For an enjoyable and stimulating read, one could do much worse than this thoughtful polemic on what ails bilateral relations between the United States and Japan. Ivan P. Hall pulls no punches and shrinks from no taboos in advancing his argument: that the Japanese have taken advantage of American naivete to effectively muddle U.S. perceptions of Japan and muzzle critics of alleged Japanese subterfuges.
The author skewers the U.S. for mishandling its relationship with Japan, castigating it for nonchalance, ignorance and intellectual adolescence. It has, he says, failed to come to terms with the challenges posed by a nation that is neither playing by the same rules nor inspired by the same values and ideals. He asks: "Can we go on forever being the cocker spaniels of international society, fancying every guest in the room an easily made friend . . .?"
According to Hall, U.S. myopia and willful self-delusion have made it easy for Japan to win the bilateral intellectual game and rack up enormous trade surpluses with its biggest trade partner. What really gets Hall's teeth gnashing is the extent to which Japan specialists in the U.S., so-called Japanapologists, have become loyal advocates for Japan, aiding and abetting the "enemy" while working to silence discordant voices such as Hall's.