That title is something, isn't it?
Menstruation and why women can't be... what?
Here's two things women are forbidden to do in Japan: be sumo wrestlers, and sushi chefs.
That whole bleeding thing that women do every few weeks disrupts the Japanese traditional views on purity.
Hunh. Who knew?
I used to watch Iron Chef (Japanese version) and go to sushi restaurants, and always used to wonder why I never saw any female Japanese sushi chefs... who knew it was because they menstruate? I thought it was just some old boy's club that sort of prevented women from the profession. Like being a professional engineer here in Canada and the U.S.... old boy's club from about 30 years ago. Or being a doctor 100 years ago... nursing was fine... but a doctor? Better leave that to the men, dear... Or being in the armed forces... I'll save you, lady!
Who knew that Japan was sexist?
Of course Japan is sexist. It was when I lived there in the early 90s, and while I am sure there has been some progress since I left, I was always sure that chauvinism was still going to exist in Japan for many a year long after I left.
But blaming it on menstruation? Men-struation... wow. At least there's a proper dignified reason that I am now aware of. That's sarcasm, by the way. It's so difficult to write sarcasm and ensure that everyone reading knows you are being sarcastic...
Here's a comment from the son of Ono Jiro, a sushi master who owns a three-star Michelin restaurant in Tokyo's Ginza district. His menu starts at Cdn/US $300 and only gets higher. The son's name is Ono Yoshikazu.
So... Mr. Ono-san... why aren't there any female sushi craftsmen (aka shokunin)?
Says Ono-san: "The reason is because women menstruate. To be a professional means to have a steady taste in your food, but because of the menstrual cycle women have an imbalance in their taste, and that’s why women can’t be sushi chefs."
And this is coming from the son one of the world's best sushi masters, an 86-year-old who also happens to be the subject of “Jiro Dreams of Sushi,” a documentary by American director David Gelb that recently premiered at the Berlinale this week. This son, is the man who will take up the mantle of one of the world's greatest sushi restaurant's, whose family name carries great weight in the world of sushi.
Ono adds: "I have no children and am also not married. In Japan, work is regarded as the first thing…It might be different somewhere outside Japan where family comes first, but in Japanese tradition work comes first …There’s nothing you can do about it if you can’t see your family because you’re working and you have to trust that when the children grow up they do understand why their father was away. Because my father was trying so hard and working so hard…that’s why our restaurant exists."
Gods... work over family. I'm sure his father must have agreed... let me come home, knock up the wife, get a son, my job at home is done, now I can spend all of my time at my restaurant honing my craft. Sarcasm....
Personally, Japan - It's A Wonderful Rife believes that the menstruation reason is merely a handy excuse for remaining chauvinistic... Because Japan likes to pattern itself on being proper and dignified and following traditional values from the ancient past - back when life was so much better, it makes sense that these institutions remain the bastions of a society looking to remain a world power.
Japan... get your head out of your ass... women are fully capable of being sushi chefs... and doing it with style, verve and aplomb... as well as if not better than any male chef. While they will get their ass handed to them by their male sumo counterparts, there should be nothing to bar them from competing in the sport... but there is... as sumo wrestlers purify the clay ring with salt before battling... but a woman who could bleed from her vagina at any moment... well... it must truly frighten these men who will have no idea how to clean the ring afterwards.
Every time I think Japan is hot stuff, I am reminded that it still has a ways to go... to grow up.
Andrew Joseph
Menstruation and why women can't be... what?
Here's two things women are forbidden to do in Japan: be sumo wrestlers, and sushi chefs.
That whole bleeding thing that women do every few weeks disrupts the Japanese traditional views on purity.
Hunh. Who knew?
I used to watch Iron Chef (Japanese version) and go to sushi restaurants, and always used to wonder why I never saw any female Japanese sushi chefs... who knew it was because they menstruate? I thought it was just some old boy's club that sort of prevented women from the profession. Like being a professional engineer here in Canada and the U.S.... old boy's club from about 30 years ago. Or being a doctor 100 years ago... nursing was fine... but a doctor? Better leave that to the men, dear... Or being in the armed forces... I'll save you, lady!
Who knew that Japan was sexist?
Of course Japan is sexist. It was when I lived there in the early 90s, and while I am sure there has been some progress since I left, I was always sure that chauvinism was still going to exist in Japan for many a year long after I left.
But blaming it on menstruation? Men-struation... wow. At least there's a proper dignified reason that I am now aware of. That's sarcasm, by the way. It's so difficult to write sarcasm and ensure that everyone reading knows you are being sarcastic...
Here's a comment from the son of Ono Jiro, a sushi master who owns a three-star Michelin restaurant in Tokyo's Ginza district. His menu starts at Cdn/US $300 and only gets higher. The son's name is Ono Yoshikazu.
So... Mr. Ono-san... why aren't there any female sushi craftsmen (aka shokunin)?
Says Ono-san: "The reason is because women menstruate. To be a professional means to have a steady taste in your food, but because of the menstrual cycle women have an imbalance in their taste, and that’s why women can’t be sushi chefs."
And this is coming from the son one of the world's best sushi masters, an 86-year-old who also happens to be the subject of “Jiro Dreams of Sushi,” a documentary by American director David Gelb that recently premiered at the Berlinale this week. This son, is the man who will take up the mantle of one of the world's greatest sushi restaurant's, whose family name carries great weight in the world of sushi.
Ono adds: "I have no children and am also not married. In Japan, work is regarded as the first thing…It might be different somewhere outside Japan where family comes first, but in Japanese tradition work comes first …There’s nothing you can do about it if you can’t see your family because you’re working and you have to trust that when the children grow up they do understand why their father was away. Because my father was trying so hard and working so hard…that’s why our restaurant exists."
Gods... work over family. I'm sure his father must have agreed... let me come home, knock up the wife, get a son, my job at home is done, now I can spend all of my time at my restaurant honing my craft. Sarcasm....
Personally, Japan - It's A Wonderful Rife believes that the menstruation reason is merely a handy excuse for remaining chauvinistic... Because Japan likes to pattern itself on being proper and dignified and following traditional values from the ancient past - back when life was so much better, it makes sense that these institutions remain the bastions of a society looking to remain a world power.
Japan... get your head out of your ass... women are fully capable of being sushi chefs... and doing it with style, verve and aplomb... as well as if not better than any male chef. While they will get their ass handed to them by their male sumo counterparts, there should be nothing to bar them from competing in the sport... but there is... as sumo wrestlers purify the clay ring with salt before battling... but a woman who could bleed from her vagina at any moment... well... it must truly frighten these men who will have no idea how to clean the ring afterwards.
Every time I think Japan is hot stuff, I am reminded that it still has a ways to go... to grow up.
Andrew Joseph
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