on the lighter side

Okay, I promised you something lighter today, and here it is. Actually, I guess it's terribly un-PC of me to find it funny; it's a serious problem in Japan, and we should respect that. But, sorry, can't help it.
Apparently, young Japanese have been majorly offending the older generations with such rude behavior as ... wait for it ... swinging umbrellas, eating in public, crossing their legs on the subway, putting on makeup in public (that's the girls, right?). Wow! End of civilization as we know it.
Ah well, maybe it is. Maybe that's how it starts. First you're stuffing yourself with sushi in public, next thing you're mugging old ladies.
Zero tolerance, right?
I have to say, I was a little startled by the Prime Minister's stern warning to his MPs - no reading comic books in Parliament. Kinda worrying he needed to say that. I wish I thought the politicians in Japan were more childish than politicians in other countries, but, on what I've heard, I'd say not. And these are the people in charge of our lives; any wonder young people don't vote?
Gotta tell you what the Japanese are doing about this problem though. They are (naturally) setting up a commission of "experts" (experts on what I wonder) - well, that's what any red-blooded industrialized country would do. The fun part is what they've called it: the Study Group Relating to the Prevention of Behaviour that Causes Discomfort Among Numerous People in Public Places. It probably sounds better in Japanese.