(From the Bay to the North of Tokyo)"For They Shall See God"
(Finance, Media Reporting, and Politics of a Week)
In Japan, the media say "Hana-Kin" with jollity on Friday, since Hana means a wonderful thing like a flower and Kin is an abbreviation for "Kin-yobi," Friday.
Corporate workers try to finish the day's work quickly at 5 p.m. or so to enjoy the night of Friday.
Indeed, big cities in the world might look the same, especially, on Friday evening.
Yes, you can fly in the Friday evening to Afghanistan from New York to help poor Muslims there and come back to a New York office on Monday morning.
Truly, Friday evening and night can be a challenge if you are an employee of the Federal Reserve Bank.
SECTION I: FRB Stress Test Overview
The current loss rate of 9.1% in the US financial sector is truly comparable to those of the Great Depression Era 70 years ago.
(Click to enlarge.)"In total, the estimated loan loss rates under the more adverse scenario are very high by historical standards. The two-year cumulative loss rate on total loans equals 9.1 percent in the more adverse scenario..."
http://documents.nytimes.com/supervisory-capital-assessment-program-bank-stress-test-overview#p=8
Anyway, the above figure embodies our feeling and anxiety that this scale of the 2008 Wall Street Fall might have significance comparable to the 1930's Great Depression.
And, it also supports the idea that the core of the crisis is related to credit supply and credit guarantee not only in major US businesses, such as GM, but also consumers, such as GM employees, since loan is based on the concept of credibility.
In the worst case, if all the banks were wiped away, the U.S. Government could function as a bank to GM and GM employees; but the U.S. Government cannot function as GM and other businesses that employ so many consumers to produce millions of types of products and service.
(The financial sector produces only one type of products: financial instruments.)
SECTION II: Japanese Magazines
There are three types of magazines on sale in book stores and kiosks in railroad stations and so on in Japan.
The first type is of comic magazines. The second type is of women's magazines and various hobby and entertainment magazines. The third type is of social issues, business, economy, politics, and news reports.
One of the third type magazine has recently made a feature of the TV news reporting sector.
The magazine, named "SAPIO," argues that TV news reporting in Japan is facing a crisis.
A TV stations in Japan has in house journalists and reporters who earn high salary, such as 20 million yen ($200,000) per year, but they do not look like working hard and honestly. It is because a TV station often uses subcontractors and outside producing companies who even offer their staff to the news reporting section of a TV station. Those irregular reporters actually work for or in place of regular reporters of a TV station. Yet, those outside staff earn only humble salary, such as 4 million yen per year.
(http://skygarden.shogakukan.co.jp/skygarden/owa/sol_magcode?sha=1&neoc=&zname=2300&keitai=0)
The point at issue is that this situation symbolizes the crisis of journalism and especially of the TV news reporting sector in Japan.
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Japanese Prime Minister Mr. Taro Aso said yesterday in a Q&A session in the National Diet, "I married at the age of 43, but I have children; I have performed my duty."
But later in the Q&A session, Prime Minister Mr. Aso made correction, "I was wrong to have used the word 'duty,' since there are various people who cannot have children for various reasons."
Indeed, a falling birthrate is a serious issue in Japan.
Compared with graveness of this all-Japan issue, whether Mr. Aso will win the coming general election or not might be a minor question.
Anyway, I hope that you do not catch the swine influ.
That is all for today.
(C'est pourquoi je vous dis qu'ils sont irresponsables dans leur réclamant amour.
http://www.fukuchan.ac/music/j-sengo1/aishichattanoyo.html )
Mat 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Mat 5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
Mat 5:10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 5:11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.