International Incident

The Chinese are upset by a new Japanese school history textbook which, they say, whitewashes Japanese crimes during WWII. But photos of a little Japanese girl are helping to melt Chinese hearts. Saaya Irie is "pacifying a certain segment of China's population" with her photos, especially those showing her in a bikini. The 11-year-old budding actress fills an F-cup bra, and her photos have swept Chinese web sites. A message with the photos, surely not written by the girl, begs the Chinese to "stop these anti-Japanese hijinks" since "if you don't, I won't like you anymore." But if people "unite for the sake of China's democracy," the message says, her breasts will "rise up." The unlikely propaganda is working. "This is one Japanese import I won't be boycotting," said one Chinese man. The girl's agent says she's a "bit frightened" by the attention, but she says she "would like to see good relations between Japan and China." (Japan Times) ...At 11, let's hope she doesn't understand exactly what sort of relations the guys really want.