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Abe: Ahmadinejad of the Far East

Angry about the way certain politicians are talking about history in Japan? Henry M. Seggerman, the president of International Investment Advisers sure is, and he’s written a angry rant against Japan and the Japanese people in which he proposes that the allied nations re-occupy Japan and make an exam on “How Japan Raped, Tortured, and Murdered Thirty Million People in World War II” a requirement for children to graduate from school. The rant is entitled “Abe: Ahmadinejad of the Far East,” and the Korea Times felt his rant was worth being printed as an editorial:

In the decades prior to WWII, the Japanese people watched as their Emperor and military began a campaign of mass killing and conquest across Asia. The Japanese people could have overthrown their government and halted this barbarism, but they chose not to. The Japanese people made a choice to support a government, which raped, tortured, and murdered thirty million other human beings.

The Japanese people today are not unlike the Japanese people in the decades prior to WWII. Due to the absence of any postwar deimperialization program, they grew up in an amoral environment free of guilt or remorse.

Their view of Japan’s WWII war criminals is not shame and revulsion; instead, they think they should be honored. Their view of Japan’s WWII sex slaves is that they deserve no apology, because they were just a bunch of whores. If they did not hold these views, they would certainly not have voted for atrocity-denying Ahmadinejads like Koizumi and Abe.

Disagreeing with Abe’s interpretation of history is one thing, but making sensational and stupid generalizations about the Japanese people as a whole is an entirely different matter. I was expecting a little better of the Korea Times, which usually doesn’t print such crap…

[Hat tip to the Marmot's Hole]

73 comments - What do you think? Posted by James - April 16, 2007 at 6:32 pm

Categories: Anti-Japan Tags:

Cormac

I like how many Americans think they have no war baggage. Maybe that arsehole should go to Hiroshima.

http://surfin-english.blogspot.com Jamie

Or the mid-west.

the overthinker

An eloquent and beautifully-stated argument – until the first comma, after which it turned to a mindless ignorant rant. I’m sure the Korea Times loved it….

http://tofusando.blogspot.com Akoua Doffou

I am sure too.

jyuanzh

The People’s Daily (from China) would surely love this article too!

http://www.rjkoehler.com The Marmot

I was expecting a little better of the Korea Times, which usually doesn’t print such crap…

See, now that’s where you were wrong
adams

Rubbish article! He needs re-education himself, ship him up to n. korea. s. korea should be re-occupied…they are always bemoaning and crying….like china. Japan is too good for the likes of any of the aforementioned.

Dr.Yu

Hahaha !!!
Thanks God you are not korean or chinese. You would change your mind if you were from one of those countries. It´s ease to “love” japan when you are not victim of their atrocity.

http://www.japanprobe.com James

So you were alive back during the war, Dr. Yu? You were a victim of the Japanese imperial military’s crimes?

Dr.Yu

I was not alive during that time but excusing the japaneses with such argument is a childish.

I would like you to suggest to use such arguments with the american native indians and with black peoples in the usa against the americans, use that arguments also with the jews and the palestines, use that arguments with the frenchs against the english, use also with the greeks and the turks.

The problem with you is that you are not the victim so it is easy for you to forget the “past”. Would you forgive me if I do something wrong to you as injuring someone from your family?

Don´t take this so easy, it´s a complex matter mixxing facts and emotional issues. Things would be easyer with a frank and transparent dialogue.

Dr.Yu

Your comments are biased since you dont´ take into consideration the korean point of view. Just imagine that the japanese had raped 200.000 american women. Would you still be simpathetic with them?

Regarding the north koreans to be sent back to the north, are you really worried about them, are you really worried about the koreans? then what about the raped korean women? dont they deserve your “attention”?

ponta

“Just imagine that the japanese had raped 200.000 american women.”
There were cases where Japanese soldiers raped women.There is no denying the fact. But when we are talking about comfort station in general, I have a little hesitation to call it “rape” There were comfort stations in Korea during Korean war for the UN soldiers and there were brothels during Vietnam war where women were deceived/sold and in some cases their living condition was horrible. There have brothels in Korea where women have been decieved/ forced into them. If you use the word “rape” to these cases, I have no objection, though.

Dr.Yu

Women work at brothers in USA, China, France, India, Switzerland, etc. But they are not forced to “work” there by their government or other government. Please stop trying to change the fact. Those women deserve our respect. I wish some day they may deserve respect from Japan also.

http://surfin-english.blogspot.com Jamie

They are biased exactly because we are taking into consideration the Korean point of view. The Japanese didn’t do anything to Koreans, a different generation of Japanese did. THe ones who are living now shouldn’t have to deal with Korean bullshit because their parents were too frightened to do anything about it.

THere was an underground resistance in Japan, and a large number of them were executed, jailed, or sent to volunteer for the kamikaze squadrons. Anyone who writes that, “The Japanese people made a choice to support a government, which raped, tortured, and murdered thirty million other human beings.” is suffering from a serious mental and political disconnect. The Japanese chose the Imperial government just as much as the Koreans and Chinese chose it.

Why is this so hard for people to understand?

Dr.Yu

Well … does it change the fact that 200.000 women were raped and abused by the japanese government?
Dr.Yu

Well … that does not change the fact that 200.000 women were raped and abused by japanese government

LL

I find it strange how Dr. Yu keeps bringing up the rape of 200 000 women. Sure, the rape, the bloodbath, the cruelty had happened. Sure, it was inhumane when it happened. Sure, it is a lesson to be learned and remembered. However, don’t let it cripple your view on the modern Japanese. It is unfair to point fingers at the current Japanese population and say “You are guilty because your ancestors did this to our people”.

Moreover, the point of history is to xi qu jiao xun – learn from your mistakes, so that such tragedy does not happen again. China is taking actions to strengthen the government; this is a primary step. However, it’s of no use to linger at a blog about Japan and repeatedly post comments about how Japan committed atrocities in the past. In fact, doing so somewhat indicates of an inferiority complex, Dr. Yu.

Mike

The problem is that the government here doesnt educate the people about history here the real history. I live here and have for a while

http://surfin-english.blogspot.com Jamie

I think I screwed up my other post so here.

Milgram Experiment

NOW tell me that Japanese people are more evil than anyone else.

Dr.Yu

Just excuses ….. Just excuses …..

Dr.Yu

Are you the advocate of the japanese people? I understood well that thing about “Milgram Experiment”. What you fail to mention is that the germans apologised to the world for their crimes even they were under de effect of that “Milgram Experiment”.

ponta

Please know the fact accurately.
German had the same, or worse brothel system during WWⅡ. Germany has not apologized for the former prostitutes, nor has she set up the fund for them.

ponta

Please do not whitewash the past.

Before the colonization, Korea sent tribute women to China as a slave. During Chosun period, kisaeng or kinyo worked as “courtesans and whores” according to Soh, Chung-Hee

During Korean War, some Korean women were raped and made prostitutes. Many were made prostitute against their will according to Kwi-ok Kim.

Around the A town, Korean women have been trapped in the “The”debt bondage system”.Korean government was deeply involved in this system, and these women were despised as “western whores” by Korean people according to Katharine H. S. Moon.

During the colonization period, sure, Japanese government legalized and regulated the brothels system.
But there was no policy to recruit women forcibly , rather there was policy not to force women, and the government in fact regulated the illegal pimps who deceived and forced women into the brothels.. As a side note, in the peninsula, majority to most of the brokers were Koreans.
In some cases, the living condition was horrible, so Japanese government was mostly blame, so she apologized and set up the fund,

Korean government has not faced the past; it is ironical that it is Korea that blames Japan most while being blind to its own dark past.

I agree that the victims deserve respects.

Dr.Yu

Again…. Does it change the fact that 200.000 were raped and abused by the japanese government? Those women did not “work” there for money, they were not “hired” by the japanese government neither were sent as a “good will gift” from the korean government. They were kidnaped by the japanese just for sexual purpose. They were mostly young women taken away from home. They did not agree with that situation. In civilised cultures it is call slavery. Again, do not change the facts, dont excuse the japanese´s wrong doing with historical comparison. There are plenty of evidences of what the japanese committed in the past. You keep trying to distort the facts sugesting that koreans in general colaborated in this issue. That´s not true and suggestion alone does not prove anithing.

ponta

Some are deceived or forced by the brokers, the head of Korean village, etc.
They were paid. some were deceived and the brothel owners embezzled the money.

Japanese government acknowledged it was wrong, and hence, apologized and set up the funds.

Korean government has not acknowledged the wrongs of her own, instead has kept hiding the truth that Koreans was deeply involved with deceiving and kidnapping under Japanese rule, and Korean government and people have been deeply involved in the forcing and deceiving Korean women into the brothels.

That K government has been hiding the fact is evident from your ignorance about this matter.
http://surfin-english.blogspot.com Jamie

“You keep trying to distort the facts sugesting that koreans in general colaborated in this issue. That´s not true and suggestion alone does not prove anithing.”

Again, you keep ignoring the points of other posters to belabour your argument. Everyone here knows the J. government was involved in the sexual degradation of hundreds of thousands of women. We all understand that.

You just seem to have a blind spot to the foul actions of your own countrymen, and the actions of your own countrymen that allowed the Korean girls to be enslaved in this way.

Who is more at fault? The Korean famil members who sell their daughters and nieces into slavery, or the government for using them as entertainment for their soldiers?

I can’t answer that question. But I think both groups are guilty. If you don’t, you haven’t learned enough, and yes, that is why you are ignorant. When a historical event or interpretation doesn’t mesh with what your own education told you, it doesn’t mean it’s a lie invented by the dirty Japanese/Americans. It just proves that history is just a bunch of guesswork, and the job of historians is to find which parts of the guesswork are the most true. It’s NOT the job of historians to find proof of extranbational misdoing in order to support the propaganda efforts of a weak government like South Korea’s.

And that’s all I care to say.

Da Kappa

You can sure bet that he’ll have a warm reception in Japan if he ever steps foot there. For an “adviser”, he sure isn’t giving much thought into burning his bridges. Especially that “amoral environment” that he calls (Japan) is one of the strongest Asian economic powers to date. Perhaps he’s trying to grab a niche of the Korean market (by playing into their minds).
corey

well it is atleast half true, the japanese people didn’t do anything about the crimes commited accorss the sea in asia, but I am not so sure they knew exactly what was happening.
Alex

Garbage. It’s one thing if people think these things, which are entirely WRONG to begin with. But it’s another thing to have it published in the Korea Times.

(Alex cracks his knuckles and prepares to write yet again another angry email to yet again another bone head idiot.)
Annie

This guy is really ignorant.

Why don’t we all move on with our life because I know for sure that every country have committed some kind of evil crimes toward another country.

boogie

some haven’t. we are too small to bother fighting other countries or commiting war crimes for that matter.

http://surfin-english.blogspot.com Jamie

does it change the fact that 200.000 women were raped and abused by the japanese government?

The Japanese built a prostitution system during WWII. During WWII, and other more and less recent wars, the English, French, Koreans, Chinese, Russians, Germans, Greeks, Romans, Turks and Zoroastrians also had officially sanctioned prostitution systems.

History has happened in countries other than China and Korea, Dr. Yu. Other people, including “my people”, have experienced slavery, rape, and the ravages of war. Stop using this as an excuse for your hatred of the Japanese. Why the fuck should someone apologize to you for something their grandparents did?

You should start learning more history, especially that of Europe during the 17th-20th centuries, and then maybe you will understand that other people have just as much experience as you do in these matters. If you’re lucky, you’ll also start to understand the power of propaganda, and its use on citizens. Koreans and Chinese ain’t special, buddy. Stop acting like an ignorant hick.

Dr.Yu

I´m sorry to heard from you that I´m an ignorant. I brought you facts, you bring me empty arguments …..

http://surfin-english.blogspot.com Jamie

You are one of those people with whom it is pointless to argue. Keep believing what you want, I don’t care.

Wahoo

Just make Japanese government apologize it and put a period, which will make this tupe of guy forever quiet. Throw a rock to J Government not to some stupid guy that J Government created…

ponta

Japanese PM has apologized, it is Korea that keeps nitpicking while being blind to the Korean female victims who have been victimized against their will by Korean government and society.

Wahoo

I hear you saying that.
But just have Japnese PM apologize one more time. And at this time, don’t forget to take a lots of photos as hard evidences.

Dr.Yu

Sayonara everybody !!!! I realise that I played David against Goliath here. (although it was not my intention)
Blind eyes, deft ears, insensitive hearts …. Biased souls ….
My last word before my last breath: The power of propaganda exists everywere. Watch out the american government propaganda !!!!! It aplies to american citizens either !!!! (NSA?)

Now a I would like to ask a favor to the japanese people: forgive the americans for nagasaki and hiroshima …. let´s forget the past, right?

Wahoo

Hey, Dr. Yu
David killed Goliath. He is the greatest King in Jewish history.
We are not blind or deft. We are just human being. You just happened to be Korean. Someone happened to be American or Japanese. Respect the culture and history of each other. Every single human being deserve a respect. You need to learn how to communicate other nationality with respect and without losing your tempor. I do understand the feeling of Korean and Japanese. See what Mr. Honda ( a Japanese-American) is doing at US Congress to help the comfort women case. He is in a way Japanese as well as American. But even Mr Honda may not be happy with the insulting way of your talking.

Dr.Yu

Mr. Honda is not happy with the way japanese people deal with the “comfort women issue”. He is from japanese origin, he is ashamed, this is something between asian people. Americans should stop interfering with others life. Go back to your country and leave us alone. It does not matter if we kill each others, just leave us. We don´t interfere in your life. We don´t care if you kill each others. So simple ……

ponta

“Blind eyes, deft ears, insensitive hearts …. Biased souls …”

Yeah I agree many of Korean people have been blind deft , insensitive to Korean comfort women victimized by Korean society. It is really shame.

“Now a I would like to ask a favor to the japanese people: forgive the americans for nagasaki and hiroshima …. let´s forget the past, right?

I agree, to some extent.

There are many thing to learn from Hirosiham, but there is nothing in itself that will cause political problem now. If there is , it has to do with future use of nuclear weapon by any countries. It certainly is not the source of the hatred. for present Japanese people.

Kiko

Mr. or Ms. Ponta?

Hi I’m from Brazil.

I’m very disappointed with your texts.

I have some german friends and sometimes I have heard from grandfather of one of my friend, he was SS during WWII, I saw some photos.

First of all, German troop never managed brothel, but you keep trying to distort the facts. as you talked, “that´s not true and suggestion alone does not prove anything”.

Plz, don’t try to hurt and lie in front of german’s. The german government and people really showed their apology and they’re paying until now their guilty to jewish, polish and others victims personally.

I don’t know japanese also making same thing.

I can’t understand why japanese don’t want to reveal the true. why?
Japanese wants another war against world again????

ponta

Hi Kiko

Your comment just shows German people are not interested in the issue or have ignored the issue.
Read, “Franz Seidler, Prostitution, HOmoSexualitiat, Selbstvertummelung”

If you can trust Japanese historians who were called on to the UN,
the following quote might help.
“Did other military forces have a similar system?

According to both Hata and Yoshimi, Nazi Germany had frontline brothels during the war, using women, even by force, in Eastern Europe.”
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20070320i1.html

And also a commenter called Fantasy who is German confirmed the fact at Marmot holes when we are talking about the issue.

Korean for that matter, Germany, have not apologized to the former prostitutes, haven’t set up the fund for them.

Japanese government acknowledged it was wrong, apologized, set up the fund, as I said repeatedly.
I don’t understand why some people want to use this issue politically rather than to help the former prostitutes who have been victimized by any countries.
Dr.Yu

-Comment deleted by admin: read the commenting policy, Dr. Yu, and consider this your warning. -

Kiko

Germany have not apologized to the former prostitutes?
haven’t set up the fund for them?

I just show difference of recognition between the german way and japanee way.

As you talked, during WWII, “Franz Seidler, Prostitution, HOmoSexualitiat, Selbstvertummelung” was cleaned into AuschwitzBirkenau. Not to brothel as you talked.
Therefore, German tried to show sincerely their confession and compensation to victims, personally.

Then, once again, I woukd like to ask you that japanese government already talked with victims personally? if not, why?
conversation and agreement between 2 countries is not a solution.

Victim was a human. This is a reason for being with dignity, respect and own human right.

I feel so sad the victim has considered as some kind of toy, not as respected human.

Plz be a human and rational , then japan can be a center of the world.

A lot of people like japan and japanese.

But blind and self-contradictory insistence will be a extremely negative and suffered fact for japan and her peoples.

Today, germany is one of most respected nation, with her ethic and truth ,by german’s neighboring country as france, poland, belgium, Italy etc.. And how is the Japan, if they do not have no financial power????

Only the truth lead to harmony and peace.

ponta

kiko
All you have to do is to ask historians if Germany apologized to the former prostitutes.
There was a TV program in Germany inspired by the movement in Korea that shows forced prostitutes. There was no reactions from German people.

Please be rational and read the book on the issue, and investigate,
Be humane to Korean comfort women victimized by Korean society; they are still called “western whores”

Japan apologized and set up the funds.
It is just that Koreans want to keep hating Japan so they don’t want to accept apology.

German paid compensation to the Jew victimized by Nazi, but didn’t apologized to the former prostitutes in particular.
Al

Kiko…

I agree. Japan must look at Germany’s real efforts at restitution if it wants to be accepted in Asia the way Germany has been accepted in Europe. After all, Germany currently holds the presidency of the E.U. and Japan is still trying to get a seat in the UN’s security council. Why the difference? History. Not the history that is written in books, but the history that is written in deeds. Many in the world (that is… outside of Japan) know about these deeds, and until the Japanese leadership teaches its people about their fathers’ deeds, there will always be resisitance to Japan’s acceptance in Asia.

What Japan’s neighbours need is a Willie Brandt moment. Willie Brandt was chancellor of Germany in the early 70′s. He was Time magazine’s man of the year in 1970 and the Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1971. In December of 1970, he toured a ghetto in Poland. At one point, he came to a monument to the victims of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Apparently spontaneously, he fell to his knees in front of the monument in a display of sincere remorse. This single moment has more to do with Germany’s acceptance in the E.U. than anything the German government has done (which is exponentially greater than anything that the Japanese government has done – or not done). Japan and its neighbours have had no such moment. Worse, there isn’t even a monument that might induce such needed contrition.

ponta

You comparison between German – Poland and Japan-Korea is inadequate:
.
There were no Jews equivalent in Korea.
Rather Korean population almost doubled during the colonization, and more than 300000 Korean young men volountarily applied for Imperial Japanese army when Tojo was a prime minister.
Korea was not just passive supporter for the Imperial Japanese army.
Japan apologized to Korea many times for the colonization and paid a reparation to Korea —- no other colonizer did to the colonized nations—-beside giving up Japanese property in the peninsula.
German has not apologized to the forced prostitutes set up by German troop, but Japan apologized for the comfort station system.

Some people characterize Korean culture as culture of hatred.

Al

I have the distinct impression most of the people who have replied to this article know next to nothing about this subject. These people should read more and write less. Here are a few of my recommendations for a real and proper education on Japanese motives:

The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of WWII (by Iris Chang)

A Public Betrayed: How the Japanese Media Betrays Its Own People (by Adam Gamble and Takesato Watanabe)

Korea’s Fight for Freedom (by F.A. Mackenzie)

You don’t have to read these books, but if you choose not to, then please desist from writing your opinions about this article. You don’t know enough for your opinion to be worth anything.

ponta

You seem to know the matter quite well.

The Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang
The first major monograph on Nanjing to be published in English after Hsü was the problematic work by Iris Chang, The Rape of Nanking (1997), a work that can only be described as frequently fabricated and/or fictitious”
http://www.japanfocus.org/products/details/1729

A Public Betrayed: by Adam Gamble and Takesato Watanabe
“One of the co-author, Watanabe Takesato is a professor majoring in mass media at Doshisha University, and at the same time, he is constantly contributing to magazines related to Soka Gakkai. His criticism of mass media is, in essence, badmouthing of magazines, including Shukan Shincho, which report the rape comitted by Ikeda Daisaku.”
http://buvery.blogspot.com/2007/04/public-betrayed-who-actually-is.html
Korea’s Fight for Freedom (by F.A. Mackenzie)
I like it I also like “Tragedy of Korea” by the same author.

No unbiased ovserver can deny that Korean owes the loss of her independence mainly to the corruption and weakness of her old national administration. It is equally true that the Japanese policyon the peninsula has been made more difficult by the intrigues and obstinacy of the old Court party. …..

As a side, I also recommend Korea and her neighbors by Bishop, Isabelle L.
I don’t claim you don’t know enough for your opinion to be worth anything even if you haven’t read them above.

Jonathan Spence

In Germany, it is illegal to deny the Holocaust. The Japanese government refuses to acknowledge the Rape of Nanking. This is the primary difference between the two countries. Regardless of all the other reasons the apologists put out as a smokescreen, the Japanese government has been dragging its feet this whole time.
Yes, you can say that this generation of Japanese did not commit these atrocities so why punish them now? This seems to give strength to the argument to obfuscate and deny the truth until one’s death so that the truth will never come out. If Japan had made reparations or even acknowledged the suffering it inflicted on other nations, then it would have been forgotten. Being that there has never been even a formal apology, the demands for payback should continue to made.
Also, people should not bring up the atomic bomb in this discussion. An aggressor nation that has failed but still refuses to surrender should be made to surrender in any way possible. You can bet that Japan would have used on Pearl Harbor, Chungking or any other Allied outpost.

ponta

“The Japanese government refuses to acknowledge the Rape of Nanking.”
Where did you get that idea?
Check out the Mofa site;
Japanese government admits Nanjing massacre. It is only that she left the death toll to the historians.

“. If Japan had made reparations or even acknowledged the suffering it inflicted on other nations, then it would have been forgotten. Being that there has never been even a formal apology, the demands for payback should continue to made.”
I agree.
Since Korea failed to admit the involvement of illegal Korean brokers in the
comfort women system under Japanese rule,, she has continued to allow and facilitate illegal Korean brokers after the liberation in the peninsula, China, in china, which has resulted in suffering Korean comfort women after the liberation, Korean massage parlor women in the world.

The rest of your argument is off the mark.

jonathan spence

Wow Ponta,

you keep arguing yourself into a corner here. You claim that

“No unbiased ovserver can deny that Korean owes the loss of her independence mainly to the corruption and weakness of her old national administration.”

Are you using that to justify the colonization? You are stepping on dangerous grounds here since Japan did lose the war due to her own wartime incompetence and failure of strategic planning. If this is your argument, then you shouldn’t even be on this thread here.

As I said, Japan is still shunned in the Asian communicy precisely because it is unrepentent. It uses spurious arguments and tries to parse history away by debating little details. What doesn’t change is that there was aggression committed against civilians and against its neighbors.

ponta

“Are you using that to justify the colonization?”

Hey, I am not justifying conlonization.

I am quoting F.A. Mackenzie from “Tragedy of Korea.”

“No unbiased ovserver can deny that Korean owes the loss of her independence mainly to the corruption and weakness of her old national administration. It is equally true that the Japanese policyon the peninsula has been made more difficult by the intrigues and obstinacy of the old Court party”

This is what F.A. Mackenzie wrote in the book.

Of course, you know it , don’t you? NO?

jonathan spence

-comment deleted by admin- [There's no need to resort to an insulting tone when responding to a comment you don't agree with. Since you probably you aren't actually Professor Jonathan Spence at Yale, I ask you to stop using his name as well. ]

jonathan spence

As far as

“The rest of your argument is off the mark. ”

I think you just don’t understand it.

Faust

I’ve always been interested in these debates, and usually I enjoy ponta’s comments. But has anyone else noticed how Dr. Yu simply stated that x number of women (no specific nationality) were raped or whatnot, and ponta comes running in foaming at the mouth of how bad the Koreans are or that Germans aren’t as forgiving as we think? I don’t really have much experience with Koreans, the ones I have met were nice as any other asians, but it’s very odd that with the many ways you (ponta) could defend Japan, attempting to drag your neighbor through the mud is your best answer, especially when from my understanding, many rapes and murders were done in China (Nanking issue), Philippines, and Vietnam. Perhaps people such as ponta is the reason why Japanese apologies and such are not believed, and unfortunately it’s not the first time I’ve read these sort of comments.

I simply point this out as despite the mistakes we Germans might have made, at the very least you don’t see many Germans trying to slander the nations we hurt in order to justify our actions, even if there is some merit, and the government was VERY generous to Jewish and Polish businesses who decided to stay in Germany. We made a mistake, and we never make any excuses on the topic because in the end, we hurt innocent people and there is no excuse for that, even if you were to tell me they would have been hurt anyway by someone else. The last time someone tried to speak on reasons why to limit certain ethnicities from entering the country, he had his house picketed by Germans and some even barraged his house with rocks. I don’t sponsor violence, but this type of “frowning” on past sentiments is widespread, and living in Japan I cannot say the same, so please stop trying to dirty our honor, ponta.

Oh and I just noticed your last post. If you believe Korean culture is a culture of hatred, then just say it, instead of this cowardly “some people” talk, because it’s obvious you want to point that thought out because you feel it’s true or you would not mention it. It just shows the kind of person you are, wanting to toss mud without getting your own hands dirty. Perhaps you should stick to 2ch. Pfft, culture of hatred…did you copy that from the middle east haters?

ponta

I don’t slander any nationals.
I am stating the facts.
What is so afraid of admitting Korea committed crimes, German has not yet apologized to the prostitutes they exploited?
Japanese prime minister acknowledged it was wrong and apologized, why is it the head of Korean and German can not face it?

boogie

That aside…

Well, don’t you think Japan should print something slightly more that what they are doing now in their textbooks. Surely you must agree that they weren’t ‘motivated by “self-preservation” and a desire to liberate Asia from Western control.’

Come on, the textbooks are ridiculous.

The Overthinker

Please give us the title and publisher of the textbooks you consider ridiculous as well as the relevant quotes so that we may check for ourselves. What do you think they need to add?

Just about everyone who says “Japanese textbooks are bad” neither mentions a single one by name or gives quotes to back up their argument. It ends up looking as if they are just repeating arguments that they have heard based on the reaction against the “Tsukurukai” text (which doesn’t actually deny anything, though it does skip over a few areas – and was so condemned by mainstream historians in Japan that almost no schools use it) conflated with the far more provocative statements found in populist history books that are about as realistic a reflection of Japanese historical thought as Rush Limbaugh is of American.

Benon

Shame on you Japan!
What Japan want is another asian domination, which never will happen, just a fool’s dream.

Wait to see rest of asia take off before Japan, and then Japan will pay dearly. As soon as mighty China becomes dominant player is Asian along with united Koreas, Japan will be isolate again from rest of asia as always have been during last 1700 years.

Japan back in 1700 years ago, was nothing; still lived on stone age, and then they suddenly became iron age culture why? Coz, it was Korean settlers brought iron age bypassing bronze age period. Take a good look at your shameful history

jyuanzh

Mmmm
the Chinese entered the stone age again in the 1970s, if i recall its some greaaaaat leap forward policy ~~~

Maybe it’ll get mighty with a Mighty Leap Forward soon too!

chinaa

Well, technically the koreans got it from the chinese…but point taken. Regardless, japan has stepped up and this guy was pretty demeaning. Let’s hope this doesn’t turn into a multi-nation flame war? Peace people!
zeebot

The admin seems to like deleting posts by people opposed to ponta. Sounds like censorship to me.

ponta

Well, personally I want to see the slander; I’ve been used to it since I commented on Korean blog sphere and I rather enjoy it.
But probably the admin is worried that there will be filled with trolls who change handle names each time they comment which will result in anarchy and degrade the quality of the blog.
With that worry, I sympathise..
And I am sure the admin will delete my comment if it is not adequate to be on the blog. I have no objection to that.
http://www.japanprobe.com James

I delete posts by people who can’t abide by the rules I’ve set for comments on this site. It has nothing to do with Ponta’s opinions, but rather with the way “Jonathan Spence” responded to Ponta’s post ["oh wow, you read book. You think you're smarter than me because you read a book?"]. Feel free to voice your disagreement with Ponta’s comment about the book, but there’s no need for trollish-comments with no substance that are only meant to anger people. I often delete comments from Japanese who can’t play by the rules either.
jyuanzh

Just take it like a man!
Staying in China has made me used to being blocked from news and all. This admin’s censorship is peanuts compared to the Red Guards LOL.

jyuanzh

Well, i don’t know about Abe being Ahmadinejad of the Far East but i do KNOW that China threatens to attack Taiwan if the people on the island want to obtain independence (even if its the local people’s will) and Japan doesn’t have nuclear weapons or ICBMs that can reach the US unlike China

oh well, guess Japan is a threat to the world huh? What are we (the US or the civilized/free world) going to do about it?
nat

According to the Treaty of Peace with Japan and the bilateral agreements, Japan agreed to pay around 1 trillion and 30 billion yen. For countries that renounced any reparations from Japan, it agreed to pay indemnity and/or grants in accordance with bilateral agreements.

The government of the United States officially apologized for the Japanese American internment during World War II in the 1980s and paid reparations.

go to wikipedia, and search war reparations, to all those who seek the truth
nat

also, go to wikipedia and search list of war apology statements issued by Japan

boogie

Well, what about the textbooks? Could you find me a page about Japan history textbooks sticking to the truth? (:
boogie

Well, what about the textbooks? Could you find me a page about Japan history textbooks sticking to the truth?

The Overthinker

Just read one. If you can’t read Japanese you have a few options. One, learn Japanese. Two, ask your local Japanese History prof what’s in textbooks. Three, find a textbook and a Japanese to read it to you. And four, make sure you know the truth before you accuse the history books of not sticking to it – eg the death toll of Nanjing was not the inflated official Chinese figure.

Abe: Ahmadinejad of the Far East

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