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Police Crackdown on Otaku Party at Anime Boston: Events at a recent anime convention spurred police to arrest one otaku and investigate several more. It’s a damn shame to see a con sullied by some kids all hopped up on Pocky and Ramune. But what I wouldn’t give to hear the dialogue between con-goers and police: “Sir? Sir! I need you to put the gunblade down and put your hands where I can see them!” [via CrunchyRoll][/threecol_two] [threecol_one_last]Emoji harmonization: Japanese carriers unite to standardize picture characters: Japanese cell phone companies Docomo, KDDI, and eAccess have all agreed to team up and standardize their once-mismatched emoji character sets. Finally, when you’re sending emoji to a friend on your keitai, you can be sure that you’re both seeing the same pille of poop. [via The Verge]
Japan Cops Nab Arch-Bathroom Defacer: This article makes numerous comparisons between a recently-caught Japanese bathroom vandal and the notorious English street artist Banksy. I think that the description couldn’t be more apt! This guy is exactly like Banksy, minus the international fame, mystique, artistic prowess, social commentary, and success. [via Japundit][/threecol_one_last]
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[threecol_one]A New Convenience Store (Just Probably Not Convenient For You): Even though I will (hopefully) never be able to visit this recently-announced Japanese prison convenience store, I suspect that this new prison konbini will still be more convenient than my neighborhood 7/11. Still, I’m sure that Japanese prisons pale in comparison to Scandinavian prisons, which I imagine are like mini-Ikeas. [via RocketNews24]
KFC Japan Serves Chicken and Whiskey at New ROUTE 25 Bar: Lots of food chains are trying to class up their images. Just last weekend I went to a Starbucks that served local beer and wine, and it seems that KFC also wants to add an air of sophistication to its brand. A KFC with whiskey? Sign me up! Nothing washes down the abomination that is the KFC Double Down better than a bourbon. [via RocketNews24][/threecol_one] [threecol_two_last]
VIDEO: World’s Largest Public Toilet Now Open in Japan: Even though you would expect the world’s largest public toilet to have a bowl big enough to fall into, turns out that isn’t quite what they had in mind. This public loo wins its “largest in the world” title from the property it sits on, not the size of the toilet itself, which is an incredible disappointment for me. Now how will I pretend like I’m taking a crap in a giant’s toilet?! [via Crunchyroll][/threecol_two_last]
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Every Sunday we gather the week’s weird Japanese news and present it to you in our Sunday News column. It might not always be hard-hitting, but we hope that it still informs and entertains you. Enjoy!