[Chibi-Chan]

Originally Posted by susiowong

Exactly. I had a discussion with my boyfriend about this yesterday and basically said the same exact thing. They must be pretty desperate to give up a normal lifestyle to play out this fantasy for fame, and I pity them for that. But it's almost worse knowing this girl is shamed to the point of tears and emotional suffering for doing what normal people do.

This article says: "What is happening here is that the protection of fans’ fragile fantasies automatically trumps the basic human right to a life outside that fantasy framework. Though as lawyer Hifumi Okunuki pointed out in a Japan Times article on Jan. 22, such an arrangement is probably illegal under Japanese labor laws."

Isn't it just ridiculous?

Really like the article you posted, especially this part:

Some fans, in particular those from overseas, are crying foul. “No!” they say, “You have gone too far, Mr. Akimoto! Even though she did something wrong, this punishment is cruel!” However, these fans are also guilty. By accepting that Minegishi transgressed in the first place they make it simply a matter of degree, when the system of which they are part — which believes that it has any right or say over the private lives of others — is what is really to blame.

The deeper truth is that idol fan culture, as well as the closely related anime and manga fan culture, is institutionally incapable of dealing with independence in young women. It seeks out and fetishizes weaknesses and vulnerabilities and calls it moé, it demands submissiveness, endless tearful displays of gratitude, a lack of confidence, and complete control over their sexual independence. AKB48 takes this a step further by allowing its (largely male) fans to sit in annual judgment, voting members up or down in the group’s hierarchy. The danger is of this fantasy creeping out more widely into society: Japan currently ranks at 101 in the world gender-equality rankings (79 places below the United States, 32 below China, and two below Azerbaijan). What will a 13-year-old girl think when she sees a humiliated member apologizing for natural human behavior?