Think Globally, Change Locally

There is one Japanese word that I have heard more than any other Japanese word. Everything in the country seems to be able to be described as "kawaii" or cute. As various items and characters are brought to Japan from all over the world, it seems that there is a level of cute that must be met to enter the country. Disney characters are already love able, but it is only in Japan that I have seen them as cute as they can be, and also in forms that are not available anywhere else. The characters are made cuter and smaller and then either put into one of the capsule shopping malls or some bento item. (I realize this is a terrible over generalization, but that is life.)
Another strange import to Japan is Obama and his slogan "yes we can." "Yes we can" has been used in different way by different people here. One time a host was using this as a chant while out at an Izakaiya and another time the same words were being used by a shop to advertise their spring sale. Obama's face is appearing many places too, and can now be worn as a mask purchased from Loft or another store that sells costumes.
America was once called the melting pot, however now Japan seems to be even more of a melting pot. Absorbing different items and ideas from the whole world and making them uniquely Japanese.