into smaller groups heading to different retailers on buying the same product whilst playing as another customer.