Can You Plan a Japan Trip?

If you saw this on a hotel's website, would you understand?

"There is not the elevator. The load progresses to the room."

If you translated that correctly as: "There is no elevator. Your bags will be carried to your room," then you are ready to plan a trip to Japan!

G20 Police Action

So far, I've heard two dodgy activities by police to intimidate protest. Police have been checking backpacks and confiscating any self-protection equipment including cloths soaked in vinegar to protect users from tear gas. If they're going to gas the crowd, they want everyone to feel it.

The other bugs me even more. The protest organizers have been taking pains to call this afternoon's rally "family friendly". To me, this invitation to bring kids down is a strong signal that protest organizers are pledging to stay peaceful and wish to send out that message to the population at large.

Police have deliberately undermined this effort by warning the public to keep their kids away as it will not be a safe place for them. Hello? How can this be interpreted any way but the police branding the protesters as violent by default, or signalling their intention to use force regardless of the level of protest.