Here we go again...

[wagyl]

My biggest fear is actually to be "caught with my pants down" in a major disaster...

Get your Holeproofs....

If you are going to continue with the obscure references, at least link the (fifth generation copy with data compression artefacts) youtube.

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

My biggest fear is actually to be "caught with my pants down" in a major disaster...

Get your Holeproofs....

If you are going to continue with the obscure references, at least link the (fifth generation copy with data compression artefacts) youtube.

You're right...in which case, I probably should have posted this one...

(Or the original with the bloke on the window ledge, but I can't find it...)

[GomiGirl]

My biggest fear is actually to be "caught with my pants down" in a major disaster...

Get your Holeproofs....

Maybe I just need to start going "commando" so there is no danger of this. Or if a major disaster happens, my pants may not be any use anyway.. It is lunch time so of course cue in the poo talk.

[Coligny]

Yes but how can you go commando and wear those fart filters ?

Or maybe a tampoon up your butt... I have to try this... the day I find tampoon in this country...

Hey ! would tampoon work when you have the run ?

I have to patent that idea...

already got a name for the brand :
"Green Tide" for those time of the day where the porcelaine god was your only accepted saviour...

(i soooo want a gargoyle shaped loo like in ghoulies 3... (ghoulies go to college, the french dubbed version was a masterpiece, it's funny to see how french dubing of normal movie totally ruin them, but in case of parody/satire movies they are enhanced by a factor of aplenty...)

bon appetit tout le mode...

[yanpa]

I hereby propose "Coligny's Law": "As an online discussion grows longer, the probability of a thread devolving into fart-related topics approaches 1"

Back on topic - sort of - could "Rollingwagon" be making veiled threats?

Hello, thanks for your comments. I am trying to rewrite the article, based on your suggestions, but I can't find it. Where did it go? What proof is there of copyright violations? I have another question, concerning a number of damaging claims made in public about the reliability and credibility of senior journalists. Have Wikipedia editors ever been charged with libel, or defaming persons such as journalists? Thanks again Rollingwagon (talk) 03:36, 25 October 2012 (UTC)

It seems Huon thinks (for some reason I just can't imagine) that there's a connection between "Rollingstone" and a certain

The draft was blanked because it was a likely copyright violation. It was a word-for-word copy of the Amazon biography. Rather surprisingly, that biography has now changed. I have no idea what happened to it, or what Wikipedia guidelines have to say about that. I'm no legal expert, but I don't think copyright vanishes just because the original text is no longer available online.
To my knowledge no editors have ever been charged with libel - at least, not successfully. We take libel seriously; that's why we insist that biographies of living persons must be based on the best sources available - reliable sources that are independent of the subject. Content that isn't based on reliable sources may be removed outright.
You might also want to have a look at our policy on legal threats. Given your past claims about my supposed bias and our disagreement about various sources' reliability or lack thereof, one might read that as a veiled threat that I might find myself sued for libel. Huon (talk) 04:09, 25 October 2012 (UTC)

For reasons I can't imagine, Huon has come up with the crazy idea that "Rollingwagon" might be connected with a certain war correspondent whose brother "is best known as front man for Canadian rock band Big Sugar and Austin, Texas-based rock band Grady":

Regarding Reuters: I don't think they are unreliable, I think they don't say what we cite them for. They don't even mention Johnson - how can we take that as verification of the claim that Johnson supplied those photos? I could just as well claim those photos were supplied not by Johnson, but by John Doe - prove me wrong! In fact, for all I can tell not even Johnson made the claim that he supplied the photos - I only read so in our draft. That makes me wonder: Are you by any chance Christopher Johnson? If so, you might want to read our guideline on conflicts of interest: Writing an autobiography is strongly discouraged.

[Level3]

Well, this "rollingwagon" character is certainly damaging CJ's reputation with editors at the biggest reference site on the planet. Certainly this is more serious than being written about on a Japan blog or 3 frequented by maybe a few hundred expats that your editors and colleagues will never read anyway.

I expect CJ to denounce and threaten to sue "rollingwagon" ASAP.

What? He hasn't done so yet? Maybe he has mellowed out?

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

Well, this "rollingwagon" character is certainly damaging CJ's reputation with editors at the biggest reference site on the planet. Certainly this is more serious than being written about on a Japan blog or 3 frequented by maybe a few hundred expats that your editors and colleagues will never read anyway.

I expect CJ to denounce and threaten to sue "rollingwagon" ASAP.

What? He hasn't done so yet? Maybe he has mellowed out?

Is there any greater wanker than a slighted, two-bit journo?

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

Foreigner to the right looks familiar...

[Level3]

You mean he doesn't really have green hair?

What's this from? Some kind of dolphin-hugger event?
10:1 odds he's walking around without any ID.
Besides, if he "saves dolphins" by walking around Shibuya(?) people won't ask for their money back.

[yanpa]

You mean he doesn't really have green hair?

Presumably he's going incognito.

What's this from? Some kind of dolphin-hugger event?

The placard on the right reads "イルカ猟", so I guess it's not the annual "Foreign Residents Express Their Support For The Immigration System" rally.

Location is definitely Shibuya, EXIF data from the JPEG file says the creation date is "2012:11:24 14:15:52".

[GomiGirl]

Isn't part of his bail requirements that he not leave Kanagawa?

[yanpa]

The only source I've seen for that information is our intrepid Asia War Correspondent, Christopher Johnson. Below is the pinch of salt with which I take any statements from that source.

ferde-licking-salt-block.jpg

[wagyl]

Foreigner to the right looks familiar...

No one else has said that which should have been said first off:

Nice find!

[Taro Toporific]

Foreigner to the right looks familiar...

No one else has said that which should have been said first off:

Nice find!

MQ Todd shows up twice in that group of photos from the Subculture Research Center.

Japanese Citizens Protest Against Japan’s Dolphin Hunting and Whale "Research"
Japan Subculture Research Center | by Nathalie-Kyoko Stucky and JAKE ADELSTEIN Nov. 25, 2012

MQT-additional-photo.jpg

[yanpa]

michael-q-todd-dolphins.png

http://www.japansubculture.com/japanese ... ment-22549

[legion]

personally I prefer pork

to pork barrel aquatic mammal meat

[GomiGirl]

The dolphins love us?

I wanna have some of what he has been smokin'.

[Russell]

The dolphins love us?

I wanna have some of what he has been smokin'.

You already forgot that post, did you?!?

[wagyl]

Compare and contrast.....

michael-q-todd-dolphins.png

http://www.japansubculture.com/japanese ... ment-22549

Michael Q Todd says:
November 25, 2012 at 4:28 pm

Great report. Thank you. Our march was a success and daily momentum will eventually end this atrocity.
Dolphins feel and express love and they love us.

and

Via JapanProbe:

Hi
Just got out of the immigration detention center.
This has been an interesting read and I have learned a fair bit. Thanks for all the information and advice.
Seems like some well meaning but not fully informed friends of mine have donated some money to help me. I have just found out about this and will send it back as soon as I can. I do not need the money and certainly would never ask for it.
Am happy to answer any questions but will say this in the hope of clearing a few things up
1. I have not overstayed my visa and my ability to live in Japan is in no danger
2. I never got any money to work as an interpreter, was never offered any and never asked for any
3. I am not associated with an activist group of any type
4. I love Japan and it seems that most of you do too! Good on you for that
Michael

Emphasis mine.
It may just come down to semantics as to what a person means by the word "activist." I am not going to be a dick about this and read anything into it, it just strikes me as interesting.

[Russell]

Just wondering, but why don't you all give the guy some breathing room?

It is not as if he is attacking you, ain't it? He appears to be on a different scale than CJ.

Not that I wish to defend the guy, but it continues to amaze me how stressed some people here are about others' less-than-perfect-behavior. Now, if he would come after you, that would be another story, then it is time to fight back, but I remember that in the case of CJ, some of the people here cowered out in that case (not mentioning names).

[wagyl]

I understand where you are coming from to a degree. However, in my view, the commentary, on this site at least, has been pretty understanding towards the chap.

The thing is, he keeps living his life in the public sphere. If this had happened to me, and I think most people here are the same, I would be keeping my head down and keeping off the internet for a while. In fact, I know that one or two members here have been caught up in public events and not broadcast it here. Sure, it is harder for him because he is "a web 2.0 entrepreneur" but even so, that does not require him to make sloppy commentary on Jake Adelstein's site.

The photographs were unfortunate for him. But I would have resisted the temptation to draw further attention to myself. If he stops making himself news, the internet will move on to the next topic.

It is also unfortunate that this episode had so many parallels with CJ's case, and then the flyjin fundraising cases. We are naturally concerned about Immigration issues and want to hear what we can about them. Perhaps he is restricted in how he can answer, since his case may be pending (we only have CJ's word about that though). But the way he answers, and the comparisons with other public statements he has made elsewhere on the internet, that is fair game in my view.

My advice to anyone here caught in a similar situation: you might think we are trolls. The standard advice there is don't feed us. We don't actually have a personal interest in attacking you, you just keep making yourself a juicy target. Become boring and we will move on.

[Level3]

It is a difficult line.
It's nice to see he isn't a litigious psychopath with a long history of threatening people with violence.
But then, most people aren't.

The meat of the story is his visa problem and whether we gaijin should all be concerned.
A secondary issue is whether there really is a conspiracy by the Japanese government to imprison political protesters on BS charges.

So, it goes right back to the CJ issue. Is this guy's story true?
Easily disproven lies make the whole story less believable.falsus in uno falsus in omnibus I think it's obvious that he isn't giving a complete, honest account of what happened. There are lots of little lies, lots of amazing claims of terrible luck (which most people call "being disorganized"..perhaps even deliberately so) and we all know (including Todd) that Immigration can never give their side of the story due to privacy laws...

I think most people will wind up thinking this is much ado about nothing. Just another lying white guy who perhaps thinks the rules of life don't apply to him, making excuses to cover up his own mistakes. Nothing new.

It's the part where we found out he's basically living as a bum and proud of it that made this into more of a tabloid story and gave it legs - that I'm semi-ashamed to be interested in.
The fact that he is blatantly using the fish-huggers, hoping to somehow make social media money off them? I find amusing. He already got $6000.. If he's putting himself into situations where he can try that appeal for "donations" again..what am I to think?

Though if we're thinking about being compassionate, why isn't he? He could be using this experience to help fellow gaijin avoid his fate by giving an honest account. He hasn't yet.
Now, of course - If this situation is his fault, we can't really expect him to publicly admit breaking the law. So some evasiveness is understandable. He should have just shut up, never made an appeal for cash in the first place..especially if he knew he was going to get a "Get Out of Jail Free" Card (AKA a marriage visa) all along anyway and restricted his blogging to "no comment"

But it doesn't mean it gives him the right to go beyond "no comment" and blame everything on the system and political persecution while hiding behind a photo of a smiling dolphin. That is disinformation. That doesn't help anyone but himself.

[matsuki]

Sorta relates but I was in Omotesando yesterday, nice and crowded, when the spastic drumming and the "WTF are they saying?" noise of the anti-nuclear crowd came marching down the street. Of course, as usual, they were surrounded by police and there was a small crew of officers running along side of them picking up and moving cones as they marched. No matter how many times I see this shit, I can't help but laugh...but this time it was even better as the children walking by were literally pointing and calling it a "parade." I figured at least a few poor fellows that lost everything and having their claims denied by TEPCO would go jihad on them by now. Even the latest NHK video about the radiation showed how poorly the gov't (both local and federal) is handling the clean up and TEPCO denying people's claims.

[Dreamy_Peach]

tl;dr it all, but I did note that our hero, whose colleague Nelson Rand survived being shot three times during the Red Shirt Rebellion in Bangkok, ran out of the shower and watched the magnitude 9.0 earthquake shake his Japanese-style home for about 4 minutes on March 11, 2011.

Given his lifestyle, he was probably just out of bed and having a shower when the quake hit.

My biggest fear is actually to be "caught with my pants down" in a major disaster...

I too was curious at this, remembering from my own brave and valiant experience that the earthquake was sometime in the afternoon.

I then recalled an experience from my friend who described the sloshing of the water in the bathtub as he and his mistress enjoyed an afternoon relaxation. He is perhaps a braver man than I, even though I'm also very brave.

[legion]

Just wondering, but why don't you all give the guy some breathing room?

It is not as if he is attacking you, ain't it? He appears to be on a different scale than CJ.

Not that I wish to defend the guy, but it continues to amaze me how stressed some people here are about others' less-than-perfect-behavior. Now, if he would come after you, that would be another story, then it is time to fight back, but I remember that in the case of CJ, some of the people here cowered out in that case (not mentioning names).

cos it's fun

[Level3]

tl;dr it all, but I did note that our hero, whose colleague Nelson Rand survived being shot three times during the Red Shirt Rebellion in Bangkok, ran out of the shower and watched the magnitude 9.0 earthquake shake his Japanese-style home for about 4 minutes on March 11, 2011...

..then kept running away from the disaster rather than toward it (like one might expect a brave, battle-scarred war reporter would) and then filed a bullshit report full of exaggerations and sensationalism by telephone from very far away.. then set about fleeing Japan for good.

sorry, had to finish that sentence with some facts. Oh, and "ran out of the shower" should probably be changed to "stumbled in a foggy hangover out of the shower"

and

"his Japanese-style home "

"his"? He owned it? And don't people living in truly Japanese-style homes take baths, not showers?

My tale of mid-quake "bravery" is far more boring, but then I am restricted by this thing called "honesty" and the fact that I was doing what 99% of the population was doing at the time..working. That already puts us way ahead of a semi-employed drifter.
Though my Panicky Phone Call(TM) was quite a reverse case..I was panicking to tell my family to not believe the bullshit in the English language news and not to cancel their expensive air tickets, not to worry and to come to Kansai in late March as planned. If they had bought into the lies of "professional journalists" trying to get attention by making up the most sensational story "EVERYONE LEFT TOKYO!!" , they would have lost thousands of dollars for nothing. Turns out they had great flights both ways, lots of space to stretch out, free upgrades, etc. because so many people did fall for the lies.

My tales of "colleagues" being awesome? CJ got nothing on me. And I even restrict my definition of "colleague" to people who actually know me, not just someone in the same line of work who I maybe met once at a party.

[yanpa]

For reference, the above quotes attributed to myself were taken from Wikipedia user "Rollingwagon"'s rejected Christopher Johnson entry.

"his Japanese-style home "

"his"? He owned it? And don't people living in truly Japanese-style homes take baths, not showers?

Every time I read that phrase, I imagine some poorly-insulated mid-Showa plywood-and-mortar shack (with tatami in almost every room! so Japanese!) of the type one's partner might have "inherited" from an elderly relative.

My tale of mid-quake "bravery" is far more boring, but then I am restricted by this thing called "honesty" and the fact that I was doing what 99% of the population was doing at the time..working.

99% of the population? A slight overestimate, but I see what you mean I too am not a one-percenter and was bravely holding some servers in place (as I didn't want to spend the weekend fixing them). Moreover it meant I got to experience the Long March Home, which is something CJ (who is 'credited for songwriting on "Where I Stand" and "Round-and-Around" on Big Sugar's album "Heated"') presumably missed out on, even though I'm sure it would have made for some interesting journalism.

[Coligny]

you had it easy... i had to clean cat shit all over the place...

[yanpa]

I thought that was pretty much your day job.

[sublight]

My tales of "colleagues" being awesome? CJ got nothing on me. And I even restrict my definition of "colleague" to people who actually know me, not just someone in the same line of work who I maybe met once at a party.

My awesome colleague was the producer whose panic reaction was to grab the disco ball we keep by our entrance and try to run it down the six flights of the fire escape. Fortunately (since the ball is covered in rough pieces of cut glass), he had a moment of clarity at the top of the stairs and decided to leave it behind.

My own heroics were limited to emptying the coffee urn into the sink before heading downstairs again when the first major aftershock hit about 30 minutes later. The first quake had knocked over the water cooler and a bunch of other things, so preventing that from spilling seemed like a smart idea at the time.