Two new policies have been introduced by TEPCO in the wake of the earthquake and tsunami that struck the Tohoku region this month. Residents to be affected by the billing changes are understandably livid after enduring both planned and unplanned blackouts, in addition to cooperating with TEPCO and government requests to conserve as much energy…
Sometimes tweets from the government here in Japan send up red flags for me. Below is one of those tweets. A very suspicious way of looking at the statement below is that government officials are already rubbing their hands together thinking of things that they can do to make a “more stable” Japan… more stable…
This is another interesting story about the sensationalism of the media and the lack of fact checking done by most major media outlets. I have seen the same story repeated on the websites of both national and local newspapers in the United States, Canada, China, and Australia with only a simple search for them. The…
Readers of the blog know that I’ve been tweeting information about the situation in Tohoku whenever I’ve been available and had something to add or emphasize from the conversation. One of the important ongoing discussions between the media, Japanese government, foreign embassies, and people of Kanto and Tohoku is just how far away is far…
In all the pain, suffering, and uncertainty facing the people in Japan. There have been some heroes. None of the heroes have been so unlikely as the two members of the Japanese manzai pair “Sandwichman”. The pair, Mikio Date and Takeshi Tomizawa, both have popular blogs on the blog site Ameblo. Both also hail from…
I’ve been looking for some stories to write about that relay the seriousness of the situation while not being the same sensational images of houses and cars floating away or houses reduced to splinters. On the topic of international cooperation following the Tohoku Earthquake and tsunami in North-eastern Japan, there are several Japan bulletin board…
People who have seen this video on bulletin boards or the internet have talked about how it gave them something to laugh at and enjoy in these stressful times. The guy in the video had me laughing my head off with these sincere but wacky lines. The video is of from a Japanese guy who…
It’s no secret that Lady Gaga is a fan of Japan. She has just put a bracelet up for sale that says “We pray for Japan” in both Japanese and English. The bracelet is on sale for $5 and all proceeds will go directly to Japan relief efforts. She is very quick to act and…
UPDATE: The live feed here has ended as has TV Japan’s free broadcast of NHK in the United States. I’ve never embedded UStream, but here it goes. Free TV Show from Ustream
I will twitter some news when I can (you can see it in the sidebar of this blog or @newzjapan on twitter). UPDATE: TV Japan being broadcast for free in the US for the next few days (not sure about other countries) but live NHK broadcast can be seen on tv through participating cable tv…
I just wanted to post a quick message up here for people who have been reading the site. The majority of damage after the latest earthquake in Japan is in the Sendai and Fukushima area north of Tokyo. However, the aftershocks are continuing. I don’t want to give too much advice until we feel the…
This is coming from a lot of experience getting a lot of strange looks during many years living and faux pas-ing in Japan. 1. Don’t Think About Soup I’ve brought non-Japanese friends to a very nice Sento, or public bathhouse, and heard the inevitable reference to “sitting in an old guy soup”. “The only thing…