Ishiwara comments

Posted in: McDonald's Japan hit by another food scandal See in context

I never quite understood how McDonalds became so popular in Japan, considering this country's outstanding food culture. Or in any other country with good food for that matter. It is surprisingly popular in France.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Posted in: Japan protests China news agency's call for emperor apology See in context

Newsflash: the Japanese Emperor has already apologized. As did the government. Many times.

As others are saying: Japan should ignore the trolls.

5 ( +10 / -5 )

Posted in: Japan to cut cost for Olympic stadium by third, say lawmakers See in context

I can't believe they are seriously debating whether or not to install AC.

Let me rephrase this: I still can't believe they actually decided to host the Olympics at the end of July. In Tokyo.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

Posted in: Japan WWII leaders’ descendants reach out for reconciliation See in context

I thought the problem with just 'removing' the war criminals from the shrine was that they said it was like adding 14 cups of water to a tank of water. You cannot just say "I want to take those 14 cups back out" because as soon as they are added they are mixed irreversibly into the rest of the water.

Correct. That is one thing that the shrine priests say. Although, given that this religious stuff is pretty much made up recently, I think if they'd really wanted to remove the 14 war criminals, they could come up with some kind of creative solution.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Posted in: Japan WWII leaders’ descendants reach out for reconciliation See in context

Removing the 14 Class-A war criminals from Yasukuni would be great. But there are problems with this:

Unfortunately, the priests of the shrine refuse to do this. And the state cannot force them, since officially Yasukuni is an independent religious institution, and the state cannot violate the separation of religion and state. (Yes, the PM visiting the shrine can also count as a violation of the same law, and there have been court cases about this). I don't think it will go down well with the majority of the Japanese people. Even those who believe Japan did all the wrong, many people believe that the executed and the dead have paid their dues and should be "appeased." (In Japan, souls who died a violent death wreak havoc in this world if they are not taken care of). Non-Japanese might find this ridiculous, but there it is. Even if they would remove them, would China and Korea be OK with the Japanese PM visiting Yasukuni? What about the other 1,000 or so Class-B war criminals?

Unfortunately, there is no easy solution to this problem.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Posted in: Five things you need to know about Obon See in context

@Serrano @CGB Spender

Thank you for sharing this. I hope you will find some peace in the memories of your loved ones this obon.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Posted in: By The Numbers: The atomic bombing of Hiroshima See in context

8:15 the time that most Hiroshima residents finished breakfast and went out to work and other activities.

8:15 the time of the blast.

No, this was not a coincidence.

-3 ( +3 / -6 )

Posted in: Japan marks 70th anniversary of Hiroshima atomic bombing See in context

Appeal of President Franklin D. Roosevelt on Aerial Bombardment of Civilian Populations, September 1, 1939

The President of the United States to the Governments of France, Germany, Italy, Poland and His Britannic Majesty, September 1, 1939

The ruthless bombing from the air of civilians in unfortified centers of population during the course of the hostilities which have raged in various quarters of the earth during the past few years, which has resulted in the maiming and in the death of thousands of defenseless men, women, and children, has sickened the hearts of every civilized man and woman, and has profoundly shocked the conscience of humanity.

If resort is had to this form of inhuman barbarism during the period of the tragic conflagration with which the world is now confronted, hundreds of thousands of innocent human beings who have no responsibility for, and who are not even remotely participating in, the hostilities which have now broken out, will lose their lives. I am therefore addressing this urgent appeal to every government which may be engaged in hostilities publicly to affirm its determination that its armed forces shall in no event, and under no circumstances, undertake the bombardment from the air of civilian populations or of unfortified cities, upon the understanding that these same rules of warfare will be scrupulously observed by all of their opponents. I request an immediate reply.

FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT

0 ( +3 / -4 )

Posted in: U.S. drops atomic bombs on Japan in 1945: How AP reported it See in context

It is, and was at the time, illegal to kill civilians in order to break military resistance.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki are no exceptions to this rule.

3 ( +11 / -8 )

Posted in: Do you think the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were morally justifiable? See in context

This is a weird debate. The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are the ONLY cases where we seriously debate the killing of civilians in order to break military resistance.

If you support the argument that Hiroshima was effective, and therefore broke Japanese military resistance, and therefore moral, then you have to accept the argument that the 1940 German bombing of Rotterdam (10,000 killed), and which broke the Dutch will to resist, was also moral. And so on for practically every similar case.

And the argument that this "was a different era" is bogus. The German bombing of Guernica in 1937 and the Japanese bombing of Chongqing in 1938 was widely denounced as barbaric, including by the U.S. government, and FDR, who openly called on all countries to pledge not to bomb civilians.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Posted in: What do you think are some of the main differences between the way Japanese and Western media report the news? See in context

Japan doesn't have investigative reporting.

Of course Japan has investigative reporting. To give two prominent examples: Honda Katsuichi, who did some of the first research into the Nanjing Massacre, and Suzuki Tomohiko, who wrote on the confluence of the Yakuza and the energy industry.

-7 ( +3 / -10 )

Posted in: Japan is full of ghosts: Visiting the grave of Taira no Masakado’s head See in context

Cool story, thanks JT.

a bank account has been opened under Taira no Masakado’s name in the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ

I am surprised it is easier for a ghost to open a bank account than for a foreigner.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Posted in: Kamikaze survivors debunk stereotype in stories of sacrifice See in context

I sometimes wonder what went through the minds of the people who sent these young kids out to die? I can't imagine sending someone else to a pointless death for a lost cause.

On the other hand, things probably looked very different at the time. The U.S. treated Japan extremely generous after 1945, but how would you know that as a Japanese officer at war? The U.S. was bombing all Japanese cities and quite literally killing their wives and children. Maybe then you start to think that making the U.S. pay a too heavy price for the battle of Okinawa and show fanaticism through Kamikaze tactics will make the U.S. loose heart. And thus a price worth paying. The horrible logic of war.

11 ( +12 / -1 )

Posted in: Universities asked to raise flag, sing national anthem at ceremonies See in context

I am not in favor of pushing this on universities. With that out of the way, I think it is important to put things in perspective a bit.

In China, all university students have to take Marxist-Leninist and Maoist propaganda courses, and the contents of what is taught in Chinese university classes is under government surveillance and control.

ALL students have to undergo military training. In the words of one official: "The goal isn't to make the students battle-ready, but to instill in them a sense of patriotism, collectivism and national defense." This practice was expanded after the Tien-an-men debacle.

So, before making favorable comparisons with China, please keep these facts in mind. Japan is (still) pretty far away from that.

-4 ( +2 / -6 )

Posted in: China beats Japan in Asian university rankings See in context

Everybody's comments on education in Japwnese classrooms are interesting, but let me say it again: the rankings have nothing to do with education! It is all calculated on the basis of the number of publications and other measurable factors that ALL have to do with research, not what happens in the classroom.

-5 ( +2 / -7 )

Posted in: China beats Japan in Asian university rankings See in context

Rather than going after mythical slipping standards these educators are better off thinking how to make more young Japanese take gap years, study/live abroad, get real company internships and be ready to plan careers that might involve changing companies every 3-4 years.

You know as well as everybody else this does not describe what Japanese companies expect. And nobody in Japan with a full-time job changes companies every 3-4 years.

1 ( +4 / -3 )

Posted in: Heartache for Japan's 40-year-old virgins See in context

Once a male is over 40 it is really too late to find a partner HERE if you want to have a family. The women are too old from a physiological perspective. Save your self the time, effort and emotional stress and find a nice women half your age from the Phillipines or Thailand for example.

Everybody disliked this comment, and I see why. But sad (and bordering on the immoral) as this may be on many levels, this is probably the most realistic advice for these guys. In reality many Japanese men on the countryside are already doing this.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: China beats Japan in Asian university rankings See in context

The critical comments here on Japanese education might be true, but have little to do (at least directly) with university rankings. Rankings are almost entirely based on research output, meaning how many articles its faculty publish in high profile journals like Nature and Science, how many times they are cited, and factors such as internationalization. THE is a bit unique among the world of rankings in that they add a somewhat subjective factor, reputation, basically asking a large number of academics what they think of X university in general.

So a high ranking university doesn't necessarily translate in a great education. It gives you a degree with prestige, and you'll have famous faculty there, but (as for example at Harvard) these people don't actually teach you; teaching is left to low-paid adjuncts and graduate students. In Todai and Kyodai, famous Japanese professors do teach, but not a lot; they spend most of their time on research.

3 ( +6 / -3 )

Posted in: Aquino compares China to Nazi Germany See in context

Normally when the comparison with "Nazi's" and especially Munchen is brought up, I think, "Oh, there we go again," and it doesn't have a lot of credibility. However, in the case of China it might be very correct.

17 ( +20 / -3 )

Posted in: Fleeing shoplifter drags security guard along with car See in context

The guard's own fault. He does not have the legal powers to make an arrest or to stop someone by force.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Posted in: Pentagon chief says U.S. flights over South China Sea will go on See in context

To be fair, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Vietnam have also been building on disputed islands. So this development is not completely new. But the scale of China's building is unprecedented, and China claims ALL of the SCS. The source of tensions in the SCS is of course mainly China.

I hope a concerted alliance of South-East Asian nations, Japan, and the U.S. will come together to stop Chinese expansionism. Chinese control over the SCS would be a geopolitical disaster.

4 ( +6 / -2 )

Posted in: Blogger lists three things foreigners do that impress the Japanese See in context

Foreigners say “thank you” to shop staff, Japanese people don’t

Ha?? I might be wrong, but this might be a Tokyo thing. In Kansai people definitely thank shop staff. OK, not everybody, but not a minority.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Posted in: Abe offers 'eternal condolences' for Americans killed in WWII See in context

But it was Japan’s actions in Asia during that war that threatened to overshadow his historic address.

Nonsense. Abe squarely and strongly talked about Japan and the war, and talked about what mattered.

He offered condolences to Americans killed in the war, and this is the most important, since this was a speech in Washington, not Beijing. He said that Japan will uphold the past apologies to Asia. Abe emphasized that Japan and the U.S. were bitter enemies, but are now strong allies and bonded in spirit, since BOTH sides have since reconciled. I think the message is pretty clear.

7 ( +12 / -5 )

Posted in: Old companies thrive in brand-loyal Japan See in context

Uh, so what? All this proves is that Japan has done a great job of operating a protected economy, plus the fact that there are certain businesses in Japan that cater to a particular regional taste or service that a company can survive for centuries. But, my question is, of these 3,146, how many are really thriving, versus just still in existence?

What's wrong with just existing?

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Posted in: Abe says he is 'deeply pained' over 'comfort women' See in context

I don't think U.S. Congress is the time and place for Abe to issue another apology.

Similarly, imagine the British PM apologizing for the colonization of India and the Amritsar massacre (which has not happened yet) in a speech delivered in Paris.

A new apology should be delivered in Seoul, followed by a handshake with Park.

-5 ( +11 / -16 )

Posted in: One finalist for AKB48 draft this year is just 11 years old See in context

Good for her! This girl has a bright future. AKB will continue to be popular in Japan and Asia for the forseeable future.

-10 ( +1 / -11 )

Posted in: In U.S., 'comfort woman' demands apology from Japan See in context

Apart from the fact that Japan has already apologized many times, you cannot just have any kind of pressure group demanding the PM will say so-and-so in an upcoming speech. Maybe victims of Fukushima will demand Abe will talk about the crisis, maybe the Philippine government wants Abe to talk more about military cooperation, etc etc. Abe, like the man or not, is the PM of Japan, and his speech in Congress is about Japan and the U.S. Other parties cannot intervene beforehand and trying to change the speech.

-1 ( +14 / -15 )

Posted in: In U.S., 'comfort woman' demands apology from Japan See in context

Here it is:

From the official website of Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA):

Letter from Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to the former comfort women

The Year of 2001

Dear Madam,

On the occasion that the Asian Women's Fund, in cooperation with the Government and the people of Japan, offers atonement from the Japanese people to the former wartime comfort women, I wish to express my feelings as well.

The issue of comfort women, with an involvement of the Japanese military authorities at that time, was a grave affront to the honor and dignity of large numbers of women.

As Prime Minister of Japan, I thus extend anew my most sincere apologies and remorse to all the women who underwent immeasurable and painful experiences and suffered incurable physical and psychological wounds as comfort women. We must not evade the weight of the past, nor should we evade our responsibilities for the future.

I believe that our country, painfully aware of its moral responsibilities, with feelings of apology and remorse, should face up squarely to its past history and accurately convey it to future generations.

Furthermore, Japan also should take an active part in dealing with violence and other forms of injustice to the honor and dignity of women.

Finally, I pray from the bottom of my heart that each of you will find peace for the rest of your lives.

Respectfully yours,

Junichiro Koizumi Prime Minister of Japan Back to Index

29 ( +33 / -4 )

Posted in: Japan must apologise for WWII until it is forgiven: Novelist Murakami See in context

Murakami is a great novelist, but I don't think that makes him an expert on international relations.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: EU raises stakes in Google battle with antitrust charges See in context

How dare those Europeans try to tell Americans how to do business.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Recent Comments

Popular

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites


©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.