Matthew has once again sent a lead my way... this one is a BBC News report on Japan's last ninja, a 63-year-old Japanese man named Kawakami Jinichi (surname first) who look a hell of a lot younger than that! He is supposed to be Japan's last ninja grandmaster.
Link is HERE.
Now, personally I am unsure if this old guy is Japan's last ninja... I mean, how would you know? It's a secret cabal of super elite assassins who blend into the shadows, killing silently like a ventriloquist's fart. (Where'd that come from?!)
Regardless... it's that mysteriousness about a group of killers that has become revered in a society that loves its violence - if done quietly. Which society? Why the one you are in, of course.
It's funny, though. The ninja must have a great marketing department. How else to explain their popularity? Anyone who has seen a real ninja is dead and can't really talk about what that experience was like.
My kid dressed up as a ninja a couple of years ago for Halloween. He plays with Ninjago LEGO figures (okay, I do), and thinks they are all cool. He wants to be a ninja or an architect when he grows up... in case his career in hockey falls through. Say what you will about my diversely-talented son... he likes to have options. My options usually revolve around whether or not I want fries with that.
Anyhow... back to Kawakami... you'll notice he is called the last ninja grandmaster... that could imply that there are other ninja beneath him... hidden... I mean, I have shuriken and know how to throw them. I'm just saying... and I'm a stupid gaijin. Surely there are kids in Japan who grew up NOT wanting to be a robot.
Cheers - and thanks, Matthew for the cool story.
Andrew Joseph
Link is HERE.
Now, personally I am unsure if this old guy is Japan's last ninja... I mean, how would you know? It's a secret cabal of super elite assassins who blend into the shadows, killing silently like a ventriloquist's fart. (Where'd that come from?!)
Regardless... it's that mysteriousness about a group of killers that has become revered in a society that loves its violence - if done quietly. Which society? Why the one you are in, of course.
It's funny, though. The ninja must have a great marketing department. How else to explain their popularity? Anyone who has seen a real ninja is dead and can't really talk about what that experience was like.
My kid dressed up as a ninja a couple of years ago for Halloween. He plays with Ninjago LEGO figures (okay, I do), and thinks they are all cool. He wants to be a ninja or an architect when he grows up... in case his career in hockey falls through. Say what you will about my diversely-talented son... he likes to have options. My options usually revolve around whether or not I want fries with that.
Anyhow... back to Kawakami... you'll notice he is called the last ninja grandmaster... that could imply that there are other ninja beneath him... hidden... I mean, I have shuriken and know how to throw them. I'm just saying... and I'm a stupid gaijin. Surely there are kids in Japan who grew up NOT wanting to be a robot.
Cheers - and thanks, Matthew for the cool story.
Andrew Joseph
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