If Our GDP Was Down 13% I’d Drink Too

Japan’s Minister of Finance Shows Up Drunk at News Conference

You don’t need to speak Japanese to understand this.

From the Times Online (UK):

Japan’s Minister of Finance, Shoichi Nakagawa, has blamed a heavy dose of cold medicine for a slurred and baffling performance at the G7 meeting in Rome, where the helmsman of the world’s second biggest economy appeared to be incapably drunk.

Mr. Nakagawa claimed to have taken only a few sips of wine – “no more than a glassful” – ahead of the news conference, but he seemed too addled to state correctly the current level of Japanese interest rates. At one point, he said that Japan had pledged $1 billion to the Asia Development Bank, which it has not.

Mr. Nakagawa’s performance was roundly condemned by his party colleague and former prime minister Yoshiro Mori, who said: “Since he really loves to drink, I advised him once to be careful about drinking.”