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An ATS member reports from central Tokyo: Part 2

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posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:33 PM
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reply to post by luminaut
 



extreme t&c violation!




aha! with no points taken off!

thanks for the pics silent thunder, it gives people a better perspective.



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:33 PM
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Welcome back Silent Thunder, glad to hear you are okay.

It's been years since I've been to Tokyo, but I've spent quite a bit of time further south in Vietnam. For those people that aren't familiar with the Asian culture, it did not shock me that looting did not occur.

Question: The news on the reactors has somewhat dried up here in the States, what is being discussed in Japan now? Yesterday, they were dropping water from helicopters, which seemed like a last ditch effort, what has happened to the 50 (180) workers? Do people in Japan consider them heroes?



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:40 PM
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Originally posted by Finalized
Question: The news on the reactors has somewhat dried up here in the States, what is being discussed in Japan now? Yesterday, they were dropping water from helicopters, which seemed like a last ditch effort, what has happened to the 50 (180) workers? Do people in Japan consider them heroes?


I saw what you noted on the news last night, beyond that I really don't know too much more than anyone else here here on ATS about the reactors, which is interesting in and of itself.

Part of keeping myself calm and balanced here has been reducing my news intake/web surfing. So actually I know less about that than I probably would if I were sitting at home following all this on ATS or what have you.

The really interesting thing is finding the balance between A) wallowing in too much doom and freaking myself out unnecessarily with every little stray bit of info, versus B) simply shutting down and "going sheeple." Its a fascinating question in the best of times (especially for ATS people), but I never thought it could become a life-or-death issue. Psychological hygene has to be attended to ruthlessly and methodically, along everything else, in these situations.

There hasn't been as much emphasis on the "Fukushima 50" in the Japanese press as in the foreign press, based only on my impression.
edit on 3/17/11 by silent thunder because: (no reason given)



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:41 PM
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posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:43 PM
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reply to post by luminaut
 


Instead of pointing out your opinion on the lack of information he has or has not provided, why don't you try asking a question on that which you wish to know. He will either have an answer or he won't.
edit on 3/17/2011 by Finalized because: (no reason given)



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:44 PM
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reply to post by luminaut
 


Things might get quite a bit more "exciting" soon. I really hope not, but it's looking grim from my perspective.

ST - please stay safe and have a contingency plan for evacuating towards the south. This might be necessary if a worst case scenario occurs.

Do you have a good respirator handy? That's the most important thing - maybe more important than the geiger counter.



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:46 PM
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Just reported on CNN that TEPCO reported that radiation has peaked today (Friday) at 20 milliservients/hour.

Still saying that there is too much conflicting information to know what is really going on.
edit on 3/17/2011 by Finalized because: (no reason given)



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:48 PM
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reply to post by luminaut
 


what is your malfunction moonluminaut?

silent thunder is a regular guy, not a news reporter or expert on what YOU want to hear about.


others are grateful for a human perspective and feel of what is going on.

t&c again!



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:50 PM
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Welcome back.. Glad to see that you've regained composure and returned.. Looking forward to your further updates.. Stay safe and charlie mike ..



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:50 PM
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Originally posted by luminaut
Not trying to be a hater, and I appreciate the effort, but really, so far the following information has been offered:

1. An unconfirmed report from somebody that TEPCO or the Japanese Govt. is getting supplies of Boron from the South Korea Nuclear Agency.

2. Failure to find the Trilateral Comission HQ in Tokyo

3. Most commercial advertising has been pulled from the news shows

4. An opinion that they are minimizing the risk

5. A rumor yesterday that most US soldiers were being evacuated from the area in waves but I don't know. Lots of others foreigners seem to be fleeing in droves.

6. A pic of boarded-up shops in an alley

7. a blurry pic of a police car

8. lights are being turned off in Tokyo

None of it particularly informative or insightful.



Would you like to trade places with me? Maybe you can suss out the "real" truth with your leet skillz.

OK, starting to get upset again. Calm. Caaaaalllllmmm. Skepticism is a valued part of ATS. Even when its annoying.

You know, maybe you are right. Maybe there is no value in individual speculation or experience. Maybe what I have to say means nothing in the wider scope. I'm not the freaking Atomic Energy Commission here, I'm a guy with a camera.

I think for my own mental health I won't spend so much time on ATS for awhile. This sort of thing shouldn't get to me, but I've got a lot of other things on my mind as you can imagine.

I will post some more pics here and make comments in days and hours to come, but I'm going to engage less with this thread for my own sanity. So I guess I'm going "gray" but not dark.I'll try to post more pics and commentary as time goes on but I'm not going to be responding to everything so as to keep my bloodpressure down.

One more thing: If anyone has friends or loved ones here and wants me to check up on them somehow, I can TRY. I did not say succeed, I said TRY. I am not a telephone book. But I will try for serious cases if you want to U2U me.

Peace,

Thunder.



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:51 PM
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reply to post by harrytuttle
 


Awww it looks like he needs a little tinfoil hat for his head!


But really, great do see a second thread.. I'm not sure all where we have posted on here together Silent Thunder.. but regardless of any disagreements with another user, I wouldn't be criticizing them for the handling of a situation like this, barring that you aren't out killing people..

And I thought it was terrible of other people to do so in your original thread..



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:53 PM
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reply to post by silent thunder
 


Tbh I think you should get out of there, it's what everyone is wanting to do and what the American bases are doing right now. It's for your safety, and everyone here in Japan that are in the Military are now getting evacuated. Lots are panicking, etc. It's cool that you're doing this for ATS, but it's just my opinion


Good luck!

S&F for this thread



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 09:56 PM
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reply to post by luminaut
 


Thanks dude, really, thanks... you just couldn't help yourself, could you? He asked in his OP to not have these types of posts and you JUST HAD TO.

You think you could be so calm if you were in Tokyo right now? You would be out digging for information like you were a reporter? No, you'd probably be pissing your pants.

Silent Thunder was (and hopefully will continue) to give us a dialogue out of Tokyo and was willing to interact with people on an anonymous message board... would you be doing the same? Probably not.

If you want hard news, why don't you fly over there and provide it. Or, do like the majority on here and try and piece together the story from the limited/conflicting information we are getting from various sources.

ST, do pay attention to what is going on, not sure what your options are to bug out, but I know a family friend made it to Singapore.
edit on 3/17/2011 by Finalized because: (no reason given)



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 10:07 PM
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Know that there are many posting in your threads but many many more who are not really reading the other responses but your posts.

This is such an opportunity for those of us who have suffered and exerted so much energy in prayer and meditation for your safety and for the beautiful people and animals affected by this tragedy.

Question if you know:

Is there a no kill shelter for displaced animals and pets that could benefit from donations at this time?

Thank you and just do what you have been by following your intuition.

My heart is with you.



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 10:15 PM
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Originally posted by luminaut
None of it particularly informative or insightful.


Then you can squarely place the blame right on your own two shoulders. Did you not read his reply to your prior post?


Originally posted by silent thunder
Got any specific information in mind you are looking for? I'll do what I can to answer any questions.

I'll try to post more photos and give little updates as time goes by. Sorry if that's not cool with you, bro. Remember, you get what you pay for, and I'm posting for free here.


He's here free of charge, and specifically offered to attempt to answer any questions that you may have. If you have no questions, and clearly you don't, then feel free to move on. Your critiques/complaints are entirely unwarranted when you've been given the opportunity to ask questions, regarding aspects that you feel may be "informative or insightful", and completely ignored the opportunity.

 


Silent Thunder, thanks for the new thread, and again stay safe out there.

edit on 3/17/11 by redmage because: (no reason given)



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 10:25 PM
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Originally posted by luminaut
Not trying to be a hater, and I appreciate the effort, but really, so far the following information has been offered:

1. An unconfirmed report from somebody that TEPCO or the Japanese Govt. is getting supplies of Boron from the South Korea Nuclear Agency.

2. Failure to find the Trilateral Comission HQ in Tokyo

3. Most commercial advertising has been pulled from the news shows

4. An opinion that they are minimizing the risk

5. A rumor yesterday that most US soldiers were being evacuated from the area in waves but I don't know. Lots of others foreigners seem to be fleeing in droves.

6. A pic of boarded-up shops in an alley

7. a blurry pic of a police car

8. lights are being turned off in Tokyo

None of it particularly informative or insightful.



luminaut is absolutely correct in his observations - essentially nothing of substance is being reported in this thread.

You asked for questions, please try answering these:

1. What is the food availability situation currently in Tokyo ? Are the shops/stores able to supply demand ? If not, what restrictions are in place regarding purchasing of essential items ?

2. We've heard of rolling power shutdowns. Are they actually happening right now in Tokyo ? If so, how often and how long do they last for ? Does your hotel lose power at those times or do they have a generator in place ?

3. Are there any signs of military activity within Tokyo itself ? Are there any reports of substantial military activity ANYWHERE in the affected regions ? In fact, what ARE the military doing at present ?

4. Is there a mass exodus of residents out of Tokyo ? Has the government issued any directives to Tokyo residents regarding current or anticipated evacuations ? Have evacuation plans/directives been provided to the residents ?

5. What's the situation regarding local businesses ? Are they still operating/trading as normal ?

6. Whats the situation regarding local schools ? Are they still open and operating as normal ?

7. Are radiation reports/updates being supplied to residents on a regular basis ? What plans are currently in effect to treat or mitigate any radioactive contamination of the Tokyo environment and it's citizens ?

8. Whats the current status of local transportations systems ... buses, trains, etc ? Still running to schedule or reduced in frequency ?

9. Whats a summary of the general feeling amongst the citizenry to this catastrophe ? Fear ? acceptance ? resignation ? Is there an overall belief that the government is doing all it can ?

The above will do for starters.

That's the sort of valuable "on the spot" information that you should be supplying. Not pics of alleyways and blurry police cars.



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 10:54 PM
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Originally posted by beissensiemich

1. What is the food availability situation currently in Tokyo ? Are the shops/stores able to supply demand ? If not, what restrictions are in place regarding purchasing of essential items ?

2. We've heard of rolling power shutdowns. Are they actually happening right now in Tokyo ? If so, how often and how long do they last for ? Does your hotel lose power at those times or do they have a generator in place ?

3. Are there any signs of military activity within Tokyo itself ? Are there any reports of substantial military activity ANYWHERE in the affected regions ? In fact, what ARE the military doing at present ?

4. Is there a mass exodus of residents out of Tokyo ? Has the government issued any directives to Tokyo residents regarding current or anticipated evacuations ? Have evacuation plans/directives been provided to the residents ?

5. What's the situation regarding local businesses ? Are they still operating/trading as normal ?

6. Whats the situation regarding local schools ? Are they still open and operating as normal ?

7. Are radiation reports/updates being supplied to residents on a regular basis ? What plans are currently in effect to treat or mitigate any radioactive contamination of the Tokyo environment and it's citizens ?

8. Whats the current status of local transportations systems ... buses, trains, etc ? Still running to schedule or reduced in frequency ?

9. Whats a summary of the general feeling amongst the citizenry to this catastrophe ? Fear ? acceptance ? resignation ? Is there an overall belief that the government is doing all it can ?
.


OK, let's see. Answers as follows.

1. Food is generally available but there has been hoarding, which has exacerbated shortages of certain goods. As of yesterday, there was no rice for sale at any price in grocery or convenience stores. This is unprecidented. (Bentos and prepared foods have rice, but I'm talking about sacks of rice). Other goods are short, or sell out quickly. There have been lines in the morning outside bakeries for bread, etc. I am not sure whether the situation is better, worse, or the same today, but I definitely need to check. Some items like flashlights, certain batteries, etc. are very hard to come by. Other things are still there...if you want a tub of mayonnaise, no problem. It's a bit erratic as to what's available and what's not. The big question is how long this situation will persist. The govt. says there is plenty of food and supplies within japan but the logistics chains are bogged down, people are hoarding, and this is creating shortages. Also, a lot of basic foodstuffs have been diverted north. I very much doubt anyone in Tokyo is starving or even going hungry, however. Restaurants are still open, but many are closed.

2. Rolling power outages were announced in the last two consecutive days, but they did NOT implement them in my sector. I don't know to what extent they were implemented elsewhere, if at all. People are upset about that; being told it would happen and preparing, and then nothing happened. The organization of the blackouts seems haphazard, chaotic. They plan to implement them regularly through late April at least.

Yesterday there was a minor kerfluffle when TEPCO announced it might have an unexpected "emergency" blackout. The offices emptied out quickly and there was a mad dash for the trains. Turned out nothing happened.

I expect them to start implementing the blackouts by neighborhood very soon, possibly today. They have a schedule but they must be running into trouble because they keep changing their minds.

I will answer your other questions below.

CONTINUED IN NEXT POST

edit on 3/17/11 by silent thunder because: (no reason given)



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 11:04 PM
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3. Are there any signs of military activity within Tokyo itself ? Are there any reports of substantial military activity ANYWHERE in the affected regions ? In fact, what ARE the military doing at present ?

4. Is there a mass exodus of residents out of Tokyo ? Has the government issued any directives to Tokyo residents regarding current or anticipated evacuations ? Have evacuation plans/directives been provided to the residents ?

5. What's the situation regarding local businesses ? Are they still operating/trading as normal ?



3. No excess military (JSDF) presence in Tokyo to my knowledge. The JSDF has been dispatched to help the afflicted areas, and they are active there.

4. There are a substantial number of people leaving Tokyo. One of my main concerns at this point is whether this trickle will turn into a flood suddenly and impede my mobility. These kinds of things happen nonlinearly and are unpredictable. Obviously the government wants people to stay put. Foreginers are the most quick to flee. The foreign business community emptied out rapidly. The government has as of yet issued no directives to Tokyo regarding evacuations or lack thereof. Plans have not been given out. I'm guessing they don't really exist, or at least not in a currently workable form.

5. Local businesses are by and large open. There are lots of shuttered shops, lots of offices operating at reduced capacity, delays, etc. But I would say the substantial part of the Tokyo business community wants things to get back to normal and are simply putting on their ties and going to work. This is part of the reason I'm staying here. Business goes on, and very amazing, very critical things happen in the business world at times like this.

edit on 3/17/11 by silent thunder because: (no reason given)



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 11:15 PM
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THE FOLLOWING ARE ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS GIVEN ABOVE, CONTINUED FROM LAST POST.



6. Whats the situation regarding local schools ? Are they still open and operating as normal ?

7. Are radiation reports/updates being supplied to residents on a regular basis ? What plans are currently in effect to treat or mitigate any radioactive contamination of the Tokyo environment and it's citizens ?

8. Whats the current status of local transportations systems ... buses, trains, etc ? Still running to schedule or reduced in frequency ?

9. Whats a summary of the general feeling amongst the citizenry to this catastrophe ? Fear ? acceptance ? resignation ? Is there an overall belief that the government is doing all it can ?


6. I don't know. I believe so. I saw children in school outfits yesterday.

7. Radiation reports are NOT being supplied, which is a BIG FAT RED FLAG if you ask me. The lack of discussion of radiation is glaring in its absence. If there are plans in place, they haven't been released.

I saw one news show yesterday that touched on the issue of radiation. They spent time talking about how low the radiation in Tokyo was and how little there was to worry about (this is the MSM we are talking about here people)...then they went on to provide some "helpful hints" like: "Staying indoors reduces exposure to radiation/ take frequent showers to wash particles away, avoid inhaling air, use masks, etc...." Hmm, nothing to worry about?

No radiation/iodine tablets avalable anywhere.

8. Trains, bus, and taxis in Tokyo seem to be up and running for the most part. Transportation is no longer a problem. If anything, the opposite: The streets are exceptionally empty and people don't seem to be moving around much at all, so the trains are not clogged and there are plenty of taxis again. (None were available immediately after the EQ). I believe they are running on some kind of reduced capacity but its not dramatic. I heard that TEPCO and the railway/subway people were having bitter arguments about energy supply at the moment.

9.I think people are tying to get back to normal and live their lives. What else can they do? Of course there is a sizable element of fear. Now, I can't really speak for everyone or even "the average person," but the people around me seem to be basically going on with life, throwing themselves into business, etc. There is this surreal tissue of normlacy, fragile and easily punctured, that people must find very comforting to lose themselves in. The dim lights and shuttered stores give the city an eerie feel.

These were excellent questions, thank you.

I will post some new pics soon. I took a walk through Roppongi about an hour ago.

edit on 3/17/11 by silent thunder because: (no reason given)



posted on Mar, 17 2011 @ 11:18 PM
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reply to post by silent thunder
 


ST, thanks for your threads! S&F
You bring good contributions to ATS from what I've read from you.
I know that you are in the middle of a very historical and significant disaster, so again kudos, sir!

As a side note, it's quite normal to get unusually offended by the usual internet trolls during a time like this... Please remember there will *always* and I mean *ALWAYS* be those who try to ruin threads no matter what, I don't care if the world is freakin ending, they just don't seem to GO_AWAY! They have an uncanny ability to just barely scrape past T&C enough to bug the piss out of everyone.
I've encountered more than my share like this on here, but this happens everywhere on the internet, not just ATS.

It sounds like there are a few that are just *trying* to push your buttons, but please don't let them get to you. Please keep us updated, thanks!
edit on 17-3-2011 by Wookiep because: (no reason given)



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