The “Chunky Champs’ Infractions?!”

I recently read this article about one of Japan’s Olympic participants. While not necessarily life-changing or intensely thought provoking, it did bring make mention of a few details of Japanese life that are still, to me, a little unusual.
The first aspect is that of the total control that schools seek to have on their students. In Canada, if a school forbade dying or perming hair or wearing make-up, the parents and students would be in an uproar! Forbidding such self-expression would be a violation of the students’ rights. (Not to mention that half the teachers probably wouldn’t be able to show up at school, either.) However, it seems that here, uniformity is a key facet of life.
The other aspect of living in Japan that the article alluded to is that of the pressure to be slim. I recognize that this is a pressure not only in Japan but in many other countries as well. I also recognize that skating is a sport in which being petite is an advantage. But to call a girl who is barely 120 lbs a “lard laden lady of the lutz??” Ouch.
I better watch my weight. But first, pass me the chocolates.