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<DIV>I haven’t read any reports, whether it is claimed there is no danger
outside the evacuation radius or not, that said the situation was under control.
The US govt has been suspicious of the reports coming from JPN govt/TEPCO, which
is why I think the NRC chair went public with his misgivings. After that, Kan or
someone, allowed US assistance. However, the NRC now believes the TEPCO
employees have made significant progress. That’s the reporting we’re seeing
now.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Many minds in the crowdsource intelligentsia are focused on what’s
happening with cooling the plants. It will be interesting to read what is said
when they turn their attention to long term effects.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Guess I can’t speak for everyone on all listserves but I don’t think
calling the US media out on bad or alarmist reporting equals an ostrich like
attitude towards a story that isn’t over yet. </DIV>
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<DIV style="font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A title=murphy7312@ufl.edu
href="mailto:murphy7312@ufl.edu">Joseph Murphy</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Sunday, March 20, 2011 11:40 PM</DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=KineJapan@lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
href="mailto:KineJapan@lists.acs.ohio-state.edu">KineJapan@lists.acs.ohio-state.edu</A>
</DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> Is US media sensationalizing the nuclear
angle</DIV></DIV></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV></DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT-STYLE: normal; DISPLAY: inline; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000; FONT-SIZE: small; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: none">Dear
Colleagues,
<DIV>One of the most interesting things about being in Japan during a global
event, is seeing the difference between how it is reported in Japan, and how it
is reported in Europe and America. I've heard, from many of my colleagues
in the Japan studies field, a similar take, that the US media is overplaying the
nuclear angle. I'm no fan of the US media, but as an engineer, I am frankly
appalled. If article after article, and expert after expert are asserting
that there is absolutely no danger outside the immediate vicinity, they
are wrong. While the acute effects of a worst-case scenario involving
catastrophic release of gamma radiation would be confined to a 20-30 km radius,
the possible long-term effects are serious, and reach much further. You've
got 3 different primary contaminants (iodine, cesium, strontium), with 3
different half-lives, and 2 different possible ways of diffusion (air and
water). In a serious meltdown, airborne contamination could certainly
reach Tokyo within hours, depending on prevailing winds (do we really want to
put our eggs in the offshore wind basket), contaminants fall on the ground where
they are absorbed by plants, animals eat the plants, it's in the food supply,
popping up potentially anywhere in the country, for years. This is not a
one in a million scenario, it was one in twenty at times last week for Fukushima
Dai-ichi.
<DIV>That's largely iodine contamination, which dissipates to safe levels in 6
months. Cesium and Strontium, with much longer half-lives, are around for
100's of years at dangerous levels. The cesium and strontium plume from
Chernobyl is currently nearing the Kiev water table. The lump of
radioactive material from a meltdown sits there for centuries. The
surrounding 30 km area would be a no-persons' land.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>The engineers at Fukushima Dai-ichi worked heroically, they have so much
pride in their plants they will risk their lives, but the fact that multiple
personnel died, and 50+ endured life-threatening levels of radiation, say
clearly that this was not under control. The industry plans based on
insurance actuarial tables for 100 year scenarios, that is the legal obligation
to their shareholders. Then a 1000 year scenario visits, as geological
time is likely to do. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Anyway, unlike Hurricane Andrew, unlike Katrina, unlike the earthquake and
tsunami in Indonesia, the relief effort in Japan was compounded over the first
week by an escalating, potentially catastrophic nuclear crisis, that could
itself affect all aspects of recovery, from infrastructure to food
production. The downplaying of this I've seen on Japan studies lists which
20 years ago would have been resolutely anti-nuclear is fascinating.
Possibly a tactical downplaying because of the way this could be used to ramp up
fossil-fuel consumption, maybe a theoretical problem with seeing Japan's natural
disasters as "particularly" technical. But they don't seem to proceed from
a serious analysis of the situation at the plant.</DIV>
<DIV>yours,</DIV>
<DIV>J. Murphy</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV>On Mar 18, 2011, at 4:23 AM, Lindsay Nelson wrote:</DIV><BR
class=Apple-interchange-newline>
<BLOCKQUOTE type="cite">As someone who has been in Tokyo since August
(currently in Kyoto to have a bit of a break from the aftershocks), I can say
a few things.<BR><BR>1. The nuclear power plant story is being ridiculously
sensationalized in the American media. Article after article and expert after
expert have declared that there is absolutely no danger to anyone outside the
immediate vicinity of the plant, and yet the major news outlets ignore these
stories and continue to vamp up the fear. Worse, they do this at the expense
of reporting on the real crisis, which is the 400,000 + people in the
northeast who have limited food, water, and shelter and are already dying as a
result. <BR><BR>2. Many people have made the decision to leave--at least
temporarily--for a variety of reasons. Aftershocks were constant for the first
24 hours after the quake, and they continue even now. I personally have not
slept much at all for the past week--partially because of the stress of the
aftershocks, and partially because I have been dealing with frantic, panicked
family members who were horrified that I hadn't fled the city. I also worried
about blackouts as my only heater is electric, it's getting very cold, and
kerosene / space heaters are completely sold out. I've left for a few days to
get some sleep and try to re-group, but I plan to return. The bottom line is
that even if there is no danger from the power plant, there are plenty of
other reasons why people might choose to leave. And given the changing nature
of the power plant situation and the huge amount of conflicting information
available, I can understand why some people would be concerned enough to
leave. <BR><BR>3. Regarding film archives and screenings--for the most
part it's business as usual in Tokyo. The scheduled blackouts have been
avoided so far because people are doing a great job of conserving energy. Some
universities have postponed classes and some smaller companies have shut down
to allow their employees to spend time with their families, but most places
are up and running. Very few Japanese are leaving the city (the shinkansen
were crowded today as I headed for Kyoto, but Monday is a national holiday, so
that's not too surprising). If regular blackouts become a necessity this will
of course impact daily life considerably, but for now other than slightly
reduced train service, a gasoline shortage, and shortages of items like bread,
milk, and rice (really just the result of over-buying, not an actual
shortage), Tokyo seems pretty normal to me. <BR><BR>I provide informal updates
about the situation on the ground and links to helpful articles at <A
href="http://gradland.wordpress.com">http://gradland.wordpress.com</A>.<BR><BR>--Lindsay
Nelson<BR><BR>
<DIV class=gmail_quote>On Fri, Mar 18, 2011 at 12:03 AM, Quentin Turnour <SPAN
dir=ltr><<A
href="mailto:Quentin.Turnour@nfsa.gov.au">Quentin.Turnour@nfsa.gov.au</A>></SPAN>
wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="BORDER-LEFT: rgb(204,204,204) 1px solid; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; PADDING-LEFT: 1ex"
class=gmail_quote><BR><FONT size=2 face=sans-serif>William,</FONT>
<BR><BR><FONT size=2 face=sans-serif>Perhaps to shift things just to the
issue of film archives...Thanks for your great and thoughtful post, Odd also
considering I've just spent the morning doing a run through of the NFC's
35mm print of the SHINGUN/MARCHING ON and also reading your great on-line
article about this unusual early Showa silent. </FONT><BR><BR><FONT size=2
face=sans-serif>Literarily a few minutes after your post came up, Kae
Ishihara at the Film Preservation Society posted an email and link to
English-speaking FPS members </FONT><TT><FONT size=2><A
href="http://www.homemovieday.jp/English/latest-news/"
target=_blank>http://www.homemovieday.jp/English/latest-news/</A><BR><BR></FONT></TT><FONT
size=2 face=sans-serif>In the last few days I've had some contact with her,
Akira Tochigi at the NFC and a few others in the Japanese screen culture
community (such as Fujioka Asako of the Yamagata Doco festival - a cultural
event which of course takes place within a prefecture once removed but still
very close to the tragedy of the tsunami). But Kae's email is a great
summary of what's happening with the NFC and regional film archives, and
even some Japanese film industry matters - Sony's HDCam tape plant was at
Sendai, for example.</FONT> <BR><BR><FONT size=2 face=sans-serif>As I
alluded to, ironically we've been doing a season here of 1920s Japanese
silents from the NFC and Matsuda, and the reconstruction of the Kanto area
post-1923 obviously looms as a sub-text in many of the films we were
screening... Or as a text on some of the mid-1920s Ministry of Education
Tokyo reconstruction films, such as the eccentric PUBLIC MANNERS TOKYO
SIGHTSEEING (...which has led us to making the decision to postponed a
screening of these films). </FONT><BR><BR><FONT size=2 face=sans-serif>Our
program included a visit by the benshi Mr. Kotoaka Ichiro, who bravely went
ahead with a performance of his final session only minutes after getting the
news of the earthquake and then had some difficulties getting back to Tokyo
from Australia the following day. We are currently ben asked to hold the
prints from this series for the NFC until advised; as the FPS's site
indicate it seems not so much that their facilities have been damaged, but
shipping services are still unreliable, power is a problem and staff simply
have having trouble getting to work</FONT> <BR><BR><FONT size=2
face=sans-serif>Finally, and noting the debate that your email inadvertently
sparked over foreign perceptions... Those who know some of the history of
what happened in the wake of Great Kanto will remember that immediate
international goodwill degenerated badly in mutual recrimination in the
weeks and months following; especially in Japanese-US relations. Whilst some
of this had to do with the coming of US legislation restricting Japanese
immigration, the beginnings of militant nationalism, and a
trickle of international press accounts of bad Japanese official behaviour
(especially of the anti-Korean pogroms), lets hope the same thing doesn't
happen again.</FONT> <BR><BR><BR><BR><FONT size=2 face=sans-serif>Quentin
Turnour, Programmer, <BR>Access, Research and Development<BR>National Film
and Sound Archive, Australia<BR>McCoy Circuit, Acton, <BR>ACT, 2601
AUSTRALIA<BR>phone: +61 2 6248 2054 | fax: + 61 2 6249
8159<BR><A href="http://www.nfsa.gov.au"
target=_blank>www.nfsa.gov.au</A><BR><BR>The National Film and Sound Archive
collects, preserves and provides access to Australia's historic and
contemporary moving image and recorded sound culture.
<BR><BR><BR></FONT><BR><BR><BR>
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<TD width="40%"><FONT size=1 face=sans-serif><B><A
href="mailto:ReelDrew@aol.com" target=_blank>ReelDrew@aol.com</A></B>
</FONT><BR><FONT size=1 face=sans-serif>Sent by: <A
href="mailto:owner-KineJapan@lists.acs.ohio-state.edu"
target=_blank>owner-KineJapan@lists.acs.ohio-state.edu</A></FONT>
<P><FONT size=1 face=sans-serif>18/03/2011 02:27 PM</FONT> </P>
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<DIV align=center><FONT size=1 face=sans-serif>Please respond to
<DIV class=im><BR><A
href="mailto:KineJapan@lists.acs.ohio-state.edu"
target=_blank>KineJapan@lists.acs.ohio-state.edu</A></DIV></FONT></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><BR></TD>
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<DIV align=right><FONT size=1 face=sans-serif>To</FONT></DIV></TD>
<TD>
<DIV class=im><FONT size=1 face=sans-serif><A
href="mailto:KineJapan@lists.acs.ohio-state.edu"
target=_blank>KineJapan@lists.acs.ohio-state.edu</A></FONT>
</DIV></TD></TR>
<TR vAlign=top>
<TD>
<DIV align=right><FONT size=1 face=sans-serif>cc</FONT></DIV></TD>
<TD></TD></TR>
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<TD>
<DIV align=right><FONT size=1
face=sans-serif>Subject</FONT></DIV></TD>
<TD><FONT size=1 face=sans-serif>the eerie silence on KineJapan
is maddening!</FONT></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><BR>
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<TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><BR></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><BR><BR><BR><FONT
size=2 face=Arial> </FONT> <BR>
<DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV class=h5><FONT size=2 face=Arial>I have been a member of KineJapan for
the last ten years. I joined originally out of a need to obtain translations
of the intertitles of Japanese silents on VHS in my collection. I am very
grateful to those members on KineJapan who aided me and made it possible for
me to, among other things, write an article on Hiroshi Shimizu that is
published on Midnight Eye.</FONT> <BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial> </FONT>
<BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial>Since then, I have regularly received almost
daily the messages that have been posted here. In all honesty, a large
number--perhaps the majority, in fact--have been of limited interest to me
inasmuch as they tend to deal with contemporary Japanese films. Consistent
with my enthusiasm for films in other countries, including my own, produced
in earlier decades, it is my interest in the Japanese cinema of the past,
especially the films of the 1920s and 1930s, that has been of consuming
interest to me. Nevertheless, from time to time issues involving those
golden years do come up here.</FONT> <BR><FONT size=2
face=Arial> </FONT> <BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial>However, whether or not
the topic has been of particular interest to me, I have always valued the
fact that KineJapan has always been there, an extremely valuable resource to
be consulted when needed. Never before since I've been here did this group
shut down. Certainly, it was very active right through the events of 9/11 as
were other film discussion groups in which I participated.</FONT> <BR><FONT
size=2 face=Arial> </FONT> <BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial>Since the tragic
events that began a week ago, though, this place has suddenly turned into a
ghost town. Aside from a very limited amount of posts specifically on the
topic of the tsunami, there has been absolutely nothing here. No one has
even bothered to post how things are going on in Tokyo, while all sorts of
wild, apocalyptic rumors circulate unchecked in the US that Tokyo is about
to become irradiated, that it may be doomed. I believe a few welcome posts
here from knowledgeable people in the Japanese capital might help to clarify
the situation and perhaps alleviate some of these fears. </FONT><BR><FONT
size=2 face=Arial> </FONT> <BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial>I have had a
consuming obsession with early Japanese cinema for the last 36 years. In
trying to interest people in the West in this topic and to recognize the
value of Japanese films from those years, I have long had to confront an
enormous amount of indifference and insensitivity to these achievements by
too many in America and elsewhere in the outside world. It has taken so long
to bring attention to these films here. Indeed, it was only this January
that the premier venue for classic cinema in the United States, Turner
Classic Movies, after being on the air for 17 years, finally presented three
Japanese silents--Ozu's famous masterpieces, "Tokyo Chorus," "I Was Born,
But. . .," and "Passing Fancy." So it is only very recently that this
neglected period of Japanese film is just starting to receive some
recognition here.</FONT> <BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial> </FONT> <BR><FONT
size=2 face=Arial>Given this obession of mine, I would very much like to
know how the archives and other collections of Japanese cinema are coping
with the current crisis in Tokyo. Are they able to function normally in
their work of preservation considering the power blackouts etc.? If there
really should be an evacuation of the capital, has there been discussion of
removing films and other cultural treasures from Tokyo to Kyoto, a much
safer city and which I personally feel should be restored to the position of
Japan's capital? </FONT><BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial> </FONT> <BR><FONT
size=2 face=Arial>As to whether now is the proper time to discuss the
preservation of culture in view of the terrible loss of life and the
continuing threat, I believe that, far from being at odds or incompatible,
the preservation of human life and humanity's cultural heritage are
inseparable. The heroic people of Egypt have shown all of us the way
recently in this area. During a time of turmoil in which a corrupt,
discredited dictatorship was attempting to hang on to power by employing
ruthless methods against the protestors, demonstrators courageously appeared
to form human chains around the Library in Alexandria and the Egyptian
Museum in Cairo to protect these treasures of our history. I would hope
that, should it ever become necessary, a similar sense of cultural
responsibility will be demonstrated in other countries, including Japan. The
heritage of Japan, including its film history, is the common property not
just of one country but indeed, the legacy of all the people of the
earth.</FONT> <BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial> </FONT> <BR><FONT size=2
face=Arial>In all those non-Western countries that the West chose to lump
together as "Oriental," for much of the 20th century the four most
significant in terms of creating outstanding cinemas in the first half of
the last century were Japan, China, India, and Egypt. This preeminence in
the new art of film was emblematic of these nations' continuing cultural
leadership in the modern world. In terms of documenting and preserving the
national film heritage, however, Egypt under the Mubarak regime was
scandalous. The Egyptian film archive was by far the worst run in the entire
world, mismanaged by members of Mubarak's family. So neglected was the state
of the archive that it was a common sight to see rats crawling out of cans
of film in the vaults. The situation with the Egyptian archive was thus
symptomatic of the larger ills afflicting the society under the corrupt
regime that ruled Egypt for thirty years. Needless to say, with the present
rebirth of Egypt through revolution there is a far greater hope that the
glories of Egyptian cinema from its bright beginnings in the silent era to
the achievements of later decades will be at last properly preserved.</FONT>
<BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial> </FONT> <BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial>While
the infrastructure of Japan including its archives can hardly compare to its
counterparts in Egypt in the Mubarak years, there has nevertheless been a
steady decline in Japan in the two decades since the economic bubble burst
in the early 1990s. Egypt is now trying to recover from a social disaster,
Japan from a natural one exacerbated, it seems, by a variant of the same
corruption and cronyism that long afflicted Egypt. I think Japan, like
Egypt, will need to transform itself anew, but as with Egypt, that
transformation must be solidly based on the preservation and dissemination
of past achievements including a glorious legacy of early cinema.
Consequently, in addition to my general concern at the eerie silence that
has suddenly taken over KineJapan, as though all its members have been
struck dumb, I would in particular like to know how the film archives and
other institutions consecrated to cinema history in Japan are faring during
the present crisis.</FONT> <BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial> </FONT>
<BR><FONT size=2 face=Arial>William M. Drew </FONT><BR><FONT size=2
face=Arial> </FONT>
<BR></DIV></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV><BR></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
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<DIV><>---<>----<>-----<>------<></DIV>
<DIV>Assoc. Professor and Assoc. Chair</DIV>
<DIV>Dept. of Languages, Literatures and Cultures</DIV>
<DIV>University of Florida</DIV>
<DIV>Gainesville, FL 32601-5565</DIV>
<DIV><A
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