One thing that struck me when I was in Tokyo were all the vending machines. Train stations, next to shops, street corners... All over the darn place. My first thought was that it must be nice to live in a place where people don't automatically break things as soon as the sun goes down. In America we can't have anything this nice. Few things are better than a hot can of sake or hot chocolate on the way home from the train station on a cold winters night.
I was also stunned when I noticed the lack of security bolt/screw heads on the walls and fixtures of bathrooms. Simply stunning. Don't these people know that if you turn you back for a second the public will unbolt everything and haul their loot to a pawn shop? I don't know what the street value of a bathroom stall wall partition is but if must be pretty darn high by the design of the security measures. Here in the US they must be worth their weight in gold or something.
However, while I was there the big news story was that burglars were taking the gates off form people driveways. They would sell them to scrap yards because they were made of aluminium. So it's not a total utopia but still... I miss those vending machines.

Outstanding! You've made my mornings even better, I always say 'the day don't start until I've had my cup of Boingboing!' Love the comments (a bit obvious that) and the page is easier to read, much coolness is had by all.