TheLast Samurai Thefuss over the role of Jiang Zemin, China's last "paramount leader,"indicates that the CPC is not an 80-million-member Party marching in tandemfollowing orders. In China, intra-politics is a steady spice on the regularmenu. Jiang Zemin at 88, in a readjustment process, will die in peace thoughhis reputation may not remain intact, similar to that of Mao and Deng beforehim. Japan'swarfare technology modernizes and puts down a recalcitrant samurai in the movie of our title. Afterthe noble warrior in the move is defeated (superbly played by Ken Watanabe), theyoung Emperor asked an American soldier who fought with the samurai: "Tell me how he died."Tom Cruise who played the soldier replies: "No, but I will tell you how helived." ("Tellme how the Micronesian navigator and land tiller died?" The sailors gave up canoe and the Chinese, easyvictims of homicide, replaced the tillers while the rest and the best were sunshinelured to The Casino!) Livingand dying are both sides of the same coin. I began a conscious journey into dying this year. That's "physical"death when my 14 billion-year-old carbon returns to the universal pool, and myviruses are added to the gene bank. "Spirit" life is my consciousparticipation in the cessation of my cellular make-up, the end of a way oflife, stoppage of a social pattern, the terminus of a group-promoted behavior. At aconference in Saipan, I conversed with a Pohnpeian and a UH professor where I describedmy experience in Micronesia while living in Majuro in '82. I said that girls played snookers at adowntown pool hall in Pohnpei wearing nothing but bra. The Pohnpeian explainedthat girls were no longer allowed to parade bare in public places. ANavy Officer who heard our conversation told of a trip to the outer islands ofYap where the girls and boys were still innocently oblivious of the moralnotion of attire to hide body parts not displayed in "civilized"society. In the tropical islands where one is endowed with melanin thatallows for convenient exposure to the sun, there was no reluctance to bask inone's birthday suit. Sh*ft happens. The professor ranted against modernityvulgarizing islanders' innocence. He probably viewed too many of PaulGauguin faux romantic canvases depicting simple elegance in Polynesia. Gauguin's primitive art did call attention to the artform of Africa, Micronesiaand Native America after he oiled the virtues of Tahiti on canvas, so we thankhim for that. Theprofessor asked if anyone thought modern changes in the islands should beallowed. Duh. Like anyone can stop global change, and weare pleased to know that Club Med dispenses with the bra in its shores! Myanmarwas the last nation to shy from history's mainstream though now we know thatgas had as much weight on the Generals' decision to keep a tight grip on theculture from the taint of modern influence. The DPRK has minerals but it is itsJurche self-reliant philosophy that keeps it isolated in the peninsula,railing against consumer avarice and consumptive greed south of Panmunjom. Socialstructures are in the process of dying. The nation-state as a politicalentity is collapsing. Folks in smaller units are discovering the power ofself-reliance. The CNMI can explore what this means if its kowtow stanceto Uncle Sam's uniformed demands on Pagan is to shift towards considering its interest. Similarly, in the Age of Obama, US misplaced imperial hegemony is best kept atbay. China's"one country, two systems" offers 55 ethnic minorities a chancebeyond showcase display oddity. Meanwhile, states and military alliancesare redrawn in the western Pacific where the CNMI holds strategic military purposecrafted by the US more than half a century ago, to "ride" thedisciplined passion of militant Japan in providing logistics in Korea and Vietnam,anchor the dollar in $eoul, andcontain the alleged expansionist bent of Mao. Americais racist at the corner of Elm and Main, with color allowed behind servicecounters but dominantly lilywhite in the manager's closed doors. Micronesians dreaming of parity in Covenantlive in illusion. The 1861-65 US Civil Waravoided secession but left a nation divided; the struggle for civil rights was reviveda century later, and fifty years after, Ferguson MO's polarity reveals the continuingstruggle for parity in diversity. We might even actually see DarrenWilson get away with murder! Lincoln'sGOP dances a discordant do-si-do withMitch McConnell and John Boehner to derail a President's final two years. White southern Democrats voted Republican enmasse in the midterm elections. We arenot done vilifying the WH occupant yet, Obama'sresolve to stay the course, notwithstanding. The samurai influenced Japan's code of ethics (bushido), but thewarrior became a ronin, a sword-for-hire, now, Tokyo's lawyers. Yesterday is history, the futureis mystery, but today is a gift; that's why we call it "ThePresent"! j'aime la vie pinoypanda2031@aol.com yesterday, appreciate; tomorrow, anticipate; today. participate. In all, celebrate!