TOKYOMANGO

Photo of a boy pulling a rickshaw in 1980s Tokyo

John O'Leary, a science teacher at my high school in Tokyo, took this amazing photograph of a boy running with a rickshaw at a school event circa 1980s.

New leading party may provide cash incentive to people raising kids

The Democratic Party, which takes power soon, is proposing to give Japanese families $300 per month per child through junior high school to help combat the aging shrinking population problem:

The DPJ is promising Japan's 100 million voters it will grab money away from bureaucrats and redistribute it to them. Topping their woo-list is a pledge to pay a $300 benefit per child per month to families. Another $10 billion dollars in subsidies will go to the nation's farmers. Other sugarcoated policies include the abolition of expressway road tolls and the removal of a gasoline tax used to fund new highway construction.

Link (Thanks, Alyssa!)

Five facts about the prime minister-to-be Yukio Hatoyama

Here are five quick facts about Yukio Hatoyama, the guy who will be replacing Taro Aso as prime minister:

1. He's a 4th-generation politician hailing from a family sometimes referred to as the Kennedys of Japan.
2. His maternal grandfather founded and inherited Bridgestone.
3. He has a PhD in managerial engineering from Stanford.
4. The Washington Post describes him as "stiff, shy and very rich."
5. Unlike Taro Aso, he can read and write the Japanese language. We hope.

Related posts:
Aso tells poor young people not to get married
Aso and Obama's cheesy happy handshake photo
Taro "I can't read kanji" Aso publicly proves incompetence in Japanese language
Aso to be featured in erotic video game
Aso depicted as a local hero in Akihabara
Japanese politics: The man who can explain it all and make you laugh

The politics of eating whale meat

There's a good story in The Atlantic about a guy who accidentally ate whale meat in Yurakucho, and the politics of whale meat consumption:

"Is that corned beef?" I asked, dumbfounded because the Japanese are not known for eating the deli-sandwich staple. There was even a dab of Dijon mustard on the plate.

"Try it and guess," replied my coworker Shigeo Asanuma, who goes by the nickname Shiggy.

So I did. The meat was salty and chewy, though a bit tougher than corned beef. There was also a strip of white fat clinging to it. I stuck to my guns--had to be beef.

"Whale," Shiggy said.

Say what?!

"I hope you're not a member of Greenpeace."

Link

Robots rehearse romantic kiss for a musical production

Thomas and Janet are humanoid theatrical robots created at the National Taiwan University of Technology and Science. They're slated to perform in the first robot production of Phantom of the Opera &mdash this is a clip of them rehearsing.

via IEEE Spectrum