Boye Lafayette De Mente, internationally known for his books on Japanese culture and a recognized authority on the way of the samurai, says that samurai-type training should be introduced into the American educational system, and has published a "samurai training manual" to help achieve that goal.

"The present-day systems of parenting and educating in the U.S. and elsewhere obviously fail to provide the physical, intellectual and emotional framework that youths need to even approach their full potential — and that now includes Japan," he says.

"It was the spirit of the samurai," De Mente continues, "that made it possible for tiny resource-poor Japan to become the world's second largest economy in less than 30 years. Without that spirit, Japan will soon be just another kid on the block," he says.