Like most American men, I’ve always been intrigued by the mystery of the Orient. While in college I dabbled in Zen and learned the basics of kung fu and karate but, truthfully, I was always most enamored of the enigma of East Asian women. Those I’d come to know were always so peaceful, with an air about them that was positively ethereal, as if they carried with them a kind of worldly wisdom.

After college I moved to the West Coast and, along with some college buddies, started a small computer business. We worked long and hard before things started to click, and finally, we landed a huge account with a well-known Japanese firm.

For so long I had admired the business acumen of the Japanese. I had watched wide-eyed as they grew to the world’s number-one economic power, and I was positively thrilled... Read More