Japan E-mails: Aug 27, 2001

(retrospection)

After my little manifesto e-mail I had sent out to Media Mouse the previous day, I got individual responses back from 4 of them. I composed individual e-mails to each one, but as there is a far amount of overlap in the material, I am editing them down and condensing them into one e-mail for the sake of this blog.

Thanks for the speedy reply. We're right in the thick of the dog days of summer over here too. It's very hot and muggy on this little island that I'm on. It has its nice moments occassionally, but usually it's just hot and humid.

Hey, one thing I forgot to mention in my last e-mail: Tokyo had some nice bike lanes in it....Well, OK, actually they're not all that nice. And there a little on the small side. And the only thing to seperate them from the rest of the traffic is a painted white line and the words "Bike Lane". But still, it shows they're making an effort at least. If a city as crowded and congested as Tokyo can find room to put in some bike lanes, surely Grand Rapids could do something for its bikers, right? Well, good luck with continuing the campaign at any rate.

(Ed. note: The summer of 2001 Media Mouse was actively campaigning to make the city of Grand Rapids more cyclist friendly. It was our big focus that summer, but since then there have been a lot of changes in the world, and bigger events have taken precedence. As far as I know, it's not one of their top priorities anymore.
But maybe the issue should be picked up again. As we enter into the age of global warming and the coming energy crisis, the least, THE LEAST, the city government can do is to give people the option to ride their bicycles to work if they want to.)

I really wish I could go with you guys to Washington DC [for the IMF/World Bank Protest] next month. And I'm not just saying that either. I really wish I could go. It's hard for me to be sitting in a stuffy office on the other side of the world reading about the protest movement without being able to participate. I toyed with the idea of trying to fly back to the US for a couple days for the DC protest, but it's just not a realistic option. Maybe after I've saved up a bit of money over here I can join you guys on the next big event. (Incidently, what is the next big event?). Either way, it comforts me to know that Media Mouse will be there to raise their voice and document the events. [Ed. note: In the end this protest never happened, because the event got called off after 9-11].

I'll try and forward you anything I can find on the Japanese student movement for the Media Mouse "history of leftist political movements page". I haven't had a lot of luck finding stuff on the net so far, but I'm sure there's got to be stuff somewhere. As a history major, I really like the idea of a leftist history page though. That sounds like something I could really get into, and I'll try and contribute what I can from Japan.
[Ed. note: this leftist history web page was one of several media mouse projects we talked about, but in the end never got off the ground].

I'll try and collect what information I can over here as well. It is, I agree, an ambitious project, especially considering my Japanese at this point is pretty much non-existant. I can say "good morning" and "thank you" and that's about it. However hopefully in a year's time I'll be able to develop some speaking skills. That way I'll be able to contribute to Media Mouse even from Japan. We'll see what happens. At any rate, thanks for the offer to do a presentation. If I'm able to collect enough material this year, I might be interested in it.[ed. note: If I had only known 7 years after I wrote this e-mail I would still be struggling with Japanese]

I'll try and follow what you guys are up to from here in Japan via the Media Mouse website. I notice there are a lot of new names and e-mail addresses on the Media Mouse e-mails, but you say attendance is down? Any luck with our recruiting efforts, or is it the same old faces?

Sincerely Joel (Your Media Mouse Foreign Correspondant)

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To Ben (my predecessor)
thanks for the e-mail. I'll keep your warning about Ajimu wine in mind. I actually haven't developed my palate to the point where I can distinguish good wine from bad, so it's all the same to me anyway. My ignorance will probably come in handy at the wine festival. Otherwise, if it's really that bad, I guess I can always force it down for the sake of social protocol.
Thanks again for the heads up.

Link of the Day
I was listening to Michigan Public Radio the other day (via the magic of the Internet) and heard the program on the My Lai massacre. I don't know how many of you heard the same program as well, but if you haven't heard it, I can't recommend it enough. Really. You'd be doing yourself a disservice not to go over and check it out.
You can listen to it at The Changing World Website.