# Person % Tally 1. Masashi Tashiro 23.7 49913 2. Osama bin Laden 17.9 37671 3. George W. Bush 14.3 30237 4. Mayor Rudy Giuliani 9.4 19729 5. Pope Hadrian VII 5.2 10963 6. Laura Bush 4.5 9412 7. FDNY/NYPD 2.8 5811 8. Nomar Garciaparra 2.2 4543 9. Sydney Gaul 1.6 3412 10. Jesus of Nazareth 1.2 2531
"Masashi Tashiro" is definitely the "Person of the Year" among the internet community in Japan.
He is a ex-celebrity fallen from grace due to his scandalous behaviour, which was widely reported by the Japanese Mass Media.
His downfall and subsequent expulsion from entertainment business was sympathised by many, who identified his human weakness and unfortunate circumstance to that of their own. With massive layoffs currently conducted by companies while unemployment is at record highs in Japan, there are other things people are more concerned about than the 911 tragedy.
So called "2channel bulletine boards" is the gathering place for those unfortunate Japanese known as "Chu-bo",who have very litle hopes for the future with economy in extreme recession. Perhaps "2channel" is the only place they can speak their mind and express their own frustration without the restriction of the strict code of conduct bestowed upon them by the rigid Japanese society.
Masashi Tashiro, and also Sachiyo Nomura again proved to us that the spirit of Japanese stupidity "bo-ke" could never be dent, even by a serious terrorist attack such as the Aum sarin gas, and the 9-11 tragedy.
Tashiro as a person of the year will definitely give confusion to many readers, but can leave a significant historical evidence of one country, who never takes anything seriously.
Therefore, the downfall of once a hero Masashi Tashiro may have hit closer to the heart of Chu-bo's, than say the heros such as NY firefighters who are so far remove from them, and therefore very hard to identify with.
I think you are surprised and confused by the name "Masashi Tashiro" in the "person of the year" ranking.
First of all, Please ignore it! All of these votes were organized in fun by the people crowding in a web community called "2ch" (http:// www.2ch.net). And this is not fair.
"Masashi Tashiro" is a singer in Japan. But he is not international and important. Nobody thinks he is a "person of the year 2001" at all.
So, Please erase all votes for "Masashi Tashiro". Please ignore this terrible joke.
I am ashamed of Japanese having done such a thing on this hard time.
All Japanese are sorry about the tragedy in N.Y. and hopes the world peace.
I am afraid that I have done many mistakes in English.