Since I was a teenage kid, I've been intrigued by Japanese culture. 

I'm not as much of a Japanophile as I used to be, but I still find the contrast between the zany quirkiness found in Japanese pop culture and the staid rigidity of traditional Japanese culture to be fascinating.

So, when I came across this video recently that lists seven things you can do in Japan but can't do in America (or vice versa), I had to share it with you:

By the way, the couple in the video have a pretty interesting blog on Japanese culture, and if you're into Ninja Warrior you'll want to check this post out.

Now, on to some martial arts stuff... 

I remember watching Fighting Black Kings when I was 14 or 15. I was so impressed by it, I wanted to move to Japan so I could learn Kyokushinkai.**

And of course, when I found a video with highlights from 40 years of the Kyokushin World Open Tournament, I just had to watch it.

Unfortunately, as I watched the clips I noticed that the technique of the fighters seemed to deteriorate as the years progressed. Maybe the editor just picked some bad clips, but there seems to be a lot more pushing and ineffective punching in recent years.

You can take a look for yourself and let me know what you think:

Me? I can't help but think that Mas Oyama is turning over in his grave. This Koshiki tournament clip looks much more entertaining and practical to me, as does this Kudo Daido Juku clip.

Or, maybe I'm just getting harder to impress as I enter middle-age.

And finally, today's email would not be complete without a completely ridiculous tameshigiri video. After browsing through about a dozen yawn-inducing videos like this one (the real stuff is always boring to watch), I stumbled across a Japanese TV show featuring an iaidoka with some truly impressive skills.

He starts off with the standard stuff, then he raises the ante by cutting a plastic pellet in half that was fired at him from an air gun, and finally slices a metal tube in two with a shinken (that made me cringe; oh the horror).

Check it out: