Divine Comedy 2007 (XIX)
[Comédie Divin 2007 - XIX]
1. L'Assommoir and Human-Beings
Last night an NHK satellite channel presented the French movie "L'Assommoir" based on Emile Zola's novel written in 1876.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%27Assommoir
The night before, on a cable TV channel, I happened to see a Japanese movie, titled "Nin-gen (human beings)," directed by Kaneto Shindo in 1962.
http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E4%BA%BA%E9%96%93-%E4%B9%99%E7%BE%BD%E4%BF%A1%E5%AD%90/dp/B00005LJV1
I could not enjoy them in full hours, since I had to turn the channel for various reasons.
The two are both monochrome movies.
The both dealt with poor people falling down into madness and ruin in daily life or on edge of life, which without love should not be handled even by an artist.
2. Tokyo-Area Train Stations Malfunctioned
This morning, in many railroad stations around Tokyo, there were big troubles on automatic checkers of tickets and electronic train-pass (IC) cards.
http://www.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/
(Though different makers provide the checking gate systems for railroad companies such as JR East, it is one maker that has installed and operated the failed systems.)
The automatic tickets/pass checking systems in each station are all connected to a central system through communications lines. If the central system located somewhere in Tokyo rejected data being sent from each automated checking gate, the gate can be disabled.
Conversely, if computer software used in the central system got malfunction and rejected every correct data sent from each entrance machine of every station connected online, all the electronically operated gates might get an order to close them from the central computer or a local computer attached to the gates.
Anyway, 2.6 million commuters at almost 700 stations in and around Tokyo have suffered the trouble this Friday morning due to malfunction of station-admission control systems.
3. Mrs. Tanaka vs. Prime Minister Mr. Fukuda
This morning I was watching Diet proceeding on TV, probably like so many people still being attracted by the legendary name "Kakuei Tanaka" or his daughter often simply called "Makiko."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kakuei_Tanaka
In a committee of the Lower House, former Foreign Minister Mrs. Makiko Tanaka questioned Prime Minister Mr. Yasuo Fukuda on several issues, such as Japan-North Korea diplomatic relationships including the abduction case.
Several years ago, a majority of voters expected Mrs. Tanaka to become prime minister, which has not been realized, though she helped Mr. Junichiro Koizumi chosen as prime minister.
Indeed, a decade ago, nobody predicted that Mr. Fukuda would assume the premiership someday, though he is the son of Takeo Fukuda inaugurated as prime minister in late 1970's.
Interestingly, the father of Mrs. Tanaka, Kakuei Tanaka with abundant financial resources took over the leadership position of the Liberal Democratic Party in early 1970's to become prime minister of Japan, defeating Takeo Fukuda, a mainstream politician in a traditional sense, through fierce intra-party struggles.
More interestingly, Mrs. Makiko Tanaka and Prime Minister Mr. Yasuo Fukuda were once in the same cabinet under then prime minister Mr. Koizumi.
They are now in competing parties. But, the two politicians look very normal and balanced, while Japan's political sector has experienced a kind of seismic changes since 1970's.
4. Japanese Politician in Myanmar
A Diet member of the Democratic Party of Japan, Mr. Katsuya Okada made his campaign poster showing himself holding a little Myanmar boy.
http://katsuya.weblogs.jp/blog/2007/09/post_7ea8.html#more
He visited Myanmar a month ago or so and reported that a price of gasoline went up five to seven times higher than before in the Southeast Asia country under military administration.
The current leader of the Democratic Party of Japan Mr. Ichiro Ozawa was once a faithful follower of the father of Mrs. Makiko Tanaka.
As Japanese politicians today in general look so docile and less wild, Mr. Ichiro Ozawa looks like standing out with an old flavor, good or bad, rooted in 1970's.
Maybe, Mr. Okada, always trying to be serious and even traveling to Myanmar in contradiction to ordinary politician's career strategy, made Mr. Ozawa's classical stance so standing out.
We need politicians or leaders who never go mad or get insane in any situations and in any longer period of time in their career.
(If you follow Jesus Christ, you never get mad or insane.
But, with what degree of human tragedy or social tragedy, should we show our normalcy so as to prove our faith?
However, skipping the process of insanity and directly jumping into evil seems to be a modern mode of devil's operation on human beings nowadays.
If your life has nothing to do with insanity and evil, you are truly blessed.)
"...So he threw off his cloak, jumped up, and came to Jesus..."
(Da sprang der Blinder auf, warf seinen Mantel ab und kam zu Jesus)