Suburban Japan: 4
At an indoor minimall in Aomori I found this skin-tight black-and-gold-printed t-shirt, apparently catering to a Japanese teen subculture that pays lifestyle homage to punk bands of the 1980s, especially the Sex Pistols. I couldn’t resist buying it even though the idea of wandering around my neighborhood in the USA with “LOvE HErOiN” on my chest seems a little unwise. (Of course, confessed cocaine user Barack Obama will be ushering in a new regime of tolerance real soon now.)
Among the various incantations on the shirt, “Have a nice punky day” seems not quite congruent with the message that Sid Vicious delivered—but the Japanese always tend to add a feelgood spin. This is, after all, the nation where even the shrine at Hiroshima sells key chains with a happy Hallmark-style romantic message on the back (see below).
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