Stories about Japan from April, 2008
Japan: Stick-puppet Animation
Edo from Pink Tentacle posted a stick puppet animation, “Mononoke Dance”, by manga artist Masakazu Amahisa. The video shows a traditional Japanese monsters party.
Japan: Candle Night for Tibetan
Martin J Frid wrote an account for a candle night event in a Buddhist temple for showing their concern and support for Tibetan.
Japan: Architect bloggers stand against redevelopment plan
One of the most prominent modern architectural works in Japan is facing possible demolition. Japan Post, privatized last October, announced last year its plan to build a 200m building in place of the current structure, and part of the plan is scheduled to be carried out as early as May....
Video on Flickr: An apple of dischord
Seventeen hours after its creation, the Flickr group "NO VIDEO ON FLICKR!!!" already has more than 5475 members and 670 items. What is even more amazing is that another group, "We Say NO to Videos on Flickr", created 2 hours later, has more than double the number of members of the previously mentioned group, and both are composed of flickr users who oppose the idea of having video on the platform traditionally used for uploading pictures. On the other hand, the groups created for uploaded videos hardly have more than 30 members yet. What is the reason for this insatisfaction with Yahoo and Flickr's decision to make video uploading and viewing possible on their site?
Japan: Penis Pandemonium
Lee from Tokyo Time posts photos of the annual fertility festival at Hachiman-gu Shrine.
South Korea: How the Dead are Remebered Differently?
Matt discusses about how the dead are remembered and forgotten in South Korea.
Japan: Major Parties Cooperate to Legislate Regulation of “Harmful” Internet Content
Japanese bloggers have been making noise the past few days in reaction to two separate bills, submitted first by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party of Japan (LDP) and next by the leading opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), each aiming, in apparently similar ways, to legislate regulation over Internet content deemed to be "harmful" to minors (users under age 18). According to bloggers, the latest moves by government legislators, despite having received virtually no mainstream attention, constitute potentially the most extensive Internet regulation proposed thus far.
Japan: Next generation advertising communication
Japanese blogger Tokuriki Motohiko at tokuriki.com reviews the book [ja] “Next generation advertising communication” (次世代広告コミュニケーション） by Yokoshima Ryuji [ja]. The book considers the gap between the methods of mass marketing and those of Internet advertising, a gap which, from his one year of experience at the Agile Media Network, Tokuriki...
Japan: Kyoto Goal
Hisane Masaki from Ohmynews International has an update on the Japan goal in greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction.
Japan: Blogs a dangerous business?
Japanese blogger Akihito at Shirokuma Nikki picks up a New York Times article about the stress of 24/7 blogging, reflecting on the attraction of blogs as a medium to connect with other people, to immediately access responses to your own thoughts, and in some cases to reach a broad level...
Japan: Family registry system and same-sax couples
Blogger Maruyama Teruno discusses the gay-unfriendly nature of the Japanese family registry system, referred to as koseki, and argues that the system lacks consideration for the privacy of individuals. Even if partnership law was implemented but the current family registry system remained the same, it could potentially violate the privacy...
Japan: 7th Tokyo Pride Parade announced
7th Tokyo Pride Parade (TTP7th) has been announced and the official blog [jp]has been launched. Scheduled for August 9, the theme for this year's TPP is “matsuri”, or festival in Japanese.
Japan in full bloom
Spring has come to Japan with the first cherry blossoms of the year. People anxiously wait for the blossom forecast announced by the Meteorological Agency, while marking their calendar for the best day for blossom viewing (hanami). As the cherry blossoms front (sakurazensen) moved northwards, the cherry trees started blooming...
Japan: Ikeda Nobuo on new Internet censorship bill
Blogger Ikeda Nobuo writes in English about a new bill submitted by LDP legislator Takaichi Sanae to censor “harmful” content on the Japanese Internet. He writes that “mainstream media are silent, probably because the bill would kill their enemy.”
Japan: New Internet regulation bill sparks reactions from bloggers
A new legislative bill aiming to regulate access to “harmful” web content by minors (under age 18), presented to a government panel on March 19th by LDP member Takaichi Sanae (高市早苗), has sparked criticism from Japanese bloggers. Apparently worded by Japan's National Police Agency, the new bill proposes to make...
Japan: Otaku Research #1
Matt Alt at Neojaponisme translates a 1983 article by Japanese essayist Nakamori Akio, the first part of the “Otaku Research” series entitled “The City is Full of Otaku”, referring to the “obsessive” subculture in Japan associated with manga and anime.
Japan: Bottle Tea
Ad Blankestijn from Japan Navigator wrote about the bottle tea business.
Korea and Japan: Korea's Role in WWII
Ampontan referred to a Korean newspapers article titled Were Koreans Oppressors in the War, or its Victims? and carried on the discussion about politics and history writing.
Japan: the Japanese School Uniform
PingMag has a feature article on the Japanese School Uniform fashion.
Japan: the Kobe City Museum
Ad Blankestijn from Japan Navigator introduced the Kobe City Museum to his readers. The museum is devoted to “International Cultural Exchange” and “Contact Between and Changes in Eastern and Western Cultures”
Japan: Was it lucky?
Akky at Asiajin reports on an interesting case of “lost in translation”. Chicago Cubs fans at a Major League opening game in Chicago, where Japanese baseball player Kosuke Fukudome made an impressive debut for the team, were seen waving signs with the Japanese words “偶然だぞ” (Guzen da zo), roughly translated...
