Japanese Style Parenting: "People will laugh at you."

(This is part of my sharing, which I learn about Japanese society in the class of “Civilization and Culture of Japan.”)

When children misbehave in Japan, parents usually say, “People will laugh at you,” instead of saying, “You should not do that.” Mothers say to misbehaved child “People will laugh at you,” is one of the Japanese mothers’ child bearing ways, which is called - Kimochi-shugi – a feeling based way of thinking, defining it as “the tendency to put importance on other people’s feeling, or to try to be sympathetic to other people’s feelings and perceive their intentions.” (The Japanese Mind - Page 136/7)

Every coin has two sides. Because of Kimochi-shugi child bearing style, the effective on children’s moral education could have both of positive and negative ways.

Positive ways:
- They get team spirit.
- They know how to be harmony with the society.
- They have one of good experience minds to have in human beings, that – “Empathy,” which is good for the other parties.
- It will create to be successful in group works.

Negative ways:
- They become dependent, instead of the way to be independent.
- It creates lack of self - confidence.
- Acceptance of unclear things and uncertain results.
- Encourage to practice unthinking obedience.

Picture: http://www.carebearsteam.org/tours_breakdown/tours/tour_images/86_japan_tour/5-86japanese_children.jpg

Merry Christmas!

MANY TIMES, MANY WAYS, MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU!!!

From Global War to Global Classroom

( Pearl Harbor Attack on December 7, 1941)

(The American President, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was giving a speech to the nation about Japanese attach on Pearl Harbor and American’s entering into the World War II.)

“I ask that the Congress declare that since the unprovoked and dastardly attack by Japan on Sunday, December 7th, 1941, a state of war has existed between the United States and the Japanese empire.”

The above paragraph is an excerpt from the speech of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the 32nd president of the United States. He gave this speech on December 8th, 1941, one day after Japan’s attack over Pearl Harbor. With this speech, the United States of America entered into the World War II.

Four years later, after the United States entered into the war, Americans bombed at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, large cities of Japan on August 6, 1945. In September 1945, Japanese legally surrendered. With that surrender, the World War II was officially ended.

(After Hiroshima and Nagasaki were bombed in August 1945 and Japanese surrendered in September 1945.)

Sixty Three years later, after the end of World War II, in the fall semester of 2008, there is a global classroom, which is one of educational joint programs between the college of DuPage, Illinois, the United States and Hiroshima Jogakuin University of Japan as a sign of higher and closer bilateral relationships between the two countries.

(The Global Classroom at the College of DuPage – USA)

(Global Classroom at Hiroshima Jogakuin University – Japan)

How an amazing program it is! How are we (students) lucky to be part of this global classroom! Our instructors are Dean R. Peterson and Shingo Satsutani.
The process is - combination of two subjects, which are ‘Marriages and Family’ and ‘Civilization and Culture of Japan.’ In the global classroom, students from both sides are divided into five groups. Then, we write one paper per each group of both sides on the following categories:
(1) Changing Family
(2) Love, Sex, Mate Selection
(3) Power and Violence
(4) Work and Family
(5) Divorce, Marriage Dissolution, Growing Older.
I am in the group one, and our group at College of DuPage writes a paper about changing family patterns in the United States, and group one of Hiroshima Jogakuin University writes about changing family patterns in Japan.

After that, we exchange the papers each other between Japanese students and American students. The global classroom for our college is situated at the Open Campus Center (OCC) building in west campus of the college. The room number is OCC 106 and it is a studio classroom with the cameras, spotlights, microphones, Television screens, etc.

We, the American students and Japanese students together see, talk, read, discuss, ask, answer, agree, disagree, smile and laugh at each other. In this point, you may have a question about the language problem because American students write papers and speak in English and Japanese students write papers and speak in Japanese. Our instructor, Shingo solves that problem. He is a key interpreter and translator of all discussions and papers of both sides through out the global classroom period.

(Instructor Shingo Satsutani is interpreting in the Global Classroom)

It is amazing progress of modern technology and the way of great usage by humans, which is in the field of education and bilateral relationship between two countries. It is one of the greatest class experiences in my college life as well. It is also great sign of today’s close relationship between the two big foes in some sixty years ago. That is the way how the nations of the world should be; go by our own different ways and cooperate in our common goals and march forward together, friendly, peacefully and helpfully.

(Joint Flags of Japan and the United States)

Briefly, the amazing innovations of modern technology, excellent progress of bilateral relationship of – foes to friends, changing revenge generation to friendship generation, the fantastic combination between east and west, the informative exchange between Japanese students and American students, are all dramatically, remarkably and unforgettably included in our global classroom.

Special thanks to everybody!
Picture: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v251/joserouse/Historical/FDRspeech.jpg
http://wwwdelivery.superstock.com/WI/223/1647/PreviewComp/SuperStock_1647R-41350.jpg
http://aboutjapan.japansociety.org/resources/category/1/6/3/3/images/BE047790.jpg
http://www.britannica.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/pearl.jpg
http://www.skeptically.org/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/hiroshima-bomb.jpg

What did I learn from Arun Gandhi's Speech?

Speaker: Arun Gandhi
Place: McAninch Arts Center at College of DuPage, Glen Ellyn, Illinois, United States
Time: 6:30 PM; Oct 28, 2008

Introduction

Arun Gandhi is grandson of Mahatma Gandhi. From the great speech of Arun Gandhi, I have learned many things, such as brief biography of Mahatma Gandhi, the pattern of anger management, non-violence, acceptance and labels of human societies. It was great to have opportunity to be in that event. In this paper, I will write what I learned from Arun Gahdhi’s speech and adding other ideas and opinions through out my experiences.

What did I learn?

Anger Management

The first thing, which I learned from Arun Gandhi’s speech was – ‘anger
management.’ The way to manage anger, which Mr. Gandhi wanted to tell us, was, not only to control anger, but also to change that anger to become a positive one. When we are able to be reaching that step, it became the ‘power.’ Anger is not an evil, but just an emotion by itself. Anger is like electric; if we use it in the effective way, it is really the power and if we use it in the wrong way, it is really the danger. He said that it is not that difficult when we really practice about it and the way he learned how to change anger to become a power was one of the most valuable heritage that Arun Gandhi received from his grand father, Mahatma Gandhi.

(Mr. Arun Gandhi was signing an autograph on an audiance's book, after his speech)

Mind Control

This is really a tough one. Our mind is running around from here to there, there to
here by numerous or uncountable ways. Controlling our mind is very difficult. One of the ways to practice on controlling our mind, which he suggested was, to concentrate intensely on an object that is in our front as a mean of meditation. Since I was a Buddhist monk, I have had some experiences in this matter. The best thing, which I found when I took meditation was, the longer I could concentrate my mind, the more I felt in peace. I had nothing in my mind and feeling; totally in the universe. I had no hate, no love, no hot, no cold, no rich, no poor, no bother, no bothered. It was really in the state of peace.

Non-Violence

He said that violence against natural and humanity. True nature of human being is not
violence, but it is non-violence. As human beings, if we learn to change from violent culture to non-violent culture, it will make true peace. The consequence of violence is always violence. You are hitting a lot while you are being a hammer, means – you have to prepare to be hammered when your turn has come as an anvil. Nobody can always be a hammer or an anvil. It is turning. History is just like a wheel. If we act violently on the others, the others will come up with the other kind of violence. Therefore, the process of non-violence only can practice when both sides have high moral standard, courage, kindness, sympathy and empathy for each other. This is kind of – ‘only one hand cannot make a clap.’

(Oo Thein Maung and Arun Gandhi)

Depending Each Other

One of the natures of human being is – mutual reliance. Mr. Gandhi said that people
from the third world have to work many long hours to become a shirt, which will be exported into the United States. He probably meant it was an unequal matter, according to his sound and the way he spoke; for clothing of humans from part of the world, other people from the other parts of the world have to work long hour is - unequal. In my opinion, we, human beings depend on each other by any mean, any way in any circumstances; since one thing we have, which the others do not have; one thing we do not have, which the others have; and vice-versa. In order to be able to buy a little Sony radio, which made in Japan within a few minutes, farmers from Burma have to cultivate in the paddy field for the whole year. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said that we depend on half of the world already, even before we have our breakfast in the morning.

Conclusion

There are many things I have learned from Arun Gandhi’s great speech. As
conclusion, like Arun Gandhi said, I will try to know by myself first that – who am I; what am I?

Scholarship for students from Burma to study in Thailand

Heinrich Boell Foundation, Southeast Asia Regional Office, holds an
annual scholarship competition for a small number of students from
Myanmar/Burma to study at two Thai premier Universities offering three
international Programmes specifically designed for younger generation
candidates from Myanmar/Burma.

The Scholarships apply respectively to the academic year of 2009/2010
for Master of Arts in International Development (MAIDS) at
Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Faculty of Political Science, the
2009/2010 academic years for Master of Arts in Sustainable
Development, at the Regional Center for Social Science and Sustainable
Development (RCSD) in Chiang Mai University, Faculty of Social
Sciences, and the 2009/2010 academic year for International Master of
Economics (MEcon), at the Faculty of Economics, Chiang Mai University.
Application forms and entrance qualifications for the international
Programmes of the respective Universities are available at web links
provided below. Application forms are attached as word documents.
The Master of Arts in International Development Studies (MAIDS)
Program at Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Political Science;
http://www.ids. polsci.chula. ac.th/
The Master of Arts in Sustainable Development of the Regional Center
for Social Science and Sustainable Development (RCSD) at Chiang Mai
University, Faculty of Social Sciences; http://rcsd. soc.cmu.ac. th/
The International Master of Economics Program of the Faculty of
Economics (M.Econ) at Chiang Mai University;
http://fuangfah. econ.cmu. ac.th/programs. asp
The selection process is highly competitive. Students for the
Scholarship Program are selected by both HBF and the respective
Universities in an open competition. Decisions made are final. Only
selected candidates will be contacted. Applicants can re-apply for the
Scholarship Program the following year.

We kindly ask for your assistance in forwarding the relevant
information and documents (applications forms and general information)
to interested parties and suitable candidates.

Please find attached:

- HBF Call for Applications
- RCSD, MAIDS and Mecon application documents

For further information on our Myanmar/Burma work pls. visit:
www.boell-southeast asia.org

Thank you very much for your assistance.

Warm regards,
Olga
____________ _________ _____
Heinrich Boell Foundation
Southeast Asia Regional Office
Chiang Mai, Thailand
Olga Duchniewska
Programme Coordinator
Myanmar / International Gender Politics

Tel.: 66 053 810430 -2 Ext. 128
Fax 66 053 810124
www.boell-southeast asia.org/

Mailing Address:
POB 119 Chiang Mai University Post Office
Chiang Mai 50202, Thailand

Source: Group E-Mails

World AIDS Day 2008

Today is world AIDS day 2008.

There are tons of thousands of AIDS victims each year around the world but we have good news. According to Koichiro Matsuura, Director-General of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the death number in this matter is decreasing. The following is a piece of note of Koichiro Matsuura’s address:

A six-fold increase in financing for HIV activities in low- and medium-income countries since 2000 is yielding results, including a decline in the annual number of AIDS deaths in the past two years from 2.2 million in 2005 to 2 million in 2007.

Let us create peaceful and healthier world!


Picture: http://www.aidsarms.org/world%20AIDS%20dayBM2381847.jpg