On a narrow Tokyo street, near a beef bowl restaurant and a pachinko parlor, Aya Tsukioka demonstrated new clothing designs that she hoped would ease Japan’s growing fears of crime.

With a deft motion, Tsukioka, a 29-year-old fashion designer, lifted a flap on the front of her skirt to reveal a large sheet of cloth printed in bright red with a soft drink logo partly visible. By holding the sheet fully open and stepping to the side of the road, she showed how a woman walking alone could elude pursuers – by disguising herself as a vending machine.

Japan produces so many unusual inventions that it even has a word for them, chindogu, or queer tools. The term was popularized by Kenji Kawakami, whose creation of hundreds of intentionally impractical and humorous inventions has won him international attention as the Japanese equivalent of Rube Goldberg. Kawakami’s creations, which he calls “unuseless,” include a roll of toilet paper attached to the head for easy reach during hay fever season, and tiny mops for a cat’s feet that polish the floor as the cat prowls.

“Even useless things can be useful,” Kawakami said. “The weird logic of these inventions helps us see the world in fresh ways.”

I wonder if he could find something useful to do with our politicians?