Why would his post deserve being downvoted to hell without so much as a discussion? You and I may disagree with him, but he has a valid point and doesn't appear to be trolling.
I would like to think that HN had some compassion for their fellow users (HN has a lot of Tokyo based startups/hackers), not to mention humans in general.
In a scenario like this, who gives a fuck if it's off topic? And for the record, I saw the story here first, so I am thankful for that.
There are plenty of sites for general news. HN is not one of them.
The reason you saw it here first is because somebody posted it here despite what the guidelines say, and you happened to come at the right moment, before you checked other news sites you usually do.
The fact that you saw it here first does not change the fact that the article is, according to guidelines, off-topic.
Oh, and FYI, not posting this article on HN != not having compassion for fellow hackers.
Just because you're sitting in a gentlemen's club in the midst of erudite conversation doesn't mean you're not going to point out that the place across the road is currently on fire.
I find it strange that you and others question whether this article should be on HN - the fact you and others are commenting must mean that the topic grabbed you enough for you to want to read and comment on what people are saying on the subject.
Also the fact that the post has over 300 points and is comfortably the most talked about thing within the community is proof enough that topics like this should be allowed to remain within HN
