Remember Pearl Harbor, Remember Fuchida, and Remember DeShazer

Remember Pearl Harbor, Remember Fuchida, and Remember DeShazer

In the summer of 2001, the movie “Pearl Harbor” was screened here and there. It was interesting in that it also featured the "Doolittle Raid on Tokyo.”

However, I was disappointed to see that American paradigm on “Remember Pearl Harbor” did not change favorably to peace of the world, even in the summer of 2001. And, some others might feel very uncomfortable seeing that.

And then the Al Qaede’s attacks on American civilians and Pentagon were reported at the beginning of autumn of 2001.

To our astonishment, they associated the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001 with the Pearl Harbor military attacks in 1941.

In first place, the phrase “Remember Pearl Harbor” should mean a misstep or an omission of then President Roosevelt because he neglected a need to have informed American citizens that a war was so near and imminent due to his administration’s strategy to drive the Imperial Japan into a corner where she had no choice but surrender without fight or war without hope.

Japanese pilots were ordered to destroy American navy and army facilities in Hawaii but not to intentionally kill American citizens, just like American soldiers now in Iraq and Afghanistan being ordered so. The attacks were intended to inform American people that if their government continued to drive so unfairly Imperial Japan to a corner, they had to suffer a fierce war she tried to proclaim just in time, however, unfortunately in vain. And, this is the last chance to resume negotiations on restoration of sound relationships between Imperial Japan and the United States that is expected to take this message in earnest now that their past policy brought destruction on the military bases in Hawaii.

But, this naïve anticipation with an irresponsible strategy was completely betrayed. In first place, Imperial Japan had been allied with Nazis Germany that killed six million innocent Jews. Moreover, Imperial Japan had long interfered in civil wars in China, mainly, between the Communist Party and the Nationalist Party, deciding that she had take on control of the long-plagued mainland China after all.

The atomic bomb attack on Hiroshima in 1945 was intentionally aimed at killing Japanese civilians, which could not balance with pure military operation against the opposite military in the Pearl Harbor in 1941.

The Pacific War ended long time ago. And now, Japan and the U.S. have been maintaining reasonably sound relationships, owing to so many victims some of whom on Japan’s side have been enshrined in that famous and controversial Yasukuni Shrine of the Shinto religion in Tokyo.

Navy Commander Fuchida who had led the entire air squadrons from aircraft carriers to the Pearl Harbor in 1941 converted to Christianity after the war. It is because he met with and was highly moved by former U.S. bombardier DeShazer who had participated in the Doolittle Air Raid on Tokyo in 1942 which had been conducted as a heroic retaliation to the Pearl Habor attack as depicted in the movie.

When former navy captain Fuchida met Jacob DeShazer, Mr. DeShazer was working as a missionary in Tokyo since he had been freed from a state of prisoner of war follwoing unconditional surrender of the Empire of Japan.

To our astonishment, Mr. Fuchida also became a Chiristian missionary in Japan and further traveled to the United Sates preaching there for several years.

Coming back to Japan, Mitsuo Fuchida died in peace at age 74 in 1976 in his home town in Nara Prefecture.

Can we expect any such story from the 9/11 terrorist attacks? Anyhow, the two “surprise attacks” are so different as Islam and Shinto-ism are. Nonetheless, eventually there might appear such hidden heroes even when the war on terror ends.

“FOR HE WHO IS LEAST AMONG YOU WILL BE THE GREATEST.”

*** *** *** ***

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsuo_Fuchida

EPISODE X of Panasonic with a joke on Sony

EPISODE X of Panasonic with a joke on Sony

There is a joke about Sony. One day somebody in Japan came to think that most Americans should think that Sony was originally founded in the U.S. by a certain American. So, a crew of TV reporters and staff members flew to American and asked people there what nationality they think Sony Headquarters has. One jogger, a young lady, answered “American” and ran away, while smiling at and hinting to the crew that she knew it is "Japanese" just like the crew is. So, they gave up and came back to Japan to report it as was.

In Japan, Matsushita, known by its logo “Panasonic,” is regarded as a rival company to Sony.

The founder of Matsushita conglomerate was a unique person. Even while he was alive and active in business, business people called him “a god of sale and management.”

One day when Kounosuke Matsushita, who had established his first Matsushita company in 1918, was traveling by super-express train from Tokyo to Osaka where its headquarters is located, he happened to sit next to a person who said that he had come back from America recently.

The person said that he had learnt a lot in Harvard Business School. So, he went on explaining various modern economic theories to this prominent business leader.

When the Shinkansen express train arrived at Osaka, Mr. Matsushita, as a strict grader, said coolly to the proud person, “After all, what you have learnt is do it smart" and left him without offering anything.

This story was recently introduced in a booklet a research body founded by Mr. Matsushita issues periodically.

The Matsushita conglomerate has 20,000 employees in the U.S. There might be some who learnt a lot in Harvard Business School. So, this episode might be interesting to them.

The late Matsushita also founded a special institution aimed at fostering politicians. One graduate of this institute was selected by vote as new leader of the largest party in opposition in its plenary meeting consisting of all the National Diet members of the party, which was held after defeat in September 11’s election.

As Harvard Business School is not appreciated by some top executives, such an institute for fostering politicians, especially founded by a business tycoon, might not be appreciated.

But, of course, in a despotic state like former Iraq, the Soviet Union, and present China, such an institute for fostering politicians must be a must.

“YOU MUST WIN YOUR CASE WHEN YOU ARE TRIED.”

Tsunami Lessons in 1964 and 2004

Tsunami Lessons in 1964 and 2004 for Reconciliation

On March 28, 1964, an earthquake occurred in Alaska. It caused a Pacific-wide tsunami that took the lives of more than 122 people. In May of the year, PLO was founded in Palestine; in August, the Ton Kin Gulf incident occurred in North Vietnam; and the summer Olympic Games were held in Tokyo, Japan.

In a sense, the tsunami in 1964 looks like having given a special sign of the age.

Apart from the cold war against the Soviet Union, the U.S. had had to take on three major international issues for decades since then: the Middle East issue, the Viet Nam War, and the competition against emerging Japanese economy.

All these tree elements of the challenge the U.S. would have had to face had emerged clearly after the tsunami in Alaska.

Now, Chairman Arafat was gone, the unified Viet Nam was trying to be friendly, and Japan is well cooperating with the U.S. in the war on terror proceeding in the oil-rich Middle East.

In October of 1964, as Tokyo Olympic games started, a new super-express train “Shinkansen” was commercially introduced in Japan. It ran at 200Km/h then, though nowadays it runs at 300Km/h or 187 miles per hour.

To operate this then-most-advanced railroad system, they needed not only hardware but also software which should run on an IBM general-purpose computer available in that age.

U.S. engineers in those days did not expect Japanese engineers to write codes, by their own ability, necessary to control the bullet train. But, they succeeded in making programs, which put U.S. engineers on alert. And, in America, one technical periodical featured an article titled “Tsunami” in which they discussed how threatening the ability of Japanese engineers was in terms of computer technology competition.

Though two countries are still severely competing in the field of supercomputers, neither Japan-originated OS nor Japanese-originated processors have become a mainstream of the global industry just like its language.

In 2004, the great tsunami occurred near Sumatra Island in the Indian Ocean.

However, I have not heard of any article, with a title of “Tsunami,” being issued in these days, to my and Indian’s relief.

But, it is interesting to know that Indians are now making big success in computer-related jobs in the U.S. They account for 30 percent of NASA engineers, 40 percent of Microsoft Company engineers, 28 percent of IBM engineers, 17 percent of Intel engineers, and 13 percent of Xerox engineers.

The U.S. might learn a lesson from the tsunami in 1964, and they might be handling the similar case more conciliatorily in 2004 and up to this day.

This is an example of tsunami lessons. But still we may have to argue about earthquake lessons as well as hurricane lessons, if God wishes.

“JESUS CALLS FOUR FISHERMEN.”

Around the Fourth Anniversary of September 11

They are the things that could happen once in decades. But why should they occur in these days?

The hurricanes that recently hit the coastal area of the Gulf of Mexico looked focusing on energy industry there rather than poor people in New Orleans. The U.S. President is known to have a strong tie with the industry.

The great earthquake that recently hit the northern territory of Pakistan looked as if focusing on hideouts of international terrorists rather than poor people in Kashmir. Usama BinLaden escaped US attacks and is believed to hide somewhere in the boarder area between Afghanistan and Pakistan or near Kashmir.

It must be truly a rare phenomenon that two big hurricanes, each with a significant magnitude, attacked the adjacent areas in a series within a short time span. It could happen once in decades; but why must it come about around the fourth anniversary of September 11 since 2001?

The recent earthquakes that hit Turkey, Iran, and West India might be ominous for the Great North Pakistan Earthquake as well as the Great Sumatra Tsunami, all of which were caused by the Indian Ocean Plate moving northward against the Eurasian Continent in a time span of millions of years. But why should they happen in the era of conflicts between terrorists from Islamic states and nations of the Christian world?

We have to do our best to save, help, and support victims. But, after all, we have to learn lessons.

Turkey has been trying hard to join EU, a sort of materially blessed countries club, while its neighbors, including Kurds, are suffering violence. Iran is trying hard to be equipped with nuclear weapons, while its neighbors, including Kurds and Afghans, are suffering violence. India is armed with nuclear arsenals, while fighting against Pakistan for so long. Indonesia is full of insurgencies, including Bali bombings. And, Pakistan, armed with nuclear arsenals and being responsible for situations in Afghanistan, seems apparently full of serious problems in terms of international terrorists who are highly suspected of having supervised after-9/11 bombings in Madrid, London, the Sinai Peninsula, and Bali Island.

On the other hand, the U.S. is too rich and too much armed with nuclear capability.

It is a big disappointment if the God is not concerned with the situation of the present world as above described.

But, if those natural calamities are the only answer we could get, it is horrible and I have to think of my sins so far committed here and there in these years, though I have nothing to do with nuclear weapons.

Anyhow, the God is Almighty who gives and takes away human lives as He wishes. (Everybody’s life belongs to the God, though his/her will and emotion might belong to the person.)

So, at least, I urge those nations and possible terrorists to abandon or abolish atomic bombs, if they have been trying hard to obtain and keep them.

“WHAT I TEACH YOU IS NOT MY TEACHING, BUT OF GOD, WHO SENT ME.”

With Love to Moscow and Saint Petersburg for the Summer of 2005

With Love to Moscow and Saint Petersburg for the Summer of 2005

This summer an old Japanese lady went to Russia for sight-seeing.

Then, after coming back to Japan, she wrote a letter to editorial of a certain newspaper.

She met very kind people in Moscow and Saint Petersburg. People in these cities kindly helped this Japanese lady in her 70’s in a subway train as well as in a museum. She was so moved inside that she ventured to inform the Japanese public of her happy experiences in Russia,

Russia, generally speaking, is not regarded as a friend of Japan. Russia still occupies four islands located in the north of Hokkaido faced with the Sea of Okhotsk and the North Pacific Ocean. The Soviet Union invaded those islands just after the end of WWII. Japan has been protesting against their occupation.

To understand the history of Far East and relationships between Japan and China as well as North Korea, you must learn relationship between Japan and Russia.

But, of course, there are some, among the Japanese, that love Russian culture and really long to see famous Russian works of art on site.

So, she went there, got satisfied, and what’s more, found people there to be pleasantly kind to her.

Now, we know that there are nice people in Moscow and Saint Petersburg. And we are very thankful to them for their kindness to an old lady from Japan.

Moreover, I am hoping that there will absolutely be no natural disasters in Moscow and Saint Petersburg.

So, let’s be kind to any old ladies coming to our or your city with good wishes, in order to avoid any natural tragedies, including an earthquake and a hurricane, and show our reverence for the God.

“HAPPY IS THE PERSON WHOSE SINS THE LORD WILL NOT KEEP ACCOUNT OF !”

Civil War, War on Terror, and New Orleans

Civil War, War on Terror, and New Orleans

What does the God say about natural disasters?

You don’t have to ask this question of any other persons who might happen to call themselves priest, reverend, or father. You are as great as those so titled or as bad as those with such a title. While the God has created you as a complete human being who can, and must, directly obey and listen to the God, if you give such an honor to those with such a man-made title, it is tantamount to downright rudeness to the God. As the God loves you, He gives you the honor of asking or listening to the God, which you should respect.

In this sense, the religion Islam seems to be better than Christianity. And, as there is no such a thing as Pope, traditionally a friend of the rich rather than the poor, in Judaism, the Jewish religion might be also better.

It is logical consequence, but still you can be a nice person while loving the Pope or a priest as your neighbor; but don’t forget to love the God more.

However, there is one greatness in American Christianity, which has been supported by African Americans for so long.

If a slave being treated very badly even to his death still believes in the same religion as the one his master believes in, it can be a true one. And, after emancipation, if they still believe in the religion, it is better.

Today, African Americans are given freedom to say anything about religion. They can say that Christianity is wrong because it had been the religion of those who once abused slaves in the Southern States. But, they don’t say so, at least a majority of them don’t.

It is the Civil War that gave great belief to African Americans. In the war, so many European American soldiers each died a terrible death because of their abusing African Americans, in a religious interpretation. Yes, this is just one (but not only) religious interpretation of the Civil War, and yours might be very different as with that concerned with 9/11. But, it also gives the answer to a question why African Americans still believe in the same religion as the one European Americans do. The God showed justice being done for African Americans in the great Civil War in the era of Abraham Lincoln.

Wars are not, generally speaking, regarded as Act of God.

But, what about Act of God, for example, that recently came to New Orleans?

Did it give belief to anybody? Did it strengthen belief of anybody? Did it foster belief of anybody, like the Civil War in 1980’s?

In ancient days, so many natural disasters caused so much belief in human beings. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are all related to this fact.

The 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001 led to erosion in FEMA, which caused this tragedy in New Orleans. This sequence is still going on. It is just like the history where the war against Imperial Japan had led to the Korean War and the Vietnam War later.

The sequence might stop somewhere if many God-loving people come to their right sense.

Anyhow, the God seems to have chosen New Orleans, a city of African Americans, to tell the world his concern about the war on terror, even sacrificing many lives of God-loving people there. (In addition, a lot of Muslims are being killed nowadays in Iraq under the God’s gaze, which might be your concern.)

“WHOEVER WANTS TO BOAST MUST BOAST OF WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE.”

Act of God, Yes, It Is

Act of God, Yes, It Is

Everybody in the world has watched the tragedy the hurricane brought on New Orleans.

You cannot bring human justice to the God, or the God to human justice, no matter how badly you are damaged by act of God. It is because it is the God that gives life to, and take life from, a human soul. In this context, truly there is no such a thing as human tragedy in Heaven.

As President Bush put, this is the fourth September 11 since 2001. And the time is passing.

But if the devastating hurricane had come one year earlier in September, would Mr. Bush have been reelected for his second term? Then, you might see something like a divine plan in this sequence.

In Japan, September 11’s general election gave a big surprise to the people. Prime Minister Koizumi won an overwhelming victory with his party and an allied party combined taking two thirds of the lower house of the national assembly. He was supported by a majority of voters, while the U.S. president seems to be loosing his ground.

A kind of paradigm change occurred after 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001. Very many Americans began to show the flag everywhere. And, the change led to the War on Terror.

Now, the 9/11 election result in Japan and the hurricane tragedy in the U.S. must lead to another paradigm change, respectively.

It may result in respect for initiative by a people-loving leader, or respect for poor people in the world’s richest and strongest country.

“DO NOT BE STUBBORN LIKE YOUR ANCESTORS.”

September 11 Election in Japan

September 11 Election in Japan

This year, 2005, September 11 will be a big day in Japan. General election is scheduled on the day. It is a result of September 11 2001’s attacks on America.

Or more directly, it is a result of July 7 2005’s attacks in London.

Japanese prime minister was attending G8 Summit when bombs blasted in the tube underground subway systems in London. The attacks were apparently planned to coincide with the Summit meeting being held in Scotland. They also seemed to be aimed at the prime minister of the U.K. Later the British prime minister made clear that he would not seek another term of office and also eventually resign as a parliament member.

Japanese prime minister observed all these incidents and shocks expressed by other world leaders. The U.S. President looked very alarmed there, too.

Just before the Japanese prime minister left for the G8 summit, bills for privatization of postal service narrowly passed the lower house of the Diet, Japanese national assembly. So he could save his face in the summit. But, when he came back to Japan, his bills were rejected in the upper house of the Diet due to factional insurgence in his party.

Logically, as the bills on which his cause of being a prime minister relies were rejected, he had to resign as prime minister. These bills embody his public promise and take a crucial position in his political career.

There have been some strong politicians in the Liberal Democratic Party who are against the prime minister. They seemed to offer a decisive challenge to the prime minister this time by voting against the bills. So, logically the prime minister should have announced his resignation, since he could not even get parliamentary approval on the bills he committed himself so much on. But, instead, he dissolved the Lower House, partly because no snap election is possible with the Upper House.

I sense something extraordinary behind his determination. Politically he was under attack just like the British prime minister. He must know that he was targeted. There are three choices for him to take: resignation, compromise and continuation of his administration, or election fight. His choice was the last one without hesitation just like the U.S. president in September 2001 having no choice but act as the commander in chief of the U.S. military.

The sequence is like this: 9/11 terror attacks, 7/7 terror attacks, and 9/11 general election.

If the incumbent prime minister of Japan is defeated in the coming election, troops of Japanese Self-Defense Force stationed in Iraq for humanitarian aids will be withdrawn this December. If he wins, the troops will most probably remain until the U.S. government turns down its request for anti-terror cooperation in Iraq.

Four years prior to 2001, that is, September 11, 1997, the government of Iraq at the time submitted to the United Nations documents fully disclosing the details of its past biological weapons program.

In 1997, Usama Bin Laden accepted an interview by CNN, telling that his followers attacked U.S. troops in Somalia in 1993 which is four years prior to 1997.

Everything can be regarded as coincidence including one’s own birth, but there is a kind of undeniable quasi-periodic trait in human activities and movements. Sometimes it can be four years, as is described above.

“DO YOU BELIEVE THAT I CAN HEAL YOU ?”

August 6, 1945 High on Hiroshima

August 6, 1945 High on Hiroshima

A Japanese reporter somewhere in Afghanistan or Pakistan, or at the border between the two countries, was approached to by a local man. The reporter was asked if he would be interested in buying nuclear material. The local guy said there was some reserve of material to be used for a nuclear weapon or some dirty bomb.

As the Japanese reporter declined the offer, the local business man, of whatsoever kind, offered another item, a statute of Buddha, a kind being lost, discovered, and hidden somewhere. Naturally, the Japanese reporter got embarrassed.

It might be a just common incident on a dusty road running through a shanty, makeshift, war-torn town with many people looking like refugees, smugglers, relatives of Mujahadeens, peddlers, spies, or local mad men.

This August 6 is the Hiroshima day in Japan. There are usually some TV programs focused on the atomic-bomb attack on Hiroshima by U.S. Air Force in 1945.

This year, in one TV program, they invited an ex-US air soldier who had been on board of a B-29 bomber attacking Hiroshima and taken that famous atomic-bomb cloud picture generated just after explosion.

The American said in a sense that the Hiroshima attack was balanced with “Remember Pearl Harbor.”

I suppose that every terrorist in the world knows that once atomic bombs were actually used in a real war. And, the first case was done in Hiroshima, a then-military city located in western Japan.

Today, there is a nice war-memorial museum in Hiroshima. Before any terrorists decide to resort to nuclear weapons, they should come to Hiroshima to visit the museum. Not after the attack, like an American, but they should come before.

(Source of Information: The Asahi Shimbun newspaper)

“LET MY PEOPLE LIVE IN PEACE.”

Japan, France, Pakistan and Who?

A nightmare about terror is a nuclear-bomb attack by a truly-crazy terrorist.

If it happens, Japan might be linked with the origin of Plutonium to be abused.

It is well known that Japan relies on France for fuel reprocessing. Nuclear fuels used in Japanese atomic reactors are sent to a French company for reprocessing. The French company is also known for its indiscriminate handling of nuclear fuels for use of private power generation as well as military weapons.

The French company has a strong tie with other European companies dealing with nuclear fuels and weapons. One of them is a former employer of the famous Pakistani physicist who has been a focus of international investigation of illegal leakage of atomic bomb information.

Once, Germany also had contracts with the French company for fuel reprocessing. But, since Germany decided to stop its nuclear energy program, Japan has been a major client to the French company.

Therefore, if not only information on a nuclear bomb but also nuclear materials are leaked, the materials are most likely of Japanese origin.

But, now, China has a plan to rapidly increase the number of its nuclear power plants. Soon, it will have 30 plus new atomic power stations. France is involved in China’s nuclear energy programs, too.

Nothing is clear in this entangled, global nuclear business networks. But, one thing sure is that Japan has no intention to have nuclear weapons. Japan is not proud of having conquered tragedies of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but it knows that no people can keep themselves sane if they are so victimized.

This is the time for people to talk about the degree of madness of terror and arrogance of rich people enjoying wealth their lucrative nuclear business has produced so far.

“I AM THE LOARD AND I DO NOT CHANGE.”

Japan, Madrid, London, and Pakistan

A big train accident occurred in Pakistan, killing more than 100 passengers. It took place after the terror attacks in London. In April, a big train accident occurred in Amagasaki City located in western Japan, killing more than 100 commuters. It had taken place before the terror attacks in London.

There is, of course, no relevancy; they were just accidentally related to rail road. However, when Spain suffered from a terror attack on its train system last spring, we were very much alerted, wondered, and waited. Then this spring, the unbelievable accident occurred in Japan, smashing a train to an angled wall of a residential compound.

Yes, we were surprised, but the imaginary linkage between the Spain’s terror attack on trains and Japan’s train accident seemed very vague. Nonetheless, we were wondering if it was foretelling another terrible terror attack on trains somewhere in Europe or America.

Then, everything became clear when London was hit by four suicide-bomb-attackers. And, Pakistan’s train accident seemed to be decisive, since those terrorists in London were strongly linked with Pakistan.

Why, however, you might wonder, would the God give a warning especially to Japan in this context and in terms of terrorist attacks on trains? In 1995, a Japanese cult conducted attacks in Tokyo subway systems, using sarin gas and killing 11 people and injuring thousands of commuters. This incident gave a great shock to experts in this field all over the world.

Well, long before September 11, 2001, Japan had learned what such an attack in a large scale could be.

Many Japanese then also got shocked and some really repent their daily deeds in pursuit of selfish interests and profits.

Maybe, the God who observed it had a feeling to give a warning to some Japanese in terms of a similar kind of attacks somewhere in the world. If you doubt it, you should ask the God Almighty.

“HE THANKED GOD AND WAS GREATLY ENCOURAGED.”

It Began in Babylonia (currently sothern Iraq)

It Began in Babylonia (currently sothern Iraq)

In 2002, a Japanese professor of the University of Tokyo calculated pi (the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter) to 1.24 trillion decimal points using a Japanese supercomputer, which is of course extremely remarkable.

In 2005, a Japanese psychiatric counselor has recited pi to 83,432 decimal points, speaking from his memory, which is also globally remarkable.

In the 17th century, when Isaac Newton calculated pi to 16 decimal points, a Japanese mathematician and samurai Takakazu Seki also calculated pi to 16 decimal points independently in Japan.

Seki’s disciple Katahiro Tatebe calculated pi to 41 decimal points in 1722, which was reported in his book where he also presented (arcsin x) * (arcsin x) in a series presentation which was regrettably recorded as and has been believed today to be Euler’s discovery in 1737 in Europe.

There is surely a reason why Seki and Tatebe could show such expertise in then most worldly advanced mathematical skills. Though Japan had closed its door to the outer world from the early 17th century to the middle of the 19th century, part of Western science was introduced to Japan by some Westerners, especially Jesuit priests who had risked their lives to enter Japan and preach the gospel. Their missions were mostly blocked and eradicated by a samurai regime but their knowledge of European science was secretly respected.

Therefore, long before Japan opened its door to the world in 1868, it had already reached a high level of modern mathematics, at least, in terms of practical calculation even in the field of differential and integral calculus. In addition, a handy manual calculator, an abacus, was a very common tool among ordinary people in Japan since 17th century.

After Japan's opening the country, many Western professors were hired by Japanese government doing its best to catch up with Western civilization. Some professors taught Japanese students the theory of differential and integral calculus. They found that the theory seemed to be somehow new to their Japanese students but the students could calculate equations and produce right answers based on their traditional mathematical skill.

So, it is no wonder that Japanese mathematicians had contributed much to the solution of Fermat's last theorem (X^n + Y^n = Z^n; X = Y = Z = 0 if n >2), which was achieved by the English man Andrew Wiles in 1995.

(Still other Japanese mathematicians made significant contributions to understanding one of the most important problems of the last 300 years: the proof of Fermat's last theorem. In this endeavor, Yutaka Taniyama and Goro Shimura helped lay the groundwork that led to Andrew Wiles's (1953- ) 1994 proof of the validity of Fermat's last theorem. The Shimura-Taniyama conjecture, which describes the relationship between certain families of curves, proved key to solving this theorem.http://www.bookrags.com/research/the-contributions-of-japanese-mathe-scit-07123/)

However, the issue here is Pythagoras. Whose famous theory has been traditionally a key to obtaining a series expression of arctan x, a key function to calculate pi (= 4 * (1 – 1/3 + 1/5 – 1/7..) ).

Pi is a transcendental. This number cannot be expressed in the form of M/N using two integers. Also, the number x that satisfies the equation x * x = 2 is a transcendental.

In the age of Buddha, Confucius, and ancient Jew’s Babylonian captivity, such number as the square root of two was hard to comprehend. Pythagoras who loved integers so much was very unhappy to know existence of the type of numbers; thus he made it a secret kept only to his sect.

It is said that one of Pythagoras’ disciples who made public the existence of the transcendental was put to death by the sect. It is also said that Pythagoras himself was later excused by opponents to his sect.

It is a story of 2500 years ago. But, even today, some powerful people who love super-integers so much might try to make secret the very existence of a super- transcendental in any fields. For example, a leader of one religious sect might find such a thing in other religions, but he might be very unhappy. He might rather prefer to make it secret, which might create dangerous prejudice even in the 21st century.

Ancient Babylonians were great in that they left the oldest record of a value of pi, though there is a theory that very ancient Romans had recorded it prior to Babylonians’. In BC2000 or so, Babylonians found that pi = 25/8 = 3.125, while Egyptians found that pi = 256/81 = 3.1605. Their offspring should be treated more respectfully if our civilization still relies on pi.

There is long history in anything valuable. And you cannot make it secret. You had better recite it from memory to show your love to the transcendent existence of the Creator of Universe.



“CONQUARE EVIL WITH GOOD.”

As they didn’t know the world is a globe

A Japanese female reporter visited an event in California this March. The exhibition showed some materials related to atomic-bomb disasters in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

She met two Hispanic ladies in a hall of the exhibition. The two ladies were reading a piece of materials which were related to the Nagasaki atomic-bomb attack. So, the reporter wanted to know what the two ladies thought about it. But, she was astonished to be conversely asked by them about what Nagasaki and an atomic bomb meant.

This experience led to her quest of a lost report on Nagasaki that had been prepared by George Weller but rejected to be published by the Allied Headquarters stationed in Tokyo after the surrender of the Empire of Japan.

In Japan, it is said that nowadays there are some young people who do not know that Japan and the U.S. fought against each other in WWII. And even they do not know which side had won.

In April 1975, the Pol Pot faction occupied the capital of Cambodia. They were expelled out of Phnum Penh in January 1979 by Vietnamese forces and their Cambodian allies, but the faction is said to have killed one million people among eight million population of Cambodia during its occupation.

Once, a Japanese young man who had visited Cambodia and met Pol Pot soldiers wrote that when he happened to tell them, in a friendly occasion, that the earth is round they made a fool of him. “If the earth is a globe,” the soldiers said, “what becomes of people on the opposite side of the globe?”

This kind of story must be found among Rwandan people who participated in the great massacre in 1994 sacrificing almost million people, Chinese people who participated in the Great Culture Revolution in late 1960’s and early 70’s causing millions of victims, and German people who could not stop the great tragedy of six million Jews under the Hitler’s regime.

In addition, this kind of story might be found among terrorists and insurgents.

But, contemporary Americans and Japanese do not have any idea about Hiroshima and Nagasaki as well as atomic bombs that are something more alarming to humankind.

According to a survey conducted by an organization of high reputation, the blast of an atomic bomb in Hiroshima as well as Nagasaki was chosen as the greatest news in the 20th century by learned persons.

Albert Einstein is one particular human being in the human history in that he changed a view of the universe forever, making Newton’s physics obsolete. He is also known for his letter to US President Roosevelt, recommending development of an atomic bomb to defeat Nazis.

But, it is said that Einstein had not been aware of possibility of chain reaction of atomic fission in Uranium and Plutonium, which made possible the building-up of an atomic bomb, until the theory was explained to him by other physicist who had taken an initiative of promoting the plan.

There are many who are innocent but so ignorant as to be manipulated by others with great knowledge. Even among the highest class of experts, there are some whose tiny lack of information led to a great misjudgment. Mighty weapons would make slim a chance of sincere negotiations.

Of course, those with great knowledge or sufficient information but without good intentions should be responsible if they manipulate others with less information so as to fulfill their personal desires.

Nonetheless, in order to avoid any future tragedy, we should let necessary information prevail among people concerned.

For example, if possible terrorist candidates know that how seven million Muslims are living peacefully in rich society of the U.S., they might reconsider their desperate mission and eventually give it up.

It is true, however, that not only German scientists but also Japanese ones had been studying possibility of creation of an atomic bomb during WWII. But if the Japanese people then had been informed that only the U.S. had scientific and engineering capacity to actually design and produce the bomb, probably Pearl Harbor attack should have been avoided.

It is not too late to provide useful information in good faith to avoid future tragedy probably having influence on millions.

(Source of information: The Mainichi Shimbun newspaper )

“THERE IS MORE HAPPINESS IN GIVING THAN IN RECEIVING.”

Have Dream for Peace

The legend of Normandy Landings in 1944 led to creation of various movies including “Private Ryan” (1998). However, Okinawa Landings in 1945 which are said to have surpassed the scale of US military mobilization for Normandy Landings have rarely become a subject of entertainment.

On March 26, 1945, 548,000 US troops with 1,500 US ships surrounding the Okinawa Islands began landing and invasion to seize the islands equally distanced to Taiwan, Shanghai, and the southern part of Mainland Japan. It took about two months for US military to finish the battle and establish occupation of the Okinawa Island with the longitudinal distance of 60 miles and located some 1000 miles south of Tokyo.

According to certain statistics, the Battle of Okinawa left 22,000 deaths and 26,000 neuropaths among US troops. The Empire of Japan lost about 100,000 soldiers and more than 150,000 Okinawa civilians.

About 2,000 kamikazes (suicide-attack fighter planes) in addition to fierce fighting on the ground put many US soldiers into mental disorder. In fact, US ships were well defended by more advanced weapon, kamikaze planes sank 26 US navy vessels and damaged 368 ships.

Today the U.S. holds many military bases in Okinawa, which are the largest in Asia-Pacific region. Without Okinawa bases, the US military capability would not sufficiently cover the Strait of Taiwan, Korean Peninsula, and channels between Japan and Russia.

Since 1945, there occurred Taiwan-China struggles, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, and the War on Afghanistan and Iraq. And unfortunately, the US bases in Okinawa with about 28,000 US troops have remained until today.

One of the reasons that the Empire of Japan attacked the Pearl Harbor in 1941 is that then Japanese government thought Japan would have died down sooner or later due to American embargo of oil. Then US government had stopped export of oil and other key products to the Empire of Japan for various reasons, while WWII had already begun in Europe.

After the Perl Harbor attack, the Imperial Forces of Japan advanced down to south and to oil fields in Indonesia colonized by the Netherlands through Malay Peninsula colonized by the U.K. It looks ironical that today new oil fields have been discovered and developed in the East China Sea, Sakhalin Island, Manchuria, and the offshore area of Vietnam.

Of course, if the Empire of Japan had not occupied Korean Peninsula and some part of mainland China, the Pacific War including the Battle of Okinawa could have been avoided.

In 1990, Saddam Hussein’s Iraq invaded Kuwait over oil field disputes, though Iraq has plenty of oil reserves. It triggered the Gulf War, created situations where Al-Qaeda began to operate, and the US War on Terror.

It is not clear how much one would learn form experiences of a big war. In the Pacific theater of WWII, Richard Nixon, JFK, and George H.W. Bush all participated. Though they were each the supreme commander of US forces in the era of the Cuban Crisis, the Vietnam War, and the Gulf War, it is interesting how what they learnt during WWII affected their decision in each situation.

In any wat, it is good to have a reluctant commander, no matter how excellent their ability to lead the army is, when a dispute could be resolved through appropriate negotiations over oil.

Yesterday, a ceremony was held in Okinawa to commemorate victims of the Battle of Okinawa. As usual in this kind of ceremony, no arguments over cause of the war were discussed, but people, including Prime Minister attending there, just showed and shared the extreme sorrow and expressed their determination not to make a war again forever.

One Japanese general who fought and died in the Battle of Okinawa sent his last report to the headquarters in Tokyo, asking for special care for residents in Okinawa who had suffered so much and become true victims of the war. He did not mention any tactic or strategic matters except his request that the government should, after the war, take special measures to repay Okinawa people for their extreme sacrifice.

It was still a long way to the end of the war after Okinawa. But, a daughter of the general, after the war, happened to marry an American. In a sense, a dream for peace was realized at least between those who had had such a dream.

Now, the most important thing about Iraq where some Arabs and Americans are fighting, for whatever reasons, seems to be whether there are some who have a dream for peace.


*** *** *** ***


APPENDIX. Pictures of the Battle of Okinawa

http://d.hatena.ne.jp/jjtaro_maru/20100713/1278977215

http://okinawa-labrador.seesaa.net/category/1933036-1.html

(The amphibious landing operation on Okinawa Island is of the largest scale in the history as the one using large military ships only, different from the Normandy Landings, dispatched over the Ocean.  The US and the UK navies mobilized total 22 aircraft carriers for the Battle of Okinawa.)

“YES, LET THEM MAKE PEACE WITH ME.”

Another Warning Surfaced from Nagasaki in 1945

Greece is called Hellas; and the nation Japan is called Nippon or Nihon by its people.

Nippon means Sun’s Rising Place, the sound of which changed to “Jipang” in the era of Marco Polo (the 13th century) and finally to “Japan” mostly in the West. But, the old imperial court of Japan has been traditionally called the Yamato Regime, for capitals of ancient Japan were mainly located in the Yamato Area (currently Nara Prefecture south of Kyoto).

When Japan built the world’s largest and strongest battle ship, it was named Yamato. The ship weighed 64,000t and was equipped with the nine 46.0cm battery guns. There were no matching counterparts in the US Navy in 1941 (USS New Jersey 48,000t with nine 40.6cm battery guns) when the Yamato was put into operation.

However, eventually, the Yamato was downed in 1945 during a kind of Kamikaze mission for the battle of Okinawa.

It has been a legendary battle ship, because the Yamato was and will remain to be the world’s largest and strongest battleship forever and ever, since the age of large battleships was gone once and for all during WWII.

The Yamato has been featured many times in various works of Japanese popular art. This year, it is said, another movie featuring the battleship is going to be released.

So, it was not an easy game for the US Navy to sweep away the Imperial Japan’s Navy during WWII. Even when a crew of a US submarine needed an emergency operation for appendicitis, a captain should be well aware of tactical situation.

April 2005, a man who had actually performed this kind of operation under the South China Sea in 1942 died in the U.S. His story was not new, since George Weller on board of the submarine reported it and got awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his work.

However, recently George Weller surfaced again and was focused upon in a Japanese newspaper. It was not for his Prize-winning reporting on the submarine hero but for his long-hidden report on Nagasaki, an atomic-bombed city the writer visited just after the surrender of the Empire of Japan.

Nagasaki, a historic port city known for tradition of Catholicism in Japan since the 16th century, is one of major shipbuilding cities, and it was so during WWII. George Weller came to the city to discover the scale of catastrophes of an atomic bomb. He checked situations in hospitals and recorded symptoms of victims suffering from horrible effect of radioactivity.

His report was sent for permission of publication to the Headquarter of the Allied forces in Tokyo but forbidden to be released. The report was not returned to George Weller and seemed to be lost somewhere. Censorship seemed to be exercised.

After George Weller died in 2002, his son found a copy of the report in Rome where the writer had lived his last days.

It is effect of radioactivity that should be hidden from the public eye. If American people had been alerted on fatal side-effect of an atomic bomb, further development of atomic bombs might have been hindered due to wide public opposition.

If the report had been made public in 1940’s, today’s issue on depleted uranium might have been avoided; and many modern US soldiers might have been relieved from the terrible side-effect.

Recently a very old, former FBI deputy director has also surfaced in the U.S. as a key information source to heroic reporters who pursued the plot linked to then President Nixon. George Weller and the former FBI deputy director seem to belong to the same generation.

The former’s secret was intended to be hidden forever, but the latter’s secret has been revealed by the very person himself 30 years after the notorious incident involoving resignation of President Nixon.

The two secrets might be just one of aftermath effects of the Pearl Harbor attack and the JFK assassination, respectively, both of which made the moment when people had first heard the news unforgettable for them.

“I APPEARED TO THOSE WHO WERE NOT LOOKING FOR ME.”

(Source of Information: The Mainichi Shimbun newspaper)

Proud Mexico

Once, a half of the people of Mexico listened to anti-NAFTA activists, but nowadays, it seems only one-tenth.

People in Mexico seem to abandon their faith in anti-Americanism. Rather, they go to New York and come home with dollars with which they build a Californian-style house that stands out from surrounding poor old houses.

So, neighbors are also motivated to go and work in America. Even those who once supported leftist activities are crossing the border between the U.S. and Mexico.

A Japanese reporter who visited a town known for anti-Americanism in southern Mexico for collecting news data saw a couple of Western hippies happen to drop by there. Then one of members of an anti-Americanism group showed them around just like a guide.

Even an anti-American group sells agricultural products to some Western company at fair prices as a benefit of NAFTA, which has brought some benefit to the group. But a female leader of the group said that those who go to the U.S. for money are losing their human dignity.

Yes, a couple of Western hippies, Californian-style houses, and a leftist group making money thanks to NAFTA with a female leader trying to keep her human dignity really seem to symbolize a situation of being a neighbor of the superpower nation America.

A rich man should make his poor neighbors rich. A rich country should also make its poor neighbor countries rich. This is a basic rule.

Otherwise, from a viewpoint of human natures, a rich man would make his poor neighbors poorer, and a rich country would make its poor neighbor countries poor.

Europe never makes Africa rich. North America never makes Latin America rich.

But, Japan has made Korea rich, Taiwan rich, and coastal areas of China rich in addition to some ASEAN countries.

From a standpoint of the Empire of Japan which ceased to exist in 1945, if Europeans and Americans had succeeded in controlling East Asia and Southeast Asia based on classic colonialism all through the 20st century, people in those areas should have been faced with the same situation as that in contemporary Africa and Latin America.

It is true that there are some who, in fact, still hold the above view in Japan today. However, this view should be studied in a different level and context where Japan is requested to apologize to Asian people for a war fought 60 years ago mainly between the Empire of Japan and the U.S. on soils of other Asian countries.

The war between the Empire of Japan and two Chinese parties before 1945 was, in some ways, different and more complicated, but the underlying implication is the same when observed in a span of centuries.

Anyway, as a matter of fact, people of China and other Asian countries seem to well secure their human dignity. They are neither desperate leftists nor dreamers of becoming rich by going to New York.

If American wealth is useless for securing human dignity of Mexican people, it is not good at all. America had better think about it, for they are very important neighbors to US citizens in various senses including security.

“THEN THEY WILL FEAR THE LORD AND RECEIVE HIS GOOD GIFTS.”

(Source of Information: The Mainichi Shimbun newspaper)

Warnings to be Re-Examined for Prevention of Another 9/11

Can we really sense something very alarming?

It was very alarming that US Forces bombed Iraq to that extent in 1991. Yes, indeed, and besides, it was not along with the paradigm the world community had embraced in those days.

It was very alarming that two US embassies in East Africa were blasted in 1998. Yes, indeed, and besides, it was not along with the paradigm of any reasonable challenge against the U.S. even in terms of armed provocation.

It was also alarming that USS Cole was attacked in late 2000. Yes, indeed, and it was as if real daredevils had started a war against US Forces with just handful of explosive bombs, and it was not funny at all.

At this point, we should have recalled the 1993 World Trade Center blasting and 1995 Oklahoma City federal building blasting. Yes, we should have remembered those extraordinary and outrageous crimes on the soil of mainland U.S.

In 2001, we had bad news of assassination of Congo president Laurent Kabila and execution of Timothy McVeigh, which might hint that something horrible might be approaching, since two figures standing for hidden influence of a world of violence were wiped off from this world while true problems were left unsolved. Yes, we had sensed very heavy silence somewhere in the world or inside us. I do believe some did, but we seemed to be too busy minding our business.

The true warnings I believe that the God gave us prior to September 11, 2001 are as follows:
In May 2001, the Taliban blasted the statute of Buddha carved into the side of a cliff in the Bamiyan valley of Afghanistan.

Another sequence of warnings is as follows:
In February 2001, a fishing ship owned by a Japanese fisheries high school and operated for training collided with a US navy submarine near Hawaii.

In April 2001, an armed terrorist group occupied a hotel in Istanbul and some Japanese tourists were taken into hostage.

On September 1, 2001, a building containing bars and restaurants in an amusement area of Tokyo got fired, killing 44 people.

And, on September 10, 2001, a mad cow was for the first time found in Japan, which was not funny at all, for millions of cows had been slaughtered in England due to this disease.

What’s more, other bizarre warning was: in June 2001, King and Queen of Nepal were shot dead.

Among all, the demolition of the statute of Buddha looked very decisive. I remember that we watched high-ranking officers and journalists from Japan trying hard to persuade Taliban leaders to stop the blasting in vain. We saw Taliban’s foreign minister as well as the ambassador to Pakistan on TV. They were young and seemed to have no freedom of intelligence and power in their own personality. Then, who were behind them?

Later the Taliban released a video tape showing the moment of their blasting the statute of Buddha. It was very alarming. If they had been serious building up a nation, they should have observed the world more carefully. Religious practice supported by an action of violence would prove that practitioners are wrong if their religion is not wrong. So, logically, people with faith never use violence in such a context, otherwise they will risk their religion, too. But the Taliban didn’t mind it. Why? What strong influence were they under?

All the answers came on September 11, 2001.

Who could really foretell the incident? Did any fortune-teller come forward asserting that they had really got a vision of September 11 before the tragedy occurred?

Too many were dead; I don’t want anymore for whatsoever reasons including revenge.

“THEIR MINDS, INDEED, WERE CLOSED.”

A Moment in 1978

When Deng Xiaoping, late Chinese leader, visited Japan in 1978 and met Emperor Showa of Japan, he received apology from the Emperor.

At the very moment, it is said that then powerful leader of China got shocked as if he had been struck by a thunder.

Most probably, Mr. Deng did not expect at all Emperor Showa who had been in the throne even during WWII to rather offer apologies for allowing the war between Japan and China in 1930’s and 40’s.

Emperor Showa reportedly wished to visit China someday but passed away in 1989 without fulfilling his dream.

The event is very impressive even to Japanese well informed on this kind of issues. It is also said that Emperor Showa had never expressed such regret to leaders of other Asian countries including Korea in terms of tragedy of World War II. In this context, China was then treated in a very different manner by Emperor himself in 1978.

The point is that Chinese citizens seem to have neither been informed of this kind of events nor been told that Japan has provided 70 billion dollar worth economic support for China since 1972 when the two countries resumed diplomatic relations.

But, it is not China alone that has not supplied its citizens with adequate information about Japan’s contributions to peace and prosperity of the world.

Conversely, if Japan stopped such contribution, horrible things might more easily happen all over the world.

This is not a warning, for Japan has been determined to continue such contribution since the end of WWII, no matter how the world acts and reacts.

“THAT IS WHY THE LORD HAS MADE THEIR WEALTH REPULISVE TO THEM.”

(Source of Information: The Mainichi Shimbun newspaper)

A Judo Hero (or Kurosawa, Toyota, and an Auschwitz Guide)

It is well known that some successful American movie directors and producers, including Steven Spielberg, have been highly influenced by now-dead Kurosawa, a Japanese counterpart.

One of the earliest works of Mr. Kurosawa is “Sugata, Sanshiro.” Sanshiro is a judo hero who is faced with various challenges physically and spiritually, and gets into a decisive wrestling match in wilderness.

What is characteristic about Sanshiro Sugata is his humbleness. He tries hard to grow up and acquire personal integrity through sternness of judo practices and bouts. He is the remotest person from modern sports heroes who openly show off and display their joys of victory.

In a previous EE-report, I mentioned that Mr. Okuda, the powerful leader of Toyota Motor, is a long-time Judo practitioner, and his philosophy is based on a view on life and death, which has been fostered by his Judo practice.

Mr. Okuda especially mentioned a novel, titled “Sugata, Sanshiro,” the late Mr. Kurosawa had adopted to his first movie produced when this Japanese movie director was 33 years old in 1943 during WWII.

And Mr. Okuda refered to this hero when explaining his philosophy. San-shi-ro (which means a third-and-fourth-guy like Ichi-ro means a first-guy) conquered his fear, worry, and pain by resigning himself to higher enlightenment that what matters is death only and there is nothing to fear other than death.

There is a person in Poland who is working as a guide, an interpreter, or a translator for Japanese visiting Auschwitz. This Polish person, when he was young, was highly impressed with the film “Sugata, Sanshiro.”

Having completed his Japanese study in the Warsaw University, he came to Japan for further study and research. After graduation of a graduate school of a prominent Japanese university, he served various VIPs as an interpreter.

The Polish guide said to a Japanese newspaper reporter, “When Japanese students visiting Auschwitz said that they understood that they had not understood anything about the Auschwitz Concentration Camp, I felt I was paid off.”

What is a theme here? It is catholicity or universality.

Knowing a fact that even in a highly Catholic country still the Japanese virtue could be admired and comprehended, Japan might defend itself from false accusation that Japan helped Hitler and the Nazis denying the existence of Jews.

Japan had nothing to do with that atrocity. They had done it very secretly. Japan is at least as innocent as the Vatican City in this regard.

Another issue is the United Nations. If the U.N. is to embody universal value, it had better review its process of improving its Security Council. The fact that an Asian Security Council permanent member is attacking another Asian country well qualified to be a new Security Council permanent member tells why the U.N. doesn’t work.

If you neglect 60-year efforts for peace by Japan while blaming it for a war 60 years ago, you can do anything bad now relying on any remote reasons as justification.

A political party that reportedly killed or had people starving to death more than the Nazis had done, though through different means, should not lead the U.N. and occupy a seat of the Security Council.

Otherwise, citizens in the world had better come to Tokyo but New York for united peace activities.

(Information Source: The Mainichi Shimbun newsapaer)

“AND YOUR FATHER, WHO SEES WHAT YOU DO IN PRIVATE, WILL REWARD YOU.”

A Few but Not Little Things

I’ve got a report that a Japanese non-governmental organization working in Sudan was awarded an oil concession by the Sudanese government. It was also reported that it was the very NGO that the ex-diplomat of Japan having quit his job in order to help people in Sudan (who was focused on in a former EEreport ) was related to.

The NGO got funds from US and European investors. It is very rare that an NGO that is not a private corporation in the industry can have an oil-extraction contract with a government with crude oil resources.

It is of course good for Japan which has been forced to buy oil from the Middle East at prices which are deliberately set higher so as to allow the U.S. and European countries to purchase oil at lower prices. The Middle East oil producing countries have balanced their books by selling oil at a higher rate to Japan and a lower rate to the U.S. and Europe.

China must know this system very well. So, they are very aggressive to secure contracts with petroleum-producing countries, giving little thought of the conventional power balance over this energy source.

But there are profound reasons that Japan has been resigned to accepting this oil price scheme.

It may not be smart to simply present those reasons. Instead, I would present a case that tells what a country that would ignore those reasons would do.

Recently a Chinese diplomat stationed in Australia asked for asylum there. According to his information, China has abducted many Chinese people living in Australia who take an anti-government stance.

And there are thousands of Chinese secret agents in Australia, engaging in espionage and spying on fellow countrymen. Of course, there might be more in Japan, the U.S., and the Middle East.

As for abduction by a government, it is a big issue in Japan that North Korea abducted many Japanese citizens in 1970’s and 1980’s for espionage activities, and they still keep those victims while informing the Japanese government that they were dead.

If not for crude oil but for humanitarian reasons, we have to protest against the Chinese government and the North Korean government: “Do not abduct Chinese as well as Japanese for whatsoever reasons!”

“CHRISTS’S DEATH ON THE CROSS WAS NOT ROBBED OF ITS POWER.”