It's been a couple of weeks of awful news and disaster after calamity, but we cannot forget the problems that have been put aside by the press. Of course, I am referring to the declining population in Japan.
I have mentioned this before – the herbivores and other men who are not interested in sex. But let's face it, those were top-of-the-news attractions with only weak data to support them.
A Hard Hitting News Hound does not stop with the superficial, the trivial explanations of social ills. No. A Hard Hitting News Hound digs and digs, deeper and deeper until the truth is excavated and everyone can see what is REALLY going on.
I am afraid that (despite the awful news of nuclear problems etc. etc.... yawn) I have discovered some really important developments in Japan's population crisis.
First, please check out this map. All of the links I put in here are meant to be looked at, so go ahead... don't be shy... check it out.
Yes, this does mean you.
Now what does this map show us? It shows us (in blueish tinges) where there are very low numbers of children.
What does this mean, you ask?
It means that there are not many children in those areas.
Duh?
(Some people are SO stupid... not you, of course.)
No... what you really want to know is why am I showing you this. Right?
OK. Take a look at this map.
On this map the reddish areas highlight the number of senior citizens. If you toggle back and forth, you can see immediately what I am talking about!
The more the seniors, the fewer the children!
Can you believe this? In a country that is SUFFERING from depopulation in many areas and as a nation too, some people are not living up to their national responsibilities.
Yes, I hate to be explicit, but sometimes an investigative reporter simply has to lay it all out and let the chips fall where they may.
Seniors are not having children!
Japan is a nation that survives on community effort. Look at the recovery going on right now! It is a nation where everyone knows his/her place and works to make that place the best ever. Everyone pulls his or her own weight.
But, look at these seniors. Data does not lie!
There they are, living in the comfort of their pensions, probably playing golf everyday and sitting around watching mind-numbing programs on TV while the population of Japan is decreasing.
Especially in their prefectures!
And what are THEY doing about it?
Nothing!
This is not an easy problem to solve. It will require a national effort. But seniors in their decrepitude need to be reminded that even though they are "retired", they still have responsibilities to the nation. The government needs to take steps immediately to encourage them to have more children and bring their prefectures up to national averages (at least!).
As a news watcher, I know that it is not easy for the government to take its eye off the important balls (har) that seem to be out of control right now, but over the long term, it still needs to address critical problems that will have long-range implications.
It might take serious investigative reporting like mine to provide a stimulus for the government to begin to take steps to resolve this critical problem.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
FaceBook Brings Us Together
As the crisis of earthquake and tsunami plays out in the news, we can see it reflected in the touching human contact on Facebook. I would like to quote a thread (with some editing and name deletion) to show you how warm these exchanges can be.
We start with one person's post about the safety of another.
M: My friend, W, is safe! I just heard from him!
R: That's good news! Calls for a celebration. Let's drink!!!
M: Yes, a big beer!
C: I am so glad to hear this news! I am opening a bottle of wine right now!
D: I contacted my friend too!
M: This calls for more beer!
C: And another bottle of wine!
J: If there ever was a day for beer, it's today...
K: Woo hoo! Cheers all!
M: I think I will switch to wine!
C: That's great, M! I will open another wine!
J: dhissh for go out? Mped beer...
D: I am definitely celebrating tonight. Opening a bottle of champagne right now!
C: OMG! If ever there was a time to party, this is it! I am opening another wine for sure – as soon as I finish the last of this bottle!!!
F: Sounds like a party! I am joining in. Shaking the martinis right now!!
J: goch foosh... cheshing frish for beer...
M: Hey, this shiraz is really good! You guys should try this one! It's ___ Shiraz!
C: I found a bottle under my bed!!! I am opening it right now!!
K: Woo hoo!! Hoot! Hoot! Cheersh!
D: My friend is coming over!! She was in Tokyo all this time! She's bringing some wine!
C: That is so great, D!! OMG!! This shiraz IS good!
J: yoush guysh high? plff.... shnaxs... mior beer....
And so on, sharing the warmth of human contact across the wide distances that separate us.
Hmm... maybe I should open something too... cheers all! Love ya!
We start with one person's post about the safety of another.
M: My friend, W, is safe! I just heard from him!
R: That's good news! Calls for a celebration. Let's drink!!!
M: Yes, a big beer!
C: I am so glad to hear this news! I am opening a bottle of wine right now!
D: I contacted my friend too!
M: This calls for more beer!
C: And another bottle of wine!
J: If there ever was a day for beer, it's today...
K: Woo hoo! Cheers all!
M: I think I will switch to wine!
C: That's great, M! I will open another wine!
J: dhissh for go out? Mped beer...
D: I am definitely celebrating tonight. Opening a bottle of champagne right now!
C: OMG! If ever there was a time to party, this is it! I am opening another wine for sure – as soon as I finish the last of this bottle!!!
F: Sounds like a party! I am joining in. Shaking the martinis right now!!
J: goch foosh... cheshing frish for beer...
M: Hey, this shiraz is really good! You guys should try this one! It's ___ Shiraz!
C: I found a bottle under my bed!!! I am opening it right now!!
K: Woo hoo!! Hoot! Hoot! Cheersh!
D: My friend is coming over!! She was in Tokyo all this time! She's bringing some wine!
C: That is so great, D!! OMG!! This shiraz IS good!
J: yoush guysh high? plff.... shnaxs... mior beer....
And so on, sharing the warmth of human contact across the wide distances that separate us.
Hmm... maybe I should open something too... cheers all! Love ya!
Monday, March 14, 2011
The Earthquake and Tsunami
It's impossible to generate any levity with the constant stream of horrific video and news from the east coast of Japan. The death toll will almost certainly rise to the many thousands.
We are reminded of how precious a secure house, hot food, and clean drinking water are, and of our personal luck of not now living in Sendai where we lived for 8 years not so long ago. The area where we rented an old house, Wakabayashi, was the hardest hit by the tsunami. Friends are still there and we anxiously wait for word of their safety.
We are also reminded of how the luxury of life's essentials that we enjoy today hang by a thread and remain at the constant mercy of our unsettled and often unsettling planet.
I will post donation access points on FaceBook as soon as possible. Right now all the trustworthy sites (Japan Red Cross etc.) are still not set up to receive donations from English-speaking sources and others (Yahoo!, Goo, etc.) require registration in Japanese. If you read Japanese, I encourage you to search on your own and let me know if you find an easy-to-access point for foreign donations.
Take care everyone.
We are reminded of how precious a secure house, hot food, and clean drinking water are, and of our personal luck of not now living in Sendai where we lived for 8 years not so long ago. The area where we rented an old house, Wakabayashi, was the hardest hit by the tsunami. Friends are still there and we anxiously wait for word of their safety.
We are also reminded of how the luxury of life's essentials that we enjoy today hang by a thread and remain at the constant mercy of our unsettled and often unsettling planet.
I will post donation access points on FaceBook as soon as possible. Right now all the trustworthy sites (Japan Red Cross etc.) are still not set up to receive donations from English-speaking sources and others (Yahoo!, Goo, etc.) require registration in Japanese. If you read Japanese, I encourage you to search on your own and let me know if you find an easy-to-access point for foreign donations.
Take care everyone.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Japan's Earthquake and Tsunami
I think I would trust this donation path:
http://www.tuaw.com/2011/03/13/apple-now-accepts-donations-to-red-cross-japan-relief-fund-via-i/
More later
http://www.tuaw.com/2011/03/13/apple-now-accepts-donations-to-red-cross-japan-relief-fund-via-i/
More later
Monday, March 7, 2011
Let's English the Diet!
Once again another Japanese Prime Minister hangs by a thread. Prime Minister Kan is the 5th Prime Minister to grace the national political summit in the last 4 and a half years. His party does not have an outright majority and thus depends on the participation of small but irritatingly picky, lesser parties for its survival.
Critical issues of national importance, such as the US bases in Okinawa, the huge national debt, declining birthrates, and whether the pandas brought from China will mate, have tied his brief administration in knots. He flounders, looking for salvation from the heated questioning and challenges to the smooth and decisive leadership he wishes to portray.
What can he do?
The answer is so obvious, one can only wonder why he hasn't implemented it already.
He should change the language of the Japanese Parliament (the Diet) to English!
There is ample precedent for such a move. Starting with Nissan Motors under Carlos Ghosn who insisted that management meetings be conducted in English as early as 2001, other firms such as online sales company Rakuten and the major clothing retailer, Uniqlo, have followed suit, requiring all their meetings to be conducted in English. Tough love; but those who cannot learn the language adequately can simply pack their bags and leave.
Switching to English in the Diet would be a win-win situation! As anyone who has taught English in Japan can tell you, there is no faster way to reduce the buzz of conversation and the asking of questions than to require that it be done in English. Debate in the Diet would be reduced to a trickle and all the background shouting would fade to a Zen-like calm.
In addition, the Prime Minister's commitment to the use of English would demonstrate real support for the English language programs his Ministry of Education (and a bunch of other departments, so that it's acronym is MEXT) is foisting off on the nation's elementary schools. The relatively new layer of entrance exam testing it has imposed on the nation's high school grads would also assume a novel luster.
Of course there would be the naysayers, those simpletons who would stand up and make the specious argument that Japanese politics should be discussed in Japanese. But the Prime Minister could demonstrate his charisma by walking to the mike and saying, "Sit down and shut up!" Now that would put those pesky upstarts from the other parties in their places! Let's weaponize the English!
The Prime Minister IS in dire need of some image burnishing, unfortunately. Video of his visit with President Obama last September made him look like he needed a new diaper, what with all the nervous out-of-sync smiling and wiggle-butting in the chair. A dramatic, new endeavor such as this would drag his approval ratings out of the cellar where they are now and into living rooms across the nation where everyone could watch the debates on NHK (Japanese public broadcasting). At least with the discussions in English, the public would have an excuse not to understand what is going on.
Critical issues of national importance, such as the US bases in Okinawa, the huge national debt, declining birthrates, and whether the pandas brought from China will mate, have tied his brief administration in knots. He flounders, looking for salvation from the heated questioning and challenges to the smooth and decisive leadership he wishes to portray.
What can he do?
The answer is so obvious, one can only wonder why he hasn't implemented it already.
He should change the language of the Japanese Parliament (the Diet) to English!
There is ample precedent for such a move. Starting with Nissan Motors under Carlos Ghosn who insisted that management meetings be conducted in English as early as 2001, other firms such as online sales company Rakuten and the major clothing retailer, Uniqlo, have followed suit, requiring all their meetings to be conducted in English. Tough love; but those who cannot learn the language adequately can simply pack their bags and leave.
Switching to English in the Diet would be a win-win situation! As anyone who has taught English in Japan can tell you, there is no faster way to reduce the buzz of conversation and the asking of questions than to require that it be done in English. Debate in the Diet would be reduced to a trickle and all the background shouting would fade to a Zen-like calm.
In addition, the Prime Minister's commitment to the use of English would demonstrate real support for the English language programs his Ministry of Education (and a bunch of other departments, so that it's acronym is MEXT) is foisting off on the nation's elementary schools. The relatively new layer of entrance exam testing it has imposed on the nation's high school grads would also assume a novel luster.
Of course there would be the naysayers, those simpletons who would stand up and make the specious argument that Japanese politics should be discussed in Japanese. But the Prime Minister could demonstrate his charisma by walking to the mike and saying, "Sit down and shut up!" Now that would put those pesky upstarts from the other parties in their places! Let's weaponize the English!
The Prime Minister IS in dire need of some image burnishing, unfortunately. Video of his visit with President Obama last September made him look like he needed a new diaper, what with all the nervous out-of-sync smiling and wiggle-butting in the chair. A dramatic, new endeavor such as this would drag his approval ratings out of the cellar where they are now and into living rooms across the nation where everyone could watch the debates on NHK (Japanese public broadcasting). At least with the discussions in English, the public would have an excuse not to understand what is going on.
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