Friday, February 2, 2007

Secret and Not So Secret Files of Foreigner's Crimes

Via Gawker comes a Guardian article: A magazine plays to Japanese xenophobia.

Interestingly, the article gives some line time to Debito Arudou (nee David Aldwinckle), mildly controversial naturalized Japanese citizen and civil rights gadfly.

But is it really xenophobia at work here? Secret Files of Foreigner's Crimes is the name (in translation) and from the description given, the point of the mag seems pretty much what the title implies: foreigners are dangerous, and also, they will totally bogart Japanese chicks. At a glance, the cropped cover shot does say things like "protect yourself from foreign crimes", but it also depicts in no uncertain terms the true danger to Japan: zombies.

"Gaijin" is used here as a code name for zombies. Secret Files of Foreigner's Crimes is an encrypted publication used to disseminate vital information throughout Japan without alerting Umbrella Corporation's Tokyo office that confidential info on the true extent of the T-Virus menace has now fallen into resistance hands. Citizens of Japan, be alert, be informed!

And invest in a 2x4 with a nails in the end. Just in case.

As for what coded meaning the word "Borat" holds for UN High Commissioner Howie Carr, though, I think it just stands for "man or fabricated media persona originating from interchangeable Third World hellhole located somewhere vaguely east of Europe."

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