On [deposed Nova Corp. president Nozomu Sahashi’s] desk sat the company’s mascot–the bright pink Nova usagi, a bunny with long ears and the beak of a bird. The ears and the beak are said to symbolize the basics of mastering a foreign language, which are to listen a lot and speak a lot.
The animal is completely guiltless, of course, but I imagine many people must feel angry every time they look at its innocent face.
But Sahashi apparently has no ears to listen to these people’s angry shouts, nor a beak-mouth with which to utter words of apology.
http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200711030050.html