Recently, I saw such a news: Japan's Aomori Prefecture launched a "scallop bikini" on the Internet fire.
Let's take a look at what this "bikini" looks like:
(Image from the Internet)
Seeing the picture really makes people blush and think about it, or "up and down combination", but can this really be worn? So I looked for relevant information.
This "scallop bikini" consists of three polished scallop shells of about 12 centimeters, which are simply connected with several ribbons, and are a "hometown tax" tax payment gift from Mutsu City, Aomori Prefecture. As soon as the "scallop bikini" was launched, it became a popular network and became the champion of the japanese regional handicraft department in September.
Many small partners may not understand what is the "hometown tax".
The so-called "hometown tax" is actually not the tax obligation that citizens of a country in the traditional sense must bear. It is a "cash tax system" that is not mandatory and similar to donations. As early as March 2006, the Nippon Keizai Shimbun proposed the establishment of a hometown tax system to enhance the economy of local governments (the word "local" in Japanese refers specifically to areas outside of large cities such as Tokyo).
Although the name has the word "hometown", in fact, the payment of hometown tax is not limited to the taxpayer's hometown. The Japanese people can choose any administrative autonomous body in any city, town, or village that levies the hometown tax throughout the country to pay tax. In order to encourage people to actively pay such taxes to local governments in order to facilitate the flow of capital to small and medium-sized cities and rural areas, the law stipulates that after paying the hometown tax in excess of a certain amount, it can be deducted from other taxes that would otherwise be paid by citizens.
A big reason for the fact that hometown taxes are getting a lot of attention in Japan is the "return gifts" offered by the regions that receive the taxes. These gifts have become a hot topic in the media and the general public.
Almost every local government has prepared locally specifically gifted gifts as incentives for taxpayers who have paid a certain amount.
The regional characteristics shown by these gifts can often become a major opportunity to publicize local products and sightseeing, so all localities have made sufficient efforts in this link, and such a strange gift as "scallop bikini" is really a mudslide, so it has become the focus of attention of netizens.
Aomori Prefecture Mutsu City mascot "MADAM MUCHULY"
Wearing a "scallop bikini" to speak for his hometown
For this "scallop bikini", citizens need to donate 6,000 yen (equivalent to 346 yuan) to get started. Many Japanese netizens directly called it too expensive.
In fact, the design of the "scallop bikini" also has a certain background.
In August this year, a heavy rainstorm swept through Mutsu City, and local fishermen suffered a lot of losses. Gaku Abe (48), a representative of the Abe Trading Company that sells seafood in Mutsu City, came up with the idea of "scallop bikini". He said: "The Lower North region, including ours, has been affected by the disaster, and in order to achieve post-disaster reconstruction as soon as possible, I would like to use more interesting raw materials to let more people know about Mutsu City and support Mutsu City." So he presented his ideas to the city government.
Later, the bikini topic of Abe representative gradually attracted attention on Twitter, and it was praised in the comment area. By the end of September, there were more than 100 local tax applications.
Abe Trading Company also sold "scallop bikini" on Rakuten, but the slogan on the promotional map really gave people a sense of spending money and risking money.
Screenshot of "scallop bikini" on Rakuten's website
The text on the picture reads, "Although we have washed the scallops and polished the sharp parts to the maximum extent, please pay attention to them." Scratches and walking are not responsible. Please use it according to your own situation. Please. (Is this slogan for people to buy or not for people to buy...) ）
In fact, "scallop bikini" has appeared as early as 2011, that is, the time of the Great East Japan Earthquake. At that time, Abe was still working in a roadside restaurant, and after seeing scallops being made into delicacies, he thought that scallop shells actually had use value, so he designed scallop bikini. Abe and his wife polished and made it by hand, and scallop bikini became one of the main products of the trading company.
Abe Trading Company representative Abe Gaku (image from the Internet)
So for the "scallop bikini", how do Japanese netizens think?
First of all, the netizens who are seriously supportive:
"When I was in elementary school, I liked mermaids, and when I picked up clams on the beach that someone had eaten, I took a rope belt through the shells and made shell swimsuits with my friends. But the disappointment is that it is not as beautiful as the scallop shells in the books. In today's many COSER, maybe you need a shell swimsuit...?"
"The scallops in Mutsu Bay, delicious... Whether it's sushi or fried or miso scallops! Shells are used like this! What a courage..."
"In order to make the local area be concerned, it is really a good idea!" Pray for a smooth local revival! ”
Many netizens also mentioned female celebrities:
"To say that the shell swimsuit is of course Kumiko Takeda was taken care of at that time. m(_ _)m”
"So you can't let the uncle over 50 years old mix into the functional department (laughs) and make me a scallop man by the way!"
Looking through the comment area, there are still many people who mention Takeda Kumiko, the reason is that in 1989, actor Takeda Kumiko once filmed a photo album about shell bikini, which was all the rage and became the memory of a generation, so everyone who can think of Takeda Kumiko is now an uncle.
Kumiko Takeda (58) (Image from the Internet)
After the "scallop bikini" exploded, many stars also challenged Takeda Kumiko's style that year, such as the well-known Lady Gaga.
Lady Gaga's scallop bikini shape (image from the Internet)
Stage actor Ryuko Umezu put on a "bikini," called herself a "mermaid" on Twitter, and showed off her abs.
Finally, some netizens gradually deviated:
"Is it true that it is said that wearing scallop bikini can increase powder!?"
"About 12 centimeters for men and women. I saw the photos and understood. This is the average Japanese... Wonderful. ”
"Probably the man, he's going to wear it."
"The clothes for this year's New Year's Party decided to wear this one!"
"No matter how you look at it, you can only cover the B cup, shiver..."
"What if you look at it from the back of a woman wearing a scallop bikini?"
It is said that this session of netizens think really much, to know the answer may have to buy a set of their own home to try it!
- Ends -
Want to know what Japanese netizens have been complaining about lately?
ID:japanesesay