Before I delve into today’s TV news, I want to acknowledge the tsunami in the room: a massive earthquake rocked Japan late last night, devastating the coastal city of Sendai and triggering a tsunami that swept away cars, boats, houses, and other large objects that generally shouldn’t be swept away. News reports stated that the quake measured an 8.9 on the Richter scale, but Internet commenters dismissed that, saying “Whatever, it’s barely a 6.” Out of respect for the victims of this tragedy, I ask that all Godzilla jokes be postponed until tomorrow. Or at least this afternoon.
In order to give this some semblance of a TV angle, I’ve embedded a couple videos of news coverage below. The first is from Al-Jazeera’s English branch, and it has some jaw-dropping images of water sweeping over the land and the fires that erupted in the quake’s aftermath. The second video is from CNN, which has provided altogether lousy coverage but got a great eyewitness account from Matt Alt, an American who’s lived in Japan for the last eight years. Alt is actually the author of a book called Yokai Attack! The Japanese Monster Survival Guide, which — I’m sorry to say — would have dovetailed awesomely into a Godzilla joke. Alas.
Anyway, my best wishes go to the people of Japan and the rescue workers tasked with subduing the crisis, and my apologies to readers who look to Warming Glow as an impenetrable bubble that protects them from the grim reality of world news. I’ll get back to the business of Charlie Sheen and corgis post-haste.
Recommended: New York Times slideshow of the aftermath and — even better — The Atlantic’s collection of photos. More video at Yahoo’s news blog, The Envoy.
