Archive for May, 2008

Japan to use Australian ship for whaling research

Some support the plan, while others fear it may actually help Japan’s case for whaling:

JAPAN will lease Australia’s prime research ship to study whale food, sparking Opposition warnings Australia is bolstering the case for whaling.

But the Government says research findings could actually undermine the case for whaling.

Japan will use the 94m Aurora Australis vessel to conduct research on plankton and krill, a Budget estimates committee has been told.

Opposition senators say Japan could use the data to back up its pro-whaling campaign before international bodies.

“We are actively assisting in co-operation with the Japanese, who (are) a scientific hunter of whales, their understanding of the availability of food source for whales in southern oceans,” Liberal senator David Johnston said.

The information could go to “people we don’t want to give it to”, he said.

Old film of Japan

This clip of Japanese acrobats was apparently filmed by Thomas Edison in 1904:

For more video of early Japan, check out this Japanese documentary about the Meiji/Taisho/Showa eras on YouTube.

Virgin Mary arrested for operating a brothel

Mainichi reports on the arrest of several people involved in a brothel business:

A brothel owner and three other people have been arrested for allowing a female employee to use a hotel room for prostitution, Tokyo police said.

Toshiko Uchida, 70, the brothel owner, and three unnamed suspects stand accused of violating the Anti-Prostitution Law.

For some reason, Mainichi’s article left out the best part of the story. If you watch the video embedded in this post, the news report says that Uchida considers herself the “Blessed Virgin Mary,” and is denying the charges against her on the grounds that she is too pure to engage in such a crime.

Nekkid Sumo

Somebody likes to photoshop pictures of sumo wrestlers to make them look naked:

View the full gallery here. [not exactly work safe]

[via Zaeega]