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Japan Prime Minister Noda and the Half A Million Dollar Website

Byjay

Japan’s prime mininster’s office has spent 4.5 million yen (nearly  US$550,000) on an overhaul of the Prime Minister’s website. The redesign was done to improve communications. A new section of the site was also designed for kids. The site, titled” The Prime Minister of Japan and His Cabinet” can be found at http://www.kantei.go.jp/ . It includes links…

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Wendy’s Returns to Japan with Old Favorites and a New Premium Menu

Byjay

We wrote about Wendy’s planning a return to Japan over a year ago and the return has now become a reality. Wendy’s is back in Japan, and most importantly so is their trademark baked potato with toppings which had been sadly and inexplicably discontinued in the months leading up to Wendy’s previous demise in Japan….

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Strange Video From Fukushima Nuclear Plant Live Camera

Byjay

I’m going to embed the video right here so you can watch and try to figure out what’s going on here… Looks like something out of a science fiction movie. The person in the video seems to be a worker at the plant, based on his official clothing, but I’m not sure why he is…

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#RealJapan hashtag for Twitter and Media Representations of Japan

Byjay

Well, I took advantage of a late night to do some light internet reading. Although I don’t often read news about Japan in English, tonight I was in the mood so I checked some of my RSS feeds for interesting articles. I came across a few that I don’t really want to link to, but…

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Mac Akasaka (Makku Akasaka) Tokyo Governor Candidacy Video

Byjay

If I had a vote in the Tokyo election coming up, I can tell you who would get my vote… however, being a fan of good writing I would rather show you than tell you. Introducing Mac Akasaka or Makku Akasaka who identifies himself with the “Smile” party and has decided to announce his candidacy…

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Daily Pay for Nuclear Plant Disaster Workers Possibly Over $4,000

Byjay

Tokyo Shimbun reports on a 27 year old plant worker who received a call to come to the Fukushima Daiichi plant and work, but turned it down for the sake of his 26 year old wife and 3 year old son. The man said that many workers over the age of 50 were returning to…

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Higashikokubaru vs Ishihara in the Next Tokyo Governor’s Race?

Byjay

Miyazaki Governor Hideo Higashikokubaru, also known as comedian, writer, and TV personality Sonomanma Higashi, has his eyes set on following his stint in Kyushu with becoming the next governor of Tokyo. He announced his official candidacy this week. Incumbent Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara, who loves a good (or bad) soundbite, continues to be criticized for…

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Softbank Introduces a Simple Cell Phone for Kids

Byjay

The “mimamori keitai 005Z”, or the “protection cell phone” (my translation) is set to be released in March 2011. The phone has a crime prevention buzzer built in, and only has 1 button on it. The display is a tiny 1.2 inches, and was designed with young children in mind. It will also be equipped…

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JR Driver Arrested with Marijuana Bought from Non-Japanese

Byjay

I am writing about this story for two reasons. The first is that yes, there are drugs in Japan and they are not hard to obtain. (This is contrary to how shiny, happy, mainstream media usually portrays Japan in English.) Secondly, I’ve found that when anyone is arrested for drug possession in Japan, there is…

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Osaka Governor Toru Hashimoto – Vies for Worst Twitter User Ever

Byjay

If you are a resident of Osaka and would like to read some opinion papers written by your governor, Toru Hashimoto, you now have the option of reading them at a bite-sized pace. New to twitter, it seems that Hashimoto (whose twitter profile shows he follows no one) jumped in feet first without testing the…

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Bullied Indian Student at Otemon Gakuin University Commits Suicide

Byjay

Although this is just being reported now, the suicide happened in June of 2007! Although the family of the Indian student who committed suicide asked the Otemon Gakuin University to investigate, the school let this case sit on a shelf for 3 years. The university made no report until the bereaved family hired a lawyer…

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Maki Goto and Others Play Concert for Cancer Research

Byjay

It seems that a lot of people come to this site after searching for Maki Goto, so I thought I’d mention some recent news about her. She recently performed at the HelloSmile Live 2010 along with Hitomi, alan, moumoon, and Tokyo Joshiryu a.k.a. Tokyo Girls’ Style. The concert is designed to support research into cancer…