Japan

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8.9 Magnitude Earthquake Hits Northern Japan- UPDATED 1:30pm EST SAT

An 8.9 magnitude earthquake hit 373 kilometers off the coast of Northern Japan at 2:46pm today. Quake triggered a 13 ft. tsunami, sweeping massive amounts of debri inland. As of 5:50am EST 32 are dead in Japan.

This quake was the fifth largest earthquake ever recorded. The strongest ever in Japan. Quake has been followed so far by 19 aftershocks, all at least a 6.0 magnitude.

Authorities in 20 countries haves issued a tsunami watch, including Hawaii and the entire west coast of North America, including Washington, Oregon, California and Mexico. Residents who live in coastal areas of these states should be alert and prepared to evacuate. For Alaska the watch has been downgraded to a warning.

The USGS has instructed residents of all coastal areas on the west coast of the United States to stay out of the ocean and away from the beaches. Residents of Hawaii are urged to seek higher ground for the entire duration tsunami, which will come in several waves.

Officials in the Philippines, where the tsunami is expected to hit first, have ordered evacuation of 19 coastal provinces.

This quake was the latest in a systemically active week in the region. Wednesday a 7.2 quake struck off the course of Honshu followed by a 6.3 quake Thursday in roughly the same area.

According to Japanese authorities, as of 6:00am EST, Japan’s nuclear power plants remain undamaged.

UPDATE 10:00am EST:

Death toll has been raised to between 200-300 bodies in and around Sendai, the epicenter of the quake.

Japanese authorities have ordered the precautionary evacuation of residents who live around the nuclear plant effected by the quake as technicians are having trouble cooling the reactor. Despite this the U.N. nuclear oversight agency has said that all plants have shut successfully shut down.

Thousands remain stranded in cities, especially Tokyo, as all trains have shut down. Tokyo has remained largely unscathed.

30 aftershocks have followed since the main quake, the strongest measuring 7.1.

Japan has reached out to the U.S. for assistance. The U.S. Navy is already positioning ships in the area to be of assistance to the Japanese people.

There are no reports of mass panic or lawlessness in the wake of the disaster. Way to be Japan.

UPDATE 2:30pm EST:

There has been no official update about the death toll. But the tsunami is probably responsible for more deaths and injuries than the quake itself. There are reportedly more than 500 injured and over 351 missing. Rescue workers are currently searching for 80 dock workers that were swept out sea.

An oil refinery that exploded continues to burn in Fukushima Prefecture. Also in Fukushima Prefecture, a small leak could occur in a nuclear plant and a dam failed and washed away about 1,800 homes.

U.S. Air Craft Carrier group Ronald Reagan is moving into position to provide aid and help with reconnaissance missions that are already underway to help the Japanese government map the disaster zone. The U.S. has also sent two search and rescue teams from the Agency on International Development to provide aid. Link

A nuclear emergency has been issued for the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant as it is not currently cooling. The US is flying in additional coolant. News.com CNN.

“A second nuclear power plant may be overheating.” CNN

California counties Del Norte, Humboldt, San Mateo and Santa Cruz are under a state of emergency. CNN Damage was reportedin Santa Cruz county earlier today. NBC Bay Area

“ Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa ordered the evacuation of the Galapagos Islands and of cities along the country’s coast Friday.” CNN

Update March 12:

From Kyodo News:

“Four people have been injured in an explosion that occurred at the No. 1 reactor of the quake-hit Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, the operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Saturday.

The explosion was heard at 3:36 p.m. following large tremors and white smoke was seen at the facility in Fukushima Prefecture, the company said.

The four workers were working to deal with problems caused by a powerful earthquake that hit northeastern Japan on Friday.”

Update Saturday 1:30 PM EST

CNN is reporting that 900 people have been confirmed dead thus far, but that the number is expected to rise into the thousands. Over 9500 hundred people are unaccounted for in the town of Minamisanriku alone. Rescuers have pulled more that 3000 from the rubble since the quake.

The New York Times is reporting that evacuations continue in the communities affected by radiation releases from two malfunctioning nuclear power plants. In a chilling development, officials are distributing iodine (which is used to minimize thyroid damage in the event of radiation exposure) to people in the surrounding areas. The management of the evacuation is also severely overtaxing resources already needed for search and rescue efforts.

Source and Photo Credit: NPR

Yakuza Are People, Too – A Cautionary Tale

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Journalism’s first obligation is to the truth. The second obligation is to protect the sources of sensitive information. True journalists will go to the mat for their sources. Judith Miller is one such journalist. Paul Branzberg was another.

Jake Adelstein is another in the long line of journalists doing their job no matter what the consequences are.

Mr. Adelstein was the first American to be hired by the Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan’s largest newspaper. He worked as a journalist on the police beat in Saitama and later in Tokyo covering organized crime for 12 years. He quit the newspaper and returned to the U.S. once threats were made against his safety by Tadamasa Goto, a powerful yakuza boss. Goto’s henchmen threatened Mr. Adelstein if he attempted to publish anything in regards to the suspicious conditions that allowed Goto to receive a liver transplant in the U.S. Later, after uncovering further details of a deal made with the FBI to allow Goto into the US, he ran the exposé in The Washington Post after Japanese publishers refused to print the piece. His book, Tokyo Vice, details the inner workings of the media and the symbiotic relationship of organized crime and the police force in Japan.

All this to say, the man knows of what he writes, which made him an obvious choice as consultant for a National Geographic documentary, Gangland Tokyo, about organized crime in Japan. As part of the consulting job, Mr. Adelstein states that helped arrange interviews, handled logistics, and did some of the interviews himself. He introduced the outsourced film team to his own sources and friends. He even went so far as to loan National Geographic footage of actual yakuza ceremonies, for their “dramatization” sequences.

However, National Geographic allegedly refused to allow Mr. Adelstein full access to the materials needed to verify the accuracy of the program. He has since resigned from his job as consultant and has returned his fees to National Geographic Television.

As he states on his website, Japan Subculture Research Center:

“For several months, I have repeatedly asked to have all the materials necessary to verify the “factual accuracy” of the program, as was the agreement. The reply from NGT was to insist that “factual accuracy” actually meant “general accuracy”, and that I was being difficult.”

National Geographic has had issues with objective, truthful reporting in the past. The company, of which News Corp. is a majority shareholder, has a history of manipulating images and creating sensationalistic stories through misinformation as reported in this lengthy exposé in The Huffington Post about National Geographic’s work about Africa and this damning report about the mistranslation of an important early Christian manuscript.

So perhaps it should come as no surprise that NatGeo’s use of outsourced film crews working as “parachute journalists“on the yakuza documentary would result in possible compromises of source safety for the sake of creating a fascinating narrative.

After viewing a rough cut of the program, Mr. Adelstein writes:

“I now have serious concerns about the safety of all Americans and Japanese sources, friends, and the staff of National Geographic Channel Japan who are involved with this program. There is a chance that the yakuza that have been betrayed by NGT will use violence against those residing in Japan to express their anger. I am even concerned about the safety of the yakuza that agreed to appear in the documentary, probably under false pretenses and false promises. They will face retaliation from their superiors if the program is aired as it is now. Yakuza are people too, a small minority of them are good people in their own right, and once they cooperate with the program, they are also sources. And sources have to be protected. That is the good faith that is demanded in responsible journalism.

(…)

There is a saying in Japanese, bushi wa nigon ga nai. Literally, a samurai doesn’t have a second word. What it means is that once a samurai has said he’ll do something or promises he’ll do something, he does and he keeps that promises. He doesn’t backpedal and say “factual accuracy” means “general accuracy” or that “we may have said that but that’s not what you signed.” Would I believe the word of three yakuza over the word of an LA based “film director” who brags about his reputation for doing awesome “dramatizations” and “re-creations”? Mmm…Yes. I’d believe the yakuza every time, in this case. The yakuza do have standards and practices. They are not particularly high standards but they exist. Most yakuza have them posted on large ornate scrolls posted on their office walls and written in bold dark cursive: “Any member who engages in theft, robbery, rape and or any other activity that runs contrary to the noble way (ninkyodo) will be expelled.” It’s very clear.

(…)

If they air the film as it is now and anyone is hurt, I’ll be the first one to go to the police and file charges of criminal negligence resulting in injury and/or death. And I will do my best to see that they are extradited. Because recklessly endangering or causing harm to others is a crime here in Japan where the documentary was filmed.

They can’t deny they knew there were dangers. The chain of emails that someone in the organization anonymously sent me establishes that, as well as does this posting. NGT has been warned; I hope they become enlightened and do the right thing for once. Ethical and factual journalism can actually be pleasant, if a little boring.”

Read the rest of Mr. Adelstein’s post here.

The yakuza are compelling figures. Just like the mafia in the West as depicted in The Sopranos or the Godfather franchise, the temptation is there to turn them into the ultimate anti-heroes. There’s a reason they even have fan magazines and video games set in the underworld of Japan. However, that doesn’t excuse NatGeo’s attempts to twist their documentary into a sensational pseudo-exposé at the expense of their sources’ welfare.

H/T: DogsofWar, Botswana Meat Commission FC, Lucky and Rumpofsteelskin. Image via TokyoMango.

The Amazing Race Recap: Big In Japan

Welcome back to a busy leg of The Amazing Race! In what I think may be a race first, instead of lolling about at a resort until the morning, after the teams checked into the pit stop they were sent on an overnight train ride from The Outback to Somewhere With Airplanes. The Nerds (Zev and Justin) were the first to leave the pit stop and learned that they had to fly to Tokyo, Japan. They reminisced about the last time they were in Japan and had to eat fistfuls of wasabi. Otherwise, they were nonplused by their destination. One person that was super duper OMG! holy cow we’re going to Japan! Did you read that? We’re going to Jah-payyyuuun!!!! Whoooo! was the Daughter half of Father/Daughter. Maybe Japan was on her bucket list, or maybe she just really likes sushi and questionable fashion trends. I don’t know. But she was excited.

Eventually the teams all figured out that there were two flights to Japan–a direct flight that got in at 6:15am, and a connecting flight that got in at 6:00am. Now, I’ve watched enough seasons of TAR to know that you do not risk a connection over fifteen minutes. But despite having actually run the race before, some teams did not know this. People, please. If you’re going on a reality television show, do yourself a favor and watch a few seasons beforehand. You can learn lots of great stuff, like never give away an immunity idol, never make a dress that could be worn by the mother of a bride, and never choose a connecting flight over a direct flight to save fifteen minutes. Sheesh!

The Nerds and the Globetrotters were waffling back and forth between the direct flight and the connecting flight, and eventually decided to go for the one that got in earlier. But, waffling takes time, and time is not your friend on TAR. By the time they went to purchase their tickets for the connecting flight, there were only 2 seats left. What would they do? Flip a coin? Rock, Paper, Scissors? Thunderdome? Nope. The Globetrotters let the Nerds have the last two seats because the Nerds had helped them out with a clue earlier. Have I mentioned that I love these guys?

Along with the Nerds, the “Couple,” The Deaf Kid And His Umbilical Cord, Mel and Mike, and the Cheerleaders all opted to take the connecting flight. The bad news is that there were engine troubles with the connecting flight. The good news is, they were on the ground when they found out about the engine troubles. But it did delay their flight, and I hate to say I told you so (that’s not true, I actually love it), but the direct flight landed first.

Once in Japan, the teams had to drive themselves to city of Kamakura and find the Yabusame Dojo. The parking garage was the coolest thing ever! The cars rotated on a giant Wonder Wheel and spit out of a slot like a vending machine. And for an added bonus, the Globetrotters looked like they were driving a little clown car, which may or may not be part of their basketball routine.

All of the teams seemed to get a bit lost, and Old Yeller started doing his yelling thing again. But, berating his daughter paid off because they got to the Roadblock first. Way to reward bad behavior, TAR.

At the Roadblock, one team member had to participate in a Yabusame training exercise. Old Yeller himself chose to do the Roadblock and was dressed as a samurai and given a bow and arrow. I would not have given an angry, short-tempered old man a weapon, but hey, that’s just me. The Sisters Who Peed In China, the Globetrotters, and Father/Daughter arrived shortly afterwards and got suited up and began practicing the routine which involved some sort of bending exercises and shooting an arrow through a piece of plywood while riding a mechanical bull set to “easy peasy lemon squeezy” mode.

The Sister hit the target first, and that pissed off Old Yeller. Next was Justin. Bam! Hit the target. Then the Father. Old Yeller must’ve been steaming at that. The “Couple”, Mel and Mike, and the Deaf Kid And His Umbilical Cord showed up at the Roadblock just as the Globetrotters completed the task. Finally, Old Yeller let out a yelp and hit the target and his daughter cheerfully exclaimed “good job, Daddy!” What a nice family, I think they’re going to really bond over this experience.

Two teams were missing in action–the Cowboys and the Cheerleaders. The Cowboys were very, very, very lost. Their navigational plan was to drive “south.” I’m not sure if they understood that Japan is an island, and too much driving “south” would lead to a very long swim.

In contrast to the Cowboys’ lackadaisical approach, the Cheerleaders rammed right into another car. They hit a side mirror, and the car’s owner called the police. The Cheerleaders broke a mirror. Ha! Throw them in jail for Extreme Irony (and Horribleness)! Although the police did not throw them in jail (they ordered the Cheerleaders to hug the other driver, figuring forcing these women to be nice was the cruelest punishment of all), the incident did slow down their race considerably.

All teams eventually completed the Roadblock and were sent to a railway station to find a statue and their next clue. The Nerds and Father/Daughter got there first. The teams had a choice between two tasks–Prayer of Purity or Frog of Life. In Prayer of Purity, the teams had to complete a cleansing ritual and then stand under a freezing cold waterfall for one minute. In Frog of Life, teams had to strip down, get into a mud pit, and search for a plastic frog while being pelted with mud by boisterous locals. Please choose Frogs of Life, please choose Frogs of Life, please choose Frogs of Life!

They chose Frogs of Life! Whoo hoo! The task looked absolutely awful. Not only were they looking for a small frog in a mud pit while wearing nothing but a diaper, but the locals were serious about pelting them with mud. The Nerds found the frog first and had to drive to the pit stop in Kuriyama, Japan. Father/Daughter were close on their heels, so to speed things up, the Nerds hopped in their car pantsless. I am now performing a purity ritual on my eyeballs.

Speaking of purity rituals, Old Yeller and the Globetrotters were the only teams to choose this task. I hope the ritual cleansed the evil out of Old Yeller, because he was in rare form. The Globetrotters made quick work of the task and completed the task first. While grabbing their backpacks to leave, they accidentally picked up Old Yeller’s fanny pack which contained Ron and Christina’s passports. Whoops! Realizing their mistake, the Globetrotters left the fanny pack in the changing room. This left Old Yeller fuming because he had spent a few minutes berating his daughter for not being more careful. Good work, Globetrotters! You pushed that man one step closer to the edge.

As the Cheerleaders headed to the frog task, the Nerds were running to the mat. For the second week in a row, the Nerds were team number one. Good for you, pantsless boys! Father/Daughter were next, followed by the Globetrotters and Old Yeller. Old Yeller was not happy about the fanny pack situation and complained to Phil, who gave the Globetrotters a 30 minute penalty. Fair enough I suppose, but still, it was a bit of a snitchy thing to do.

Meanwhile, more digging through mud, more frogs and diapers, and the Cheerleaders finally made it to the mud pit. The sun had gone down, and the only other team left was Mel and Mike. Poor Mel was a wreck. Mike had the good senses to take his father to a nearby ambulance to warm up. Unfortunately, getting into an ambulance is never a good strategy for winning TAR.

The Cheerleaders found the frog pretty quickly, which meant Mel and Mike were the last ones left at the task. The Cheerleaders never saw Mel and Mike in the ambulance, so when they got to the mat, they assumed that they were going to be eliminated. When Phil told them that they were team number nine, something horrible happened. One of the Cheerleaders (I don’t know which one, they both look the same, it’s kind of creeping me out) said “shut the front door!” as a substitute for “shut the fuck up!” No. Just no. There is no place for cleaned up churchy-speak on TAR, and I hope that the next time one of them pulls crap like that, the producers bleep it out so that my ears do not have to be offended by their non-potty-mouths.

Mel and Mike didn’t finish the task and were eliminated. That’s too bad, but it was bound to happen eventually, and Mike did say that he didn’t want to kill his father, so mission accomplished. The teams are off to China for the next leg, where it looks like the “Couple” takes a long drive in the wrong direction. Fun!

So what did you think? Did the Globetrotters deserve the penalty? Were you hoping this was a non-elimination leg, or would it have been cruel to force Mel to continue?

Japanese Robot Babies: because not enough people think robots are going to take over the world

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Check this little guy out! A group of scientists at Osaka University designed him to make realilistic human expressions in an attempt to study human social development between parents and children. There’s some scientist who is totally marking off a graph being really pissed off that he can’t find a suitable control model for his experiments because some babies are happier than others, and dreaming up this little abomination. They tried using robots in the past, but the robots didn’t work “in a natural way” and therefore the parents didn’t interact properly with them. Video of them in action:

I don’t know about you, but look at those eyes. I’d totally name him “Shifty.” He needs some servos adjusted, stat!

Here he is, without the “realilistic” skin! :

Look! The full range of emotions!:

I hope they never show this infographic to “parents” in the study:

Totally creepy, but I think it could be viable. For all of those people out there who are stuck in their phones updating facebook and think that social interaction in over 140 characters is taxing- there’s a companion for you! The maternal/paternal instinct in humans is huge! Make this thing Wi-fi, be able to download a playlist from iTunes and have a wireless charging platform (it already looks like it’s an Apple product) and make a billion dollars! Isn’t a new “Chucky” movie in production?