JAPANESE HYPOCRISY

Compare and Contrast (NYSun)
"Leaving behind a region set on edge by North Korean missile launches, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi departed on Tuesday for an increasingly tense Middle East to call for more efforts toward regional peace," Reuters reports.

Japan has long felt it has a special role to play as a mediator between Israel and the Palestinians since it lacks much of the political baggage of the United States, allowing for warmer ties with Arab nations.

Mr. Koizumi might want to take another look back home before he starts lecturing Israel. When his own country is at risk, he contemplates pre-emptive strikes and is unhappy with toothless United Nations resolutions that call for peace. While Japan hasn't yet been attacked by North Korea, Israeli citizens have been killed by terrorists already. Does Mr. Koizumi believe Israel should talk with terrorists (that's all there is) or defend its citizens?