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> As a quasi-tangent, if anyone out there knows a bit about Japan's political climate, I'd be interested in hearing a bit about it. I know it's a democracy of some kind, but how socialized it may or may not be, for example, I have no idea, nor do I have much of a sense of how valued civil freedoms are. Knowing a bit about the Japanese government might put this story in context a bit better.

I really don't know much about the Japanese government, but I've noticed that a lot of the people are leaving there to live in the USA. I've seen large numbers of Japanese from Newport News to Honolulu. Even Loudon County, Tennessee has a Japanese population.

Compare it to the growing Mexican population in this country. They leave Mexico for a better way of life. Could that be why the Japanese are here?
Howard