Mitt Romney’s Foreign-Policy Etiquette Still Needs Some Work

While not exactly an Olympic-sized gaffe, Mitt Romney managed to lay the groundwork for some potential issues with another major United States ally. During his speech at a Thursday fund-raiser, the Republican candidate remarked, "We are not Japan. We are not going to be a nation that suffers in decline and distress for a decade or a century."

As Foreign Policy's The Cable points out, the line could be interpreted as "needlessly insulting the face-conscious Japanese," particularly since Japan analysts (Japanalysts?) say the assertion that the country has been in decline for a century "isn't a fair characterization," considering the immense economic strides the country made following World War II. A former spokesman for the Japanese Foreign Ministry explained that, while the Japanese are somewhat used to being cited as a cautionary tale, Romney would be better off if he didn't seem to think "decade" and "century" were interchangeable.

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Delayed Bike-Share Program Needs Money, Might Not Launch Until Spring

The local Citi Bike program once planned to launch 1,000 of its 10,000 rentals today, but a software problem has kept them off the street entirely. Instead, the company behind the program, Alta, has asked initial sponsor Citibank for $3.5 million of the $41 million promised on an accelerated timetable, even if their goals aren't met, the New York Post reports. And if the hold-up lasts longer, the whole thing may have to wait until next year: "No one wants to do this in November," said an anonymous insider. "You'd be looking at spring [2013]."

"That is inaccurate," said a Department of Transportation spokesperson, failing to offer much reassurance for eager renters. "While we can’t get into details, we are working on a plan to launch the system."

The organization Transportation Alternatives is hosting a party "celebrating the launch of Citi Bike" on August 23, leading some to get excited about a late-summer takeoff, but the group confirmed to Daily Intel that the party was planned before the delay: "We don't know when the bike share program will launch." So everyone is the dark, but only Citibank is paying.

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