"an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush" - Origin of Astro Boy

Around Prime Minister Office Bldg., Tokyo

Origin of Astro Boy

In the summer of 1950 the managing editor of a Japanese monthly magazine called "Sho-nen" (Boy) asked Osamu Tezuka (1928-1989) to provide some work for the magazine.

Tezuka, the future Japanese king of "manga" (cartoons), could not easily come up with an idea for this work.  He took so many pains to come to think that nuclear energy could be a good theme.  The rising comic artist Tezuka wanted to depict a future country where nuclear energy would be used in a peaceful manner.  It was because Tezuka spotted an article in a newspaper about hydrogen-bomb tests being conducted by America in a Pacific Ocean island.

Accordingly he decided to use a title "Atom Continent" for the work.   In this context, Tezuka did not attach any meaning but a very basic physical entity which, in a multitude, constitutes a molecule to the word Atom.  But the editorial office of the magazine advised that the word continent was too large in a scale and thus the title should be focused on an individual character.  So, young Tezuka changed the title to "Ambassador Atom."  However he had no clear and concrete images and visions about the work titled Ambassador Atom.  It was just a passing idea.

As a deadline approached, Osamu Tezuka finally thought of a story: A great number of aliens visited the earth. They caused a big trouble with mankind.  But a man called Ambassador Atom adjusted the discord between the two species.  So the cartoon series of "Ambassador Atom" began.

But Ambassador Atom did not appear in the first three episodes.  The story became complicated with many personalities taking part in it.  And just before presenting Ambassador Atom in the fourth episode, Tezuka decided to make this central player a robot.

When this series ended, the managing editor of the magazine said to Osamu Tezuka, "You had better draw up a new title with a focus on the robot boy Atom.  Our readers seem to love Atom the most among many figures in the series."  But the future king of Japanese cartoons replied negatively: "But it is just a robot!"  The monthly magazine editor emphasized that Tezuka should depict the robot as something that expressed every human emotion and pursued justice with passion.  So, the manga or animation genius Tezuka realized that it was a very good idea, since he knew some preceding examples that a mere side player of a manga series became eventually a leading personality in a new title of work.

This is how Osamu Tezuka started to create the Japanese big-hit manga personality "Tetsuwan Atom" (Atom with iron arms).  The work was later presented in TV broadcasting as the first major animation product for TV in Japan.  Then in 1963 or so Robot-Boy Atom was introduced into the US through NBC under a new name of Astro Boy.

http://www.mxtv.co.jp/atom/

http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/yacup/39936445.html


Osamu Tezuka is now respected by every manga or animation artist in Japan.  And undoubtedly one of his outstanding cartoon works is "Tetsuwan Atom" (Atom with iron arms), since it was first created and appeared in public as Ambassador Atom in 1951.



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Act 7:29 Then fled Moses at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of Madian, where he begat two sons.
Act 7:30 And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush.
Act 7:31 When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the LORD came unto him,
Act 7:32 Saying, I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Then Moses trembled, and durst not behold.

"with the baptism of John" - Japanese Engineers in Samsung

Prime Minister Office Bldg. in Tokyo

Japanese Engineers in Samsung

In Samsung, a big electronic business of South Korea, there are many head-hunted Japanese engineers.

Samsung has an R&D center in Yokohama, Japan, where Japanese engineers also work.  Including this Yokohama center, Samsung Group employed at least 458 Japanese engineers between 2002 and 2010, which can be confirmed by patent applications filed by Samsung Group.  Japanese engineers employed by the South Korean company wrote patent applications under their names, so that their status can be easily confirmed.  But of course there must be more Japanese engineers who have not drawn up patent applications.

According to study, those patent-applying Japanese engineers in Samsung were from the following Japanese businesses:

Original Japanese Business          Number of Engineers in Samsung
==============================================

1. Panasonic                           53

2. NEC                                   47

3. Toshiba                              39

4. Hitachi                               39

5. Sanyo                                35

6. Renesas                             31

7. Fujitsu                               27

8. Sony                                 26

9. Mitsubishi                          25

10. Canon                             20
==============================================

Samsung's founder Lee Byung-chul (1910 - 1987) learnt in Waseda University, Tokyo. He then started rice-cleaning mill business to provide rice for troops of the Imperial Army of Japan which were stationed in South Korea.  (Before WWII, Korea was part of the Empire of Japan.)

The second leader of Samsung Group Lee Kun-hee (1942 - ), a son of the founder, also graduated from Waseda University, Tokyo.  He spent several years in Japan going to Japanese elementary school and junior high school.  So, he can speak Japanese so fluently.  

The third leader of the Group Lee Jae-yong (1968 - ), a son of Lee Kun-hee, also learnt in a graduate school of Keio University, Tokyo.　

So, the root of Samsung is in Japan, and its current vitality is still being infused from Japan.

So, there is a joke that Samsung salesmen often say to their clients: "Trust us.  Our technology is supported by Japanese engineers."  And we, Japanese, don't care about it so much.




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Luk 7:28 For I say unto you, Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.
Luk 7:29 And all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John.
Luk 7:30 But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him.

"the dogs under the table" - Japanese Society

Parliament Member Office Bldg & Prime Minister Office, Tokyo

Japanese Society

Once or before the economic bubble around 1990, it was often said that Japanese households who thought they belonged to the middle class accounted for 90% of all.

At the time the middle class in Japan meant having graduated from high school, college or university, having a regular job or being employed by a reasonable business, that is a big company or their subsidiary or their business contract, living in a standalone house or a modern apartment, owning a car, a color TV and other home electronics, having overseas traveling experiences, etc.

(In 1970, Japan's GDP exceeded that of Germany.  Excluding the USSR, Japan was already the second largest economy in the world at the time.)

Anyway Japan has not been class society since the fall of the last samurai regime in the late 19th century and ultimately since the fall of the Empire of Japan at the end of WWII in 1945.

In the samurai dominant Japan farmers accounted for 85% of all the residents though the samurai class accounted for only 7%.  And there were only about 130 noble-class houses, including the imperial house, who all lived in Kyoto.  Most importantly not only samurais and noblemen but also many farmers could read and write.  In the early 19th century the literacy rates of the samurai class and the noble class were both 100%, while even farmers, tradesmen and artisans who could read and write accounted for 50% of all of those non-elite classes.

Between the fall of the samurai regime in 1868 and the fall of the Empire of Japan in 1945, there was the aristocracy in Japan, consisting of traditional noblemen directly subject to the emperor and the new nobility who had been elite samurais before.  But now there is no noble class in Japan except the imperial family, since the constitution adopted after WWII denies such a class system in the Japanese society.

So, the all-out democratic social system which has prevailed so thoroughly in the Japanese society after WWII is a key to the Japanese success, though the Empire of Japan had been the leading nation in Asia and one of five militarily strong nations in the world before WWII or even samurai-era Japan had been one of most advanced nations in terms of a literacy rate.

Japan's success in modern academy, science, technology, economy and business has given a great stimulus to Taiwan, South Korea and China.  Those countries are also featured by social structure where most of the people belong to the same and the only one class, in addition to tradition of Confucianism and Buddhism.

In this context, East Asia is more democratic than Europe or the EU.  Japan has been an equitable society to the similar extent of the US.  That is why Japanese businesses can design and manufacture modern and cutting-edge products which can be highly welcomed by US consumers.  They share the same view on goods and systems for promotion of a convenient and effective democratic life.

Nonetheless, it is so deeply interesting that once or during WWII Japanese soldiers in the Imperial Army and Navy dared to die fighting bravely without surrender or commit a suicide to avoid dishonor of becoming a prisoner of war.  The Empire of Japan and the US were so different before 1945 beyond imagination of people living today, which might be another underlying condition for the Japanese success.

Finally Japan is the first nation in the world that could achieve the industrial revolution among non-Christian and non-European race-based nations without being colonized by any Christian or European race-based nations.  Inevitably it is a very unique country in the human history.





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



Mar 7:25 For a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet:
Mar 7:26 The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter.
Mar 7:27 But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs.
Mar 7:28 And she answered and said unto him, Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.
Mar 7:29 And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter.

"Behold, I send my messenger"

On the Pacific Ocean, Japan








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



Luk 7:27 This is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.

"some of them of Jerusalem" - TEPCO Management

Tokyo

TEPCO Management

This July Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), the owner and operator of the Fukushima Daiichi plant, decided to provide a special bonus of 100,000 yen ($1,000) for each of its section heads and middle-level executives.

The number of TEPCO's managers eligible for this bonus is about 5,000 though the utility has about 36,000 employees.  However since the occurrence of the Fukushimna Daiichi nuclear accident, total 1,300 workers left TEPCO.  Among them there are 50 key employees and managers in charge of business planning and strategic management.  The TEPCO management has to take some measures to stop this trend which is weakening its ability to handle the still ongoing problems related to Fukushima Daiichi.  So, what they have come up with is to provide the special bonus.  

The total cost for this bonus scheme is 100,000 yen multiplied by 5,000, which is 500 million yen or $5 million.  But TEPCO said that it could reduce costs for its operation by 150 billion yen ($1.5 billion) in the last fiscal year, so that these bonus expenses can be easily covered.  In addition, each manager of TEPCO now earns a salary 30% less than what he or she made before March 2011 when the Fukushima Daiichi accident was triggered by great tsunamis.

The average yearly salary of TEPCO's employees was more than 7 million yen ($70,000) before but now about 5.5 million yen  ($55,000), of course, due to a loss of company's profits caused by the debacle of four nuclear reactors of the Fukushima Daiichi power generation plant.

To make sure, before the fatal Fukushima Daiichi disaster, TEPCO was one of elite companies in Japan most of university graduates wanted to work in.

TEPCO Top Management as of March 2011
http://blog.goo.ne.jp/tarutaru22/e/06b112a081bf59ececc51a4f310bdb69


Moreover, it is true that radioactively contaminated wasted water is still flowing into the sea from the ground of the plant.  Such water reportedly includes radioactive material eight times more than an allowable level.

In this condition, it is apparent that Tokyo must not run for the venue of  the 2020 Olympics.  If Tokyo should be chosen as the host country of the Olympic Games of 2020,  Tokyo Electric Power Company will act as one of major sponsors to turn people's attention from the reality in Fukushima Daiichi.  It is not good at all.  It should be held in Istanbul, instead.

In 2017, Fukushima City might be able to run as a candidate city for the 2024 Olympics.


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



Joh 7:25 Then said some of them of Jerusalem, Is not this he, whom they seek to kill?
Joh 7:26 But, lo, he speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is the very Christ?

"for it was founded upon a rock" - August in Japan

On Sagami Bay, Japan

August in Japan

The summer in Japan is a season for memory of WWII, especially Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and baseball.

Specifically August proceeds with memorial services/ceremonies for Hiroshima/Nagasaki atomic bombing victims, the end of WWII for the Empire of Japan, and the nationwide high-school baseball tournament.

This baseball event is joined by about 4,000 high schools all over Japan.  Each prefecture sends their top team to the Koshien Baseball Park, west of Osaka, where high school baseball teams representing each prefecture compete for real for final victory.  All the games played in Koshien are televised live all over Japan.

(Nomo, Ichiro, and other Japanese Major Baseball players have all experienced this Koshien series.)

So, August is a big month for the Japanese race, since their Buddhist tradition teaches them that spirits of their ancestors come back to their home on mid-summer days called Bon or politely O-Bon.  Those working in big cities, such as Tokyo and Osaka, are expected to return to their home towns or parents' homes in local cities, towns, and villages.  Most of Japanese companies set a summer vacation period for their employees at the O-Bon days.

However, decades ago, the temperature in Japan in August did not get higher than 35 degrees Celsius so often as it does today.


For sightseers to Japan, however, the summer is a chance to observe abundant paddy fields outside cities all over Japan and confirm that Japan is the Land of Vigorous Rice Plants since ancient days.  Accordingly rice import to Japan is highly restricted to preserve this source of spirit and energy of the Japanese race.  Rice is a kind of sacred food for Japanese, though they consume this staple less and less nowadays with diet westernization being so prevailing.



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





Mat 7:24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
Mat 7:25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

"Noah only remained alive" - Upper House Election Result

Views from Tokyo Bay

Upper House Election Result

The　Upper House election of Japan, whose voting was on July 21, resulted in overwhelming victory of Prime Minister Mr. Abe and the ruling party LDP.

Now Mr. Shinzo Abe has secured a majority of seats in both the Upper and Lower Houses of the parliament.

The so-called Abenomics is the key to his victory, since the average price of stocks traded in the Tokyo Stock Exchange is now over 14,000 yen while it was about 8,000 yen before Abe's taking over power in last December.  In addition, the too strong yen, one of major causes of deflation in Japan, has been corrected to be 100 yen per US dollar though it was about 85 yen per US dollar before.

On the other hand, the major opposition party DPJ was in power when the 3/11 Tsunami occured in Japan, and then prime minister Mr. Kan was responsible for expansion of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident that ensued from the tsunami.  Mr. Kan, still a Lower-House member, is facing various criticism posed even by other DPJ members, since he supported a candidate in this election who was not authorized by incumbent DPJ leaders.  Mr. Kan has lost confidence both inside and outside the DPJ, a liberal party supported by labor unions.

So, the election result looks reasonable.

Incidentally, Prime Minister Mr. Abe is a very conservative, anti-liberal, and pro-American politician who was also prime minister once between 2006 and 2007.



Nonetheless it is not likely that PM Mr. Abe can succeed in changing the Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution which forbids the government starting war with other country and hence government's building up of full-scale military capability including forces needed in war overseas.

To change any part of the present pacifist Constitution, ruling parties need a two-thirds majority in both the Houses of the National Diet in addition to a majority of support from the people who vote for this issue.



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


Gen 7:22 All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died.
Gen 7:23 And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark.
Gen 7:24 And the waters prevailed upon the earth an hundred and fifty days.

"Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name?"

Tsunami Warning Sign on the Sagami Bay Beach 80 Km Southwest of Tokyo












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


Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

"I have done one work, and ye all marve"

Notice Sent by Mail to a Voter (a Citizen) for Upper House Election of Japan, a Numbered Ticket for Entrance to Voting Place Inside





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



Joh 7:21 Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye all marvel.

"sent them to Jesus"

Inside the Tokyo Station










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






Luk 7:19 And John calling unto him two of his disciples sent them to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?
Luk 7:20 When the men were come unto him, they said, John Baptist hath sent us unto thee, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?
Luk 7:21 And in that same hour he cured many of their infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits; and unto many that were blind he gave sight.
Luk 7:22 Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached.
Luk 7:23 And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.

"A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit" - Active Fault in 400,000 Years

Tokyo Streets

Active Fault in 400,000 Years

Active faults under buildings of nuclear power plants are now a focus for Japanese nuclear power plant operators.

Utilities now plan to restart nuclear electricity generation plants, filing requests to the regulating office in charge.  But some of those plants are judged or suspected of having active faults which can trigger an earthquake in the worst case.

The regulating authority is very cautious in ruling that those plants do not have active faults under buildings housing nuclear reactors.  According to law, such plants are not allowed to operate.

It is very difficult to find that any feature of the ground indicates existence of an active fault or an identified fault is active, meaning that it triggered an earthquake in these 400,000 years.  The Japanese regulation concerned specifies that a utility company should check whether or not an identified fault moved in these 400,000 years.  (Academically it is not strictly defined how many years should be taken into account for the period of a fault being still or at a pause when judging it to be active.)

This is one of the most difficult conditions for an operator of a nuclear power plat to meet.  But the regulating authority plans to review applications utility companies have submitted for permission of restart of their nuclear power plants taking six months or so.  So, at the earliest, it will be at the end of this year that any suspended nuclear reactors in Japan will start their operation again.

Now the number of nuclear reactors applied for the official review is 10 while they belong to five different nuclear power plants all over Japan (there are about 50 reactors in Japan).



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



Mat 7:18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.

"the people grew and multiplied in Egypt" - Contribution to the UN Budget

Tokyo Railroad Lines

Contribution to the UN Budget

How much each major country contributed to the budget of the United Nations in 2012 is as follows:

COUNTRY          CONTRIBUTION
-----------------------------------------------
No.1  US            $569 Million

No.2  JAPAN      $296 Million

No.3  Germany    $190 Million

No.4  UK            $156 Million

No.5  France      $145 Million

No.6  Italy          $118 Million

No.7  Canada      $76 Million      

No.8  China        $75 Million

No.9  Spain        $75 Million

No.10  Mexico    $56 Million


Japan has been the second largest contributor to the United Nations in these decades.  But it is said that the Obama Administration is going to set up a G2 regime with China to govern the world.  How stupid and crazy Obama is!  China is not a savior but a problem of the world itself.

China is still a recipient of ODA.

Japan provided about $42 million for China as ODA in 2012.　




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


Act 7:15 So Jacob went down into Egypt, and died, he, and our fathers,
Act 7:16 And were carried over into Sychem, and laid in the sepulchre that Abraham bought for a sum of money of the sons of Emmor the father of Sychem.
Act 7:17 But when the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt,
Act 7:18 Till another king arose, which knew not Joseph.
Act 7:19 The same dealt subtilly with our kindred, and evil entreated our fathers, so that they cast out their young children, to the end they might not live.
Act 7:20 In which time Moses was born, and was exceeding fair, and nourished up in his father's house three months:
Act 7:21 And when he was cast out, Pharaoh's daughter took him up, and nourished him for her own son.
Act 7:22 And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds.

"know them by their fruits"

Sho-Nan Shore, around Tokyo Area






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


Mat 7:15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
Mat 7:16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
Mat 7:17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

"those are they that defile the man" - The First Japanese Female Medical Doctor

On the Pacific Ocean, Japan

The　First  Japanese Female Medical Doctor

In the last period of the samurai era of Japan, specifically in 1851, Ginko Ogino was born in Kumagaya, 60 km north of Tokyo.

In 1868 she married a rich farmer but got divorced two years later for infection of a sexual disease her husband transmitted to her.  As she was hospitalized in a Tokyo hospital, she found that there were only male medical doctors even for gynecologic care.  So, she was very much embarrassed. Accordingly she thought there must be definitely female medical doctors, though there were none in Japan at the time.

Ogino, however, tarted to study in the Tokyo Female Teachers' School as the school was the only high-education facility for women at the time.  Then she went on learning in a private medical school in Tokyo.  After graduation, she submitted a petition for medical practice to the Tokyo Prefecture office.  But it was rejected as she was a woman.  Almost every year her petition was rejected, but in 1885, women were allowed to take the test for license of medical practice; so she took it to pass it as the only woman to obtain a medical license.            

In 1885 she established her clinic in Tokyo, which was very much welcomed by many women, though it was 15 years after she decided to become a medical doctor.  She was 34 years old then.  Newspapers focused on her, making her famous as the first female medical doctor in Japan.

She became Christian next year, and  four years later she married again a Christian man.  Then two years later, the couple moved to Hokkaido, a northern developing region of Japan.  They wanted to cultivate frontier villages in Hokkaido.  But her husband died 13 years later.  After having spent two more years in Hokkaido, she eventually returned to Tokyo.

Then in 1913 she died of arterial stiffening.

Today there are about 45,000 female medical doctors in Japan, accounting for about 17% of all.


(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogino_Ginko)


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

Mar 7:15 There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.

"Jesus went up into the temple, and taught"

Sagami Bay, Near Tokyo






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


Joh 7:12 And there was much murmuring among the people concerning him: for some said, He is a good man: others said, Nay; but he deceiveth the people.
Joh 7:13 Howbeit no man spake openly of him for fear of the Jews.
Joh 7:14 Now about the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and taught.
Joh 7:15 And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?
Joh 7:16 Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.
Joh 7:17 If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.
Joh 7:18 He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him.

"Making the word of God of none effect"

The Sumida River, Tokyo






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

Mar 7:11 But ye say, If a man shall say to his father or mother, It is Corban, that is to say, a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; he shall be free.
Mar 7:12 And ye suffer him no more to do ought for his father or his mother;
Mar 7:13 Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.
Mar 7:14 And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand:

"good gifts unto your children"

The Rainbow Bridge, Tokyo Bay







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


Mat 7:10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?
Mat 7:11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

"will he give him a stone?"

Tokyo Bay







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


Mat 7:6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
Mat 7:7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
Mat 7:8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
Mat 7:9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?

"that creepeth upon the earth" - Mt. Fuji Radar

The Tokyo Tower (333 meters high)

Mt. Fuji Radar

A young man in his early 20s reached the summit of Mt. Fuji riding on bulldozers 49 years ago.

His uncle ran a construction company in charge of installing a weather radar in a meteorological observatory built at the top of the highest mountain in Japan (3,376 metes).

So, the young man was allowed to get on a bulldozer carrying material for the construction.   It was a big bulldozer when they started from the foot of Mt. Fuji.  But at some point on the ridge, they changed it to a smaller bulldozer.  The slope became so acute that the young man found that a half of the body of the special vehicle was hanging from a narrow path to a deep and sharp precipice.  He could barely enjoy the mountain view.

It took seven hours for them to reach a construction site on the mountain peak.  The young man payed homage at a shrine built there (Mt. Fuji is a holy mountain for shintoism) and looked on the meteorological observatory.  He also checked remaining snow.

In descending Mt. Fuji, he used his feet, almost running down the steep ramp.  In 90 minutes, he reached a gentle slope.  But he got altitude illness to be down in a party of his uncle's company.

The radar on the top of Mt. Fuji had been used till 1999.  It was the weather radar installed at the highest altitude in the world when it was set.  In 2000, it was registered in the list of IEEE Milestones which record break-through events in the electric and electronic fields.

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


Gen 7:6 And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth.
Gen 7:7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood.
Gen 7:8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth,
Gen 7:9 There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah.

"God, that comforteth those that are cast down"

National Assembly Bldg., Tokyo








***  *** *** ***


2Co 7:5 For, when we were come into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side; without were fightings, within were fears.
2Co 7:6 Nevertheless God, that comforteth those that are cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus;
2Co 7:7 And not by his coming only, but by the consolation wherewith he was comforted in you, when he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your fervent mind toward me; so that I rejoiced the more.

"an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes" - Japanese Upper House Election

View from Tokyo Tower (National Diet Bldg. in the Middle)

Japanese Upper House Election

The Upper House Election of the Japanese National Diet (parliament) finally started.

The official election campaign period will be ended on July 20; voting on July 21 Sunday.

It is expected that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will overwhelmingly win.  His LDP party and its coalition Komeito Party will secure a majority in both the Houses.

It should be noted that the LDP was not in power when the great tsunami hit Japan in March 2011.  It was the liberal DPJ that was in charge of national administration of Japan when the M9.0 earthquake occurred and subsequently the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was attacked by 15-meter tsunamis to lose its function and suffer melt down of nuclear fuel.

A regime change from the DPJ Cabinet to the LDP Cabinet was realized in the general election held last December.  Voters found that socialistic DPJ politicians were not capable of handling this great scale of disaster.  So they voted for the conservative and capitalist LDP with hope that  LDP politicians would more professionally fix the situations and address the great problems caused the big disaster of a scale which could be only observed once in a thousand years.

This election is the first in Japan where the Internet use in campaigns is officially authorized.

PM Mr. Abe is actively using the Internet to boost a social mood in favor of the so-called Abenomics (meaning huge buying of government bonds by the Bank of Japan).        

Howeveｒ, the LDP seems to be more concerned with TV.  The ruling party LDP claimed that a certain TV station in Tokyo was biased and significantly anti-LDP, pointing at a certain news program in their complaint.  Maybe their president Mr. Abe might not like some commentator engaged in the program.

Anyway one thing and another, a summer drama in Japan is going on with many dreams flying around like fireflies.

The Upper House consists of 242 seats half of which are reelected in every three years.

To make sure, I am not a member of the House.



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Rev 7:4 And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.
Rev 7:5 Of the tribe of Juda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand.
Rev 7:6 Of the tribe of Aser were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nephthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand.
Rev 7:7 Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand.
Rev 7:8 Of the tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand.
Rev 7:9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

"out of thy country, and from thy kindred"

A Shinto Shrine Situated around Tokyo









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Act 7:1 Then said the high priest, Are these things so?
Act 7:2 And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran,
Act 7:3 And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall shew thee.
Act 7:4 Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans, and dwelt in Charran: and from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell.

"with unwashen, hands, they found fault" - Istanbul for 2020

The Tokyo Railroad Station

 Istanbul for 2020

If Istanbul is slated to hold the 2020 Olympic Games, Muslims in the Middle East and North Africa should be encouraged to pursue peace and prosperity.

But there is one big rival city Tokyo.

Tokyo held the summer Olympics in 1964.  Then two other Asia cities followed Tokyo to show their economic and political success: Seoul in 1988 and Beijing in 2008.

So, once in 20 years the summer Olympics has been held in East Asia.  Therefore, Tokyo or other Japanese city, such as Hiroshima City or Fukushima City, may be allowed to hold the Olympics in 2024.

At present, Tokyo is not suitable for holding Olympic Games, because the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident is not yet completely fixed; Tokyo can be hit at any moment by a great in-land earthquake without full counter-measures being taken; Mt. Fuji 100 km from Tokyo can erupt at any moment without full counter-measures being taken; and Japan is now engaged in a very difficult task of getting rid of 15-year long deflation, a very unique economic phenomenon only seen in Japan among advanced countries.  
    
So, Tokyo must avoid hosting the Olympic Games in 2020.

Istanbul should be the first Olympics host nation in the Islamic world.  Though Turkey is not yet admitted to the EU membership, it must be allowed to host Olympics.



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Mar 7:1 Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem.
Mar 7:2 And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen, hands, they found fault.
Mar 7:3 For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not, holding the tradition of the elders.
Mar 7:4 And when they come from the market, except they wash, they eat not. And many other things there be, which they have received to hold, as the washing of cups, and pots, brasen vessels, and of tables.
Mar 7:5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands?
Mar 7:6 He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.
Mar 7:7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
Mar 7:8 For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.
Mar 7:9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

"he entered into Capernaum"

Tokyo






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Luk 7:1 Now when he had ended all his sayings in the audience of the people, he entered into Capernaum.
Luk 7:2 And a certain centurion's servant, who was dear unto him, was sick, and ready to die.
Luk 7:3 And when he heard of Jesus, he sent unto him the elders of the Jews, beseeching him that he would come and heal his servant.
Luk 7:4 And when they came to Jesus, they besought him instantly, saying, That he was worthy for whom he should do this:
Luk 7:5 For he loveth our nation, and he hath built us a synagogue.
Luk 7:6 Then Jesus went with them. And when he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying unto him, Lord, trouble not thyself: for I am not worthy that thou shouldest enter under my roof:
Luk 7:7 Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee: but say in a word, and my servant shall be healed.
Luk 7:8 For I also am a man set under authority, having under me soldiers, and I say unto one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.
Luk 7:9 When Jesus heard these things, he marvelled at him, and turned him about, and said unto the people that followed him, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.