Google Wave: Making a splash or just wet behind the ears?

Hey folks, Our Man's bleeding edge, doncha know. Not only has he recently discovered Delicious.com where he can have his very own virtual library, but he just went and got himself co-opted into the Google Wave machine. ? you might well be thinking. Well, Our Man isn't sure (as usual) but he reckons it is Google's latest plan to take over the world. It seems to be Facebook on steroids. You can chat and post videos and such with your contacts, but all in real time.

Hmmm.

While Our Man can't work out all the permutations, he realised how few real friends he has, and the prospect of sharing a Wave with folk he barely knows, made him feel kind of, well, too old for this game. Still, surf on you early adopters, no doubt Our Man will rejoin the wave when it has become comfortably old hat.

BTW, what's with the super-duper re-tweet button on Twitter? It doesn't retweet the tweet on your own feed and doesn't allow you to comment on the re-tweet, which is half the fun. EDITED FOR YOUR VIEWING PLEASURE - Just found the re-tweet does appear on your own feed, just an hour after you've retweeted it.

BTW 2.0: If none of this post has made the slightest bit of sense to you, Our Man congratulates you. You pass.

Wave pic lifted from here.

Jokes on Fox, again

It's getting too easy to see through Fox News. But it's still funny:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Sean Hannity Uses Glenn Beck's Protest Footage
http://www.thedailyshow.com/
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

Secret handshake to DougDeLong.

It's Obamayama time (some background)

So, in the interests of consummating a special relationship between Hatoyama and Obama on their hot Friday night date (which do you like better - Hatobama or Obamayama? Our Man can't decide) here's a little vid Our Man discovered the other day while avoiding doing some work. It may be a year old but it goes some way to demonstrating the mutual love and understanding, (some might even say yuai) between the two great Pacific rimmers. Take it away Kate:

Gotcha!

Book him, Danno.

Story here.

How to read without reading

Oh, it's Tuesday, and Our Man still hasn't finished reading American Shogun, so not much to add on the book reading front. Sheesh, and you wonder why book sales are declining. But, Our Man has been reading. Yeah? Yeah. Here's the proof - the start of Our Man's very own online library of stuff tagged to Delicious.com. What it means (maybe, not sure) is you, dear reader, can see what "inputs" go to make the wonderful "output" that is this blog, Why you'd want to is beyond Our Man, but it takes all sorts. Just click here, OK?

Secret handshake to Our Man's favourite Webternet guru - Rick Martin (no, not Ricky, sorry ladies).

10 reasons why Tokyo should get the 2020 Olympics

Brilliant. Not only is Hiroshima and Nagasaki bidding for the Olympics in 2020 (cf. haven't they suffered enough?) but so is Tokyo under completely sane Mayor Shintaro Ishihara according to here. (Secret handshake to tokyorich). The Japanese Olympic Committee No. 2 remarked: "It is truly great."

Our Man remarked: "It's truly a pile of Olympic-sized horseshit".

Let's recap, shall we sports lovers, the top 10 things Tokyo's bid has got going for it:

10. Er, it's hugely popular with folk enamoured with 12-year-old girls chucking ribbons about.

9. Tokyo knows how to mix concrete.

8. There are hundreds of yakuza who need the cash flow.

7. There just isn't enough women's volleyball and figure skating on Japanese TV.

6. Travel and accommodation costs are so high in Tokyo, it'll keep out athletes from those pesky poor countries good at winning things (China, Ethiopia, USA etc).

5. Tokyo has never held it before. Honest.

4. Who can forget the lovable 2002 World Cup mascots from Japan?

3. Er, Tokyo knows noodles!

2. And raw fish.

1. Because please, please, pretty please, Tokyo so needs it cause we are the world, we are the melting pot of, er, the Greater Kanto region, we have sexed up cartoon pop stars and karaoke and robots and concrete beaches and we love nature, we have four seasons, and we have no danger of being consumed by a massive earthquake anytime soon. We love the environment. And world peace. And concrete.

Pic lifted from AltJapan here, which has more examples of the wit and wisdom of the mayor who doesn't know the meaning of pack it in. Now.

Tokyo Metro manner poster advice for Hatoyama and Obama

First Our Man saw this, then this, and came up with this:

A classic case of 1+1=3?

Gates makes more friends in Asia

From the pictures tell a thousand words file:

Hot off his Making Friends and Influencing People tour '09 of Japan, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates (the chubby one on the left) works his magic last weekend with China's No. 2 General Xu Caihou in Hawaii. Story from here.

Return of the Reverend!

How about these pics, proving that evolution has a sense of humour:

or:

(lifted from here)

Secret handshake to KenYN here.

Anyway, back to the prepared text, ahem, the Rev. Paperboy is off in Hawaii, so hopefully he won't notice if Our Man nicks one of his recent sermons. Here it is here (featuring new improved intros and outros too):

By the way, Our Man thinks, but isn't sure, that he isn't wearing his "when the rapture comes, we get all their stuff" T-Shirt underneath his dressing gown.

Asian Correspondent - where's your man in Japan?

Normally when young folk e-mail Our Man a news tip he can look forward to a funny picture of a farmyard animal or a link to a politician saying something particularly inane; so imagine his disappointment when his latest "news tip" was in fact a blatant ad for a new website - Asian Correspondent. Sadly, it seems to carry an awful lot of AP copy and no correspondents for Japan, but it is trying to be a newspaper on the web, Our Man supposes, like the Huffington Post. It seems to talk the talk, but can it walk the walk? Or snark the snark and stalk the stalk? The copy is a bit dull, but might be one to keep an eye on once it finds its feet as it proclaims itself to be the future of liberal journalism (thought that was Our Man?) Also, who foots the bills, no matter how small they may be?

Enquiring minds want to know...

Please do it at home gets hip soundtrack

Sure, you hip Japanophiles know all there is to know about the manner posters that cajole Tokyo underground passengers not to do anti-social things (though no mention of serious problems like gropers and suicides, naturally). But did you know someone has put the nannystate notices to a driving YouTube beat? Take it away ItBaganInWuhan:

LDP hits a homer and other poorly executed politics-as-baseball metaphors

Guess Our Man ought to write something about Japanese politics in the style of a smart person who knows about baseball (?). Things must be bad for the home team if:

1. The journeymen in rival Team LDP can hit a homer or two (is that the right terminolgy? - Ed.) by gently pointing out that the new Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's got so much money he can't keep track of who has been failing to stash it under which mattresses - and that Hatoyama himself has even been calling for his own resignation in a bizarre timeslip wormhole from 2003.

2. Even fiesty critics of the LDP are throwing the odd curve-ball (that's more like it - Ed) by conceding that Hotairyama is dithering badly. Our Man can see he's dropping the ball on Okinawa (Yo, Mr H. - stop campaigning and start leading, lol) and sounding like a sap on the whole East Asian C0-Prosperity II - this time it's for love thing.

But, so far, it's still his money we're talking about (not Our Man's) and there is still time to kiss and make up when Obama pops over next week for the Hatobama Mindmeld. And let's face it, Mr H. hasn't actually done anything really bad yet - because he hasn't done much of anything.

Remember, remember

Americans celebrate the success of their revolution on July 4th. Britons celebrate the failure of theirs on November 5th. Sure there is something deep and meaningful in there somewhere.

Angry people in local newspapers (while they still exist)

Far too busy to think up funny stuff when others can do it better than Our Man anyway - case in point - Angry People in Local Newspapers - the blog! Haven't laughed so hard since coming across FakeAPstylebook on Twitter. Enjoy, all, and leave Our Man be. He's got to tend to his cover job today. Grrrr.

What the hell, let's call it an honorary blog of the week, why not?

Agony aunt advice for Yukio and Katsuya

What a postbag Auntie Ourmani got this morning! I don't have time to solve everyone's problems, but I picked two from these young men:

Yukio H., 19: I recently started a new job as an assistant manager and with the extra income, I promised to spend it on my friends, only with all the exrta work, I've been having trouble keeping track of my cash again. I try to put my money in envelopes under my mattress, only I misplaced some which I was supposed to give to my mam for room and board. What should I do?

Auntie Ourmani: You should pay your mother first thing, then with what's left you can do some of the things you've been promising your mates, but not all. Remember, real friends don't want money, just your fraternal love.

Katsuya O., 17: I'm going on my first study trip to Washington DC on Friday and I'm really worried! I've heard that the city seems welcoming at first, but is unpalatable after a while. Will Americans be able to understand me? I tried talking to an American tourist called Robert G., but he didn't listen to me and got very aggressive when I talked about where he should go in Okinawa. Please help!

Auntie Ourmani: Don't worry Katsutya, Americans are your friends! Remember, the Americans who come over here are often a little odd and seem overbearing, but on their own territory they couldn't be friendlier! My advice is speak up, don't be afraid to ask questions and if you can't find anything good to eat, just tell your hosts you'd be happier with Chinese, they'll soon get the message!