"Fly to Japan!" Project Not Approved for Funding

We have been following the "Fly to Japan!" project in the news since October. I had mixed emotions about the promotion, but would have seriously considered it if given the chance. Here is the most recent update (Dec. 26, 2011):

The project titled Fly to Japan! (to offer flight tickets to 10,000 foreigners with high potential to communicate Japan’s attractions), which had been covered in a number of media in autumn this year, was not approved as a governmental draft budget of FY 2012. ...

Read the full story here: http://www.mlit.go.jp/kankocho/en/page08_000020.html

The ten million or so dollars that would have flown in tourists should go a long way to restoring the earthquake-damaged regions of Japan. Here's hoping they make it count.