After the famous photograph of the general and the emperor appeared, Hirohito even emerged as the butt of the most salacious riddle of the occupation period. This rested on a hitherto unmentionable pun: the fact that the imperial “We”—pronounced chin—was a homonym to a slang word for penis (or “prick”). Why was General MacArthur the belly button (heso) of Japan? Because, the rude joke went, he was above the prick/emperor.7
