“Hideaki Abe from the Asahi Shimbun is reporting that Taro Aso, Japan’s Foreign Ministers is looking at Comic-book heros to influence Japanese diplomacy”

” I think that Apple now has a lot more potential to sell product in the Chinese market. China’s mobile phone market is the world’s largest, and the Chinese I know love fashionable mobile phones like the Motorola RAZR. However, smart phones like the Treo and Blackberry haven’t caught on here (could you even get one if you tried?), but I think that is mostly because they don’t offer features that interest Chinese users that less expensive “dumb” phones don’t already have.”

“The new rules are meant to signal that China is moving closer to developed countries in the way it handles the media. But unless local governments accept them too, a very different message may be sent.”

“Janbopai Museum is a web site devoted to the body paint art in Japan, with many pictures of original works, images of body painting steps, works for magazines, links, foruns, information about body painting and wallpapers.”

“Cellphone prices will plummet if this things enters the Korean market uncrippled, because the iPhone is like the sexy girl who just moved in next door and likes to sunbathe in a pink thong and nipple pasties…”

“I talked to XXX today and we talked about the instant ramen guy dying and I asked her if any Korean newspapers mentioned him or his contribution to Korean culture, i.e.) ramyeon. She said no….And then I said that’s probably because Koreans think they invented it too. Just add some kochu and now it’s Korean. So I told her they should do that with the Sea of Japan…pour some kochu on it and now it’s the Korean Sea.”

“A high school in western Japan will require its students to take a 10 minute test using chopsticks to transfer beads, marbles, dice and beans from one plate to another as part of its entrance exam.”

“Another thing that struck me was how such an innovative product is being launched in the such a mobile backwater like the US. Yes, I know this sounds shocking to hear. But we in Asia have been buying our phones unlocked since we started GSM, “

Are Thai-focused bloggers more likely to be jailed?

International bloggers comment on the iPhone, well ahead of the international launch.

“Time starts a China blog and then leaves out the good stuff that makes a blog a blog. It reads like none of its writers have read any other China blogs before starting this one. It has no heart, no voice, no soul. It has nothing to say.”

As our friend Dan Harris at China Law Blog would remind us, NEVER sign a contract that you don’t understand.

“The one-child policy kids have a hard time adapting to the tough environment and their parents prefer them to work close to home anyway. So there is always an easy way out when they fail…. Of course no one actually says it so bluntly but all employers see a problem with a spoilt generation that wants everything NOW. In less challenging environments in the cities, employers find that the one-child policy generation want what they want when they want it. But they don’t want to do the work that is necessary.”

“High resolution touch screens will also mean that writing in Chinese characters or rendering more detailed smaller characters will also be possible.”