The next Japanese PM and Starbucks' secret

Yesterday (6/8), The Jakarta Post ran a People story on Taro Aso, the incumbent Secretary General of LDP. Apparently, there are calls for him to run for office to replace Yasuo Fukuda.

This does not come as a surprise to me because last year, I have written a blog post on Japanese leaders that says:

Nicolas Cage-ish PM [Shinzo Abe] now replaced by a salaryman-ish PM Yasuo Fukuda? I had actually expected to have Taro Aso to take the job instead.

(sorry for quoting myself here, gee-hee)

As you see, I always can spot a good politician when I see one, from the Americans Al Gore and Barack Obama, to the Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati or the former Japanese PM Junichiro Koizumi.

And trust me, the Japanese will not waste their vote if they choose to elect the Jiyuu Minshuuto to their parliament the next election round (and thereby retain Aso's chance of becoming the next PM).

But I digress.

Perhaps this should come as a surprise to you Starbuckers in Indonesia and Australia, that the cups of coffee you drink in the cafe mostly originate from the new poor nation of East Timor.

clipped from www.globalpolicy.org Coffee is Backbone of Devastated East Timor's Economy .....East Timor's coffee factories and crops weren't destroyed in the violence. Starbucks Corp., the U.S.-based coffee giant, already is one of East Timor's best clients, and there is hope the territory's beans will end up in many of the world's cappuccinos, lattes and espressos.