Japan has been witnessing something of a baka explosion recently. Whether or not the actual number of idiots or incidents of idiotic behavior are on the increase or not, there is certainly a sharp rise in the public irritability index, a lowering of the threshold at which people call others "baka."

Prime evidence for such widespread feelings of frustration and impatience is the first million-copy best seller of the year, "Baka no Kabe (The Wall of a Fool)" (Shincho Shinsho), by Yoro Takeshi. Although Yoro, formerly a professor of anatomy at Tokyo University, has been using the phrase "baka no kabe" for 20 years, it has hit a nerve this year in particular, propelling his paperback to the top of the best seller chart at the end of June -- two months after publication -- where it has remained ever since with more than 1.2 million copies now in print.

What exactly is Yoro's baka no kabe? It is the wall preventing people from hearing a message they don't want to hear. In the words of the jacket copy, " 'Hanaseba wakaru' nante ouso! (It's a big fat lie that people will understand each other if they just talk it over)."