[OFF TOPIC]Re: [sumo] New videos, Princess Aiko

[Sumo Now!]

>I stated that they produced no tangible good to the best of my
>knowledge. That seems to be accurate.

Hey, I think that's the crux of the matter, sir. You stated two 
facts, that the Imperial system is funded by taxpayers and that they 
travel like dignitaries. Those two things are hard to deny. Then you 
go on to state that they "provide
absolutely nothing other than 'good feelings' in some abstract sense 
as far as I can tell."

Lumping an opinion together with a couple of facts is the quickest 
way to make people perk up and think critically, which is usually a 
good thing. Folks just missed your qualifier that it was your opinion 
"as far as (you) could tell."

For the record, even though you might not think the goodwill and 
charitable duties of the Imperial family provide tangible good, the 
Emperor does have constitutional duties as well:

The Emperor performs those acts in matters of state which are 
provided for in the Constitution, such as appointing the Prime 
Minister and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, attesting the 
appointment of Ministers of State and some other high officials, 
convoking the National Diet, promulgating laws and treaties, awarding 
honours, attesting the credentials of ambassadors as well as 
receiving foreign ambassadors. In these matters of state, he acts on 
the advice and approval of the Cabinet.

If that's not tangible enough, I half-seriously offer the evidence 
that the Emperor plants rice annually, and the Empress raises 
silkworms. You can bet that the fruits of those labors are both 
"real" and do not go to waste.