one japanese ship captain is quoted as saying, japans most well-known exports are coal, raw silk, and women. as the japanese pimps spread their business and brothels throughout east asia, other japanese merchants follow  setting up small stores to sell overpriced japanese goods to the karayuki and their customers. the pimps regard themselves as patriotic, and are proud that they are enabling japanese to expand their trade overseas. * the prostitutes needed japanese food, beverages, clothes and many other japanese products. their demand was met by the j-variety-goods store,which peddled a wide range of products. as the store also sold to non-japanese, japanese commodities became wildly popular. the strength of japans southeast asian trade today is not thanks to the large merchant houses like mitsui; the trade was first developed by the variety-goods dealers and behind these merchants is the shadow cast by the japanese prostitutes. 1895  japan wins a fight with china and is given taiwan as part of the booty. however, the question remains: how do we turn this expensive military occupation into a profit? (also, as part of the booty: all chinese merchants have to leave korea, putting it more under the thumb of japan and ruthless, yakuza-connected japanese traders). 1898  the civilian doctor goto shinpei is appointed governor of taiwan. he likes to use the native chinese principles to govern the natives. he uses spin rather than brute force: he re-interprets chinese sayings and customs to justify japanese rule in terms the taiwanese can accept. also he legalizes opium, and immediately grants the japanese government a monopoly on it. thereby solving the profitability problem. opium is pretty much the one single commodity that turned taiwan from a huge money loser to a money earner in seven years. the usa couldnt do that with all the oil in iraq in 10 fucking years.
Brazil