Prime Minister Hatoyama Resigns
The reign of “Loopy Hatoyama” has come to an end:
Japan Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama told leaders of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan that he will resign, N-H-K Television said, without saying where it got the information.
Hatoyama told reporters earlier that he would outline his stance on whether to stay in his post at a meeting of DPJ legislators at 10 a.m. amid mounting calls for him to step down.
“I would like to explain my thinking at the meeting,” Hatoyama said outside his office in Tokyo. “I will also listen firmly to what others have to say.”
Calls within the DPJ for Hatoyama to resign have grown after polls this week showed 4 in 5 voters disapprove of his job performance with six weeks to go before mid-term elections. Hatoyama met last night with Ichiro Ozawa, the party’s No. 2 official and campaign chief, to discuss his future.
The Hatoyama resignation has been confirmed since the printing of that article. Seconds ago, TV news also reported that Secretary General Ichiro Ozawa will be resigning.
Hatoyama is in the process of giving an resignation speech on live TV, and he looks pretty sad.
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Categories: Politics
iPad Used During Surgery in Japan
A doctor at Kobe University uses an iPad to display and zoom in on images during a surgical procedure:
As you can see, however, it is less than perfect. Because of sanitary concerns, the ipad is covered with plastic wrap, which makes the images on the screen harder to see. There also seems to be no stand for the iPad, so two people are required to hold it in place.
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Categories: Technology
Psychic Takoyaki Cook in Tokyo
A clip shows a takoyaki restaurant in the Minami Senju area of Tokyo that has a cook who claims he can manipulate the flavor of takoyaki using his psychic powers:
The celebrity hosts claim that he really can change the flavor at a snap of his fingers, and the restaurant owner keeps a log book of praise from customers who left believing in his super powers.
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Categories: Odd / Strange
Star-shaped and Heart-shaped Cucumbers
An Asahi Shimbun video shows off some heart-shaped cucumbers and star-shaped cucumbers being sold by farmers from Fukushima prefecture:
The cucumbers are grown inside plastic molding cases. They are being sold for about 5 times the price of a normal cucumber, but some people are willing to pay for the novelty.
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Categories: Japanese Food, Odd / Strange