Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
This freaks us out and the photo does as well. A cast of elder ex engineers and more are interested in helping out the Fukushima plant in Japan. Yes, they’re older and a dose of radiation might not hurt their chances of having more “normal” kids, yet, this is what it’s coming to. Amidst the slowly lessening news of the leaking reactors, yes, there’s new news of that today, and the general cleanup images, the problem persists enough for things to come to retirees feeling the need to help. (NY Times – Elders offer help at Fukushima)
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The day after the Hollywood Bowl, Towa Tei stops in. He cited Yellow Magic Orchestra as being mentors to him and he said the show was like playing with old friends. It’s ironic that he was the least heralded at the show since he was DJing in between bands, yet the title Big in Japan, really fits him and YMO the most. It’s been a little while, but I last saw him in Tokyo a couple of years ago and he mentioned that the yen is strong, the economy is weak, and life has changed in Japan.
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“The Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) announced on Friday that it published an English-language ‘Japan Anime Map’ that highlights the locales in the country with ties to anime.” Today, you can have a souvenir of Japan without leaving the comfort of your workspace or leisurely environs. The JNTO, which promotes tourism on behalf of the Japanese government, has created and made available for download a really cool map which lists real-life locations of famous fictional anime action, as well as where to find some of the famous hot spots of otaku culture throughout the country. So, if you’ve been dying to find out where “Summer Wars” takes place, or are planning a tip to Nakano Broadway or Miyazaki’s Ghibli Museum, you really should get yourself a copy of this map. (Anime News Network – Japan Anime Map) The best way to get a hard copy of the anime map, and other useful Japan tourism info, is probably to contact the JNTO office nearest to you. Here’s how: JNTO Regional Offices.
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Amateur Japanese Radiation Detectives “If TEPCO was operating this facility in the U.S., all of the reactors would have been shut down indefinitely and there would have been a complete changeover of management.” The gist of this is that people are not very happy with the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO). Citizens affected by the nuclear disaster in Japan view the company’s response to the crisis as slow and somewhat sloppy. According to the report at the link, for a time after the disaster TEPCO was using fire hoses and temporary water pumping equipment to attempt to cool the reactors at Fukushima. So, out of safety concerns and a sense of duty to help, some regular folks in the Fukushima and Minami Soma areas are borrowing Geiger counters and monitoring radiation levels themselves. They are not licensed specialists, and they have no formal training in radiation risk management. But one former garbage-sorting worker and one elementary school principal, amongst others, have decided the best way to assess the ongoing risks of Fukushima radiation is to do it themselves and use their common sense to get the safely through the threat. (Bloomberg-Business Week – Geiger Counter Gumshoes) Yakuza Disaster Relief is So Efficient, it’s Just Criminal “Those lining up to profit from the clearance operation, which is expected to take three years, include homegrown gangs and Chinese crime syndicates.” For some reason, this story reminds us of the Paul Sorvino mafia character in the movie “The Rocketeer”, who takes sides with the good guys against the evil Nazi played by Timothy Dalton. Sure, that was only a movie; but the point is that bad people are capable of doing good things when their country or way of life faces a threat, whether the threat comes from humans or nature. And so it seems to be with Japan’s Yakuza, which has been credited with very quickly and efficiently offering supplies and shelter to March 11th disaster survivors, in some cases days before government agencies were able to do the same. But in the wake of that generous initial response, the Yakuza are now seen as a possible problem where the bidding for post-disaster debris removal and reconstruction contracts are concerned. Police and government officials are worried that Yakuza-affiliated companies will win these lucrative contracts by sharply under-bidding legitimate civilian firms, perhaps with the help of local government officials, and end up exporting disaster debris outside of Japan for sale on the global black market. (The Guardina UK – Yakuza Disaster Contracts)
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“The stress on the Japanese people continues to compound as concerns about the radiation leaks from the Fukushima nuclear plant continue to rise.” After you look at the pictures at the link, you’ll realize that one morning in Japan after the earthquake and tsunami, someone walked into their affected neighborhood and saw a rather large boat on top of their house. In the last three months, you have likely seen long shots or aerial images of the disaster damage in Japan. But you probably have not seen a series of photos like this, which show close shots of specific spots along the Japanese coast and affected areas inland shortly after the earthquake/tsunami, and then three months after. Three things about this gallery are really striking. First, the damage and debris in the ‘before’ shots. Second, the amazing amount of cleanup and return to visual normalcy in the ‘after’ shots. And, third, the huge amount of cleanup and rebuilding work which still needs to be done. In fact, some of the spots in the after images look nearly as hopeless and woeful as they did right after the disaster. Still, hope here is the operative word, and we expect that as the months wear on, more and more images coming out of the disaster area in Japan will show us a rebuilding and reestablishment of normal, happy lives. (Bit Rebels –Before and After the Disaster)
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