The Ecstatic Joy of the Economist / "Post Privatization Total Surprise Bra!"

This blow in card fell out of a recent issue of the Economist. I was somewhat taken back by the image of the woman jumping in ecstatic joy as a result of possessing an apparently oversized copy of the magazine. I started to wonder how this card came about…while I suspect a great number of Economist subscribers are happy to get their weekly issue, I imagine them as somewhat august lot whose last jump for joy was likely several decades ago. But then maybe it’s the top banner teaser of “Special: How to fix Social Security” that’s got her jumping for joy.
On a similar incongruous note, this image caught my eye a few weeks ago. From a photo spread in the Mainichi, a Japanese lingerie manufacture decided to voice their support (and get some brand PR via horndog photo editors) for J PM Kozumi’s attempts to privatize the Japanese Post Office (a big and controversial issue because the Japanese Post Office serves both as a mail handler and the primary banking institution for a large percentage of the J population) by developing a special lingerie set. The 'T' with a line above it is the symbol for the J Post Office.
Post Privatization Total Surprise Bra!

Triumph International Japan Ltd model Yu Misaki shows off the "Post Privatization Total Surprise Bra!" in Tokyo on Tuesday. The lingerie maker said it designed the bra to express support for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and his push to privatize Japan Post.