News for November 21, 2006

Some Japan-related news this morning:

-Hirokazu Nakaima has won the Okinawa governor’s race. Many obsevers regarded the election as a referendum on the presence of U.S. troops in Okinawa, and it the U.S. base-tolerant candidate won.

-Japan released an official statement that they will change phonographic writing of Austria from オーストリア(Austria) into オーストリー (Austry) in Japanese. Apparently there was a problem with オーストリア because people confused it with Australia…

-Japan’s Santa was named ‘Santa of the Year’ after winning an international Santa Claus contest held Sunday in northern Sweden. The winner was determined by races in the following categories: chimney-climbing, porridge- eating, kick-sledding and reindeer-racing.

-What Japan Thinks finds out what pizza toppings Japanese people love. I’ll take a tuna/corn/mayo/gratin pizza, please.

-Trans-Pacific Radio covers the education situation, the US-Japan alliance and other important issues in it’s latest news podcast.

Evening update:

If you are a customer of Kinmirai Tsuushin, you can no longer view this site. It sucks when an ISP closes without notifying its costumers.

A Japanese submarine collided with a cargo ship today. Nobody was injured, but there was a big dent in the sub.

A dog somehow found its way into the tunnels of the Nagoya subway system this morning, avoiding death and failing to cause a major disruption of service before workers captured it.

Trans-Pacific Radio has posted a very good piece of the problem of office/school bullying in Japan and how nobody seems to be doing anything to stop it.

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http://surrealu.blogspot.com claytonian

something tells me, based on the public sex story, that Tokyo is a whole different world from what I’m in now.
Daisy

So true! I really dislike it if people want to put me in Australia when I’m living in Austria (and always have to tell them that in my country there are no aboriginies or kangaroos) BUT to change the phonographic writing to Austry is redicioulous but somehow funny. Can’t wait til someone asks if I’m from Austry XD
http://www.japanprobe.com James (admin)

Daisy:

I find it ridiculous as well. Why should we be forced to change country names because people are simply too stupid to learn names correctly?
Shad

Each country chooses what to call others, no? ;P
The word “Japan” is certainly not Japanese in origin.
Carl 1.2

Clicking links almost at random and came across this.
Wow, that bullying thing was not what I expected. He was right about one thing, though – the issue has almost completely disappeared. I haven’t heard a word about bullying in over a year. Is the problem now solved?