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The story
On the October 17 broadcast of Kansai TV’s “Do! Connect,” during a segment on the rise in late-life divorces, Kuniko Yamada said that older men “don’t function” and are “nothing but objects,” sparking controversy online. The remark came in response to news that divorces among couples married 20+ years had hit a record high. On 5ch (Geinou/Sports News+), the thread drew both criticism — “if the genders were reversed, this would have caused a huge uproar” — and defenses — “men deserve to be told that much” — making the fairness of the gender double standard the central point of debate.
Kuniko Yamada’s inflammatory remark that older men “don’t function” and are “nothing but objects” draws criticism: “If the genders were reversed, it would have been a huge uproar”
Kuniko Yamada appeared on the October 17 broadcast of Kansai TV’s “Do! Connect.” During a discussion about late-life divorce, the words she directed at men — and at her own husband — have stirred controversy.
The show reported that the rate of late-life divorces among couples married 20+ years had reached a record high.
Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Read the original article here
What people said
Japan is a society where women are worshipped and men are looked down on
It flipped at some point without anyone noticing. How did it come to this?
She used to be in huge demand once upon a time
She could've just stayed gone
Instead she comes crawling back half-heartedly
Same with Hiromi — he finally disappeared and then came right back too
Considering women can't match men in physical strength, having women hold the upper hand in power is about the right balance
Well, it's been overlooked for so long, it's more like nobody bothered to take it seriously
That's probably not going to fly going forward though
Men are nothing but objects
Let's all just get along now
So once she hits menopause and can't have kids anymore, does she turn into an object too?
Well then, can't be helped
It's like 50 years behind the times
The broadcast area is:
Part 1 & Part 2
Osaka Prefecture (Kinki wide area), Kochi Prefecture
Part 2 only
Hokkaido, Shimane, Tottori
That's it
Nakai and Matsumoto got exposed for treating women like objects and disappeared
And they were bigger stars than Yamada ever was even at her peak
Varies from person to person
Some guys are still going strong without needing any supplements
It's true that if the genders were swapped, this remark would never fly
You should get in the habit of flipping the genders when judging a statement or a policy
If it holds up applied to men AND women, then it's a fair statement
No need to buy into that lame feminist logic
Men and women are different, so naturally what's allowed is different too
Background and Key Points of This Debate
The remark came up in the context of news that late-life divorces among couples married 20+ years had statistically hit a record high, and Kuniko Yamada has long been known on TV for her blunt, outspoken style. The thread repeatedly raised the point that “the same remark wouldn’t be allowed if the genders were reversed,” highlighting how the line of what’s acceptable to say shifts depending on gender — and that different people draw that line in different places. At the same time, some comments frame this as frustration with “a society where putting men down is never treated as a problem,” meaning the real focus of the debate wasn’t so much the remark itself as the double standard in how gender-related speech gets judged — a nuance that’s easy to miss from the quotes alone. It’s also worth noting the show is produced by a local Kansai station, with its broadcast limited to certain regions like Kinki, Kochi, and Hokkaido — a detail that came up in the thread as well.
*This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geinou/Sports News+) thread “[Entertainment] Kuniko Yamada says older men “don’t function” and are “nothing but objects” — inflammatory remark draws criticism: “If genders were reversed, it would be a huge uproar”.”
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