little human interest filler article for you all on "world parenting day"(*).-
Tokyo yesterday saw a national campaign to encourage the Japanese to have more babies launched.
Apparantly the Japanese aren't having enough babies anymore. What is really interesting is the way they decided to promote "having babies".
Check out the display stand which opened yesterday in Tokyo. Look at the mannequin holding the "baby". USA aesthetic surgery meets Manga animation. no?
Anyway all this panic is caused by the first drop in Japan's population since 1945. & the certainty that there won't be enough pensions for everyone.....................usual stuff........................but the Japanese have decided to appoint a special minister for population growth . & photographing a young girl in a bikini is the best he, (yes he ) has so far come up with. I am really surprised he hasn't suggested making everyone middle class. That does seem to be the unspoken Western European concensus.
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Japan/HE09Dh04.html
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3655289a12,00.html
http://www.suntimes.com/output/census/cst-nws-japan09.html
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-04/08/content_43...6.htm
(*) who thinks up these world days? eh? "freedom of the press", "women", "parenting", make poverty history", "peace", "liberty", read a book"?????