tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72495167431686353372024-03-13T21:00:16.428+00:00Osu! Tatakae! Nippon!News about Japan, from a distance of 10,000kmMaxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.comBlogger155125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-65422540954110328012009-07-26T19:12:00.012+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.154+01:00DissolutionYou know how sometimes you intend to blog about shit and then by the time you get round to it everything's changed and you realise that, actually, you can't be arsed? Well watching the last two weeks of the LDP imploding has been like that. But with more alcohol. And less being arsed.<br /><br />So. The LDP <a href="http://shisaku.blogspot.com/2009/07/tokyo-metropolitan-elections-results.html" target="new">lost the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly elections</a> two weeks ago by almost as much as I like to tell people they lost by. Which is shitloads. They no longer hold the majority, that now goes to DPJ, Tokyo Network and assorted cronies. Unfortunately hardly anyone voted for the SDP, but then that's no surprise. There are still people who don't wash their hands after they use the toilet, so I guess some people just refuse to be civilised.<br /><br />Obviously Aso tried to limit the damage by telling people that the Tokyo Assembly elections weren't indicative of how the party would do in the general election because they deal with entirely different issues. Naturally, everyone knows that's horseshit. They're going to lose spectacularly in the general election. Not spectacularly because <a href="http://son-of-gadfly-on-the-wall.blogspot.com/2009/07/asahi-superimposes-tokyo-results-onto.html" target="new">they'll lose by much</a>, but spectacularly because they've only been out of power for nine months out of the last 54 years.<br /><br /><center><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxL5FZ4rqI2Fykx7th_gKJzPznF_UeIkgSw7rgJL-oIVv1xizpw12jYy7MMva7SqLiuQRbbGBNhUPJq2lrFyCR8Jy6rNN_zueGwaMs_Ou94hIIol-mDRWfXE7P2f0ubFjWMv5ShFN9c8cB/s1600-h/asoreinflate"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxL5FZ4rqI2Fykx7th_gKJzPznF_UeIkgSw7rgJL-oIVv1xizpw12jYy7MMva7SqLiuQRbbGBNhUPJq2lrFyCR8Jy6rNN_zueGwaMs_Ou94hIIol-mDRWfXE7P2f0ubFjWMv5ShFN9c8cB/s400/asoreinflate" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362923556267901442" border="0" /></a><br />Aso needs re-inflating again.</center><br />That's not to say that they've had a solid monopoly over Japan for all of those years. Since Koizumi they've had a litany of popular failures and private disasters. The best way to imagine the LDP's situation is to picture a man falling down an up-escalator for three pathetic, bone-splitting years. Like the LDP's approval rating the man seems to be constantly falling, with all the associated pain and embarrassment, but always miraculously stays in the same place. We have to wait for him to finally hit rock-bottom to see whether he'll lie there and bleed out with the remains of his dignity or whether he'll lurch like Frankenstein's monster back to the escalator of government.<br /><br />Aso has <a href="http://ourmaninabiko.blogspot.com/2009/07/aso-meter-key-dead-swing-voter-now.html" target="new">dissolved the Lower House</a> in preparation for a general election on the 30th of August. This obviously means that there is effectively no government in Japan at the moment. Are you thinking what I'm thinking? Cos I'm pretty sure this means Japan is ripe for a coup d'etat. If we can barricade ourselves in Aso's office so we've got the Prime Minister's Throne on the 30th of August then it's legal, right? Isn't that how it works?Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-12881023848183491202009-07-09T22:59:00.006+01:002017-05-25T06:23:01.981+01:00Land Of The Rising Unemployment Figures"Yes, unemployment rates are increasing. And yes, the rate at which the unemployment rate is increasing is increasing. But! The rate at which the rate of unemployment rate increases are increasing is DEcreasing! So it's all going to be ok! Vote LDP! Vote LDP!"<br /><br />The unemployment rate in May was up to <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D994LO5O0&show_article=1" target="new">5.2%</a>. I'm waiting for an update on June's figures, which I expect to see at <a href="http://www.japaneconomynews.com/category/unemployment/" target="new"><span style="font-style: italic;">Japan Economy News</span></a> any day now. I'm also preparing my face to adopt the appropriate expression of concern to mask the fact I have no idea what any of this really means.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOOjq2j7u1SV09711oAJIDNCf1WvbIzKITwSkLLv4Mhwo0BMHhNERM2heZzNd7yQ72rF3KkrQUmNCdg_-UZvYbEyE1wQeLASIJNY42I2gbuzAr20ur96IQ9Z0Kc7M8okHgxHbvpq0JZO9/s1600-h/osutatakaenippon-aso.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOOjq2j7u1SV09711oAJIDNCf1WvbIzKITwSkLLv4Mhwo0BMHhNERM2heZzNd7yQ72rF3KkrQUmNCdg_-UZvYbEyE1wQeLASIJNY42I2gbuzAr20ur96IQ9Z0Kc7M8okHgxHbvpq0JZO9/s320/osutatakaenippon-aso.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276727584035915890" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">Aso's "<span style="font-style: italic;">I feel your pain. No, seriously</span>" face</span><br /></div>Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-63301631493622476082009-07-08T17:43:00.003+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.145+01:00Aso Meets His BossWell, hasn't Aso Taro been busy? (No.) He <a href="http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2009/07/07/japan’s-rare-catholic-pm-meets-pope-benedict/" target=new>turned up at the Vatican yesterday</a> for a meeting with the Pope ahead of the G8 Summit in Italy that's just started. Every time the G8 meet it seems like all their members go on press-junket style tours, meeting local luminaries and being interviewed, like weary actors promoting their latest movie but with a radiant sense of glee and self-importance. They smile for the cameras and answer questions like, "What was it like working with Silvio Berlusconi?" and "Can you confirm or deny rumours of a romance between you and Chancellor Merkel?" Then everyone forgets they exist for six months or so before they're off again.<br /><br />So yesterday Aso (68 years old, Catholic) went to meet his Overlord, the Pope. But he wasn't just there to take Pope Benedict's each-way bet on Obama to use the word "reform" at least three times in a single sentence, oh no. He also wanted to present him with a Sony digital camcorder. Because if there's one thing the Pope likes more than gambling on dead-certainties it's home-videos. Oh, and God.<br /><br />Awkward gifts are something of a staple in the political world. When Obama met the Queen for the first time, he gave her an iPod loaded with songs from <span style="font-style:italic;">The King And I</span> (<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/apr/02/barack-obama-presents-queen-ipod" target=new>true fact</a>). In turn, the Queen gave him a framed, signed photo of herself, which quite frankly is fucking hilarious. And when Gordon Brown visited America, Obama gave him a box-set of 25 DVDs (<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2009/mar/06/obama-dvd-brown" target=new>another true fact</a>). Of course, Region 1 DVDs can't actually be played in Britain, but how was the President to know that?<br /><br />Here's the Aso-Pope meeting, with the Sony camcorder being presented on a silver platter:<br /><br /><center><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/l5r1dJIMCHo&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/l5r1dJIMCHo&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></center><br />You'll notice the camcorder doesn't actually have a charger though. So the Pope will be lucky to get even one match of the All-Italia Nuns Volleyball Championship out of it. Better luck next time.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-36690251404061095692009-07-02T23:09:00.007+01:002017-05-25T06:39:31.768+01:00Abandoned Hotel Becomes Even More AbandonedThe Takara Hotel in Nakagusuku, Okinawa, has been a hang-out for lots of idiot teenagers living in the nearby military base. It's also been used by some Japanese "military-gamers" as a paintball arena, which is a <span style="font-style: italic;">far</span> better use for an abandoned hotel than kids trying to scare each other. I mean, honestly. But now, because a Marine was injured there recently, the <a href="http://rokdrop.com/2009/06/30/marine-corps-puts-haunted-hotel-off-limits/" target="new">Corps has declared it off-limits</a> to all personnel and family of military staff. The wimps.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDcbFWE3oHQ2bM5fqmrRA_6zXjTw99VZ4IPzPzwRJX6jIyo7wRGQFqsnAvZNgzR8QplFQ25F69uXRRxL3l0SF_sb3wws8O0Csmf3GjNVp1iqpy_SovJlk2YBieDpxpqaH0lQgpHECsTazN/s1600-h/takara+hotel.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5354014170713462850" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDcbFWE3oHQ2bM5fqmrRA_6zXjTw99VZ4IPzPzwRJX6jIyo7wRGQFqsnAvZNgzR8QplFQ25F69uXRRxL3l0SF_sb3wws8O0Csmf3GjNVp1iqpy_SovJlk2YBieDpxpqaH0lQgpHECsTazN/s400/takara+hotel.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 300px; width: 400px;" /></a></center>
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2nd Lieutenant Lucas Burke (great name) has written that, "<span style="font-style: italic;">Injuries sustained by a service member brought the dilapidated conditions to light with Marine Corps leadership, who consider the high risk of harm at Takara Hotel to constitute a threat</span>." The Corps elaborated on the "dilapidated conditions", specifying "decaying structure, broken glass and accumulating detritus".<br />
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I'm no expert, but aren't these guys trained for wars? You don't need to coddle them, they're soldiers. A little "decaying structure" never hurt anyone! And "detritus" is <span style="font-style: italic;">known</span> to be character building. Significantly, the military have declined to describe the details of the Marine's injury sustained in the hotel, leaving us no choice but to speculate wildly.<br />
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The Takara Hotel was half-constructed in 1975 by an adventurous businessman. <a href="http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=63524" target="new">Apparently</a> the local villagers told him not to build the hotel because the proposed site was on sacred grounds. But, like any conscientious horror-story protagonist, he did it anyway. Then the local Buddhist temple started accosting the builders, warning them that the construction site was right next to a cave housing "restless spirits", so most of the builders left. We're told that the rest of the workers "abandoned the project when several other workers died in mysterious construction accidents". It's like the plot of every shit teen-horror movie rolled into one ridiculous mess. And the businessman ended up in an asylum.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaCPD9ll31tvaZc6DaYosi5DB26uu8uukQ-opkvgkA_JlhYAjzHv_c15i0HH3jcjlsha-qTHzfxVKAxdzODASbV74dzbTNm0TR3u3CSc6ogYeXpM6HnqyX4G305RMFCGMmzc3626xTeJc3/s1600-h/takara+hallway.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5354014489479704754" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaCPD9ll31tvaZc6DaYosi5DB26uu8uukQ-opkvgkA_JlhYAjzHv_c15i0HH3jcjlsha-qTHzfxVKAxdzODASbV74dzbTNm0TR3u3CSc6ogYeXpM6HnqyX4G305RMFCGMmzc3626xTeJc3/s400/takara+hallway.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 350px; width: 263px;" /></a><br />Is that blood in the hallway?! <span style="font-size: 70%;">(No.)</span></center>
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So, bearing all that in mind, what do you think happened to the Marine that was injured? Send me your wildest ideas.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-30457337921016487582009-07-01T23:06:00.004+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.029+01:00Not Long Before Flying Monkeys Now...Monkey news time! Not fugitive monkeys tonight though, we're talking about <span style="font-style:italic;">glowing</span> monkeys!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUKuQtJRVnC4-3I-He8hNHjD4jNUfkB4NKwfGT9xDcfr46sZ4BEpuL_Jid0Pdx8JM8EuSdbYv40X7xkdXVF-Vb6gUOHjxnnFkuNjEEfzPGiaTjNUlGRUstQwWYsf7IzJqpKGessQFHskcr/s1600-h/glowmonkeyhead.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 210px; height: 210px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUKuQtJRVnC4-3I-He8hNHjD4jNUfkB4NKwfGT9xDcfr46sZ4BEpuL_Jid0Pdx8JM8EuSdbYv40X7xkdXVF-Vb6gUOHjxnnFkuNjEEfzPGiaTjNUlGRUstQwWYsf7IzJqpKGessQFHskcr/s320/glowmonkeyhead.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353627072544976850" /></a>Marmosets have been genetically engineered in Japan's <span style="font-style:italic;">Central Institute for Experimental Animals</span> to <a href="http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn17194-gm-monkey-passes-jellyfish-gene-to-offspring.html" target=new>glow in the dark</a> by splicing some jellyfish genes into them. Somehow. And when the glowing marmosets fathered baby marmosets, the babies glowed too, meaning the scientists can make non-monkey genes inheritable in monkeys.<br /><br />This fantastic snub of Mother Nature is supposed to "herald development of monkeys that are better models of human disease than genetically modified mice". Somehow. I'm withholding judgement on that angle, given my lack of a bio-engineering PhD, but I'm all in favour of the Mother Nature snubbing and invention of anything that glows. Pictures have been very hard to come by, unfortunately, and the ones on this post seem to the only ones available.<br /><br /><center><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6P5FLKQbJoa1urN7BMqjF5NZeF6Er7IXQIboVwNrL7HBGtl6u8ucVtvcxbSH1J5oBv0qGSvVCSZRPaV8O-glOJlZv4_6hYDkj-OUROJD7cV3eskKAe1Vavzvxvga5l0GeTeg6ZBrac1qH/s1600-h/glowmonkeyhands.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 210px; height: 199px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6P5FLKQbJoa1urN7BMqjF5NZeF6Er7IXQIboVwNrL7HBGtl6u8ucVtvcxbSH1J5oBv0qGSvVCSZRPaV8O-glOJlZv4_6hYDkj-OUROJD7cV3eskKAe1Vavzvxvga5l0GeTeg6ZBrac1qH/s400/glowmonkeyhands.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353627199199133666" /></a><br />Glowing monkey hands</center>Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-29074623657469968102009-06-30T23:22:00.004+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.025+01:00YoYoJam JapesI've got over my accidental, self-induced food poisoning and I'm fighting-fit again! Although I'll probably still try to avoid fights. Let's keep it real.<br /><br />Right, I've got a lot of catching up to do with what's happening outside my flat, so whilst I go read some "news" here's what I'd like to fob you off with:<br /><br /><center><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_7gfghRlCwU&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_7gfghRlCwU&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Via <a href="http://www.japanprobe.com/?p=11081"><span style="font-style:italic;" target=new>Japan Probe</span></a></span><br /></center><br />This is the three-time World Champion yo-yo-er <a href="http://yoyowiki.org/wiki/Hiroyuki_Suzuki" target=new>Suzuki Hiroyuki</a>, of <a href="http://yoyowiki.org/wiki/Team_YoYoJam" target=new>Team YoYoJam</a>.<br /><br />How many times do you think he's hit himself in the head with that thing? (<span style="font-style:italic;">OTN</span> Official Guess: one million!)Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-89314023203358517512009-06-24T23:51:00.003+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.225+01:00Japanese Blogging Topics<span style="font-style:italic;">What Japan Thinks</span> has translated an interesting survey that ranked the <a href="http://whatjapanthinks.com/2009/06/22/standby-blog-topics-in-japan/" target=new>top blog topics in Japan</a>.<br /><br />The Top 10 for men were:<br /><br />1. What I Did Today<br />2. Impressions of Movie/TV/Anime<br />3. Favourite Product/Service<br />4. Impressions of Today's Food<br />5. Product/Service I Want to Recommend<br />6. Political News<br />7. Financial News<br />8. Sports News<br />9. What I Bought Today<br />10. Entertainment Gossip<br /><br />And for women:<br /><br />1. What I Did Today<br />2. Impressions of Today's Food<br />3. Favourite Product/Service<br />4. Impressions of Movie/TV/Anime<br />5. Product/Service I Want to Recommend<br />6. What I Bought Today<br />7. Impressions of a Manga<br />8. Impressions of Music<br />9. Entertainment Gossip<br />10. What My Friend/Relatives Did Today<br /><br />By way of comparison, here's the OTN Top 10 Topics so far:<br /><br />1. Politics<br />2. Technowizardry<br />3. The Economy<br />4. Ueto Aya<br />5. Criminal Underworld<br />6. Visions of the Apocalypse<br />7. Culture<br />8. Baseball<br />9. Wildlife<br />10. Pokemon<br /><br />Yeh, you'd never have thought that the bulk of this blog has been about politics, would you? But those are the numbers, man.<br /><br />Go to <a href="http://whatjapanthinks.com/"><span style="font-style:italic;" target=new>What Japan Thinks</span></a> for more details on the blogging survey and for shitloads of other interesting surveys.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-58685848279289464972009-06-23T22:54:00.007+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.136+01:00For Lack Of Anything Else: Gundam StuffThere's been a spate of Gundam suits being made recently. It started with the life-size Gundam RX-78 suit made in Odaiba as part of the <a href="http://gofightjapan.blogspot.com/2009/04/gundams-30th-anniversary.html">30th Anniversary of Gundam</a> celebrations, which seem to have spawned a series of copycat-crime Gundam creations all over the place.<br /><br /><center><object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/nl-Si9M9sYY&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/nl-Si9M9sYY&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Video of the Odaiba Life-Size Gundam, via <a href="http://www.japanprobe.com/?p=10965" target=new><span style="font-style:italic;">Japan Probe</span></a></span></center><br />But as we all know, the Universe craves balance. And as a multi-million yen, painstakingly accurate Gundam suit had been erected in Odaiba, so the <a href="http://www.science.pref.fukuoka.jp/" target=new>Fukuoka Science Museum</a> had to build four <a href="http://www.asahi.com/national/update/0411/SEB200904110009.html" target=new>Gundam suits out of cardboard</a>. This is the tiny picture that the <span style="font-style:italic;">Asahi Shimbun</span> provided, and I haven't been able to find anything bigger, sadly:<br /><br /><center><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxFz4Lv69ZJ7ZCfk-sDsXVuXVrnSb3nVwTSaUPaU9i4rmIXeNVY84aS4f8itU-PMYOgTh3zy6iAlpmk7jZjyyUp8NHzbR15aiZ1zvTjxVVkCiQaxIdjbv1MGycSwwVp-9EUkLgx61hT372/s1600-h/cardboard+gundam.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 174px; height: 256px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxFz4Lv69ZJ7ZCfk-sDsXVuXVrnSb3nVwTSaUPaU9i4rmIXeNVY84aS4f8itU-PMYOgTh3zy6iAlpmk7jZjyyUp8NHzbR15aiZ1zvTjxVVkCiQaxIdjbv1MGycSwwVp-9EUkLgx61hT372/s400/cardboard+gundam.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350653234070337842" /></a></center><br />Quite frankly I'm more impressed by these cardboard Gundams than by the life-size one.<br /><br />And in America, army mechanic Carlos Owens has designed and built his own mobile suit. It's not a Gundam, but in contrast to the Odaiba and cardboard models his actually <span style="font-style:italic;">works</span>. It's a six-metre tall hydraulic-powered suit that can be controlled from within.<br /><br /><center><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnJl9fRghgRgPNXNmJvFGvYbVl_GcqZIrmHzpXg8DKyf2KUY6VWy0nEfSUazyo3xgzwtj7-kZElyHJbnrZqG8ZPcd13rZ4ToDF5K-eqvVRkHx16SqBALMmt1t7LFvTFXhfT6pX1zI3yjmj/s1600-h/americanrobot.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnJl9fRghgRgPNXNmJvFGvYbVl_GcqZIrmHzpXg8DKyf2KUY6VWy0nEfSUazyo3xgzwtj7-kZElyHJbnrZqG8ZPcd13rZ4ToDF5K-eqvVRkHx16SqBALMmt1t7LFvTFXhfT6pX1zI3yjmj/s400/americanrobot.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350660543693447618" /></a><br />Via <a href="http://www.japanator.com/elephant/post.phtml?pk=10230" target=new><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style:italic;">Japanator</span></span></a></center><br />Given the numbers of <a href="http://gofightjapan.blogspot.com/2009/04/finally-some-robots-that-dont-herald.html">novelty robots</a> now roaming the Earth, could someone please get round to organising a Robot Battle Royale? Who's job is that? It must be <span style="font-style:italic;">someone's</span> job. Yeh I'm looking at <span style="font-style:italic;">you</span>, Japan.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-53747742117298943282009-06-20T15:52:00.003+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.117+01:00Guitar Playing Nine-Year OldDespite Ellen Degeneres, this video is amazing. Try to ignore her and watch the video <span style="font-style:italic;">to the end</span> - seriously. You won't regret it.<br /><br /><center><object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/YMD_L8IDZnc&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/YMD_L8IDZnc&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object></center>Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-88775817239618731462009-06-14T21:01:00.002+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.216+01:00Breaking Monkey News!Another monkey is on the run! This is not the same creature as the elusive Shibuya Monkey or the Kisarazu Monkey, it's a brand new one that infiltrated Kasukabe in Saitama yesterday. Look at it go!<br /><br /><center><object width="420" height="339"><param name="movie" value="http://www.dailymotion.com/swf/x9kioz" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><embed src="http://www.dailymotion.com/swf/x9kioz" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="420" height="339" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always"></embed></object></center><br />Actually they're not really chasing it, are they? It's like they hardly care.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-57917522862250036662009-06-13T22:20:00.003+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.129+01:00Monkey Chase!The people of Kisarazu in Chiba have failed where their compatriots in Shibuya <a href="http://gofightjapan.blogspot.com/2009/01/2008-otn-awards-part-5.html" target=new>also failed</a>. Late last month, 30 people attempted to capture a monkey that was running amok in the town, chasing it through streets and over rooftops, but they were outmaneouvred and outrun.<br /><br /><center><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/2ThsaEd_-cg&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/2ThsaEd_-cg&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></center><br />Why were they chasing the monkey though? Was it causing damage to property or something? I know nothing about the countryside, other than that it doesn't have internet and is therefore something to be avoided, so I very rarely come into contact with animals. I can't imagine the monkey was being that much of a danger to anyone or anything, but maybe that's ignorance on my part and monkeys are an infamous threat to crops or something.<br /><br />Pretty much the same thing happened in Niigata in March, but the people there caught their quarry. They initially tried to outwit it by leaving bananas laced with tranquilliser around, but when the monkey didn't fall into their trap they ended up just cornering it in a garage. And it only took 20 people there. Here's a video of the Niigata chase:<br /><br /><center><object width="420" height="339"><param name="movie" value="http://www.dailymotion.com/swf/x8pzho" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><embed src="http://www.dailymotion.com/swf/x8pzho" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="420" height="339" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always"></embed></object></center><br />Sadly there's been no news about the Shibuya Monkey, who evaded train-station workers, the public and the police for months. I really hope it survived the winter.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-40732088612676930062009-06-12T23:18:00.005+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.064+01:00Max's Vision Of The Apocalypse #3621Robots are now capable of reading. Waseda's Information, Production and Systems Research Centre has developed a one metre tall, 25 kilo <a href="http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/e-japan/fukuoka/news/20090611-OYT8T01078.htm" target=new>robot that can scan text and read it aloud</a> in a soulless, Mother Nature-mocking voice. He reads kana and over 2,000 kanji, making him officially about 10 times better than I am at Japanese.<br /><br /><center><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsRLijRsofxjVKsAT_X7mScVp7swVb2Zad8AXeVcuhcJPsxqTf9kuf0LfgoWZl7oGtiCVavDclwP9fYU0yrXrOpwaxo09hGBjYjJgJF9gtOWEfY5PR9d-cuKI9ZfdCIDKXPwAgHCAFDSJI/s1600-h/arebours1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 278px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsRLijRsofxjVKsAT_X7mScVp7swVb2Zad8AXeVcuhcJPsxqTf9kuf0LfgoWZl7oGtiCVavDclwP9fYU0yrXrOpwaxo09hGBjYjJgJF9gtOWEfY5PR9d-cuKI9ZfdCIDKXPwAgHCAFDSJI/s400/arebours1.jpg" border="0" alt="A Rebours" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5346605170557707842" /></a></center><br />The robot, which some commentators are already calling a "crime against nature" <span style="font-size:85%;">(source: <a href="http://gofightjapan.blogspot.com/2009/06/maxs-vision-of-apocalypse-3621.html" target=new>OTN</a>)</span>, has been dubbed "Ninomiya", and is an abomination upon the Earth. The heathen scientists behind Ninomiya are currently working on making its voice sound more natural and human, the better to infiltrate our homes. They hope the aberration will be used in the future to <a href="http://www.pinktentacle.com/2009/06/ninomiya-kun-book-reading-robot/" target=new>read books to children and the elderly</a>. Although the scientists didn't say what it would be reading, it's probably significant that they didn't explicitly state it <span style="font-style:italic;">wouldn't</span> be reading anti-Human propaganda and Satanic pledges, so we must fear the worst.<br /><br /><center><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/h2oLiJXWpjM&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/h2oLiJXWpjM&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Video from <span style="font-style:italic;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2oLiJXWpjM" target=new>Pink Tentacle</a></span></span></center><br />Woe! Woe! Fear the unbelievers!Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-86767404029523829272009-06-11T14:18:00.005+01:002017-05-25T14:08:33.229+01:00Evangelion Phones!Oh if only my blog hadn't broke this week and I hadn't been so lazy last week. Then I could have linked the last blog-post and this one together and created a kind of Evangelion-themed week. Once again the forces of bad luck and laziness have colluded against me. Anyway, brace yourself for the most awesome mobile phones ever...<br />
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Evangelion phones! Yaaay, Evangelion phones! Evangelion, Evangelion, Evangelion phones!<br />
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Yes, <a href="http://akiba.kakaku.com/hobby/0906/05/203000.php" target="new">Evangelion mobile phones costing 90,000 yen</a> each (that's about £560) have been released. There were 20,000 of them available on Friday at 10pm, and at 3pm after five hours of taking orders there were none left. That's over £11 million earned by Nerv in five hours. Or £2.2 million every hour. Or £37,000 every minute. Or £617 per second. Just in the time you took to read this paragraph they probably earned enough to buy you and everything you own.<br />
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And I can't think of a better way to spend 90,000 yen. Look at it:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhYBLGgCZBYvkUGgT8jszo_7ZKQmG_ZRCA0dio2s4HXXguwpyQrRns8i3EIHnoARzX8uw0Fe0aOjNe0wxfTYqmNK6IUgG6xUCWmsI-OeKa89sHB44iMdRQ3wKS2q5ReruwnltF2GFShZEK/s1600-h/worthmorethanyourlife.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="Worth more than your life" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5346066050675127394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhYBLGgCZBYvkUGgT8jszo_7ZKQmG_ZRCA0dio2s4HXXguwpyQrRns8i3EIHnoARzX8uw0Fe0aOjNe0wxfTYqmNK6IUgG6xUCWmsI-OeKa89sHB44iMdRQ3wKS2q5ReruwnltF2GFShZEK/s400/worthmorethanyourlife.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 400px; width: 400px;" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqFt5V9s1CRRMy2Ss9s_18B4pnYE9dlIdBL_aXzs7Q4G0hJw8lVnhp-RSmeW86xnH9Uitx9bzbUjJcHboR4r7Fqra_xplzVYv9QqQhvpjTvVV79EtTRuWDGQy2NqkYrpsMkrYcvJXlmoc/s1600-h/worthmorethanyoursoul.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="Worth more than your soul" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5346066648675776226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqFt5V9s1CRRMy2Ss9s_18B4pnYE9dlIdBL_aXzs7Q4G0hJw8lVnhp-RSmeW86xnH9Uitx9bzbUjJcHboR4r7Fqra_xplzVYv9QqQhvpjTvVV79EtTRuWDGQy2NqkYrpsMkrYcvJXlmoc/s400/worthmorethanyoursoul.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 300px; width: 400px;" /></a></center>
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It's designed by Anno Hideaki, who I'm guessing had to sell his soul to do shit this cool, to tie in with the release of the second of the Eva-remake films. <br />
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And look at the stuff it comes with:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzJl8t_Dh9qEJPXKUZmmZIMUNzViZAE0Cjb5iL2iCLK_GmAJqbZMxl_iEQpDh2S3aoxywLkS3KRSY9KffU7xOIjoUUAfubGIZ7rEkxRVtdVuOGDtl2sSyAX6KMlr8qOmWZaK4V5PRbJQIT/s1600-h/worthmorethanyourgirlfriend.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="Worth more than your girlfriend" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5346067534223894194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzJl8t_Dh9qEJPXKUZmmZIMUNzViZAE0Cjb5iL2iCLK_GmAJqbZMxl_iEQpDh2S3aoxywLkS3KRSY9KffU7xOIjoUUAfubGIZ7rEkxRVtdVuOGDtl2sSyAX6KMlr8qOmWZaK4V5PRbJQIT/s400/worthmorethanyourgirlfriend.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 308px; width: 400px;" /></a></center>
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They sure as shit know how to merchandise, these people.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-42156410620435869422009-06-03T18:12:00.006+01:002017-05-25T14:10:05.413+01:00Watching The News Gets Marginally Closer To Being Worthwhile<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgq7JkLJA9L9_3LEMjTX5QFCP3XjQwfKB5SDPFNY6TOsBCXcTB28uXhTnzqM1qHLulay4Jfy9rW8Rak13o1azfO4ncWxSYtEugzjUnECP4WvsnIssIMI2rCtm-R4MdhT-3lum3Qt0Jt5D7/s1600-h/misato3.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343155990072238194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgq7JkLJA9L9_3LEMjTX5QFCP3XjQwfKB5SDPFNY6TOsBCXcTB28uXhTnzqM1qHLulay4Jfy9rW8Rak13o1azfO4ncWxSYtEugzjUnECP4WvsnIssIMI2rCtm-R4MdhT-3lum3Qt0Jt5D7/s200/misato3.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 200px;" /></a>I've got a new addition to the list of Reasons To Shell Out Stupid Money For A PS3: Katsuragi Misato is <a href="http://mainichi.jp/enta/photo/news/20090527mog00m200027000c.html" target="new">delivering real-time news</a> through a downloadable <span style="font-style: italic;">Nerv News 24</span> application. This now joins the previous one reason on the list: "the PS3 exclusive release of <span style="font-style: italic;">Yakuza 3</span>".<br />
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They haven't got the original voice-actress doing the reading, but they're using a voice-synthesizing programme to recreate her so it's all ok. The background and Misato's clothing will be customisable, so you can have her reading in the Nerv Headquarters or in her dining room. It's as yet unknown how far <span style="font-style: italic;">Bandai</span> are capitulating to the fans in the choice of outfits they're making available. Although the <span style="font-style: italic;">Evangelion</span> franchise is very open to <span style="font-style: italic;">total</span> fan-service so we could be in for a real treat.<br />
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Unfortunately the application is only available in Japan, thereby adding to the already lengthy list of Reasons To Live In Japan. It joins such reasons as "not having to live in England" and "not being able to accidentally overhear people talking in a language I can understand".Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-24900535189988326752009-05-22T23:57:00.004+01:002017-05-25T14:10:35.930+01:00In Before The Clock Ticks OverIt's 11.57pm over here, so it's time for today's blog post!<br />
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The brilliant Crazy Ken Band have <a href="http://www.tokyograph.com/news/id-4793">just signed with a major label</a>. Universal are establishing a sublabel called, for absolutely no reason, Double Joy International just for them. Frankly, I didn't know they weren't already signed with a major label. Well, 'every day a little wiser', right?<br />
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For those of you who aren't already familiar with Crazy Ken Band, here are a couple of songs. They kick ass. Bask in the glory! Etc!<br />
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Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-68672936927331535772009-05-21T23:00:00.004+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.162+01:00Lock StockThere's a reason I haven't written any blog posts since Monday - I forgot. I've been literally so busy over the past three days that I completely forgot to write on the internet or watch even a single minute of baseball. Apparently I missed a Mariners win last night. :o( Still, the reason I'm so busy is that the Pokemon World Video Game Championship is currently happening around the globe and the London heat is in nine days, giving me a frighteningly short amount of time to do a frighteningly large amount of preparation. So you can expect anything I write on here over the next ten days to be quite spectacularly half-assed. Even more so than last week when I only had university exams to prepare for and not a potentially life-changing Pokemon tournament.<br /><br />But anyway! Today, let me introduce you to the Stocking Tug Of Team War!<br /><br /><center><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA7hHFfXBAcCBOS_ngzO7u9zz7AazVJtgFBrnR3uE-YqAceM7LveQRLmS-ZxozUXD1aH5VVU8bu2YO87a43YDnj3-91cA4QePN3B7CN8VvWUKAD1Fj5SYPuMNNc1xoQDgoNkKLxyyRXU3Y/s1600-h/stocktock.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA7hHFfXBAcCBOS_ngzO7u9zz7AazVJtgFBrnR3uE-YqAceM7LveQRLmS-ZxozUXD1aH5VVU8bu2YO87a43YDnj3-91cA4QePN3B7CN8VvWUKAD1Fj5SYPuMNNc1xoQDgoNkKLxyyRXU3Y/s400/stocktock.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338403441437960642" /></a><br />Available in shops.</center><br />Behold! The heady mix of two parts entertainment, five parts extreme lack of taste!<br /><br /><center><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/pm1BCq2mSkA&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/pm1BCq2mSkA&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></center>Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-55757107451431050352009-05-18T18:11:00.004+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.123+01:00Paper Plane World Record. Whoopee.Toda Takuo is a 52 year old paper plane enthusiast from Fukuyama. He recently <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D986NF2G3&show_article=1" target=new>broke the world record</a> for the longest paper plane flight by 0.3 seconds, and it now stands at a proud 27.9 seconds. He tells us that "the key to breaking the record is how high you fly it." No. Shit.<br /><br />That story makes today officially the Slowest News Day Of The Year so far. It's actually slower than the days when I didn't even have any news to post. Give me strength.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-10555879855647835792009-05-17T23:53:00.005+01:002017-05-25T14:12:20.419+01:00Stagnation<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJiqgRgFdOCQJmiVfyNywbCZnlo1zqqybBVr9Fz8c8xUbxHGsgfl5yt9_rPxBwqaGfquTRJJFrm4IQBkOOlZcSaERvfoVjl8dFHuklkZwR0rTGI7CD9ZMUTGMNjGZNADotpJXLo8yX9QYM/s1600-h/dpj.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5336948709760549058" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJiqgRgFdOCQJmiVfyNywbCZnlo1zqqybBVr9Fz8c8xUbxHGsgfl5yt9_rPxBwqaGfquTRJJFrm4IQBkOOlZcSaERvfoVjl8dFHuklkZwR0rTGI7CD9ZMUTGMNjGZNADotpJXLo8yX9QYM/s400/dpj.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 345px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 257px;" /></a><a href="http://gofightjapan.blogspot.com/2009/05/le-sigh.html" target="new">I said a week ago</a> that I'd do a post on the DPJ leader election when they announce who's running for office, but they already <a href="http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/090516/world/japan_politics_opposition_12" target="new">elected Hatoyama Yukio</a> this weekend when I wasn't looking. Sorry. That's what happens in politics when you're not paying attention: nothing.<br />
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Somehow the DPJ decided that instead of giving Japan something different from the failing LDP, trying to win an election by being <span style="font-style: italic;">better</span> than the other candidate, they'd give Japan something exactly the same and hope that people confuse the two enough to elect the DPJ. <a href="http://shisaku.blogspot.com/2009/05/when-hatoyama-yukio-wins-we-all.html" target="new"><span style="font-style: italic;">Shisaku</span> points out</a> that both Hatoyama and Aso are bad communicators who are recent descendants of former conservative party Prime Ministers. (We can also add the other two leaders of the LDP since Koizumi to that list - Fukuda's father was Prime Minister and so was Abe's grandfather.) So what's making the DPJ more electable now? They might have had something under Ozawa, but that's been scuppered.<br />
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Time to <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8027397.stm" target="new">elect the Communist Party</a>?Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-6304011070101473462009-05-16T23:13:00.003+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.141+01:00Well I Blame The Parents<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbCLgwCFNs9rv0KGzpwh95Sg1Xhgxkr_bnqB5h9v5ejCiCrXZLWDfqVT-RLxD1t2wKXSz7lwQzOcmx9CVKHELnobodtMnwbSktC2RelCMCyNyIqEYF8Fy3lnGnYNp9BUXcD12M-eTqnNHU/s1600-h/konoike.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 142px; height: 176px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbCLgwCFNs9rv0KGzpwh95Sg1Xhgxkr_bnqB5h9v5ejCiCrXZLWDfqVT-RLxD1t2wKXSz7lwQzOcmx9CVKHELnobodtMnwbSktC2RelCMCyNyIqEYF8Fy3lnGnYNp9BUXcD12M-eTqnNHU/s400/konoike.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5336561645595217650" /></a>The Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary, Konoike Yoshitada, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601101&sid=aXLNZBL.u_Uo&refer=japan" target="new">resigned a few days ago</a> due to "<span style="font-style:italic;">health issues</span>". Not having a formal education in politics it took me a while to realise that "<span style="font-style:italic;">health issues</span>" is actually a euphemism for "<span style="font-style:italic;">being caught using government money to pay for a golf trip as part of a poorly-concealed extramarital affair with a young lady</span>". Don't you just hate jargon?<br /><br />And you know when Aso said to reporters that he shouldn't be held responsible for the appointment of someone who later had to resign for being a cheat and a crook? That was a euphemism he cleared up in <a href="http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/national/news/20090515p2a00m0na003000c.html" target="new">yesterday's speech</a>. It's apparently a more poetic way of saying that he's "<span style="font-style:italic;">responsible for appointing all those who ended up resigning</span>" and that "<span style="font-style:italic;">This time is no exception</span>". I guess we should have known that. Silly us. Who knew we were actually supposed to trust politicians <span style="font-style:italic;">less</span>?<br /><br />So now Konoike is "<span style="font-style:italic;">entirely to blame</span>", and Aso is also "<span style="font-style:italic;">fully responsible</span>". Once Japanese scientists invent an engine powered by Japan's surplus guilt we're all gonna be driving hovercars.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOOjq2j7u1SV09711oAJIDNCf1WvbIzKITwSkLLv4Mhwo0BMHhNERM2heZzNd7yQ72rF3KkrQUmNCdg_-UZvYbEyE1wQeLASIJNY42I2gbuzAr20ur96IQ9Z0Kc7M8okHgxHbvpq0JZO9/s1600-h/osutatakaenippon-aso.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOOjq2j7u1SV09711oAJIDNCf1WvbIzKITwSkLLv4Mhwo0BMHhNERM2heZzNd7yQ72rF3KkrQUmNCdg_-UZvYbEyE1wQeLASIJNY42I2gbuzAr20ur96IQ9Z0Kc7M8okHgxHbvpq0JZO9/s320/osutatakaenippon-aso.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276727584035915890" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">Aso's "How-can-you-ever-forgive-me?" face</span><br /></div>Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-21055652196905563352009-05-14T19:52:00.003+01:002017-05-25T06:23:01.994+01:00Why I'm Not Working In R&DJapanese scientists have developed technology for <a href="http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200905120056.html" target="new">an organic electro-luminescent display that stretches</a>. Apparently,<br /><br /><blockquote>The team demonstrated a face-shaped display showing changing expressions, and a spherical screen to show weather information. They were produced by spraying a layer of carbon nanotubes with a fluoro-rubber compound to produce a stretchy, conductive material. The displays are thinner than plasma and LCD equivalents, and consume very little power, making them suitable for a range of different uses.</blockquote><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlAi6gg44vUARQV3tBbmaWDpjl1VgpjVxnx6RkAstj11UFFg_Sz9lSP9Dz6nC1CM33FnqgSN6lhFlbhcI3ofokI3-YaReUVsJ4YS-Bee0BKfkebgjr1Vc6veyOv038Vi7vj9L9YzvcQUtb/s1600-h/elrubber.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 250px; height: 167px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlAi6gg44vUARQV3tBbmaWDpjl1VgpjVxnx6RkAstj11UFFg_Sz9lSP9Dz6nC1CM33FnqgSN6lhFlbhcI3ofokI3-YaReUVsJ4YS-Bee0BKfkebgjr1Vc6veyOv038Vi7vj9L9YzvcQUtb/s320/elrubber.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335761305342307202" /></a>Not entirely sure that it's going to make much difference in the world. What actual good can this technology be put to? Maybe they'll be able to make bras that have a Twitter-feed on them. Or bras that show the baseball scores. Or bras that tell you what mood the wearer is in. Hmmm. Maybe someone with more imagination than me should have a look at the new technology.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-48128863592536666652009-05-12T10:34:00.007+01:002017-05-25T14:16:31.757+01:00Abe In Nine Hour PlayI don't want to turn this blog into a laundry list of my woes, because that list is about as long as the Thames and growing every day. But I will say that today has already been an especially shit day, because the exam I thought I was supposed to be sitting is actually scheduled for next Monday. So I've been working myself up thinking that after today I'd be finished with university til October, but now I have another week left because I can't read a bloody exam timetable properly. I must be the only literature student who can't even read a timetable.<br />
<br />
But anyway. (That's a phrase I'm having to use more and more to distinguish actual blog posts from the opening paragraph of whinging.)<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnYsJGFxifp1djTaCS6qpTyv0iAa_Van-E5fDU_WLQBHcqcJayrz3mcOtVawWqTRjVUtSymxeYbrizTpyD3JRIOZGLMDw06wYD8o9VuF-x03rJQc6IVg3WoDIgvMvagNqchLINNC9iB3SS/s1600-h/abe.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335067694424771314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnYsJGFxifp1djTaCS6qpTyv0iAa_Van-E5fDU_WLQBHcqcJayrz3mcOtVawWqTRjVUtSymxeYbrizTpyD3JRIOZGLMDw06wYD8o9VuF-x03rJQc6IVg3WoDIgvMvagNqchLINNC9iB3SS/s320/abe.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 320px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 142px;" /></a>Abe Hiroshi, star of <span style="font-style: italic;">Trick</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">Hero</span>, is going to be <a href="http://www.tokyograph.com/news/id-4785" target="new">playing the lead in the first production of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Coast Of Utopia</span></a> in Japan from September to October. It's actually a trilogy of plays set in nineteenth century Russia, but they're going to be performed back-to-back. Which means that Abe will be onstage for <span style="font-style: italic;">nine hours</span> per day.<br />
<br />
The play was written by British playwright Tom Stoppard, widely known for writing <span style="font-style: italic;">Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead</span>, but whose real genius came out when he co-wrote the Brazil screenplay. That was a fucking awesome film. Why don't they do a stage adaption of that? Abe Hiroshi as Sam Lowry would be <span style="font-style: italic;">kickass</span>.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-81662672540420369782009-05-11T19:24:00.003+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.199+01:00Le Sigh...Something has actually happened in politics! After several particularly dry months for political news, <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D983S58O0&show_article=1" target=new>Ozawa has announced that he's resigning</a>.<br /><br />The DPJ fund-raising scandal that had nothing to do with Ozawa himself has still affected his image, and that's what's prompted his decision. It's a shame, because his approval ratings were far higher than Aso, and if the scandal hadn't dragged its sagging, irrelevant ass onto the scene then he'd be almost guaranteed to win the election this year. Now we don't know who we're going to get.<br /><br />I just can't agree with this Japanese culture of offering resignations as a form of apology. Resigning is a one-hit-deal; if someone's screwed up and they're <span style="font-style:italic;">really</span> sorry then they should be prepared to stay on and work like a dog to make things right again. I guess it's gratifying to see someone who screwed up making a sacrifice as penance, or just suffering, so people are very keen to demand resignations. Hey, I do it all the time. But of course Ozawa hasn't actually done anything wrong.<br /><br />Anyway, when they announce who's taking over or running for office I'll do a proper post on this, the most tedious and boring scandal-resignation-leadership-race in history.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-38207857888905997482009-05-09T22:48:00.003+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.058+01:00Prognosis: ShitFresh from kicking the ass of a bad case of flu, only to have it kick back, and then completing all my university coursework in record and hysteria-inducing time, I now have some kind of stomach bug. It's entrenched in my stomach and it <span style="font-style:italic;">really</span> hates me. This month has started as badly as last month. At least it hasn't dampened my <span style="font-style:italic;">joie de vivre</span>, eh? OH WAIT.<br /><br />Anyway. Let's see what's happening in Japan.<br /><br />The papers say something about a <a href="http://www.japantoday.com/category/politics/view/japan-wont-invite-fijian-leaders-to-pacific-islands-summit" target="new">Pacific Islands Summit</a> and the leaders of Fiji not being invited, and how that's making some people unhappy. But hey, people are always unhappy. At least they haven't got stomach bugs. <a href="http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20090509p2g00m0dm002000c.html" target="new">Three cases of swine flu</a> have been confirmed. They were from America and had been travelling in Canada, so expect all Americans and Canadians to be put under house arrest for the next ten years.<br /><br />In politics, Aso Taro wants to host a <a href="http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20090509p2a00m0na002000c.html" target="new">nuclear disarmament conference</a> in Hiroshima or Nagasaki, to get world leaders talking about possibly planning to do something which might marginally reduce the pace of Armageddon. And Aso is also going to "face-off" against Ozawa <a href="http://www.japantoday.com/category/politics/view/aso-ozawa-to-face-off-in-diet-next-wed" target="new">in the Diet on Wednesday</a>. Unfortunately the "face-off" is a public debate and not a "<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119094/" target="new">Face/Off</a>", with Aso playing the part of John Travolta and Ozawa playing Nicholas Cage. Aso has also <a href="http://www.japantoday.com/category/politics/view/aso-says-having-children-an-obligation-but-later-retracts-remark">inadvertently said something that insults most of the population</a>, again, but this time had the sense to retract it afterwards. Who gives a shit? I certainly can't because all my food is coming out the other way.<br /><br />In business news, all <a href="http://www.japantoday.com/category/business/view/toyota-sees-losses-deepening-this-year" target="new">car companies</a> are going <a href="http://www.japantoday.com/category/business/view/mitsubishi-expects-sharp-sales-drop-for-fy-2009" target="new">down the drain</a>. Fuck them. It's not like they have stomach bugs or something.<br /><br />That's the news. Take two pills and pass the bottle to the left.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOOjq2j7u1SV09711oAJIDNCf1WvbIzKITwSkLLv4Mhwo0BMHhNERM2heZzNd7yQ72rF3KkrQUmNCdg_-UZvYbEyE1wQeLASIJNY42I2gbuzAr20ur96IQ9Z0Kc7M8okHgxHbvpq0JZO9/s1600-h/osutatakaenippon-aso.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOOjq2j7u1SV09711oAJIDNCf1WvbIzKITwSkLLv4Mhwo0BMHhNERM2heZzNd7yQ72rF3KkrQUmNCdg_-UZvYbEyE1wQeLASIJNY42I2gbuzAr20ur96IQ9Z0Kc7M8okHgxHbvpq0JZO9/s320/osutatakaenippon-aso.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276727584035915890" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">Aso's "John Travolta circa-'97" face</span><br /></div>Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-4821512118670098132009-05-08T09:35:00.003+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.101+01:00OMFuckinG! Nintendo Announcement! Pokemon Gold and Silver Remakes! OMFuckinG!!As I type this I am happier than I could ever admit to people not on the internet. This is one of the best days of my life! <span style="font-style:italic;">Nintendo</span> have <a href="http://bulbanews.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Nintendo_confirms_Generation_II_remakes" target=new>announced</a> that they are remaking <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokemon Gold</span> and <span style="font-style:italic;">Silver</span> for the DS. The remakes will be called <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokemon HeartGold</span> and <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokemon SoulSilver</span>. It's all confirmed, it's on <a href="http://www.pokemon.co.jp/info/game/g090508_01.html" target=new>the official website</a>. It's actually happening! The dream has become real!<br /><br />Look at the title graphics:<br /><br /><center><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0NTvFq15rHr5lbTaRAl9txjpA1s6zoCktCQAjCDX_x5KrCcdRHFQqPo9s33wwRToJqS464bUlFTIMMyFm_g_4yB3iGWXQrXHGi-Cht4FX62Rm5TqBaoMrZxjTfq-NJphA7sLOVeqmlJur/s1600-h/pokemonremakelogos.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 74px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0NTvFq15rHr5lbTaRAl9txjpA1s6zoCktCQAjCDX_x5KrCcdRHFQqPo9s33wwRToJqS464bUlFTIMMyFm_g_4yB3iGWXQrXHGi-Cht4FX62Rm5TqBaoMrZxjTfq-NJphA7sLOVeqmlJur/s400/pokemonremakelogos.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333370099852071394" /></a></center><br />Isn't it beautiful? I'm so happy I'm genuinely on the verge of tears! This is one of the best things that has ever happened! I CAN'T STOP USING EXCLAMATION MARKS!!<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Pokemon HeartGold</span> and <span style="font-style:italic;">SoulSilver</span> are due for release in November this year in Japan. The US version will likely be released in mid 2010, with the European version coming whenever they remember the European market still exists. But we'll all be importing the Japanese versions and then importing the US versions and then completing them both and then framing the boxes before we even start thinking about the European release, right? I mean, we all will. Won't we?<br /><br />I'm inviting all my friends out tonight to drink like there's no tomorrow. This is the Best Day Ever.Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249516743168635337.post-65965014383024946722009-05-05T19:55:00.006+01:002017-05-25T06:23:02.158+01:00"We Won't Diagnose You With Swine Flu If You Might Have It"As my slow return to lucidity continues, it looks like everyone else is going the opposite way. My WTF-Moment of the Day happened when I read <a href="http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20090505p2a00m0na003000c.html" target="new">this article</a> in the Mainichi. You remember how Japan was getting ready to fight the swine-flu virus by setting up hundreds of emergency clinics and heat-scanning people and encouraging everyone to wear thin, permeable bits of cotton over their faces? Of course you do, that was in the news yesterday - your brain only needs 24 hours of storage space to remember that.<br /><br /><center><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG0jrMkR146bTVBIn68RzDj3KkUXxOa7QLbxG4_UeCgsy8hJY4DOVmbQf6-GgmLmK2U3AJIPuuvN3BfpCQwu5E-sd-RDIW36BduKtyBtoB8ogfUfEJt8AQPiPRAQ-YF-PT1XpDeYfx4bn9/s1600-h/porkyporkpork.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 302px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG0jrMkR146bTVBIn68RzDj3KkUXxOa7QLbxG4_UeCgsy8hJY4DOVmbQf6-GgmLmK2U3AJIPuuvN3BfpCQwu5E-sd-RDIW36BduKtyBtoB8ogfUfEJt8AQPiPRAQ-YF-PT1XpDeYfx4bn9/s320/porkyporkpork.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332438544771552242" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Mr. Porky's foil-sealed Bag of DEATH</span></center><br />Well today it's being reported that people with any kind of fever are being turned away by doctors and hospitals. They've also refused medical-examinations to people who <span style="font-style:italic;">mention that they have a foreign friend</span>. The potential infected are being sent to public health centres (which are not actually equipped to test for the H1N1 virus), or just having doors slammed in their faces amidst shrieks of "Unclean! Unclean!".<br /><br />So on the one hand they've set up more facilities for treating the virus than anywhere else in the world, but on the other hand they're refusing to send the possibly-infected to places that might be equipped to deal with them. There's a paradox here somewhere, I know there is. I can smell it.<br /><br /><center><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtOzdDpNie0CFNjs8bOZ_HhSoHwbO13K_zOcLNTkuLp9HfrPXrLghyphenhyphen-Kgxf8Pz7n0HGjA76eNi4_KumCBJw1lVsf-nVMqSaGeo4E4Z9w-f1RLI4zdO7CzvNfDmLZDq7QpdPX_X3Nkb-wLG/s1600-h/bird+flu+swine+flu.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 256px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtOzdDpNie0CFNjs8bOZ_HhSoHwbO13K_zOcLNTkuLp9HfrPXrLghyphenhyphen-Kgxf8Pz7n0HGjA76eNi4_KumCBJw1lVsf-nVMqSaGeo4E4Z9w-f1RLI4zdO7CzvNfDmLZDq7QpdPX_X3Nkb-wLG/s320/bird+flu+swine+flu.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332446757849676226" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Bird Flu and Swine Flu collide... with hilarious results</span></center>Maxamillianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05426287921495151784noreply@blogger.com0