October 2008 archive

Winners and losers

A Japanese film called Okuribito (“Departures”), which portrays the work of people who wash and groom dead bodies for burial, was awarded the Grand Prix des Americas at the Montreal World Film Festival. The organizers say that the film captures “comically and with full emotion a job that is usually loathed.” Sounds like a real knee-slapper.

Seiya Ueno, a 19-year-old student at Tokyo University of the Arts, won the Jean-Pierre Rampal International Flute Competition in Paris.

It was revealed that the Japanese government has refused to grant a visa to a 57-year-old Russian diplomat who is suspected of being linked to the Russian intelligence service. Hey, at least he’s not a weed-smoking sumo wrestler.

A court ordered Ehime Prefecture to pay ¥1 million in damages to whistleblower Toshiro Semba, a sergeant who was transferred after revealing the misuse of police money at a press conference in 2005.

Toxic melamine was found in a product called Chocolate Pillows that was sold in Osaka and imported from China, but so far no reports of disease or death.

Original article, by Fred McDowell, via Socialist Appeal (UK):

Communism is suddenly back in fashion in Japan. The reason is not hard to seek. ‘Lifetime employment’ is a thing of the past for young workers, who face a casualised and insecure future. One in three is temping. Some 44% of country’s workforce are part-time only, while a profusion of short-term contracts has created a generation of freelancers who are often ‘between jobs’. They have already worked out that, as recession bites, they will be first in the firing line. They are drawing political conclusions in increasing numbers.

Sunny – James Brown (good god yeaahhhhh!)

3rd Stone from the Sun – Hendrix

Alternate version

I shall first note the irony of backalley blogging on the front page of a blog.  There, that’s done.

Sometimes while prowling back alleys you find things that don’t bear the light of day, brass ritual cymbal turns out to be a trashcan cover, exotic seafood dinner is really rotten fish guts.

Yet perhaps there’s some truth to these lies.

Here in NYC the sun has gone down.  That’s the time to prowl.

Ever watch the old teevee show Bewitched?  All those times Samantha would do her magic and poor Gladys Kravitz or Larry or whoever witnessed these feats would have the most puzzled odd look on their faces, reality had shifted for them and they were stunned (well except for Gladys, who had her suspicions!).  And then either Samantha or Darren would cook up the most unbelievable alternative narrative to explain what had happened, it would be accepted, and normality would resume.

The audience of course was in on the joke, and we all knew WE’D never fall for that lame explanation.

http://hometown.aol.com/

Yes but you may say, well so what, that is no big deal.

Ah, but you miss the bigger picture and other indications pointing to the death of the internet.

Why do I and why should you think this is a very bad deal.

Because Goddammit when lamestream wants you to have an opinion THEY will give it to you.

The weekend viral.  

1. The NY Times reports OPEC orders a cut in oil production. OPEC will reduce its oil production by at least 1.5 million barrels a day to stem what it called ‘a dramatic collapse’ in oil prices as the world economy slows down and oil demand shrinks.”

   Fears of a global recession; however, meant the announcement did nothing to halt the price fall of oil futures which “fell 4.6 percent to $64.75 a barrel, their lowest since May 2007.” Oil was at $147 a barrel in July. “Many analysts expect global oil consumption to fall this year for the first time since 1983.”

Four at Four continues with the Detroit housing market collapse, Mexico’s oil reform, and erasing memories in mice.