TOKYOMANGO

Get your hand-printed limited edition TokyoMango t-shirt now (2 weeks only)

My friend Ben and I made a test run of TokyoMango t-shirts on Saturday. They're really nice, do you want one? If so, you can buy one here. Below are the details:

- All shirts are 100% cotton.
- Each t-shirt will be hand-silk screened by me and Ben on his Yudu machine. The shirt logo was custom-designed by Ben. Mango design courtesy of my web designer James.
- The Women's tees come in a t-shirt style (pistacio and white) and a spaghetti strap ribbed tank (yellow).
- The Men's tees come in orange and white. In the pic above, Ben is actually accidentally wearing a girl's tee, but you get the idea... the sleeves will be more manly on the one you get.
- You can choose a custom colored tee for $25. Just shoot me an email with your preference after you place the order.
- The sizes tend to run a little big (except for the tanktops). They might shrink in the wash.
- Some of you will receive a free surprise Japanese toy or gadget with your t-shirt! I'm just gonna randomly stick them into bags, so keep an eye out.
- We're taking orders over the next two weeks only, at least for this first printing. They'll ship at the end of those two weeks, when Ben & I will silkscreen them by hand.
- Last day to order is Monday, October 5th.

UPDATE: T-shirts are no longer for sale. Maybe we'll do another round sometime!

The Happiness Realization Party

Japanese politics has been dominated by the conservative Liberal Democratic Party for half a century, but every once in a while there are these small radical-sounding parties that take a stab at leadership positions. One of the most recent is the Happiness Realization Party. They've just published their manifesto in English this month, which includes goals like a new constitution, reduced taxes, protection against North Korean missiles, and the realization of true happiness.

The Happiness Realization Party is actually the political offshoot of a new religious group called Happy Science, which might be something similar to Scientology, though I don't know for sure.

Link (Thanks, Ted!)

Read more about Japanese politics on TokyoMango's politics channel.

Buddhist Monks Rap to Win Back Believers

Japanese Buddhism these days has been called "funeral Buddhism" because, although 3/4 of the population is registered as Buddhist, people only go to the temples when someone dies. That's why the head monk at Tsukiji Honganji temple in Tokyo decided to hold a fashion/hip hop event last week. Titled the "Tokyo Bouz Collection," the event featured 40 monks and nuns from eight major Buddhist sects blinged out in gold embroidered robes performing a rap version of a Budddhist sutra. They strutted the runway while chanting prayers and throwing confetti that looked like lotus petals.

Link

Joyu's New Cult

Ever since the subway-gassing Aum cult lost its dear charismatic leader to death row, there's been a split in those remaining. Some wanted to retain reverence for Shoko Asahara, focusing on mantras and religious teachings and 101 ways to kill off the population, while others wanted to get rid of holy names, throw out anything resembling their leader, and think of 102 ways to kill of the population. The latter is led by the super-smart, super-scary, loved-by-the-teeny-bopper-girls  ex-spokesman for Aum Shinrikyo, 44-year old Fumihiro Joyu.

Anyway, an "insider" just announced that Joyu is leaving Aum--which, by the way, is now called Aleph--and starting his own spin-off cult with about 60 others. It'll be fun to see what kind of trouble they cause. Maybe we can throw in them in the middle of the yakuza war and watch them all rumble.

Link