robnplunder

We are/were all in the same boat. KK will be my goal (and best result in three tries).

Well, have you tried tiger penis? I agree with Takakeisho that disappearing "color" does not mean the injury is ok. He still needs to take it very slowly.

For those who were athletes before, you know any major injury needs more rest than you think. If you think you can come back in 2 months, it actually is 3 months. You know what I mean. I think this is the case with Takakeisho. His youthful optimism is making him take a risk. Many play with injury thinking they can be careful. Well, we will see if Takakeisho is being stupid or not. My money is he will likely re-injure himself or he won't do well in the next basho due to his bravado. My 2 cents which is often worth 0 cent.

I ... do .... not ... want ... to .... see ... the ... pictures of a man who is wearing a tattoo of the world map . Seriously, Takakeisho can use more rest just to be cautious. Look what a basho and a half of kyujo almost did for him.

I know. He shouldn't be out there training right now. I ought to know, I had similarly devastating shoulder injuries (twice) and it really takes months to fully heal. He probably never had the same injury and doesn't know what he is doing.

Wow, that looks bad. Takakeisho is a little guy and his all out fighting style is going to make him injury prone. I wish him luck.

I've heard that Takagenji refused the offer, citing his mole'd brother is less of a rikishi than him. To me, it's better to have just one copy of Taka. It will keep my wife from asking me, "did he just fight?" I am tired of telling her that there are two of them.

Then, Takanofuji's hiring lawyer, doing press conference, etc. look more in bad taste. I am convinced he can't win his case unless he hires OJ Simpson''s lawyers.

For those who know a bit about Japanese legal system, what kind of chance Takanofuji has winning his case, and make a come back? Sokokurai was successful with his lawsuit although his case is completely different.

All I can say to Takanofuji on the above argument is ..... How about just following common sense? find a role model and follow his ways? Kyokai has to come up with a manual on "how to" disciple underlings? Come on, Takanofuji. You can't be that dumb to need a manual on this.

Folks, how far do you think Arakizeki would h ave gone in ozumo? Ozeki? Joi?

+1. Forcing his underlings answer like a chicken has no place in heya or anywhere for that matter. I once worked for a boss who enjoyed making his employees squirm for no reason. He was being a bully without benefiting anyone including himself. I see the parallel between my boss and Takanofuji.

They were hugely successful, but have been falling behind for decades. The world has been changing faster than Japan is. The very quality that made Japan a successful nation decades ago have made them stagnant. It is not an accident that companies like Toshiba, Sony, Sharp, and others are no longer on top. IMHO, the unchanging way of Japanese professional sumo is, well, what Japan and its people are all about. I am not saying it is bad. It has served ozumo & Japan well. In a way, I am saying things are not going to change, Takanofuji's permanent ban or not.

... and Takanofuji doesn't have it. He is a terrible role model. He seems to be just a bully who won't likely change his way. It will be interesting to see if Japan's legal system will save his skin. If it does, I will have one more reason to watch sumo .... rooting for anyone facing Takanofuji.

Some random thoughs: But even in this Disneyland, a repeat offender is just too dumb to be ignored. And he can't have both ways, get caught twice and still come back to sumo? Going to the legal route is a part of ozumo tradition? Imagine how many more young prospects would join the sumo world if there is no fear of such abuses. Japanese people's strength of hanging on to tradition, unchanging ways is also its weakness. This is just one tiny instance of that.