[zorka]

Couple of comments (Playing catch up here):
On the colonial experience, Knivesout speaks of the experience of India and the British. And dwndrgn's comment about the wimpish aspect of the Americans. I guess what bothered me was how benevolent and polite the Japanese conquerors seemed. The Japan I read about in the history of WWII was that of a harsh cruel group - at least the military who would essentially be controlling this country if they had won the war. What is Dick saying by creating such differences?

The other aspect of the Japanese depictions by some of Dick's characters is almost hateful: Childan (who also seems to me an anomaly) talks about the Kasouras eating from Bone China using U.S. Silver while listening to American Jazz. Even the I Ching, he says, is Chinese and the Japanese seem very interested in a sort of cheap American goods. All very denigrating. Is this perhaps Childan's opinion or is Dick saying something else.

LittleMiss, I too am fascinated by the historicity. The whole Zippo scene about which is the one used by FDR was a bit of an eye opener for me. What really makes an object valuable. If you are a collector and you have an item that no one else has is one thing. But if there are others which are similar but only one has a sense of history about it that we find important it seems to make it more valuable, yet it really might not be any different than a similar object in its actual sense. It kind of makes you wonder if these objects we sometimes honor are really all that important?