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75 years later, can Asia shake off shackles of the past?
Strategically located only 660 miles from Tokyo, the Pacific island became the site of one of the bloodiest, most famous battles of World War II against Japan. (AP Photo/Joe Rosenthal, File)TOKYO Northeast Asia doesnt so much repeat history as drag it along like an anchor. Japan in 2020 is unrecognizable to the fascist military machine that once rolled across Asia. Political leaders, for one, will have to resist the temptation to use the past for their own ends. ___Foster Klug, AP's news director for Japan, the Koreas, Australia and the South Pacific, has covered Asia since 2005.

Google marks 25 years of 'Friends' with Easter eggs
(L-R) Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing, Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green, David Schwimmer as Ross Geller, Courteney Cox as Monica Geller, Matt Le Blanc as Joey Tribbiani, Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay. (CNN) - This weekend marks 25 years since "Friends" hit TV screens -- and Google is marking the occasion with a sparkling special feature. The search engine has launched seven "Friends"-themed "Easter eggs" that show users special icons when they search for their favorite character. A search for Ross Geller, pop-culture's most famous paleontologist, brings up a couch -- click on it, and you'll hear Ross' helpful suggestion to "pivot!" For fans who search for "Friends glossary," the search engine will pull definitions for "unfloopy," "phalange," "hand twin" and "mississipily" -- just in case you needed reminding.