LOS ANGELES -- Like the American stock market, the Asian political scene suffers ups and downs. Today, Asia might seem more like a hibernating bear in a China shop than anything else. SARS-hit Hong Kong is experiencing its highest jobless rate in years, China is toying with the idea of a currency devaluation, and those dangerously goofy generals in Yangon have nothing better to do than re-arrest democracy advocate Aung San Suu Kyi, one of Asia's most respected women. And when will the North Koreans ever realize that what they're doing isn't working anymore, and never will?
But Nicholas Platt, one of America's longtime Asia-watchers, remains bullish on Asia. To be sure, he'd better be: He's president of the Asia Society, the worldwide educational nonprofit with headquarters in New York City. But with 34 years as a diplomat under his belt, Platt has been around long enough to sense something blowing in the wind before it becomes a hurricane.
"There's definitely something about Asia that is capturing the public's attention," he said in an exclusive interview on June 18.