Japanese hell for exams... it's the Yakuza, stupid!

I read that the most of the (in)famous Yakuza groups are

forcing members to take "gangster exam". From the Mainichi

online. First I was surprised because I thought that most of

the leaders of gangs already graduated from top universities

prior to join top firms.

But here I can feel a fresh wind of reform that is blessing

the whole archipelago. Fresh and professional.

After all this is Japan, there is only one way to do serious

career (in crime) and it is to be a well groomed educated

(bandit) careerist.

(Young ladies modeling with excessive make up)

"Japan's largest and most notorious organized crime group,

the Yamaguchi-gumi, is forcing members to take a "gangster

exam" in order to reduce costly damages suits, police have

discovered. An affiliate based in Shiga Prefecture is

distributing written tests on the revised Anti-Organized

Crime Law, which allows higher-ranking gang members to be

sued for the actions of their subordinates, as a preventative

measure against future lawsuits. Police believe the test has

been introduced by Yamaguchi-gumi groups across the country.

Police first discovered the test during an investigation of a

member of the affiliate."

It is now the time of kids getting back to school and it

influences massively the Yakuza, apparently.

"A 12-question exam paper, complete with model answers, was

among the items confiscated. Questions included "What kind

of activities are banned?" with "dumping industrial waste;

bootlegging fuel; theft of construction vehicles and other

expensive items; phone fraud scams" etc. listed as the

correct answers. The model answer to the final question,

"What are you required to do in all your activities?" was:

"report and consult with my bosses."

Very organized people. I would not like to appear ironic but

was there any question about more lethal "activities"? Hang

a politician in the bathroom, push a businessman into ordeal

after kidnapping his family, take commissions from the real

estate business industry that impair national budget,

extorting kids at school with the heavy hands of young thugs,

etc. etc. etc.

Mainichi report

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20090905p2a00m0na010000c.html

Images of body painting

http://artbodypainting.blogspot.com/2007/07/yakuza-girls.html

China: When nostalgia defeats revolution

"A bunch of eunuchs?"

"To observe September 1, the national back-to-school day,

Hangzhou's Ziyang Elementary School held a special ceremony

in which teachers and students wore Qing costumes. According

to principal Lu Aiping, this was intended to honor the

school's long history, which extends back to 1703 and the

reign of the Kangxi Emperor.

Chinese Internet users saw it quite a bit differently. In a

thread on Tiexue net, someone commented : they look like a

bunch of eunuchs.

Another netizen said, Qing costumes are the ugliest. History

was evoked to make the argument more compelling : At the

beginning of Kangxi's rule, Southern Ming minister Zhang

Huangyan was captured and sent to Hangzhou to be

dismembered.

When the people saw Zhang in Ming style clothes, everyone

shed tears. Now, 98 years after the Han drove out the aliens

and recovered the country, how can these barbarian clothes

still be the fashion? When they students wear barbarian

clothes, do they even think of Zhang, who was buried by West

Lake? The newspaper report said that principal Lu has

received scores of angry letters protesting the ceremony.

One outraged citizen was afraid that his complaints would be

ignored if he posted on the school BBS, so instead he hacked

the school's website and posted an open letter decrying the

ceremony." End of quotes.

✍ In Yokohama Chinatown I'd understand but I am quite not

sure to see what is behind this sudden wind of nostalgia.

Quotes here of this interesting blog regularly updated

http://www.danwei.org/

Le Japon se lâche

Vive la liberté de la presse et je dois dire qu'après des

années de journalisme dans l'audiovisuel (surtout) et la

presse écrite (française et étrangère) je n'avais pas encore

vécu une telle expérience. La First Lady japonaise et

ex-artiste danseuse de la célèbre revue Takarazuka est

présentée ici comme ayant été kidnappée par des extra

terrestres. En fait, elle a rêvé cet enlèvement.

C'est ici http://tinyurl.com/now59u

" L'alternance " après 54 ans de féodalisme politique, c'est

amusant. Le Japon se lâche? Un remake de Meiji Ishin?

Bon, on passe aux choses sérieuses...

Hatoyama's subliminal message to DC

Japanese language is said to be difficult to master and even

more when you have to interview a Japanese politician who is

going to play with words being in the Chinese pronunciation

(Prime Minister Aso) or giving a rather vague and fuzzy

explanation not to answer to a reporter question. My

Japanese colleagues are well trained to the exercise but it

seems that it is creating a wave of dissatisfaction overseas.

Take this issue of an essay of Yukio Hatoyama, new Prime

Minister to come around mid September after his historic

victory in the general election August 30th, essay originally

published in the September edition of the Japanese monthly

journal Voice and titled "My Political Philosophy."

It appeared Aug. 27 on The New York Times' Web site under

the headline "A New Path for Japan."

Hatoyama's views about Japan as "equal partner relation with

US," are already drawing criticisms from the West and the

media reported: "Distorted' in translation? Hatoyama denies

Op-Ed piece expresses 'anti-American' view" (Japan Times)

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20090902a5.html

Quotes:

"Naoki Nakazawa, managing editor of Voice, said that so far

he has not received any reprint requests by any of the U.S.

papers that published the essay and was unsure if this

infringed the essay's copyright, which belongs to Hatoyama.

"Then you would realize that it's not about anti-Americanism,

but about 'yuai' (fraternity)." Hatoyama's secretary, Daisuke

Haga, said they were also unaware that the essay was

circulating in U.S. publications. He urged people to read

the entire essay, which is posted on Hatoyama's Web site in

Japanese, English and Korean. End of quotes.

Fraternity... Just a precision: I asked a teacher to confirm

to avoid being lost in translation in Japanese and the answer

is you can use: Nakama, Hakuai, Yuai. Now it looks like we

are not any more talking about translation but about

political intentions.

Something uncomfortable here?

This time it is not a Japanese politicians legion which is

going to DC but the opposite. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert

Gates will be Tokyo in October to discuss the U.S.-Japan

military alliance with the new Prime Minister Hatoyama to

talk about the 50,000 troops deployed across Japan and the

security treaty.

Hatoyama's Democrats have said they want to re-examine

Tokyo's relations with Washington and bring to Japan a more

independent stance, while keeping U.S. relations as a

cornerstone of their global policy...

Something chili's going on. Small steps here, small steps...

DPJ Hatoyama victory: how Japanese Media designed a transfer of power?

How did the Japanese made their opinion and choose to vote

for the DPJ opposition and was this choice assisted by the

mass-media? Candid? Not only anger and disillusions. How

did the media get such a narrow margin error in establishing

the surveys that help to design Japanese voters opinion to

opt for the DPJ at historical August 30th Sunday election?

No conspiracy. Simply said : the work of a fantastic

organization, better than the former Cold War Department D

of KGB.

All you want to know about Japanese media today in this

official document revealed by the FAS. Quotes: "The OSC

report on Japanese media has not been approved for public

release, but a copy was obtained by Secrecy News.

(Federation of American Scientists)"

URL http://www.fas.org/irp/dni/osc/japan-media.pdf

✍

My opinion, it is a good insight into the daily function

of the Japanese media industry, un "état des forces". A

fantastic data report for professionals in strategic

communication.