LOS ANGELES — In March 2001, when the Taliban blew up the Buddha statues of Bamian, the world became acutely aware of the threat to arts and culture in Afghanistan. The Taliban were sharply criticized by the international press for their intellectual poverty. Hostility toward literature, visual arts and music had deprived the nation of much-needed spiritual consolation, reports said. Nearly a decade later, little has changed. Censorship is still rampant, and Afghan talent would rather flee than suffer its oppression.

KARACHI, Pakistan — It's been a rough few days to be Pakistani, at least when it comes to the U.S. struggle against terrorism. Senior White House officials said that last week's Times Square bomb plot was the work of the Pakistani Taliban and not just Faisal Shahzad, the Pakistan native now held in U.S. custody. (On Tuesday, Pakistani security officials denied that link).

Editor's note: Temp Nation is a four-part series on the structural changes taking place in Japan, the world's second-largest economy. With the demise of Japan, Inc.'s lifetime employment policies, more than a third of the country's workforce is now underworked and underpaid. This series examines how some temps are starting to fight back.