I never feel safe here. Crime in my state is at an all time high and is only going to get worst. condolences to the victims of this madness.
Same here. I live in New Orleans, LA, US, and violent crime has never been higher. Damn it, our state's governor had to even call out the national guard to help out with the crime. I hardly go outside anymore except for work. My condolences and prayers go out to the victims and their families.
those killers are totally not making any sense here!!..nobody has the right to take away others life!
terrible! two victims still in their teenage years. yes, you can tell he(they) isnt right in the head when he says "anybody will do" and then drives miles to a specific area and starts killing. he also says "i was tired of life" yet he collapsed when an officer yelled "i am going to shoot"
yeah I feel safe in my area. No, you can't walk around the area when it is very dark out. Stuff happens- it hasn't affected my opinion of Japan's safety. He needs to get the death penalty, the cold blooded murderer.
I feel relativly safe. Well Germany has its school shootings, but still the students had always a reason like being mobbed or forgotten by society. Never seen or heared of someone who killed for experincing what killing somebody is like. They should have joined the police, at least they could kill some bad guys there.
Killing really messes you up. I friend of mine just got back from Afganistan, and he killed his first person on that tour. He said he had trouble sleeping.
is it me or is Japan getting sad T_T .although in my country there's not much killing case , but there's robbery in broad daylight .
Hang on. Did they all use the exact same wording? "Anyone would have been fine"? Are we looking at copycats?
"Dare Demo Yokatta" means "Anyone would have been fine" or "I dont care who it was etc." Same words.
Makes me wonder if there is some kind of connection between all of these cases, or a case of copy cat.
I guess I feel safe in my area, as there is really nothing to be afraid of. Of course something can always happen, but it wouldn't really be because of the area or the town where I live. In fact my part time job of the moment is delivering the morning paper around 2:30 AM - 6:30 AM by bicycle and I hardly ever see anyone until 5 AM or so, when some of the early birds come out to do their morning walks. (I actually really like that job, altough it's physically pretty tough.) The news about the Akihabara killings were pretty hard to believe, but I guess there are killers in every part of the world. It's really sad how young some of the victims were. Two 19 year-old boys and a 21 year-old girl. This must be a sad day in Akiba.
Man this is really a sad news....i saw it during the time i watch Code Geass R2 Ep9 yesterday! If man like tat are caught and put on to the ground! He will most likely been beaten to death by the crowd there! Malaysia aint a safe place also.....some stupid government minister or servant seems to be supporting those violence motorcyclist around the country, saying tat this ppl are young and creative (damn those brainless piece of shit).
Hey wow, check this nameless dude. seems like the id or profile was deleted and the post showed up nameless?
check out that last word on his post. maybe that has something to do with him not having a profile ;P
In London, we have a stabbing a week. The Mayor of London is putting up metal detectors in certain Underground Stations. Why does every chav feel like he must own a knife?
Oh, I nearly forgot, there was an anti-gun and knife march on Saturday. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/7441642.stm It's seriously gotten out of control...*sigh*
My condolences to the families and friends of those who were harmed and killed. It just doesn't make any sense, why would you just go out and kill people because you think your life sucks? Does it make them feel like a man because they killed someone? Or is it because they were easy targets? Either way, the man is a coward for stabbing people while in a frenzy but yet surrendered when someone pulled a gun on him. If I was there, I'd probably would've gave him a face full of kicks and punches. I probably would've 1up-ed him with something else. There really is no reason to take a person's life like that, no one is given that right.
ugh when I read this I feel so sad and disturbed o_o; but less crime usually does not mean no crime, unfortunately. I hope Akihabara will bounce back from this scary incident o_o;
Living in New York City, stabbings, murders etc happen, not quite often, but enough to know it happens more than occasionally. But, one of the largest differences between Japan and NYC is that here these things happen due to pretty much socio-economic reasons like stealing stuff, killing your cheating (at least in the mind of the killer spouse)wife. Most often than not, they arent random killings unless committed by someone who's obviously mentally unstable. I dont know much about Japan, but from what Ive been reading, mental problems are not uncommon among the general populace. Considering the suicide rate, I think the populace is wound up so tight that some people do snap into a frenzied psychosis. In NYC, you can yell at somebody on the street, shove people walking down the sidewalk etc, but usually nothing but some rude hand gestures come of it. Would the same happen in Japan? I dont know, and maybe thats the problem. People who cant let go of their frustrations or know how to deal with them effectively often become unstable, unfortunately.
i pray these incidents don't increase in frequency. one of the things i love about japan is the relative safety and low crime... would be a shame to have it otherwise... いなくなってしまった人は成仏しますように
man, that's crazy...i just left japan sunday afternoon. i'm glad i wasn't around, but i feel sorry for those who got hurt and those who lost their lives.
why do i sense someone else working in the background, instigating them to do this random murders? are they all brainwashed to think that they are heroes who were save the world?
I don't think someone is instigating people to violence. I just it's a disturbed person being a copycat of a previous instance.
People don't need to be brainwashed to snap and do horrible things. It can probably be tied to societal causes where everyone is expected to be good, polite and respectful... someone is bound to lose it eventually.
Stand Alone Complex?
Lol... That's a nice way of putting it. Yes, being ronery can drive you over the edge :).
I read about his past life it seems he liked the Tales game series. This gets me thinking... He was sort of an Otaku. I thought, what the heck, not again... I swear, it's some sort of plot against the otaku and Akihabara or something. I remember about someone talking about something how Otakus are scum and that they should put a law banning anime related stuff. To me, it might be so plot against otaku or something... "Anyone would have been fine" quote seem to be going around with killing and stabbing in Japan huh.
well if his choice was Akiba ... and he drove from shizuoka to get there... there must have been some attachment to the place. I suppose it could just be because that area is closed off to cars and easier to hit people with full force. I'm just thinking that if it's a greater impact of causalities he was looking for, there are other places in Tokyo.
Greater impact and greater attention from the media.. if it was in another area like a back-alley, it would get less attention since it seems like crime should happen there anyway. (i think it's a form of disaster porn)
The fact that he stabbed someone repeatedly makes me think he had it out for him/her. It could have been the rest were just victims of circumstance.
While I still think Japan is safer than a lot of countries, my caution level is still pretty high. I got here in February and I kept hearing these stories about stabbings (the ones you posted above)... I tend to go off daydreaming or listen to music while I'm walking alone, but I've begun to think that's a bad idea.
I think we also have to consider the news media and how they can skew the view of the public into thinking crime rates are up. I know in the US there was a figure about major cities where the crime rate was actually at an all-time low but news coverage of killings we're up. It might have been in 500%. Don't quote me on the actual number but I know it was a staggering figure. This is a terrible event but news nowadays tend to focus alot on murders and things that are sensationalized. If we were to look at actual crime rates we might have a different feeling about are own cities.
Totally agree with you.
You bet your buttons it's a bad idea! Listening to music while walking is one of the worst things you can do to your situational awareness. Forget about psychokillers, even avoiding buses with brake failure and falling pianos is hopeless if you're on autopilot. A lot of the people who were stabbed got stabbed from behind. Regardless of where you live, there's always an element of chance in facing violent crime. In Japan it's lower, but there's simple things you can do to avoid becoming a (decidedly low) statistic and not leave your personal safety to the numbers game. I always look around when I walk at night, locating other people on the street and potential hazards as well as escape routes. I'm not constantly in fear, after a while it's just second nature. Admittedly in Toronto, it's pretty safe. But I did manage to dodge a sink-sized piece of ice falling from nearby roof-top this winter!
You're right on the money about situational awareness, it will save your butt more often than anything else.
That guy is such a dick. If he were tired of life, the logical thing would be to off yourself, not other people.
argh...wtf is wrong with this guy?!?! if you are not satisfied with your life then go end it...then go about stabbing random innocent ppl...i hate these kinda of people...gawd...argh
i meant "DONT go about stabbing random innocent ppl."
That was my first thought when i read the newstory last night. If someone is tired of life, why take others down with you? I don't support or feel sympathy for suicide but taking your own life is better than going on a rampage. It just seems like a poorly used excuse with no value.
I think it's more of a psychological thing.. he probably wanted the attention more than anything else.. and he sure has gotten it by now. Suicides will be in the news, then die out quickly, but when it's a killing spree the public will talk about it a lot more because anyone's at risk.
Maybe he was simply bored with life and this was his way of making it exciting.
Though theres been a killing here I still do feel safe since it doesn't happen as often (from what I see). But reading what happened in West end Ottawa then reading this Japanese incident is messing with my brain.
God, i don't know if I should be depressed or angry.
singapore is relatively safe but we have stabbing and murder cases every now and then. the recent one got a policeman firing at a murderer with a knife.
Well, after hearing this news, I do not feel safe when walking alone home at night.. Although there are police patrolling around the neighbourhood, you cant be too complacent with regards to your own safety.. I will pray for the quick recovery for the injured victims.. Hope there would not be any more notorious crimes happening in Akiba..
Bottom line is that you're never truly safe in the world we live in. Those days are gone. There's a lot more crazy people out there than we would believe. I do believe that the fast paced world isn't for everyone and some people just can't hack it and completely lose it...expectations from family and friends might be too much. I think this was one of those guys. We may not ever know what the trigger was. Thoughts and prayers are with those that were hurt by this senseless violence.
Here in my country some areas are really unsafe. But hearing that a person out of nowhere decides to kill people just because he can't stand life anymore it's pretty shocking.
I wouldn't pity or judge someone who wants to suicide, but people who are tired of life and even wants to end it can just end it without dragging other people. Somehow, I'm kinda scared of visiting Japan now.. not that I'm saying that other countries are safer, as there are many places that are still unsafe or even worse (like United States, China, HK seems kinda dangerous too), but it seems that in Japan there are more and more people killing others in the public place without any reason other than "I'm tired of life" and "I want to feel/try it". Maybe it's due to the society/daily pressure.. But well, I'm glad that even if the place I'm living in is not a completely safe place, it's still fine as long as you don't wander at night or at dark places.
I'd really hate to say this but if they are looking for some "fun" then they better try and go down here (in my country) where usually "fun" is - in fact - so common to some areas and streets esp to urban places that once you start a fight , then it will be inevitable to go out - alive. But still, this one is another madness. They're reasonings is waaay more than an outrage , such blasphemy in vain it should not be tolerated by justice.
I'm very, very sad. :( My blog post today is dedicated to the victims. http://brotherwormgear.blogspot.com/2008/06/akihabara-we-love-you.html
The fact that anyone would have been fine, is what makes it disturbing. When one decides to take another human beings life because it was convenient to kill that person, makes the why hard to understand.
I live in New Jersey and i never feel safe. Just the other day a half black/half white friend of mine was beat up by 5 black guys as he was walking home. they just jumped on him for no reason and kept calling him racial names while they beat him. Racism is still pretty much still alive here today. The other day they had to shut down the post office because of a bomb threat. sometimes i feel like I never left the violent streets of my homeland (Cotabato City, Philippines)
That "anyone would be fine" attitude is a very disturbing trend. :( This makes me wonder, how accessible is therapy in Japan? Are people encouraged to get treated for depression/stress? I'm sure if a lot of those people were able to work out their problems they wouldn't need to resort to taking the lives of others. My area is pretty safe. Though we did have a shooting incident recently and there were gang fights going on in the city north of mine.
Unfortunately, while therapy *is* available throughout Japan, for people who seek it, but mental illness is still considered to be taboo. In general, people prefer to hide it or live in denial rather than address it and risk the humiliation of themselves or their family. It's a social phenomenon of sorts, as opposed to a lack of adequate opportunities for mental health care. :-( Chicago is a relatively unsafe place to live without a doubt. Nothing like THIS has happened here for a *very* long time, though. I think we're all accustomed to being on our guard and suspecting everyone around us all the time. It's rather sad. I certainly hope that I'll never, ever have to feel that way in Japan. That would make me depressed.
Has anyone heard of the supermen thoery? Or Nietzsche? Or however you spell that? It may be a possible theory to explain his actions a little better and answer all those unanswered questions.
I looked that up after seeing a Ricky Gervais stand-up routine. a theory about discarding the weak and uninfluential to society? hitler might've loved that.
he has done that, its called Aktion T4 back then. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aktion_T4
thank you for that informative and terrifying tidbit of information
you're welcome, I kinda have a mixed feeling when I read the article as well.
Hmmm... I've been wondering about that for a while now. Not the genocide, but the concept of passing on our issues to our children. How right/wrong is it?
People have been killing each other since the begining of time, though usually, the killers feel they will gain something from their acts. I have always theorized that with certain types of people "Those who have no enemies feel the need to create enemies, and those who have no problems feel the need to create their own problems" Though this is just what I have gathered from personal experiences, nothing to really back my theory up. But I can imagine that in a clockwork society like japan, that there are primative survival insticts which lie dorment in peoples minds. Those who are too weak to control or ignore such basic instincts may create their own outlet for them, thus we have aimless murder. All I know is that I hope this stops soon, because I have a huge amount of respect for the Japanese for their low crime rate.
In my city, we tend to get a lot of violent crime, so we tend not to pay too much attention when a few people get killed, maybe unless its the occasional gang shooting, but we don't get the random massive killings created by an random dude usually. Condolences to the people who were hurt in todays incident, physically and emotionally.
Murder rates has gone up in my city. scary...
growing up around a place where crime is low and than all of a sudden innocents are killed is a shocking impact. Here where i live its differences dat get people killed. Just because u were wearing this color or hanging around these people u could be killed. But i am even more shocked that innocents can be a target so easily to STUPIED people who think that killing is an accomplishment. This world is sometimes hard to understand and all we can do as people living in it is learn from incidents and try our best to prevent such things to happen.
誰でもよかった。。。 That's a little scary to hear, honestly. I don't understand how people can take murder/massacre so easily.
I was actually surprised seeing this in the news. We get random shootings and stabbings every now and then where innocent people die and it doesn't even make it to national news, but stabbings all the way in Japan do?
