# Another set of parents have killed their baby



## Rube

I've been here too long to compare to other countries but it at least seems to me like we got a lot of parents killing their babies in this country. 

Do people think there is more of it here or just more news about it here?


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## larabell

Rube said:


> Do people think there is more of it here or just more news about it here?


It's hard to tell without access to the raw statistics but... one thing I've noticed is that many things get reported here that also happen in other countries (like the US) but which simply don't get reported there. Here it's huge news if some corner store gets robbed. In the States, it happens so often that the reports are usually buried on the back page of the newspaper, if they're covered at all.

I'd like to think that something like this is a rare occurrence but I'd be surprised if it didn't happen elsewhere as well.


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## Rube

I was thinking the same thing, networks probably run the car jacking story instead or what have you. 

After a quick check it looks like over 200 cases per year in the States, so I guess it's not as prevelent here as I thought but then again that doesn't take into account the population difference. 

It's just so disheartening, this article Isolation linked to rising filicide rate in Japan - World - smh.com.au seems to suggest the numbers are on a sharp rise here in Japan but it only focuses on the mothers. This recent case was the father.


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## larabell

I'd like to think infanticide is a rare quirk but... you never know. These are strange times and the fear of seeming "different" keeps a lot of parents from seeking the help they really need when things get too stressful.

As for the news media... One time I came within 5~10 minutes of witnessing a train suicide in Oimachi. That night I looked online for more details and all I found was a single 2-line article -- and one of those lines focused on how long it was before the trains were running again. But as part of my search I ran across statistics on train related suicides for all of Japan. We're talking dozens a day. Yet none of them are reported (at least not in any detail).

What you see when you watch/read the news are things that are not very common. Those are the things you're not likely to encounter in your whole time in Japan. That's what makes them news. It's the stuff you don't see but you know is happening anyway that should be of concern. And if the stuff you do see is limited to minor robberies and celebrities getting beat up in Kabukicho... well... you're living in a pretty safe place .


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## Rube

Japan as a whole is safer than America as a whole, but there are plenty of towns in America which are safer than anywhere in Japan. My Japanese friends can't believe that my parents back home don't lock their doors, don't even remember where the key is. 

Kabukichou is a very very serious place though, lots of triads and other asian gangs there. I think the police have something like 2000 hidden cameras just in Kabukichou alone. But unless you're involved in something it's safe.


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## djrajn

oh!!! yeah me too heard that kabukichou for mafias..


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