The Jan. 1 issue of the Nichi Bei Times has an excellent review of Curing Japan's America Addiction by Sarah Yuen. It's not online, unfortunately, but here are a few snippets that give you the gist of what Ms. Yuen thinks:
Minoru Morita's commentary on Japan's current and historic relations with America is both prophetic and passionate ... Many of the statements he rattles off about politics ("It's about me-ism: take care of yourself and to hell with the rest") and the economy ("A sharp drop in consumption can potentially trigger panic," and "the widening wealth gap") parallel eerily the longstanding American conversation about our own economy and politics. When Morita goes into criticism of the Americans for "ruining" the education system and monopolizing the professional baseball leagues, the language is a bit strong ...
(The book) stays away from blustery stuffiness and (goes) into the heart of the issues as he sees it, in a way that should be relevant to both Japanese and Americans as the dawn of the post-Bush era begins.
For more on the Nichi Bei Times, check out its website.
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