I believe prejudice cannot be defeated entirely; but it can be fought with fearless courage and stamina, and with a "Great Soul."I spend as little intellectual and emotional energy as possible on lunatic fringe movements and other idiocies. Instead, I travel all over Japan to give lectures in Japanese on antiracism, nonviolence and peace. To my great surprise, I receive a lot of encouragement from many intelligent and compassionate Japanese educators, government officials (mayors, city councilors, lawyers ...) and journalists.
I have been on many radio and TV shows here in Kyushu to promote multiculturalism. Elementary schools, junior high schools, high schools, universities, community centers, and institutions of all sorts request my lecture every week. Can anyone stop me from promoting multiculturalism and other important universal values here in Japan? I do not think so.
When I think of India, I recall that it is the birthplace of Buddha, and, at the same time, the name Mahatma Gandhi also comes to mind. They are both equally familiar to me. Shakyamuni, who is known as the Buddha of compassion, seems to have been an exceptionally bright man who treated all ethnic groups equally. Mahatma, "the Great Soul," was a "warrior" who dedicated most of his nearly eighty-year life to the welfare of all human beings. He fought against injustice in South Africa and India.
Although Gandhi never resorted to weapons -- more precisely, because he never took up weapons -- he was a "soldier" who fought the battle for truth. No adversity or obstacle ever caused his faith to waver or drove him into despair. Gandhi's movement, which was called "nonviolence," continued without pause until he was shot to death by a Hindu fanatic.By all non-violent means, I'll fight till the end. I bet my life on what I am doing; and together with all warm-hearted brothers and sisters all over the globe: "We shall overcome!" (Martin Luther King, Jr.)
Sunday, August 06, 2006
Speaking Up Against Rabid Racism in Japan
I once opened up a Japanese newspaper to read the top story about the Japanese government possibly letting "foreigners apply for chief posts." I was upset because I knew damn well that they weren't talking about me (an African-Canadian and permanent resident of Japan). They were talking about my buddy, "Lee," who was born and raised in Japan, attended a Japanese school, speaks, reads and writes fluent Japanese, obeys Japanese laws, cheers for Japanese athletes, laughs at Japanese jokes and pays Japanese taxes. My first reaction was to ask the journalist who wrote the article and all Japanese lawmakers: "Exactly what's so 'foreign' about Lee?"
All dictionaries define a foreigner as a "person from a foreign country." Lee is definitely not from a foreign country, but from Japan. Sure, his parents came here from Korea at the ages of 4 and 5, so technically one could argue his ancestry is Korean. But for that matter, all Japanese-Americans, Japanese-Canadians, Japanese-Peruvians, Japanese-Brazilians etc. were originally from Japan? Does that make them all "foreigners" in their respective country of birth? Nationality should be defined by whichever nation one has the strongest ties to, not by "Hitleresque" racial theories.
However, I don't believe that finding the perfect word will solve the problem. Nor is the media directly responsible for the racism and xenophobia of the Japanese government, that persistently maintains a system under which people who fulfill every internationally-accepted qualification for citizenship are denied it. It should be an international outrage that this exists, but it's not. After all, Japan is a "liberal democracy" (not a totalitarian and reclusive nation like the Republic of North Korea that the Japanese media, lawmakers and ordinary citizens ferociously criticize on a daily basis), and it could be worse.
The "hawkish" led by Koizumi, Abe and Ishihara could soon be persecuting ethnic Koreans, Chinese and other minorities.This nonsense is an example of the primitive logic, xenophobia and racism which is well-documented in all primate societies and are probably encoded genetically in all of us. The farther back one looks into human history, the stronger becomes the evidence of the fear of the foreign "barbarians."
My question to racist Japanese lawmakers is this: Are you proud of behaving like a bunch of stubborn primitives? Of course, Japan as a nation has many things to be very proud of. This, to put it mildly, is not one of them.
A nation in which people are lawfully discriminated against by ethnicity or family origin, which infringes a primordial human right (Japanese nationality to all the children born in Japan regardless of their parents' nationality), can never be considered a true member of the international community. The failure of Japanese voters and their representatives to solve this problem is debasing human dignity. The issue begs the question of whether Japan is capable of being a society of coexistence.
All dictionaries define a foreigner as a "person from a foreign country." Lee is definitely not from a foreign country, but from Japan. Sure, his parents came here from Korea at the ages of 4 and 5, so technically one could argue his ancestry is Korean. But for that matter, all Japanese-Americans, Japanese-Canadians, Japanese-Peruvians, Japanese-Brazilians etc. were originally from Japan? Does that make them all "foreigners" in their respective country of birth? Nationality should be defined by whichever nation one has the strongest ties to, not by "Hitleresque" racial theories.
However, I don't believe that finding the perfect word will solve the problem. Nor is the media directly responsible for the racism and xenophobia of the Japanese government, that persistently maintains a system under which people who fulfill every internationally-accepted qualification for citizenship are denied it. It should be an international outrage that this exists, but it's not. After all, Japan is a "liberal democracy" (not a totalitarian and reclusive nation like the Republic of North Korea that the Japanese media, lawmakers and ordinary citizens ferociously criticize on a daily basis), and it could be worse.
The "hawkish" led by Koizumi, Abe and Ishihara could soon be persecuting ethnic Koreans, Chinese and other minorities.This nonsense is an example of the primitive logic, xenophobia and racism which is well-documented in all primate societies and are probably encoded genetically in all of us. The farther back one looks into human history, the stronger becomes the evidence of the fear of the foreign "barbarians."
My question to racist Japanese lawmakers is this: Are you proud of behaving like a bunch of stubborn primitives? Of course, Japan as a nation has many things to be very proud of. This, to put it mildly, is not one of them.
A nation in which people are lawfully discriminated against by ethnicity or family origin, which infringes a primordial human right (Japanese nationality to all the children born in Japan regardless of their parents' nationality), can never be considered a true member of the international community. The failure of Japanese voters and their representatives to solve this problem is debasing human dignity. The issue begs the question of whether Japan is capable of being a society of coexistence.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
When Japanese are "Gaijin" (Foreigners)
A sense of separateness is not easy to measure. Most people have no idea how their own feelings would compare with those of other peoples. Nationalism runs rampant throughout the world. Unconscious racial and cultural arrogance and disdain for others is pronounced in many nations around the world. But I think the Japanese sense of distinctiveness -- is itself very distinctive.
The strength of the Japanese feeling of separateness becomes more clear-cut when one considers Japanese attitudes toward other peoples. Japanese seem to have a sharp awareness at all times of themselves as being "Japanese" and of others as being first of all "not Japanese."
Again such attitudes are hard to measure, but I believe the Japanese seem to feel them more strongly than do other peoples -- except for persecuted minorities or simple tribal peoples. The first answer of a Japanese to the question "Who are you?" is likely to be "A Japanese."
Any person who goes abroad is probably surprised at the strength of his or her own nationalistic feelings, but most Japanese are less able than most others to lose consciousness of their national origins even momentarily and are more likely to see themselves always, not just as representing themselves, but as someone being exemplars of the whole Japanese nation. A Japanese who distinguishes himself in the world is much less likely to think of himself or be thought of by his friends, acquaintances and fellow citizens as "little Ichiro" who made good, but as a "Japanese" who became famous.
The uncanny inability of the Japanese to place themselves in a foreigner's shoes is very strange. I have had a weird experience with a Japanese tourist in Canada (my home country), one which stands out in memory. About 8 years ago, I was in Vancouver visiting my old friends who, when seeing some Japanese tourists nearby, asked me to exhibit my newly acquired language ability and speak in Japanese. I soon chose a Japanese man and his high school-aged son, and approached them with a typical tourist question: "Can you recommend some good restaurants around here?"
The father looked at me caustically, perhaps shocked that I could speak "his language," then replied that he could not recommend any since he, too, was a "stranger" there.
"Stranger?" I said. "You mean you're a 'gaijin' (foreigner) here."
"No," he emphatically replied. "I am Japanese, not a 'gaijin' (foreigner). You are the one is a 'gaijin' (foreigner)."
However, unable to understand the fantastically ludicrous nuance of this dialogue, my friends were duly impressed that I had merited such an emotional response.
Ishihara, Koizumi, Abe, Aso, and most other Japanese I might venture to say, might have responded in the same way as the man did. Not until the Japanese can see themselves as "gaijin" (foreigners) in distant lands, as we all are, will their everwhelming desire to be internationalized be realized.
The strength of the Japanese feeling of separateness becomes more clear-cut when one considers Japanese attitudes toward other peoples. Japanese seem to have a sharp awareness at all times of themselves as being "Japanese" and of others as being first of all "not Japanese."
Again such attitudes are hard to measure, but I believe the Japanese seem to feel them more strongly than do other peoples -- except for persecuted minorities or simple tribal peoples. The first answer of a Japanese to the question "Who are you?" is likely to be "A Japanese."
Any person who goes abroad is probably surprised at the strength of his or her own nationalistic feelings, but most Japanese are less able than most others to lose consciousness of their national origins even momentarily and are more likely to see themselves always, not just as representing themselves, but as someone being exemplars of the whole Japanese nation. A Japanese who distinguishes himself in the world is much less likely to think of himself or be thought of by his friends, acquaintances and fellow citizens as "little Ichiro" who made good, but as a "Japanese" who became famous.
The uncanny inability of the Japanese to place themselves in a foreigner's shoes is very strange. I have had a weird experience with a Japanese tourist in Canada (my home country), one which stands out in memory. About 8 years ago, I was in Vancouver visiting my old friends who, when seeing some Japanese tourists nearby, asked me to exhibit my newly acquired language ability and speak in Japanese. I soon chose a Japanese man and his high school-aged son, and approached them with a typical tourist question: "Can you recommend some good restaurants around here?"
The father looked at me caustically, perhaps shocked that I could speak "his language," then replied that he could not recommend any since he, too, was a "stranger" there.
"Stranger?" I said. "You mean you're a 'gaijin' (foreigner) here."
"No," he emphatically replied. "I am Japanese, not a 'gaijin' (foreigner). You are the one is a 'gaijin' (foreigner)."
However, unable to understand the fantastically ludicrous nuance of this dialogue, my friends were duly impressed that I had merited such an emotional response.
Ishihara, Koizumi, Abe, Aso, and most other Japanese I might venture to say, might have responded in the same way as the man did. Not until the Japanese can see themselves as "gaijin" (foreigners) in distant lands, as we all are, will their everwhelming desire to be internationalized be realized.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Fixing Japanese Education not Impossible
The Japanese education system is in horrendous condition. My children attend a Japanese public school. I talk to many parents and teachers. I also have 5 years experience as an inspirational speaker, and I have given more than 150 lectures to teachers, students and parents all over Japan. I have exchanged ideas on education, bullying, suicide, violence in the school and juvenile crime with more than 500 educators.
Even though the situation has rapidly worsened, the education authorities have shown a lack of will or wisdom, or both, to do what is necessary to fix the system. I believe a few matters should be considered:
- Students feel very put upon. They have an education system forced upon them in which the have no choice of courses and no input. In addition, they are taught what to think, but not how to think for themselves.
- Generally, teachers are insensitive to students and the struggles they face. They often neither teach nor nurture. The system is not designed to do that.
- The authorities, starting at the top, allow no effective means to punish students -- not even denial of club activities. Teachers are not taught in college how to deal with problem students, and many principals are afraid to take a stand for fear of losing their jobs.
- Parents, unable to nurture or discipline their children, demand that teachers do something that the parents themselves cannot do. Many teachers eventually pull into their shells and try to protect themselves. Children now have equal rights with parents and teachers, and in confrontations, it is usually the child who wins.
- Children have not been taught -- neither in the home nor at school -- moral direction. The message of the day is "We make our own rules," and I have heard students say this many times.
- Some principals have complained to me that it is impossible to teach morals and ethics apart from religion, in which these beliefs are rooted. The Japanese education system is founded upon Humanism, a nontheistic religion that lacks moral absolutes necessary for moral development.
The solution to this problem will not be easy, but it is also not impossible. We need to make the effort, pay the price and work to fix the system. We can do it!
Even though the situation has rapidly worsened, the education authorities have shown a lack of will or wisdom, or both, to do what is necessary to fix the system. I believe a few matters should be considered:
- Students feel very put upon. They have an education system forced upon them in which the have no choice of courses and no input. In addition, they are taught what to think, but not how to think for themselves.
- Generally, teachers are insensitive to students and the struggles they face. They often neither teach nor nurture. The system is not designed to do that.
- The authorities, starting at the top, allow no effective means to punish students -- not even denial of club activities. Teachers are not taught in college how to deal with problem students, and many principals are afraid to take a stand for fear of losing their jobs.
- Parents, unable to nurture or discipline their children, demand that teachers do something that the parents themselves cannot do. Many teachers eventually pull into their shells and try to protect themselves. Children now have equal rights with parents and teachers, and in confrontations, it is usually the child who wins.
- Children have not been taught -- neither in the home nor at school -- moral direction. The message of the day is "We make our own rules," and I have heard students say this many times.
- Some principals have complained to me that it is impossible to teach morals and ethics apart from religion, in which these beliefs are rooted. The Japanese education system is founded upon Humanism, a nontheistic religion that lacks moral absolutes necessary for moral development.
The solution to this problem will not be easy, but it is also not impossible. We need to make the effort, pay the price and work to fix the system. We can do it!
Saturday, June 24, 2006
Speaking Up Against Antiquated Sexism in Japan
It is not uncommon for me to feel disgust at the way women are treated in this country. I am often amazed not only at how men treat women, but also at how women treat women and how children view women. I am appalled and shocked by women’s subordinate position in Japanese society.
I am well aware that in other “advanced” nations too, there are a handful of problems between the sexes, from domestic violence to child pornography. However, of all affluent nations I have lived in or visited, I have never come across such a display of ignorance and discrimination against women as in Japan—a so-called “advanced” society and a member of the Group of Eight industrialized nations.
The other day, while teaching an English conversational class to a group of junior high students. I caught a glimpse of a pencil case. On it was the brand name “BITCH.” Drawn in stick figures on the pencil case was a man pointing a gun to a woman’s head. I immediately asked my student if she thought this was OK. She passed the buck, stating it was her sister’s.
“How can this be possible?” I thought. Then I was magically struck with the realization that I am in Japan. I am in a country that constantly reminds me that the only reason women were put on this earth was to be at the beck and call of men. Articles in magazines point out that in Japan, men have the money and power, while women serve sex and are only allowed to say “So desu ne…!” (Well…!)
There are many “sick” sex ads everywhere. Junk mail promoting juvenile prostitution are sent to e-mail boxes every day, and many Japanese men (educators, government officials, doctors and lawmakers) jump on the opportunity to buy sex. Under-18 pornographic magazines are in book stores where children can easily see them. Very weird adult videos are in video shops where young people can easily purchase them. What is worse is that many Japanese voters, especially parents and educators, don’t complain about these things to their representatives—they are not even considered problems.
Whenever I ask Japanese women about sexual harassment or why many women in Japan allow men to treat them as “sex objects,” most of them have no answer: they just giggle. A Japanese acquaintance told me she has often seen “decent-looking” guys touching women buttocks in crowded trains, but surprisingly the victims do not complain or react at all. She also told me she is extremely tired of sitting in subways next to, or near men openly gazing at pictures of nude women, reading manga that often includes violent rape, then being stared at from head to foot by these same men.
In the past, Japanese men forced a tremendous number of women to become sex slaves; today, Japanese men gaze hungrily on the subways at pornography. Video rental shops and television senders provide not only lust on film, but worse, violent and aggressive sex toward women; and finally, groups of Japanese men (including educators, diplomats, government officials and even lawmakers), who are married, proudly carry their prostitute guidebooks and parade through Thailand hoping for sex, while their wives and kids stay at home.
Even if not all Japanese men purchase pornographic materials or sex guides, I am unpleasantly shocked that this society continues to condone or at least passively observe as men continue the ancient tradition of classifying women as objects rather than human beings. In Canada, the nation of which I am a citizen, we have a bit of these problems, but Canadians stand up against them. Women, especially, are united in trying to stop sexploitation and sexual inequality.
Acknowledging that there are differences between women and men, they do not determine the superiority of one group over the other. Japanese women must fight for their reputation, rights and dignity. They need to take care of their own children to protect them from the negative influences of this “filthy” society so that they can earn respect and better circumstances. Many Japanese men do not care, as they have treated women like “sex toys” for centuries.
I am well aware that in other “advanced” nations too, there are a handful of problems between the sexes, from domestic violence to child pornography. However, of all affluent nations I have lived in or visited, I have never come across such a display of ignorance and discrimination against women as in Japan—a so-called “advanced” society and a member of the Group of Eight industrialized nations.
The other day, while teaching an English conversational class to a group of junior high students. I caught a glimpse of a pencil case. On it was the brand name “BITCH.” Drawn in stick figures on the pencil case was a man pointing a gun to a woman’s head. I immediately asked my student if she thought this was OK. She passed the buck, stating it was her sister’s.
“How can this be possible?” I thought. Then I was magically struck with the realization that I am in Japan. I am in a country that constantly reminds me that the only reason women were put on this earth was to be at the beck and call of men. Articles in magazines point out that in Japan, men have the money and power, while women serve sex and are only allowed to say “So desu ne…!” (Well…!)
There are many “sick” sex ads everywhere. Junk mail promoting juvenile prostitution are sent to e-mail boxes every day, and many Japanese men (educators, government officials, doctors and lawmakers) jump on the opportunity to buy sex. Under-18 pornographic magazines are in book stores where children can easily see them. Very weird adult videos are in video shops where young people can easily purchase them. What is worse is that many Japanese voters, especially parents and educators, don’t complain about these things to their representatives—they are not even considered problems.
Whenever I ask Japanese women about sexual harassment or why many women in Japan allow men to treat them as “sex objects,” most of them have no answer: they just giggle. A Japanese acquaintance told me she has often seen “decent-looking” guys touching women buttocks in crowded trains, but surprisingly the victims do not complain or react at all. She also told me she is extremely tired of sitting in subways next to, or near men openly gazing at pictures of nude women, reading manga that often includes violent rape, then being stared at from head to foot by these same men.
In the past, Japanese men forced a tremendous number of women to become sex slaves; today, Japanese men gaze hungrily on the subways at pornography. Video rental shops and television senders provide not only lust on film, but worse, violent and aggressive sex toward women; and finally, groups of Japanese men (including educators, diplomats, government officials and even lawmakers), who are married, proudly carry their prostitute guidebooks and parade through Thailand hoping for sex, while their wives and kids stay at home.
Even if not all Japanese men purchase pornographic materials or sex guides, I am unpleasantly shocked that this society continues to condone or at least passively observe as men continue the ancient tradition of classifying women as objects rather than human beings. In Canada, the nation of which I am a citizen, we have a bit of these problems, but Canadians stand up against them. Women, especially, are united in trying to stop sexploitation and sexual inequality.
Acknowledging that there are differences between women and men, they do not determine the superiority of one group over the other. Japanese women must fight for their reputation, rights and dignity. They need to take care of their own children to protect them from the negative influences of this “filthy” society so that they can earn respect and better circumstances. Many Japanese men do not care, as they have treated women like “sex toys” for centuries.
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Marriages and Families for Thought
A revolution is going on in marriages and families. Psychologists and sociologists tell us that one of the overriding problems in our contemporary societies is the family--tensions within the family, leading to divorces and separations and uncertainties within the family. Magazines and newspapers are filled with articles titled "How to Hold Your Marriage Together," "Spice Up Your Sex Life to Prevent Divorce" and "How to Be Happy Though Married." We are beginning to assume that there are no good homes.
But I can assure you that in spite of all the statistics and all facts, there are today tens of thousands of happy marriages and homes in the world. And those homes are happy because spirituality is in the home; you cannot leave morals and spirituality out of your marriage and expect to be happy.I deeply believe almost all of the problems that our nations face begin in the home. Dishonesty is learned in the home, and honesty is learned in the home. Children hear their parents curse, and they learn to curse. Children hear, "I love you forever!" and they say, "I love you forever!" In my judgment a nation cannot rise higher than its home life. Bitterness, crime, alienation, even perversion, starts in the home.
I would like to express my opinion about three types of people in regard to marriage:
Married couples who are disillusioned
Firstly, some people have already experienced marriage -- the joys, the hardships. the sorrows, the boredoms and the frustrations of marriage. And they have become disillusioned; they haven't yet decided on divorce, but the marriage is shaky. They ask, "What ingredient is missing in my marriage? What's wrong? Marriage is not what I thought it was going to be. It's not the ideal that I thought it would be." How many people marry with stars in their eyes in June, and are disillusioned by Christmastime? He didn't know she looks like that without her hair combed; she didn't know he can't always get his "stuff" up at night, and he has bad breath when he gets up in the morning. People learn all types of things when they marry and start living together.
Married Couples Who Are Disconnected
Secondly, some people have been married for years -- two people just living under the same roof. They may have too much pride or too many external pressures to be divorced, or even admit that anything is wrong. The household becomes merely an accumulation of individuals who come together for room and board. They have become accustomed to that arrangement, and they have ceased asking questions about how to improve the condition. They are to be commended for keeping the home together rather than seeking escape through divorce, but they still have that fragile feeling about marriage. The marriage is not the perfect ideal that they thought it would be, but they are sticking together for other reasons.
Married Couples Who Are Happy
Thirdly, some people have happy marriages. What makes up a happy marriage, a happy home? We could set up guidelines that say a happy home is one where they husband and wife help each other, or they have a great "sex life", or the children attend good schools, or they are engaged in charitable causes, or they fit into the accepted social life of the community... But I personally believe a great marriage is a spiritual commitment, not a contract. It means that you are committed to each other for your lifetime. You truly love, respect and support each other forever.
Some people today sign a prenuptial contract. Before they marry, they sign a contract that says something like, "We must have sex at least 3 times a week; if we divorce, you get this and I get that..." But commitment means that we give in faith. We entrust everything to the other person. And if we are blessed with children, the family relationship is a three-way commitment. Each member of the family cherishes important universal values such as love, compassion, respect for life and spirituality.
I deeply believe marriage is a spiritual commitment to each other; it's for life. Marriage is a complement: it is the spiritual blending of two personalities. Because of selfishness, alienation, pride and perversion, sometimes, they don't mix.
But I can assure you that in spite of all the statistics and all facts, there are today tens of thousands of happy marriages and homes in the world. And those homes are happy because spirituality is in the home; you cannot leave morals and spirituality out of your marriage and expect to be happy.I deeply believe almost all of the problems that our nations face begin in the home. Dishonesty is learned in the home, and honesty is learned in the home. Children hear their parents curse, and they learn to curse. Children hear, "I love you forever!" and they say, "I love you forever!" In my judgment a nation cannot rise higher than its home life. Bitterness, crime, alienation, even perversion, starts in the home.
I would like to express my opinion about three types of people in regard to marriage:
Married couples who are disillusioned
Firstly, some people have already experienced marriage -- the joys, the hardships. the sorrows, the boredoms and the frustrations of marriage. And they have become disillusioned; they haven't yet decided on divorce, but the marriage is shaky. They ask, "What ingredient is missing in my marriage? What's wrong? Marriage is not what I thought it was going to be. It's not the ideal that I thought it would be." How many people marry with stars in their eyes in June, and are disillusioned by Christmastime? He didn't know she looks like that without her hair combed; she didn't know he can't always get his "stuff" up at night, and he has bad breath when he gets up in the morning. People learn all types of things when they marry and start living together.
Married Couples Who Are Disconnected
Secondly, some people have been married for years -- two people just living under the same roof. They may have too much pride or too many external pressures to be divorced, or even admit that anything is wrong. The household becomes merely an accumulation of individuals who come together for room and board. They have become accustomed to that arrangement, and they have ceased asking questions about how to improve the condition. They are to be commended for keeping the home together rather than seeking escape through divorce, but they still have that fragile feeling about marriage. The marriage is not the perfect ideal that they thought it would be, but they are sticking together for other reasons.
Married Couples Who Are Happy
Thirdly, some people have happy marriages. What makes up a happy marriage, a happy home? We could set up guidelines that say a happy home is one where they husband and wife help each other, or they have a great "sex life", or the children attend good schools, or they are engaged in charitable causes, or they fit into the accepted social life of the community... But I personally believe a great marriage is a spiritual commitment, not a contract. It means that you are committed to each other for your lifetime. You truly love, respect and support each other forever.
Some people today sign a prenuptial contract. Before they marry, they sign a contract that says something like, "We must have sex at least 3 times a week; if we divorce, you get this and I get that..." But commitment means that we give in faith. We entrust everything to the other person. And if we are blessed with children, the family relationship is a three-way commitment. Each member of the family cherishes important universal values such as love, compassion, respect for life and spirituality.
I deeply believe marriage is a spiritual commitment to each other; it's for life. Marriage is a complement: it is the spiritual blending of two personalities. Because of selfishness, alienation, pride and perversion, sometimes, they don't mix.
How can we quarrel with each other or victimize one another?
I believe the nature of an animal is very simple and easy to grasp. In comparision, a human being's nature is like a bamboo forest that is extremely hard to penetrate.
Human relations are not easy to handle. Misunderstandings between husbands and wives, conflicts between couples and their in-laws, arguments between parents and children and so on are as old as human history, but they still remain very difficult to resolve. However, if even one person embraces the firm view of life that "Because of that, this exists" or in other words, "Because of that person, I can develop," then he or she need never experience pointless conflicts in human relations. The other party's good or bad points do not determine one's happiness or unhappiness.
In a case of a "sexually unsatisfied" wife, for example, her present existence is in relation to her husband, whatever sort of person he may be. One who realizes this point can turn everything, both good and bad, into an impetus for personal growth.
Of course I am well aware that this is easier said than done. I think, therefore, it is all the more vital that we foster a sense of community and coexistence based on the awareness that we are all inter-related.
We are all imperfect human beings who, through some mystic bond, were born to share the same limited life span on this Earth, a small green oasis in the vast universe. Then, how can we quarrel with each other or victimize one another?
I firmly believe that profound mutual compassion is what will change discord into harmony. People who are accusing me of preaching puritanism should try to read my essays in depth. My views do not focus on difference of faith, ethnicity, nationality, or religion. My views focus on important universal values ("true" love, equanimity, peace, nonviolence, anti-racism, morality, ethical behavior, character, wisdom, compassion, respect for life...) that are missing in our societies.
We have many countries in the world, but only one Earth. At night we have many stars above us, but only one sky. Faiths may differ, but I believe the pathway is one. Human beings may differ, but I believe the divinity in a person is one. Let's all get together and make the world a better place for all the future generations.
Human relations are not easy to handle. Misunderstandings between husbands and wives, conflicts between couples and their in-laws, arguments between parents and children and so on are as old as human history, but they still remain very difficult to resolve. However, if even one person embraces the firm view of life that "Because of that, this exists" or in other words, "Because of that person, I can develop," then he or she need never experience pointless conflicts in human relations. The other party's good or bad points do not determine one's happiness or unhappiness.
In a case of a "sexually unsatisfied" wife, for example, her present existence is in relation to her husband, whatever sort of person he may be. One who realizes this point can turn everything, both good and bad, into an impetus for personal growth.
Of course I am well aware that this is easier said than done. I think, therefore, it is all the more vital that we foster a sense of community and coexistence based on the awareness that we are all inter-related.
We are all imperfect human beings who, through some mystic bond, were born to share the same limited life span on this Earth, a small green oasis in the vast universe. Then, how can we quarrel with each other or victimize one another?
I firmly believe that profound mutual compassion is what will change discord into harmony. People who are accusing me of preaching puritanism should try to read my essays in depth. My views do not focus on difference of faith, ethnicity, nationality, or religion. My views focus on important universal values ("true" love, equanimity, peace, nonviolence, anti-racism, morality, ethical behavior, character, wisdom, compassion, respect for life...) that are missing in our societies.
We have many countries in the world, but only one Earth. At night we have many stars above us, but only one sky. Faiths may differ, but I believe the pathway is one. Human beings may differ, but I believe the divinity in a person is one. Let's all get together and make the world a better place for all the future generations.
Friday, June 02, 2006
Limiting immigrants: naked racism or blatant stupidity?
How can Japan, a nation which depends on foreign countries for its very survival succeed in closing doors to immigrants? Aso, Abe, Koizumi and "Kozumi children" must be kidding!
Even a "not-so-smart" layman can see that if Japan limited the number of immigrants to 3% or less, its future would surely be gloomy. If the Japanese are to maintain their relative position in the world or even avoid a substantial or perhaps catastrophic decline, there must be significant flow of foreign workers to Japan. There also must be a steady or even rapid growth in world trade, which itself is possible if there is continued world peace (especially in East Asia) and a marked improvement in the handling of international tensions and global problems.
If the Japanese refused to share their nation with others (especially the Chinese and Koreans), economical and political nationalism on the part of other nations (especially China and Korea) would not be surprising, and this could lead to increasingly restrictionist policies and trade wars. In these, Japan, because of its poor hand in natural resources and manpower (recently), would certainly be the loser.
To state the case in positive terms, Japan has as great an interest as any nation in the maintenance of world peace, the expansion of world trade, and the solution of the problems its own citizens face (the problems of aging society, low birthrate, labor shortage ...) Japan in its own interest needs to do better. Japan, with its great potentialities at the moment (various industries that need workers; many abandoned lands, houses, shops and schools that need to be revived, many universities and research centers that need "brains" from other nations ...), should be attempting to maximize its effort to the solution of these problems.
To do this, Japanese leaders and ordinary people would have to have a much stronger sense of mutual trust and cooperation between themselves and others. Without a greater sense of fellow feeling on the part of Japanese for other peoples and, perhaps more difficult, of other peoples for the Japanese, there may not be enough mutual trust and understanding to permit the solutions of these problems Japan faces.
The needs go much deeper than the enthusiasm for the United Nations and the formal "internationalization" (Let's study English, French, Korean, Chinese, Arabic, Swahili and all the languages in the world ...) that Japan have espoused. The Japanese must overcome their sense of separateness and, to put it bluntly, show a greater readiness to join the human race. They must really identify themselves with the rest of the world and feel a part of it.
Even a "not-so-smart" layman can see that if Japan limited the number of immigrants to 3% or less, its future would surely be gloomy. If the Japanese are to maintain their relative position in the world or even avoid a substantial or perhaps catastrophic decline, there must be significant flow of foreign workers to Japan. There also must be a steady or even rapid growth in world trade, which itself is possible if there is continued world peace (especially in East Asia) and a marked improvement in the handling of international tensions and global problems.
If the Japanese refused to share their nation with others (especially the Chinese and Koreans), economical and political nationalism on the part of other nations (especially China and Korea) would not be surprising, and this could lead to increasingly restrictionist policies and trade wars. In these, Japan, because of its poor hand in natural resources and manpower (recently), would certainly be the loser.
To state the case in positive terms, Japan has as great an interest as any nation in the maintenance of world peace, the expansion of world trade, and the solution of the problems its own citizens face (the problems of aging society, low birthrate, labor shortage ...) Japan in its own interest needs to do better. Japan, with its great potentialities at the moment (various industries that need workers; many abandoned lands, houses, shops and schools that need to be revived, many universities and research centers that need "brains" from other nations ...), should be attempting to maximize its effort to the solution of these problems.
To do this, Japanese leaders and ordinary people would have to have a much stronger sense of mutual trust and cooperation between themselves and others. Without a greater sense of fellow feeling on the part of Japanese for other peoples and, perhaps more difficult, of other peoples for the Japanese, there may not be enough mutual trust and understanding to permit the solutions of these problems Japan faces.
The needs go much deeper than the enthusiasm for the United Nations and the formal "internationalization" (Let's study English, French, Korean, Chinese, Arabic, Swahili and all the languages in the world ...) that Japan have espoused. The Japanese must overcome their sense of separateness and, to put it bluntly, show a greater readiness to join the human race. They must really identify themselves with the rest of the world and feel a part of it.
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Japanese Comedy and Televised Shamelessness
In any event, since ancient times laughter has contributed to the calming of people's minds, smoothing the course of human relations. Laughter sometimes becomes derisive and deplorable, revealing the vicious and inhumane tendencies, but I do not think that the essence of laughter exists in such humor. I think it is an exquisite expression of man’s spiritual richness and is also his good companion, enabling one to have flexibility of mind on any occasion. There is a great deal of meaning inherent in long-established adages such as “Good fortune comes to the door of people who laugh,”“Laughter is the best medicine,” etc.
In satirical French comedy of the seventeenth century ("Les Fourberies de Scapin", "Tartuffe","Le Bourgeois gentilhomme" etc. by Moliere) for example, a healthy sense of humor and a spirit of satire have long remained intact among the ordinary people in France and many other nations.
We should not be so shallow as to say that this type of culture among ordinary people was something which diverted their attention from the problems of their contemporary societies, such as poverty, social injustice, class distinction and oppression. In a much deeper sense, the people must have felt that without laughter today they could not welcome the bright hopes of tomorrow. This is a result of the hard-earned wisdom of the ordinary people in those days.
However I sense something very "sick" in contemporary Japanese comedy. I have not had many opportunities to watch comedy shows on TV lately, but as far as what I myself have observed and heard from people who often watch these shows, I cannot help but feel that the Japanese comedy of late have no healthy laughter.
Many comedians find their prey in old people, homeless people, poor people and people with physical or mental disabilities. They tease and ridicule people who are weak or different. Their verbal harassment is, on many occasions, directed against the physical appearances, ethnic origins and occupations of certain people, and so the term "sadistic comedy" is now often used. Far from the time-honored healthy satirical spirit which spontaneously invites people's laughter, recent Japanese comedy seems to me to devoid of feeling and so repugnant as to be of no value.
What I am worried about most, however, in addition to this negative tendency, is the almost total lack of sense of humor or satire toward the hierarchy, ruling classes or the government. Personally, I am afraid that this tendency reflects the political indifference and sense of helplessness prevailing among the Japanese.
Not only comedy shows, but most of shows on Japanese TV are "garbage." I know that television standards the world over are pretty low, but in Japan they are abysmal. Television in Japan persistently downgrades the sacred and celebrates the profanes. Television, the real "opium of the people," has become both a symptom and a cause of the malaise of apathy, materialism and triviality currently troubling society.
Unfortunately, the viewing public -- generally poor "brains" and poor critics -- accept it all, as if to say, "If it’s on TV, it must be OK." This is dangerous.
In satirical French comedy of the seventeenth century ("Les Fourberies de Scapin", "Tartuffe","Le Bourgeois gentilhomme" etc. by Moliere) for example, a healthy sense of humor and a spirit of satire have long remained intact among the ordinary people in France and many other nations.
We should not be so shallow as to say that this type of culture among ordinary people was something which diverted their attention from the problems of their contemporary societies, such as poverty, social injustice, class distinction and oppression. In a much deeper sense, the people must have felt that without laughter today they could not welcome the bright hopes of tomorrow. This is a result of the hard-earned wisdom of the ordinary people in those days.
However I sense something very "sick" in contemporary Japanese comedy. I have not had many opportunities to watch comedy shows on TV lately, but as far as what I myself have observed and heard from people who often watch these shows, I cannot help but feel that the Japanese comedy of late have no healthy laughter.
Many comedians find their prey in old people, homeless people, poor people and people with physical or mental disabilities. They tease and ridicule people who are weak or different. Their verbal harassment is, on many occasions, directed against the physical appearances, ethnic origins and occupations of certain people, and so the term "sadistic comedy" is now often used. Far from the time-honored healthy satirical spirit which spontaneously invites people's laughter, recent Japanese comedy seems to me to devoid of feeling and so repugnant as to be of no value.
What I am worried about most, however, in addition to this negative tendency, is the almost total lack of sense of humor or satire toward the hierarchy, ruling classes or the government. Personally, I am afraid that this tendency reflects the political indifference and sense of helplessness prevailing among the Japanese.
Not only comedy shows, but most of shows on Japanese TV are "garbage." I know that television standards the world over are pretty low, but in Japan they are abysmal. Television in Japan persistently downgrades the sacred and celebrates the profanes. Television, the real "opium of the people," has become both a symptom and a cause of the malaise of apathy, materialism and triviality currently troubling society.
Unfortunately, the viewing public -- generally poor "brains" and poor critics -- accept it all, as if to say, "If it’s on TV, it must be OK." This is dangerous.
Friday, May 26, 2006
A Recommendation to All the Japanese: "I think therefore I am." (Rene Descartes)
The entrance exam war appeared in Japan about the time Japanese postwar baby boomers, dubbed the "dankai" generation came on the scene.
Study for entrance exams is a matter of technique. Students simply develop a successful method to retain the required knowledge and regurgitate it for test. This pattern of "shallow" thinking is molded in just two generations. So, it can be argued that members of the "dankai" generation and the "post-dankai" generation like to deal with things they can immediately understand.
Consider the scene of a university entrance examination. After receiving the papers, the examinees scan the questions and quickly decide which can be easily solved and set about tackling them; but pass over questions that appear difficult.
This scenario raises the following questions:
-Has the tendency to give up when things appear difficult to understand taken root more deeply than the Japanese imagined?
-Can the Japanese not see this tendency reflected in the way social issues such as the lack nursing-care facilities, problems of aging society and low birthrate, problems of national pension systems and even child-rearing are dealt with?
-Don't the Japanese have a tendency to focus on the easy issues when considering the future, such as the best way to care for people and, at an extreme, issues relating to life science, philosophy and spirituality?
Having read many articles about poor nursing-care services, violence in schools, juvenile crimes, suicide and government scandals; I feel the gap between the so-called rational decision-making system and the reality of the Japanese complicated society has become too wide to be bridged. One reason for this gap, I think, is the Japanese lack of consideration for the inner world of people-something that cannot be instantly grasped through "shallow" thinking.
About eight years ago a youth asked a panel of Japanese intellectuals on a television show a question that shocked many: "Why must I not kill others?"
The "adults" could not give him a clear answer and journalists later put the question to many educators. The question begs a logical answer that does not leave the issue open to ambiguous rhetoric.
I believe it is a very callous question that only someone who lacks of humanity could ask. A person who has received "education of the heart"; based on love, compassion and respect for life, or what could be described as the weight of humanism on one's mind, would not ask this question.
To answer this question, I think we should consider why the majority of people do not kill others, despite being able to and, maybe, sometimes wishing to. From this perspective this is relatively safe society, because we don't see dismembered bodies on the road despite the huge population. Also, people in the Japanese society do not live in constant fear of dying-despite the certain knowledge we will all die one day. Although the number of suicides is on the rise, most of people do not kill themselves.This opinion should lead us to recognize the efforts deep-thinkers have made to accumulate wisdom and ethics over many years. The accumulation of wisdom and ethics will almost certainly lead us to insight about the essence of logic-defying human nature, and reveal how our lives are touched by the consideration and efforts of others.
We should always ponder the wisdom and ethics we inherit. Simple questions can never lead to such deep thoughts. Humans should place importance on things that cannot be understood rather than those that can be easily understood. In that context, politics, sociology, philosophy and child-rearing, among numerous human activities, are struggles to seek answers that cannot be easily found. They are issues not easily understood but deserving of thoughtful consideration.
Study for entrance exams is a matter of technique. Students simply develop a successful method to retain the required knowledge and regurgitate it for test. This pattern of "shallow" thinking is molded in just two generations. So, it can be argued that members of the "dankai" generation and the "post-dankai" generation like to deal with things they can immediately understand.
Consider the scene of a university entrance examination. After receiving the papers, the examinees scan the questions and quickly decide which can be easily solved and set about tackling them; but pass over questions that appear difficult.
This scenario raises the following questions:
-Has the tendency to give up when things appear difficult to understand taken root more deeply than the Japanese imagined?
-Can the Japanese not see this tendency reflected in the way social issues such as the lack nursing-care facilities, problems of aging society and low birthrate, problems of national pension systems and even child-rearing are dealt with?
-Don't the Japanese have a tendency to focus on the easy issues when considering the future, such as the best way to care for people and, at an extreme, issues relating to life science, philosophy and spirituality?
Having read many articles about poor nursing-care services, violence in schools, juvenile crimes, suicide and government scandals; I feel the gap between the so-called rational decision-making system and the reality of the Japanese complicated society has become too wide to be bridged. One reason for this gap, I think, is the Japanese lack of consideration for the inner world of people-something that cannot be instantly grasped through "shallow" thinking.
About eight years ago a youth asked a panel of Japanese intellectuals on a television show a question that shocked many: "Why must I not kill others?"
The "adults" could not give him a clear answer and journalists later put the question to many educators. The question begs a logical answer that does not leave the issue open to ambiguous rhetoric.
I believe it is a very callous question that only someone who lacks of humanity could ask. A person who has received "education of the heart"; based on love, compassion and respect for life, or what could be described as the weight of humanism on one's mind, would not ask this question.
To answer this question, I think we should consider why the majority of people do not kill others, despite being able to and, maybe, sometimes wishing to. From this perspective this is relatively safe society, because we don't see dismembered bodies on the road despite the huge population. Also, people in the Japanese society do not live in constant fear of dying-despite the certain knowledge we will all die one day. Although the number of suicides is on the rise, most of people do not kill themselves.This opinion should lead us to recognize the efforts deep-thinkers have made to accumulate wisdom and ethics over many years. The accumulation of wisdom and ethics will almost certainly lead us to insight about the essence of logic-defying human nature, and reveal how our lives are touched by the consideration and efforts of others.
We should always ponder the wisdom and ethics we inherit. Simple questions can never lead to such deep thoughts. Humans should place importance on things that cannot be understood rather than those that can be easily understood. In that context, politics, sociology, philosophy and child-rearing, among numerous human activities, are struggles to seek answers that cannot be easily found. They are issues not easily understood but deserving of thoughtful consideration.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Kids Need a Break from Time-consuming Club Activities
"Exercising too much is bad for one's health," but this maxim is largely ignored on the playing fields of Japan. When I began teaching in Japan, I was disturbed to see that students were allowed to doze off in the classroom or be excused from participation because they were tired. However, I came to realize that most students were not at fault.
A simple English conversation class became a form of sociological study. Asking "What time do you get up?" I was astounded by the number of students who were up at around 5 a.m. and in school before 7 a.m. to play sports. It was a shock to see children making their way to school as I returned bleary-eyed from an all-night...
At 6:30 a.m. on Sunday, girls brandishing tennis racquets and whole baseball teams swarmed onto my train, doing little to soothe my already frazzled nerves!I admit that clubs engender a sense of "belonging," but is it right to devote such large quantities of time to sports? As a child, I played a different sport every afternoon because I enjoyed doing so, but students restricted to a single club tell me that their practices are "tiring" or "boring." Enjoyment seems to come second to duty.
Training to excess does little for enthusiasm or development. Moderation and variety are the key success.Another factor is the involvement of the teachers who run the clubs. Although a large number enjoy their work, I feel too much is expected of teachers, whose commitments outweigh their available time. They deserve a break much as their charges do!We live in a video-game age, where children appear to lead increasingly sedentary lives, but if sports in Japanese schools continue to be so time-consuming, then no cry will succeed in encouraging young people to turn to sports. There is no surer way of alienating children than to take away their pleasure.
A simple English conversation class became a form of sociological study. Asking "What time do you get up?" I was astounded by the number of students who were up at around 5 a.m. and in school before 7 a.m. to play sports. It was a shock to see children making their way to school as I returned bleary-eyed from an all-night...
At 6:30 a.m. on Sunday, girls brandishing tennis racquets and whole baseball teams swarmed onto my train, doing little to soothe my already frazzled nerves!I admit that clubs engender a sense of "belonging," but is it right to devote such large quantities of time to sports? As a child, I played a different sport every afternoon because I enjoyed doing so, but students restricted to a single club tell me that their practices are "tiring" or "boring." Enjoyment seems to come second to duty.
Training to excess does little for enthusiasm or development. Moderation and variety are the key success.Another factor is the involvement of the teachers who run the clubs. Although a large number enjoy their work, I feel too much is expected of teachers, whose commitments outweigh their available time. They deserve a break much as their charges do!We live in a video-game age, where children appear to lead increasingly sedentary lives, but if sports in Japanese schools continue to be so time-consuming, then no cry will succeed in encouraging young people to turn to sports. There is no surer way of alienating children than to take away their pleasure.
Sunday, May 07, 2006
Time is Priceless
A very rich, powerful and famous man was near death. He had all the material possessions most people spend their lives trying to gain: money, castles, pleasure boats, planes, a beautiful wife...
Yet, as the end of his life approached, his last words from his deathbed were, “All my possessions for a moment of time.” The wealthy man now saw time as the most precious thing in the world. Unfortunately, all his material possessions could not buy time.
Idleness and foolishness in life can steal our time. And since thieves are attracted to valuable things, it’s no surprise that idleness and foolishness launch continual attempts to steal our time. But if we can spot thieves before they reach our valuables, we may be able to do whatever is necessary to prevent the theft. The crucial question then becomes, “How do we stop thieves of time?”
Before committing our time to any activity, we should ask two simple questions. The first question is, “What will be the fruit of this activity in five years?” That is, five years from today will it matter if I do this activity or if I don’t? If the answer is, “Il won’t matter,” or if there may be negative consequences, we need to commit our time to something else.
When I examine my own life over the past five years, I am sometimes frustrated that I don’t see greater results today. But when I ask myself what will be important in another five years, what comes to my mind is my three children and other children around me.
Today my children, ages ten and under, are young enough that their hearts are naturally tender toward compassion and wisdom. In the next five years I may never speak to halls full of people, write a best-selling book or do any of the other things that are mark of “success.” But if five years from now my children and other children around me are taking meaningful and thoughtful actions in the world, I will be a success, no matter what else does or does not happen!
But in order to help my children learn to take meaningful and thoughtful actions in the world, I need to spend time with them. And that doesn’t always happen naturally. Rather, I must train myself to spend time thoughtfully and intentionally, remembering that some day I will have to give account for “every idle word and action.”
The second question is, “What will it matter in eternity?” We receive just one life that soon will be over, and only what we’re doing for all the future generations will last. We need to invest time, which we can’t keep anyway, to make an eternal treasure that we will never lose. Think about it—eternity is a lot longer than the years that we will spend on earth. So doesn’t it make sense that we focus our time on guiding our children toward important universal values such as love, compassion, wisdom and respect for life, the things that matter for eternity?
Yet, as the end of his life approached, his last words from his deathbed were, “All my possessions for a moment of time.” The wealthy man now saw time as the most precious thing in the world. Unfortunately, all his material possessions could not buy time.
Idleness and foolishness in life can steal our time. And since thieves are attracted to valuable things, it’s no surprise that idleness and foolishness launch continual attempts to steal our time. But if we can spot thieves before they reach our valuables, we may be able to do whatever is necessary to prevent the theft. The crucial question then becomes, “How do we stop thieves of time?”
Before committing our time to any activity, we should ask two simple questions. The first question is, “What will be the fruit of this activity in five years?” That is, five years from today will it matter if I do this activity or if I don’t? If the answer is, “Il won’t matter,” or if there may be negative consequences, we need to commit our time to something else.
When I examine my own life over the past five years, I am sometimes frustrated that I don’t see greater results today. But when I ask myself what will be important in another five years, what comes to my mind is my three children and other children around me.
Today my children, ages ten and under, are young enough that their hearts are naturally tender toward compassion and wisdom. In the next five years I may never speak to halls full of people, write a best-selling book or do any of the other things that are mark of “success.” But if five years from now my children and other children around me are taking meaningful and thoughtful actions in the world, I will be a success, no matter what else does or does not happen!
But in order to help my children learn to take meaningful and thoughtful actions in the world, I need to spend time with them. And that doesn’t always happen naturally. Rather, I must train myself to spend time thoughtfully and intentionally, remembering that some day I will have to give account for “every idle word and action.”
The second question is, “What will it matter in eternity?” We receive just one life that soon will be over, and only what we’re doing for all the future generations will last. We need to invest time, which we can’t keep anyway, to make an eternal treasure that we will never lose. Think about it—eternity is a lot longer than the years that we will spend on earth. So doesn’t it make sense that we focus our time on guiding our children toward important universal values such as love, compassion, wisdom and respect for life, the things that matter for eternity?
Together We Can Achieve Peace
Here is a simple notion: Children are the foundation of human security. The world cannot build a peaceful and stable society without teaching its youngest citizens to respect differences and live together as one. Yet, this basic idea is ignored by many adults around the world.
Every day, many children are the victims of violence, abuse, bullying, sexism, discrimination and racism. Also, many children are brainwashed and forced by cruel adults to take part in bloody wars for ridiculous reasons. And life can be awful when children are manipulated to commit crimes against humanity.
Building peace means upholding and defending moral rules — not preaching hatred, or encouraging violence. The basic need to achieve peace and basic moral rules are the same everywhere. The right of cultures to peaceful coexistence, and the belief that all men and women are created equal are essential and universal.
With the globalization advancing, more and more people from different ethnic groups are being called to live together. In order to live in harmony, adults need to think creatively and act concertedly, encouraging children to be broad-minded, to accept individuality, and to act sincerely from the heart rather than from customs. Teaching children to be kind not only to their close friends and people they know, but to all the people in the world should be the basic condition and the goal to bring peace to the world.
We must live out the change we wish to see in children. We must be tolerant and nonviolent because as the Indian spiritual leader Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Intolerance is itself a form of violence and an obstacle to the growth of a true democratic spirit.” I strongly believe that the terms “democratic spirit” and “peace” are synonymous.
It’s very important that we teach children a global ethic as follows:
- We all have a responsibility to work for a better global order.
- Our involvement in the preservation of human rights, freedom, justice, peace and
the earth is absolutely necessary.
- We should not consider ourselves better than others.
- What we do not wish done to ourselves, we should not do to others.
- No one has the right physically or psychologically to torture, injure, much less kill, any other human being.
- No people, no state, no ethnic group, no religion has the right to hate others.
- We must commit to a life of truthfulness, and treat everyone with respect.
Let's promote positive behavior among children and offer them more opportunities for mutual spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. The values we give children should transcend differences like looks, gender, religion, social background, ethnic background, nationality and race. We should focus on the basics of peace, love, equality, authenticity, brotherhood and freedom. We all have to get together and build a peaceful world!
Every day, many children are the victims of violence, abuse, bullying, sexism, discrimination and racism. Also, many children are brainwashed and forced by cruel adults to take part in bloody wars for ridiculous reasons. And life can be awful when children are manipulated to commit crimes against humanity.
Building peace means upholding and defending moral rules — not preaching hatred, or encouraging violence. The basic need to achieve peace and basic moral rules are the same everywhere. The right of cultures to peaceful coexistence, and the belief that all men and women are created equal are essential and universal.
With the globalization advancing, more and more people from different ethnic groups are being called to live together. In order to live in harmony, adults need to think creatively and act concertedly, encouraging children to be broad-minded, to accept individuality, and to act sincerely from the heart rather than from customs. Teaching children to be kind not only to their close friends and people they know, but to all the people in the world should be the basic condition and the goal to bring peace to the world.
We must live out the change we wish to see in children. We must be tolerant and nonviolent because as the Indian spiritual leader Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Intolerance is itself a form of violence and an obstacle to the growth of a true democratic spirit.” I strongly believe that the terms “democratic spirit” and “peace” are synonymous.
It’s very important that we teach children a global ethic as follows:
- We all have a responsibility to work for a better global order.
- Our involvement in the preservation of human rights, freedom, justice, peace and
the earth is absolutely necessary.
- We should not consider ourselves better than others.
- What we do not wish done to ourselves, we should not do to others.
- No one has the right physically or psychologically to torture, injure, much less kill, any other human being.
- No people, no state, no ethnic group, no religion has the right to hate others.
- We must commit to a life of truthfulness, and treat everyone with respect.
Let's promote positive behavior among children and offer them more opportunities for mutual spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. The values we give children should transcend differences like looks, gender, religion, social background, ethnic background, nationality and race. We should focus on the basics of peace, love, equality, authenticity, brotherhood and freedom. We all have to get together and build a peaceful world!
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Inflexibility of Japanese Society and Violence
Japanese society is remarkable, if anything, for its homogeneity, orderliness, and adherence to strict patterns. Though constantly changing, it remains thoroughly and distinctively Japanese. If there is an underlying psychological malaise in Japan, it surely comes from the uniformity and strictness of the patterns society fixes on the individual.
A tightly knit social system leaves many tied down by heavy burdens of duty and obligation, or uncomfortably constrained by rules of social conformity. Young people, as we have seen, are particularly restive, chafing at the reins and often breaking out in rebellion (dropouts, lack of moral fiber of youth, brutal crimes committed by juveniles, suicide…)
A rapid rate of change has produced a wide generation gap, which probably makes true communication between the generations even more difficult than in the West, though this is masked on the surface by a typical Japanese desire to maintain a show of harmony and to avoid confrontation by a discrete silence between parents and children on matters of consequence.On the surface Japan still gives all the appearences of a “happy society,” but no one can say that present conditions of “stability” and apparent contendedness will continue indefinitely.
It’s my belief that Japanese society is evolving as most societies do, and the inflexibility of society and the education system, so firmly in place for so long, is being challenged. History is evidence that chains that bind a society tightly will be broken violently.
A tightly knit social system leaves many tied down by heavy burdens of duty and obligation, or uncomfortably constrained by rules of social conformity. Young people, as we have seen, are particularly restive, chafing at the reins and often breaking out in rebellion (dropouts, lack of moral fiber of youth, brutal crimes committed by juveniles, suicide…)
A rapid rate of change has produced a wide generation gap, which probably makes true communication between the generations even more difficult than in the West, though this is masked on the surface by a typical Japanese desire to maintain a show of harmony and to avoid confrontation by a discrete silence between parents and children on matters of consequence.On the surface Japan still gives all the appearences of a “happy society,” but no one can say that present conditions of “stability” and apparent contendedness will continue indefinitely.
It’s my belief that Japanese society is evolving as most societies do, and the inflexibility of society and the education system, so firmly in place for so long, is being challenged. History is evidence that chains that bind a society tightly will be broken violently.
Saturday, April 29, 2006
Peace (Joel's 135 tips)
EXCERPT FROM A BOOK PUBLISHED ON AUGUST 6, 2005 ( 60 YEARS AFTER THE FIRST ATOMIC BOMB WAS DROPPED ON HIROSHIMA)
FOREWORD
We, human beings, possess great inner qualities which can illuminate the whole world, and also tragic flaws which can pull the whole world into the abyss of violence and destruction. We can either succumb to these tragic flaws, or light the torch of humanism that will shine forever, and bring peace to the world.
A lasting world peace will never be initiated politically; it will begin first in the hearts and minds of each of us. Until we have peace within our families and our communities and most importantly ourselves, no government will ever have the power to bring peace to us.
Joel’s 135 tips
1. Put a beautiful smile on your face. It will bring about others’ smiles.
2. Be kind to others.
3. Be kind to animals.
4. Do not be selfish.
5. Make room for peace at home. Outer peace begins with inner peace.
6. Show gratitude to all the people around you.
7. Appreciate every little thing you receive from others.
8. Plant flowers and little trees in your garden, and take good care of them.
9. Put some potted plants in your room, and take good care of them.
10. Always ask yourself what you can do to help others.
11. Love and respect yourself.
12. Love and respect others.
13. Open up your heart to all the people in the world.
14. Listen to other people open-mindedly.
15. Always tell the truth even when it is not easy.
16. Be polite and humble.
17. Live with the spirit of a WORLD CITIZEN.
18. Always accomplish your duties.
19. Uphold and defend moral rules.
20. Do not use curse words.
21. Never, Never, Never kill living creatures.
22. Do not preach hatred.
23. Be an activist of WORLD PEACE.
24. Write to newspapers on issues relating to antiracism, nonviolence, peace, freedom, and so forth.
25. Do not hold grudges.
26. Take part in peaceful demonstrations to protest violence.
27. Be convinced that peace is not a utopian dream; it is achievable!
28. Convince others that peace is achievable.
29. Do not seek revenge.
30. Protect life because it is precious.
31. Let us live together and share the world with all other living creatures.
32. Be always in control of your temper.
33. Read books about Gandhi, King, Mandela and other peace activists.
34. Free your mind from all social evils.
35. Read the HUMAN RIGHTS and follow them.
36. Make time in your life for consistent daily prayers.
37. Do not persecute others.
38. Act sincerely from the heart rather than from customs.
39. Keep your environment clean.
40. Respect individuality. Every person in this world has his or her own brilliance.
41. Have a true democratic spirit.
42. Always work for a better global order.
43. Your involvement in the preservation of human rights, freedom, justice and peace is absolutely necessary.
44. Do not consider yourself better than others.
45. What you do not wish done to yourself, you should not do to others.
46. Always remember that no state, no ethnic group, no religion has the right to hate or mistreat others.
47. Think, discuss and express your own opinions freely.
48. Be socially active.
49. Have a vision based on personal values and judgment.
50. Do not place too much emphasis on money and material possessions.
51. Do not abandon yourself to pleasures.
52. Develop your inner qualities.
53. Learn about the atrocities some Europeans committed on African slaves, American Indians and Australian aborigines.
54. You must help create a world where compassion for others replaces brutality.
55. Adopt nonviolence to fight the battle for truth.
56. Do not close your eyes to the past history of your country.
57. Reflect on the history of wars from an impartial standpoint.
58. Learn about the atrocities the Japanese Imperial Military committed on innocent people in Asia in the past.
59. Learn about the Holocaust that took place in Europe during World War II.
60. Learn about the misery and suffering caused by the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
61. Learn about the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Liberia ...
62. Sympathize with all the people who have suffered under invasions and colonial rules.
63. Learn about the dangers of totalitarian regimes, and raise your voice against them.
64. Learn the valuable lessons offered by history, and help improve human dignity.
65. Ｓhow sincerity in handling the sentiment of people that have suffered from discrimination, wars and violence.
66. Avoid remarks or jokes about subjects like race, religion, disability or age.
67. Do not ignore harassment, discrimination and other crimes.
68. Do not overuse the resources of the world because you will deprive people elsewhere of them.
69. Do not only learn about peace, you need to be active in trying to bring it about.
70. Remember that peace is not just antiwar or antiviolence, but much more than that. As long as we have injustice and strife within our communities, we are not in peace.
71. Social changes begin on an individual level. So, work mindfully to improve the relationships in your own life.
72. Be fair.
73. Respect and appreciate all the cultures in the world.
74. Do not join the military in order to go to war.
75. You have the right to disobey any immoral rules coming from authorities.
76. Raise your voice against all weapons.
77. Raise your voice against the use of military violence in resolving conflicts.
７８. Always go to vote.
７９. Be charitable and share what you have with others, especially those in need.
80. Do not look down on the needy.
81. Fight against poverty and misery.
８２. Never think you are too powerless to make a difference.
８３. Free yourself from useless worldly attachments.
８４. Give your affection freely and constantly to others.
８５. Help calm the anger of others.
８６. Reconcile with anyone you once argued or fought with.
８７. Walk in the same direction as all the peace lovers in the world.
88. Do not compare yourself to others.
８9. Try to understand others and get along with them.
９0. Do not neglect your body.
91. Always learn from your mistakes.
92. Always apologize to people you have hurt.
93 Do not worry about anybody getting ahead of you because life is not a race.
94 Be courageous.
95. Do not worry about triumph.
96. Do not worry about growing old because aging is a natural process.
97. Do not bully or abuse weaker creatures.
98. Be kind to the nature. Nurture a sense of familiarity with the nature and friendship with other living creatures.
99. Learn about the world.
100. Discuss social problems with your family, friends and teachers; and try to think of solutions to them.
101. Never keep birds in a cage.
102. Do not deprive any living creature from its FREEDOM.
103. Be involved in volunteer activities: deliver food to homeless people, visit lonely senior citizens and sick people, distribute toys and clothes to less fortunate children ...
104. Lead a healthy life: exercise every day, eat a balanced diet, do not smoke, do not use drugs, do not drink too much alcohol, make sure you get enough sleep ...
105. Enrich your spirit.
106. Do not commit suicide.
107. Do not be influenced by money, profit, honor or vanity.
108. Be a human of penetrating insight.
109. Be aware of the Seven Social Sins that are engraved on Mahatma Gandhi’s tombstone:
1. Politics without Principles
2. Wealth without Work
3. Pleasure without Conscience
4. Knowledge without Character
5. Commerce without Morality
6. Science without Humanity
7. Worship without Sacrifice
110. Always share your joys and sorrows with people around you.
111. You should know when a rule is to be followed and when it should not be followed.
112. Never blame a whole nation for the acts of individuals.
113. Reject extreme nationalism and xenophobia.
114. Encourage others to do good things.
115. Be a positive role model.
116. Enjoy music and arts.
117. Be optimistic about the future.
118. Solve problems cooperatively.
119. Value multiculturalism and diversity.
120. Think critically and creatively.
121. Make responsible decisions and take meaningful actions.
122. Cherish family gatherings.
123. Do not work mainly for money.
124. Have a pure heart.
125. Praise people for their good actions.
126. Make others happy.
127. Do not break promises.
128. When someone asks you for something, give it to him or her.
129. Talk to your enemies.
130. Always clarify your words and ideas to avoid misunderstandings.
131. Learn about different cultures.
132. Where there is no vision, the people perish; so have a clear vision and focus on the future. 133. Start every single day of your life with hope and positive thinking.
13４. Be content with what you have
135. Give PEACE the first place in your heart.
ORDER NOW:
Title: Peace
(Bilingual Japanese・English) 96 pages.
Tel: 0942-53-8644
Fax:0942-54-1030
E-mail: joel@po.saganet.ne.jp
URL: http://www2.saganet.ne.jp/joel/
FOREWORD
We, human beings, possess great inner qualities which can illuminate the whole world, and also tragic flaws which can pull the whole world into the abyss of violence and destruction. We can either succumb to these tragic flaws, or light the torch of humanism that will shine forever, and bring peace to the world.
A lasting world peace will never be initiated politically; it will begin first in the hearts and minds of each of us. Until we have peace within our families and our communities and most importantly ourselves, no government will ever have the power to bring peace to us.
Joel’s 135 tips
1. Put a beautiful smile on your face. It will bring about others’ smiles.
2. Be kind to others.
3. Be kind to animals.
4. Do not be selfish.
5. Make room for peace at home. Outer peace begins with inner peace.
6. Show gratitude to all the people around you.
7. Appreciate every little thing you receive from others.
8. Plant flowers and little trees in your garden, and take good care of them.
9. Put some potted plants in your room, and take good care of them.
10. Always ask yourself what you can do to help others.
11. Love and respect yourself.
12. Love and respect others.
13. Open up your heart to all the people in the world.
14. Listen to other people open-mindedly.
15. Always tell the truth even when it is not easy.
16. Be polite and humble.
17. Live with the spirit of a WORLD CITIZEN.
18. Always accomplish your duties.
19. Uphold and defend moral rules.
20. Do not use curse words.
21. Never, Never, Never kill living creatures.
22. Do not preach hatred.
23. Be an activist of WORLD PEACE.
24. Write to newspapers on issues relating to antiracism, nonviolence, peace, freedom, and so forth.
25. Do not hold grudges.
26. Take part in peaceful demonstrations to protest violence.
27. Be convinced that peace is not a utopian dream; it is achievable!
28. Convince others that peace is achievable.
29. Do not seek revenge.
30. Protect life because it is precious.
31. Let us live together and share the world with all other living creatures.
32. Be always in control of your temper.
33. Read books about Gandhi, King, Mandela and other peace activists.
34. Free your mind from all social evils.
35. Read the HUMAN RIGHTS and follow them.
36. Make time in your life for consistent daily prayers.
37. Do not persecute others.
38. Act sincerely from the heart rather than from customs.
39. Keep your environment clean.
40. Respect individuality. Every person in this world has his or her own brilliance.
41. Have a true democratic spirit.
42. Always work for a better global order.
43. Your involvement in the preservation of human rights, freedom, justice and peace is absolutely necessary.
44. Do not consider yourself better than others.
45. What you do not wish done to yourself, you should not do to others.
46. Always remember that no state, no ethnic group, no religion has the right to hate or mistreat others.
47. Think, discuss and express your own opinions freely.
48. Be socially active.
49. Have a vision based on personal values and judgment.
50. Do not place too much emphasis on money and material possessions.
51. Do not abandon yourself to pleasures.
52. Develop your inner qualities.
53. Learn about the atrocities some Europeans committed on African slaves, American Indians and Australian aborigines.
54. You must help create a world where compassion for others replaces brutality.
55. Adopt nonviolence to fight the battle for truth.
56. Do not close your eyes to the past history of your country.
57. Reflect on the history of wars from an impartial standpoint.
58. Learn about the atrocities the Japanese Imperial Military committed on innocent people in Asia in the past.
59. Learn about the Holocaust that took place in Europe during World War II.
60. Learn about the misery and suffering caused by the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
61. Learn about the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Liberia ...
62. Sympathize with all the people who have suffered under invasions and colonial rules.
63. Learn about the dangers of totalitarian regimes, and raise your voice against them.
64. Learn the valuable lessons offered by history, and help improve human dignity.
65. Ｓhow sincerity in handling the sentiment of people that have suffered from discrimination, wars and violence.
66. Avoid remarks or jokes about subjects like race, religion, disability or age.
67. Do not ignore harassment, discrimination and other crimes.
68. Do not overuse the resources of the world because you will deprive people elsewhere of them.
69. Do not only learn about peace, you need to be active in trying to bring it about.
70. Remember that peace is not just antiwar or antiviolence, but much more than that. As long as we have injustice and strife within our communities, we are not in peace.
71. Social changes begin on an individual level. So, work mindfully to improve the relationships in your own life.
72. Be fair.
73. Respect and appreciate all the cultures in the world.
74. Do not join the military in order to go to war.
75. You have the right to disobey any immoral rules coming from authorities.
76. Raise your voice against all weapons.
77. Raise your voice against the use of military violence in resolving conflicts.
７８. Always go to vote.
７９. Be charitable and share what you have with others, especially those in need.
80. Do not look down on the needy.
81. Fight against poverty and misery.
８２. Never think you are too powerless to make a difference.
８３. Free yourself from useless worldly attachments.
８４. Give your affection freely and constantly to others.
８５. Help calm the anger of others.
８６. Reconcile with anyone you once argued or fought with.
８７. Walk in the same direction as all the peace lovers in the world.
88. Do not compare yourself to others.
８9. Try to understand others and get along with them.
９0. Do not neglect your body.
91. Always learn from your mistakes.
92. Always apologize to people you have hurt.
93 Do not worry about anybody getting ahead of you because life is not a race.
94 Be courageous.
95. Do not worry about triumph.
96. Do not worry about growing old because aging is a natural process.
97. Do not bully or abuse weaker creatures.
98. Be kind to the nature. Nurture a sense of familiarity with the nature and friendship with other living creatures.
99. Learn about the world.
100. Discuss social problems with your family, friends and teachers; and try to think of solutions to them.
101. Never keep birds in a cage.
102. Do not deprive any living creature from its FREEDOM.
103. Be involved in volunteer activities: deliver food to homeless people, visit lonely senior citizens and sick people, distribute toys and clothes to less fortunate children ...
104. Lead a healthy life: exercise every day, eat a balanced diet, do not smoke, do not use drugs, do not drink too much alcohol, make sure you get enough sleep ...
105. Enrich your spirit.
106. Do not commit suicide.
107. Do not be influenced by money, profit, honor or vanity.
108. Be a human of penetrating insight.
109. Be aware of the Seven Social Sins that are engraved on Mahatma Gandhi’s tombstone:
1. Politics without Principles
2. Wealth without Work
3. Pleasure without Conscience
4. Knowledge without Character
5. Commerce without Morality
6. Science without Humanity
7. Worship without Sacrifice
110. Always share your joys and sorrows with people around you.
111. You should know when a rule is to be followed and when it should not be followed.
112. Never blame a whole nation for the acts of individuals.
113. Reject extreme nationalism and xenophobia.
114. Encourage others to do good things.
115. Be a positive role model.
116. Enjoy music and arts.
117. Be optimistic about the future.
118. Solve problems cooperatively.
119. Value multiculturalism and diversity.
120. Think critically and creatively.
121. Make responsible decisions and take meaningful actions.
122. Cherish family gatherings.
123. Do not work mainly for money.
124. Have a pure heart.
125. Praise people for their good actions.
126. Make others happy.
127. Do not break promises.
128. When someone asks you for something, give it to him or her.
129. Talk to your enemies.
130. Always clarify your words and ideas to avoid misunderstandings.
131. Learn about different cultures.
132. Where there is no vision, the people perish; so have a clear vision and focus on the future. 133. Start every single day of your life with hope and positive thinking.
13４. Be content with what you have
135. Give PEACE the first place in your heart.
ORDER NOW:
Title: Peace
(Bilingual Japanese・English) 96 pages.
Tel: 0942-53-8644
Fax:0942-54-1030
E-mail: joel@po.saganet.ne.jp
URL: http://www2.saganet.ne.jp/joel/
Friday, April 28, 2006
Violent Juvenile Crimes for Thought
Japan is experiencing a surge in gruesome crimes committed by juveniles. The other day, a 15-year-old boy, probably after a trivial argument, killed a 13-year-old girl, whose body was found abandoned in a vacant pachinko parlor. This is a shocking incident which has struck terror into hearts of parents and teachers around the nation, especially those with children of the same age, who must have felt anguish at the thought that it might have happened to their own children.
I believe primary, junior high and high school years are the most dream-filled period of one’s entire life. Normally, young people of this age have an insatiable curiosity about everything and they enjoy discussing wholeheartedly. They fire their imaginations by reading great novels and adventure stories, filling their minds with all kinds of dreams as they envision freely what they want to do and what they want to be when they grow up. Murder, one would think, would be the farthest thing from their minds. That young people, who are a synonym for peace and hope, should so easily choose to kill people must be viewed seriously as a grave state of affairs.
Japanese children seem fragile and easily broken as glass. In order to change that brittleness into tenacity and flexibility, like that of the bamboo, I think the time has come when Japan must consider, on a fundamental level, the educational influence the family, school and society at large have on children. I guess no one who is a parent or teacher is indifferent to the growth or development of children; however, in what direction children’s growth should be guided is quite another matter.
Children in Japan are forced to cope with conditions that are extremely abnormal. Too much emphasis is placed on the school system, while the importance of the roles played by families and communities has been minimized. And so far, there have been no effective regulations established in this country to protect children from harmful information. With the increasingly free flow of information (violent comics and video games, pornographic magazines, “dirty” TV shows…), the mental boundary between adults and juveniles is disappearing. As a result, juveniles are strongly influenced by trends. Brutal “adult” crimes can be committed by juveniles rather easily because they lack sufficient social understanding to restrain themselves.
Japanese children spend almost no time with their parents. Every day after regular school hours, most of them are confined to cram schools (some may even go to more than one such school). They return home late, have dinner, and go to their rooms to play violent video games and read “weird” comics. With this kind of routine, children do not have much contact with their parents. I run a language school and have an opportunity to talk parents; I am amazed at how little most of them know about their children. During discussion sessions, I like to probe the emotional condition of my students. There is often an undercurrent of frustration and repressed anger, particularly among males. Some who appear to be nice young men have some dark thoughts. These thoughts are of a violent, sexual, or confused nature.
Japanese children are disciplined only to study; otherwise they are left alone and for the most part allowed to behave rudely in public. The other day in our local supermarket, a grade-school boy was screaming. After a while, his mother told him to be quiet. He then said to her: “Why do you say such a thing to me, Mom? If you say it again, I am going to kill you.” The mother did not say anything more. I do not want to imagine that child’s future and I wonder how his parents have disciplined him. They must have confused loving with pampering. I strongly believe that parents are responsible for their children. It’s their duty to teach their children what is good and what is bad, and they need to discipline them from childhood. But, I am not suggesting that parents are always to blame for their children’s behavior. There are, of course, many things that shape the growing child: temperament, constitution, intelligence, peers, culture...
Important universal values such as love, compassion, respect for life, or what could be described as the weight of humanism on one’s mind, are sorely missing from children education in Japan. The growing numbers of stabbings and murders involving the youth are a testament to how despondent some young people feel. These children are the ones on which the country’s future rests, and their despair must be of national concern.
All the system that Japan has built up over the past 60 years, including the culture of education and politics, have met their limits. The problem is not simple, and solutions must be far-reaching; but I strongly believe the social system as a whole must be changed so as to enable schools, families and communities to build a sound environment for children.
Adults must realize that the environment in which they live is also the one in which children grow up. And together they must share the problems facing young people. Our lives are becoming time-pressed, yet fathers need to be allowed more time to be with their families and take an active interest in their children’s moral and spiritual upbringing. Mothers need to show through example that love and discipline are connected.
I sincerely hope that parents will live every single day filled with a wealth of vitality so that they can offer a warm human touch like sun, not only to their own children but also to other children and adults with whom they encounter as well.
I believe primary, junior high and high school years are the most dream-filled period of one’s entire life. Normally, young people of this age have an insatiable curiosity about everything and they enjoy discussing wholeheartedly. They fire their imaginations by reading great novels and adventure stories, filling their minds with all kinds of dreams as they envision freely what they want to do and what they want to be when they grow up. Murder, one would think, would be the farthest thing from their minds. That young people, who are a synonym for peace and hope, should so easily choose to kill people must be viewed seriously as a grave state of affairs.
Japanese children seem fragile and easily broken as glass. In order to change that brittleness into tenacity and flexibility, like that of the bamboo, I think the time has come when Japan must consider, on a fundamental level, the educational influence the family, school and society at large have on children. I guess no one who is a parent or teacher is indifferent to the growth or development of children; however, in what direction children’s growth should be guided is quite another matter.
Children in Japan are forced to cope with conditions that are extremely abnormal. Too much emphasis is placed on the school system, while the importance of the roles played by families and communities has been minimized. And so far, there have been no effective regulations established in this country to protect children from harmful information. With the increasingly free flow of information (violent comics and video games, pornographic magazines, “dirty” TV shows…), the mental boundary between adults and juveniles is disappearing. As a result, juveniles are strongly influenced by trends. Brutal “adult” crimes can be committed by juveniles rather easily because they lack sufficient social understanding to restrain themselves.
Japanese children spend almost no time with their parents. Every day after regular school hours, most of them are confined to cram schools (some may even go to more than one such school). They return home late, have dinner, and go to their rooms to play violent video games and read “weird” comics. With this kind of routine, children do not have much contact with their parents. I run a language school and have an opportunity to talk parents; I am amazed at how little most of them know about their children. During discussion sessions, I like to probe the emotional condition of my students. There is often an undercurrent of frustration and repressed anger, particularly among males. Some who appear to be nice young men have some dark thoughts. These thoughts are of a violent, sexual, or confused nature.
Japanese children are disciplined only to study; otherwise they are left alone and for the most part allowed to behave rudely in public. The other day in our local supermarket, a grade-school boy was screaming. After a while, his mother told him to be quiet. He then said to her: “Why do you say such a thing to me, Mom? If you say it again, I am going to kill you.” The mother did not say anything more. I do not want to imagine that child’s future and I wonder how his parents have disciplined him. They must have confused loving with pampering. I strongly believe that parents are responsible for their children. It’s their duty to teach their children what is good and what is bad, and they need to discipline them from childhood. But, I am not suggesting that parents are always to blame for their children’s behavior. There are, of course, many things that shape the growing child: temperament, constitution, intelligence, peers, culture...
Important universal values such as love, compassion, respect for life, or what could be described as the weight of humanism on one’s mind, are sorely missing from children education in Japan. The growing numbers of stabbings and murders involving the youth are a testament to how despondent some young people feel. These children are the ones on which the country’s future rests, and their despair must be of national concern.
All the system that Japan has built up over the past 60 years, including the culture of education and politics, have met their limits. The problem is not simple, and solutions must be far-reaching; but I strongly believe the social system as a whole must be changed so as to enable schools, families and communities to build a sound environment for children.
Adults must realize that the environment in which they live is also the one in which children grow up. And together they must share the problems facing young people. Our lives are becoming time-pressed, yet fathers need to be allowed more time to be with their families and take an active interest in their children’s moral and spiritual upbringing. Mothers need to show through example that love and discipline are connected.
I sincerely hope that parents will live every single day filled with a wealth of vitality so that they can offer a warm human touch like sun, not only to their own children but also to other children and adults with whom they encounter as well.
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
No More a Foreigner
(9 / 13 / 2003 Mainichi Weekly)
On my way to work one day, I met a group of grade-school kids with their teacher. As soon as they saw me, the children shouted, “gaijin da!” ("alien!") The teacher scolded them, saying that it is rude to call foreigners gaijin (aliens) and that they should call them gaikokujin (foreigners).
“Hey, don’t assume I am a foreigner!” I interjected in Chikugo dialect. “About 15,000 individuals of various ethnic groups are becoming Japanese citizens annually. The color of my skin doesn’t tell you anything about my nationality. So, don’t lead the children in the wrong direction.”
“Gomennasai (sorry.)” She shrugged in apology and left in great haste with her students.
This is by no means an isolated case, and I bet many other Japanese adults might have responded in the same way as this one did. In fact, while discussing the issue with two prefectural government officials in charge of human rights education a few days later, they frankly told me, “No matter how excellent your Japanese is, how long you have lived in Japan and how deeply you may be involved in its life, we Japanese will never accept you as a member of our society.”
Ethnocentrism is evident in the attitudes of the Japanese toward people of other ethnic backgrounds in Japan. Japanese citizens of Japanese heritage take it for granted that people from other ethnic groups are and always will remain outsiders.
Most of them claim they are being polite when introducing me as “gaijin-san.” However, they ignore the fact that about nine out of my 34 years of culture I carry around with me are from this country. I am not officially Japanese yet, but spiritually I am no more a foreigner in Japan. Above all, I love this nation and admire many aspects of its traditional culture. It is that love and admiration which impel me to buy a house and live here permanently with my family.
Just like people of Japanese heritage have naturally fitted into other societies, people of various ethnic backgrounds have become members of Japanese society. Although Japan has become a mosaic nation, people who are called Japanese are exclusively of Japanese descent and lack diversity. Isn’t this abnormal?
Whoever cares about the future of Japan must no longer remain insensitive to the present abnormal situation. It will take time to build a harmonious multiethnic Japan, but this does not mean we should just sit back and wait. Educators, politicians and the media must teach the public that a person of any ethnic origin can be a proud Japanese citizen.
To set an example of honesty, I have designed and self-published a poster which I deeply hope to spread all over the nation.
On my way to work one day, I met a group of grade-school kids with their teacher. As soon as they saw me, the children shouted, “gaijin da!” ("alien!") The teacher scolded them, saying that it is rude to call foreigners gaijin (aliens) and that they should call them gaikokujin (foreigners).
“Hey, don’t assume I am a foreigner!” I interjected in Chikugo dialect. “About 15,000 individuals of various ethnic groups are becoming Japanese citizens annually. The color of my skin doesn’t tell you anything about my nationality. So, don’t lead the children in the wrong direction.”
“Gomennasai (sorry.)” She shrugged in apology and left in great haste with her students.
This is by no means an isolated case, and I bet many other Japanese adults might have responded in the same way as this one did. In fact, while discussing the issue with two prefectural government officials in charge of human rights education a few days later, they frankly told me, “No matter how excellent your Japanese is, how long you have lived in Japan and how deeply you may be involved in its life, we Japanese will never accept you as a member of our society.”
Ethnocentrism is evident in the attitudes of the Japanese toward people of other ethnic backgrounds in Japan. Japanese citizens of Japanese heritage take it for granted that people from other ethnic groups are and always will remain outsiders.
Most of them claim they are being polite when introducing me as “gaijin-san.” However, they ignore the fact that about nine out of my 34 years of culture I carry around with me are from this country. I am not officially Japanese yet, but spiritually I am no more a foreigner in Japan. Above all, I love this nation and admire many aspects of its traditional culture. It is that love and admiration which impel me to buy a house and live here permanently with my family.
Just like people of Japanese heritage have naturally fitted into other societies, people of various ethnic backgrounds have become members of Japanese society. Although Japan has become a mosaic nation, people who are called Japanese are exclusively of Japanese descent and lack diversity. Isn’t this abnormal?
Whoever cares about the future of Japan must no longer remain insensitive to the present abnormal situation. It will take time to build a harmonious multiethnic Japan, but this does not mean we should just sit back and wait. Educators, politicians and the media must teach the public that a person of any ethnic origin can be a proud Japanese citizen.
To set an example of honesty, I have designed and self-published a poster which I deeply hope to spread all over the nation.
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Safety Seats a Must
One day, a Japanese friend of mine, his two-year-old son and I were about to go to the amusement park in their car. The little boy was not in his safety seat; he was just standing in the front passenger seat. To my great surprise, the father did not feel it was necessary to restraint his toddler in the safety seat before moving off.
-"Hey! Why don't you put your son in the safety seat first?" I asked.
-"It's too much work to buckle him in the seat," he replied. "Besides, he cries a lot when I try to fasten the seat belt. I guess he doesn't like the seat."
-"Aren't you concerned about your child safety?" I uttered. "Even at low speed, a minor impact is enough to send your lovely son banging into the windshield if he is not in the safety seat."
He did not seem to agree with me. However, I insisted on putting the little boy into the safety seat saying, "You should use the seat because it's the regulation now." He finally stopped the car and put his son in the seat. The child did not want to stay in the seat and cried a lot, but I tried to calm him down while his father fastened the seat belt.
I am certain no one likes to hear awful stories about car accidents, especially ones that involve children. But the chilling truth is that many infants are killed every year in Japan because their parents do not feel it is necessary to restraint them in a safety seat.
Ever since I came to Japan I have been puzzled by the total lack of child restraint in family cars. I see countless cars with young children (sometimes two or more) standing up in the front passenger seat, grandmothers holding toddlers in their arms, mothers driving with babies strapped to their chest; but what I rarely see is a vehicle that has been fitted with a safety seat.
It defies logic. If parents didn't feed their children or give them water to drink, they would be tried for neglect, maybe even murder. Shouldn't parents have the same obligation to keep their children safe in a car?
To see beautiful little faces pushed up against the front and back windows of such well-kept speeding cars is "criminal." But, the Japanese police seem to be either unwilling or unable to do anything about it. If some kind of on-the-spot fine was introduced for offending drivers, I am sure this kind of irresponsible behavior would soon decrease or even disappear.
Maybe I am preaching to the converted here. I certainly hope that every parent reading this article already uses safety seats for his or her children. If not I would like to call general public attention to the dangerous lack of awareness. There are plenty of conventional car seats available on the market, they are not too expensive and relatively easy to install. If you really do love your children, buckle them up in car seats for their safety.
-"Hey! Why don't you put your son in the safety seat first?" I asked.
-"It's too much work to buckle him in the seat," he replied. "Besides, he cries a lot when I try to fasten the seat belt. I guess he doesn't like the seat."
-"Aren't you concerned about your child safety?" I uttered. "Even at low speed, a minor impact is enough to send your lovely son banging into the windshield if he is not in the safety seat."
He did not seem to agree with me. However, I insisted on putting the little boy into the safety seat saying, "You should use the seat because it's the regulation now." He finally stopped the car and put his son in the seat. The child did not want to stay in the seat and cried a lot, but I tried to calm him down while his father fastened the seat belt.
I am certain no one likes to hear awful stories about car accidents, especially ones that involve children. But the chilling truth is that many infants are killed every year in Japan because their parents do not feel it is necessary to restraint them in a safety seat.
Ever since I came to Japan I have been puzzled by the total lack of child restraint in family cars. I see countless cars with young children (sometimes two or more) standing up in the front passenger seat, grandmothers holding toddlers in their arms, mothers driving with babies strapped to their chest; but what I rarely see is a vehicle that has been fitted with a safety seat.
It defies logic. If parents didn't feed their children or give them water to drink, they would be tried for neglect, maybe even murder. Shouldn't parents have the same obligation to keep their children safe in a car?
To see beautiful little faces pushed up against the front and back windows of such well-kept speeding cars is "criminal." But, the Japanese police seem to be either unwilling or unable to do anything about it. If some kind of on-the-spot fine was introduced for offending drivers, I am sure this kind of irresponsible behavior would soon decrease or even disappear.
Maybe I am preaching to the converted here. I certainly hope that every parent reading this article already uses safety seats for his or her children. If not I would like to call general public attention to the dangerous lack of awareness. There are plenty of conventional car seats available on the market, they are not too expensive and relatively easy to install. If you really do love your children, buckle them up in car seats for their safety.
Saturday, April 15, 2006
No Discrimination
Did you know that March 21st is International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination? With that in mind, I would like to share this with you.
A week before my eldest daughter started elementary school in 2002, I went to her school and talked to the Principal, Vice-Principal and all the teachers about the importance of teaching children to respect individuality and accept others who look different as equals, but they didn't take me seriously. About two weeks after school started, she came back home from school very sad, telling us that one of her classmates told her to change her natural brown skin into "normal" hadairo (ochre) color. I called the teacher and the Principal right away to urge them to deal honestly and democratically with the matter, calling us for a face-to-face meeting with the child and her parents, but the Principal refused. The parents did not take the matter seriously either; when my wife talked to the child's mother on the phone, she laughed about the matter as if it wasn't a serious problem. Finally, I went to talk to the School Board officials to ask them to do something about the problem. Again, I was disappointed. They evidently don't think racism is a serious problem in Japan and don't want to act.
My children have darker skin than the other Japanese children, and many people openly make cruel and racist comments about them: "kitanai (dirty)," "makkuro (black & dirty)," "baikin (microbe)," "unchi (pooh)," "kimochiwarui (disgusting)," "kurokoge (blackburn)," etc. When I go out with them, many parents also point at us "gaijin." Those people are wrong because my children are not foreigners in Japan; they are born here and are Japanese citizens just like the other Japanese children. And above all, they love Japan and the traditional Japanese culture.
I think racism is a very serious disease that Japan needs to cure. Racial discrimination in society, in public and private institutions, in senior and junior high schools, in elementary schools, and even in kindergartens, is evidence that much needs to be done before Japan can experience multiethnic harmony. Education will certainly play an important role in curing the disease of racism. Racism here is based on the idea that the Japanese belong to a "unique ethnic group" that is totally different from all the other ethnic groups in the world. The education system must make a considerable effort to denounce this myth. To do this, schools must familiarize students with the reality of the "singleness of the human family," and explain that all of the people in the world belong to the same human race. Because of the importance of the problem, this view should be introduced into the curriculum from kindergarten through to the 12th grade, and reflected in every course a child takes during the 12 years of schooling. This approach would help to prevent racism. Imagine all the students in Japan learning that Africans, Europeans, Americans, Asians and Australians - all races - are all related. They would be fortified against the poison of prejudice that they are exposed to in their homes and in society.
We must teach our children that all human beings come from the same ancestral stock. Every person on our planet belongs to the same species. This unity, however, does not mean uniformity, but implies a celebration of diversity, because once the reality of unity is understood, diversity becomes an asset rather than an obstacle. Imagine what life would be like if all the people in the world looked alike, thought, spoke, and felt the same way, if all flowers were the same color, if all foods tasted alike. Life would simply be monotonous. We should all understand that "variety is the spice of life" and cherish differences because they are extremely important.
Multiculturalism and ethnic diversity have become important issues in many countries around the world in recent years, and the Japanese government too must consider them seriously and provide helpful programs for developing the skills citizens need if they are to contribute to, and survive in, an ever-changing and diverse society. Diversity will be utilized to reinforce Japan's stature among the nations of the world. It will teach the Japanese to accept and respect diverse views, welcome debate, listen, discuss, negotiate and compromise for the common good of the world. We all know that recent advances in information technology have made international communications more important than ever. Japanese citizens who can speak many languages and understand many cultures will make it easier for Japan to participate globally in areas of education, trade and diplomacy.
Japan must make it possible for women and men of the world's many ethnic groups, religions and cultures to live together, to encourage different people to accept and respect one another, and work collaboratively to build an open, resilient, creative and thoughtful society.
A week before my eldest daughter started elementary school in 2002, I went to her school and talked to the Principal, Vice-Principal and all the teachers about the importance of teaching children to respect individuality and accept others who look different as equals, but they didn't take me seriously. About two weeks after school started, she came back home from school very sad, telling us that one of her classmates told her to change her natural brown skin into "normal" hadairo (ochre) color. I called the teacher and the Principal right away to urge them to deal honestly and democratically with the matter, calling us for a face-to-face meeting with the child and her parents, but the Principal refused. The parents did not take the matter seriously either; when my wife talked to the child's mother on the phone, she laughed about the matter as if it wasn't a serious problem. Finally, I went to talk to the School Board officials to ask them to do something about the problem. Again, I was disappointed. They evidently don't think racism is a serious problem in Japan and don't want to act.
My children have darker skin than the other Japanese children, and many people openly make cruel and racist comments about them: "kitanai (dirty)," "makkuro (black & dirty)," "baikin (microbe)," "unchi (pooh)," "kimochiwarui (disgusting)," "kurokoge (blackburn)," etc. When I go out with them, many parents also point at us "gaijin." Those people are wrong because my children are not foreigners in Japan; they are born here and are Japanese citizens just like the other Japanese children. And above all, they love Japan and the traditional Japanese culture.
I think racism is a very serious disease that Japan needs to cure. Racial discrimination in society, in public and private institutions, in senior and junior high schools, in elementary schools, and even in kindergartens, is evidence that much needs to be done before Japan can experience multiethnic harmony. Education will certainly play an important role in curing the disease of racism. Racism here is based on the idea that the Japanese belong to a "unique ethnic group" that is totally different from all the other ethnic groups in the world. The education system must make a considerable effort to denounce this myth. To do this, schools must familiarize students with the reality of the "singleness of the human family," and explain that all of the people in the world belong to the same human race. Because of the importance of the problem, this view should be introduced into the curriculum from kindergarten through to the 12th grade, and reflected in every course a child takes during the 12 years of schooling. This approach would help to prevent racism. Imagine all the students in Japan learning that Africans, Europeans, Americans, Asians and Australians - all races - are all related. They would be fortified against the poison of prejudice that they are exposed to in their homes and in society.
We must teach our children that all human beings come from the same ancestral stock. Every person on our planet belongs to the same species. This unity, however, does not mean uniformity, but implies a celebration of diversity, because once the reality of unity is understood, diversity becomes an asset rather than an obstacle. Imagine what life would be like if all the people in the world looked alike, thought, spoke, and felt the same way, if all flowers were the same color, if all foods tasted alike. Life would simply be monotonous. We should all understand that "variety is the spice of life" and cherish differences because they are extremely important.
Multiculturalism and ethnic diversity have become important issues in many countries around the world in recent years, and the Japanese government too must consider them seriously and provide helpful programs for developing the skills citizens need if they are to contribute to, and survive in, an ever-changing and diverse society. Diversity will be utilized to reinforce Japan's stature among the nations of the world. It will teach the Japanese to accept and respect diverse views, welcome debate, listen, discuss, negotiate and compromise for the common good of the world. We all know that recent advances in information technology have made international communications more important than ever. Japanese citizens who can speak many languages and understand many cultures will make it easier for Japan to participate globally in areas of education, trade and diplomacy.
Japan must make it possible for women and men of the world's many ethnic groups, religions and cultures to live together, to encourage different people to accept and respect one another, and work collaboratively to build an open, resilient, creative and thoughtful society.
A Message to Japanese Parents: Education Must Start at Home
Fathers should try to understand mothers, and mothers should also try to understand fathers. I deeply believe it is the harmony, peace and mutual love between husbands and wives that brings happiness and peace to the family and the society.
We want happiness in our families and communities, but we do not lead exemplary lives. If children have taken the wrong path these days (smoking, drinking, killing…) we adults are mostly responsible, we are not exemplary in our behavior either.For example, how can a father prevent his son from smoking if he smokes in front of him? Then the son, too, will start smoking by stealing cigarettes from his father’s pocket. If the father scolds him for smoking, the modern day child retorts, “Father, when you yourself are smoking, why do you object to my smoking?” Therefore, parents should never behave in a manner that will set a bad example for the children.Only when the father is good can he expect his son to be good. Is it possible for a father to keep his son at home when he himself roams about as he likes?
Nowadays, Japanese fathers do not try to discipline their children, and children do not listen to their mothers. The majority of Japanese parents are lenient; they accept anything their children do. This is the reason why Japan has become such a filthy nation. And ever since there are almost no spiritual activities in Japanese people daily lives; children have no chance to take the path of charitable services, faith in God and devotion.
Hence, the Japanese should tackle the questions of morality and ethics in their contemporary culture. I believe there is a need for education of the heart and the soul inJapan; an education that emphasizes ethical behavior, morality and character. The failure to integrate this aspect of education into the lives of young people is what makes it seem acceptable to snap, to shoplift, to kill, and to behave as if there are no standards or rules in the society.
These days, Japanese adults and children alike do not show any interest in reading spiritual and philosophical books (The Holy Bible, The Teaching of Buddha, Hojoki by Kamo-no-Chomei, Emile by Jean-Jacques Rousseau...). They read all sorts of trash (pornographic magazines, violent and sexual comics, “empty“ love stories…) and start on the wrong path in their childhood. If the tender saplings grow straight, the tree will also grow straight.
If the sapling grows crooked, then the tree will grow crooked. But, Japanese parents of today ignore this crucial notion.They fear to establish strict rules for the children, as they may run away from home and end their lives.
If Japanese parents really want their children to grow up to be responsible adults in the society, and if such children are to be fostered, then, they must first correct themselves. When a “bad son” defies the commands of his father, the mother must persuade him in a firm manner and say, “My dear son, it is not for you to disregard the commands of your father. Obey by any means.” Therefore, in all situations, it is the mother who advises the child. So, Japanese mothers of today should have pure thoughts and ideals, instead of watching Korean dramas and yearning for a “lover” that looks like “Yong-sama.”
It takes a character to lead a family. I have three children. When I have to punish them, to teach them the difference between good and bad, it is not pleasant. It always demands character, and I need the collaboration of their mother. Yet, he who loves well, punishes well.
We want happiness in our families and communities, but we do not lead exemplary lives. If children have taken the wrong path these days (smoking, drinking, killing…) we adults are mostly responsible, we are not exemplary in our behavior either.For example, how can a father prevent his son from smoking if he smokes in front of him? Then the son, too, will start smoking by stealing cigarettes from his father’s pocket. If the father scolds him for smoking, the modern day child retorts, “Father, when you yourself are smoking, why do you object to my smoking?” Therefore, parents should never behave in a manner that will set a bad example for the children.Only when the father is good can he expect his son to be good. Is it possible for a father to keep his son at home when he himself roams about as he likes?
Nowadays, Japanese fathers do not try to discipline their children, and children do not listen to their mothers. The majority of Japanese parents are lenient; they accept anything their children do. This is the reason why Japan has become such a filthy nation. And ever since there are almost no spiritual activities in Japanese people daily lives; children have no chance to take the path of charitable services, faith in God and devotion.
Hence, the Japanese should tackle the questions of morality and ethics in their contemporary culture. I believe there is a need for education of the heart and the soul inJapan; an education that emphasizes ethical behavior, morality and character. The failure to integrate this aspect of education into the lives of young people is what makes it seem acceptable to snap, to shoplift, to kill, and to behave as if there are no standards or rules in the society.
These days, Japanese adults and children alike do not show any interest in reading spiritual and philosophical books (The Holy Bible, The Teaching of Buddha, Hojoki by Kamo-no-Chomei, Emile by Jean-Jacques Rousseau...). They read all sorts of trash (pornographic magazines, violent and sexual comics, “empty“ love stories…) and start on the wrong path in their childhood. If the tender saplings grow straight, the tree will also grow straight.
If the sapling grows crooked, then the tree will grow crooked. But, Japanese parents of today ignore this crucial notion.They fear to establish strict rules for the children, as they may run away from home and end their lives.
If Japanese parents really want their children to grow up to be responsible adults in the society, and if such children are to be fostered, then, they must first correct themselves. When a “bad son” defies the commands of his father, the mother must persuade him in a firm manner and say, “My dear son, it is not for you to disregard the commands of your father. Obey by any means.” Therefore, in all situations, it is the mother who advises the child. So, Japanese mothers of today should have pure thoughts and ideals, instead of watching Korean dramas and yearning for a “lover” that looks like “Yong-sama.”
It takes a character to lead a family. I have three children. When I have to punish them, to teach them the difference between good and bad, it is not pleasant. It always demands character, and I need the collaboration of their mother. Yet, he who loves well, punishes well.
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