The Infantilization of the Nation of Japan is Complete - Hello Kitty Named Tourism Ambassador

[El Pinko]

Not a joke...




It was bad enough when Bush sycophant and privatization enthusiast Junichiro Koizumi was the spokesman for Japan's tourism campaign...



Remember when he asked Richard Gere "Shall we dance?" and Gere agreed "only if he could be the man"?




but now this...






http://tinyurl.com/6er9jt

Hello Kitty is named Japan tourism ambassador
By TOMOKO A. HOSAKA, Associated Press Writer Mon May 19, 3:11 PM ET

TOKYO - Hello Kitty — Japan's ubiquitous ambassador of cute — has built up an impressive resume over the years. Global marketing phenom. Fashion diva. Pop culture icon. Now the moonfaced feline can add "government envoy" to the list. The tourism ministry on Monday named Hello Kitty as its choice to represent the country in China and Hong Kong, two places where she is wildly popular among kids and young women.

Officials hope that tapping into that fan base will lead to a bigger flow of tourists into Japan, and closer toward their goal of attracting 10 million overseas visitors every year under the "Visit Japan" campaign.

Last year the number of foreign tourists traveling to Japan hit a record high of 8.35 million, up 60 percent since the government began the marketing effort in 2003.

Arrivals from China and Hong Kong, who accounted for 16.5 percent of visitors to Japan last year, are poised this year to become the second-largest group of tourists after South Koreans. At a press conference, Sanrio Co. President Shintaro Tsuji called Hello Kitty's new appointment "an honor" and pledged to "work hard to attract many visitors."





Now I know why Japan still strikes terror in the hearts of millions of Chinese and Koreans. They're afraid that their kids will be exposed to the "kawaii" syndrome that seems to be crippling Japan...

[countmyvote4real]

1. Thank you for the brilliant OP headline.

I was not aware of that, but I've heard some rumblings.

In truth, it's global and we're all fucked.

[arcadian]

2. Countdown 3... 2... 1...

til somebody posts pic of Hello kitty pink Vader costume

[Occulus]

9. You mean.... this?

:rofl:

And the breathing:

purrrrrr-kaaaaaa.... purrrrr-kaaaaaa.....

:rofl:

[derby378]

3. I think Hello Kitty is as cute as a button, but...

I believe the Japanese government richly earned a Kutabare! for this godawful stunt.

[ZombieHorde]

4. I don't see what is bad about this.

[silverojo]

7. It's typical American ignorance of Japanese society

Hello Kitty is an icon, just as Mickey Mouse is for us. Hello Kitty represents goodwill, and is an extremely successful brand-name export for Japan, recognized worldwide.

Calling Japanese society infantile is racism at its purest. If you don't understand Japanese culture, then STFU because you're in no position to judge. And I'd also suggest visiting the eBay web site...maybe someone's selling a SENSE OF HUMOR that the OP can pick up at a bargain price.

[El Pinko]

12. Ummm - my post was supposed to be tongue-in-cheek...

Maybe you're the one with the sense of humor problem.

[Rosemary2205]

21. I'm pretty snarky myself and I missed the tongue AND the cheek in this one.

I don't know anything about Japan at all so I am incapable on commenting on the substance but as for the "feel" of the OP, I took it as condemning too.

[El Pinko]

24. There is definitely a "cute" subculture in Japan...

...and it definitely does give young girls and women license to behave like insipid children.

The overall culture is very paternalistic, and women in many workplaces are still relegated the coffee-serving duties.

The post was intended to be tongue-in-cheek, dark humored, but also a little serious. Obviously I don't think "kawaii" is actually contagious or that this one thing is the downfall of Japanese society. I don't even have anything against Hello Kitty per se.

But there is a certain level of infantile behavior that is socially acceptable among young women in Japan that is a bit distressing, and I guess I saw this as yet another expansion of that "cute" culture.


But I wouldn't say it's any more distressing than our culture, which puts tattooed, silicone-enhanced women on "Temptation Islands" or having them compete to "hook up" with Flavor Flav or some has-been headbanger.

They've cornered the market on cute, and we've cornered the market on crass. :shrug:

[madrchsod]

5. anyone have 4200+ for this?

baby phat diamond encrusted hello kitty necklace

[Systematic Chaos]

6. If I were obscenely rich, I think I would buy my wife one.

But afterwards, I'd donate ten times the price of that necklace to some worthwhile causes.

As it is, I won't be buying the necklace or donating much. :(

[Solon]

8. Jesus fucking Christ on a popsicle stick, can you be any more of a racist?

Seriously, what the fuck is wrong with you? :eyes:

[provis99]

16. uhh, there's a stereotype that the Japanese are infantile?

I must have missed that one. Or are you being sarcastic? If so, please elaborate on why you think you are funny.

[silverojo]

10. If you knew jack shit about Korea or China

You'd know their pop culture is already very similar to Japan's. The real reason Japan strikes terror into other nations is more related to, say, firing missiles dangerously close to them. And the only thing "crippling" Japan is that they, much like the U.S., were greedily stupid enough to sell their technology to China.

You want to talk infantile? How about somebody posting that Hello Kitty is to blame for Japan's problems? What's next--will you theorize that Winnie The Pooh is the cause of the Iraq war?

[El Pinko]

13. I lived in Japan for 8 years and have 2 mixed-Japanese bilingual kids.

Maybe I should have posted this in the lounge. I never thought anyone would be idiotic enough to turn a tongue-in-cheek post into a racist attack.

:eyes:

[Lydia Leftcoast]

11. Infantile?

I agree with your assessment of Koizumi, but Japan is a lot more mature than the U.S. in some ways. They're seriously looking at what they need to do to prepare for reduced oil supplies, the graying of their population, and global climate change.

[El Pinko]

14. Yes and no.

When I lived there, I knew TONS of people who supported the right-wing privatizer Reaganite Koizumi because he was "kakkoii" (good-looking/cool) and charismatic.

Never mind that his agenda was pure Reagan bullshit.

I'm not sure if it's a matter that they are mature so much as it is that they fortunetely don't directly elect the head of state, and thus leave the leadership to consensus in the Diet.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

18. To me, Koizumi was kind of a pig in a poke

Before he became Prime Minister, I always thought of him as "the guy with the hair," because he looked different from the rest of the LDP politicians, who seemed to have been cloned off one another (hair slicked straight back, black-rimmed glasses, square faces, grumpy expressions).

I don't pay as much attention to day-to-day politics in Japan as someone who actually lives there now (as opposed to making visits ranging from one week to three months over the thirty years since I did live there), but Koizumi's extreme right-wing economic tendencies surprised me.

(This is in contrast to Governor Ishihara, who mixes racism and nationalistic ideology with a surprisingly forward-looking view of governing Tokyo, although I'm not so sure of the wisdom of his bid for the 2016 Olympics.)

Both men illustrate a point that I've made several times on this board: That both liberalism and conservatism are multi-faceted, and that one can be a liberal on some points and conservative on others.

[Art_from_Ark]

15. Their approach to reduced oil supplies seems to be

building more expressways to nowhere

[Lydia Leftcoast]

17. But also Shinkansens to everywhere and, as you well know,

trains like the Tsukuba Express to replace that ridiculous JR bus that took an hour even to get out of the 23-ku, due to traffic.

Japan would deal with oil shortages better than a lot of places.

[Art_from_Ark]

19. They've still got the JR buses

For some people, they're much more convenient (not to mention cheaper). And the buses can usually zip back to Tsukuba from Tokyo Station in about an hour now.

[El Pinko]

20. The buses and trains are nice and affordable if traveling alone or as a couple...

...but as a family of four, we found it cheaper to use our kei car for most trips - even with expressway tolls figured in...

[Art_from_Ark]

22. I would never think of trying to drive into Tokyo

The round-trip highway toll is more 4000 yen, plus gas is at least another 1000 yen, and it's easy to get lost and hard to find parking. I would much rather let someone else do the driving and sit back in the bus for the current 1600 yen for a round trip.

[El Pinko]

23. We lived in Fukuoka - I've only been to Tokyo once, excluding airport stopovers.

The city expressway in Fukuoka was 600 yen to anywhere, and we really only used it about once every month or two. When we traveled to the other side of Kyushu, we'd use the expressway, but it was still way cheaper than train tickets for 4, and we didn't need to use taxis at our destination. Of course the kei sipped gas - we barely spent 5000 yen per month on gas.

I can't imagine driving in Tokyo - must be overwhelming. We had 2 subway lines and maybe 5 train lines in Fukuoka. The spiderweb of train and subway lines all over Tokyo is incredible.

[Art_from_Ark]

25. Even going out to Kansai, I prefer the train

The Shinkansen, even if it is more expensive for 4, still beats the Tomei/Meishin Expressway

Shinkansen tickets for 4-- 80,000 yen
Highway tolls-- 20,000 yen, plus another 10,000 at least for gas

On the face of it, you might think that driving was the better deal. However, after my experiences on the Tomei (Tokyo-Nagoya) Expressway, I would much rather pay the Shinkansen fare, and lay back during the 2 1/2 hour ride, than fight (sometimes literally) the incredible traffic on the Tomei during the 10 hours it would take to make the same trip by car. When I made that trip, I arrived in Kansai exhausted, and dreading the drive back (which lived down to expectations). Plus sometimes, during the right season, I can make the trip from Tokyo to Kyoto for a mere 2200 yen plus Tokyo to Yokohama fare on the night train, which takes about the same time as driving on the Tomei/Meishin.

[El Pinko]

26. 50,000 yen (almost $500) is nothing to sneeze at.

If I were faced with that choice, I'd definitely have to go with the cheaper one.

That being said, traffic in Fukuoka is nowhere near as bad as Kansai/Kanto. I probably wouldn't drive there simply because it would be so overwhelming. But I wouldn't hesitate to drive to one of the smaller cities if it was a family trip. Train or plane if I had to go alone. :)

[Art_from_Ark]

28. That is one reason why I tried to take the Tomei Expressway

because on the face of it, it seemed cheaper. But after countless delays due to accidents (and sometimes being stuck in tunnels, which I really hate), and people tailgating me at 60mph, with no room for error, I decided to heck with it, 50,000 yen is not too much to pay for peace of mind for an occasional trip to Kansai.

And if your car breaks down on the expressway, you'd better hope that you're close to one of the few turnouts-- otherwise, you're stuck on the shoulder of the road with vehicles whizzing by just a few feet away at 60mph or faster.

[Duke Newcombe]

27. Sayoooooooooonara, sweet Japan. n/t

Duke