(Mt. Fuji First, Hawks Second, and Eggplants Last in Japanese first dream of the New Year...; you may click on a picture to enlarge.)Lessons for Children, Old Men, and Manhood
Japanese Prime Minister started his "personal" blog posting on January 1, 2009.
Pictures in his blog site are to be taken by Prime Minister Mr. Yukio Hatoyama himself or his secretaries.
http://hatocafe.kantei.go.jp/
Though he does not directly operate a computer system for blog posting, his secretaries would honestly input his sentences, sent to them by the prime minister via an e-mail system, into a Prime Minister's blog page on the Internet.
Viewers can send their comments via Twitter to the prime minister, which are to be displayed on a monitor screen on one of his desks in the Prime Minister's Office, unless blocked due to any quality and security criteria.
So, you had better learn Japanese to feel so connected to the Japanese Prime Minister himself, even from Taipei, Seoul, Beijing, New Delhi, Moscow, or New York.
However, you cannot tell how long it will continue or whether it will enable his Cabinet to continue longer than critics expect...since there are so many spies and agents using the Internet.
SECTION I: QUIZ TO CHILDREN
In a certain public elementary school in Japan, the following question was asked of children:
An adult asked some help of three children. When the children finished their humble jobs, the adult gave them four cakes. Now, how should the cakes be distributed among the kind children? Choose an appropriate answer from the following:
I. Divide the four cakes into three four-thirds portions, and have each child take equally one portion.
II. Have a child who showed the best performance take all the four cakes.
III. As a friend of one of the three children happened to come there, the four cakes should be distributed among the three plus one children.
A teacher then gave the right answer, telling the pupils that they had to choose the case III.
(http://www.janjannews.jp/archives/2125244.html)
Indeed, in China, America, and EU, teachers must be telling that pupils must choose or accept the case II, since the society is functioning based on a principle represented by the case II.
But, in Japan, some teachers really like to persuade pupils to choose or accept the case III (as these socialist teachers reportedly hate competition of whatever sort, thus trying to demolish the spirit of capitalism with this sort of educational practices, though they cannot build industry to feed the people).
A negative effect of competition cannot be conquered by simply denying a positive effect of competition. Yet, desire-driven competition is not desirable, while ideal-driven competition can contribute to progress of the society. Reward is a secondary matter.
According to the teaching of Jesus Christ, competition must be indeed aimed at gaining the favor of the God.
SECTION II: AMERICAN PRISONS
The Japan Times in its December 29, 2009, issue quoted from Los Angeles Times' article by Mr. David Fathi:
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By 2005, the prison population (in the U.S.) was six times what it had been in 1975...
In 1980 the U.S. had about 9,500 prisoners age 55 and older; by 2008, the number had increase tenfold, to 94,800...
With one in 11 U.S. prisoners serving a life sentence - in some states, the figure is 1 in 6 - it's no surprise that the number of elderly prisoners is skyrocketing...
Being in prison is hard on anyone, but elderly people face special dangers, particularly if they are ill or disabled...And older prisoners are more likely to be robbed, assaulted or otherwise victimized...
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Law must be equally applied.
But, different provisions must be included in law for different types of people: younger ones and older ones; stronger ones and weaker ones; and rich ones and poor ones.
For example, for 10-dollar robbery, a richer criminal must be more severely corrected than a poor one who has less than 10 dollars.
Or, a different provision should be prepared for a 10-dollar thief who is poor and older than 60.
Essentially, a prison is for correction of professional criminals, including terrorists. Education and training must be two major pillars; violence and crimes must be two objectives to eradicate in a prison system.
SECTION III: Around 1500
As I wrote on Wednesday, December 16, 2009:
Yet, you must realize that Christopher Columbus (1451 – 1506) preceded Martin Luther (1483 – 1546) though both the heroes lived around 1500.
Then what happened around 1500 in Japan, China, and India?
In 1493, the then samurai regime of Japan faced a crisis. The Ashikaga shogunate based in Kyoto could not protect its shogun or the samurai president any more. Each samurai clan in local regions started to compete and fight with one another, leading to a century-long civil war in Japan.
So, the year 1493 is the beginning of the Warring States period of Japan, a time of social upheaval, political intrigue, and nearly constant military conflict in Japan that lasted roughly from the middle of the 15th century to the beginning of the 17th century.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sengoku_period )
In Japan after 1493, though Columbus arrived at part of America in 1492 providing the oldest root for the U.S., many samurai clans and factions started to openly battle with one another unlike before over feuds and other advantages, while the then samurai shogun (president or king) lost his hegemony to diminish into the nominal head of the samurai class.
Around this era, the Ashikaga clan had held the hegemony over Japan. The head of the Ashikagas assumed the shogun status based on their military power. However, unlike the first samurai regime situated in Kamakura since the early 12th century, this second samurai regime set its administrative capital in Kyoto since the early 14th century. It meant that samurais still absolutely needed some kind of authority of the imperial court to augment their own authority over their territory and people.
Anyway, the mode, mood, or spirit of this Warring States period or the era of great civil wars among samurais in the Japanese Middle Ages lasted under the surface until the last samurai regime by the Tokugawas situated in Edo (Tokyo) fell in 1868 (close to the time when the American Civil War ended).
So, there were remarkably parallel situations between Japan and America.
It is so, since while the early American mood, mode, and spirit, no matter how wild or courageous, were being formed during the first century after Columbus' 1492 arrival at America, individual samurai clans started to rise and fight for their own benefits and glory for a century after 1493 though before this era there had been strong order and respect for the top samurai clans who were believed to be truly associated with the ancient imperial family through their blood lines.
Some Europeans started to depart from the Vatican around 1492 to be Americans.
Most samurais started to depart from the traditional samurai authority, associated with the ancient imperial court, around 1493 to be more independent rulers of Japan, regardless of their formal respect for the imperial court that was destined to suffer lack of any political and economic power until 1868.
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Japanese high-ranking officials and politicians must read the P.M. Mr. Hatoyama's blog once a week as a quasi duty, since the prime minister has lauched "personal" blog and the Twitter communications.
Yet, I am writing my blog sentences to those who can understand to whom EEE Reporter articles are posted and presented.
It is so, since some others do not know even what the year 1500 means to Japan, the U.S., and Europe.
("How many times will I have to wake up in the morning till Happy New Year?" a Japanese song titled "New Year Day (O-Shogatsu)" goes so, since letting out a kite and spinning a top are happy games on New Year holidays. Indeed silent and pious festivity are so high on January 2, traditionally, in Japan.
http://www.geocities.jp/machi0822jp/oshougatu.htm )
Jon 1:1 Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,
Jon 1:2 Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.