The U.S.-Japan strategic alliance... manga style by Niki2

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The U.S.-Japan strategic alliance... manga style

POSTED BY: NIKI2
UPDATED: Monday, August 9, 2010 07:27
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Friday, August 6, 2010 10:31 AM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...

Once again with "You have to laugh or you'd cry:

Quote:
The United States has produced a saccharine sweet comic book to celebrate and publicize the relationship between the two nations in a manner Japan is sure to adore.

For years, foreigners have tittered over the Japan Self-Defense Forces' cuddly mascot character, Prince Pickles. But now the United States military has upped the ante by producing an entire manga-style comic book celebrating the strategic relationship between the two nations. Could this be the beginning of a new era of "mutually assured cuteness?"

Entitled "Our Alliance; A Lasting Partnership” and available for free download from the U.S. Forces Japan website, it casts the politically charged relationship as a metaphor in which a cuter-than-cute little boy named Usa (get it?) visits the home of his equally cuter-than-cute Japanese friend Arai Anzu (say it aloud: "alliance.")

Illustrated by popular manga artist Yukio Hirai, the concept isn't as insane as it might first sound. For one thing, the strategic alliance is desperately in need of some good PR here in Japan; a scandal over the fate of Futenma Base in Okinawa forced former Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama out of office last June. And for another, distilling the complex and often tension-fraught relationship into the form of cute characters is a canny form of outreach for a nation where everything from governmental agencies to waste-treatment facilities and even entire prefectures boast their own cuddly mascot characters.

"Our Alliance" skirts any discussion of protests or criticism, casting the relationship in an almost blindingly positive light. Helpful little Usa scoots around Arai's home stomping on cockroaches and extolling the "efficiency" of Japan's work alongside the more powerful United States. The only question is, if this is all a metaphor, who or what precisely do those cockroaches represent? Perhaps that will be answered in the follow-up issues, which are due to come out over the course of 2010.

Hippie Operative Nikovich Nikita Nicovna Talibani,
Contracted Agent of Veritas Oilspillus, code name “Nike”,
signing off

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Saturday, August 7, 2010 5:53 AM

BYTEMITE

That's extremely savvy. They even put the USA in a bunny outfit, in keeping with a somewhat negative Japanese characterization of members of our armed forces. In a way, by having a bunny outfit, they're both making fun of themselves, and acknowledging it.

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Saturday, August 7, 2010 7:02 AM

ANTHONYT

Freedom is Important because People are Important

Hello,

Once you accept that all governments have propaganda (and they do) you need to decide whether you believe that propaganda is necessary and helpful.

If you think it is, then you want that propaganda to be delivered in the language of your target audience.

I just hope those cockroaches aren't representing something embarrassing or shameful. I'd have rather seen the anime friends building something together, rather than swatting bugs.

--Anthony

Due to the use of Naomi 3.3.2 Beta web filtering, the following people may need to private-message me if they wish to contact me: Auraptor, Kaneman, Piratenews. I apologize for the inconvenience.

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Saturday, August 7, 2010 7:02 AM

FREMDFIRMA

This is a train wreck waiting to happen, honestly.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Eagleland
Believe me, overseas perceptions of us ain't gonna be helped by this, especially given it's all but begging FUNinmation to lampoon us.
(as if Axis Powers didn't do it bad enough..)

I didn't get the Bunny thing, or why so many called our troops "stupidbunnies" till they explained that one to me, which only works if you spell it out.

USA GI's - the word Usagi has a lotta rabbit connotations, apparently.

-Frem

I do not serve the Blind God.

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Saturday, August 7, 2010 8:50 AM

BYTEMITE

Yeah, I missed the last paragraph. Somehow, I don't think Japan isn't interested in being portrayed as a passive party in a relationship where the USA defends them by stomping on nuisances.

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Saturday, August 7, 2010 7:05 PM

ANTHONYT

Freedom is Important because People are Important

Hello,

It appears that there may be some trouble with other propaganda efforts.

--Anthony

Due to the use of Naomi 3.3.2 Beta web filtering, the following people may need to private-message me if they wish to contact me: Auraptor, Kaneman, Piratenews. I apologize for the inconvenience.

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Sunday, August 8, 2010 10:00 AM

FREMDFIRMA

Oh joy, I'm surprised the stupid bastards didn't just go ahead and put turbans on the cockroaches, it's not like they're subtle...

Lemme see if I can possibly explain what a PR disaster this is gonna be, unless they choose to just laugh at how pathetic it is, still, I don't think negative attention is what they were lookin for.

Ok, firstoff, let's be honest with ourselves that our military, top to bottom, is the most hidebound, racist, intolerent segment of our population and culture - in fact our military has some "dangerous cult" elements to it which are better discussed in it's own topic, but for the sake of simplicity let us just say that they are NOT the most openminded of people, right ?

And once again their inability to even TRY to understand any culture but our own, to assume everyone else is like us, or should be, is gonna bite them on the ass here.

You see - they see Manga and the (wrong) assumption they make is "Japanese Comic Book".

Anyone here familiar with the american history of comic books, which is one of the reasons that for the most part, I hate the damn things ?

American comics have prettymuch always been a venue for propaganda and racism, sometimes to ridiculous extremes, and wandering almost into self-parody with the fifties and the bitter, reeking stench of McCarthyism which still drips from every issue (See Also: Civil War) and the intervention of the Comic Code Authority's ridiculous "guidelines".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comic_code

For some examples of the more extreme examples of racism and propaganda, you could visit superdickery.com - but I will not post the link because my browser flags some of the ad-scripts coming from that page as dangerous/malicious.

Here's some rather notorious examples...
http://www.mohammadmossadegh.com/news/t-man-comic-book-propaganda/
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/blog.php?view=35299

Now, saying Manga is "Japanese Comic Books" is a rather drastic simplification and one that doesn't really get across how deep the cultural roots of it are, it would be like someone coming over here and considering a graffiti tagger, house painter, and studio artist as all the same thing, a shallow and insulting dismissal of differences evidencing a lack of understanding or even a lack of any desire to understand...
And mind you, this is dealing with a culture that places a much higher value on politeness, and takes insults a lot more seriously than we do.

About all we have goin for us here is that they have a lot better sense of humor than some folks do about having cultural icons mocked or misinterpreted, we've all seen some Islamic people take it way too seriously, especially since Mohammed himself would use snark or self-depreciating humor to get his points across cause he knew as well as any taking anything too seriously leads to misery and sorrow.

But still, this is kind of a slap in the face, all the worse for being a transparent and obvious one, like a sleazy used car dealer phoning in his pitch.

And if that don't get it across clear enough - lemme turn it around and ask you how you'd feel if some nitwit put a turban on the statue of liberty ?

-Frem

I do not serve the Blind God.

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Sunday, August 8, 2010 2:20 PM

ANTHONYT

Freedom is Important because People are Important

Hello,

I couldn't find one, oddly enough. I think it's because women don't wear turbans.

However...

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Sunday, August 8, 2010 3:22 PM

MISSTRESSAHARA

The Japanese already did this. They call it Hetalia: Axis Powers.

The fangirls can be soooooooo annoying.

~@ IT'S - SO - FLUFFY @~

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Sunday, August 8, 2010 3:59 PM

FREMDFIRMA

Gotta admit it, that made me laugh, Anthony, if only cause of the notion of the epic freakout the hard right would have about it, having no more sense of humor about their own sacred cows winding up cheeseburgers than the damn Taliban does...

It really makes one wonder if, other than the religion they're wrapped around, there's any real difference between em, doesn't it ?

Oh, and Mistress - I did mention Axis Powers, yes, which doesn't do it for me, but I gotta admit that particular bit of lampooning was actually quite funny, cause they took the best AND the worst of us, rolled into a single character, which happens be both inspirational... and bloody obnoxious!

-Frem

I do not serve the Blind God.

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Monday, August 9, 2010 5:09 AM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...

Quote:
It really makes one wonder if, other than the religion they're wrapped around, there's any real difference between em, doesn't it ?

Well, if you take away that one biiiig difference in being willing to off people as easily as the Taliban does, there IS a certain similarity in the mentality...

Hippie Operative Nikovich Nikita Nicovna Talibani,
Contracted Agent of Veritas Oilspillus, code name “Nike”,
signing off

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Monday, August 9, 2010 7:27 AM

FREMDFIRMA

Oh they're most certainly willing, but being the cowards they are, there's the problem of actually getting away with it cause we've always tried (and failed, IMHO, badly, as a general rule) to keep religion and government seperate, so there's at least the pretense which keeps a lid on that - besides which, what care they for burning a few pagans when they can have a taxpayer financed holy crusader against those infidels in the middle east, right ?

Cause to not admit there's a heavy chunk of that behind the current pair of wars, even amongst the high command, is to blind oneself to the obvious...

And that's another thing, they're very, VERY willing to send someone ELSE to die for their causes, not so very willing when their own is on the line - much in the same fashion that they're only brave enough to do that shit here when there's a pack of em, you know ?

Hell, it even extends to morality, since by choosing to believe that ANY offense will be forgiven cause they're all special and such, it makes em more inclined to commit them, but of course I happen to be of the opinion that's exactly what the monster they call a god wants anyways, as it produces more human misery for the blasted thing to feed on.

Once you remove the idea of accountability, even to themselves, from a person, empathy dies.

-Frem

I do not serve the Blind God.

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