Thaw On Ice

I find your articles engaging and well analyzed. It is a real pity that just when the long frigid Sino-Japan relationship begins to thaw, Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda’s popularity has started to take a southward dip. Confronted by virtually unsolvable problems within his own LDP party as well as the nation at large, Mr. Fukuda’s days seem numbered.

Only not so long ago, the buoyant Mr. Fukuda vowed to turn the tide of the declining LDP after taking over from the dejected and lackluster former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Mr. Fukuda offered to share power with the opposition DPJ while working hard to build a better platform for consolidating the growing rapport with China. All this now seems futile. Regrettably, Sino-Japan friendship may take a drastic downturn if the old core guards of LDP were to decide to replace Mr. Fukuda. This would not bode well for the peace and harmony of East Asia.

Munti Dann
Penang, Malaysia

Bovine Intervention

The "mad-cow case" in Korea is not as simple as reported by Hanjo Kim’s article (“Seoul’s Mad-Cow Fiasco”) on www.feer.com. Instead, it is a surprising outcome from a series of mistakes by the Korean government in the course of negotiating the import deal with U.S and then local citizens’ sensitive reception to the whole case resulting in an unprecedented taking to the streets in candlelit vigils for several weeks.

Yes, the facts should be known and shared properly and logical discussion should prevail. The past several weeks, however, clearly showed that the Korean government could not handle this sensitive issue in a convincing and transparent way. What came out instead was a repeated display of mistakes and lack of professional management. Also the government ignored the matter of “national pride” without due care and political sense. It was really disappointing and cause of anger for most Koreans as shown in recent opinion polls.

J.C. Park, Korea
via feer.com

Come Out Mr. X

As a committed media analyst, who has worked in China and also who has created reports and given them to government, I have to say that the May 2008 essay “China’s Holistic Censorship Regime” was a great article. But it contained nothing that is not already being said and discussed in the private sector, in media analysis given to private clients and even to governments, though it is comforting to know someone is trying to remind us of the issue. It would be a much more powerful statement if the author, “Mr. X,” would reveal himself, but then, we already know why that won’t happen. He’s told us all about it.

Gerry Garcia
via feer.com