One of the sites in my bookmark list for my global news sweeps is the Mainichi Daily News one. But it must have been a while since I last was there, because I hadn't spotted their big "Forgive us" splash page until today. It seems like they have had quite a stir-up over "inappropriate content" and "bad journalistic behaviour" over there, something that kind of intrigues both the professional and the hobbyist in me.

In short it's about the English-language Mainichi Daily News carrying the WaiWai column which presented translated articles from diverse Japanese magazines and newspapers, and the selection seem to have been somewhat, well, raunchy, more often than not. All run by what appears to be a single, bilingual editor without much overseeing, who in hindsight seem to have been hired mostly due to the fact that he was bilingual and not so much due to his journalistic skills and copyright ethics. And it seems it took quite some years for the higher-ups to actually notice that their English language version had this sleaziness built in. But when they did, the result is intriguing in all its thoroughness. A very public apology and public declarations of what they think went wrong. I can't help but think that that in itself is a very Japanese response. And one that I personally like.

(Yes, I've read the WaiWai column occasionally, and yes, it wasn't exactly hard news in it. And I did on occasion wonder a little why a seemingly serious news site chose to have such a yellow press, or if you want - J-otaku blog-like -, part too. But in any case I supposed it was meant to be that way. What can I say, I'm a hardened web veteran and educated to be critical of facts in all kind of communications; sleaze and pseudo-news aren't exactly a new thing for me to see. For better or worse. And the Japanese culture student in me is kind of proud of the fact that I apparently know enough to be able to separate the real Japan from the wacky otaku-Japan that's presented there. Never mind that that same knowledge apparently made me totally unaware of the probably relevant fear the newspaper staff had that people outside Japan actually could see those stories as images of true Japanese culture.)

Short and very fluffy. As usual. If you can speak of "usual" with my level of drabble posting... Maybe it ought to be higher. Or again, maybe not, since there might be such a thing as too much sugary fluff.

( Tropical Night (Gundam Seed (Destiny)), rated All ages (G) )

Testing myself on request from spherehunter.



And after reading some more details here and here I'm almost amazed over how much that fits. It's scaringly accurate it seems. But when reading it I can't help but like me a lot!

EDIT: After checking my archives it seems I actually did the test - or a very similar one - some four and a half year ago too. The result back then was the same, so I guess it's officially my personality type then.

Spent the day - and a couple of days before that - doing family socializing things as a result of my aunt visiting. Today that among other things happened to include a countryside flea market visit.

The flea market aside, it was also a case of me revisiting the place where I once were at a school camp back in fifth or sixth grade. It's amazing how everything is bigger in size in your memory.

( Random photos )

Apart from that stroll down memory lane the last couple of days have meant the usual summer activities with parents, aunt and sister's family, making me feel both content and alone-in-company at the same time.

Meme snatched from nighteevee and maaya1x2.

( Book meme )

I suppose I shouldn't be very surprised that I get unusually interesting dreams after having watched Paprika in the evening.

Actually, the dream that apparently was my main feature dream for the night was quite nice, so I'm not complaining. And I'm kind of impressed how my subconscious works - if you're my subconscious dream producer and need visuals and scenery for a distinct geographical area which you have no experience of in real life, take the geographically closest place I have been at and extrapolate from that. My mind is apparently a clever one when asleep.

As for Paprika, it was a somewhat surreal but good experience, and a good example of the kind of animated movies that only Japan can produce.

First test found at maaya1x2, second test collateral damage.

( Cut for various tests. One including a maybe not worksafe pic (as in pic in style of raunchier public ads, that is. No real pr0n here. Don't be disappointed). )

Oh my god! My not exactly tech-savvy parents and their elderly neighbour discussed and had an opinion on the FRA law! I'm shocked, sort of.

Info note for the non-Swedes: The FRA law is a new law proposal giving the military intelligence the power to listen in on communications to and from Sweden going in cables (and not like earlier only the over the air radio transmitted ones), "accidentally" in the same time giving very much the same powers to wiretap Swedish-to-Swedish communications due to the nature of how internet and other modern technologies work. In short, the Swedish government have decided to be a leading European power when it comes to spying on people - never mind the integrity breach it brings - and the proposal was voted through yesterday evening after some unusually publicly visible shepherding of party members with doubts who threatened to deviate from the official party views of things.

EDIT: Since it's big enough to go on BBC, I can just as well link it.


And since I've said A, I guess I have to say B too, even if it means me getting political, which is something I try to avoid here. Or maybe it's really more of system criticism than being political, I don't know.

( Read more... )

And all this brought to you only because I got astonished hearing my parents discuss something I didn't know they had all that much interest in...

Courtesy of nighteevee:

1.Leave me a comment saying anything random, like your favorite lyric to your current favorite song. Or your favorite kind of sandwich.
2. I respond by asking you five personal questions so I can get to know you better.
3. You will update your LJ with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and offer to ask someone else in the post.
5. When others comment asking to be asked, you will ask them five questions.


( Why can't I ever keep my answers short? )

When forced to label it, I have always described my style of dressing as "casual". But after spending some time in the city and for once actually looking at people, I'm not so sure if casual is the right description for me. At least not when looking at my countrymen dressed for summer.

I know, I have this weird idea - in Swedish eyes at least - of wearing jeans or other long pants (especially if I'm in a city environment) in temperatures when most locals have switched to shorts and T-shirts long ago. But even so I was still somewhat surprised to see the very casual casual style people use now. And for most, that means very casual as in sloppy and not as in stylish casual. (And now I start to sound like I actually have a fashion sense, which feels very weird I can assure you.)

And apparently fate wanted to really drive the point through. One hour after I had made this observation I met up with my niece and my mother, and while sitting at a café eating icecream the nine-year-old asked me: "why are you wearing long trousers? And those shoes? Isn't it warm?" Point taken. And maybe it's the wrong reaction, but somehow I can't help but feel amused and rather pleased. I wonder if the label "snobbish casual" exist...