Japan in a nutshell

   
     This semester, I've been fortunate enough to have so much to write about in regards to Japan. Unfortunately, it came at the cost of thousands of peoples' lives and displacement of countless others due to the historic tsunami that ripped through the northeast provinces of the country on March 11. However, it did reveal a lot of the media process that takes place in the country and how big of a hand the government plays into it.

      Although Japan ranks in at number 11 in the press freedom index there seemed to be many obstacles stemming from government involvement when it came to reporter's access to information. Not only was obtaining facts from TEPCO and government officials a difficult task, often times the statements made by both bodies were vague or loosely based on the truth, to put it kindly. At one point, the government took the approach of blocking press releases of the unfolding situation at the Fukushima Daiichi plant because they felt that TEPCO had better things to do than inform the media of what was happening at the plant.

     More recently, since TEPCO has started has resumed press releases, they've initiated the practice of compounding several press release sessions into one, drawn out, almost unbearable session where reporters are bombarded with statistics and offered little to no clarification to the technical terminology spewed by the speakers. In a recent Japan Times article, the cultural customs and how it relates to domestic reporters covering the event:

But even the conduct of the reporters reflects Japanese reverence for cooperation and respect. The journalists patiently endure the long news conferences, filled with detail but scarce on poignancy. A defiant question comes up maybe onchttp://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=8389714855227338900e during the entire four hours.

     As much as the culture of "community before individual" has been ingrained into the public's mindset, even the Japanese were outraged with the lack of information being shared by the government after the tsunami. The normally docile and compliant public took to the streets with their disapproval of how things were being handled, especially after the United States released numbers implicating that the Japanese had either miscalculated the initial levels of contamination being put out by the damaged reactors or had just plainly concealed the truth.

     In light of the accusations made by governments across the globe and the outrage by its own citizens, one should wonder if the press freedom ranking for Japan is accurate. How can a free country, in regards to press, be so vague or closed off when it comes to reporting on a national disaster that affects the entire globe. The Japanese government and their claims of providing an atmosphere conducive to press freedom definitely took a major hit during the events stemming from the partial meltdown at the Fukashima Daiichi power plant.

     Although Japan's media system is comparable to that of the United States and other western countries in infrastructure and relative access to facts, the past three months have exposed the extent that the government can and will take when push comes to shove. Even though its not unprecedented for governments, even that of the United States, to withhold information for public safety (Osama bin laden death photos), it's hard to believe that the same lack of sharing of basic information would have occurred if the reactor in San Onofre would've melted down. 
     

Artistic Reflections

     From April 23-May 6, Japan's Nuclear Film festival showed nuclear themed films to commemorate the 25 year anniversary of the disaster at Chernobyl. Ironically enough, the festival took place just a few months after their own country was thrust into a nuclear disaster on par with the one that took place in Ukraine.

     Many of the films, including that of Japanese documentary film maker Seiichi Motohashi, focused on the dangers of nuclear power and trying to establish a precedent for changes to the energy policies of all countries to avoid future disasters.

     
     Motohashi, who has traveled to Budische, Belarus, one of the hardest hit towns during the Chernobyl disaster, over 30 times since 1991. During his travels, he produced two films, Naja no Mura (Nadya's Village, 1997) and 2002's "Arekusei to Izumi (Alexei and the Spring). Both have garnered acclaim at film festivals both home and abroad and were shown during the festival along with 15 other films targeted at nuclear power. Along with the films, an art exhibition of Chernobyl themed paintings by Heroshi Kaihara were on display throughout the event. Motohashi spoke to the Japan Times about his projects that he completed in Belarus:  

"I wanted to make 'Nadya's Village' to give energy to the audience," says Motohashi at his office in Higashi-Nakano. "I wanted to show how people who had experienced this terrible disaster had come back. At the time, I didn't really think it had something to do with me personally. Now I know that that sort of accident can happen anywhere, especially in this country. ... There's no way to make a nuclear plant totally safe. It's a kind of human arrogance to think otherwise — nature is always more powerful. Human beings ought to be more humble in their dealings with it."

     The festival's sentiment mirrors that of the public of Japan following the fallout from the tsunami that struck and disabled the reactors at Fukashima Daiichi. Reliance on nuclear power is not the safe way to go for the future of Japan is a common theme in both the films and the outcries from displaced citizens. However, the government addressed the public and the world this week and stated that Japan will continue to rely on nuclear power. This release came the same week that the government also pressured one of its energy companies to shut down their nuclear facility just south of Tokyo because of fears that an impending earthquake on the fault line the facility rests on could produce a larger disaster than that on March 11.

     Japan is caught in quite the dilemma. They're a country with minimal natural resources and are supremely reliant on nuclear power. With 14 new plants proposed to be built, the events at Fukushima have severely crippled this nation that gets nearly a quarter of its energy supply from nuclear power. What's even more troubling is the surfacing of diplomatic cables from the United States  that question not only the preparedness for a future natural disaster, but basic security to prevent terrorist attacks.

     The environmental and economic affects of the disaster are being felt not only in Japan, but globally, demonstrating how close knit a planet we are despite our differences. It's time that we, as a planet, reassess our energy sources and a safer way of facilitating them. Namely, not letting the builders of nuclear power plants also be the governing body.

    

Mandatory Evacuation

     Japan officially announced a no-go zone for the affected provinces surrounding the damaged nuclear reactor at Fukushima. What was once a suggested evacuation zone has been changed to an imposed one with residents of the areas given no timetable when, if ever, they'll be able to return to their homes.

     People living in the affected zone were allowed by the government to take shuttles to their neighborhoods that were destroyed by the tsunami to gather whatever they could in a few hours before the government locked down the area with imposed fines of up to 10,000 yen or detainment for up to 30 days as outlined in a new nuclear emergency law.

"If people continue to live in the area, the cumulative radiation level may exceed 20 millisieverts a year," said Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano. "Considering the effect it may have on people's health, we would like those people to evacuate to a different location in an orderly manner."

      Initially, the people living within the affected area were asked to remain indoors during the first few days of the disaster at the plant. But early this week, it was disclosed that during those first few days the Japanese government had miscalculated the amount of contaminants being emitted by the reactors, with the level of pollution being more on par with that of Chernobyl instead of the lesser incident that occurred at Three Mile Island.

     With those revelations coming to light and the newly imposed no access zone by the Japanese government, it raises the question of how much radiation were those roughly 70,000 residents in the contaminated area actually exposed to? And now that there is no timetable set for those people being allowed to return to their homes, where will an already crowded country fit all their displaced citizens?

     Will the northeast coast of Japan be relegated to ghost towns and a grim reminder of the perils of nuclear power gone awry like the area surrounding the Chernobyl meltdown? When residents returned to gather belongings they got a brief taste of what their former towns might turn into during the coming years if contamination levels prevent them from returning in the immediate future. Cows still chained to their posts lay dead and rotting. Cars strewn about, displaced by the force of the tsunami and houses reduced to piles of mud and debris.

     “It feels like my house is burning down, so I want to take as much as possible,” said Michiko Koyama, a resident of the affected area. “I don’t know how many years it will be before we can come back.”

   

Unskilled workers and a nuclear disaster

 

     In the wake of the disaster unfolding at Japans Fukushima Daiichi plant, many secrets of the way business was conducted at the embattled plant have surfaced. Namely, the use of unskilled workers to carry out the tasks that the plant's operators, Tokyo Electric, didn't want to subject their trained and highly skilled workers to. In their place, unskilled workers, or what are commonly referred to as day layborers, were employed for high daily wages in return for being exposed to harsh working conditions and dangerous levels of radiation.

     “This is the hidden world of nuclear power,” said Yuko Fujita, a former physics professor at Keio University in Tokyo and a longtime campaigner for improved labor conditions in the nuclear industry. “Wherever there are hazardous conditions, these laborers are told to go. It is dangerous for them, and it is dangerous for nuclear safety.”

     The use of these unskilled laborers to carry out more dangerous and undesirable jobs displays the two tiered labor force not only in Japan, but many countries outside the US. The skilled and elite level workers are not subjected to the high risk jobs that the lower, working class people must take on to provide for their families. Combining unskilled labor in a setting that requires the utmost care and attention to detail has proven to very dangerous in the case of their nuclear facilities.

     Workers are encouraged to keep injuries unreported because of the fear of losing their jobs. However, since the coverage of the unfolding drama at the battered power plant, many of the workers being reported to have been injured in news reports have been the untrained day laborers. Since the beginning of their nuclear program in the 1970's, Japan has paid out benefits to 50 such workers due to the development of cancers such as leukemia that are linked to exposure to high levels of radiation. However, many cases are not granted settlements because it's hard to prove the link between their time spent at the plants and the disease.

    
Mr. Ishizawa, the only one who allowed his name to be used, said, “I might go back to a nuclear plant one day, but I’d have to be starving.” In addition to his jobs at Daiichi, he has worked at thermal power plants and on highway construction sites in the region. For now, he said, he will stay away from the nuclear industry.

      With safety obviously being a major concern with the lack of transparency by the Japanese government in the actual levels of radiation surrounding the plant, some workers find it hard to resist the money. With the company being battered economically by the disaster that struck in March, some see exposure to radiation for upward of $1,000 a day as a necessary evil.

     Before the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that followed, the Fukushima plant was already littered with safety issues. Whether it's a cultural problem that leads to the skilled workers not feeling obligated to carry out dangerous tasks or the Tokyo Electric Group exploiting local impoverished people to do their dirty work, this practice needs to stop. The breakdown of a nuclear power plant and the pollution that it causes affects people globally and stricter enforcement is needed to ensure the safety of all people that call this planet home. If that means investing money and training the people that are working on the facilities, then Japan and it's energy companies need to step up and ensure that from here on out their nuclear facilities run not only efficiently, but ethically as well.

Chernobyl Status

The nuclear plant at Chernobyl pictured left and the battered

Fukashima Daiichi plant in Japan are now reported to both be

level 7 nuclear disasters.

     When the Fuakshima Daiichi reactor first fell victim to the ravages of the tsunami that has crippled Japan, Tokyo Electric and the Japanese government maintained that the fallout from the nuclear disaster facing the country would be contained and not reach the level 7 status of the disaster in Ukraine in 1986. However, their tune has changed significantly this week as new assessments of the levels of nuclear contaminents released both by radioactive water and the multiple explosions that occured at several of the reactors at the plant have reached the levels of Chernobyl.

     Japanese officilas have stated that although the disaster in Japan has reached a level 7 on the international nuclear crisis scale, the level of radioactivity released is only about a tenth of that put into the atmosphere after the Chernobyl meltdown. However, the level was first reported at 5, putting it on par with the accident occurred at Three Mile Island and now the officials are stating that initially the accident at Fukashima Daiichi was in fact a 7 and now has been downgraded to a 5.

     This is just part of a perplexing string of events that has been unfolding since the tsunami struck March 11, leaving the Japanese government to look either uninformed about the actions taking place at the plant or trying to conceal the facts. Seiji Shiroya, a commissioner of Japan's Nuclear Safety Committee said that the intial decision to not label it a level 7 disaster was due to the fear that the statistics at the time may have had too large of a margin of error to make such a drastic decision. However, he also hinted at a more plausable agenda:

“Some foreigners fled the country even when there appeared to be little risk,” he said. “If we immediately decided to label the situation as Level 7, we could have triggered a panicked reaction.”

Shiroya later went on to say:

  “At first, the calculations could have been off by digits,” Mr. Shiroya said. “It was only when there was certainty that the margin of error was within two to three times that we made an announcement,” he said, later adding, “I do not think that there was any delay.”

     Scientists and coutnries abroad have been critical of the Japanese for their handling of the situation since the disaster began to unfold in mid March. Even though Japanese officials are stating that they errored on the side of caution in waiting to upgrade the level of the disaster, wouldn't you do so to protect lives rather than prevent a mass exodus? This logic underscores the differences in culture from Amercia to Japan. Japan, being a more collectivist culture is more about the whole rather than the individual, so, in that line of reasoning it might be persmissable to sacrifice a few to save the majority from harm.

     With that being said, many peole involved in the energy business have been hearing whispers that the numbers the Japanese had been disclosing to the pubic were not at all accurate. A senior executive said in a telephone interview on April 4 that he had been told that the Speedi model suggested that radioactive materials escaping the Daiichi complex were much higher than Japanese officials had publicly acknowledged, and perhaps as high as half of the releases from Chernobyl. -The New York Times


    
     Because the numbers on Chernobyl are skewed, mostly because experts believe the Russians also weren't forthcoming with the level of radioactive releases from their plant, the comparison between Japan and Chernobyl are fuzzy at best. The Japanese calculations proposing that the damage is only about 20% of the Chernobyl accident are based on the assumption that the reported statistics from the 1986 disaster were underreported by about 2 times what they actually were. If the Chernobyl accident was found to be more credible than believed, the Japanese disaster would then be raised to about 40-50 % of that in the Ukraine.

     A major fact that is being overlooked in the grand scheme of tyring to assess the level of damage is that Chernobyl only lasted for about 10 days while the ongoing drama in Japan has continued for well over a month with no end in sight. The question that should be on everyone's mind is that even if Japan surpassed the Chernobyl accident would the Japanese government and Tepco let us know?

Lesser of Two Toxins?

     Since the quake on March 11 that turned Japan's Fukashima Daiichi nuclear plant into a national hazard, Japanese officials and Tokyo Electric have had their hands forced by the potential of a full nuclear meltdown that could rival that of the Chernobyl disaster in 1986.

     The chain of bad luck started when the backup generators were washed away by the tsunami which left the reactors without a cooling system to hydrate the fuel cores to prevent them from catching fire and melting down. Tokyo electric was then forced to utilize fire fighting equipment to combat the problem, pumping tons of ocean water per hour onto the fuel rods to keep them from releasing radioactive elements into the atmosphere.

     However, they're now stuck with the dubious task of disposing of the accumulated water that wasn't vaporized by the heat of fuel rods. Tanks used to collect accumulated radioactive water have reached their capacity so now contaminated water is being released into the ocean to make way for water with higher levels of radiation. The water being released, according to Tokyo Electric, contains levels of radiation 100 times the legal limit, where as the water that is taking its place in storage containers is 10,000 times the legal limit.

“Unfortunately, the water contains a certain amount of radiation,” Mr. Edano said. “This is an unavoidable measure to prevent even higher amounts of radiation from reaching the sea.”-Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano

 

         Iodine-131 and other radioactive elements being spewed in to the ocean by the ton have half lives that are relatively short (Iodine-131 has a half life of 8 days), however, more dangerous elements like Cesium137 has a half life of 30 years. This will pose long term problems to the sealife and economy of Japan as these elements saturate the water and start to collect in sea life. 

      To add to the woes of past few weeks, the Japanese have also started to pump nitrogen into the damaged reactors to combat the build up of hydrogen, the byproduct of spraying the fuel rods with ocean water. The nitrogen is said to be neutralizing the hydrogen and should prevent another explosion like the ones that compromised the containment structures in late March. However, this action will also release more radioactive gas into the atmosphere as the nitrogen and hydrogen interact. 

     Is there a way to remedy the catastrophe in Japan without releasing some form of radioactivity? It appears to be the case that in order to prevent the worst case scenario the world might have to live with a little more radiation in the food chain. In what is estimated to take several more weeks to months to gain containment on, the situation in Japan is ruffling the feathers of diplomats across the globe in the debate over whether nuclear power is a viable option for the future. Tokyo Electric might say why not sacrifice a little to gain a lot in the long run?

Burying the Dead

     The crisis in Japan caused by massive earthquake and devastating tsunami that followed has started to affect more than just economics and day to day life in Japan. With so many dead bodies being uncovered in the debris from the massive wave that struck it's eastern coast, the question now is how to lay the dead to rest.

      Japan is a predominantly Buddhist culture and in the teachings of that doctrine the body is to be burned after death to help with the release of the spirit in the first of three stages that the soul must go through before it can be reborn. However, with the death toll in surpassing 10,000 and still growing the crematoriums in Japan have been overrun with bodies and simply cannot accommodate them all.

 “If we burned all the bodies, it would take a very long time,” said the city spokesman, Takashi Takayama. “The bodies are being kept now in two places, and we’re concerned that they might decompose."

     The storage problem facing Japanese officials has prompted something that is being viewed as necessary but sacrilegious at the same time. The dead are being buried in mass graves in an effort to prevent a stockpile of decomposing corpses due to the growing Que at Japanese crematoriums.

 

    

     Still, the citizens, as with every other aspect of their life right now, have made do with what they have and tried to make the best of things. Much like American funerals where the body is interned to the ground, grievers placed gifts and supplies that the dead would need on their long journey to the afterlife. That being an effort to keep alive some sort of normalcy as these gifts would normally be offered up at a Buddhist shrine as the body was burned. 

     Tragedy's of this magnitude and the coverage the receive tend to focus on the socioeconomic and global implications of such a large player in the world market taking this big of a blow. However, past the initial destruction, the survivors are left behind to make difficult choices of not only self preservation but picking up and starting over. In this instance, the people of the affected areas had to go against their cultural beliefs because the facilities either weren't available or it wasn't practical to carry out a suitable funeral for a Buddhist. 

 

 

Economy still feeling aftershocks

          While Japan struggles to clean up the war zone left behind by the tsunami that decimated it's northeastern coast on March 11, it's economy is starting to feel the aftershocks of the quake. Known as a hub for technological production and fuel efficient automobiles, Japan has been forced to reassess it's short term future as closures of plants have almost halted fabrication of things ranging from smart phone accessories to Toyotas.

“This is a serious situation, and it has the potential to affect many markets, including the Americas,” the executive, Carlos Tavares, said. “We are going to make sure we address the issues as fast as we can. We have a buffer, a cushion, that’s going to give us a little bit of time to bring things back on track.”  The New York Times

     The global economy that we live in ensures that what's affecting Japan will surely affect markets in foreign countries. Volvo, a car company based in Sweden has already reported a shortage of Japanese made GPS devices that it uses in the production of it's cars. Stating that they were on their last 10 days' supply with no signs pointing toward a new shipment coming soon, production there may also be coming to a standstill. 

“It’s hour-by-hour work to get a grip on the situation,” said Per-Ake Froberg, chief spokesman for Volvo, as it girds for a production halt. The New York Times

      Japan's shuttering of plants while trying to deal with the fallout from a damaged nuclear reactor and the tsunami cleanup has already impacted things closer to home here in California. Due to fears of shortages, the average price of a Toyota Prius has risen by nearly $1,800 and has many forecasting shortages of other fuel efficient models from Japanese brands as the price of oil continues to rise. Goudy Honda, one of Honda's largest dealerships which is located in Alhambra, CA is one of those dealerships bracing for shortages.

“In the short term we’ll have enough cars, but in a few months it’s going to be crazy,” Mr. Iskandar said. “We’re trying to buy as many used cars as we can. At least that’s an option if a customer wants a Honda. We could give them a year-old or two-year-old certified car.” The New York Times

      With the rising cost of oil now compounded by a semi-occupation of Libya by the United States and allied forces, the market for fuel economical cars surely didn't need another blow such as this one. This has created a type of perfect storm where smaller, fuel efficient Japanese cars are going to come at a premium as people try to escape the executioner at the gas pump.

Nuclear fallout under wraps?

     As the saga continues to unfold in Japan in the wake of the the destructive tsunami that decimated the country last friday, questions are being raised about the flow of information from the government setcor to the public. When the initial explosion rocked the Fukishima Daiichi nuclear facilitiy, Japnaese officials claimed that they were uncertain whether the explosion had any type of lasting impact to the plant's stabilitiy and that everything would be evaluated and taken care of.
     Since then, the eyes of the world have been glued to endless coverage of the smoking and intermittently exploding Daiichi plant that the Japanese government and Tokyo Electric have maintained they will eventually stabalize. Plumes of radioactive smoke continue to rise from the smoldering reactor as emergency volunteers from the plant frantically try to keep the fuel rods submerged in water to prevent a full blown nuclear meltdown. However, as media outlets outside of Japan paint a picture that grows more grim with each passing day, the government and Tokyo Electric continue to hold their stance that the problem is not as big as it seems.
      This has angered politicians and heads of state from around the world as they scramble for crucial information that they need to pass on to citizens of their own countries in regards to how to prepare for the fallout of the nuclear crisis unfolding. The United States has sent nuclear experts of their own who have broadened the cuation zone around the Japanese reactor to 50 miles, a stark contrast to the 12-mile evactuation zone that Japan has imposed.

     The criticisim of the handling of dissemination of information has deep rooted traditions in Japanese culture. Heavily entrenched in honor, the Japanese culture doesn't provide much room for dealing with or accepting defeat and failure. In the aftermath of the nuclear disaster, many have speculated not whether the Japanese are downplaying the extent of the damage, but how much. The criticism from abroad is nothing new for the Japanese, however, the unrest with the lack of information from its citizens is a new development.

The less-than-straight talk is rooted in a conflict-averse culture that avoids direct references to unpleasantness. Until recently, it was standard practice not to tell cancer patients about their diagnoses, ostensibly to protect them from distress. Even Emperor Hirohito, when he spoke to his subjects for the first time to mark Japan’s surrender in World War II, spoke circumspectly, asking Japanese to “endure the unendurable.” -The New York Times

      Ironically enough, Japan is ranked eleventh in the press freedom index while the United States is twentieth. However, the overwhelming notion across the globe is that the unfolding disaster is being dealt with in a very secretive manner which is scary to everyone, especially to those in the immediate fallout zone.To add to that, the Japanese government's communication with the company trying to save the reactor seems disjointed at best.  This skepticism and concern is what forced the U.S. to send in their own experts to reassess the situation to not only better inform the Japanese citizens, but the world as well.

     President Obama announced that the nuclear plume that reached the west coast of the United States today poses no immediate threat to the health of our citizens. However, as the situation at the Japanese nuclear facility continues to grow more dire, looking more and more like a complete meltdown is more imminent, information will be at a premium. The questions is, will the Japanese government be willing to disclose the truth if it comes at the cost of them losing face on the global stage.      

And the earth shook

    

     The aftermath of what was the largest earthquake in Japan's recorded history is starting to become more clear as the death toll continues to rise and the financial losses are tabulated. The earthquake that struck about 80 miles off the east coast of Japan sent a tsunami racing toward the group of islands that offered little resistance to the awe of mother nature. Waves of up to 30 feet tall bombarded the coastal cities of northeast Japan sweeping away buildings, cars, boats and anything else in it's path.

     Estimated at magnitude 8.9, the quake is the fifth largest in recorded history. Tsunami warnings were issued to most countries in the Pacific Rim as the waves rippled outward from the epicenter. The surge reached the California coast Friday morning causing some property damage to boats that were ripped away from their slips. One person in Northern California was carried out to sea by the storm surge as they were trying to photograph the occurrence; they are still missing.
     The devastation was carried live by news stations around the world, allowing viewers to watch in real time the devastating force of nature. Burning buildings were swept away by the tsunami which also caused considerable damage to two of Japan's nuclear power plants which has prompted concern for radiation pollution. The damage caused by the waves compromised the cooling systems of at the plants and now experts fear that it may cause leakages of radioactive material.
     A Japanese news agency estimated the death toll to be 133 as of 1 a.m. Saturday but those numbers are expected to rise. The New York Times later reported that government officials had reported finding 200-300 bodies near the Sendai region of Japan which was one of the closer cities to the quake's epicenter. Officials also speculated that they expect those numbers to rise over 1,000 as they continue to sift through the carnage of the earthquake.

     Despite the loss of life and the economic implications of the clean up and rebuilding of damaged buildings and infrastructure, some experts believe that Japan may have gotten off easy in regards to impact to the long term health of their economy. Because the quake was centered near the northern provinces, which are some of the more populated regions, they are not part of the industrial belt that fuels the nation's economy.

 “If this had been a couple hundred miles to the south, the economic and human toll would have been almost incomprehensible,” said Marcus Noland, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. “In that respect, Japan dodged an enormous bullet here.”-The New York Times

      The earthquake and the following tsunami are affecting many people outside the Japanese border. Many business people are stranded either in Japan or abroad as most flights in and out of Japan have been canceled or delayed. President Obama has pledged to help the Japanese through this trying time and has already deployed two Navy warships stocked with human aide supplies to assist the people of the islands. Japan, one of the top 5 world economies is a large supplier of electronics and automobiles to the United States and the rest of the western world. What's bad for Japan is in turn bad for the United States because a crippled Japanese economy would undoubtedly lead to an increase of the price of their exports which would be passed along to American consumers. This reality reinforces the idea that we really are living in a global economy, whether you're paying in yens or dollars.
     However, this decisive move comes at a rather peculiar time for the United States in regards to foreign relations. Albeit the two situations are very different, both Libya and Japanese involve the need for assistance from outside parties as an act of humanity. Japan, as stated before, is a big player in the world market and the United States has a vested interest in their economy because of the ramifications that they could have on the U.S. economy. Libya on the other hand, has been regarded by U.S. officials as expendable for many reasons. The two largest being we have nothing to gain financially and they're not a necessity in the fight against terrorism.
     These are both human rights issues, one brought about by an earthquake and the other by a delusional dictator. President Obama is playing the diplomatic card and erring on the side of caution because of past mistakes by the U.S. intervening in foreign disputes. But this case is different, the people of Libya are clamoring for U.S. aid but they might be waiting for a long time because helping them is not beneficial to the American agenda.

     

Japanese Kitchens Revealing American Bad Habits

   
     Japan, well known for its rich tradition of cultural cuisine is witnessing an Americanization effect in the kitchens at home. More and more homemakers are opting for the quick fix when it comes to family dinner rather than slaving away for hours to prepare a traditional Japanese meal that requires a lengthy preparation time as well as numerous dishes to be cleaned for each course.
     This phenomenon is having a two-headed affect inside the Japanese home. Most notably, Japanese children are suffering from malnutrition at alarming rates because of the lack of vegetables being served in the home as well as other adverse effects tied into a poor diet.

     "The amount of vegetables served (in the Japanese home) has been dwindling at an alarming rate," writes Iwamura. "Even when they are served, it is one or two cherry tomatoes, a few slices of cucumber, a lettuce leaf. . . . Over 40 percent of mothers claim that their children suffer from constipation, but the figure must be higher, considering that there are cases that the mothers are not aware of."-The Japan Times

     The women of Japan are adopting habits that are prevalent in our country; taking the easy way out when it comes time to make dinner. They complain that vegetables are either too expensive or too much of a nuisance to store so they choose not to incorporate them into their meals. They've also began to resort to the use of processed and frozen meals in lieu of the traditional family meal that is synonymous with Japanese culture.
     Nobuko Iwamura, author of  "Kazoku no Katte Desho!" ("It's My Kitchen and I'll Do What I Like in It!") conducts a survey that analyzes the weekly intakes of the average Japanese family. Over the 13 years of the survey's existance, Iwamura has noticed a rise in obesity, high cholesterol, impaired liver function and diabetes, to name a few.

     "Since 2005," writes Iwamura, "meals made up entirely of processed food dishes have comprised over 40 percent of all meals. We even visited homes where every meal for a week was made up of them." One 33-year-old mother boasted, "I've got a Seven-11, a Lawson, a Familia and a Ministop convenience store near the house, so I can really vary where I buy my meals and not get tired of them!"

     The problems that the Japanese are facing in as they become a more fast paced culture, much like the one we're accustomed to, will only get worse as they become more and more of a fast food culture. Whether it be take out or frozen food, Japanese, much like their American counterparts are subscribing to convenience over health. These shifts from traditional values are proof that a countries values can be exported through the form of companies and media that exude a certain attitude and lifestyle. In the case of America, it's instant gratification in a fast paced society. Unfortunately for Japanese children, convenience for their mothers comes at the cost of their well being.
The Japan Times

3-Dii?

    
     Global gaming giant Nintendo is rolling out what they promise to be the "world's first 3-D mass-market product" in the new Nintendo 3DS. The product hit the shelves Saturday and was greeted by lines of eager consumers waiting to get their hands on the latest installment of Nintendo's hand held gaming devices.
      The console comes with a pricetag of ¥25,000, and when it arrives in Europe on March 25 and in the states on March 27th, it will be going for a price of 250 euros/dollars respectively. The company, which is based in Japan, expects to sell 4 million units through the end of march with Japan only accounting for 1.5 million of the their projected units sold.
     Nintendo is riding the wave of the recent 3-D surge that has hit movie theatres and home television platforms. However, unlike other 3-D experiences, the 3DS wont require the use of special glasses to see Mario or Luigi jumping out of the screen at you. A downfall to the product though might be the fact that there is a supremely limited number of games that are available to be played on the device due to the relative newness of the technology.
     The 3DS and its projected sales demonstrate the reach that a global power like Nintendo can have in our global economy. Their products have and will continue to sell successfully outside of their immediate market because of Nintendo's ability to market on a global scale. In turn, they'll continue to export parts of Japanese culture in the form of video game characters that have their roots in Japan. Not only that, but as a global provider of entertainment, Nintendo continues to attract game engineers from all areas of the world which creates diversity and provides for the exchange of ideas both business wise and culturally. The success of Nintendo's products at home and abroad serves as a win for Japan since it is often so difficult to break the American stranglehold on the entertainment market.
The Japan TImes

    

Here comes the funny

     Ever wonder what the Japanese think people in the United States would like to see on TV? Well, if the pilot of "Amerika wo Warawasero" (Make America Laugh) is successfully sold to American executives you may not have to wait that much longer for an answer.
     TBS is working in conjunction with a Japanese talent agency and a U.S. production house (Reveille) on a show concept where Japanese comedians propose show ideas for American television. Masi Oka, who played Hiro Nakamura on the show "Heroes" is producing the effort as he hopes to continue to breakdown barriers to the U.S. television market.
     In the past, when a show is being pitched to an american company from a foreign source the standard operating procedure includes the use of subtitles as they try to sell the concept or format of the show. However with "America wo Warawasero", Oka chose to simultaneously film two pilot episodes, taking time to use both an English speaking and Japanese speaking host. If the show is picked up by an American company, Oka is believed to have a collaborative role in its production.

"There is a chance that Japanese comedians will appear in the final U.S. version, but basically the idea would be to make the show in the U.S. using American talent," Yorihiro said.

     The show idea is interesting because it illustrates that people outside of our borders think about american entertainment, even to the point where they theorize what we might like. It also shows how hard it is to break into the american television consciousness. Not many shows from Japan make it onto U.S. airwars yet the reverse is far from the truth. The U.S. exports entertainment but rarely imports as it plays its roll of the colonizing media force. If TBS is able to find a home for this show it would be interesting to see what the Japanese, of all countries, might think Americans enjoy. Considering there programming is a little bit out there, I'm going to assume that their ideas would never catch on. On that note, I'll end with this...

Should I stay or should I go?

  
  Many college students relish the idea of heading off to a foreign country to study for a semester and experience a new culture. In many cases it's not if a student is going overseas but to which country and for how long. Japanese students, however, are bucking this trend and choosing to stay at home on the island.  
     According to the Japanese Ministry of Education and Science, the number of students leaving home to go abroad dipped 11 percent (67,000) in 2008 and has continued to decrease since then. This development runs counter to the business plans of Japanese corporations that are seeking employees with global experience as they try to branch out and find new markets in other parts of the world.

“There is clearly a mismatch between what the corporate recruiters are looking for and the college job seekers,” whose skills do not match the employers’ requirements, said Hitomi Okazaki, editor in chief of Riku-nabi, the leading job-search Web site in Japan.

     The companies in the country have responded to this by seeking out non-native Japanese employees to fill the gaps. Sony, Samsung, Yamamoto Transport and other companies have begun holding job fairs for students studying abroad in Japan in hopes of landing foreign students that have the global experience that they desire. Many companies have pledged to step up their non-Japanese hiring to 30-80% of their anticipated hires.
      It's interesting that in a global economy so many students would choose not to get more cultured by studying outside of their own country especially when they're being told by perspective employers that it's a requirement to have global experience. Some students may cite that out of country tuition is a lot more costly than staying at home but in the long run spending the cash now on your education most likely would outweigh the student debt they would incur.
     It will be interesting to see if the tactics being employed by the Japanese companies will spark an increase in Japanese student enrollment in study abroad programs. As we inch closer and closer to a more singular global economy I don't think that students will look at it as a luxury but more as a necessity to have overseas experience. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/21/world/asia/21iht-educLede21.html?_r=1&ref=japan&pagewanted=all
    

Matsumoto Brings home a Grammy

                    Takahiro Matsumoto and 2 other Japanese born musicians brought home Grammy's over the weekend showing that not just the United States can export award winning music. Joining Matsumoto in the winner's circle was classical pianist Mitsuko Uchida and jazz pianist Hiromi Uehara who won the award for best instrumental solist peformance with orchestra and best contemporary jazz album respectively.

                    Matsumoto was part of the popular Japanese rock duo B'z which was inducted into Hollywood's Rock Walk in 2007 for their contribution to the music world. Matsumoto, who was taken aback by the award, later confessed that "the Grammy's was one of my dreams and a big goal."

                   This instance is a type of reverse cultural imperialism. Even though Japan isn't a lesser developed country, being in the top five of all world economies, it still isn't know for it's music outside of its country. Unlike the United States which exports its music and in turn its culture worldwide, most countries' artists are relegated to their home turn when it comes to audience. While the US still dominates the music market both domestic and abroad, it's nice to see that performers from other countries can gain recognition and take home awards like a Grammy.

The Japan Times

Grammy winner's

Journalism in Japan

    
     Here are some basic statistics on how large the news structure is in Japan and which companies play a pivotal role in the disbursement of the news. According to  World Press Encyclopedia , Japan is one of the more literate countries on the planet with a literacy rate exceeding 99%. The country is home to over 100 daily newspapers and 5 national newspapers. Although over 47 million people have access to the internet in Japan, the newspapers of the country continue to be widely read.
   The Japanese news system seems to be very similar to that of the one present in the United States with the exception that there seems to be one ruling voice when it comes to the voice of the paper. Unlike the US, Japanese papers portray a unity in their political stances. The five national newspapers rely heavily on their own content where as the smaller daily papers use international wire stories. Because of this practice by the larger papers and the Japanese people's curiosity of the outside world it is not uncommon for Japanese readers to opt for foreign news sources rather than a local one.
     The government plays a large role in the dissemination of Japanese news. Currently there are only two news agencies in Japan, Kyoto and Jiji. Both compete with each other and are comprised of multiple newspapers and radio/ television outlets. Japan has roughly 300 radio stations and 7,000 television stations but its the internet that is the fastest growing information outlet for the Japanese. In using the internet to aquire news, the people of Japan have a larger choice of sources including online english versions of their indigenous papers.