First Openly Gay Politician Elected in Japan

Taiga Ishikawa, 36, has become the first openly gay person elected to public office in Japan.

Acording to Agence France Press:

"I hope my election victory will help our fellows nationwide to have hope for tomorrow, as many of them cannot accept themselves, feel lonely and isolated and even commit suicide," he told AFP.

Ishikawa, 36, won a seat in a Tokyo ward assembly in local elections on Sunday. Prior to his victory, no openly homosexual politician had won office in Japan.

[...]

Ishikawa disclosed that he is gay in his autobiographical "Boku No Kareshi Wa Doko Ni Iru" (Where Is My Boyfriend?)," published in 2002.

"Many readers of my book told me that they are isolated and the situation I wrote about in the book is so similar to theirs. So I started to host events that offer opportunities to have links with friends," Ishikawa said.

He founded the non-profit organisation "Peer Friends", which hosts events in Japanese cities to provide young gay men with opportunities to meet other gays.

Since February 2010, he has served as a private secretary to Mizuho Fukushima, the leader of the Social Democratic Party, a small opposition group.

It still amazes me that we are recognizing historic firsts in the LGBT community in 2011.

Hat/tip to TowleRoad.

Awesome Robot Movie Trailer: Yakuza Weapon

So this trailer features a dildo, a man throwing fireworks at people, and a giant sex robot who detaches her head and uses her neck as an automated weapon.  Need I say more?  Maybe not, but I will anyway.  The film is apparently based on a comic by Ken Ishikawa.  Most surprising of all for me is that the Japanese word for Yakuza apparently is not "Yakuza".  Someone correct me if I'm wrong.  (via Topless Robot)

Solidarity For Japan in The Wake of Earthquake

As we all know, an earthquake with an epicenter off the coast of Japan has caused enormous damage to the nation and threatens to cause further damage to nations with significant Pacific Ocean coastlines in the form of tsunamis.  The 8.9 on the Richter scale quake is the most significant (on the scale) quake in recorded Japanese history and one of the most significant in Earth history.  Let me take this opportunity to express solidarity with the people of the great nation of Japan and hope for other affected nations as well.

Japanese road "unzipped" by earthquake.  Via neatorama.

In Actual Robot News: The Humanoid Cell Phone

Ever feel like the one thing missing from a cell phone conversation is the ability to see how the person on the other end is reacting to your words... played out in the form of a frightening alien robot entity in your hands?  If the answer to that question is a resounding "Yes" then you need to put this humanoid telepresence robot for the cellphone on your list of things to purchase this year.  The "robot" is actually still in development, but essentially it is a handheld version of a "telepresence robot" that I blogged about a couple of months ago.  The robot is able to interpret the visual cues from video images of the person on the other side of the line and act them out for you and in front of you.  Not entirely sure why this is better than a simple video phone or cam chat, except that both of those are much less creepy than the legless doll robot in the video below...  Anyways, just watch it... and don't blame me if you have nightmares tonight.  (via Holy Taco)

80s Fashion Trend: The Yamamoto Kansai Sweater

Many trendy things in the 80s would be considered very egregious today: just watch any 80s movie and you will yourself grabbing your sides in laughter at the hairstyles, sneakers, etc.  But one fashion trend that at least is open to debate is the infamous Yamamoto Kansai sweater, which I only recently learned about when I happened to hear it mentioned in a music video (can you guess which one)?  Something about the make of the sweaters lets you know right away that the designer is Japanese, and is also walking the thin line between tasteful and fashion peril.  Not easy to find images of these sweaters, but trust me when I say that in the 70s and 80s Yamamoto Kansai was a designer to be reckoned with; he even designed many of the stage outfits for David Bowie... but that is a story for another time.