So it looks like I’m slipping.  This is one of my favorite subjects to follow, I have been following for years, and I totally blew it.  Dina Manfredini, the worlds oldest person, died in her sleep on December 17th, at the ripe old age of 115.  She held the title for 13 days, having been declared the world’s oldest person by Guinness on December 4th with the passing of Besse Cooper.  Dina’s passing not only hands the mantel over to a non-US citizen for the first time in years, but has ignited a firestorm of cinematic proportions.

China Vs. Japan.  The conflicts these two countries have produced are legendary, but it can be argued that none is older than this one. Japan’s Jiroemon Kimura is officially the world’s oldest person (and man) according to Guinness, BUT Chinese agencies are reporting (and we all know how reliable those are) that Luo Meizhen is the champion with a birth date in 1885, making her 127 years old.  If this is true, she would be the oldest person to EVER have lived (since records of this sort have been kept) besting a french woman at 122 years of age.

What i think is funny is that over the past few years the title has changed very often, given the fragile state of people in this advanced stage of life, and China has said NOTHING.  The last time was a mere 13 days ago!  But when a Japanese person claims the championship, then China suddenly speaks up.  Seems suspiciously timed.

One of the articles I read said that they don’t know how aggressively China is going to fight this, but that Japan should be careful.  I would like to second that, given the dire situation of the Fukishima plant, and the massive empty cities China has at the ready.