<i>The interpreter’s face went white, and after a lot of “I can’t tell him that,” he did.</i><p>I used to work as a translator/interpreter, among other duties, at a technology incubator in central Japan. Technical interpreters are expensive -- the best have hourly rates comparable to lawyers. They are paid that much because they bring in far more than their hourly in business deals saved from disastrous miscommunication. If your interpreter is trying to wave you off a topic, you might consider taking the advice you are paying so dearly for. (Incidentally, we're told that the canon of professional ethics requires translating every word without failure, so "You really don't want to say that!" should be a pretty big red flag to you that you are about to step in something.)
<i>Examining the slide, I pointed to the bottom right and said to our translator, “Tell him my initials are still on the bottom.” The interpreter’s face went white, and after a lot of “I can’t tell him that,” he did.</i><p>Perhaps a business genius in the U.S., but certainly not in Asia, specially Japan. He gains nothing from calling someone out on their plagiarism, in their office, during business negotiations. In fact, he has everything to lose. There are far more subtle ways to exert yourself, and jumping out and crying foul is not one of them.<p>Then he goes on to joke about Seppuku ..
Part 2 is up, & here's the article on it:<p><a href="http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=981167" rel="nofollow">http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=981167</a>