by dm00
This guy has the Omo seal of approval and the Hinano seal of douchebaggery, a combination that surely can’t be beat.
UNCOOL JAPAN: Otaku, Nationalism, and
the “Never Be Cool!” Politics of Tsurumi Shunsuke
Prof. Toshiya Ueno
Wako University (Japan)
Tuesday, March 17
12:30 – 2:00 pm
MIT, Room 14E-310
Map: http://whereis.mit.edu/map-jpg?mapterms=14&mapsearch=go
pizza will be served
(RSVP requested, but not required: condry@mit.edu )
Topic: What’s wrong with the talk about “soft power” and the narcisstic nationalism of “cool Japan”? What can the resolutely uncool “otaku” (obsessive fans) teach us about popular culture and political protest? What does the life of philosopher Tsurumi Shunsuke tell us about the changing meaning of politics in the postwar period and the new millennium?
Come join in a dialogue with one of Japan’s leading cultural studies scholars. Prof. Toshiya Ueno of Wako University (Tokyo) and McGill University (Montreal) is the author of many books in Japanese including “Red Metal Suits: Anime as War Zone” (1998) and “Urban Tribal Studies: A Sociology of Party Club Culture” (2005).
I hope someone can make it to this talk and report back.
Drastic My Anime Blog 
Yes please!
(Also, LOL “pizza will be served”.)
(“pizza will be served” makes me miss undergrad D: )
YES PLEASE. Man, I must know someone who’s up there by MIT.
I hope he gives the COOL JAPAN project some good nerd raeg.
I would have said “Hit up wah maybe”, but he’s currently in DC now. :V
But if I lived near the area, I definitely would have tried to go.
that does sound interesting. as long as it’s not domino’s pizza..
Someone hook me up with the guy. I’d love to pepper him with questions.
Or a transcript of the talk.
Sigh, I’d RSVP’d that I had the hopes of going, but Work Intervened.
So anyone reporting back what went on? Does Cool Japan have a report?
No report — the MIT Media office didn’t even have a person there, sigh.
Prof. Condry writes to say that Prof. Ueno’s got an essay in one of the Mechademia volumes (looks like v1 from the Mechademia website); I guess that’s his only work that’s been translated.