A Vanishing of Patriotism and an Emergence of Extremism 消えかけた愛国主義と極端主義の台頭

１９９９年に施行された国旗国歌法により、現文部科学大臣下村博文は全国すべての国立大学に、入学式、卒業式などの行事の際には国歌を歌うように要請しました。

With the implementation of the law regarding the national flag and anthem in 1999, Hakubun Shimomura, the current cabinet of the Ministry of Education, Science, and Culture required all government run universities nationwide to sing the national anthem on all special occasions, such as entrance and graduation ceremonies.

しかしながら、朝日新聞の調査によると、８６校のうちたった１１校が今年の入学式に国歌斉唱を実施しました。

Yet of 86 national universities, according to the survey of Asahi Shinbun, one of the leading newspapers in Japan, only 11 conducted the anthem in the entrance ceremonies this year.

ある大学教授は、国歌に馴染みのない留学生を考慮して実施しなかったと説明していますが、その言い訳に過ぎない説明は説得力がまるでありません。そもそも、一般的に日本という国は少数派の人々を考慮するような国ではないでしょう。

Some professors explained that they had to consider the international students who were not familiar with the anthem. This explanation, which is like a mere excuse, is not conceivable enough for me because Japan in general doesn't take into consideration minority people.

左翼団体は国歌斉唱の要請は完全なる表現の自由に反し、さらに国歌の歌詞、冒頭部分の「君」は日本国民を戦争へと誘発させた人物であると考えられている天皇を意味する君主だとして軍国主義またファシズムを暗示していると強く反対しています。

Left-Wing groups fiercely opposed that the requirement of singing the anthem was utterly against freedom of expression, moreover, its lyrics implies nothing more than Militarism coupled with Fascism; "Kimi", the very first word of the anthem, as one of the assumptions says, implies "sovereign", which is the Japanese emperor, who was considered the very figure who induced the Japanese to get into war.

ほとんどでなくても、多くの日本人は、戦後以来消えつつある「愛国主義」をどうも誤解しているように思われます。

Many, if not most, Japanese people have a misconception about "Patriotism", which has been vanishing since the loss of World War II.

先ほど述べた左翼団体は日本人としてのアイデンティティが内容に思われます。むしろ、彼らの気持ちは当時の大日本帝国主義に対する強い怒りと一緒にかき乱されているのでしょう。それは長いあいだ彼らを一定の場所に留めるだけです。

The said Left-Wing people don't seem to have identity as Japanese. Rather, thier feelings have been stirred with fierce anger towards the Japanese imperialism back then, which have been holding them back for a long time.

集団主義から個人主義へのシフトは国家に対する私たちの態度を変えたかもしれません。ある自由を愛する日本人は、色々なケースを取り上げ、他国はどうこの問題を扱うかなど比べながら、国歌斉唱の際に起立するかどうかは本人の意思に委ねるべきだと主張しています。

Shifting Collectivism to Individualism after the war might have changed our attitude towards the nation. Some liberated Japanese insist that whether or nor they stand up and sing the anthem should be entrusted in their will, which brings up other cases and comparisons on how other countries handle this issue.

そのような人々は愛国心の欠片もない、ただの自己愛に溺れているだけです。皮肉なことに、彼らはただ「ニセ個人主義に」陥っているだけなのです。

Those people don't have a sense of Patriotism either, but are full of selfishness, and ironically speaking, they are just swamped with "False Individualism".

私は声を大にして言いたです。国旗と国歌は国歌の象徴であると。そのような象徴なしに、どのように自身を認識し、他の人々と異なることができるのでしょうか？その時点で個人主義というものは存在しません。

I want to raise my voice that the national flag and anthem are symbols of our nation. How do you identify and differ yourself form other people without any symbolic things? Individualism no longer exists at that point.

ちなみに、国歌のいくつかの歌詞は日本で１０００年以上前に作られた古今和歌集という詩の中で見つけることができます。

Incidentally, some lyrics of the national anthem can be found in Kokin-waka shu, the old Japanese poetry composed over 1,000 years ago.

当時の貴族に読まれた詩であるという時点で、その歌詞は立派な意味が込めれらています。「信頼と結束を強めながら、男性と女性が互いに尊敬、愛し合う時代が永遠に続いていく、それは次の世代へと繋がっていく」

To the point that the poem was read for the noble people at that time, the lyrics contains respectable meanings; a time when a man and a woman respect and love each other that lasts forever, strengthening the bond and trust, which would be connected to the next generation.

国歌は軍国主義のことではなく、天皇崇拝でもなく、神道の精神について歌われたものでした。

The national anthem is neither about Militarism nor the emperor worship, but sung about the spirit of the religion, "Shinto".

愛国主義は軽視されるべきではありません。なぜならそれは私たちにどう自分や周りの人々を愛するのか教えてくれます。

Patriotism should not be treated lightly because it also tells us how to love ourselves and people around us.

一番恐ろしいことは、先ほど述べった左翼のように極端主義に走ることです。

The most terrifying thing is Extremism, like the Left-Wing people that I mentioned.

Source: Hans, B. 2008. Showa Japan.

Positive and Negative results of the American occupation アメリカ占領による利害関係

フィリピンの初代大統領で革命家であったエミリオ・アギナルドは、1898年6月12日に、300年以上続いたスペイン植民地からへの独立を宣言した。
Emilio Aguinaldo, one of the revolutionaries as well as the first president of the Philippines, declared the Philippines independence from Spain on June 12, 1898, which resulted in the end of the Spanish colonization that lasted for almost 300 years.

しかしながら、フィリピン国民はその独立がアメリカの占領の始まりだとは予期していなかった。アメリカがフィリピンの独立を手助けしたにもかかわらず。
However, the Filipinos would never expect that the independence was actually the start of the American occupation, although America joined the Philippines' side to aid them to be independent.

スペイン降伏後、パリ講和条約に従い、フィリピンは2千万ドルでアメリカに売却された。フィリピン国民はそのアメリカの裏切りに強い憤りを感じ、それが米比戦争へとつながった。
After the surrender of Spain, the Philippines was bought for $ 20,000,000 by America in accordance with Treaty of Paris. The Filipinos strongly resented the betrayal of America, which brought them to Philippine - American War (1898 - 1902).

その戦争でアメリカ側は4千人の戦死者を出し、フィリピン側は民間人も含め150万人もの戦死者を出してしまった。アメリカ軍は独立派やアメリカに反抗するフィリピン人を虐殺したため、
The war caused over 4,000 causalities in the American side, and 1.5 million causalities in the Philippines' side, including its civilians. Since American troops massacred Filipino rebels who were against America and claimed for the independence,

フィリピン人戦死者の数はかなり多く出てしまった。「10歳以上は皆殺し」、これはニューヨークジャーナルの風刺画の見出しであったが、まさに大虐殺が行われたと断言しているようなものだ
the number of Filipino causalities considerably increased. "KILL EVERY ONE OVER TEN", which was the caption in the New York Journal cartoon, affirmed that the massacre actually happened.

エミリオ・アギナルド捕獲後、フィリピンは1902年にアメリカに植民地化されてしまった。
After the capture of Emilio Aguinaldo, the Philippines were colonized by America in 1902.

アメリカ占領中にはたくさんのことが成された。そのいくつかはフィリピンに利益を生み、いくつかはむしろ混乱を招いた。
A lot of things are done during the American occupation, some of which brought some benefits to the Philippines and some didn't, rather caused some confusions.

良い結果
Positive results:

1. Progress in Education　（教育の促進）
2. Public Health and Welfare　（福利厚生）
3. Transportation and Communication　（交通と電話）
4. Literature and Language　（文学と言語）

今回は１と2に焦点を当てたいと思う。ある人々はなぜフィリピン人が英語をしゃべれるのかと不思議に思うだろう。それは「アメリカ占領」という簡潔な答えである。
I would like just to focus on no. 1 and 2 this time. Some people are wondering why the Filipinos can speak English. Here is the brief answer: "because of the American occupation".

スペイン植民地時代のフィリピン人はスペイン語と義務教育の必須科目であるキリスト教について学ぶように勧められた。
The Filipinos during the Spanish colonization were encouraged to learn Spanish language and Christianity which was compulsory.

しかし、反対にアメリカはその言語の代わりに英語を学ぶように命令し、宗教に関わる教科を選択科目とした。
But, America, conversely, discourage them from learning the language in favor of English, and made the subject related to the religion optional.

政府の試験はすべて英語で行われたため、それに伴いその言語は全ての学校で必要不可欠になった。それはなぜ英語が国中全体で理解されているのかを裏付けている。
Government examinations were even conducted in English, thus, the language became critical in all schools, which today explains why English is understood throughout the Philippines.

悪い結果
Negative results:

1. A replacement Filipino goods with American ones　（アメリカ商品への交換）
2. The de-Filipinization　（脱フィリピン化）

アメリカとフィリピン間による自由貿易の確立により、それは両国の商品を輸入、そして輸出することを可能にさせた。
With the establishment of free trade between America and the Philippines, it enabled both to export and import their own goods.

しかしながら、フィリピンの輸出は、麻・砂糖・タバコだけがアメリカ市場に入ることを許され、一方でアメリカは無制限に輸出できた。それゆえアメリカの商品は贅沢品から必需品へとシフトした。それはフィリピンならではの商品の過失へと繋がった。
However, Philippine exports are limited: hemp, sugar, and tobacco only were allowed to entry American markets. While America exports were unlimited. Thus, eventually American goods shifted "luxuries" to "necessities", which led to the loss of Philippine delicacies .

多くのフィリピン人はおそらく、論理的評価なしにアメリカからの物はいつも良品と考えるかもしれない。それは彼らの潜在意識に深く根付いている。
Most Filipinos probably think that something from America is always good without any logical evaluations, which has sunk into the subconscious of them.

そのような考え方は時々、論理的評価なしに「フィリピンからの物は劣悪品だ」と考えさせてしまう。
That kind of mindset inevitably makes the Filipinos think that "something from our country is inferior" without any logical evaluations.

フィリピン国民は混乱の中にいる、そしてアメリカの占領から未だに苦しんでるのかもしれない。
The Filipinos have been in confusion　as ever and suffering from the side effect of the American occupation.

Source:
Teodoro A. 2012. History Of The Filipino People. C & E Publishing, Inc: Quezon City, Philippine

What is the meaning of Suki of Suki-yaki すき焼き?

日本の国民的食べ物であるすき焼きは、おそらく坂本九によって歌われた「SUKIYAKI」という歌で世界に知られているでしょう。
Suki-yaki, the Japanese national food, is probably known to the world because of the song, "SUKIYAKI", sung by Kyu Sakamoto, who was one of the most famous national Japanese singers.

牛肉と野菜が入る鍋を用意し、醤油・酒・砂糖でできたすき焼きの素を入れる前に牛肉を焼きます
You have to prepare a pot where beef and vegetables are placed. Beef should be sauteed in the pot before poring Suki-yaki sauce which is made up of soy sauce, sake, and sugar.

「焼き」は英語でsauteやgrillですね。そのためこの言葉は道理にかなっています。
"Yaki" means "saute" or "Grill", therefore, the word makes sense for this food.

しかし、「すき」はどうでしょう？
But, what about "Suki"?

「すき」はある農具の名前に由来しているとのことです。
"Suki" actually derives from the name of a farming tool.

本来日本人は牛肉を食べる習慣がありませんでした。それよりも早期江戸時代ではそれを食べることは厳しく禁じられていました。
Japanese originally didn't have a custom to eat beef, above all, eating it had been strictly prohabited in the early Edo era.

しかしながら、当時の農民は隠れて焼いた牛肉を「鋤」で食べていたのです。
However, even so, farmers at that time ate grilled beef hiding with a spade, Suki in Japanese.

だから私たちの国民的食べ物は「すき焼き」と呼ばれているんですね。
That's why our national food is caled "Suki-yaki"!

さらなる日本での牛肉を食べる習慣の調査によると、江戸時代で一番身分が低かった「えた・非人」によってすでに牛肉が食べられていたというのです。
According to further research of the beef-eating custom in Japan, Eta (えた) and Hinin (非人), who were the lowest class people during Edo era, were already eating beef.

その理由は彼らは動物の死体を扱っていたからです。それがその人たちの仕事でした。
The reason is because they handled dead animals. That was their job back then.

西洋化に伴い、日本は開国して以来日本人は新しい習慣そして文化を取り入れました。牛肉を食べるのもその一つなんですね。
In accordance with Westernization, Japanese have assimilated to the new customs and culture since Japan opened itself to foreigners, Eating beef is also was one of them.

The Difference Between 鮨 and 寿司

たまに、日本のことを聞かれてちゃんと答えられないとき日本人として恥ずかしく感じることがあります。
Sometimes, I feel embarrassed when I am asked about something Japanese, and cannot answer properly, with I am a Japanese.

なので、今回は私の国日本に関してのトリビアとともに記事を書きたいと思います。
So this time, I am going to write an article with trivia related to my country Japan.

最初のトリビアは「すし」です。
The first trivia that I want to share with you is "Sushi".

日本の代表的食べ物である「すし」は世界中で人気を得ていて、言うまでもなくフィリピンでもそうです。
Sushi, the representative food of Japan, is gaining in popularity across the world, not to mention even in the Philippines.

日本でお寿司屋さんに行ったことのある外国人の方は二つの違った「すし」の漢字あることにおそらく気づいたでしょう。
Foreigners, who have been to sushi bars or restaurants i  Japan, probably realized that there are two different kinds of kanji of sushi.

鮨 and 寿司

外国人の方はそのような違いに日本人よりも敏感ですからね。鋭い、そして素晴らしい観察力には脱帽ですね。
I am pretty sure that foreigners are more sensitive about such a difference than we are, which I really admire their keen and incredible observations by the way.

「すし」は江戸時代に始まりました。その当時の人々は、腐るのを避けるため、魚を塩と一緒に保存し、さらに発酵を促すお米も加えました。
Sushi was originated at Edo (江戸) era. People back then, in order to avoid spoiling, preserved fish with salt, and added rice which actually accelerated the fermentation.

グーグルは教えてくれました！歴史的事実によりますと、鮨という漢字は寿司より先に使われていたそうです。しかしながら、ある時点で日本人はそれをお祝いを意味する漢字「寿」に変えてしまいました。
Google says, according to historical facts, that the kanji, 鮨, was used ahead of 寿司. However, at some point, Japanese changed 鮨 into different kanji by using 寿 that represents "celebrations"(お祝い).

だから日本人はなにかおめでたいことがあると寿司を食べるんですね。
That's why we eat sushi when something that deserves celebrations happens.

そのような漢字を「縁起がいい」と呼びます。英語ではsign of good luckです。
We call that kind of kanji "engi ga ii"(縁起がいい), which means "sign of good luck" in English.

そえゆえ、ほとんどのお寿司屋さんは売上上昇を期待して、好んで「寿司」を使うそうです。もちろん鮨も問題ないです。
Therefore, most sushi bars or restaurants prefer 寿司, expecting their sales raise. But, of course 鮨 is still fine to use

Philippine literature: Bamboo in the Wind

Bamboo in the Wind. winner of the 1990 Palanca Grand Prize for Novel, tells about the Filipinos under martial law that was declared during the Marcos era in 1972. 

After having finished reading the novel, complicated feelings lifted up in my chest. At the same time, I couldn't help having an admiration toward the Filipinos back then who enthusiastically participated in demonstrations for the sake of freedom and to make a change in the nation. Martial law actually massacred a lot of people regardless of age, sex, and social status. There were some accounts from which I involuntarily turned my eyes away: that women got assaulted, men killed in brutal ways. This is one of the saddest tragedy that have occurred inside the country. 

"Bamboo" represents the Filipinos themselves, and "Wind" represents political power in the novel. Even if the wind blows away, and hits bamboo with enormous power, the bent bamboo never breaks but remains quiet and strong.

I really want to encourage Japanese to read this novel, which would give them some knowledge about Philippine history. You would have a perspective that is totally different from the one prior to read this novel. 

日本語：

パランカ・グランド最優秀賞を勝ち取ったBamboo in the Windはマルコス時代に宣言された戒厳令の下に置かれたフィリピン国民について書かれています。この小説を読み終えた後、複雑な気持ちが胸にこみ上げてきたと同時に、自由を得るために熱狂的にデモに参加したフィリピン国民に対する尊敬の意を持たずにはいられませんでした。戒厳令は年齢、性別そして社会的地位に関係なくたくさんの人々を虐殺しました。女性が強姦されたり、男性が残酷なやり方で殺されたりと、見るに耐えない描写もありました。これはフィリピン国内で起こった最も悲しい悲劇でしょう。

竹はフィリピン国民自身を表し、風は政治的圧力を表しています。たとえ風が吹き荒れ、莫大な力でその竹に当たったとしても、曲がった竹は決して折れず、依然として静かに、強く留まるのです。

この小説をぜひ日本人にも読んでいただきたいです。きっとフィリピンの歴史についての本当の知識を教えてくれるはずです。そして読む前とは全く違う観点を持つことができるでしょう。

Why can't we Japanese speak English well

Reading English sentences, most Japanese people try to translate them in Japanese in their head first, and the processing takes a long time. That is considered a bad habit in learning another language. 

In a Japanese school, the majority of teachers teaching English can not grammatically explain English sentences in English, for instance, not "This is subject" but "これは主語です". Do you think this manifests the problem that Japanese people can not speak the language, even though they have studied it for over 6 years in school?

In Meji era, about 130 years ago, there were people who were able to speak and write English accurately. Inazo Nitobe, who published the book "BUSHIDO: the soul of Japan" which is written about the Japanese spirits in English; something like a Japanese bible to introduce Japan all over the world. Okakura Tenshin, who introduced the Japanese traditional culture all over the world by writing a book in English, the book is called "The book of tea". Each of their English books were written accurately and perfectly that a native speakers mistook it for an American's work. Needless to say, both of them, of course, were able to speak English fluently. They went to an English school and learned the language under an American teacher. Hence, the class was conducted in English, not in Japanese. 

Nowadays, there are so many materials and opportunities to learn English in the range of its books to online Eikai-wa (英会話) and English-learning sites. But still, a lot of Japanese students have a difficulty when it comes to English. I assume that it is sort of linked to the development of technology, in short, the more technology develop, the lazier people become. It either makes people's lives more convenient and sophisticated or makes people feel lethargic. People seem to have gotten those environments. Something good has its side effect as a medicine. The side effect of the technology development is that people crave more of instant gratification, wanting a result readily. They seems more impatient getting temper and stopping to be deep thinkers Such an impatience definitely affects your habits, life and even leanings. 

Giving a lesson to Japanese students in English is probably one of the elements to boost their English skills. However, the problem with their English is more radical one. Why were Inazo Nitobe and Tenshin Okakura able to master English up to the level of native speakers without sufficient material related to English? It is because they were extremely eager to learning the language, and dedicated themselves to do so. Inazo Nitobe read up on an English bible over and over again that was the only way to learn English back then. He read all kinds of books available in a library as more English books were imported to Japan. Acquiring another language is a long journey. If people can not get the result, they give up right away. 

If I had interviewed Inazo Nitobe and Tenshin Okakura regarding how to master English, they would have answered, "It is depends on individual's effort". 

Philippine History and the Filipinos

I took Philippine history class last semester, so I would like to discuss it on my blog. and also share my point of view.

I became more aware about the Philippine through said class. Basically, I love to study history

, especially of a country I want to go to, because it is the best way to know more about it. After all, a country's history shapes its people and culture. By knowing about it, I can also develop a sense of affinity to them. Some people might say, "Don't look back at what's already done or what happened in the past". However, I disagree with that because history exists for learning from mistakes that the previous generation have committed, such as massacres and the World Wars, and also for passing on what they have achieved to the next generation. If people don't look back at the past, there would be no meaning to it. Sadly enough, those people would mist likely commit the same mistakes again.

As I build the relationship with the Filipino people, I have noticed that they are really proud of themselves. But now, I understand. It was derived from the history that the Filipinos went through. They struggled from colonization by several countries, and fought bravely against those countries towards their independence. 

My country, Japan, has never been colonized by any country, so it was a little bit hard for me to think of how the Filipinos felt during the colonial period, but I was able to see and feel their intense feeling towards independence by visiting historical places in the Philippines that was actually a requirement in our history class.

Jose Rizal, one of the revolutionaries, fought and died for the country. Emilio Aguinaldo was also one of the revolutionaries who succeeded in leading the country to independence in the end. The similarity of both of them was that they were patriots. This feeling if nationality was successfully inherited to the next generation. However, I can also think like this: they can not help being like that due to the experience of successive colonization by  several countries before. 

Patriotism has been vanishing in Japan ever since the country's loss during World War II. It is true that America suppressed the dignity that the Japanese had during the occupation. Many achievements by Japanese troops were erased from the textbooks used at school. I admitted that Japan did hideous things to other countries, including the Philippines. However, I don't think it's enough reason for the Japanese to lose pride of themselves

Why is the Philippines developing rapidly even though its people faced several natural disasters in the past year? It's because they are optimistic and believe that they can do anything. On the other hand, the recent recession has been ailing Japan. It is not because of its economy surrounding the Japanese but because of pessimism that they have unconsciously been holding within them. There are many things that Japanese people can learn from the Philippines, and it is time for Japan to recover the dignity that got lost after World War II to overcome the recession.