【ニッポンの新常識】 Common Knowledge Revisited㊹
吉永小百合『報ステ』発言に疑問 「積極的平和主義」で戦争は防げない
Sayuri Yoshinaga's Off-Base Statement on Hodo Station: War Not Deterred by "Active Pacifism"
http://www.zakzak.co.jp/society/domestic/news/20151205/dms1512051000001-n1.htm
Cartoon artist Shigeru Mizuki passed away on November 30th at the age of 93. Besides his signature work “Ge-ge-ge no Kitaro,” he produced many other works such as “All Must Die in Battle” [rather than surrender], “Rabaul [Papua New Guinea] War Record,” and “Record of a Rout,” all of which depicted the misery of sick and wounded soldiers and carried an anti-war message.
On the anti-war subject, the other day a very famous Japanese actress whom I also like, Sayuri Yoshinaga, appeared on TV Asahi’s nightly news show “Hodo Station” where she said “I think that not possessing weapons is active pacifism.” The news anchor, Ichiro Furutachi, solemnly nodded in agreement, but I think that way of thinking is mistaken.
If Japan is to prevent war according to her “active pacifism,” then by the same reasoning a home which practices “active burglar prevention” by not locking the doors will never be robbed, and a woman who practices “active prevention of groping” by not carrying a can of mace will never be assaulted. Not only is that impossible, but it will actually produce the opposite result.
Japanese are very good at reading people’s feelings and the atmosphere of a situation, but perhaps because they have not been trained in debate techniques, many people are not very good at logical reasoning. They do not recognize logical contradictions or the sidestepping of issues. Because they place excess importance on saving face for their opponent and dislike disrupting human relations, they are unable to flatly state that what someone else has said is wrong.
They should take a lesson from recent history about countries which do not possess weapons.
Immediately after its establishment in 1949, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) staged military invasions of Uighur, Tibet, and Inner Mongolia. They took effective control and declared these regions part of their own country. Ethnic massacres and suppression of human rights in these areas are ongoing, but the Japanese media hardly ever reports this situation.
Mr. Mizuki depicted the misery of war in his works, but the daily life of people who cannot resist oppression due to a lack of weapons is equally miserable. In particular, Japan has already experienced the reality that women are the worst victims.
Following the war, large numbers of Japanese women were raped by Soviets, Chinese, and Koreans as they fled the continent for Japan. For details, refer to “Futsukaichi Rest Home” or “So Far from the Bamboo Grove” on Wikipedia.
The American soldiers also committed a large number of rapes starting immediately after occupying Japan. In order to protect Japanese women, the government took the lead in setting up special comfort stations (prostitution facilities) in Tokyo, Yokohama, and throughout the country.
Due to the censorship imposed by GHQ (General Headquarters of the Allied Forces), many Japanese are totally unaware of these realities.
If Japan ceases to possess weapons, then we may rest assured that the People’s Liberation Army, which has committed untold atrocities on the Uighurs and Tibetans, will eventually serve up a repeat performance in Japan.
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