"Let's Dance!"

I love it. How do I order one, Rob?

Obscurity is the Artist's Refuge

HAHAHA!!! Touche' Atonalexpress-sama!

I also think that this is all just a big "internet hoax" being played out by some wild and crazy google engineers (who are actually hard-core Pongi fans) just trying to spread the happiness and also prove that the whole entire celebrity social structure all over the globe is nothing but a bunch of hyped-up nonsense.

And, that's a big reason why I always wear a costume on camera. Well, its partly to entertain but also partly to conceal my personal identity too. But, recently, some have identified me while out of costume so maybe its time for the second face life after all!

Cheers! <*v*>

That doll would sell well here in Hawaii!

In reply to:

---

the whole entire celebrity social structure all over the globe is nothing but a bunch of hyped-up nonsense

---

Perhaps. I think there is a lot of marketing behind the celebrity persona. It brings in big cash.


Obscurity is the Artist's Refuge

AH SO DESU NE, such is the irony of life DESU NE! ($$$) ;O)

P.S. I just did some research and, well, in "The Celebrity Search Engine" for "Rob Pongi" there is about 180 pictures and more than 11,000 searched sites included. But also, for Mr. David Bowie there is more than 9 milliion searched sites and more than 57,000 pictures included too!!! WOAH!!! Now THAT is alot, indeed! All of a sudden, I don't feel very much like a celebrity anymore! (GULP!)

Hello TW Happies!

Well, here is even more good news!

Rob Pongi's Blog now featured on Sphere:



About Sphere: "We bring you the good stuff - a very simple idea that takes some smarts to do right. Sphere's advanced search algorithm helps you discover high-quality, relevant, and timely blog posts that match what your're looking for." (Discovered on June 25, 2006)

Stay tuned!

Rob <*v*>

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello again TW Happies!

And NOW:

"Rob Pongi" was recently awarded admission into the Star Seeker directory in the General Televison Sites section:



Stay tuned!

Rob <*v*>


Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello TW Happies,

How is conditions? Well, it hopes you can get a GREAT JOYFUL with "Sunset Bay":



Please very enjoy!


Rob <*v*>

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello TW Happies!

I'm very honored and quite shocked at this time, but recently I was awarded admission into Clago.com - Your link to the celebrities



About Clago.com:

"Clago.com provides links to celebrity sites. These links are frequently checked to keep the number of dead links to a minimum."

"Besides offering links, Clago.com provides a weekly updated top 30, containing the most popular celebrities, birthdays, which allows you so see with which celebrity you share your birthday, and a celebrity shop where you can buy CDs, DVDs, and posters."

"Clago.com is created by NetVision, a company that has extensive experience in creating celebrity related websites."

And I just cannot believe all of this! WHAT DA HAIL!?!?

Stay tuned!


Rob <*v*>

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello again TW Happys!

Well, here is even more good news:



Asia Entertainment Online was recently awarded acceptance into the very powerful WOW Directory in the Entertainment: Movies and Film: Indepedent (Asia) section. Note: The WOW Directory does not accept all applications and has a search engine saturation level of 11,638,306 - one of the very highest of all directories on the entire internet.

Stay tuned!

Rob <*v*>


Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello TW Happies!

I am now very excited to once again bring you the very beautiful and very extremely talented Ting Ting performing "Meadows Love Song" live at the Kichijoji Music Festival in 2003:



In this truly amazing performance, Ting Ting sings while playing the ancient Chinese "Pi Pa" - a four-stringed Lute, one of the oldest Chinese musical instruments which first appeared in Chinese written texts of the second century BC. Such a performance like this is very rarely seen outside of China.

I hope you enjoy this video as much I enjoyed filming and editing it for you!

Stay tuned!

Rob <*v*>

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello Again TW Happies!

And now I am very happy to bring you a very special tribute video to those very hard-working and very beautiful "Tokyo Dome Beer Girls"




Please very enjoy and stay tuned for more!

Yours truly,

Rob <*v*>

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello Again TW Happies!

In continuing our Tokyo Nights series, I am now very happy to bring you Tokyo Nights Highlights #9




Most of this video was filmed live in The Roppongi District of Tokyo and this could be one of the fastest three-minute videos that you'll ever see!

Check it out here: Tokyo Nights Highlights #9


Please very enjoy and stay tuned!


Rob <*v*>


Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Great things. I'm also changing my name to 'Let's Go!'. By the way, I love your co-host. She's a cutie.

rrrrrrrrrrrr.............

HAHAHAHAHA!!! Thank you Ghostlove, I mean, "Let's Go!"

I really appreciate your view and very kind review too. And this one was quite tricky as I had to do SO MUCH COLOR CORRECTION! Oh Man! Even that above street shot had to be adjusted several times. And, actually, that above still frame photo is out of the broadcast safe range. But we can do that somewhat with photos because they are not moving and they won't hurt anyone's eyes too much if the are out of the range. However, with video or film, it has to always be inside the range. If it is not, then it is, in fact, a safety hazard and can potentially hurt viewer's eyes very much. So, obviously, that is basically why there is such a standard broadcast safe range for motion pictures.

So, anyway, this one clip, which runs just over three minutes in duration, took over two days to edit mainly because of the color/lighting imbalance problems, and I also used some pretty heavy effects and changed my mind alot too in the first dance segment. In fact, I would like to go over the whole entire sequence again one more time and try to adjust a few more areas. But, not right now, maybe later on.

Thanks again and take care Mr. Let's Go!

Stay tuned,

Rob <*v*>

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello Again TW Happies!

And now, I am very happy to bring you the Shamisen Player Video #2:



Be sure you don't miss this one as such a performance like this, has become quite rare nowadays.

You can see this video here: Shamisen Player Video #2

Please very enjoy and stay tuned!

Yours truly,

Rob <*v*>


Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

FLASH NEWS:

"Rob Pongi" by Artist Rob James at Robot Jam Design was selected as "Featured Drawing of The Week" on Bowienet the official website of David Bowie (2006-08-04):



Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

He may be "Evil", but he sure is pretty wacky and humorous!

Check it out here: Japanese Women Looking For Foreign Friends #12

Stay tuned!

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello Again TW Happies!

FLASH NEWS: TOKYO DOME BEER GIRLS was selected as one of the Best Internet Videos of The Week by Internet Video Magazine (2006-08-06):



You can see this video here: TOKYO DOME BEER GIRLS

Stay tuned!

Rob <@v@>

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

This video was pieced together using footage from a 1984 NHK documentary about nuclear war, which showed a high-tech (at the time) Godzillaesque simulation of what would happen to Tokyo if nuked by an 8-megaton bomb. The soundtrack is Sun Ra's "Nuclear War" (1982) as performed by Yo La Tengo (2002). Peace.

From pinktetacle

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

you know man, i've been privvy to your posts for about six years now, and i still haven't figured you out yet. bravo.

hands up, WHO WANTS TO DIE!

HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!

DOUMO ARIGATOU LOOKING GLASS-SAN!

Thank you very much Looking Glass! I really appreciate your loyal reading and very funny message! <*v*>

Well, you know I have lived in Japan for a long time and I am now a fully bilingual Japanese/English speaker. And since "language is a virus" then, obviously, I am a very sick man!





Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

FLASH NEWS: Rob Pongi was recently awarded admission into The Celebrity Zone in the Comedians section. (2006-08-18)



Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Rob, when are you coming to Honolulu? I can get one of your short films into a local variety show across the street. It's a blast there every Sunday night.

MySpace

Hi Atonalexpress!

Thank you very much for your kind message and very nice support. I really appreciate it. Well, my next trip to Hawaii won't be soon enough. Really, the weather here this summer has been NUTS! Oh man! And I've been like stupid busy too. But I'll try to write you a PM soon. Take care.

ALOHA!!!

Rob <*v*>

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello TW Happies!

Long time no typing. Well, here they are. Earlier today I pleasantly rediscovered these "illegal" pictures from the the second Tokyo concert of Mr. David Bowie's Reality World Tour on March 9, 2004:

Here is the sign on the front of the Tokyo Budokan. Notice the Japanese KANJI characters painted above:



LIVE ON STAGE:



And just before the encore, this "happy" individual was escorted out the door by a beautiful Japanese secret service agent when it was discovered that he was actually an escaped lunatic from a nearby asylum who inexplicably managed to climb out of his 28th-story room window and then proceeded down a rope to the Tokyo Budokan for BOTH concerts on March 8th and March 9th, 2004. AND he also took these illegal photos:



It was also later reported that this individual was apparently seen "running wild" at the Osaka concert a few days later, but that sighting was never confirmed.

YASSASSIN!!!

Rob <*v*>


Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello TW Happies!

I'm happy, hope you're happy too! <*v*>

A now I am very happy and proud to bring you a satircial Japanese TV comic segment from the legendary "Black Wide Show" called "The Black Whistle" complete with no commercials and English subtitles! And if you are not familiar with it, the "Black Wide Show" was very popular in Japan a few years ago, but is now no longer on the air.

But it is now on our favorite multimedia website right here:



And please try to watch this entire segment as it includes a very poignant and significant look at some of the most terrible problems with the current public Japanese school system: perverted and criminal Japanese school teachers!

Check it out here; The Black Whistle

Please very enjoy and stay tuned!

Your very friendly,

Rob <*v*>


Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

I just got back from a short trip to Los Angeles. Above is yours truly wacky with world famous singer, songwriter and amazingly beautiful model Marketa Janska taken in North Hollywood on September 2, 2006. And, many people said that my new "Pongi Money" jacket made me look like a million, but, obviously, Ms. Janska looked like a TRILLION!

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello TW Happies!

I am now very happy to bring you all another Japanese TV segment (with English subtitles) called "The Patrolman's Love Call" which is a children's safety song used to teach Japanese kids how to call the police and also about the prevention of prank calls. This is a very satirical and interesting Japanese TV segment from "The Black Wide Show" which was a very popular Japanese TV show a few years ago but is now no longer on air.

However, you can see this segment here:



Check it out: The Patrolman's Love Call

Please very enjoy and stay tuned!


Your very friendly,


Rob <*v*>


Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

FLASH NEWS: Rob Pongi: Asia Entertainment Online was recently awarded admission into the internet's oldest directory: Best of the Web in the Regional: Asia: Arts and Entertainment category. This highly esteemed directory was founded in 1994 and is committed to catalogue the best web sites on the internet. (2006-09-27)




Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello again TW Happies!

"The Yen Shop 1994" is a somewhat nostalgic and very interesting Japanese TV commercial for a Japanese loan shark company. Translated by Rob Pongi. Used by legal permission and all rights reserved.



Check it out here: The Yen Shop 1994

Stay tuned!

Rob <*v*>

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

FLASH NEWS: Asia Entertainment Online by Rob Pongi was recently awarded admission into the highly respected Skaffe.com Directory in the Entertainment & Media > Humor & Fun category. (10-06-06)



Skaffe.com is an International directory with quality sites and original content, run by volunteers. Sites are rated on a scale of 1 to 3 ticks. Sites are first sorted by ticks (highest first) and then alphabetically.

About Skaffe.com - "Skaffe.com is a volunteer edited directory of the best family safe websites on the World Wide Web. Skaffe, is a Nordic word for find, procure and obtain. We do not list low quality sites, spam or content not suitable for children. Our users trust Skaffe.com as a reliable resource for high quality websites suitable for family viewing. We apply professional and uniform standards for reviewing and listing sites. We market our services worldwide, and include multingual versions for the benefit of our users."

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

RobPongi.com was recently awarded admission into the Japanese Rentub.com Directory in the Entertainers & Personalities section. (10-16-06)



The Rentub.com Directory is the first Japanese web directory to award admission to RobPongi.com


Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

This is just so hilarious!

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=david+bowie+japan+concert&btnG=Google+Search

Like some cat from Japan!

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

DOUBLE FEATURE: "Tokyo Dome Beer Girls" was selected as "Multimedia Feature of the Week" and also as "Featured Work of the Week" on Bowienet the official website of Mr. David Bowie (2006-10-28). This is the 15th time one of Rob Pongi's videos has been featured by David Bowie's official website. You can see "Tokyo Dome Beer Girls" right here by clicking on the Bowienet screen shot below:




Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Hello TW Happys!

Sorry I didn't get this up earlier, but I've been stoopid busy since I came back to Tokyo. And in two short words, The Black Ball was just absolutely amazing!!!. And if you have not yet seen it, you can watch Ye Ol' Sailor Man's performance here:


David Bowie Live at The Black Ball

Filmed by Fellow Bowienetter Simone!

Please very enjoy!

Rob <`@v@`>


Rob Pongi and Fellow Bowienetters @ The Black Ball



Photo by Bowienet

The above photo of Rob Pongi and Fellow Bowienetters was taken just in
front of the Hammerstein Ballroom before The Black Ball on Thursday night,
November 9, 2006. Yes, it was, indeed, quite a "Fantastic Voyage"




Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

The above composite photo of Rob Pongi and Miss Ori from the Christmas In Japan music video was recently selected as 'Nomad of the Week' on Bowienet the official website of Mr. David Bowie.

Please accept this small video gift here : Christmas In Japan

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from Tokyo Japan!


Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Internet Video Revenues to Skyrocket

From KillerApp.com (December 7, 2006)

Annual U.S. revenues from Internet video services – including everything from user-generated content to television shows and movies – will exceed $7 billion by 2010, says a new report from research firm Parks Associates. Paid services will grow even faster than advertising-supported services. In 2007, approximately 85 percent of revenue will be from advertisements; by 2010, advertising will only account for about 40 percent of revenues.

“Major broadcasters, movie studios, retailers, and content aggregators are all experimenting with new ways to distribute video content online and attach advertising to their offerings,” said Kurt Scherf, vice president and principal analyst, Parks Associates. “The early results are quite promising.”


Continued...

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

All I can say Rob is that you have a lot of fun! You have to come to Honolulu and participate in a variety show held every Sunday at the rRed Elephant. Dark would love to interview you.

rRed Elephant Studio

MySpace

Hi Atonalexpress,

WOW! That all sounds GREAT! Maybe we can also start the "Hawaii Happy Hour" too! This new production will feature ALOT of bikinis, alot of wacked "Engrish" and alot of fun in the sun! YEEEAAAAHHHHH!!!!

Stay tuned!

Rob

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

WWW.ROBPONGI.COM - XOM Overview



WOW! This year really has really been a wild one, indeed. Among many other awards, RobPongi.com was awarded admission into several very highly regarded internet directories such as Joe Ant, Uncover The Net, Skaffe.com, Star Seeker , The Celebrity Cafe, and also the very, highly selective Best of the Web directory back in September. But, as you can see in the above anonymous XOM Review, suddenly, almost overnight, RobPongi.com has become an official PORNO VIDEO WEBSITE!!! WOW!!! THIS IS AWESOME!!! And it just has to be THE GREATEST news of the year for me so far, as now I'm officially recognized as a "certified pornographer"!!! So, I should probably move my website to RobPORNO.com as soon as possible! And, I'm sure that by producing more and more pornography videos, I will soon get extremely wealthy, get EVEN MORE girlfriends, buy a new Bentley and then move to Beverly Hills right?!

ALRIGHT!!! WOOT!!! WOOT!!!

Stay tuned!


Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Must be that sexy helmet...


Liest das denn keiner außer mir?

HAHAHAHA!!! Thanks th0mas! Well, even though we may think it is funny, I just had the above review removed. Better be safe than sorry right?!?!

Also, remember to always wear a safety helmet with flags waving!

Cheers! :O)

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

Tokyo December 22, 2006 (PPR) - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Pongi PR has reported that Rob Pongi has now entered the Top 10 most popular searches in the Americola Celebrity Pop Culture Search Engine:





Pongi PR also said that both Paris Hilton and Jessica Alba have expressed an interest in appearing in the next Rob Pongi internet video release, which is expected soon but exact details on the release date are currently unknown. Rob Pongi was unavailable for comment.






Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

UPDATE: Now it appears as though "Rob Pongi" has 'jumped the shark' as he is currently SINKING FAST in the Americola Celebrity Pop Culture Search Engine and has dropped like a rock down to the lowly 28th position! Oh well, it was fun being in the top ten for a day or so. Maybe it really is about time to change into "Rob PORNO"

Cheers!

Asia Entertainment Online
Rob Pongi's Blog
Evil Pongi

HAPPY NEW YEAR TW HAPPIES!!!

Well, I know its a bit late, but I am very happy to bring you all a very special video called 'Japanese New Year Video 2007' that I recently filmed and edited completely on my own:



Please check it out here: Japanese New Year Video 2007

And here are some more stills from this new video in this NEW YEAR!!!









Once again, HAPPY NEW YEAR and stay tuned for more!


Rob

Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

NEWS UPDATE: www.RobPongi.com - Asia Entertainment Online was recently published in Stanford University's Stanford Japan Guide in the News & Media > Social Commentary category (Discovered 01-13-07):




Overview

The J Guide: "Stanford Guide to Japan Information Resources is a topically arranged directory of online information resources in and about Japan, with focus on resources about Japan in the English language. The J Guide is an ongoing project of the US-Asia Technology Management Center (USATMC), School of Engineering, Stanford University. The J Guide project was initiated with funding through grants in the US-Japan Industry and Technology Management Training Program (JITMT), administered by the US Air Force Office of Scientific Research. Since our completion of those grants, J Guide has received support through gifts to the USATMC from US and Japanese corporate sponsors."

Continued...


Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IY4XHXn5B9I

"If Australia ever gets a new national anthem I'll insist 'punch her in the twat' is in the lyrics somewhere." - PHOENIX

DOUMO ARIGATOU schizophrenic-san!

Yeah, I've seen this clip before, and it is very well produced and is pretty funny too! What they are doing is spoofing NHK TV's daily exercise shows which are so monotonous and, virtually, useless!

Cheers! <`@v@`>

Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

Well, this new video is somewhat "different" to say the least, but it is also very interesting and musical and humorous too! This video features many talented Japanese entertainers that I recently filmed in Tokyo Street Shows Highlight Video #1:




Please very enjoy and stay tuned!



Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

The mime is pretty incredible. Very impressive. The guy reading the Manga was pretty funny, too. Thanks.

Hi Ghostlove!

Thank you for watching and for your kind reviews! Yeah, the mime has been going at it for like three years or so now and he's very good. And the other guy, who looks like a Freak Brother, that's the one and only, MANGA MAN!!! He has this very unique act whereby he reads Japanese Manga Comic books to people in very animated and emotional voices. Check out this other clip of him here TOTALLY GOING OFF:

The MANGA MAN GOES OFF!!!

YOOOO!!!!! YOU GO MANGA MAN YOOOO!!!! And, even though he looks like a TOTAL FREAK (which is absolutely VERBOTEN here in Japan Land) his act is so awesome and hilarious that it doesn't matter what he looks like. And he has recently been on late-night cable TV here more than a few times. Yeah, he REALLY is something, but I only got him on tape for five minutes or so last weekend, but I talked to him after he was done reading that comic book, and I might be able to film him tomorrow, if the weather holds out. Let's hope it does.

And this just in:

NEWS UPDATE: Tokyo Street Shows Video #1 was selected as one of the Best Internet Videos of the Week by Internet Video Magazine (01-20-07)

"Its that crazy Rob Pongi again. This is a highlight video which shows some very talented and interesting Japanese entertainers as seen performing on Tokyo streets and in Tokyo public parks. Completely filmed and edited by Rob Pongi. Copyright (2007) by Rob Pongi. Used by permission and all rights reserved. Be sure to see Tokyo Highlights Video #1 and also see more interview and variety videos"

DOUMO ARIGATOU!!!




Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

This new video release features a group of life-long, professional Japanese Geisha playing traditional Japanese music together in Niigata in 2001. Such a performance like this one is very extremely rare these days in Japan. Check it out here:

Japanese Geisha Band Music Video



Completely filmed and edited by Rob Pongi. See more at
www.RobPongi.com

Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

Hello again TW Happies!

Well, this next new video features a well-known Tokyo performance artist known as 'The Manga Man' as he read Japanese Manga comic books to people in the park. 'The Manga Man' is becoming quite popular in Tokyo and recently he has made a few Japanese TV appearances. Check it out here:

Tokyo Street Shows Video #2: The Manga Man:




Please very enjoy and stay tuned!

Lob

Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

Hello Once Again Fellow TWers!

This new release on www.RobPongi.com is an extremely rare look at a common, middle-class family in North Korea and features a somewhat humorous and emotional internal conflict within it. Edited and translated by Rob Pongi. Used by legal permission and all rights reserved.



Also, at the end of this segment, there is an expert summary of it all provided by North Korean expert Professor Toshio Miyatsuka of Yamanashi University. Be sure to see this very rare and interesting TV drama segment here:

North Korean Drama: 'Crimson Persimmon'

NOTE: This North Korean TV drama segment does not reflect the views of Rob Pongi nor those of anyone else associated with Asia Entertainment Online Videos

Please very enjoy and stay tuned!

Rob


Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

LookSmart - Best Results for "David Bowie Concert"



Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

See if you can guess which image in the below link is slightly different:


"David Bowie Celebrities" - Google Image Search






Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

NEWS UPDATE: Rob Pongi and www.robpongi.com and some other related sites were recently included in the exclusive Shows on TV Television and Celebrity Search Engine (Discovered 03-07-07):

Shows on TV Television Search for Rob Pongi :



Wiki article on Showsontv.com: "From TV programs of the past, present and future, to the stars that appear in them, Shows On TV delivers targeted web site search results based on a unique meta ranking formula unlike any other search engine or directory."

Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

See if you can guess which image in the below link is slightly different:


"David Bowie Now" Google Image Search




Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

Hello TW Happys!

Yes, its true and I am very happy to announce that I just produced and released my first Hollywood movie right here in Tokyo:



"Never Say 'Never' Always Say 'Revver'" is a humorous promo for the well-known internet video sharing site: Revver.com located right on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, CA. "Never Say 'Never' Always Say 'Revver'" was recorded live in Tokyo, Japan. Written, directed, edited and produced by Rob Pongi. Copyright (2007) by Rob Pongi. Used by permission and all rights reserved. Check it out here:

"Never Say 'Never' Always Say 'Revver'"

Stay tuned!

Rob



Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

Best Internet Videos of the Week - Internet Video Magazine (03-17-07)

"I don't know how good this is but it is awfully goofy. "Never Say 'Never' Always Say 'Revver'" is Rob Pongi's humorous promo for his favorite internet video sharing company known as "Revver": http://www.revver.com which is located right on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, CA. "Never Say 'Never' Always Say 'Revver'" was filmed on location in Tokyo, which, believe it or not, according to Rob, actually resembles L.A. in many ways! So, check it out!"

Also, 'Rob Pongi's First Hollywood Movie' was recently blogged on 'Best Hollywood Videos'




Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

NEWS UPDATE: 'Rob Pongi's First Hollywood Movie' is currently ranked as one of the top videos on the very extremely popular entertainment site: Craveonline.com



About Craveonline.com:

"Crave Online has all new features and original content. The site attracts over 1.7 million visitors monthly, who come for the latest in music, gaming, comics and film/tv news. CraveOnline.com is also a top video destination, where visitors can see the latest music videos, movie trailers, video game demos and funny videos. Check out the all new Crave Online and see what everyone is talking about."

"Crave Online (Craveonline.com) is a next-generation male lifestyle site that covers topics that young men "crave." The site is dedicated to fulfilling every appetite for information, whether it is film, comics, games, sports, and more. Crave is a platform to provide users with high-quality professional content along with user-created content. It offers a blend of video and traditional editorial content. The site focuses on satisfying users cravings for all types of diversionary content."

Source: CraveOnline.com re-launches with an all new site.



Stay tuned!


Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

Is You Tube just not for "You"? Is My Space not really "Your space" after all? Well, then come on down and check out the all-new Asia Online Video social network brought to you by yours truly - Rob Pongi - and now online and ready and waiting for your videos, photos, blog journals and Q&A sessions in the forums. Membership is, of course, FREE and available to any video creators and/or viewers interested in Asia. (No pornographers please!) So sign up right here right now: Sign Up - Asia Online Video and and let's VERY ENJOY A GREAT JOYFUL!

See you all soon!

Rob

Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

FLASH NEWS: Rob Pongi was recently included in the Hollywood Up Close celebrity portal. (Discoverd 03-27-07):



About HollywoodUpClose.com: "Launched on Feb 5, 2007, HollywoodUpClose.com, a division of PureVideo Networks, Inc., is the Web's most comprehensive portal to all things celebrity. The site features news, gossip, movie trailers, celebrity interviews, photo galleries, and red-carpet footage from an exclusive library of thousands of clips and other resources."

Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

This new video release by Rob Pongi is the Tokyo Spring Music Video that is a happy, upbeat and very interesting look at some incredibly talented and truly amazing Tokyo-based musicians and bands playing live in public during the beautiful Japan Spring season. Filmed and edited by Rob Pongi. Used by permission and all rights reserved. Copyright (2007) by Rob Pongi. Check it out here:

Tokyo Spring Music Video



In the above still frame from this new video, a young Japanese woman is playing a very unique and dynamic electrical instrument known as a Moog Etherwave Theremin

Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

NEWS UPDATE: Tokyo Spring Music Video was recently selected as "Multimedia Feature of the Week" on Bowienet the official website of Mr. David Bowie (2007-04-08). This is the 17th time one of Rob Pongi's videos has been featured by David Bowie's official website.

Asia Entertainment Online Videos
Rob Pongi Blog

Iggy Pop Stage Dives On 60th Birthday



Iggy Pop dives into the crowd during a performance with "The Stooges" on his
60th birthday at the Warfield Theatre in San Francisco, California, April 21, 2007.
REUTERS/Robert Galbraith

REUTERS
April 22, 2007

By Dean Goodman

"SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Iggy Pop marked his 60th birthday on Saturday just like any other respectable senior citizen would.

"The eerily athletic "Godfather of Punk" stripped down to a tight pair of blue jeans and dived off the stage into the arms of his adoring fans during a concert in San Francisco with his reunited band the Stooges."

"Towards the end of the 80-minute show, the crowd at the Warfield theater sang along as his bandmates struck up "Happy Birthday," and Pop was surprised as balloons bearing his image dropped from the ceiling."

"A fan also handed him a white T-shirt inscribed "Birthday Boy Iggy," which the singer proudly displayed to his unimpressed bandmates."

"Pop, whose real name is Jim Osterberg, seemed thrilled by all the attention, but did not dwell too much on the special occasion. He muttered a few thanks along the way before resuming his usual routine: manic singing and dancing, spitting into the crowd, scampering onto the speakers and throwing his microphone stand around the stage."

"During the song "No Fun," he invited fans in the mosh pit to jump onto the stage, and generously shared his microphone with the motley troupe he termed the "Bay Area Dancers."

"Pop no longer carves up his chest with a steak knife, rolls around in cut glass, smears himself in peanut butter, or follows a drug regimen that makes Keith Richards look like a choirboy. But the Michigan trailer-park kid otherwise outruns rockers one-third his age."

Continued...




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FLASH NEWS: Rob Pongi Featured by Revver in Hollywood! (04-23-07)



Located on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, Revver is one of the first video-sharing websites to monetize user-generated content through advertising. Revver's system is often compared to Google's Adwords, but for video rather than websites. And with this recent development Rob Pongi will be sharing the spotlight with other world-famous internet superstars including AskANinja, lonelygirl15, Blendtec and other very creative and highly entertaining online shows now featured on Revver.

This top-level feature of Rob Pongi was officially announced on 04-23-07. The above shot is from the top of the "Featured Creators" section and the below graphic is from the Revver front page:




Revver is.....

".. a video-sharing platform built the way the internet really works. We support the free and unlimited sharing of media. Our unique technology tracks and monetizes videos as they spread virally across the web, so no matter where your creativity travels, you benefit."

".. the viral video network that pays. We connect video makers and sharers with sponsors in a free and open marketplace that rewards them for doing what they do best."

".. committed to the artist. You have something to say and we built our network to empower you to say it."



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War Birds Of Prey 喜��视频�索引擎 Xileba.com (Discovered 06-05-07)



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Well, the rumors have been confirmed and Evil Pongi is, in fact, a very wealthy celebrity cult leader living in a secret multi-million dollar mansion complex in Beverly Hills, California. Evil Pongi and his loyal following, known as "Evil Pongi's Pongiyangs" who, apparently, worship the man, like a god, obeying his every order, no matter how ridiculous, are now aggressively recruiting both "V.I.P." and "Slave" members to join the Hollywood House of Evil Celebrity Cult. Residents of the Mulholland Drive area are advised to remain indoors as much as possible and use extreme caution when going outside. Stay tuned for more on this developing story.



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FLASH NEWS: "The Golden Pavilion Video" is now a Top Ten Feature on WeShow Brazil:

WeShow (Edição Brasil) - Vídeo: O Pavilhão Dourado de Kyoto (Notified July 22, 2007)


Below is part of an official email I received just last night:

"WeShow is honored to announce that this video has been selected among millions on the internet to be ONE OF THE TEN BEST videos of the month in Brazil. Check it out this week on the WeShow Awards BR Edition (the biggest worldwide online video award), shown on channel Viagens & Destinos>Outros Destinos>�sia, to watch your video and other competing videos – and vote on your favorites. Our congratulations and good luck!"

The WeShow.com Team

Well, I guess we now have officially graduated from Roppongi (?!?!) JEEBUS! BRAZIL! Well, I must say that this is, indeed, one of the very highest levels of official recognition that I have ever received. You see, from the very beginning, way back in the summer of 2000, one of my biggest goals was to promote cross-cultural awareness and insight on Asia and Asian culture of all kinds as well as entertain as a wacky and caricature clown character. And, of course, some of the segments are only just fun and games - but not all of them. So, I am very dubiously honored by this acknowledgment and, of course, very, very happy to have achieved some level of one of my most important objectives and reasons for getting into and staying so active in web video production for all these years!

Also, I have to note that this video was filmed on March 12, 2004 which was, of course, the day after Mr. David Bowie's final Japan show of the Reality world tour. And for sure, a big part of that show was most definitely inside my old Sony PC-5 hand-held!

Stay tuned! <*@v@*>

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In reply to:

---

"The Golden Pavilion Video" is now a Top Ten Feature on WeShow Brazil:

---

Wow!

Do you spend much time in Kyoto, Rob?

I live in Osaka but my girlfriend lives in Kyoto: Right now I'm lying on her bed in Shijo while she is taking an exam!

I bet people can't wait to read my memoirs

Thank you very much too_dozy and Remade/Remodeled!

I really appreciate it and I am still a state of disbelief and wonder over this latest development! I have been to Kyoto many times. Its just such a beautiful city and the people there are just so very nice. Compared to Tokyo, its like another country! Really, its true and I would love to live there someday!

But also, I got very lucky on the day of the shoot as I was told by some others that it was supposed to rain but, fortunately, it did not. And also it was a very overcast and a grey sky colored day which helped limit shadows and excess luminosity etc. And because it was not such a nice day, and that it was forecasted to rain, the Golden Pavilion Temple grounds were not as crowded as usual. So I was able to get good shots pretty quickly without any unwanted walk-throughs and sudden interruptions by large tour groups etc. Kyoto is an incredibly beautiful city that has several magnificent world heritage sites. But, because of that, it is always so very crowded and not easy to shoot at all. Thanks again.

Stay tuned!

Rob <*@v@*>

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FLASH NEWS: Rob Pongi was recently included as a celebrity caricature by the world-famous weblog Google Blogoscoped (Discovered 08-05-07):



About Google Blogoscoped

Google Blogoscoped covers Google and the tech world, more or less daily since 2003......Google Blogoscoped has become a true community effort over time through the participation of many, many people, including Tony Ruscoe (co-editor), Ionut Alex. Chitu, Colin Colehour, /pd, Mambo, Orli Yakuel, Manoj Nahar, Sohil, David Hetfield...

The blog and the forum cover new Google product releases, contain tutorials and tips, information on Google censorship methods, and 20% random weirdness (the blog also spawned a book). Google is the focus here because the company and its tools have a growing impact on people's life – for better or worse. The Google search engine serves as a pair of eyes in a virtual world, and I think we'd all like a clear view.



This blog is featured in charts such as the Technorati Top 100, is a Google News source, and is also available in Chinese. Mark Draughn of Windypundit.com once called it "One of the most interesting technical sites on the web," and Vittorio Del Percio from Lugano, Switzerland, said it's "... the first source of info I check daily in the morning when I arrive at my desk in the office."

Continued...

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Hello TW Happies!

I recently filmed a truly spectacular Japanese festival which included several amazing performances of both Japanese traditional high culture and also modern-day pop culture. It was, indeed, quite an extraordinary and special festival! So, please very enjoy this Japanese Bon Odori Dance Video 2007:










Stay tuned for more!

Rob <*@v@`>

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LATE NEWS UPDATE: The Japanese Bon Odori Dance Video 2007 was selected as "Multimedia Feature of the Week" on Bowienet the official website of Mr. David Bowie (2007-08-06). This is the 18th time one of Rob Pongi's videos has been featured by David Bowie's official website. You can see the "Japanese Bon Odori Dance Video 2007" by clicking on the Bowienet screen shot below:





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Hello Again TW Happies!

Well, I am very happy to present you with a truly extraordinary video which has an impact that I cannot fully describe or express in mere words of any language.

This is the very exciting sequel to the recently released Japanese Bon Odori Dance Video 2007 which is simply entitled: Japanese Bon Odori Dance Video 2007 #2 And this video actually features two short 'Bon Odori' dance styles. The first being a very slow and somewhat eerie march, but then about halfway through, the music tempo suddenly picks up quickly and it all changes into a very uplifting and truly moving Japanese dance performance! This one, is, indeed, the most favorite video I have ever made and I hope you all enjoy it as much as I have enjoyed making it for you!

Check it out: Japanese Bon Odori Dance Video 2007 #2










Stay tuned for more!

Rob <*@v@*>



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NEWS UPDATE: The Japanese Bon Odori Dance Video 2007 #2 was selected as "Multimedia Feature of the Week" on Bowienet the official website of Mr. David Bowie (Discovered 08-28-07) This is the 19th time one of Rob Pongi's videos has been featured by David Bowie's official website. You can see the "Japanese Bon Odori Dance Video 2007 #2" by clicking on the Bowienet screen shot below:



Stay tuned! <*@v@*>

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Hello TW Happies!

And now I am very happy to bring you a very nice and very beautiful new music video release: Japanese Girls Hawaiian Hula Dance Video:








Please very enjoy and stay tuned for more!

Rob

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Hellow TW Happys!

The other day I released a new album review: New David Bowie Album: The Buddha Of Suburbia

Check it out!

Rob <`@v@`>

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NEWS UPDATE: Rob Pongi recently published a popular pre-release review of the remastered New David Bowie Album: The Buddha Of Suburbia and it was also quickly syndicated by the world famous Buzztracker News Headlines Media Aggregator Site (Discovered 10-04-07):



<`@v@`>

STAY TUNED!!!

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Hello Again TW Happys! <*@v@*>

Probably, most of you have not yet seen or used the new Touchgraph Google Browser Well, basically, its an all-new "visual search engine" that allows us to locate and see many sites which are related to each other or to some common keyword or keyphrase in a truly spectacular and very colorful graphical user interface.

And yesterday, I jposted a somewhat long and detailed blog post about this on the little blog that could: Rob Pongi Blog

And below is a screen shot of the Touchgraph Google Browser running a related site search on our favorite video web site RobPongi.com:



And in the center in big, bright red we can see RobPongi.com then just below it and a little bit to the left we suddenly find.......

BOWIENET!!!

WOW!!! Look at how close it is to RobPongi.com!!! I wonder why? Well, maybe it is true after all and "Somebody Up There Likes Me"


Cheers!


P.S. Seriously, this is brand-new web technology and TOTALLY FREE so check it and try a few searches on URLs or keywords/keyphrases. You just need to have Java 1.5 installed on your system in order for it all to work. But if you have that latest level installed, then definitely check it out right here:


Touchgraph Google Browser


In one word, it is, indeed, quite MINDBLOWING!!!!!






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John Lennon video collection to be released digitally

Tuesday, November 27, 2007



John Lennon video collection to be released digitally

Via NME

In reply to:

---

iTunes drops the 'John Lennon Video Album' next month
7 hours ago

A digital collection of John Lennon music videos is set to be released next month via US iTunes.

The 'John Lennon Video Album' is due out December 4 and features 21 videos including 'Imagine', 'Working Class Hero' and 'Give Peace A Chance', many of which have never before been released in a digital format.

The collection can be purchased by buying an iTunes Digital Release Card at Starbucks locations throughout the US and redeeming it via US iTunes online.

The 'John Lennon Video Album' tracklisting is:

'Imagine'
'Woman'
'Watching The Wheels'
'Mind Games'
'Happy Xmas (War Is Over)'
'Whatever Gets You Thru The Night'
'(Just Like) Starting Over'
'#9 Dream'
'Give Peace A Chance'
'Beautiful Boy'
'Jealous Guy'
'Nobody Told Me'
'Cold Turkey'
'Power To The People'
'Working Class Hero'
'Working Class Hero'
'Love'
'Mother'
'Borrowed Time'
'Slippin' And Slidin'
'Stand By Me'

--By our Los Angeles staff.

---

P.S. In case any of you "young, rookie" Bowie fans are scratching your heads and wondering "Who's John Lennon?" Well, he's the guy who pulled Bowie up out of bankruptcy and taught him a few tricks or two and then helped Bowie record the legendary Young Americans album in 1975. Yeah, ah, THAT guy!


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Lennon also did a Tin Machine cover.

I started with two enemas and a moan
I was a fartiste

Hello TW Happys!

First of all, I hope that you and all of yours have a really great 2008!

Second of all, I hope that I do too! <`@v@`>

Well, this is somewhat late, as the post edit took much longer than I thought it would as there were so many very luminous lights and buring fires etc all over the nearby Buddhist Temple where I filmed it. Well I finally made it and now I am very happy to bring you the Japanese New Year Video 2008



And this short clip shows a very interesting, colorful and happy look at a traditional Japanese Buddhist ceremony as it happened on New Year's Eve 2008 right here in Tokyo, Japan! There are also some other happy Japanese people very enthusiastically ringing in the New Year too! So please very enjoy and stay tuned for much more!

"Like some cat from Japan"

Rob

(@
___: )
(@

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Hello TW Happys!

And here is some VERY HAPPY news:

The Motion Graphics Movie of The Roppongi Video Happy Hour was selected as "Multimedia Feature of the Week" on Bowienet the official website of Mr. David Bowie (02-05-08)

Check out the The Motion Graphics Movie of The Roppongi Video Happy Hour by clicking on the Bowienet screen shot below:



This is the 20th time that we have received this honorable recognition since we started out all the happy madness over seven years ago! Unreal!

Stay tuned!

Lob :O)



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Well done, I like your work !

Your probably the only guy here on TW to get his work on Bowienet.

What music/artist is that playing on your video ?

Hi Infidel!

Thank you very much for watching and your kind review! I really appreciate it but for this one I only filmed some of the shots and appear within it sometimes. My old friend and mentor from L.A. named Kevin Monahan did all the composite editing and motion graphics and he is a well-known professional editor who has worked for Pixar, Disney, Dreamworks and many other heavyweight studios in both film and TV post production. And, I'm not sure who performed the audio track, probably one of the many artists/bands that Mr. Monahan knows in L..A. And, for sure, that track really makes this one even more emotional and significant. Indeed: "The years go fast and the days go so slow"

And, in addition to the Bowienet feature, this one is now also featured on Internet Video Magazine as one of the "Best Videos of the Week" which is also a very honorable recognition that we have received more than a few times in the past. And, every time that we have received such recognition from authoritative sites like these, all I can do is just shake my head in complete wonder and it make me think that maybe its really true and "Somebody Up There Likes Me"

Thanks again and stay tuned for more!

Cheers!

Rob




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Edited by robpongi on 02/07/08 10:42 PM (server time).

Hello TW Happies!

Well, I hope you are all doing well and keeping warm! Its been very cold this year in Japan and if it does not get warner soon, then I may just up and move to Hawaii!!! (Aloha Atonalexpress! :O) That would be really nice, indeed!

Well, anyway, if you have not yet seen it, be sure not to miss my recent blog post:

David Bowie tribute to John Lennon - 'Mother'

In one word this cover version by Mr. David Bowie is just PHENOMENAL!!!!


Really don't miss this newly released cover version of this legendary song. It was just released last month on Youtube and it includes a very heavy photo slideshow/video that pretty much covers Lennon's entire lifetime. Check it out!

Cheers!


Lob


(e
___: p
(e


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Hi Diamond Frog,

Sorry I didn't reply to you earlier on this, but with your above quote:

"Lennon also did a Tin Machine cover."

I believe that you may be referring to Working Class Hero and, well, actually, its the other way around as that song was written by John Lennon. But don't worry, it's OK, "no one's to blame" cause

"A working class hero is something to be
If you want to be a hero just follow me
If you want to be a hero well just follow me"

Yassassin!


Lob

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That can't be true. Lennon recorded that song long after Bowie died.

Diamond Frog on MySpace

You don't have an mp3 version of this, do you?

Also, I love you.

TW's Top Fag!

"That can't be true. Lennon recorded that song long after Bowie died."

WHOAH! Thank you very much Mr. Diamond Frog! I'm completely amazed, as in one short sentence, you just, literally, PROVED my conspiracy theory! And, obviously, it is now quite clear that Andy Warhol and Marc Bolan are actually both still alive but living in constant characterizations of "David Bowie" and "Iggy Pop" who both faked their deaths in order to secretly get married, run away and live together on their own top-secret private island somewhere in the South Pacific!

WHOAH! WHOAH! WHOAH!

And, also, you know, its true and we never landed on the moon - it was all just staged in a Hollywood backlot in order for the US Government to defraud an entire population for more defense spending in the name of "the space race". Yeah, I think we're getting it all now. Thank you very much again my friend! You are a true gentleman and a scholar.

But, you know, I feel sorry too because now it means that Iman is and always was just a mere "cover wife" as it has long been rumored.

And, you know that woman is just so incredible and she has helped so very many children all over the world. And did she ever ask for aything in return? No way! She just gave and is still giving them her real, true love and support all on her own and without any conditions. Indeed, Iman Abdulmajid is a real, modern-day "Working Class Hero" for sure!

"Man can embody truth but he cannot know it. " - William Butler Yeats



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HI guiltpuppy!

Thank you very much for your very nice response, but the fact is that I don't know what the word "Love" really means and I'm afraid that I may never know it in this world. But, really, thank you for your kindness. I really, truly appreciate it, especially these days!!"#"$%&

And, I'm sorry but I don't have an mp3 of the cover version of 'Mother' but you know, for sure, I'm looking around for one and (hopefully) I'll find one somewhere and send you a PM then. Well, I hope so, at least.

YASSASSIN!

Lob <`@v@`>


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http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/yuppiepunkpodcast/~5/76739818/podcast2.mp3

Awesome.

Diamond Frog on MySpace

http://www.4shared.com/file/38835599/de620278/bowiemother.html

WOW!!! Thank you Strawman! That whole YuppiePunk podcast and the website too is way kewl! Thanks again!

DOUMO ARIGATOU!!!

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Thanks! I do Mother a lot at karaoke, and want to try it with a Bowie inflection - being able to load it into my mp3 player and run helps.

TW's Top Fag!

You're very welcome.

Apologies for the piss-poor editing at the end of the track, but Steve Hawking's sisters' voice breaks in at the fade on Podcast there.

Hi Guiltpuppy,

Since you are the, uhm, "TOP BANANA" here at TW, I thought that you would enjoy this:


The 11 Most Unintentionally Gay Rap Lyrics Ever

by Adam Brown

Via Cracked.com

In reply to:

---

With all of the negative press surrounding hip-hop music, rappers often complain about the media taking their lyrics out of context, to make them seem more violent or misogynistic than they really are.

As a journalistic institution built on a foundation of honesty and integrity, we would never stoop to such lows. But take those lyrics out of context to make them sound gay? We're on it.

Eminem; "Don't Push Me"



The Lyric:
"Man I'm done saying that I'm done playing, Im'ma a start laying any of these motherfucking cocksuckers."

What He's Probably Saying:

"No joke, my patience is exhausted and now I'm gonna start shooting people."


What We Like To Think He's Saying:

"Seriously, I'm gonna start having sex with dudes."




50 Cent: "Gun Runners"




The Lyric:
Man on phone: "I got beef, I wanna see what you got, and if I like it I'll cop".

50 Cent: "Damn nigga, you hot!"

What He's Probably Saying:

Man on phone: "I have a conflict, I'd like to see your guns, if I like them I'll buy."

50 Cent: "Damn man you got problems!"


What We Like To Think He's Saying:

Man on phone: "I'm well-endowed, I'd like to see if you are also, if you are we'll engage in sex."

50 Cent: "Damn, man. You're sexy!"



Ice-T: "I love Ladies"





The Lyric:
"But don't get me wrong, most fellas do rock."

What He's Probably Saying:

"Dudes are cool, but when it comes to sex, I love ladies."


What We Like To Think He's Saying:

"Don't get me wrong, I will bang a guy, too."



Jay-Z feat. Memphis Bleek: "Coming of Age"





The Lyric:
Jay-Z: "Hey fella, I been watchin' you clockin'"

MB: "Who me holding down this block it ain't nothing, you the man nigga, now stop frontin'."

Jay-Z: "Ha ha! I like your style!"

MB: "Nah, I like YO style!"

Jay-Z: "Let's drive around awhile".

MB: "Cool, nigga."

Jay-Z: "Here's a thou!"

What He's Probably Saying:

"I like you, you should sell crack for me. Here's a sign-on bonus!"


What We Like To Think He's Saying:

"Hey fella, I've had my eye on you for awhile, I like how you look in those baggy jeans. Let's go park somewhere and have sex. I'll even pay you!"


Continued.....

---

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Now THIS is way kEwL:

Rob Pongi in 'Dreamlines'




Rob Pongi in 'Dreamlines'



Rob Pongi in 'Dreamlines'



Rob Pongi in 'Dreamlines'

Concept of the project

In reply to:

---

Dreamlines is a non-linear, interactive visual experience. The user enters one or more words that define the subject of a dream he would like to dream. The system looks in the Web for images related to those words, and takes them as input to generate an ambiguous painting, in perpetual change, where elements fuse into one another, in a process analogous to memory and free association.

The system has been developed in Java and PHP. First, a PHP script makes a Google image search of the words entered by the user. Then, the Java applet retrieves the images one by one, and uses them as input to generate an ever-changing drawing.

The pictures are never actually shown. The drawing itself is produced by 1500 autonomous particles in perpetual movement. The last image loaded serves as a sort of virtual terrain for them. The direction and speed of each particle is given, at each step, by the color values of the pixel they are stepping on. Different sets of formulas translate the hue, saturation and brightness of the pixel in angle and velocity values for the particle. The path of each particle is traced to the screen, and this forms the output seen by the user.

Thus, the work is at the same time a study on population dynamics, or on the emergent behavior of a multitude of very simple autonomous agents.

Who is dreaming? The user, or the Internet itself? In a certain way, both. The program generates a personal moving picture, unique, unpredictable, and forever gone when it is finished, just like dreams. But that dream is made out of pieces taken form the subconscious of the whole net, gathered by some words of the user and the obscure logic of searching algorithms.

The subject of this work is, many times, multiplicity. That of the particles in endless movement, that of the vast contents of the Internet, that of the users and the dreams they wish to dream.

All this multiplicities get together on the verge of chaos, on a process that mixes randomness and strict but complex logics, very much alike the processes that take place in our heads. Even when we rest.

---

Leonardo Solaas | 2005



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Music Rules: Top 10 Music Websites That Delivers Greatest Free Music

by Nelson Doyle, May 11, 2008
via Musiccouch

If you're searching for the best free music sites on the Internet, well then these 10 deliver all that, and then some. Great music found here.

Music is truly the universal language to billions of screaming fans around the world and no matter what native language that you speak - music is music, so what's the need to translate the words.

The music websites that are presented in this article are listed from best to better, and from top to bottom of the page. Yes, in this author's opinion, these are the best free legal music websites on the Internet. So, enjoy the music and jam the day away.


1. Imeem

If you really dig your music, then you have come to the right place. Imeem is the biggest and most comprehensive music resource on the web to get great music. Join the Imeem community and share your music interests with others or watch music videos if you are not too busy.

2. Last.fm

Last.fm offers more music than you can shake a stick at. Join the community and make new friends who share the same interests as you do. Last.fm members can play full tracks and customize your playlist according to your own unique tastes.

3. Pandora

Fall in love again, with the possibility of stumbling across a brand new artist, group or band that have been captured through Music Genome Project and overseen by Pandora, so that the flow of new musical talents don't go unnoticed. If you enjoy sampling the sounds of a creative crop of new and still probably new, undiscovered talented, then you will find a whole new world of sounds to delight your listening pleasures.

4. MOG

MOG's slogan says it best “Where Music Junkies Get Their Fix”. Listen to millions of full-length songs for free or share your music playlists and opinions with others in your community.

5. Macidol

Do your own an iPod and want to download new songs and Podcasts from your favorite artists for free? Macidol allows its members to download free music for your iPod legally. You name it - Macidol probably has it.

6. Music.com

Looking for the hottest popstars and rockstars on earth, then what are you waiting for, because music.com has it going on and a little of that, too. Watch music videos, listen or download the hottest music for free.

7. Jamendo

Open your ears to a whole new world of music talent at Jamendo. This site offers its members full free albums to download from the emerging new pool of artists and musicians from all four corners of the planet. Wanting something new to listen to, then Jamendo is the place for you.

8. Allmusic

Get to know your favorite recording artists better than ever before and listen or download some free music at Allmusic. Read the Allmusic blog or watch a music video, but by all means relax and have some fun.

9. Jango

Jango is a custom radio that plays the music you want for free. Create your own music playlists to store and play on your own radio channel or choose from the stations that Jango provide. Membership is required to participate.

10. Go Video [Codes]

Give your website, blog, MySpace or any sort of web-based page a booster shot and customize it to the max with free music videos from the hottest music talent in the world. Select the video that you want to retrieve the code for by artist or title, and then you are ready to cut and paste the video code onto your website or web-based page, so that all of your friends and fans can soon enjoy.



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This Mob Is Big in Japan

By Jake Adelstein
Sunday, May 11, 2008

via Washingtonpost.com

In reply to:

---

I have spent most of the past 15 years in the dark side of the rising sun. Until three years ago, I was a crime reporter for the Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan's largest newspaper, and covered a roster of characters that included serial killers who doubled as pet breeders, child pornographers who abducted junior high-school girls, and the John Gotti of Japan.

I came to Japan in 1988 at age 19, spent most of college living in a Zen Buddhist temple, and then became the first U.S. citizen hired as a regular staff writer for a Japanese newspaper in Japanese. If you know anything about Japan, you'll realize how bizarre this is -- a gaijin, or foreigner, covering Japanese cops. When I started the beat in the early 1990s, I knew nothing about the yakuza, a.k.a. the Japanese mafia. But following their prostitution rings and extortion rackets became my life.

Most Americans think of Japan as a law-abiding and peaceful place, as well as our staunch ally, but reporting on the underworld gave me a different perspective. Mobs are legal entities here. Their fan magazines and comic books are sold in convenience stores, and bosses socialize with prime ministers and politicians. And as far as the United States is concerned, Japan may be refueling U.S. warships at sea, but it's not helping us fight our own battles against organized crime -- a realization that led to my biggest scoop.

I loved my job. The cops fighting organized crime are hard-drinking iconoclasts -- many look like their mobster foes, with their black suits and slicked-back hair. They're outsiders in Japanese society, and perhaps because I was an outsider too, we got along well. The yakuza's tribal features are also compelling, like those of an alien life form: the full-body tattoos, missing digits and pseudo-family structure. I became so fascinated that, like someone staring at a wild animal, I got too close and now am worried for my life. But more on that later.

The Japanese National Police Agency (NPA) estimates that the yakuza have almost 80,000 members. The most powerful faction, the Yamaguchi-gumi, is known as "the Wal-Mart of the yakuza" and reportedly has close to 40,000 members. In Tokyo alone, the police have identified more than 800 yakuza front companies: investment and auditing firms, construction companies and pastry shops. The mobsters even set up their own bank in California, according to underworld sources.

Over the last seven years, the yakuza have moved into finance. Japan's Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission has an index of more than 50 listed companies with ties to organized crime. The market is so infested that Osaka Securities Exchange officials decided in March that they would review all listed companies and expel those found to have links with the yakuza. If you think this has nothing to do with the United States, think again. Americans have billions of dollars in the Japanese stock market. So U.S. investors could be funding the Japanese mob.

I once asked a detective from Osaka why, if Japanese law enforcement knows so much about the yakuza, the police don't just take them down. "We don't have a RICO Act," he explained. "We don't have plea-bargaining, a witness-protection program or witness-relocation program. So what we end up doing most of the time is just clipping the branches. . . . If the government would give us the tools, we'd shut them down, but we don't have 'em."

In the good old days, the yakuza made most of their money from sleaze: prostitution, drugs, protection money and child pornography. Kiddie porn is still part of their base income -- and another area where Japan isn't acting like America's friend.

In 1999, my editors assigned me to cover the Tokyo neighborhood that includes Kabukicho, Japan's largest red-light district. Japan had recently outlawed child pornography -- reluctantly, after international pressure left officials no choice. But the ban, which is still in effect, had a major flaw: It criminalized producing and selling child pornography, not owning it. So the big-money industry goes on, unabated. Last month's issue of a widely available porn magazine proclaimed, "Our Cover Girl Is Our Youngest Yet: 14!" Kabukicho remains loaded with the stuff, and teenage sex workers are readily available. I've even seen specialty stores that sell the underwear worn by teenage strippers.

The ban is so weak that investigating yakuza who peddle child pornography is practically impossible. "The United States has referred hundreds of . . . cases to Japanese law enforcement authorities," a U.S. embassy spokesman recently told me. "Without exception, U.S. officials have been told that the Japanese police cannot open an investigation because possession is legal." In 2007, the Internet Hotline Center in Japan identified more than 500 local sites displaying child pornography.

There's talk in Japan of criminalizing simple possession, but some political parties (and publishers, who are raking in millions) oppose the idea. U.S. law enforcement officers want to stop the flow of yakuza-produced child porn into the United States and would support such a law. But they can't even keep the yakuza themselves out of the country. Why? Because the national police refuse to share intelligence. Last year, a former FBI agent told me that, in a decade of conferences, the NPA had turned over the names and birthdates of about 50 yakuza members. "Fifty out of 80,000," he said.

This lack of cooperation was partly responsible for an astonishing deal made with the yakuza, and for the story that changed my life. On May 18, 2001, the FBI arranged for Tadamasa Goto -- a notorious Japanese gang boss, the one that some federal agents call the "John Gotti of Japan" -- to be flown to the United States for a liver transplant.


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BERRY! BERRY! KOOL DESU NE! <`@v@`>

And if you click on the below image, you can see an EVEN LARGER version of this very interesting landscape shot that you can scroll all the way down the street within:




HAI DOUMO ARIGATOU!



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Naked Japanese Jack Off Manga Statue: $3-4 MILLION!!!!

May 8 2008

Via Gawker, Manhattan Media News and Gossip

In reply to:

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Artist and designer of the now-iconic Vuitton handbags, Takashi Murakami, is auctioning off several pieces in Sotheby's upcoming spring auctions. The most valuable, estimated between $3-4 million, is a sculpture of a manga dude, um, "ejaculating in lasso-like form," titled "My Lonesome Cowboy." Hey, it's not NSFW if it's art.

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Bowie in 'Dreamlines'

Slashdot | Successful Cold Fusion Experiment in Japan?

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An anonymous reader writes "The italian economic journal "Il sole 24 ore" published an article about a successful cold fusion experiment performed by Yoshiaki Arata in Japan. They seems to have pumped high pressure deutherium gas in a nanometric matrix of palladium and zyrcon oxide. The experiments generates a considerable amount of energy and they found the presence of Helium-4 in the matrix ( as sign of the fusion ). I was not able to find other articles about this but the journal is very authoritative in Italy. Google translations are also available

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Phoenix Mars Mission Gallery Images



Surface Stereo Imager Right - Mosiac
Photo credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
Date: 2008-05-25
Instrument: Surface Stereo Imager Right
Resolution: 2036

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The Surface Stereo Imager Right on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander acquired the individual images that are combined into this view. The view is presented as a CYLINDRICAL projection. The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

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The Smoking Gun Backstage: Iggy Pop


TSG Backstage: Iggy Pop

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As if you need another reason to love Iggy Pop, the veteran rocker (and his band The Stooges) have the single most entertaining concert rider TSG has ever obtained. The document--all 18 pages of which you'll find below--describes Iggy's requirements in terms of amplifiers, security, lighting, stage set up, and dressing rooms. But unlike most similar documents, Iggy's rider is written in a rollicking, stream-of-consciousness fashion that delivers multiple laughs per page. Apparently written by roadie Jos Grain, the Iggy rider is peppered with witty gems, tasteless asides, and typos. For example, in describing how Iggy's dressing room should be made to "look less like a typical rock & roll dressing room," the rider suggests that promoters "just let someone loose with a little bit of artistic flair...Er, do you know any homosexuals?" Explaining the need for two heavy duty fans, Grain notes, "So that I can wear a scarf and pretend to be in a Bon Jovi video." Also, don't miss the backstage requirements of a Bob Hope impersonator and "a copy of USA Today that's got a story about morbidly obese people in it. Most amusing!" (18 pages)

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Life on Mars ?
.
.
.

Robpongi your post on Mars is fascinating,
but the planet looks so glum and depressing.
That landscape needs a splash of color,
and not to mention a touch of glamour.
Thanks to 'Liberace' … Mars is now a rockin' !
.
.
.

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!

OH.........MY.............BUDDHA!!!!!

That is just CLASSIC! Thank you Infidel! Also, thank you very much for the link to a truly amazing Liberace video! WOW!!!

YASSASSIN!!!

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25 Clever Bar Pick Up Lines

contributed by rtcrooks July 2, 2008

Via Sloshspot: The Online Home of Offline Nightlife!

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Pick up lines, chat up lines, whatever you call them, we've all heard at least a few. There are some that will invariably send women running for the hills, and others for which you can only hope the lucky girl is very, very drunk when you let them fly. The bottom line is there is a very negative stigma surrounding these sleazy attempts at starting a conversation that will end in fornication. However, there are some lines that deserve mention and merit a list in such a fashion as we've created. These are lines that are good enough to fool a women into thinking you are clever and creative enough to continue talking to you beyond a "yes" or "no" response. While we do not claim to be Mystery AKA the Pickup Artist, we do know that a solid intro is the first step in impressing your potential mate. Here are some of the finest one, two or ten-liners that you are sure to bring success at the bar.

1. How much does a polar bear weigh? Enough to break the ice. My name is _________.

2. Hi, can I buy you several drinks?

3. Inheriting 80 million bucks doesn't mean much when you have a weak heart!

4. You might as well come home with me because I'm going to tell everyone you did anyway.

5. You look like my second wife, and I've only been married once.

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I fucking love that robpongi basically keeps a blog on TW. I don't know why he does this since this site probably gets three unique visitors a day, but it's still awesome.

You know who else makes creatures? Satan.

. Robpongi ... doing his bit to keep TW alive.

As of 11 July 2008 ... views 7542 / 116 Replies = approx. 65 views per every post/reply !!!

HAHAHAHA!!! DOUMO ARIGATOU WRAITH-SAN AND INFIDEL-SAN!!!

Thanks alot for your funny messages! Here's a good New York joke:


"A woman from Texas and a woman from New York meet at a party. The woman from Texas says to the woman from New York:

"Hi, where y'all from?"

The woman from New York replies: "Where I come from we don't end our sentences with prepositions."

So the woman from Texas says: "Fine, where y'all from BITCH!!!"


BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA!!!



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"REAL WORLD" by Natsuo Kirino - NYTimes Review

By Natsuo Kirino

Translated by Phillip Gabriel. 208 pp.

First Chapter: ‘Real World’



Killer Children

By KATHRYN HARRISON
Published: July 20, 2008

The New York Times

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“Sprinkle in some Dostoyevsky or Nietzsche or whatever. ... Then sort of wrap it up like ‘Evangelion,’” the popular animated television series that pits paramilitary teenagers against enemy angels bent on destroying humankind. Worm, the cipher at the center of Natsuo Kirino’s disquieting and suspenseful novel “Real World” and a juvenile killer on the run, is directing Terauchi, one of the four girls who become his accessories, to write a manifesto to fit the crime he has committed. He’d like it to be “something creative” rather than “introspective,” a “cool” and “incomprehensible” poem or story. Otherwise, his readers might conclude he isn’t the disaffected nihilist he imagines himself to be. “It doesn’t have to be long,” Worm tells Terauchi, but it does have to be “better than what that killer Sakakibara wrote.”

“Real World” begins with a matricide. No longer willing to cooperate with the expectations of the “total idiot” who forced him to attend a prestigious high school even though he lacked the aptitude to succeed in such an environment, Worm bludgeoned his mother to death in what Terauchi, whose worldview allows no possibility of forgiveness or salvation, dismisses as a mindless, infantile response to frustration. Once Worm is on the run from the police, however, his photograph multiplying across the front pages of newspapers and broadcast on television — once he has time to contemplate his crime and the growing curiosity about his motive — his lazy anomie is dismantled by an intensifying self-consciousness. To answer his audience, he models himself on the infamous real-life killer whose literary efforts he wants Terauchi to surpass.

In 1997, a 14-year-old student from Kobe known by the pseudonym Sakakibara Seito beheaded an 11-year-old retarded boy with a handsaw and left the head at the entrance to his special school. After his capture, Sakakibara confessed to another murder, that of a 10-year-old girl whose head he had crushed with a pipe. Although he had exhibited the typical psychopathic precursors to murder, including the torture and killing of animals, Sakakibara sent a letter to the police claiming to be the product of Japan’s system of compulsory education. In the 1990s the crimes of Sakakibara amplified Japan’s growing anxiety about what it called a youth crisis, a fear that the increasing stresses imposed on adolescents could precipitate their becoming criminally insane.

Welcome to present-day Tokyo, where “air pollution advisories” announce the arrival of summer vacation and where vacation isn’t a holiday from the 11-month academic year, but a break to be spent in cram schools taught by brainwashed college students who advocate studying hard enough to “spit up blood” as the avenue to a “tremendous confidence ... you can build on for the rest of your life.” For the contestants in this dystopic steeplechase, a cultural reference more potent than “Crime and Punishment” or “The Will to Power” is the homegrown “Evangelion.” And to “wrap it up like ‘Evangelion’” would be to drive a violent plot to apocalypse.

“Real World” is peopled by children. Adults are peripheral — alcoholic fathers, adulterous mothers, prying detectives, predatory marketing drones, pedophiles on the prowl for schoolgirls, none of whom merit the trust of adolescents who must submit to the wishes of parents they consider hypocrites and despise. Styling themselves as peroxided “Barbie Girls,” hard-studying loners or promiscuous “Good Time girls,” replacing their given names with ones of their own devising, like “Dahmer,” after the American serial killer, they worship the rare iconoclast who takes a stand against an educational system so oppressive that it sacrifices the development of character to scholastic achievement. In a society that values conformity — as the saying goes, “The nail that sticks out gets hammered down” — what matters isn’t that Worm arrives at fame through conscienceless violence, but that he manages to rebel. As Terauchi’s little brother observes, being “an elite kid who fell” is all that’s required to become “a hero.”

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"Real World" First Chapter

By NATSUO KIRINO
Published: July 20, 2008
The New York Times

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I'm penciling in my eyebrows when the smog alert siren starts blaring. It's happened every day since summer vacation started, so it's no surprise. "May I have your attention," this woman's voice drawls over a loudspeaker. "An air pollution advisory has just been issued," and the siren continues to drone on, like some kindly old dinosaur groaning away.

Most of these advisories happen in the morning, usually just as I'm about to leave for cram school. Nobody does anything because of them. Everyone kind of goes, Oh, that again. What I'd like to know is where they hide those speakers. To me, that's creepier and weirder than anything about smog.

I live in a crowded residential area on the outskirts of Suginami-ku in Tokyo. It used to be a nice, laid-back neighborhood, but all the old, larger houses got torn down, replaced by smaller single-family homes and apartments. When I was little, several neat but tiny buildings went up where there used to be plum orchards and farm fields. They slapped fancy names on these — Estates or whatever — to help sell units. Nice-looking families moved in, and on weekends you'd see them out walking their dogs or driving around in expensive foreign cars. But the paved roads that run through the neighborhood, which must have been just dirt farm paths at one time, are so narrow that I heard the family two houses down from us had so much trouble parking their Mercedes-Benz in their garage that they ended up getting rid of it.

The siren keeps on droning. Right in between one of its groans, I hear a loud sound, something breaking next door. Our houses are so close that if you open the window, you can hear the parents yelling at each other, or the phone ringing. I'm thinking maybe a window broke. Seven years ago the boy who lives in the house diagonally across from us kicked a soccer ball that shattered a window in our house in the room where we keep our Buddhist altar. The kid completely ignored what happened, and later on he was transferred to a school in Kansai. I remember the abandoned soccer ball sitting there under the eaves of my house forever.

Anyway, the sound I'd heard was just like that time. There aren't any little kids living next door, so it's weird to hear something shatter so loudly, and the whole thing was kind of alarming. Maybe a burglar broke in. My heart beating like mad, I listened carefully but didn't hear anything else. Total silence.

The neighbors moved in two years ago. We've had hardly anything to do with them. Sometimes, when I take the neighborhood association bulletin to them, I'll press the intercom bell and the mother will come out, this phony smile pasted on her face. All I know for sure is that there's a mom and a dad, and a boy the same age as me who lives there. Sometimes the mother is out front, sweeping with a bamboo broom. She has on silver-framed glasses and this bright red lipstick you know is going to leave marks on any teacup she uses. Get rid of the glasses and the lipstick, though, and I don't think I'd recognize her.

Once when the woman next door saw me in my school uniform she asked, "Are you a high school student?" When I said yes, she said, "So is our son," and named the prestigious high school he attended, smiling happily. When I told my mom this, she clicked her tongue and looked disgusted. The woman was obviously bragging about her son and Mom must have thought she was insulting us, since I was going to a less-than-stellar private girls' school. But I just thought the woman next door was simple and naive, and I felt sorry for the boy for having such an embarrassing mother.

This son of hers was a lanky, stoop-shouldered boy with small, gloomy eyes. Reminded me of a worm. He had a sluggish way of walking with his head tilted to one side, and zero in the way of spirit. Even when our paths happened to cross at the station he'd avoid looking at me and edge off into the shadows of the building. Like if he stepped into the shadows he could hide from the world. In that sense he was just like his father, who looked like a typical office worker. The father ignored me as if I didn't even exist. Once I went out to get the evening paper when he was just coming home. I nodded to him but he gazed off into the distance like I was invisible.

"I wonder what that guy does for a living, anyway," my mother once said. "Kind of stuck-up with that ascot of his." Who cares about ascot ties? was my reaction. To me people are divided into two groups: the nice and the un-nice. And the family next door was definitely in the second category. If my grandmother were still alive she would have sniffed out all kinds of gossip about them, but my mother couldn't be bothered, so the only details we knew about them were that their son looked like a worm, the mother wore red lipstick, and the father, an ascot.

Still, I couldn't figure out what that sound was. A burglar could break into their house for all I cared, but I didn't want him coming into ours. I started to panic. My parents were both at work, I had slept in late and was about to have some cup ramen before heading out to summer cram school — I was a senior in high school — and the last thing I wanted was for some burglar to flee into our place. Dad always said that the scariest thing was a thief who gets cornered and turns violent.

I heard another crash, this one louder than the first. It rang in my ears, and I flinched and messed up my left eyebrow. Maybe I should redo it, I was thinking, staring into the mirror, when my cell phone on the table buzzed.

"Yo!" It could only be Terauchi. "Dude, it's me."

"I just heard this weird sound from next door — maybe a robber or something. What should I do?"

But Terauchi wasn't paying any attention.

"That essay on Mori Ogai we're supposed to write? I've done over a hundred pages, right? Just kidding ... But I think it's going to turn out okay, know what I mean?" She rambled on like this for a minute or so.

"Terauchi. Listen to me. A burglar might have broken into the house next door."

"Du-de!" Terauchi was finally surprised and her usual greeting now turned into an interjection. Terauchi was a cute-looking girl, but her voice was really low and cool. Among my friends, she was the smartest and the most interesting.

"I just heard glass shattering," I said. "Someone breaking in, maybe."

"Probably just the husband and wife having a fight."

"At this time of the morning?" I said. "The guy next door should be at work."

"Well, maybe the wife lost it and smashed a teacup or something. It's gotta be that," she declared. "You know, one time when my mom got into a fight with my dad's mother she went nuts and tossed both of their teacups and plates out the second-story window."

"Your mom's kind of extreme."

"You got that right," Terauchi said. "She just casually tossed the plates and cups out, aiming at the stepping-stones in the garden. See, Dad was using the plates Yukinari used as a baby. Anyway, Toshi-chan, I wanted to see how you're doing with your essay."

Toshi-chan. My name's Toshiko Yamanaka, the characters for Toshi meaning "ten and four," because I was born on the fourth day of the tenth month, October. Obviously not a lot of thought went into naming me, but since I've hardly ever met anyone with the same characters, I don't mind the name that much. Terauchi's first name is Kazuko, which she can't stand. Her grandfather in Akita gave her the name, apparently. My friends all call one another by their first names or by nicknames, except for Terauchi, who insists that we call her by her last name.

"The thing is, I haven't done it yet," I admitted.

When we got to be seniors our Japanese teacher assigned us to write an essay on Ogai's story "The Dancing Girl." Terauchi was always good at exams and assignments. Whenever we had to write a book report, she copied parts of some published essay on the book without the teachers ever catching on. I was a little too honest — honest to a fault, you could say — to try to get away with something like that. So unfortunately it took me a lot of time to finish up assignments and my grades were never as good as hers. I never thought of what she did as dishonest; I was kind of vaguely worried that someday her cleverness might really her get in trouble. I worried about her because I liked her so much.

She went on, rumbling in her low voice: "I was thinking of, like, doing a psychological analysis of the main character."

"Including Elise?"

"Nah — not her. Her name's in katakana. What's his name — Oda?"

I didn't have a clue what she was talking about.

"That's not it," a different voice replied. Now it was Yuzan on the phone. "She's gonna do a psychological profile based on the Chinese characters used to write the name. Can you imagine getting away with that?"

"Yuzan, I didn't know you were there," I said.

I must have sounded a little disappointed. I wasn't exactly happy to find out that she and Terauchi were hanging out without me. It made me feel left out. I really liked Terauchi, but Yuzan was harder to deal with. She had such extreme likes and dislikes. She hated smokers violently, for instance. Human garbage, she said. Which was kind of unfair from the smoker's viewpoint. On the other hand, if she liked somebody she'd stand up for them, no matter what. Extreme and hard to read — that was Yuzan.

"Terauchi wanted to do homework together. I told her we're not in grade school anymore. Duh!"

"I bet that it was your idea," I countered.

Continued.....

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Rob, I just saw you on This Week in Politics on CNN. They were doing a viral video segment on Japanese elections and had your "I'll Give You Free Beer" slogan that you were doing. I don't think they thought you were joking since they didn't imply it as such but you had more exposure nonetheless.

One of the great Rob Pongi episodes is based around the book "How To Goodbye Depression" and it shows Rob wearing a fake arse (at his usual spot outside a nightclub in Tokyo) whilst putting to the test the method of "constricting anus 100 times a day". When I watch this sequence followed by his insane screaming about the Rob Pongi Happy Hour, I still cannot believe that I spent a weekend with the man in 2002. Well, it's really funny stuff.

Bowie Downunder

I watched that one, too. I guess that technique is good for your Kundalini/Chakra base but very funny to be demonstrated by the Pongi crew.

WHAAAAAAAADDDDAAAAAHHHHAAAAAIIIIIILLLLLL!!!!!!!!!

Thank you Ghostlove. Let me get this straight, you actually saw little 'ol me on freaking CNN in a setting kind of like this:



if so, then it was from this video:

Japanese Political Candidates Video

and that one was done all in Japanese and, of course, unless you can speak Japanese, you won't get it. Anyway, in this one, the subtitles with quote marks are intentionally incorrect translations that are not what the candidates are actually saying, but rather, what they should be saying and giving to the people of Japan. The subtitles without quote marks are all correct.

If possible, please tell me what day and time you saw this on CNN. Thank you for ripping off my head yet again! I'll never forget the day you suddenly congratulated me for being written up in THE ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE!!!!! Oh Dear Buddha! Now THAT was so mind blowing, sometimes I still stop and shake my head about that one little story and pic:



SO FREAKING UNREAL!!!



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HAHAHA!!! DOUMO ARIGATOU ADAM-SAN!

Yeah, you are talking about the Group Anal Constriction Video - Inspired by Hiroyuki Nishigaki Oh THAT ONE WAS A BLAST!!!!

Yeah, that one wild and weird clip has somehow stayed somewhat popular through all the years!!!!! It just knocks me out cause I just had that book and the plastic "cheeks" pants that I bought in a department store here. So while reading the book, I then got the idea for the video. But only I knew that and we didn't have time for rehearsal or scripting et al and I just told my Japanese ex girlfriend and my other American buddy "OK, you guys, just follow my lead, we are going to be doing this book" and they knew about that book and so I just turned around, cams went on and then we just went TOTALLY OFF!!!!! OH MY HAPPY BUDDHA!!!! It was just too much fun back then.

And yes sir, you most definitely were here! And we had alot of fun! And we went up to Nikko and I filmed this video then:

Scenes From Nikko Video

and on that day it started to rain while we were in the Temple complex. You can see some raindrops sometimes in the video. And the rain level was just enough to keep all the major crowds of sightseers away and that was the reason why I could get such well framed shots of so many of the beautiful shrines, temples and statues. Do you remember when I broke a rule and climbed up and over the yellow rope barrier in order to get a birdseye shot of the whole Toshogu Shrine complex? Well, I got it! And you can see it at the very end of the video. And that video has received more than a few awards and recognition including 'Multimedia Feature of The Week' on Bowienet on March 24, 2002!!! . Well, I got lucky because of the on/off rain and also because you came here. Really, Adam, its true because if you had not come here, then I would not have gone to Nikko and I would not have made that video. So in a way, we both made that one together for sure! Thank you again for visiting me in Tokyo! Please come again someday.

SORE DEWA MATA NE......


Lob

(e
___: D
(e





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UPDATE: This just in Pongi HQ and yes, indeed, I was aired on CNN as I found out more info and got a pic from the below Foreigners in Japan forum:

Rob Pongi on CNN - fuckedgaijin.com






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Hi Rob,

It is difficult to find the video and as the poster on the other MB said, it implies that you are actually running for office. There is a transcript but it only says [shows video]. Anyway, I don't know if it will show the light of day unless there is a CNN video site.

HAHAHAHAHA!!!

Hi again Ghostlove,

Well, actually, I'm not running for an office, I'm just running for my life! No big deal, right?

And thanks alot for checking this out. I may try to call or write to someone here at CNN Japan and see if I can find out more. But I need a date and an approximate time when you saw yours truly broadcast on CNN! If you just tell me that info then I may be able to get a video out of this or, ah, maybe not. Well either way, in order to request an archive tape, of course, I'll have to tell them the date, time and also the show title name too. If you could just tell me that much, I would really appreciate it. Thanks again.

Cheers!

Lob

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The show is called This Week in Politics with Tom Foreman as the host. You were on a segment that was on last Sunday so it was July 20th 2008.

WOW! That REALLY happened!!! Holy Shinto! Totally Freaking Unreal! Well, thank you very much Ghostlove. I'll try to call the CNN office here in Tokyo tomorrow morning. Take care and stay tuned (or, rather, I should be the one getting back in tune here for sure )

Cheers!

Lob

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Sacha Baron Cohen invades Milan fashion week

Milan's prestigious fashion week has been hijacked by British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen in his alter ego of Bruno, the flamboyantly camp Austrian fashion reporter.

Via Telegraph.co.uk

By Nick Squires In Perugia

26 Sep 2008



A man attempts to remove Sacha Baron Cohen, as his alter ego Bruno, from a runway
during a show at Milan Fashion Week Photo: AP

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Baron Cohen and his team used fake passes to fool security guards into letting them into a backstage area of a show by the Italian label Iceberg.

One of the comedian's team, dressed in a head-to-toe velcro suit, caused chaos by running around and careering into clothes racks.

In footage aired on Italian television, flustered fashionistas screamed "security, security" until the man was manhandled away by security guards.

The team tried to enter a second fashion show on Thursday evening but were thwarted by tightened security.

Baron Cohen – best known for his creations Ali G and Borat, the blundering journalist from Kazakhstan – is in Milan working on a new film featuring his character Bruno.

The movie, Bruno: Delicious Journeys Through America for the Purpose of Making Heterosexual Male, is due out in May.

It is being shot in the same mockumentary style that was such a hit in Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan.

Bruno, like Borat, is one of the sketch characters from Baron Cohen's popular TV series, Da Ali G Show.

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The above is the same brilliant madman who was behind this hilarious stunt:

Arkansas fight fans fall for Baron Cohen stunt


JON GAMBRELL

The Associated Press

July 8, 2008

In reply to:

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Little Rock, Arkansas — Crowds in Arkansas came for the lure of cage fighting and $1 beer, but police say what they got instead was men ripping each others' clothes off and kissing — a stunt suspected of being orchestrated by Sacha Baron Cohen of Borat fame.

“We had a contract for cage fighting. We were deceived,” said Dwight Duncan, president and CEO of Four States Fair Grounds in Texarkana, where the first of two Arkansas fights raised suspicions last month.

Matt Labov, a Los Angeles-based publicist for Baron Cohen, said he had no comment Monday about the faked fights. One of Baron Cohen's movies is due out next year.

The day after the June 5 Texarkana bout, Fort Smith's convention centre hosted “Blue Collar Brawlin.”' Fort Smith police Sgt. Adam Holland said organizers told him a character named “Straight Dave” would goad a planted audience member into the ring for a fight.

The two men would then wrestle, rip away some of their clothes and share a brief kiss reminiscent of one between Baron Cohen and Will Ferrell in the film Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.

Producers said “there would be a romantic embrace,” Holland said. “They said it was kind of to essentially make fun, poke fun at wrestling — two guys rolling around on the floor, all sweaty.”

An elaborate array of mounted and handheld video cameras caught the crowd of 1,600's reaction as the two men “went right up to the line” of the city's morality laws, Holland said. The two men stripped down to their underwear, kissed and rubbed on each other, the sergeant said.

The audience, as well as local fighters drawn to take part in the show, became enraged. “It set the crowd off lobbing beers,” Holland said. “They had beers in plastic cups. Those things can get some distance on them actually.”

Holland said it took officers about 45 minutes to clear the convention center, as the two actors sprinted away through a specially set-aside tunnel.

Those in attendance were told by several signs on display that they'd be filmed, Holland said, and signed waivers before the event. Convention center sales director Karin Hobbs declined to name the event's sponsor Monday.

Baron Cohen became a national celebrity after his 2006 hit movie Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, in which he played a bumbling reporter from the Central Asia nation.

News of the faked cage fights comes as Baron Cohen is in production of a movie titled Bruno, named after the gay Austrian fashion reporter he developed for Da Ali G Show. Baron Cohen, in the guise of Bruno, often interviewed hapless subjects in the South.

If the cage match visits came from Baron Cohen, it wouldn't be the first time Arkansas fell for a practical joke. In 2000, then-Gov. Mike Huckabee fell for a prank and congratulated Canada for preserving its icebound Parliament, calling it a “national igloo.”

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I am very excited about the new movie from Sacha! The stunts he set up in Texas and Arkansas were bloody brilliant.

Bruno Dupes Texans into New Talk Show

If I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.

Thank you JarethsGirl! Me too I can't wait to see this new movie as, for sure, its going to be so freakin' hilarious!



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hey rob, what do you think of the news story about the foreigner arrested for swimming naked in the imperial moat?

Je est un autre

DOUMO ARIGATOU Remade/Remodeled-san! Yeah, I saw this on the Japanese TV news here and just shook my head and laughed! But seriously, there is a high level of dioxin in the rain here so, for sure, and there is ALOT of dioxin in the imperial moat. So swimming in that water is just NUTS!!! Here's the story:

Naked Briton detained after swimming in Imperial Palace moat

Wednesday 08th October

Via Japan Today

In reply to:

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TOKYO — A 40-year-old British tourist was taken into police custody Tuesday after swimming naked in a moat around the Imperial Palace, police officials said.

The man, a resident of Spain, was on a sightseeing trip along with seven Spanish tourists, according to the police.

According to police, the man dived into the moat around 11:30 a.m. after he visited a local police box near the Imperial Palace together with five friends who were all foreigners in their 40s or 50s. Some of the group spoke to a police officer in English, telling him they had accidentally dropped a bag into the moat and needed something to fish it out with. Then one of the men suddenly stripped off and dived into the moat, police said.

Fifty police officers and firefighters were mobilized to catch the man who threw rocks and splashed water at two policemen in a rowing boat. Local TV footage showed the man swimming around the moat as the police chased him with a long stick, attracting a crowd of onlookers. He was in the water for about an hour.

He eventually got out of the water and climbed a stone wall only to fall into the hands of police officers who were waiting for him.

Broadcasters were careful to meet Japan’s obscenity laws once he had climbed out of the water, masking images of his private parts with a blurry dot.

A police official said he had never heard of a skinny dipper causing a stir in the palace moat before. The moat is separated from the emperor’s residence by high stone walls and woods.

A palace official said the emperor was in the palace, but it was unlikely he saw the nude swimmer.

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In reply to:

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Broadcasters were careful to meet Japan’s obscenity laws once he had climbed out of the water, masking images of his private parts with a blurry dot.

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How big was the blurry dot ?

"How big was the blurry dot ?"

Well, that would depend upon how excited and 'invigorated' he was after his moat dip!


And in other 'up and coming' news FLUM JAPAN DESU:

74 Year-Old Japanese Porn Star Still Going



Via Weird Asia News

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I think all men have a glimmer of hope that when we are in our 70’s and starting to need a little assistance around the house, that we might get a nice hot nurse to come and take care of us.

Some fantasy’s might even include a little happy time when being helped into bed or getting your sponge bath, but these are just fantasy’s and cant possibly come true… right?

Well for 74 year-old Shigeo Tokuda, this is a reality that happens more often than you would think.

Thats because Shigeo is actually a 74 year-old porn star who sometimes performs in roles where he is an elderly man in a home, when a hot nurse who is there to help him out gives him a little more help than normal.

“Lately I’m also starring as the main actor in a porn series set in a senior-care home. The girl that I’m costarring with might play my son’s wife, a daughter of a relative that I happen to be looking after, or a helper at one of the care homes.�

It all started over 20 years ago, when Shigeo wanted to buy a porn video and was embarassed to purchase it at an adult store. He went to the production company itself and over time became friends with the director.

Shigeo has since performed in over 250 adult films during his over 14 years in the porn film industry.

Although you would think it is the sex that keeps Shigeo coming back for film after film, it is actually the role playing and acting that turns him on the most.

“I mentioned before that I like films that are set up like TV dramas. This is partly because I’ve always had the desire to turn into all sorts of different people. So personally, I don’t get off just having sex with somebody. I continue working in this industry not because I like starring in adult films, but because I am given the opportunity to act in various roles. The appeal for me is in the fact that I can play different people, not that I can boast about my acting skills. Consequently, most of the films that I’m in have a proper plot and narrative.�

Shigeo has plans to continue moaking more adult films until he feels his health and age become an issue.

“Right now I don’t have any illnesses, so I guess I’ll keep watching my health and at least try to go on until I’m 80 [laughs].�

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CNN Video on Youtube





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Sacha Baron Cohen's "Bruno" Crashes Prop 8 Rally

Via The Huffington Post



Actor Sacha Baron Cohen, right, holds up a sign during a Yes on Prop. 8 rally, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2008 in Los Angeles. Cohen was apparently at the rally shooting a movie as Bruno, one of his characters. Proposition 8 would overturn the California Supreme Court's decision earlier this year to legalize same-sex marriage. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

November 2, 2008

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LOS ANGELES — Sacha Baron Cohen went undercover as his alter ego Bruno on Sunday by crashing a rally in support of a ballot measure that would ban gay marriage in California.

The British comedian is working on a film based on the fictional character Bruno, a gay Austrian fashion reporter who conducted gag interviews on HBO's "Da Ali G Show."

Cohen, in disguise in a blond wig and preppy outfit, marched with demonstrators who support Proposition 8 while being trailed by cameras in a rally across from City Hall.

When photographers and reporters realized who he was and tried to approach the star, members of his film crew tried to shield him, and he was eventually whisked away in a van.

Cohen, who has made a career out of filming unwitting victims of his fake identities, also played a journalist in the hit movie "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan."

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'Borat' star crashes NBC drama 'Medium'



Via MSN TV

Nov. 17, 2008

In reply to:

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NEW YORK (AP) -- Even a make-believe psychic couldn't spot the scam when an actor disrupted a scene for "Medium" involving Patricia Arquette, who stars as psychic Allison DuBois in the NBC drama.

After the unruly extra was ejected by security, the truth became clear: He was chameleonic comic prankster Sacha Baron Cohen in his identity as outrageous fashion reporter Bruno.

It was unclear how Cohen gained entry to the set, and whether he was secretly filming his performance for his own use, according to Entertainment Weekly, which first reported the incident. But prior to the Nov. 7 invasion in Los Angeles, Cohen had been shooting other "crash" footage for his new film, a followup to his comedy hit "Borat."

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Boy George is sentenced to 15 months in jail

By JENNIFER QUINN, Associated Press Writer – Fri Jan 16


Via Yahoo News

In reply to:

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LONDON – Singer Boy George was sentenced to 15 months in jail on Friday after being convicted of falsely imprisoning a male escort by handcuffing him to a wall in a London apartment.

British Judge David Radford said the 47-year-old former Culture Club frontman, whose real name is George O'Dowd, was guilty of "gratuitous violence."

O'Dowd's lawyer said his client and the escort had both behaved like "drug-crazed idiots" and that O'Dowd's substance abuse problems were a contributing factor.

In 2006, Boy George — whose pop band's hits included "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" and "Karma Chameleon" — did community service with New York City's Department of Sanitation after he called police with a false report of a burglary at his lower Manhattan apartment and officers found cocaine there.

Friday's sentencing occurred at Snaresbrook Crown Court in East London, where O'Dowd had been warned by the judge to expect a jail sentence.

The singer had been convicted in December of handcuffing Norwegian escort Audun Carlsen to a wall hook at his East London apartment. During the trial, prosecutors said Carlsen was held by O'Dowd for under an hour.

The singer denied the charge, saying he had restrained Carlsen with handcuffs while trying to figure out if a computer had been tampered with. Carlsen, 29, said O'Dowd swung at him with a metal chain as he ran from the apartment after a naked photo shoot.

Photos of Carlsen's injuries — which he said had been inflicted by O'Dowd — were shown to the jury, but the singer denied he was responsible.

Speaking to Judge Radford on Friday, O'Dowd's lawyer, Adrian Waterman, said: "This defendant is a kind and generous man who is particularly mindful of others' needs. He is the antithesis of the haughty bullying star. He was not himself when addled by the habitual and relatively long-lasting using of illegal drugs."

During Culture Club's heyday in the 1980s, Boy George was famous for his flamboyant makeup and outfits.

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Man, I cannot wait for this Bruno movie.


Anyway, regarding Boy George - I thought Fred Armisen's impersonation was hilariously on point. Though he does start to crack a bit somewhere in there, it's totally forgiveable for someone like Armisen who's usually a complete professional. Jimmy Fallon or Kenan Thompson on the other hand.. man that shit grinds my gears.

Fairy stories in the penny arcade.
You bought my love and I paid.

Thanks JarethsGirl!

Yeah, I too am really looking forward to seeing the new Bruno film too. I'm sure it will be very funny and "controversial" as well!

And, also, thanks alot for the link to Fred Armisen's impersonation of Boy George. But unfortunately, NBC.com does not allow viewing outside of the USA, therefore, I couldn't see it. But if you know any other site that may have it up, please post a link! Thanks alot.

Cheers!




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In reply to:

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NBC.com does not allow viewing outside of the USA

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Well, that blows.

We'll be hard pressed finding it up anywhere else because anything copywrighted that pops up on youtube NBC immediately smacks down with its big peacock dick. Nevertheless, I'll keep an eye out.

Fairy stories in the penny arcade.
You bought my love and I paid.

How Japan Could Save the World

Don't laugh—Japan has the skills and the resources, and has made huge contributions before.

By Christian Caryl | NEWSWEEK

Published Jan 31, 2009

From the magazine issue dated Feb 9, 2009


Afghan workers unload donated wheat

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As the chaos off Somalia has forced more and more countries to address high-seas piracy, one nation stands out for its proven track record in the field. For years, the Strait of Malacca—a narrow but vital waterway between Malaysia and Indonesia—was bedeviled by buccaneers. Who came to the rescue? Japan, a nation not known for its willingness to take on international threats. Yet Tokyo quietly rose to the challenge, providing training to regional militaries, setting up an information-sharing center that allowed local security forces to respond quickly to attacks and providing Coast Guard ships to the ill-equipped Indonesian Navy. Japan's efforts were highly effective, helping reduce piracy incidents in the area from 150 in 2003 to a third of that just three years later.

After seemingly endless dithering, politicians in Tokyo also recently agreed to dispatch warships to the Gulf of Aden—but only to protect Japanese ships and cargo, which will limit any international good will the country earns in return. And the mission will be so entangled in caveats and conditions that its effectiveness will be highly questionable.

What gives? Japan, it seems, has become the Hamlet of Asia, endlessly fretting about its waning world influence while failing to do much about it. Some analysts explain the diffidence by pointing to the drawn-out recession of the 1990s, which left the country demoralized and mired in debt. Others suggest that Japan's half-century military reliance on the United States created a culture of dependency and timidity. Some even blame the lack of mojo on the country's aging population, or its strikingly mediocre politicians.

There's a core of truth to all these charges. Japan's government often seems to lack the will to assert itself. This reluctance is particularly problematic today, when the world is desperately looking for ways out of the economic crisis. But there's reason for hope. In some cases, such as Southeast Asian piracy, Japan has already made real contributions to global problems—and hinted at a way forward on other issues. And later this year, when Japanese voters go to the polls, they're expected to deal a stinging defeat to the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has governed the country essentially unchallenged since World War II. If the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) forms the next government, it will face a remarkable opportunity to launch bold new initiatives—even though its current positions are a bit of a muddle. Japanese voters are likely to support decisive moves, given their frustrations with the LDP's fecklessness.

If the DPJ does start tackling international problems, it will find it has plenty of resources at its disposal. The Japanese economy, for example, might not be quite the force it once was, but it's still the world's second largest. (Tokyo alone has a larger GDP than all of Canada.) Despite the global economic crisis, Japanese financial institutions remain strikingly sound. "The banking system is relatively intact," says former Bank of Japan official Mikio Wakatsuki. "Our international exposure is not too bad. The currency is too strong—[but that's] another sign that we're not too badly damaged." Wakatsuki is the first to acknowledge that these advantages are relative, and that Japan is in dire economic straits. Yet even in its weakened condition, the country has the capacity to assert benign economic leadership—should it choose to.

Indeed, Tokyo has already made a few moves in the right direction. Drawing on its more than $1 trillion in foreign-exchange reserves, Japan has offered a $100 billion credit line to the International Monetary Fund, and could easily offer up to $200 billion more, says Masahiro Kawai, a Japanese director of the Asian Development Bank Institute (and not affiliated with the Japanese government). Japan has also helped strengthen economic cooperation within Asia in the past. Under strong Japanese leadership, it, along with China and South Korea, has been expanding bilateral currency swaps—financial mechanisms where countries lend foreign-exchange reserves to each other to demonstrate international confidence and deter the speculative currency attacks that plagued Asia during the financial crisis in 1998.

Continued.....

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'Bruno' scenes debut at South by Southwest

Via LA Times Blogs

In reply to:

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Sacha Baron Cohen made a brief appearance, albeit on screen in a pre-taped segment, at the South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas, on Sunday night. Speaking in an exaggerated, upper-crust British accent, Baron was shown sitting in front of an editing bay as he welcomed the audience to view three scenes from “Bruno,” the highly anticipated follow-up to the comedian’s surprise smash, “Borat.”

There were no credits for the Universal Pictures film apart from a title card and, considering the IMDb page for the film does not name a director, it seems this will be much more the singular vision of Cohen and less a work of collaboration, as on “Borat,” which was directed by veteran Larry Charles and also credited to three additional writers. From the scenes that were screened, “Bruno” is shot in the same style as “Borat,” mixing real people into situations designed to get awkward interactions and maximum comedic response. The footage was outrageous and funny but seemed somehow more constructed than “Borat” and less genuinely anarchic.

In his introduction, Cohen explained that the character of Bruno is a recently disgraced Austrian fashion television host determined to rebuild his image and become “the biggest Austrian celebrity since Hitler.” Wanting, naturally, to adopt an African baby and sell images for a celebrity-baby photo spread, the first scene showed the casting sessions for a suitable baby. Cohen, looking lean and affecting a fey, lisping Germanic accent with his hair in a dramatically frosted sweep of bangs, asks a series of eager stage parents what would be acceptable for their baby to go through in a photo shoot. Bees, falling from a building, loud noises, rapid acceleration, liposuction, being dressed as a Nazi or hung from a cross like Jesus? No matter the situation, the answer is always “yes.” As Bruno explains to one mother, “Ich bin pushing the limit.”

In the second scene, Cohen explained in a second taped introduction, Bruno was to go on a television talk show in Texas, which he described in a way unprintable here. Appearing before a mostly African American audience, Bruno is part of a segment on single parents. After upsetting the crowd with his announcement that he was looking for “Mr. Right,” he wheels out an African American infant in a pimped-out stroller complete with laptop computer and bedecked in little leather pants and a sleeveless belly T that read “gayby.” Bruno told the audience he is calling the baby by the “traditional African name” of O.J. After showing off pictures of he and the baby with some adult male friends in a hot tub and other scenarios, a woman portrayed as being from Child Protective Services wheeled the baby away.

For the third segment, Cohen explained in another introduction, Bruno reinvents himself as “Straight Dave,” the most heterosexual man in the world. Dave hosts an ultimate fighting event billed as “man slammin’ action.” The rowdy drunken crowd hoots with delight as Dave, dressed in camouflage with a baroque handlebar mustache and mutton-chop sideburns, rips the dresses off a pair of buxom ring attendants. He soon is wrestling a slight-looking blond man and the crowd seems into the fight until Elton John music starts to pump through the room and the two men begin to kiss and remove their clothes. Soon they are drenched in thrown bottles, beer cups and at least one chair is thrown.

While Sunday night’s screening -- essentially a glorified media event that in and of itself speaks to the growing perception of the importance of the SXSW festival -- was funny and surprising, it did not pack quite the same punch as one’s first exposure to “Borat.” So far, these “Bruno” scenes lacked the truly subversive bite that made “Borat” both outrageous and thoughtful, playing it safe rather than really pushing the limit.
-- Mark Olsen
Photo: Sacha Baron Cohen as Bruno. Credit: Todd Shulman / HBO

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Libertarians Gone Wild

Ron Paul's insane cameo in the upcoming Bruno movie.
By Christopher Beam
Posted Monday, March 16, 2009

Via Slate

In reply to:

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Presidential candidates will do almost anything for publicity. But Ron Paul's appearance in Sacha Baron Cohen's upcoming Bruno movie suggests he draws the line at making sex tapes with gay Austrian TV hosts.

In a five-minute scene, comedian Cohen tries—and fails—to seduce the Texas congressman and former Republican presidential candidate in a Washington hotel room. A spokeswoman for Paul confirmed the appearance but declined to discuss details, which were provided by two people who attended a test screening last week.

The film, slated for release in July, is the follow-up to 2006's Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, about a Kazakh news reporter's quest to find a wife. Bruno follows a similar arc: After the flamboyant TV host's show in Austria gets canceled, he heads to the United States to try to resurrect his career.

The scene with Paul, filmed in early 2008, occurs about halfway through the movie, after Bruno gets the idea that you have to make a sex tape to become famous. (Stop reading here if you want to see the movie unspoiled.)
Cut to a nondescript hotel suite where Bruno sits across from Ron Paul. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, a light blows out on the set. Bruno apologizes for the technical difficulties and suggests that he and Paul wait in the other room while the crew fixes the light.

The other room, it turns out, is a bedroom. The lighting is low, and the film is now grainy—not unlike a sex tape—as it cuts to a hidden spy camera. There's a spread of Champagne and strawberries and caviar on a table.
Bruno tells Paul to make himself comfortable. Paul sits down on the bed. Bruno turns on some music and starts dancing. Paul is visibly uneasy but doesn't say anything at first. He picks up a newspaper and pretends to read it. "You can tell at each weird gay detail, he [chalks] it up to, This guy is European," says one of the attendees.

Finally, Paul asks what's going on. "Don't worry about it, Dr. Paul," says Bruno, who then unbuckles his belt and drops his pants. At that point, Paul snaps up and storms out of the room.

As Paul is walking away, you can hear him say, several times, something like, "This guy is a queer!" "The word queer comes out of his mouth three or four times," says an attendee.

A spokeswoman for Paul confirmed that the episode took place but declined to provide details. "We don't want it to distract from his message," said press secretary Rachel Mills. "Now is the time when people need to be listening to him on economic issues."

Mills, who was present at the taping, did elaborate on the "queer" line. "I heard him say 'weird,' " she wrote in an e-mail. "In any case, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, Queer as Folk … it's not exactly a shocking term if that's what he did say."

Mills also noted that Cohen's people were "very deceptive in their tactics." At the time, she thought they were "legitimate," but now confesses to some concern. "I'm familiar with his work, so you can imagine how I feel about it," she said.

The rest of the movie is a mix of interviews and stunts targeting celebrities and conservatives of various stripes. At one point, Bruno enrolls in a homosexual reprogramming course with evangelical Christians and spends the whole time hitting on the trainers. He sits down with a leader of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, who tells Bruno to leave after Bruno tells him "your King Osama" looks like a "dirty wizard." During an interview with Paula Abdul, Bruno makes immigrant day laborers get down on their hands and knees and serve as furniture. And in the movie's much-hyped set piece, he stages a cage fight in Arkansas where, to the audience's surprise, he proceeds to make out passionately with another man.

Jesse Benton, senior vice president of Campaign for Liberty and former campaign spokesman for Paul, said Paul was not familiar with Cohen's HBO program, Da Ali G Show. "If it's not on hard-core financial news, he doesn't follow it," Benton said. But, he added, "It sounds like it's going to be pretty funny."

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See the Bruno Movie Trailer (NSFW)



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Ron Paul in Sacha Baron Cohen’s “Bruno”

Via Political Lore

Disclaimer: the video below is intended for mature audiences only, parental discretion is advised.

Red Band Trailer For Sacha Baron Cohen's Bruno

In reply to:

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In the recently released preview of Sacha Baron Cohen’s upcoming theatrical film, those will a keen eye will spot Republican Congressman Ron Paul leaving a hotel room stating, “this is ended.”
According to Slate.com Ron Paul will be featured in the upcoming film as the victim of “Bruno’s” seduction attempt. Reportedly Ron Paul is also featured in the film saying of Bruno, “he’s a queer…that guy is queer as blazes.”
Ron Paul would not be incorrect in that statement, though the term “queer” is sure to attract some scrutiny. Jesse Benton, Ron Paul’s former campaign manager, is quick to point out that the term “queer” is used in such mainstream productions as, “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.” Point well taken Jesse. The appearance in the film will test the age old axiom that there is no such thing as bad publicity. Only time will tell if the performance in the film will come back to haunt Ron Paul, if I had to guess I would say no.

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Ron Paul says Sacha Baron Cohen is a fraud



By Daily Mail Reporter
17th April 2009


After the huge success of Sacha Baron Cohen's films Ali G In Da House and Borat: Cultural Learnings Of America For Make Benefit Glorious Nation Of Kazakhstan, you'd think people would have wised up to the comedian's disguises.

But it appears not everyone recognises the comedian when he's dressed up as his third alter-ego, gay Austrian fashion reporter Bruno.

Texas congressman Ron Paul, who was a Republican candidate for the 2008 presidential election, was left fuming after he was unwittingly tricked into a hotel room with Cohen's Bruno character.



How do I look? Sacha Baron Cohen attempts to strike a seductive pose as Bruno

The right-wing politician was tricked into being a target of seduction by Bruno last summer by posing as an economic reporter.




Republican presidential hopeful, Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas

Unhappy: Ron Paul fled a hotel room when Sacha Baron Cohen started undressing

After Paul briefly appeared in the trailer for Cohen's forthcoming film Bruno: Delicious Journeys Through America For The Purpose Of Making Heterosexual Male, he realised he would have to explain himself to voters.

Speaking on America's ABC radio this week, angry Paul condemned Cohen for lying and accused him of 'fraud'.

During an interview with presenter Curtis Sliwa, Paul was asked how he ended up in a hotel room in such a compromising situation.

He said: 'We were in a studio situation, I wasn't invited into a hotel room. There were lots of lights and blaze and commotion and they said we better get in this back room which had been fixed up as a bedroom.

'So there was some dishonesty getting me into the interview, I was expecting an interview on Austrian economics. That didn't turn out that way.

'By the time he (Cohen) started pulling his pants down, I was like what on earth is going on here and I ran out of the room. This interview had ended.'

In what is sure to be hilarious viewing in the upcoming film, Paul is stunned when Bruno starts to disrobe in front of him.

Continued...



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OH MY BIG HAPPY BUDDHA!!!

Today I suddenly discovered probably the greatest punk rock radio website that I have ever heard before:

Killed By Death Punk Rock Radio

No DJs, no talking, no mtv, no crap, just alot of awesome modern-day and classic punk rock going non-stop through iTunes!

Check it out!






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Hello TW Happys!

Years ago I worked with Shonen Knife on their "Mass Communication Breakdown" music video here in Tokyo. And NOW, you can see it right here:

Shonen Knife & Rob Pongi in 'Mass Communication Breakdown'



And there is a somewhat "magical" story to how all of this happened. Please very enjoy!

Cheers!

Rob



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What a cool song and a funny and nice video. And I still have a crush on the bass player but I just found out she is married and living in the U.S. now. Shes no longer in the band but they recruited a cutie to play bass.

Anyway, that was pleasant, thanks.

Thank you for watching and for your kind review Ghostlove! How this all happened was just a big case of dumb luck. But, in being as dumb as I am, believe me, I need all the luck I can get!

Cheers!

Lob <`@v@>



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P.S. Well, there is another side to my Shonen Knife story which is somewhat time warped in a way. And, I first saw Shonen Knife back on a HOT July night in 1991 in San Francisco at the IBeam. It was TOTALLY sold-out and I mean the crowd there was so very excited and animated as the Knife just ripped the audiences' heads off again and again with their guitars, bass and drums and then after every song they then slowly bowed in unison to the audience, taking no prisoners. That show was really something else as it was their first US tour and, some believe, their breakthrough show. It's hard to capture in mere words just how intensely existential it really was. In fact, it was an experience that was something like becoming a kid again. Really, I don't know how else to describe it, but it really was just like becoming a kid again, but with a childish-style of alternative Engrish Rock blasting my head off from three cute and very small women, who, played just as loud and just as fast as any other Sub Pop band in Seattle, no problem. And, well, their rise to success was fast and, in a way, almost too fast. They become overnight sensations in the US indie/college radio circuit and became so worshipped and praised that they even toured with the almighty Nirvana.



But that first night I saw them in SF, and when I felt the sharp blade of The Knife blissfully plunge into my heart, my whole life changed and from that night on, somehow, I just knew that Japan was my destiny. Well, I kind of knew it before that night, but, in fact, that Shonen Knife show was the straw that broke me free and I escaped to Japan about one year afterwards. So, yeah, it was quite a legendary show for me on that night back in '91.


Anyway, right after the show ended, this guy came out on stage and told those of us in front that Shonen Knife would be appearing at some record store out near Pier 45 on the next day! So, of course, we were all over that and got there way early and started an organized line with a signed list et al. And on that day, it was the first time I met them and I also met their manager, Page Perazzo, of Virgin Records, who deserves A LOT of credit for the global success in the '90s. 



Anyway, we got to meet them all and got pictures, autographs etc. And then Page suddenly announced that they were going to film a music video right there in the store! And Shonen Knife got up on the tables and was pretending to play to one of their songs on the PA, while we kids in the crowd were really enjoying it and dancing like, well, like little kids again!!!! I know that may sound somewhat strange, but the group of us there were some very hardcore Shonen Knife fans, no doubt. They could have sung "Sesame Street" or the theme from "The Banana Splits" and we would have loved it. That 's exactly how intense our loyalty and passion for them was back in those days. 



So after a few songs, Page said that we all did a great job and that he wanted to continue filming this new music video down at the docks and over at the cable cars etc. But, then, suddenly, it started raining and we waited in the store, hoping it would stop and we waited and waited, but, it didn't stop raining and finally they all had to leave, so we never got to finish filming that video. And we hardcore fans were very, very bummed about that, indeed. Some were even crying, I kid you not.



Cut to Tokyo, Japan, 12 years later and, one day, I just happen to meet the right guy at the right place and SHAZAM!!! Three days after that, I'm in another Shonen Knife video! Unreal. Just totally UNREAL!



DOUMO ARIGATOU GOZAIMASU!

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Hello again TW Happys!

Well, one of the very hottest bands in Japan now is known as Mass Of The Fermenting Dregs and they will perform tomorrow night here in Tokyo at the lovely Shimokitazawa Shelter And even though this show was officially "Sold Out" last Friday, somehow I got lucky (again) and scored a ticket on Sunday night!!! So I am really looking forward to tomorrow night's show, as I know they are going to just burn down this whole damn town! YOOOO!!!!

Check out their promo video called "This Speed Ahead"


And you can see more about this awesome band on their Wikipedia page: Mass Of The Fermenting Dregs Wikipedia Page and you can hear more of their songs on their Myspace Page

Also here is a really good and very accurate review of their very unique musical style:

Keikaku Reviews - Mass Of The Fermenting Dregs

ROCK AND ROLL!!!!!! YOOOOOOOO!!!!!!

Cheers!

Rob


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Fermenting dregs of rock 'n' roll for the masses

Friday, June 5, 2009

By JEFF RICHARDS
Special to The Japan Times

In reply to:

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"I just had a connection with the sound of the words," says singer and bass player Natsuko Miyamoto when she answers my question about the name of her band, Mass of the Fermenting Dregs. Before I can pursue the question further: about the words, about where and when she first put them together, about this "connection" to a lump of decomposing sludge, she adds, "A band name is not as important as the music." Touche.

I change tact. It can't be as simple as that. I ask what some of the best or coolest band names are, hoping to catch them out and head back down the "crazy Japanese band name" avenue, but in keeping with her response, both she and guitarist Chiemi Ishimoto draw blanks.



Mass of attack: Natsuko and Chiemi of Mass of the Fermenting Dregs JEFF RICHARDS

We are sitting in the EMI/AVOCADO Records office with their A&R people. With a name like Mass of the Fermenting Dregs, you would expect an interview like this to take place in a destroyed hotel room with black drapes covering the windows, floor littered with spent and mangled beer cans, cigarette boxes, ashtrays, and other detritus of rock and roll debauchery. But no, the two young women I am speaking with bear no resemblance whatsoever to a road- hardened, booze-fueled metal band.

Mass Of The Fermenting Dregs is rapidly climbing the indie-rock ladder in Japan. Known for their energetic, shoeless, hair-flailing live shows and melodic, guitar driven pop sound, their 2007 Fuji Rock Festival appearance on the Rookie A Go-Go stage opened some major-label eyes, and helped their subsequent self-titled debut album climb up the Oricon Indies and iTunes Japan J-Rock charts. It also gained them slots in 2008 at a number of festivals. They played sold-out shows across Japan with Qomolangma Tomato and 9mm Parabellum Bullet, and they are currently headlining a tour of Japan in support of their latest disc, "World Is Yours."

Natsuko and Chiemi (each in their early 20s) met each other at high school in Kobe and formed MOTFD in 2002. Raised on a steady diet of 1990s Japanese guitar rock, both girls tried to emulate their heroes. I ask Chiemi if she can remember the first song she learned on guitar, and she responds Hide's "Pink Spider," but then adds that she's not 100 percent certain because she learned to play all of Hide's songs on the guitar. With their original drummer (Reiko Gotoh, who left in 2007), the all-girl trio honed their chops on the Kansai circuit before independently releasing a three-song demo CD in 2006.

One of the cuts from the demo won the EMI Records "Road To Tarbox" competition and a chance to work with producer David Fridmann, bass player for Mercury Rev and owner of Tarbox Road Studios in Cassadaga, New York. Fridmann worked with them on two tracks, "If A Surfer" and "Bears," both of which would end up on their 2008 debut CD. The fact that Fridmann produced the major label releases for Japanese indie stalwarts Number Girl, and that MOTFD's latest album, "World Is Yours," was co-produced with Number Girl bass player Nakao Kentarou, has led to some easy assessments of their sound.

"No, I don't think (we are) the same," counters Natsuko about the Number Girl comparisons. "In fact, we are quite different. We are women and they are men. Our lyrics are different."

While on the surface she seems to be stating the obvious, it is apparent that they are both somewhat perplexed by the easy associations people make based around the MOTFD-Nakao-Fridmann nexus. They don't want to be pigeonholed into a particular "sound" — especially not someone else's. They have always created their own sound, which Chiemi describes as "not something concrete, it's much more vague and unclear, but it has the elements of heaviness and darkness and brightness which are the basic elements (of our music)."

They point out that, although much is made of Fridmann working with the band (he is credited as producer on two tracks from their S/T debut), he just mixed the sound that the girls had already created and arranged. "Dave only did two songs," says Natsuko, "he didn't really help lead the group or say we should do that or bring this in. We recorded it, and then he mixed it." She says that he gave them a lot of freedom, just sitting them at the mics and saying, "Go for it."

On the other hand, "Nakao was more like a big brother when we were working," says Chiemi, "but when we did feel we needed a producer, he was there."

I ask them if — with the success of their first two CDs — they still have jobs or if they are earning enough money from their efforts to support themselves, and they become reticent (their label claims a No. 4 ranking on the Oricon Indies chart and a No. 1 ranking on the iTunes Japan J-Rock chart in 2008). In characteristic Japanese fashion, they sidestep this personal question, but Natsuko's answer hints that they are aware of the conundrums that success can bring.

"There is a danger," she says, "in having (your) music become work." She clearly senses that when doing what you love becomes your job, the dynamics of music and life change. Where do you get your inspiration from when music becomes your daily grind?

"When it becomes something like work, you tend to lose the balance you have with your daily life, which gives you the energy to keep your music alive."
"World Is Yours" is out now. Mass of the Fermenting Dregs will tour Japan from June 8 and play Fuji Rock Festival 2009 on July 26. Visit www.motfd.com for more details.

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#24 Japan Questions 9/11 and the Global War on Terror

Monday, July 27th, 2009

In Top 25 Censored Stories for 2009

Via Project Censored

Source:
Rense.com and Rock Creek Free Press, January 14, 2008
Title: “Transcript Of Japanese Parliament’s 911 Testimony”
Author: Benjamin Fulford

Student Researchers: Kyle Corcoran, Alan Scher, Bill Gibbons, and Elizabeth Rathbun

Faculty Evaluator: Mickey S. Huff, MA

In reply to:

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Testimony in the Japanese parliament, broadcast live on Japanese television in January 2008, challenged the premise and validity of the Global War on Terror. Parliament member Yukihisa Fujita insisted that an investigation be conducted into the war’s origin: the events of 9/11.

In a parliament Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee session held to debate the ethics of renewing Japan’s “anti-terror law,” which commits Japan to providing logistical support for coalition forces operating in Afghanistan, Fujita opened the session by stating, “I would like to talk about the origin of this war on terrorism, which was the attacks of 9/11, . . . When discussing these anti-terror laws we should ask ourselves, what was 9/11? And what is terrorism?”

Fujita pointed out that, “So far the only thing the government has said is that we think it was caused by al-Qaeda because President Bush told us so. We have not seen any real proof that it was al-Qaeda.” He reminded parliament that twenty-four Japanese citizens were killed on 9/11, yet the mandate of a criminal investigation by the Japanese government never followed. “This is a crime so surely an investigation needs to be carried out,” said Fujita (Censored 2008, #16).

Fujita went on extensively to ask “about the suspicious information being uncovered and the doubts people worldwide are having about the events of 9/11.”

The Japanese parliament viewed several slides from the Pentagon and World Trade Center (WTC) sites as Fujita explained each. The slides showed evidence inconsistent with official explanation: damage in and around the Pentagon was not consistent with the damage a 757 airplane would cause. Fujita noted, “Also, there were more than eighty security cameras at the Pentagon, but officials have refused to release the footage. In any case, as you have just seen, there is no picture of the airplane or of its wreckage in any of these photographs. It is very strange that no such pictures have been shown to us.” A US Air Force official corroborated the fact that the plane executed a U-turn and avoided the Defense Secretary’s office, a feat that would be impossible for an unskilled first-time pilot to maneuver; and no air defense was made in the ninety-minute interval between the initial impact of the planes at the WTC and the Pentagon. Fujita added, “It is baffling that no flight records were found at any of four sites.” On the ground at the WTC sites, both sounds and visual evidence from explosions were verified. Flying debris shot out as far as 150 meters consistent with buildings exploding. A New York fireman during rescue operations confirmed that a series of explosions resembled a professional demolition, and a Japanese survivor heard explosions while fleeing the site. The World Trade Center Building 7 (WTC 7), forty-seven stories high and located one block away, collapsed into its footprint, seven hours after the main WTC buildings were attacked, in five or six seconds, although no plane struck it and it had minimal fire damage. Not only did the 9/11 Commission fail to mention WTC 7, but the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) made no mention of it in their reports.

Fujita went on to detail proof of insider trading from September 6 through 8, when investors executed “put options” to sell stock in United and American Airlines at a fixed price. Finance specialist Keiichiro Asao responded with confirmation that such complex transaction would be the work of insiders rather than al-Qaeda.

Fujita then addressed Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, “I would like to know why the Prime Minister thinks it was the Taliban who was responsible for 9/11.” He continued, “We need to go back to the beginning and not just simply and blindly trust the US government explanation and indirect information provided by them. . . . We need to look at this evidence and ask ourselves what the war on terrorism really is. . . . We need to ask who the real victims of this war on terrorism are. I think the citizens of the world are its victims.”

“Prime Minister,” Fujita continued, “what about the origin of the War on Terror and the idea of whether it is right or wrong to participate in it? Is there really a reason to participate in this War on Terror?”

Fujita received support for concluding that the reason for participating in the US War on Terror needs to be investigated and analyzed. Opposition blocked the extension of Japan’s anti-terror law and colleagues acknowledged his bravery with congratulatory phone calls.

This came to an end in mid-January when, after months of parliamentary debates and the opposition of at least 50 percent of the Japanese public, Fukuda rammed the anti-terror bill through parliament. After the bill was voted down by opposition in the Upper House plenary session on January 12, the government resubmitted it later that same day to the Lower House, where the ruling conservative party holds the majority, and turned a bill into a law. Thus, they overturned a veto in the Upper House.

This is the first time in half a century that a Japanese government has resorted to such tactics—deemed a drastic measure by Japanese standards.1

According to Christopher W. Hughes, professor of politics and international studies at University of Warwick, “Fukuda’s government was under a lot of US pressure to re-deploy ships, and even if he was always somewhat doubtful about the importance of the mission in military terms and the whole US War on Terror, he perceived passing the bill as very important to US-Japan relations. This was also impressed upon him by a personal meeting with US President Bush.”

Citation

1. Axel Berkofsky, “Japan: The Deployment Dilemma,” International Relations and Security Network, January 24, 2008.

UPDATE BY BENJAMIN FULFORD

If you still believe that the English language corporate media is free, take a look behind the scenes at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan (FCCJ) and think again.

I was a member of that club for over two decades, but I had no clue about what it really represented until I tried to stage a press conference about 9/11. From that point on all sorts of nasty things started to happen and I suddenly realized the place seemed more like a nest of spies than a club for journalists.

For example, people I did not know tried to have me evicted from the club, e-mails vanished from my inbox before I got to read them, and people started to spread the word that I had mental issues.

The list of insults to press freedom at the club since that initial conference is too long to write about in detail here, so I will merely cite the most recent example.

Yukihisa Fujita, a member of parliament for the opposition Democratic Party, in a parliamentary debate broadcast nationwide on NHK, asked Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda about many of the glaring discrepancies in the official US government explanation of what happened on 9/11. A member of parliament in Japan, a US ally, showed powerful evidence on national TV that the US government murdered 3,000 of its own citizens as well as people from Japan and many other nations. I suggested we call him for a press conference, and nine working journalists—representing a potential audience of billions—agreed. Usually, only three or more yes votes from working journalists is enough for an event to go ahead. Despite this, the Wall Street Journal’s James Sims, head of the Professional Activities Committee (PAC), in confederation with FCCJ President Martyn Williams, vetoed the event even though it was subject matter that they, as technical journalists, do not cover. They vetoed it in violation of Article 3 of the club bylaws that call for press freedom. Not only that, they kicked me off the PAC in a blatant attempt to shut me up.

Fujita has since been invited to speak to the EU parliament and many other venues. Fujita has been given a chance to ask more questions in parliament, and many Japanese news magazines have written about his activities. Books about 9/11 are also selling well in Japan. A growing group of Japanese politicians has become aware of what really happened on that day. The Japanese government itself actually knows the truth and is starting to affect the US–Japan alliance in fundamental ways. The Japanese government’s formal replies to Fujita’s questions show it is becoming increasingly suspicious that the US government murdered over twenty Japanese citizens. The long-term repercussions for US security could be huge.

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Incoming Tokyo government threatens split with US


A split is emerging between the United States and Japan over the new Tokyo government's anti-globalisation rhetoric and its threats to end a refueling agreement for US ships in support of the war in Afghanistan.
By Julian Ryall in Tokyo

11 Sep 2009

Via Telegraph.co.uk


Yukio Hatoyama blamed the US for the ills of capitalism Photo: AP

In reply to:

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Yukio Hatoyama, the leader of the Democratic Party of Japan, has caused alarm in Washington after publishing an article blaming the US for the ills of capitalism, the global economy and "the destruction of human dignity".

He also intends to examine an agreement that permits US warships to dock at Japanese ports, in violation of the nation's non-nuclear principles. Mr Hatoyama says he will also look again at the $6 billion cost faced by Japan to transfer thousands of US troops from their base in Okinawa to the Pacific island of Guam amid a wide-ranging review of the American military presence on Japanese soil.

His election campaign promised a more "independent" foreign policy from Washington and closer relations with Asian neighbours, including China. On Thursday, he repeated his intention to defy the US and end the Maritime Self-Defence Force's resupply mission in the Indian Ocean.

Mr Hatoyama will be sworn in on Wednesday after an historic victory that ended decades of near unbroken rule by the Liberal Democratic Party. He will have his first meeting with Barack Obama, the US president, at the United Nations on Sep 22.

The Pentagon reminded Japan of the expectations it faced as a "great power and one of the world's wealthiest countries". Geoff Morrell, a spokesman, said: "There is an international responsibility, we believe, for everyone to do their share, as best they can, to contribute to this effort to bring about a more peaceful and secure Afghanistan."

The Defence Department would not "prejudge" Japan's new political leadership, he added.

"We think that when the responsibility of governing comes about that people will appreciate, as we have every reason to believe they do, the importance of this alliance and the importance of working together on these [security] agreements," he said.

Makoto Watanabe, a professor of media and communication at Hokkaido Bunkyo University, said: "The US has been critical of new trends in Japan, but we are not a colony of Washington and we should be able to say what we want.

"The Japan-US relationship will remain our most important bilateral link, but while under previous governments Japan had become a yes-man to the US, this suggests to me that healthy change is taking place."

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Scholars study Springsteen during weekend event


By KILEY ARMSTRONG, Associated Press Writer Kiley Armstrong, Associated Press Writer

Sat Sep 26, 2009

Via Yahoo News/AP


FILE - In this July 2, 2009 file photo, Bruce Springsteen performs during the first German concert of his 'Working On A Dream' European tour in the Olympic stadium in Munich, Germany.

In reply to:

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WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. – Hold still, Bruce — this won't hurt a bit!

Scholars from around the world are dissecting the Springsteen legend this weekend in New Jersey.

"Glory Days: A Bruce Springsteen Symposium" continues through Sunday at Monmouth University. The no-holds-barred intellectual romp, coinciding with Springsteen's 60th birthday, was organized by Virginia Tech and Penn State Altoona.

And yes, the scholars do get the comedic irony of studying a man who "learned more from a three-minute record than he ever learned from school."

The festivities include several pilgrimages to the landmark Stone Pony nightclub, down the road in Asbury Park, N.J.

Educators spent Friday night singing, hollering and chanting a curse phrase at the impish urging of rock pioneer Gary U.S. Bonds, whose performance brought the house down. Springsteen resurrected Bonds' career in the '80s by writing his comeback hit, "This Little Girl."

Professors, many of them veterans of dozens of concerts — one boasted 150-plus — vied to get out their first-person tales from the concert "pit."

Fans of Run of the (Steel) Mill, Springsteen's former band, also entered the symposium fray.

Springsteen has "saved my life many times," said textbook publisher Patty Pappas of Toronto, who detoured to the symposium en route to next week's Meadowlands concerts. "If you're sad, happy, angry — if you want to scream, rant and rave — there's always a song that can express it."

Come the light of day, though, it's back to the books — make that the Power Point presentations.

"Fun?" said presenter Francesco Cassino of Rome, Italy, clearly startled by the question during his reverie on harmonic sequences. His expression grew otherworldly. "It's my life," he said Saturday, expressing the common theme of fans everywhere.

"His music can call us to a higher purpose," said Dr. James Kelly of Carlow University in Pittsburgh, calling Springsteen a vehicle for discussions on social causes, war, race, gender and class.

When the music that was to accompany Kelly's presentation didn't play, the audience told him to stop talking and fix it. From then on, Kelly — who referred to Springsteen as a "cool rockin' daddy" — jackhammered through his academic talk while competing with the music — blasts of "Sprung from cages on Highway 9!" and "Baby, this town rips the bones from your back!"

Discussion topics were dizzying. Springsteen and psychology; the movies; spirituality; American culture; history; the criminal justice system; the online community; family.

Bruce Geeks worship Springsteen as a storyteller and a poet. References abounded to the likes of writers Jack Kerouac and Flannery O'Connor; Springsteen has said O'Connor's work helped inspire the "Nebraska" album.

There were down-home moments, as well.

Fellow blue-collar rocker Joe Grushecky sheepishly admitted taking a sick day from his regular job as a special education teacher to collaborate with Springsteen. His peeved employer set out to track him down.

Grushecky's mother called her son to pass along his boss' message. Patti Scialfa, Springsteen's wife, took the call.

"Patti hands me the phone and says, `It's your mom,'" recalled Grushecky, who shushed Springsteen while calling back his other boss, and feigning illness.

When Grusheky's kids were little, they thought Springsteen was just "another of Daddy's buddies who played guitar. And lived in a bigger house."

The "Springsteen and Social Consciousness" panel stressed that the boss puts his money — and his energies — where his mouth is. Singer-activist Jen Chapin, daughter of the late Harry Chapin, said Springsteen has raised millions of dollars for grass root causes including hunger.

"I've dealt with a lot of celebrities," said Chapin, giving Springsteen an A-plus for his "integrity" and determination to "follow through on his promises."

The symposium, also held in 2005, is the brainchild of 52-show veteran Dr. Mark Bernhard, director of continuing and professional education at Virginia Tech.

"Bruce and his music, through his lyrics as well as his performances and his social consciousness ... speak to the common man or woman," Bernhard said. "He resonates with many of us" — in all walks of life.

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Allen Carr - Easy Way to Stop Smoking:

Easy Way to Stop Smoking

In reply to:

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The common thread running through Allen Carr's work is the removal of fear. Indeed, his genius
lies in eliminating the phobias and anxieties which prevent people from being able to enjoy life
to the full, as his bestselling books Allen Carr's Easy Way to Stop Smoking, The Only Way to Stop
Smoking Permanently, Allen Carr's Easyweigh to Lose Weight, How to Stop Your Child Smoking,
and now The Easy Way to Enjoy Flying, vividly demonstrate.

A successful accountant, Allen Carr's hundred-cigarettes-a-day addiction was driving him to
despair until, in 1983, after countless failed attempts to quit, he finally discovered what the
world had been waiting for —the Easy Way to Stop Smoking. He has now built a network of clinics
that span the globe and has a phenomenal reputation for success in helping smokers to quit.

His books have been published in over twenty different languages and video, audio and CD-
ROM versions of his method are also available.

Tens of thousands of people have attended Allen Carr's clinics where, with a success rate of over 95%.
he guarantees that you will find it easy to quit smoking or your money back. A full list of
clinics appears in the back of this book. Should you require any assistance do not hesitate to
contact your nearest therapist. Weight-control sessions are now offered at a selection of these
clinics. A full corporate service is also available enabling companies to implement no-smoking
policies simply and effectively.

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NOTE: The book "Easy Way to Stop Smoking" can be downloaded for free from here:

Easy Way to Stop Smoking

If you, or someone you know, wants to quit, I highly recommend reading this book.

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