I recently moved a few years' worth of email from an old archive onto my current Mac.
Look at what I was interested in back in 2000!
I impress even myself sometimes! : )
From: Gen_Kanai@toyota.com
Date: February 15, 2000 4:07:01 AM JST
To: gkanai@earthlink.net
Subject: ruby
new language to check out
http://www.ruby-lang.org/en/
Joshua Schacter of del.icio.us, who I've known since 1999 or so, went up to Harvard to be hosted by David Weinberger and the Berkman Center. Good Q&A here.
"Why didn't Technorati build a Memeorandum?"
GREAT question.
The Japan Times has a decent interview with Alex Kerr, one of the most prominent writers on Japan. I met Kerr in NYC at a Japan Society event with Eiko Ishioka, who is good friends with Kerr. Most interesting is his comments on how the Japanese have read Kerr's critique of modern Japan "Dogs and Demons," as well as Kerr's thoughts on Arudo Debito, a naturalized Japanese citizen who has worked to raise issues surrounding civil rights and racism in Japan.
What kind of reaction did you get to Dogs and Demons?I lot of people tell me that it is deeply disturbing, then after they read it they have this catharsis.
I'm (also) accused of being racist and all this stuff -- but you can't worry about that. It's very often people fresh off the boat; it's the newcomers who feel that way, (who) have come to make a new life in this exotic fabulous place.
I think of myself as coming from the inside. The reaction from the Japanese has been overwhelmingly positive. In the tourist industry (Dogs and Demons) is practically a bible at this point. I get constant requests to speak at Japanese tourist industry conventions. For the people who say, "how could he say this? Isn't this racist and terrible?" -- you have got to look at how the Japanese have responded.
The book is now in its 8th printing in Japanese. Ishihara Shintaro, of all people, has now given two press conferences holding the book up to the press and saying "why haven't you read this?"
In Dogs and Demons you argue that Japan has failed to internationalize. What do you think about the work of Debito Arudou and others to combat racial discrimination in Japan?Well, somebody has to do it. I'm glad that there is a whistle-blower out there. But, I am doubtful whether in the long run it really helps. One would hope that he could do it another way. He's not doing it the Japanese way. He's being very gaijin in his openly combative attitude, and usually in Japan that approach fails.
I fear that his activities might tend to just confirm conservative Japanese in their belief that gaijin are difficult to deal with.
That said, perhaps we who live here are slow to stick our necks out when we sense an injustice, and quick to self-censor in order to get along smoothly in our communities.
To me the most interesting aspect of Arudou Debito is that, in taking on Japanese citizenship, he has brought the dialogue inside Japan. His activities reveal the fact that gaijin and their gaijin ways are now a part of the fabric of Japan's new society. A very small part of course, but a vocal and real part.
Japan sees beginning of change - 'Dogs & Demons' author Alex Kerr
Absolutely important reading for everyone who is interested in the recovery of Japan's economy.
The Japan Stock Blog - Merrill Lynch's Jesper Koll, 'Japan is Back, For Real This Time'
I have no idea if this is iChat or AIM or what, but I get this EVERYDAY and it is SO FARKING ANNOYING!!!
MSN logs me in each and every time without fail.
GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!
One of my good friends has recently launched a blog for Maybelline in Japan.
Enjoy!
With the recent news of the joint venture between NTT DoCoMo and Rakuten to build a new mobile auction business, I've been thinking a bunch about the mobile auction space.
Then, out of the blue, an analyst from a European mobile/telecoms newsletter contacted me regarding my musings. I spent a few more minutes elaborating on my ideas and they may make their way into a newsletter.
However, I reserve the right to publish my own thoughts on my own blog, so I'll jot them down here as well. We'll see how much of my ideas get into the article.
--- Q & A between a European mobile/telecoms analyst and me, Gen Kanai ---
Technorati Tags: auction, DoCoMo, Japan, kddi, mobile, analysis, Rakuten, Vodafone
Fortune magazine has a profile of Ross Levinsohn, president of Fox Internet Media, who has made some significant purchases this year in order to bring News Corp. into the Internet age.
I was drawn to the article because, like most people, I'm wondering if Murdoch and News Corp. really understand the Internet, or if they're just scrambling around spending cash without a clear strategy.
In reading this Q&A, I was pretty surprised, taken aback really, by two quotes from Levinsohn. Tell me if they seem really strange to you as well.
Earlier this year you were running one website, Foxsports.com. This summer you were put in charge of Rupert Murdoch’s web strategy. How does that feel?
I know this is going to sound like bullshit, but I really mean it. For me to be able to sit and listen to Rupert and Peter and Roger Ailes (CEO of the Fox News Channel), as well as Jim Gianopulos and Tom Rothman (co-chairmen of the Fox film studio), it's like I'm going to school every day with these industry leaders. Not that I ever really learned anything at school.
It's one thing to be humble. This is quite strange to see a company president proclaim in public that he never learned anything at school.
Then later on Levinsohn was asked:
How do you plan to make to make Fox Interactive Media work with the rest of News Corp.?
So that it doesn't seem like we're buying all these idiotic, disparate businesses, here's the thing that sort of runs throughout what we're doing: We've bought audience, youth and communities that play to the sweet spots of News Corp.’s strengths.
Huh? "idiotic, disparate businesses"? Did he really say that? What did he mean to say?
RUPERT'S WEB RULES Q&A: Murdoch's Web Czar [fortune.com]
Technorati Tags: Fox Internet Media, Myspace, Murdoch
THIS IS WHY I LUV TEH INTARWEB!!!
