“Bad Deflation”, “Bank of Japan Initiative needed” comments by Otsuka, Deputy Finance Minister

Asahi Newspaper 24th Nov 2009

Deputy Finance Minister Dr. Kouhei Otsuka (who formerly worked at the Bank of Japan) made comments on a TV Asahi programme on 23rd November with regard to the government’s engagement with the issue of prices going into a long-term deflationary cycle revealing government fears that “the recent drop in prices represents a negative form of deflation which is beginning to have a detrimental effect on employment”.

He also commented, with regard to policies to deal with deflation, that “there is probably room for a bit more initiative” on the part of the Bank of Japan’s finance policy. The exit strategy of loosening financial regulations to normal levels “raises the question of whether reacting in exactly the same way [to the situation] as western countries is a suitable response and a calm and collected judgement needs to be made”.

However, the deputy minister avoided direct mentions of any specifics of financial deregulation, commenting only that “the Bank of Japan should be thinking spontaneously and aiming to make decisions that are in harmony with the government’s policy approach.”

Knowledge of Japan Test to be Reviewed – Foreign Nursing Intern Issue

In relation to the problem of foreign nursing interns from Indonesia and other Asian countries not being able to overcome the language barrier in the ‘Japan Test’ and returning home after completing the initial 3-year ‘probational’ stage, Foreign Minister Okada commented on 21st November that “although [these interns] are among the best in their own countries, it is no good that they cannot pass this test even after 3 years and we have to see them return to their own countries”, revealing for the first time that an argument has been proposed within the Ministry in favour of a revision of the test itself.

Mr. Okada was giving a lecture at an Open Seminar in Yokkaichi city, Mie prefecture. With regard to student interns, who come to Japan under the terms of an Economic Partnership Agreement, Mr. Okada commented that “kanji are so difficult it is perhaps no surprise that most people cannot pass [the test], but what is the benefit of a test which most people fail? Perhaps it is not quite the sort of test we should be making them take.”

The minister explained to journalists after the lecture that the opinions of interns were to be taken into account by the Foreign Ministry in constructing an argument in favour of the revision of the test and that the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and other ministries would be consulted in the process.

Tarantino Interview summary

Quentin Tarantino talks with Asahi Newspaper journalists about his new film ‘Inglorious Bastards’.

As a child, he used to love playing with GI Joe dolls.

“But I never played ‘war’ with them. I used to re-enact films that I had seen. If I saw a trailer for a film that looked interesting, I would also often imagine the whole plot (using my GI Joe dolls).

Film crazy ‘Little Q’, as he was known as a boy, now does the same thing using real actors. ‘Jackie Brown’ was a black film, ‘Kill Bill’ was Kung Fu, ‘Grindhouse’ was B-grade action. Each of his films are expressions of love for films that have inspired him.

In his new film ‘Inglorious Bastards’, he combines a war film with a spaghetti western. An American army colonel with Apache blood leads a group of Jewish troops against the Nazis.

“Nowadays war films always focus on the hardship of the victims – but it never used to be like that. War films used to be like adventure stories. I began to want to watch those old classics.

His starting point is always the desire to ‘make a film that I want to see’. “The Jews and the Apaches are a resistance force sworn to take revenge” – the comment highlights the mix of genres within his new piece. The films grew to a ridiculous length at first as I tried to get everything I like in there – it could have been a TV mini series for a while back there.”

“I found the way forward when I hit upon a heroic figure who appears in Nazi propaganda films.”

The sub-text of the film is a fight for recognition in Hollywood – US forces against Nazis, a cinema manageress who escaped from the Holocaust vs. the Nazis. The English army man who sympathizes with the US military is represented by the film critics, the spies are beautiful actresses. The explosion of destructive force in the closing scenes celebrates the Jewry who escaped from the Holocaust to Hollywood and became masters of their art.

The music to the film is a collection of pieces from the soundtracks of old films. The film’s theme tune which plays at the opening is ‘The Alamo’ and Tarantino came across it in a record store in Shibuya, Tokyo.

“In fact, I’ve never seen the film, but I knew the song from Kung Fu movies. The tune playing in the Bistro in Paris is also one from an album that I found and bought in Tokyo.”

The screenplay was written at home with various music playing in the background. Music is a kind of memory for the young boy who loves films.

◇

Quentin Tarantino – born 1963, left school in Los Angeles at 16. While working in a video store he started writing screenplays. He made his debut in 1992; in 1994 “Pulp Fiction” won him the Palme D’Ors at the Cannes Film Festival and a US Academy award.

Simple Blood Test for Digestive Organ Cancer diagnosis

Kanazawa University announced on 19th November that their researchers have discovered a method for detecting cancer of the stomach, intestines, liver or other digestive organs using only a blood test. Having learned that digestive system cancers  share a distinctive genetic trait, this discovery led to a method for detecting cancer. The new method is expected to be more effective than standard procedures up till now. The aim is to introduce the test as a standard part of regular civilian health checks.

The researchers first discovered the genetic abnormality in cancerous digestive organs and then, focusing on the genes’ distinctive features, conducted tests on a group of 53 people – 40 patients already diagnosed with cancer and 13 healthy individuals. Out of the total of 53 people, tests were accurate in diagnosing the existence of cancer in 48 of the patients, which represents a success rate of approximately 90%. Ten percent of those diagnosed with cancer, using the new system, turned out not to have it.

Further testing revealed that of the 40 patients with cancer of the stomach or large intestine, 70% were accurately diagnosed using the new blood test; 70% of the patients afflicted with pancreatic cancer, which is notoriously hard to diagnose, were also correctly identified. Research will now focus on how early in their development cancerous cells can be identified.

Testing on 150 patients to identify the tell-tale proteins associated with cancerous tumours led to less precise results with only 20% of patients being correctly identified.

The main strength of the new blood testing method developed at Kanazawa University is that test results are returned within 3-4 days. Furthermore, no special medication is required nor the use of X-ray equipment; the test can be implemented for less than one hundred thousand yen, which is around half of the cost of diagnosis using positron emission tomography (PET).

Cubix, the company set up to deal with the commercial potential of the Kanazawa team’s research results, will manufacture a ‘DNA chip’ – which will be able to identify the genetic irregularity associated with cancerous cells. The company hopes to introduce public testing (at patients’ own expense) by the end of next year.

A professor at Kanazawa university says “our research this time has been into cancer in the digestive systems of the body, but we think that the new test could have applications with cancer of the lungs or womb as well. We want to see this test become part of regular health testing to enable early treatment of cancer patients.

[ Asahi Newspaper - 20th November 2009 ]

Heart Attack Victim in Nara turned away from 9 hospitals – treatment delayed by 1 hour 20 minutes

The Asahi newspaper reports this morning on a 69-year-old man who suffered a heart attack due to low blood-sugar levels and was refused admission to 9 hospitals within the Osaka prefecture and city area; it is understood that an hour and 20 minutes passed before the man was finally admitted to a public hospital in the city. The man is still receiving treatment. In March and October of this year there have been two cases of patients dying after being refused admission to 6 or 7 hospitals in the same area. The Regional Medical Treatment Union released a statement saying that ‘it is necessary to implement procedures to facilitate a system capable of receiving emergency patients without delay’.

According to the local fire service, there was a call from the patient’s house at about 11.45pm on 7th November. The ambulance arrived 6 minutes later. Ambulance medical staff suspected a stroke and radioed to hospitals in the city area but were refused due to services being ‘overstretched’. The tenth admission request was accepted and the man was admitted at 1.06am on 8th November.

APEC Leaders propose ambiguous Target for Greenhouse Gas Emissions

15th Nov 2009 : Asahi Newspaper

[ Reuters \ Singapore \ 14th Nov ]

Leaders of APEC (the Asia-Pacific Economic Committee), at a meeting held in Singapore, have made it clear that the target for reduction of greenhouse gas emissions to be made public in a declaration on 15th Nov will be expressed by the English word ’substantially’.

Hitherto, public statements have been to the effect that the target for greenhouse gas emissions is a specific reduction to 50% of 1990 levels by the year 2050.

It is not clear to what extent this change in wording is due to the influence of the new Hatoyama administration on the Japanese side, though the Democratic Party manifesto spells out a policy of closer cooperation with the economies of the Asia-Pacific region. Perhaps a slight loosening of the belt with regard to environmental regulations will allow room for some post-election-victory economic growth?

Japan has consistently taken a leading position over this issue (cf. Kyoto protocols) while other countries have dragged their heels (US), or sought ways to make money out of the problem (EU carbon emissions trading); this latest move could express an intention to tackle the problem of the economic effects of environmentally-responsible policy making in a different way to the US/Europe-focussed foreign policy of previous administrations by allowing room for manoeuver over specific policy decisions in cooperation with other Asian economies – groundwork for a more multi-lateral style in decision-making, allowing other Asian economies to ‘catch up’ so to speak, rather than to take advantage of Japan’s special US relationship to gain the economic edge over them.

The Situation in Afghanistan (Summer 2009)

[ full, unlicensed translation of article in September issue of Sekai by Tooru Shirakawa, a 24-year old journalist who has travelled to Afghanistan 5 times in the last 3 years to conduct research and make contact with local people. ]

In April 2009, my feet touched down again on Afghan soil. This was my fifth extended visit to gather local information.

Coming out of the plane my nostrils were once again assailed by the combined aromas of sand, spices and faeces that always accompany my sense of arrival in this

Map of Afghanistan

country.

As I walked out of the airport building, I was greeted by my friend of 3 years, Ismat and we celebrated this reunion with an embrace; “We have missed you, son.” says Ismat with a huge smile on his face. He is one year younger than me, at 23, and works for the UN. He has a small build and is always wearing lightly-coloured sunglasses. A slightly timid man, he is prone to swings of emotion. Ismat undertook some training in Japan at one time for a month and is very much a ‘Japan-man’. Once, however, when he came to meet me at the airport when I visited in February 2008, there was a moment of tension : “Why does Japan always take sides with America?”.

These, his first words to me, were prompted by world-wide reporting of the adoption by the Japanese Diet in January of that year of the “Terrorism Special Measures Law” – approving SDF provision of re-fueling services to American warships in the Indian Ocean. The law had just come into effect that February and the fuss surrounding the issue in Japan had been reported all over the world; for the Afghanistan people it was the moment that Japan’s ‘pro-America stance’ was first exposed. The story goes that even President Karzai had not suspected it.

This was the first time that the mild, young Ismat had ever expressed such anger to me; and it reflected the damage done by these events to his somewhat fantastical image of Japan.

Toyota in China re-call

Toyota Automobiles revealed on 24th August that the company has recalled around 680,000 passenger vehicles from customers in China. The re-called models include the mid-size ‘Camry’ sedan, the ‘Corolla’ sedan and the ‘Vios’ and ‘Yaris’ compact cars. Regular use of window ‘open/close’ switches in these vehicles can cause them to overheat and stop working.

According to information released by Toyota, the defect was caused by the over-application of grease to the switches. This is the first time that Toyota has been involved with such a large re-call (680,000 units) at any one time in China.

Pre-Election Public Opinion Poll results

Asahi Shinbun today reports results to public opinion polls relating to support for political parties.

All figures are percentages, rounded to the nearest integer. This is only a selection of questions and answers from the survey. Where four figures appear in a row they represent results from surveys this year (2009) in the following order : 4th-5th July, 18th-19th July, 1st-2nd August, 15th-16th August.

64 gigabyte SD card

Toshiba - 64 gb SD memory card

Toshiba unveiled a new SD card today that can store 64 gigabytes of data – amounting to around 12,000 high-quality still pictures or 16 hours of high-quality video images. Until now, the largest SD memory card on the market has a capacity of 32 gigabytes which is doubled by the new Toshiba card. It is expected to go on sale from November in Japan with a price tag of around ¥60,000. This story was reported in the Asahi Newspaper this morning.

An Alternative to current National Security Policy

[ Sekai, July 2009 ] – precis translation

A Call for Escape from American Domination / Ideological Stasis

[ 1 ] – The Guam Re-location Agreement and US-Japan Security Framework

Patriot Missile Farce

East Asian Security Research Council reports in June issue of Sekai.

Key premiss : recent deployment of PAC3 systems in response to North Korean missile threat (intelligence info about which was supplied to Japanese gov’t in first instance by US Satellite Early Warning Centre) was an act of public misdirection with regard to the true nature of the threat and bluster with regard to the effectiveness of the US-designed trillion dollar Patriot Missile Defense System.

Osaka Governor Hashimoto argues for decentralization

[ Asahi Shinbun : 25th July : morning edition ]

In a conference with Yokohama mayor Takada in Tokyo, Osaka governor Hashimoto reported that around 20 local governors have agreed to form a group pressing for regional decentralization from Tokyo in the next election and are ready to announce which party they will back.

According to information received by the Asahi Shinbun from governor Hashimoto, also present at today’s meeting with Nakada were Matsuyama city mayor Nakamura and Shinagawa prefecture Kaisei town mayor Roki. These four men are the driving force behind the decentralization campaign and are intending to win more support for their arguments. They are also appealing to Miyazaki governor Higashikokubaru to take part in their campaign. Hashimoto commented, “We want to make this a political movement that is not limited to only governors, or only mayors, or only town representatives – we want an inclusive campaign. Today was the kick-off.”

Miyazaki Governor sets out stall for LDP leadership race

Miyazaki Governor Hideo Higashikokubaru – TV and film comedian and actor turned politician – responded to questions from journalists with Election Campaign Chairman Koga of the LDP after a meeting between the two men on 23rd June, reports the Asahi Shinbun (24th June : morning edition). Higashikokubaru commented “unless there is a change in ruling party, there will be no change in this country” and Mr. Koga explained that he had asked the governor to stand in the next elections because “the LDP needs a new energy”. The following are the main exchanges between the journalists and both men which has been major news on all media since the press conference.

Embarrassment for Saitama Police

[ Asahi Shinbun : 23rd June, morning edition ]

Saitama Police have revealed that a 46 year-old man taken in dead drunk at around 2:20am on 19th June, later set fire to his shirt (after taking it off) using a lighter he had on him. Thanks to surveillance cameras the fire was promptly extinguished; the man claimed that he had set the fire because it was ‘cold’. As there was no damage to the building, the man was released and allowed to return home the same day.

According to the police, when he was taken into custody, the man’s belt was removed for safety reasons, but officers did not notice that he had a lighter on his person. A directive has been issued to all 39 police stations in the prefecture to conduct thorough body checks on all individuals taken into custody.

[ Trans. note : Saitama prefecture has been in the news almost continuously for the past few years with seemingly endless violent crimes. No-one who believes what they read in the newspapers would willingly move to Saitama, such is the apparent level of crime there. ]

Nationwide pessimism re:local economy

[ Asahi Shinbun, 22nd June '09 ]

A nationwide survey of the opinions of business owners/managers re: the local economic situation in the regions has revealed that over 70% believe local business conditions are getting worse. This is a considerably worse result than for a similar survey conducted at the same time with 100 top companies. It would seem feeling in the regions is that government talk of things having got as ‘bad as they are going to’ may be a little presumptuous.

Pig Influenza and the Japanese media

[ Sekai : July 2009 / Tatsuhito Tonooka / unlicensed and abridged translation/summary ]

Initial alerts by WHO were ambiguous : a level 3 alert was called at first, but this is supposed to indicate the spread of a disease among animal populations with insufficient evidence to suggest human-human contagion; perhaps the WHO were afraid of causing panic? It seems that a version of pig influenza had been documented in America for some years prior to this new-type being identified – but it had not shown a capacity for jumping the animal-human barrier. That original type was a combination of pig, chicken and human influenza viri; the new-type pig influenza that has been making the headlines since early May this year has been influenced by the Eurasian pig influenza virus.

High School Students in Shinagawa receive 8.5 million yen in compensation

In Shinagawa prefecture, 22 students at Kanda prefectural High School failed on the basis of criteria not stipulated in official guidelines – hair colour, length of skirt, etc. – had their case brought before the Prefectural Board of Education. The board announced on 17th June that four of the students had agreed to accept a total of 8.56 million yen as an ‘apology’ payment. The proposal will be put before an open session of the Prefectural Parliament on 19th June.

According to a source on the Board of Education in Shinagawa, in 2005, 2006 and 2008, on the instructions of the headmaster at the time, teachers checked hair colour, piercings and skirt lengths on ‘application’ or ‘test’ days. The 22 students would have passed satisfactorily had it not been for these checks on student appearance. According to official prefectural guidelines for success criteria in schools, questionnaires, interviews and aptitude tests may be used as the basis for student scores/grades, but no guidelines exist for failing students on the basis of appearance or uniform/clothing.

The inappropriate failing of the students came to the surface in October last year. A lawyer consulted on the matter was quoted as saying “this completely inappropriate judgement caused psychological trauma” for the students. At that time, moves by the Board of Education were begun to apologize to the students concerned and negotiations over financial compensation began in March of this year.

The ‘reconciliation’ payment agreed in the case amount to between 1.9 and 2.41 million yen per student involved. In addition to ‘apology’ payments, some students received compensation to balance the costs of transferring to private schools after their experience.

The Board of Education’s negotiations with the remaining 18 students are continuing, though some parents are reported to have said ‘it’s not about the money’ and to be hardening their positions. The Board of Education Planning Committee have commented that “A terrible wrong has been done to the victims. We want to continue our negotiations in a sincere fashion that will reflect this fact.”

First Tokyo Trial by Jury to be murder case; trial starts in August

It has been understood from sources within the trial system that the first criminal trial to feature ordinary citizens taking part in deliberations is expected to open in early August this year; the case is that of a murder in May this year in Tokyo’s Adachi ward. There are currently around 80 cases on trial which fall into the new jury trial system, but judging by the pre-trial build-up there is a high chance of this case being the one to attract most public attention.

‘Salaryman’s’ pocket money… Public Survey

The Asahi Shinbun reports today that, according to consumer finance body Shinsei Financial’s “2009 Salaryman Pocket Money Survey”, company workers have on average a quarter of the ready cash they enjoyed during the bubble period. Male company workers’ pocket money has decreased by 700 yen since last year to 45, 600 yen. This represents a 40% cut from a peak of 76,000 yen in 1990. The current economic crisis is also affecting the extremity of the situation.

While 74% of workers report ‘no change’ in the last year, 18% claim their ready cash has decreased and 8% say the situation has improved.

When asked what they have cut to compensate for their tighter financial situation, 43% of respondents put ‘eating out’ first, 39% ‘leisure’. 9% of workers report that their companies now ask them to bring their own lunch-boxes to work. Apart from lunch-boxes, workers spend on average 590 yen a day on food at midday, the third consecutive year that lunch-time expenses have hovered in the 500 yen bracket.

The survey was conducted in April this year with a sample of 500 male company workers aged 20-50.

[ cultural note : in Japan, it is customary for wives to control household finances and for working husbands to receive an allowance each month for their private purposes. It is this 'allowance' that has been translated as 'pocket money'. The same word is used in Japanese for the money that children receive from their parents each week or month to save or buy sweets, toys, comic books, etc.. ]

Atomic Radiation Sickness suit – Tokyo High Court Judgement

The Government moves to abandon appeal

[ report in Asahi Shinbun 9th June 2009 3:01am ]

On 8th June the government began deliberations on the withdrawal of its appeal against a recent ruling by the Tokyo High Court in which 9 out 10 people until now denied legal recognition of atomic radiation sickness were recognized as entitled to official compensation.

Osaka High Court Atomic Bomb Compensation Ruling

A number of people seeking government recognition as official victims of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombings have had their status recognized by the Osaka High Court in a second ruling after appeal. This is the 10th case the government has lost since May 2006.

J-Power Shareholders’ Meeting

The UK investment fund TCI (The Children’s Investment Fund) held a meeting in Tokyo for J-Power shareholders to seek support for TCI proposals with regard to dividend payments and other matters. TCI is now the largest shareholder in major Japanese electricity producer J-Power and are seeking to gain support from other investors before the general shareholder’s meeting to be held in June. It is considered an unusual step in Japan.

About 20 shareholders were present at the meeting and TCI Asia representative Mr. John Ho was pushing the line that “this is not a matter of one side winning or losing, but of us as shareholders sending the very important message that we need suitable compensation for our investments.

Asked by a shareholder whether TCI intends “to hold J-Power shares over the long-term”, Mr. Ho replied that “if management adopts a suitable dividend policy, we will make a public promise to hold our shares over the long term.”

Iraq Special Measures Law extension ‘difficult’

Yamasaki Taku, chairman of the LDP’s Diplomatic Research Committee, remarked in a debate in Tokyo on 25th May [2008] that “people are saying that extending the Iraq Special Measures Law will be difficult, and I agree with them completely”. The Iraq Special Measures Law, originally passed under PM Koizumi, is the legal basis for Japan mobilising the SDF beyond Japanese territory to Iraq in support of American forces there. It will be up for extension in June of next year [2009]. Mr. Yamasaki, in response to questions at a press conference after the debate, commented that “If you consider the situation in the Diet until June next year, the extension of the Law is extremely problematic.”

The government and ruling party are planning to seek an extension, during a special Diet session in the Autumn this year, to the Re-fuelling Support Special Measures Law – up for re-approval in January 2009 – which allows SDF ships to support re-fuelling of US ships in the Indian Ocean.

Ranking of World Military Forces by Country

Sekai published an article last month, a translation of “Why the United States really has gone broke” by Chalmers Johnson. Included is this table ranking countries by the amount of money they spend on their military forces.

1	USA	$623 billion	2008 Budget
2	China	$65 billion	2004
3	Russia	$50 billion
4	France	$45 billion	2005
5	Japan	$41.75 billion	2007
6	Germany	$35.1 billion	2003
7	Italy	$28.2 billion	2003
8	Korea	$21.1 billion	2003
9	India	$19 billion	2005 estimate
10	Saudi Arabia	$18 billion	2005 estimate

METI to warn British investment fund

METI (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) and the Finance Ministry of Japan will make an official decision by 11th April to ‘advise’ a British investment fund to modify or desist from its investment plans as announced in its application to increase its stock holdings in Japanese electricity-producing giant J-Power as “There is a risk that this [an increase in foreign ownership of J-Power stocks] will prevent the maintenance of order in the public sphere”.

SDF Air Force Lieutenant to be Charged for Information Leak

The Asahi Shinbun reports today that a grade 1 Lieutenant at the Defence Ministry’s Information HQ is to be charged on suspicion of breaking the SDF Law (Disclosure of Defence Secrets) over an article published in the Yomiuri Newspaper in 2005 about a Chinese submarine drifting powerless in the South China sea after an accident.

ANA to seek Compensation from Boeing

All Nippon Airways (ANA) is to seek compensation from American aircraft manufacture Boeing over the late delivery of new 787 passenger aircraft, which has forced the company to change its plans and projections, reports the Asahi Shinbun today. The exact amount of compensation to be sought will be given careful consideration when the planes have actually been delivered. Other companies are also said to be seeking compensation from Boeing over delays with the 787, and, depending on the amounts sought, this may have an effect on the management of the company.

The 787s were due for delivery in May 2008, but it is now expected that they will be about a year late. As a result, ANA is predicting losses associated with having to use older aircraft with poorer fuel efficiency and the consequent delays to the adoption of new flight paths.

Overwhelming Support for Life-time Employment

An independent survey by the Labour Policy Research and Training Council has revealed that nearly 90% of people in Japan still support the idea of life-time employment.

Chinese and Japanese Finance Ministers Meet

On 23rd March, Japanese Finance Minister Nukaga exchanged opinions with his Chinese counterpart Hsiei at a meeting in Tokyo organized by the Sino-Japanese Finance Authority’s Executive board.