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| Newsletter
No.101 |
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November & December 2007
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Takuwakai Luncheon
The last Takuwakai Luncheon of the year (for Supporting Members) took place at the Ark Hills Club on November 29, with 33 members in attendance. The lecturer was a journalist noted for his "America watching", Mr Fumio Matsuo, who spoke on the topic of "Prospects for the American Presidential Elections."
Having obtained deep knowledge and experience in his long career as a journalist for Kyodo Tsushin and also able to gather the latest news from his wide circle of contacts, Matsuo-san was able to provide an extremely interesting and deep analysis. Among other insights not reported in the Japanese media, he said that although Hillary Clinton may have been declared the front runner, her victory at this point cannot be declared a foregone conclusion. Additionally, the Republican Party should not yet be written off, having rid itself of all Bush influence. Also, with the primaries proceeding at a fast pace, gun control could become a major source of controversy.
Discussion extended to the spirit of America's founding, with reference to Matsuo's book Democracy with a Gun recently published in English Translation. Finally, Japan-US relations past and present were touched on before the curtain came down on another wonderful luncheon talk.
Twinkle Race
Our annual gathering to enjoy the races took place on November 1 (Thursday) in the VIP Room of the Oi Racecourse with 27 persons attending, including ten guests from Italy, England, Taiwan, Sweden (from China), Poland and Canada. With a glass of wine in hand, our spectators cheered on the sprinting thoroughbreds who seemed to flow through the sparkling electric illuminations, feeling right at home in the salon-like setting. Peoples' faces lit up with delight when they fed winning tickets into the machines and saw them spout out their rewards.
The Present State of China: Perspective of the Tokyo Bureau Chief of The Economist Magazine:
Mr. Dominic Ziegler, Tokyo Bureau Chief of The Economist Magazine, gave a talk on Sep.7 (Fri.) at the Japan National Press Center, with nearly all 60 seats filled. The Economist correspondent for Hong Kong and Beijing, Mr. Ziegler has recently made a long trip to China and is known as the magazine's "China Watcher." What is the significance of the recent rise of China? How is it perceived by the rest of the world? The climax of China's rapid rise will be the Olympic Games next year. The Chinese government is loudly trumpeting its emergence as the new superpower both internationally and domestically, hoping to have recognized the victory of communism in the management of the country not only economically but in various ways.
Ziegler-san has recently discerned three stories. The first was when he met the Dalai Lama and spoke with him about the shooting death by a Chinese border guard of a Tibetan youth who tried to cross the Chinese border in a mountainous region. The second story concerns a twelve-year old flower seller whose home he visited, tracing a terrible road through the country to a poor village to meet the girl's mother. The third story was about the cheap compensation paid to farmers forcibly removed from their land in order to develop the outskirts of Beijing. Various topics were also covered in the Q&A session following this very lively talk.
Every Time a New Discovery! : English Club This Autumn
45 Delegates Visit Japan
Every month ESUJ presents 'English Club'. This Autumn there were three wonderful guest speakers, each passionate about his own special topic.
Starting in September, we had Dr. Huang Jiansheng, an associate professor at Yunnan Nationalities University in China. Dr. Huang, currently in Japan as an 'Asia Leadership Fellow" on a program jointly conducted by The Japan Foundation and The International House of Japan, spoke on the topic "Guanxi and It's Change in Rural China: Du Jia Village as a Case". He showed recent photos of China's farming villages, in particular of his own beautiful village in Yunnan and its people, and spoke very poignantly about changes in the environment and also about how he was able to leave his village to study abroad and be active internationally thanks to his knowledge of English.
In October, our speaker was Dr. Ulf Nilsson, a resident of Japan for 15 years, speaking on "My Change from a Swedish Dentist to a Japanese Businessman". Dr. Nilsson's talk covered the development of tooth implant technology, a revolution in dentistry, and his own move from research and dental work to Nobel Biocare Japan, becoming a corporate salesman and ultimately president of the company in eight years after starting out with no prior knowledge of the Japanese corporate climate at a time of rapid change full of turmoil.
Finally, Mr. Paul Conroy, Associate Professor of Shumei University, spoke on "The Asian Image: Political Cartoons Featuring Japan and other Asian Countries from the British Press". Every year Shumei students are sent to Kent University in Canterbury, England, and this year Conroy-san accompanied them. He showed photos of the enjoyable life on campus and beautiful surroundings and also introduced cartoons from the British National Archive of Editorial Cartoons, of which the university is justly proud to be the owners. It was a delightful discovery that the cartoon sense of the ironic and humorous British is so fresh!
ESUJ Christmas Party 2007: December 19 (Wed.): 18:30-20:30 at FCCJ(Foreign Correspondents Club) (Yurakucho Denki Bldg, 20th F.)
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For
further informaiton contact!
E-MAIL:esuj@esuj.gr.jp
Fujikage-Building
9th Floor, Motoakasaka 1-1-5
MInato-ku, Tokyo 107-0051
TEL: 03-3423-0970 FAX: 03-3423-0971
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