Ben Hills
I recently wrote an email to Ben Hills, author of Princess Masako–Prisoner of the Chrysanthemum Throne, to tell him about the discussion we are having here. I even invited him to drop in and take part if he felt so inclined. Understandably, he politely declined the invitation, but he sent back the statement below which he had previously issued to various wire services.
In his reply to me, Mr. Hills also had the following to say:
I would invite your subscribers to check on the history of the Chang book, and to note the remarkable similarities to my case. The book was a worldwide bestseller, a Japanese publisher agreed to translate it and publish it in Japan, the Japanese Ambassador in Washington called a Press conference to denounce its “innacuracies” (which no other historians in the world had noticed in their favourable reviews of the book) — and, lo and behold, the Japanese publisher declined to go ahead with the publication, citing “errors.” Sound familiar?
He also said but that he would be happy to reply to resonable questions from JAPUNDIT readers that are sent to him through me, so here is your chance. Please use the comments below this note to ask any questions you might have about the Mr. Hills or the the book, and I will be happy to send them along.
Statement by Ben Hills
The publisher, Kodansha, cited no reasons for his decision to cancel publication of my book, Princess Masako–Prisoner of the Chrysanthemum Throne — in his email to me on Friday. However, I see from their press release that they are citing my refusal to apologise to the Japanese government for criticisms voiced in the book. I see also that Kodansha is claiming that there were many mistakes in the book.
I want to make two things clear. First that my Australian publisher, Random House,and I refused to apologise because we felt — and feel — that there is nothing to apologise for. The only person who deserves an apology is Princess Masako — the Kunaicho should apologise for destroying her mental health. Secondly, there were a few minor errors in the book, but this was not the reason for Kodansha cancelling the publication. Kodansha had edited the book and removed the errors, and I signed off on their text this week. On Wednesday Kodansha were happy to publish the book. On Friday they cancelled. The Japanese people are not fools — they understand what happened, and that was that the Japanese government bullied Kodansha, and Kodansha surrendered.
Although we are disappointed we are not surprised. The Japanese government has exercised this ‘censorship by stealth’ before. Remember Iris Chang’s book The Rape of Nanking? This was a world-wide best-seller, but never published in Japan because the government bullied the Japanese publisher into bowdlerising the book to the extent that it was unacceptable to the author. In that case, also, the publisher claimed there were “errors” in the book — these were errors that no other historians in the world could see. Why do you think Japanese history books talk about “incidents” rather than massacres, and “advances” rather than invasions? Because they are censored by the government, and any author who does not toe the line is subject to the same sort of treatment as Iris Chang and me.
What they are really objecting to is my criticism of the Kunaicho, the Imperial Household Agency, who have so persecuted Masako that she has developed a serious mental illness. Secondly, they do not want the Japanese people to know what people in every other country have been able to read for four years since The Times of London broke the story — that Masako’s child, Princess Aiko, is an IVF baby. The reason for their wanting to suppress this are twofold. First, if donor sperm were used (it is not known whether this was the case) and a baby boy born as a result that would have broken the male lineage which Japanese legend has it goes back 2600 years. Secondly, if Naruhito was the one with the fertility problem (a 50/50 chance, according to IVF specialists) that would have been seen as somehow ‘unmanly’ and unfitting for an emperor-to-be. Such are the social prejudices of the Kunaicho.
The simple fact of the matter is this: I do not worry whether people love my book or hate my book, but they should be given the chance to read it for themselves and make up their own minds. The Japanese government will not allow them this basic right. It is censorship that would be totally unacceptable in any other advanced country, the sort of thing you would expect in a place like Burma or North Korea. The Japanese people should rise up in protest against this — in fact, many of them have contacted me by email today to voice their support the publication of the book in Japan. My website has received more than 250,000 hits in four days, twice what I normally get in a year, with half of them coming from Japan — that will tell you the degree of interest there is in the book.
I have already been contacted by three courageous Japanese publishers, and I am hopeful that next week we will have an agreement with one of them to publish the book. This is a matter which will be decided by my Australian publisher, Random House, which has world-wide rights. It will also be up to Random House whether to take legal action over this breach of contract.
Finally, the effect of this affair is the opposite of what the Kunaicho and the Gaimusho wanted. It has made me more popular in Japan than Harry Potter — check the Japanese Amazon.com site and you will see.
Like I discussed with Mr. Hill earlier through e-mail. I thought the publication of his latest book on “Princess Masako” was way out of line. He not only owes an apology to the royal family but to the Japanese people as well, and the viewers for publishing such inaccuracies. Even Eric Johnston, editor of Japan Times, denouced the book as full of lies and deceptions and has took action by posting an open letter on the Arudo Debito website.
American/Japanese nationalist.
February 19th, 2007 at 1:21 amComparing his situation to Chang’s isn’t a good idea. Contrary to his statement, professional historians have found lots of errors and problems with her book.
“Japanese history books”? Professional historians in Japan tend to be left-wing and supportive of using “invasion” rather than “advance”, etc. I assume he’s refering to the textbook issue. Most of those pushing for a so-called non-masochistic version of Japanese history in textbooks aren’t historians. The leader of the Tsukurukai (Fujioka) is an education professor.
I don’t necessarily disagree with what his argument seems to be, but it would be interesting to know what his sources were. People involved with the Imperial Household are notoriously tight-lipped (in part due to contracts they sign about disclosure). Checked out his website, does he speak/read Japanese? Couldn’t find anything about that.
February 19th, 2007 at 1:52 amAccording to an earlier interview, “Ben Hills is married to a Japanese woman……[who] had fled Japan’s ‘anti-female’ culture, before she returned when Ben’s work took him there. “She found it rather an oppressive, anti-female society,” he says. “She wasn’t at all pleased when my assignment was changed from Cairo to Tokyo… Most of the women who join corporations, they make the tea, they’ll smile… With a bit of luck they’ll meet a nice guy. The day they decide to get married will be the day they’re expected to resign, and that’s the end of their career.”
February 19th, 2007 at 11:50 am[Random House Australia was served with a letter from the Japanese government stating, in much more eloquent terms, that the book was full of shit.
Ben Hills, on the other hand, responded with what we Japanese call "gyaku gire." Literally meaning "reverse anger," that's when you respond with rage to someone else's discomfort.]
blogger
February 19th, 2007 at 12:11 pmBenny Hill?
February 19th, 2007 at 2:15 pmabout that Iris Chang comparison… I wouldn’t be so eager to make statements like…
…to denounce its “innacuracies” (which no other historians in the world had noticed in their favourable reviews of the book)
when you’ve got academics like David Askew writing stuff like…
Members of this school translated her book into Japanese but, through their publisher, the left-wing Kashiwa Shobo, had a public (and highly embarrassing) falling out with her when she refused her translators permission to correct the enormous number of mistakes her book is riddled with or to add translator’s footnotes, and also when she objected to the publisher putting out a sister volume in which the mistakes would have been explained.
http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/print.asp?parentid=16772
which also kind of deflates the kodansha/kashiwa shobo comparison.
But I guess what really happened depends on who you believe…
http://www.mail-archive.com/fukuzawa@ucsd.edu/msg06872.html
February 20th, 2007 at 1:23 amWhat a fool. His statement just proves that he is brainwashed by anti-Japan propaganda
February 20th, 2007 at 1:28 amwell it seems that Japundit’s (not to be under-estimated long arm) after tapping Mr.Hills on the shoulder and wagging several fingers in his face..has him rather rattled and severely heated under his shaggy armpits.
Late,last night,after retiring to my cot,and trying to tune into the BBC World Report (on my spiffy little crystal set) I happened across Mr. Hills seething & fulminating hoarsely on the local ABC program - Asia Report.
http://www.abc.net.au/ra/asiapac/
scroll down - to get an audio clip of his little outburst.
He seems awfully miffed about this whole business.
Dare I say it - almost victimised.
You naughty,naughty,Japundit people - how could you be so unkind.
Also,to be fair to his wife - she does have a point in regard to Japan.
It ain’t pretty - (gender-wise) - sometimes.
February 20th, 2007 at 7:42 amRadio Australia’s headline on the interview is:
Tokyo bans Australian book on Crown Princess
February 20th, 2007 at 11:03 am“I even invited him to drop in and take part if he felt so inclined. Understandably, he politely declined the invitation“.
I would have thought that he might have jumped at the chance,to mosey on over,and engage in some lively,challenging,witty - Debate and Discussion,with such an esteemed group as the Japundit’s .
But then some people you just can’t please.
(I think it was a privilege - just to be invited).
February 20th, 2007 at 1:41 pmWonder if a fatwa on Ben has been issued by one of the Japanese neo-nazi gangs (”uyoku”). They must be salivating for his blood. One recalls a particular Japanese mayor who didn’t fare too well when he suggested that Hirohito might have borne some responsibility for Japan’s mad-dog behaviour during the 30s and 40s.
February 20th, 2007 at 2:59 pmKodansha’s Japanese version of Princess Masako was half the original, in other words Ben Hills was perfectly aware that although his book might be publishable in English speaking countries, it would receive harsh criticisms in Japan or from anyone who reads Japanese. The mistakes were obvious and this has nothing to do with the child bearing process of Pincess Aiko. Kunaicho, the palace authority’s official statement came out only recently, and Ben’s Japanese version (half reduced version) was already finished. In other words Kunaicho’s statement has nothing to do with the Kodansha’s decision to stop the publication and they’ve officialy commented yesterday that it is completely false information that Kunaicho put pressures on Kodansha.
Ben is furious, only because Kunaicho’s official demand has put a big question mark on the credibility of his original book, and Kodansha, although they were trying to camouflage Ben’s fake information by eliminating most of the errors in the first place (which curiously enough Ben was aware and consented), realized that with Kunaicho’s statement the original book’s incredibility has now been brought to light and there’s no way they can camouflage this. I’m totally confused what this entire fiasco has to do with Iris Chan’s book on Nanking.
February 20th, 2007 at 8:13 pmHas anyone here actually read the book?
February 20th, 2007 at 9:38 pmThe problem is that with all the negative press this book has received, I must admit that I too am fascinated to read it in order to form a proper opinion on this…
I would hate to buy it because if it is as terrible as people say, I would not want to give a penny to the shyster of an author. But then again my curiosity is catching up with me…
Aggh!
February 21st, 2007 at 4:14 amWhat are the factual errors? Have they been listed anywhere?
As for the relationship between this and Iris Chang–I don’t see why there is any confusion. Both books have been essentially banned due to “factual errors.” Chang’s book was widely considered to be a brave and intelligent investigation into a difficult subject. But the book was never released in Japan.
I don’t know if Hills’ book is silly, sensational, brave or all of the above. But the mechanism by which the book has been essentially banned is the same as Chang’s.
I wanted to listen to the audio link that someone posted–my Mac won’t let me. If someone can provide highlights, I’d be obliged.
Simon, your comments cracked me up.
February 21st, 2007 at 6:21 amWhat are the factual errors? Have they been listed anywhere?
That is the question of the day, isn’t it?
After saying he has read the book, even Simon offers up only the oft-repeated “He doesn’t even know the difference between royal majesty and royal highness.” (and who really cares what the difference is anyway) claim to buttress his general remark about it being “junk.”
As far as it being a “rehash of hearsay,” well let’s be realistic about two points: 1. One person’s rehash is another person’s news; 2. When it comes to a strictly cloistered group like the Japanese Imperial Family, what else can you rely upon besides hearsay?
Anyway, I also have not read the book yet, but I am currently waiting for it to arrive from Amazon and I will report honestly what I think about it here. (Go ahead and buy it, Alex. There is no other way of truly knowing whether Hills is a “shyster of an author” until you do.)
In the meantime I will say this — I am pretty surprised at the emotion and invective demonstrated in some of the remarks being offered by the gaijin commenters about Hills and his book. In fact, the remarks and accusations I have read so far are virtually identical to those I have seen in the past in other partisan literary review hit jobs.
It is for this reason I decided to buy the book and find out for myself what it says.
Stay tuned for more. . .
February 21st, 2007 at 11:26 amIn the meantime I will say this — I am pretty surprised at the emotion and invective demonstrated in some of the remarks being offered by the gaijin commenters about Hills and his book. In fact, the remarks and accusations I have read so far are virtually identical to those I have seen in the past in other partisan literary review hit jobs.
Ditto, and, yes, I’ll go and read the book.
February 21st, 2007 at 2:25 pmI don’t know where you get the idea that Japanese people are not gutsy, Simon. I dispute that.
February 21st, 2007 at 5:02 pmEven so, guts and social pressures traditionally do not mix in Japan. Seems to me that’s a significant part of what the honne / tatamae division is all about.
I’d request Ben Hills to come out and comment on the following;
Q1. Why did you agree to cut almost 50% of the original in the Japanese
version in the first place. Kodansha and you were trying to produce a
substantially rewritten version of Princess Masako. It beats me that
you were willing to go ahead with this, if you were 100% confident of
your so called through research.
Q2. Why did Random House Australia sell the publishing rights to Tarcher.
Random House and Kodansha are alliance partners and Random House
Kodansha is one of the group companies of Kodansha. Is it correct to
assume that Kodansha wasn’t even enthusiastic about publishing the
Japanese version in the first place because there are so many obvious
errors, and this was the exact reason to abridge the original.
Q3. You claim that Kunaicho (Imperial Palace) and the Japanese
government censored and pressured you and Kodansha, but the English book
is readily available at any bookstores that carry foreign books in Japan.
I do not call that censorship. You also claim that the Japanese has the
right to know that Princess Aiko was conceived through IVF, the truth (?)
the rest of the world know because Times wrote about this four years ago.
Well, first off that article was introduced in many of the magazines and
media in Japan when it came out and even several years before that.
Rumours and gossips abound in any society and there’s no dynamic shock
in any of this even if it were true.
Q4. You claim that Kunaicho should kneel down and apologize to Princess
Masako, but isn’t it you who should kneel down for sticking you nose
into the privacy and sex lives of the royal couple?, especially when
your book is obviously based on poor research.
Q5. You claim that your book is based on special network, but isn’t it
odd that for someone who doesn’t speak nor write or read Japanese to
have the capacity of undergoing exhaustive research? I mean if a
Japanese journalist who neither speaks or reads English wrote a thick
book about you or your wife, wouldn’t that seem really balmy?
I’d say the only reason why Kodansha decided to stop publishing the
February 21st, 2007 at 5:44 pmbook in Japanese is because it’s not worth it. There’s nothing new in
“Princess Masako,” but there are loads of obvious mistakes some of them
the Imperial Palace has officially claimed. If the original version is
incredible how could the Japanese version be? Or are you saying that in
a free-speaking country the royals do not have the right to point out
your obvious mistakes. You call this pressure and censorship.
One Japanese govt official said today on CNN, re the book: “Japan believes in free speech, yes, but not sloppy speech.”
February 21st, 2007 at 9:24 pmWhich effectively means what? “You are free to say what we want”?
February 21st, 2007 at 11:01 pmWhich effectively means what? “You are free to say what we want”?
That’s my take. Unless, I guess, it’s a book like “The Japan That Can Say No.” But I’d have to read the book to know for sure.
Questions 1, 2, 3 and 5 might be interesting to send to Hills. Question 4 doesn’t address the issue of “accuracy.” The conclusion is also speculative.
Simon’s points might be worth sending on to Hills too, just to get an answer.
By the way, all of the points in this discussion were also raised on Amazon’s review section. The vitriolic post against Masako and her father, by the way, are word-for-word the same as what we see on Amazon.
As for factual errors, the ones Simon points out are the same as what is listed on Amazon.
I have yet to find any other comprehensive list.
February 22nd, 2007 at 12:57 amone/two questions for Mr Hills (JP).
1)Could you please explain your reason/impetus for writing this book?.
2)How much influence/inspiration did your partner have in this creative exercise?.
(as you instructed JP - please pass on to Mr Hills).
February 22nd, 2007 at 7:53 amJustin McCurry, writing in the UK’s Guardian blogosphere, mentions Japundit here:
Bloggers in Japan are divided over their response to the publisher Kodansha’s decision to scrap plans for a Japanese translation of a controversial biography of Crown Princess Masako after the Japanese foreign ministry and the imperial household agency slammed his description of Masako, a commoner, as a victim of “merciless bullying” and demanded an apology.
It’s not all bad news for author Ben Hills. His unforgiving treatment of the royal household and the ensuing furore have made Princess Masako: Prisoner of the Chrysanthemum Throne the best-selling foreign-language book on Amazon Japan.
Hills said the imperial household agency’s complaints had backfired by giving his book “a billion dollars worth of free publicity”.
The blog Japundit contacted Hills, who sent in a statement and agreed to answer contributors’ questions. Elsewhere, Hills has come in for criticism by a veteran Japan Times journalist who claims he was misquoted in the book.
But Japan Probe urges Hills to at least apologise for the alleged factual errors as he enjoys the media-generated boost in sales: online discussion of the book was almost non-existent before the foreign ministry and imperial household agency intervened.
Hills, meanwhile, is confident he will be able to find another Japanese publisher. “The Japanese people have the right to know what is going on in their royal family,” he says.
February 22nd, 2007 at 2:11 pmSakaba said Japan’s government was upset at the disrespectful tone of the work as well as its factual errors.
“Freedom of speech should respect certain norms and standards. If you can say anything you like, I don’t think that is freedom of speech, and the person who says that should respect others’ right to express their views,” he said, explaining why the Japanese government had decided to protest.
February 22nd, 2007 at 2:22 pmFreedom of speech should respect certain norms and standards
I wholeheartedly agree.
Just as long as I get to decide what those norms and standards are. . .
February 22nd, 2007 at 2:25 pmWell for one thing, Hills doesn’t seem to know that the Eastern Palace, which is where the Crown Prince and Masako lives, is managed by the old
boys network of the foreign ministry, more specifically Princess Masako’s father’s ex-colleagues and not by the Imperial Palace. Hills
asserts that the Imperial Palace is trying to hide Princess Masako’s illness, because this is the general attitude? of the Japanese towards
mental illness, but Masako’s team of doctors were not chosen by the Imperial Palace. The Crown Prince and Princess Masako chose Yutaka Ohno
MD, who was a friend of Masako’s younger sister and the diagnosis is made by Ohno MD. These are all public information that Hills has access to
if only he bothered to do basic research. Princess Masako has two sisters (twins) and one of them is married to a doctor, but Onho MD is a friend of the one who’s married to a lawyer. Back in 2001, the royal couple also chose Sadatsuki MD to head the obstetrics and gynecology unit, and this was also done through their own connection. Dr. Sadatsuki used to work with Dr. Tsutsumi, who was Princess Masako’s doctor prior to 2001 and he was also chosen by the couple. In other words, it is not true that the Imperial Palace, the government and Japan? is keeping the Princess from
receiving the best treatment, as whatever treatment she is receiving is lead by her own personal network and the diagnosis is made by them. Princess Masako and her team have the freedom to call her illness whatever she wishes, but the general tone in Japan is why can’t the
couple be more candid and frank like the rest of the royal family.
I’m not sure what Hills mean by the Japanese attitude towards mental illness but you read and hear and see programs about depression and
panic syndrome and all other types of mental illnesses everyday. Celebrities talk about their own experiences and there are numerous books written about this. It’s Ben Hills who is in the darkness about Japan. BTW, talking about the restricted lives of the royals, if that’s
what Ben wishes to call, it was the allied powers, the occupation army lead by Douglas MacArthur and the International Military Tribunal (IMTFE) lead by William Webb of Australia that drew the basic blueprints of the future role of the royal family in Japan.
Princess Masako is able to attend the courses at the United Nations University where she has her own lab, she is able to dine with her friends and family and are seen quite often in central Tokyo, she is able to do a number of other things that are not covered at all in the book.
February 22nd, 2007 at 9:37 pmWell, calico, you were dong pretty good there until you got carried away with yourself and claimed that the current Japanese Imperial system was mapped out by the IMTFE.
Even if it was, what has prevented Japan from changing it since then?
Also, if Princess Masako has it so peachy as you suggest in your final paragraph, what’s all the depression and Prince Naruhito’s claim about the her suppressed individuality?
February 22nd, 2007 at 11:25 pm“Hills
asserts that the Imperial Palace is trying to hide Princess Masako’s illness, because this is the general attitude? of the Japanese towards
mental illness, but Masako’s team of doctors were not chosen by the Imperial Palace. The Crown Prince and Princess Masako chose Yutaka Ohno
MD, who was a friend of Masako’s younger sister and the diagnosis is made by Ohno MD. These are all public information that Hills has access to
if only he bothered to do basic research.”
But you haven’t proven anything–only that she has now had a diagnosis by a doctor of her choice. It is entirely possible that the Imperial palace did not provide her the health care that she needed, and that this is why she needed to go to an outside source to receive help. Remember, this is a woman who took the unprecedented step of going home to her parents for a month in order to recuperate from stress.
Perhaps the Imperial palace/Kunaicho sees this as a “willful act of disobedience.” But if I were being told that my fertility problems were all in my head, I wouldn’t trust said caretakers either, and would, instead retreat to a safer place.
“Princess Masako has two sisters (twins) and one of them is married to a doctor, but Onho MD is a friend of the one who’s married to a lawyer. Back in 2001, the royal couple also chose Sadatsuki MD to head the obstetrics and gynecology unit, and this was also done through their own connection. Dr. Sadatsuki used to work with Dr. Tsutsumi, who was Princess Masako’s doctor prior to 2001 and he was also chosen by the couple. ”
And . . . so . . . the couple shouldn’t choose their own medical care? What exactly are you saying? They chose their own doctor and therefore their medical problems are their own fault? This is not a line of reasoning which suggests that mental health problems are being taken very seriously. It implies a sort of: “Bad, bad person for believing the doctor who tells you that you are mentally ill! If you were just more obedient and stoic and went with our doctors, you wouldn’t be having these problems.”
“In other words, it is not true that the Imperial Palace, the government and Japan? is keeping the Princess from
receiving the best treatment, as whatever treatment she is receiving is lead by her own personal network and the diagnosis is made by them. Princess Masako and her team have the freedom to call her illness whatever she wishes, but the general tone in Japan is why can’t the
couple be more candid and frank like the rest of the royal family.”
See above.
I would hardly call the rest of the Imperial family candid. We know so little about them, know so little of their inner lives.
Look, the only way that this would make any logical sense is if you had proof that she received absolutely no medical care or input into her condition(s) from the Imperial family, and that she was, as you imply, choosing her own care and acting in a bizarre and willful manner. Choosing an outside source is evidence only of that — at some point, she and her husband chose an outside source.
What led her to do this? Arrogance? Pressure? Seeking a release? You don’t seem to know. My understanding from the articles that have been released to the public is that some sort of pressure within the palace led the princess and her husband to find treatment that was actually effective and actually got at the cause of her woes.
The only other piece of evidence is the quote that JP mentions–the Crown Prince speaking out against individuals who have sought to “suppress his wife’s individuality.” And what happened when he did this? His brother–now the father of the eventual heir to the throne–chastised him publicly.
From where I stand, it looks an awful lot to me like he is forced to either take the highway, or take no way. There is no third way.
And boy is it ever true that the IMTFE has nothing to do with the way the Imperial family is going now.
As for mental health in Japan–this is a subject that is worth more discussion than a message post. But I will say this: I’ve had the opportunity to be very close to a family which runs a major mental health hospital–the facility passed from father to son and will pass on to the grandson. I’ve had discussions with this family about mental health in Japan for the past 20 plus years.
It is true that Japan is addressing the subject of mental health, and that the many terms are starting to enter popular vocabulary. But it is also true that until at least 1987 when legislation was passed to start to help integrate the mentally ill into society, hospitals kept these folks–and many handicapped–out of sight.
It is also true that the presence of mental illness in a family carries with it a stigma, and impacts a person’s marital chances. It is not seen as an individual problem, but as something that affects the whole family.
Remember, Japan does have one of the highest suicide rates in the industrialized world; nearly 5 times as many people die from suicide as they do from traffic accidents. This is a culture whose people would benefit from honest discussion and understanding of mental health care, and access to it.
February 23rd, 2007 at 1:22 amcorrect me - in reality isn’t the Imperial Family constitutionally little more than a ceremonial entity.
It wields no real political power.
Unlike the British Monarchial system.
(The pay probably isn’t that brilliant either).
it’s all a bit of a tempest-in-a-teacup really isn’t it?.
(Oh yeah!)..and an excuse for a naff-journo to flog a probably equally-naff book.
remora.
February 23rd, 2007 at 8:21 amI’d be inclined to dismiss it as a tempest in a teacup — but then why not publish the book if that’s really the case? If no one cares, then what’s the problem?
February 23rd, 2007 at 8:55 amwell at least Ben could have passed along a few complimentary copies to JP to review so you we could get a bit more clued in like! - (y’know wot I mean).
yours humbly.
rem.
February 23rd, 2007 at 9:01 amAw, I agree, Remora. I would read and review pretty much anything anyone sent me at this point as long as it was Japan related. You really think the monarchy in the UK has so much power?
February 23rd, 2007 at 9:19 amPrince Naruhito’s birthday,he has just said that yes,he has heard of this book,but unfortunately not received a copy - although he would very interested to read it.
Well that says it all.
(JP) - I don’t think there are any free copies comin’ your way too soon.
(That was on the Radio Australia 2pm news).
can’t find link at the moment.
February 23rd, 2007 at 12:39 pmNo free books, huh. . . Maybe that’s why Hills is getting such bad press. . .
Anyway, Amazon informed me the other day that my copy has shipped. Marie says she is planning to read it, too.
Keep an eye on JAPUNDIT for what might be the only cool, unemotional review of the book to date.
February 23rd, 2007 at 12:43 pmExactly! - no one reviews for free.
February 23rd, 2007 at 12:47 pmHere is the link.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200702/s1855149.htm
Ben Hills has been on Radio Australia on three different occasions in the past week.
So,he must have some pals in there, at “Radio Pravda” as its jokingly called.
February 23rd, 2007 at 2:45 pmI don’t really see what the big deal is. The books has innacuracies so it should fit in nicely.
February 23rd, 2007 at 5:35 pmI don’t know what you mean by peachy but I’m only saying that the Crown Prince and his wife have always had the freedom to choose their own
doctors, in fact the Imperial Hospital is only a box where outside doctors come and go, and the royals have the freedom to visit and receive treatments elsewhere. The Imperial Hospital exist for convenience only and Hills is hallucinating here. Keio University Hospital, St. Luke International Hospital, Tokyo University
Hospital,Aiiku Hospital and others have all been used in the past.
Princess Masako is currently attending seminars at the United Nations University in central Tokyo and I do not call this “peachy,” but a sign
that she is getting well. Princess Kiko took her masters degree when she was 29 years old and some members of the royal family have taught at universities. However, if Princess Masako’s goal is to engage in political and military issues (she was studying international and military relationships at Balliol College) then under the current constitution she’s obviously in the wrong place.
The IMTFE and the GHQ decided to reduce the size of the royal family and 11 families (51 members) were thrown out of the royal household to
become commoners. The goal was to naturally diminish the royal line. This has put a huge burden on any Crown Princess or Crown Prince that has fertility problems, remember Princess Masako’s first child was born 8 years after their marriage and this was regardless of the child’s sex. Prince Akishino and Kiko stopped having children a year after the Crown Prince and Masako’s marriage. Their first daughter Mako was born 2 years before Princess Masako married in 1993 and their second daughter Kako was born in 1994. Back then, the Crown Prince and Princess Masako expressed their desire to refrain from having children for about 3 years, until Masako adjusted to the royal way of life and this was also introduced by one of their close friends who was the Crown Prince’s classmate at Gakushuin, someone who attended their wedding. Whether
that was true or not, during the first two years of their marriage the couple were busy visiting seven middle eastern countries and then the
Hanshin earthquake broke out in 1995. This was unfortunate for the Princess who had a strong will to visit foreign countries, because the
Emperor and the Empress announced two years of foreign visit suspension and the crown couple followed. In 1997, the Emperor and Empress
restarted foreign visits and received invitations from Brazil, Argentina and the European countries. Unfortunately it is the duty of
the Crown Prince to act as his parent’s delegate in their absence and Naruhito and Masako restarted their foreign visits in February 1999 and visited Jordan and Belgium. It was right after their visit to Belgium in December 1999 that Princess Masako had miscarriage, but she became pregnant in early 2001 and Princess Aiko was born in December. The Crown Prince alone has visited UK in 2001 and Netherlands in 2002 and the period that Princess Masako could not go was the two years after the Hanshin earthquake, the period when the Emperor and Empress were visiting abroad, the period after her miscarriage and when she was pregnant. Whether this is an unbelievable stress depends largely on the kind of life style you were spending before marriage and Princess Masako was I presume a true “jet set.” The list of foreign visits by the royal family is public information and you can track back to 1953.
In December 2002, at a press conference given before the crown couple’s visit to Australia and New Zealand, Princess Masako explained that because her life before marriage was that of a diplomat and because her father was also a diplomat it is only natural for her to visit foreign countries on a regular basis. She said this quite firmly and the message she was sending out to the public was that she is a jet setter. This is really where the real problem lies I think. If she’s a jet setter and if that’s what she wants why did she marry the Crown Prince in the first place. Even in the real world not many people are jet setters in the way her father is. I think Princess Masako wishes to visit foreign countries frequently like a true diplomat, and not as a Crown Princess who is “invited” and are not supposed to engage in political issues or join the foreign affairs arena. I personally think that it is better for the royal family to stay out of real politics but there are still many things Princess Masako can do and I hope she manages to find her field of interest.
Hills is also mistaken that members of the Japanese royal family are not allowed and have never divorced in the past. They were two divorce
cases and remarriages in the meiji era (19th century), and further up there must have been more, but it’s really up to the crown couple to decide what to do and it’s none of our business.
Now, regarding Marie’s comment on “Japan has the one of the highest suicide rates in the industrialized world.” True, the past decade in
Japan is called “the lost 15 years — shinawareta jyugo-nenn” meaning after the bubble bursted the socio-economic landscape has been altered profoundly in Japan and reduction in lifetime employment with expansion of non-regular employment and layoffs, have raised the rate of suicide but this is also the case in South Korea or any country that underwent rapid change. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also changed, and in 2001 they abolished the diplomat exam that Princess Masako took. Now candidates are required to take the regular national exam and the aim is to reduce private-offering, “nepotism.”
I’m still wondering why Ben Hills was trying to sell the substantially reduced version in Japanese at 1890 yen (US$15.60, Australian$19.72)
February 24th, 2007 at 1:29 amin the first place.
oops,
“the lost 15 years — Ushinawareta jyugo-nenn”
February 24th, 2007 at 1:35 amPrincess Masako is currently attending seminars
A quick search of the web indicates that she attended one three-day seminar with her husband, making that particular event sound official.
Are there other seminars she is attending? Where is this information available?
February 24th, 2007 at 2:17 amNews out today that the Crown Prince says Masako is feeling better. I may post about this later, unless we are all feeling Princess Masako fatigue.
All the information you provide, Calico, is interesting, and I’m glad you are keeping the discussion going. But it still doesn’t tell me much about factual inaccuracies which would justify the suspension of publicaion. When you present this information and follow up with: “Hills is also mistaken . . .” it implies that the previous information you provided is to correct a mistake he has made.
What is the mistake he has made that all of your information about doctors and visits corrects?
“The IMTFE and the GHQ decided to reduce the size of the royal family and 11 families (51 members) were thrown out of the royal household to
become commoners. The goal was to naturally diminish the royal line. This has put a huge burden on any Crown Princess or Crown Prince that has fertility problems, remember Princess Masako’s first child was born 8 years after their marriage and this was regardless of the child’s sex.”
It’s ridiculous to imply that it’s because of the IMTFE the royal couple have fertility problems. Fertility is a matter of biology, not the size of a family. Let’s say, for argument’s sake, that the royalty didn’t all lose their titles after the war. Let’s fast forward. Princess Masako still doesn’t have a boy. What happens? The crown gets passed to her nephew, the newly born prince. How does having a larger family change anything? It doesn’t.
What would change things is if an Empress were allowed to take the throne–something for which there is historical precedent. Why isn’t one allowed to do so now?
You write: “The Crown Prince alone has visited UK in 2001 and Netherlands in 2002 and the period that Princess Masako could not go was the two years after the Hanshin earthquake, the period when the Emperor and Empress were visiting abroad, the period after her miscarriage and when she was pregnant. Whether this is an unbelievable stress depends largely on the kind of life style you were spending before marriage and Princess Masako was I presume a true “jet set.””
(Note: the italics are mine). Your questioning of the princess’ illness is based solely on the idea that she became ill because she had lived a jet set lifestyle and now could not. But this isn’t the only possibility and it tells us more about your own bias and prejudgment of the situation than it does about any factual inaccuracies in a book. You do not take into account that:
>she may have had assurances of what her role would be once she was married
>the Crown Prince had a point when he said that personality had been limited
In other words, you place the blame solely on her and can’t even imagine or entertain the idea that some other force comes into play.
Your also write: “She said this quite firmly and the message she was sending out to the public was that she is a jet setter. This is really where the real problem lies I think. If she’s a jet setter and if that’s what she wants why did she marry the Crown Prince in the first place.”
Here we learn what you think and what has motivated your posts: that Masako wanted something out of the relationship that was not going to work alongside her expected duties and that she was wrong to ask for it.
But remember, this is a woman who turned down the prince on more than one occasion. This isn’t someone who couldn’t wait to get married because she saw a free check to spend on first class tickets around the world. This is someone who had to be convinced that marriage would be a good thing for her to do. Some kinds of conversations and promises must have taken place to assure her she’d be a good fit for the monarchy.
As for the idea that the princess inappropriately represented Japan and tried to offer her opinion on politics in a way that embarassed the family, not to mention the country, which is what you imply, please provide me with evidence.
“I think Princess Masako wishes to visit foreign countries frequently like a true diplomat, and not as a Crown Princess who is “invited” and are not supposed to engage in political issues or join the foreign affairs arena.”
I don’t see any. What we as the public saw was someone who went on trips, and then suddenly didn’t. And then her husband, in a rare expression of personal dissatisfaction, criticized a group of people who:
a) kept his wife’s personality suppressed
b) wouldn’t let her travel
I get it. You don’t like her. You wish she and her husband would shut up and behave the way they are asked to. Maybe you know her or knew her and have insights that we don’t. That’s cool. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. But a strong feeling that she is misbehaving and a personal dislike are not examples of “factual innacuracies” in a book–which I admittedly have yet to read.
And she’s probably not some golden example of the perfect wife who is blameless in all her troubles–who is ever perfect? This still doesn’t mean that what has befallen her is “right” or that it’s even understandable in the modern era.
Regarding the Japanese publication: it’s my understanding the publishing houses set publishing prices. Not authors. I know this from having now worked in publishing.
My question would be why the Japanese version was going to be so much shorter. But, again, that is a question for the publisher, who seems to be acting in a somewhat cowardly manner, as far as I’m concerned, and leaving its author to shoulder the blame. At least Nan Talese had the decency to appear on Oprah alongside her writer.
February 24th, 2007 at 3:22 amMarie,
Read both the original and the Japanese translation, and you will probably see why. Making the list of inaccuracies would take too long, and honestly I’m not going to go through this trash for the second time to do so. My time would be better spent by reading a real liturature.
It was really a huge blunder by the government. What it did was to give Hills a million dollar worth of free publicity. Without the government sticking the nose in, the book would have died a natural death. The book is in the same level as the Diana books. It’s that stupid, and it’s even stupider of Kunaicho to take it seriously.
I just read the letter the Grand Chamberlain wrote to Hills - it’s posted in the Kunaicho web site. He takes issues that Hills said the imperial couple’s function as ceremonial. He sites what Emperor have done visiting hospitals, and honestly this is one case I think Hills is right. Holding a hand of a patient doesn’t sound to me an ‘active involvement’ on the cause.
February 24th, 2007 at 3:59 amhonestly,why make such a fuss about this.
(this person obviously has a.. Problem/Dysfunction/Malfunction…upstairs in the Control Room.)
a short Analyst/”Shoppingu” trip to Manhattan would probably work wonders.
Marie.
I have this wonderful joke that I can repeat in hoch deutsch/platt deutsch/dialect..about Herr Doctor Freud’s first lecture in Vienna (1912).
p.s.
I was partnered to an Austrian/Osterreichen for ten years - (so it is fairly authentic).
I’ll drop it in when I can - it is clever and clean.
February 24th, 2007 at 2:08 pmSimon - I didn’t read it - I caught it firsthand from the newsroom -radiowise.
I watched them say it.
I am supreme amongst the nihongo illiterati.
(jeez i ducked that one!!).
February 24th, 2007 at 2:30 pmalso if nothing else - this topic is bringing a few more dormant/lurking commentators back to life or into the fold.. whichever.
but then they are generally Punless ..beyond,beyond, humour & redemption.
Simon - my-name-is-remora
with a small r
how many more times (JP).
*jesus wept*
February 24th, 2007 at 2:44 pmthank (whoever) I’m a Country Lad.
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Tataranuma_swan.JPG
February 24th, 2007 at 2:58 pmremora with small r,
Then the crown prince got more balls than I thought. Interesting.
February 24th, 2007 at 3:36 pm“You place the blame solely on her, this is a woman who turned down the prince on more than one occasion, and you imply that the princess
inappropriately represented Japan and tried to offer her option that embarrassed the family not to mention the country. I get it you don’t
like her, maybe you know her or knew her and have insights we don’t”
You see, this is the kind of hysteria that Hills has managed to instigate in some people who haven’t even read the book or have no access to information in Japanese or have knowledge of the history or the current situations in Japan, and their complaint is that they know so little about the royal family because information is kept secret. One interesting comment that Princess Masako’s sister gave publicly was that she sees a woman (meaning Masako) who’s indeed in love and that she is happy for her. My comments are based on public information. No one is perfect, we all make wrong choices in life and we somehow accept that and seek solutions. Divorce is one choice and if that’s what they need let them decide, but I am neither blaming Masako or her husband
because none of us know for sure what goes on between the two and this is the truth for any couple. If you’re married and if someone who lives
abroad that does not understand the language you use or know you personally, began writing a thick about you and your husband and your in-laws based on limited information and have made numerous factual errors and yet claim that this is the exclusive truth about your life, your in-lawas and your ancestor’s and tried to sell it, you’d question his sanity wouldn’t you. If Hills is going to publish this book in Japanese, he should keep the errors as it is and get a word for word
translation of the entire book and face scrutiny.
You know Marie, you and Hills repeat that the royal family are kept in a cage and have no life and yet you both say let Princess Aiko become
February 24th, 2007 at 7:48 pmthe future Emperor, interesting.
“You place the blame solely on her, this is a woman who turned down the prince on more than one occasion, and you imply that the princess
inappropriately represented Japan and tried to offer her option that embarrassed the family not to mention the country. I get it you don’t
like her, maybe you know her or knew her and have insights we don’t”
You see, this is the kind of hysteria that Hills has managed to instigate in some people who haven’t even read the book or have no access to information in Japanese or have knowledge of the history or the current situations in Japan, and their complaint is that they know so little about the royal family because information is kept secret. One interesting comment that Princess Masako’s sister gave publicly was that she sees a woman (meaning Masako) who’s indeed in love and that she is happy for her. My comments are based on public information. No one is perfect, we all make wrong choices in life and we somehow accept that and seek solutions. Divorce is one choice and if that’s what they need let them decide, but I am neither blaming Masako or her husband
because none of us know for sure what goes on between the two and this is the truth for any couple. If you’re married and if someone who lives
abroad that does not understand the language you use or know you personally, began writing a thick about you and your husband and your in-laws based on limited information and have made numerous factual errors and yet claim that this is the exclusive truth about your life, your in-lawas and your ancestor’s and tried to sell it, you’d question his sanity wouldn’t you. If Hills is going to publish this book in Japanese, he should keep the errors as it is and get a word for word
translation of the entire book and face scrutiny.
You know Marie, you and Hills repeat that the royal family are kept in a cage and have no life and yet you both say let Princess Aiko become
February 24th, 2007 at 7:50 pmthe future Emperor, interesting.
And so, calico, that leaves only the question of just who are you?
What qualifications do you bring to the table?
February 24th, 2007 at 9:07 pm“You see, this is the kind of hysteria that Hills has managed to instigate in some people who haven’t even read the book or have no access to information in Japanese or have knowledge of the history or the current situations in Japan, and their complaint is that they know so little about the royal family because information is kept secret.”
But that’s what I’m saying, calico . . . the information is not secret! As in, it’s a matter of public record and the information shows that she has an adjustment disorder! There it is! In black and white! Ta da! Repeated numerous times (including by the Crown Prince just recently), caught on tape, indisuptably stated.
What isn’t so well known is precisely how the adjustment order went down.
You’re the one who hems and haws and says things like: “Well, she is said to have a personality disorder by doctors she chose, but I wish we knew what the truth was.”
You’ve been told. By her family, aka her husband. Why don’t you want to accept it? It’s also entirely possible to have a pretty good relationship while suffering from pressures from the outside. Why on earth must divorce be a realistic option in this case, if the stress isn’t actually the one-on-one relationship but from another source?
And, yes, one wonders who you are with all this protesting and misdirection of logic. Everyone knows who I am, what I think, and why it is interesting to me. Check my posts.
But who are you? And why is it so important for you to get off track with this kind of muddy logic?
“If you’re married and if someone who lives
abroad that does not understand the language you use or know you personally, began writing a thick about you and your husband and your in-laws based on limited information and have made numerous factual errors and yet claim that this is the exclusive truth about your life, your in-lawas and your ancestor’s and tried to sell it, you’d question his sanity wouldn’t you.”
Sanity? No. There are millions of these books written. Go to Amazon and type in “Diana” and you’ll see them. Most are trash–and, as I keep saying, this one might be too (I have to read it). But I would not jump to the conclusion that the guy was insane. (As an aside, there is a wierd understanding of the concept of sanity in this entire conversation. As in: Masako must be sane, but just sad she’s not a jet-setter and Hills must be insane. I’m no shrink but this is hardly a cogent understanding of mental illness.)
I’m still waiting for a list of numerous factual errors — from anyone.
As for the foreigner writing the book issue–this is definitely curious to me. Hills is married to a Japanese woman–one wonders how they work together and conduct their interview process. If she’s Japanese, surely she could speak to Japanese journalists and sources.
I know that the Bix book had a similar brou-ha-ha, but he at least understood and could read Japanese! And, as I’ve maintained in other posts, and will continue to maintain, not speaking Japanese is a pretty big barrier to immersing yourself in the culture. I agree; there are hundreds of times in Japan where something has happened to me and I’ve said to myself: man, I only experienced this because I could understand what was happening. So, yes, I wonder about his methods.
And that would be my main question to Hills. “How did you conduct your research absent any Japanese language ability? What role did your wife play?”
As for Princess Aiko never becoming empress, as someone else on this board once said, it’s probably a very, very good thing for her sake. What disappoints me is the inherent deep sexism the decision reveals. Go back and read my posts and you’ll see that this is my position. Maybe the little girl will have a better shot at happiness as a result.
February 26th, 2007 at 2:41 amPs — I also wanted to say that it has also been my experience that an “outsider” in Japan is often told a secret. The role as outsider often makes people open up and confide more than they would to an insider. So I’m not entirely convinced that being an outsider means that one wouldn’t get at the truth–it’s just that speaking Japanese is so much more helpful in these instances.
February 26th, 2007 at 2:51 amI think the basic premise of the book is correct. The ambitious bright woman pressured into marrying a crown prince, finds herself in purely ceremonial roles with no substance, discovering her reason for existance there was to breed, and not to make contribution or fulfill herself. So she has a breakdown.
What I objected to the most is that it’s poor writing. Secondly his obvious lack of knowledge of Japanese. Obviously he doesn’t speak or read Japanese and he didn’t even bother to make an effort to get to know, and I find it quite offensive.
Hills repeatedly states that Princess Masako was sacrified for his parents’ social ambition. Her father ambitios careerwise, but I don’t see anywhere that indicates them as social climbers. I’ve heard that Emperess Michiko invited Masako’s mother for tea to ask for the marriage. No Japanese can refuse Emperess if she condesended to ask. It’s just not done. If Hills doesn’t understand it, he doesn’t know Japanese society.
Factual error - Hills says Masako’s grandfather is a criminal who caused the mercury pollution. He was brought in to salvage the company and the situation after the fact, and not the cause. He wasn’t the one who presided over polluting of the river. It’s such an easy timeline to check.
If he had the courtesy, before being posted to Japan as a foreign correspondent, to read a book about Japan such as Reischauer, many of the errors might have been avoided.
Or the role of emperor all through the Japanese history - most Westerners can’t accept that emperors never had any political power in its 1500 year history, except in the 7th Century(?) for about 20 years. Everything was done in his name, but his will was decided for him by the government of the moment. All through the history, he was a puppet. Think about it. If emperors had real power like of kings of England, would the same line have lasted unbroken for 1500 years?
But as I said, this is a subject that non-Japanese find hard to understand, including Hills, so we don’t go there.
The book is shallow. If the Kunaicho left it alone like an adult, it would have died a natural death. But they acted like Japanese officials. Stupid all the way around.
February 26th, 2007 at 6:12 am“Everything was done in his name, but his will was decided for him by the government of the moment. All through the history, he was a puppet.”
Not sure Herbert Bix would agree! But I take your point.
I’ve started to read. I have some thoughts–some of which fall in line with yours–but will share them at a later date when I can give a more comprehensive point of view.
Thanks for posting again, Simon!
February 26th, 2007 at 9:54 amWell the book isn’t exactly in favor of Princess Masako either, Hills is criticising everyone including her family and her father. He’s
February 26th, 2007 at 8:31 pmbasically criticising everything that has anything to do with Japan, from the Japanese social system to the emperor system and he concludes Japan is so behind it should learn from the west and Princess Masako is the symbol of the western educational and social system, where in fact she spent almost 11 years of her school days in Japan at a Japanese school and university . It looks like you need qualification to express views
in this blog, and buzz off is the message, gotcha.
One last thing, the foreign ministry in Japan went through several reforms after 2001 including the exams and the diplomatic passport that
February 26th, 2007 at 9:17 pmwas handed out even to the trainees (which Princess Masako was one during her stay at Balliol) and the privileges that was attached to the passport (free flights even during non-working days and all). Princess Masako’s interview in 2002, the one she explained how it was natural for her to make frequent international flights came right at a time when
this reform was taking place which did make her seem rather nonchalant about the timing and the social climate when there were many debates going on and articles written about the reforms in the foreign ministry.
after all this media brouhaha over the book, i envision foreign translations of the Hills book into French, German, Spanish, Norwegian, Swedish, Chinese (for China and Taiwan editions), with maybe an HBO movie of the week pick up as well, with the author finally getting a nice paycheck of around US$5 million ten years down the road as royalties pile up slowly. Had the Govt and the Agency said nothing, the book would have disappeared most likely. Now it is here to stay, and a Japanese edition will surely come out in 2007 later or early 2008.
February 26th, 2007 at 10:39 pmAnd Ben Hills will be crying all the way to the bank! This really is the best thing happened to him. What a shame.
February 27th, 2007 at 2:40 amWhy is it a shame?
Why waste time bemoaning the good fortune of another?
February 27th, 2007 at 11:53 amHis good fortune came about for wrong reasons. The book doesn’t deserve to be a best seller.
I’m mad that I actually paid my own hard money on this trash, so I guess I’m taking it personally. Oh, well….
February 27th, 2007 at 12:30 pmNote: In the intro, Hills points out that this book was the publisher’s idea.
February 27th, 2007 at 11:58 pmOh that’s very noble of him.
February 28th, 2007 at 12:22 amWow. 63 comments on this post?! To each his own perhaps, but this topic hardly seems worthy of so much effort on the part of readers of this blog….
February 28th, 2007 at 1:01 amI don’t recall anyone twisting your arm there, Ryo.
February 28th, 2007 at 1:28 amPerhaps I should clarify. Some may find this topic interesting, and indeed it is to a certain degree (for example, comment 54 was enlightening), but the number of responses to it surpassed what I might have anticipated in the beginning. I am entirely aware that I am not being compelled to do anything here.
February 28th, 2007 at 2:42 amI mentioned it, overoften, because people kept asking why he wrote the book in the first place, and because I think the publisher should be taking some of the heat. It’s very common these days to put all the burden of a book on the author and not on the editor or the house, and I think that’s wrong.
February 28th, 2007 at 3:04 amThis whole notion of the burden of responsibility being shared by both author and editor/publisher reminds me of the recent O.J. Simpson book saga, for which the publisher was fired, and rightfully so.
February 28th, 2007 at 3:17 am:roll::?::?::roll:
So, is Ben Hills’ book, Princess Masako–Prisoner of the Chrysanthemum Throne, available for purchase or not? Will it be published by a different company?
Auberginefleur
February 28th, 2007 at 11:52 amhttp://blog.livedoor.jp/auberginefleur/
Simon, why did you delete your original list of “inaccuracies”?
March 2nd, 2007 at 3:09 amSomehow my posts got caught by The Spam Shield and were deleted, though I didn’t think there were anything indecent in them (might depend on your point of view there). JR kindly adjusted the settings, so it seems OK now.
March 2nd, 2007 at 4:16 amExcellent. Thanks.
March 2nd, 2007 at 10:46 amI think that, in a way, Hill’s story is more interesting than Masako’s. His wife thought Japan was anti-female, so they went to Cairo????? It reminds me of some gaijin I have met in Japan.
I guess none of us can escape some irony. My wife is a clinical psychologist, Yamatonadeshiko, and she calls me Goshujinsama!
March 4th, 2007 at 12:41 am[...] 1. Factual error - Hills says Masako’s grandfather is a criminal who caused the mercury pollution. He was brought in to salvage the company and the situation after the fact, and not the cause. He wasn’t the one who presided over polluting of the river. It’s such an easy timeline to check. [...]
March 4th, 2007 at 1:41 amDear Ben,
March 9th, 2007 at 2:50 amWhen I was deputy editor of Tokyo Journal magazine in the mid 1990s, I came across a Sydney Morning Herald article by you that heavily plagiarised our story on the rightist Royichi Sasakawa. We complained to the Herald but received no response. Can you enlighten me on this?
sincerely,
Mark Robinson
JP - if we could just persuade vittel & tlxftrf to go over to Mr.Hills site and pester and torment him incessantly until he sends across few gratis copies of his recent work of pulp fiction - we could really get some traction going on this debate.
March 16th, 2007 at 11:12 am[...] Throne… an outsider attempting to look in and reaction from Japan’s right-wing. Japundit also covered the book, getting a statement from the author. James at Japan Probe summarised the various positions of the [...]
March 20th, 2007 at 1:55 am. . . still awaiting a response . . . two weeks later.
March 24th, 2007 at 5:10 am[...] to deem this striking preview at http://japundit.com/archives/2007/02/19/5060 about [...]
September 7th, 2007 at 5:53 pm