these government relations have a depth i'd not have expected. there are men who work far from their families; there are men who are starting theirs. we're all working to improve the economic conditions of this prefecture - one that continues to recess and lose its youth - as the nation as a whole has again resumed its climb. the means may differ, but each project in some way attempts to ensure an environment hospitable to job creation and youth retention.
for me, these things will go on hold as i return home. in spirit, my coworkers are very much with me - though our time's been short, we've already got plans: for texas, for shanghai, and for JETRO.

we fall out onto the streets transformed by the night. but i've got a personal mission from here; and they know it. something they honor and respect.

together, we are many; and i don't feel those disconnections. humanity is all around me.

dad's asking for me. i'm hearing hilary, mom, and grandma's fears. i'll be departing in just under 24hr.

but it's time to pick up and go into the office. they'll be there, shapes not so unaltered from the night before. words we're speaking aren't spoken now, but they're very much still here.

Shimane Arrival

Ned Keys

If you are interested in helping the Keys family financially
you can donate via paypal at the Ezzy Website

Matt & Stephanie are organizing an ice cream social/fundraiser to help Ned out. The Keys family has okayed the idea and it is slated for Sunday August 27th in downtown Harbor Springs.

Checking on Ned

Thanks for Checking on Ned is the name of a blog that Matt, a friend of my Dad's, has created which provides friends with a way to receive and contribute updates on Dad. This is proving to be a more efficient means of communicating - and saving me time so that I can focus on Dad and Dad's recovery/rehabilitation/treatment.

for those friends of mine who are unaware, my family and I are currently battling with a sudden and unexpected illness. my father was diagnosed with an aggressive type of brain cancer and has since undergone neuro surgery. we're now in an acute rehabilitation center - solely focused on winning back dad's independence.

[ニュース] 北朝鮮の真意は？Taep'odong-2 Launch Preparations

ASAHI SHIMBUN (center-left) reports as of 23:42 6/19:
What's The Reason Behind North Korea's Taepodong Missile Preparations? linked-file-source from the International section.

"Will they or won't they attack?"


As both U.S. and Japanese governments consider holding UN Security Council meetings and revisiting economic sanctions, so too will 融和的なS. Korea and China have little choice but to react to the launching of the long-range missiles. Though international calls for self-restraint are self-evident, North Korea continues its tenuous "battle of nerves" to call-out the U.S. for direct negotiations.

[Japanese] Self-Defense Forces and US Forces, Japan, proceed with mutual intelligence-gathering operations:
According to Reuters, a number of US authorities confirm that the Taepodong missiles have been fueled, the Japanese and American governments have not yet formally confirmed this.

ASAHI reports the condition (6/19) of the missiles as:

1) Stage-2 booster rockets confirmed
2) Unclear whether or not warheads have been loaded
3) Stage-1 and 2 boosters are fueled separately via a mobile tank and metal pipe
4) Fueling requires 10-odd hours to complete
5) Risk of launch high once fueled (missiles are usable for up to 3-days owing to the rate with which fuel deteriorates)

S. Korea analyzes North Korea's objective(s) as being:

1) Use crisis to "shake-up" the US
2) Provoke an invitation for direct negotiations
3) Demonstrate the progress of their military technology
4) Focus the attention of its people away from their daily suffering and instead on the notion of National prestige

update 6/20: YOMIURI (center-right) reported at 20:46 on 6/20:
South Korean intelligence judges the fueling of the missiles to be incomplete. The country's intelligence community has observed roughly 40 tanks at the site presumed to hold roughly 65 tons of fuel. This is not believed to be sufficient for missiles' propulsion systems. The report did, however, admit that the missiles' status is difficult to determine.

update 6/20: earlier reports indicating fueling was complete are now believed to be based on incomplete information, the Washington Post says. The same paper hints that this is just another in a long line of North Korean gestures meant to provoke the attention of the world.

The main issue for North Korea is US monetary sanctions (金融制裁):
The country's stability is directly related to the "thinning flow of what might be called 'blood' money." but the US remains persistent in its demand for North Korea to return to the six-party nuclear proliferation talks.

"It's because of the United States' hostile policies that we have little choice but to expand our [self defensive] military power." -North Korea Department of International Affairs

From North Korea's viewpoint, developing missiles is a right of a sovereign nation. For a North Korea seeking nullification of monetary sanctions, reinstating a missle launch moritorium becomes an ingredient for negotiations with the U.S.

This article's author concludes by surmising North Korea's goals also include two other aspects: the display of its military might for the benefit of its citizens and the re-affirming of the union's system.

do you YouTube?

there's a whole host of "post your own video" sites out there;
non-archival quality free streaming video sites like YouTube,
Myspace recently added video hosting functionality, and many more.

so, is copyright infringement and free IP distribution an issue?
what happens to content provider's revenue streams when YouTube users post low-quality feeds of their IP?
there's no standard "preview format."
does viral marketing make-up the difference?
can internet ads target more specifically than traditional regional/local broadcast ads?
whom do our dollars reach?

these questions pop-up and are blocked wherever firefox-using bloggers exist (probably in the Blogosphere* that i keep hearing so much about on my beloved 24-hr News Recycle fest of CNN).

*okay, that links to the NY Times - but [unfortunately] i saw it first on some CNN gabfest (CNN's search engine isn't very good - and couldn't find it)...

anyway, before i get even more side-tracked, here are a few YouTube feeds that got me thinking about this post:
Look Around You: Maths



Hey Clip


now, this is the first time i've ever embedded YouTube (has the levee breached?); and these feeds weren't actively searched out by me. like so many other things on the Internet - you never really have to seek-out content. it is virally brought to your attention.

i thought on my initial viewing of the above feeds that (in respective order):

1) i wouldn't ordinarily be exposed to obscure (to my American sensibilities) British television programming - and thus wouldn't ordinarily be able to ponder that there might be a number bigger than 45,000,000,000 (!).

2) there would be a network of users who - though goofy - exchange adeptly edited video that makes one want to listen to the Pixies.

[Photo] Windsurfing Crooked Lake

Great day of windsurfing today over at Crooked Lake. i was sailing a 6.6 Ezzy (camber inducers and all!) on a 155 GO starboard (courtesy of Windsurf Harbor Springs).

I was working on my jibes and water-starts today...

Dad isn't content with sailing on mere water.
Kenny in a jibe.

[ニュース] 在日米軍再編：Calls for Steadfast Implementation

The two pillars of the new Japanese-American consensus for military security are

• 1) a reduction of around 8000 marines from Okinawa


• 2) moving Futenma Airfield to Camp Schwab

As discussed in a 5/31 editorial published in center-right Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan's largest-circulation daily, 多くの難題がある! While editorials are usually cast as "merely one man's opinion," I believe they serve as valuable indicators of the tone and temper of public debate. It should also be noted that this editorial was chosen to run on the daily's podcast as well (they only read one editorial/day).

Among these problems:

• Guaranteeing nearly 3 trillion yen (~$26.7 billion USD) in reorganization expenses

This total is inclusive of necessary maintenance of the Self-Defense Forces and related equipment. However, the Yomiuri editorial necessitates "rationalization for certain relics of the cold war era." On the other hand, the editorial goes on that as the US Military continues to build maneuverability, rapid-response, and information assimilation capabilities, so too should the SDF address similar attitudes that will foster smooth cooperation between the two (日米). This means efficient reorganization [of the newly integrated SDF - 3月下旬から始まった陸海空3自衛隊の統合], arrangement [of resources], and equipment inspections.


• Planning and scheduling for construction and moving

The issue here is described as being two-fold.
1) National expenditures based on cabinet-level decisions
2) The disconnect between National and Local (Prefectural and/or Municipal bodies)

Citing the case of the Marines in Guam, the editorial calls for a "polite explanation" as to the necessity of national expenditures for overseas American military equipment and related expenses - even while the [Japanese] government proceeds with "important" maintenance legislation.

Okinawa Prefecture felt consultations beforehand were inadequate and opposed the cabinet’s decision.

Thus, the editorial claims, the government must utilize consultations with prefectural and related municipal bodies and with this understanding proceed to quickly determine policies for construction and scheduling.

Incentive packages are written into the current decision, but funds must not be allowed to be scattered among unrelated projects. Here, the editorial cites a promise made in 1999 to invest 100 billion yen ($889 million USD @ 112 ¥/$) in Futenma over ten years, which resulted in yearly projects but produced "no discernable progress" in moving Futenma.

"National expenditures relating to regional incentives share the local burden; it's our contribution."

The editorial supposes that by responding to development plans and subsidizing the various municipal bodies, the scope of understanding will widen.

However, the business degree in me screams inefficient whenever it hears the word, "subsidy."

wind just came up, i'm going windsurfing...

Categories

[Net] We Have a Map of the Internet

これは結構面白くない？
I came across this sweet little JAVA app through a story over at Monkey Bites that linked to Sala's Aharef Blog. i've seen this type of website mapping application before, but this one has some pretty slick animation and is a snap to run. Try running it on your own site here.

there are probably more robust mapping apps out there; but Sala's represents HTML tags according to the following scheme:

This is the key for the final output:
blue: for links (the A tag)
red: for tables (TABLE, TR and TD tags)
green: for the DIV tag
violet: for images (the IMG tag)
yellow: for forms (FORM, INPUT, TEXTAREA, SELECT and OPTION tags)
orange: for linebreaks and blockquotes (BR, P, and BLOCKQUOTE tags)
black: the HTML tag, the root node
gray: all other tags

here's the Tokyo Wave:


a new project of mine over at .MAC:


my first website: