Path: ccsf.homeunix.org!ccsf.homeunix.org!news1.wakwak.com!nf1.xephion.ne.jp!onion.ish.org!onodera-news!newsfeed.media.kyoto-u.ac.jp!headwall.stanford.edu!newsfeed.stanford.edu!postnews1.google.com!not-for-mail From: ysd_m@yahoo.co.jp (masayuki yoshida) Newsgroups: fj.life.in-japan Subject: Re: Gifu bombing anniversary? Date: 7 Jul 2003 00:20:12 -0700 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ Lines: 53 Message-ID: <545bd492.0307062320.3fef8317@posting.google.com> References: <3F05CA44.9F142BE8@yahoo.co.jp> <545bd492.0307041729.584a4fdd@posting.google.com> <3F06C33A.42D959E3@yahoo.co.jp> NNTP-Posting-Host: 219.186.4.17 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-2022-JP Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-Trace: posting.google.com 1057562413 12443 127.0.0.1 (7 Jul 2003 07:20:13 GMT) X-Complaints-To: groups-abuse@google.com NNTP-Posting-Date: 7 Jul 2003 07:20:13 GMT Xref: ccsf.homeunix.org fj.life.in-japan:2090 Eric Takabayashi wrote in message news:<3F06C33A.42D959E3@yahoo.co.jp>... > masayuki yoshida wrote: > > > Eric Takabayashi wrote in message news:<3F05CA44.9F142BE8@yahoo.co.jp>... > > > Ryan Ginstrom wrote: > > > > > > > "Ernest Schaal" wrote in message > > > > news:BB2B7991.41B4%eschaal@max.hi-ho.ne.jp... > > > > > On the way home I noticed a poster about a memorial ceremony on the > > > > > anniversary of Gifu being carpet bombed in WWII. It shows a photograph > that > > > > > shows the town leveled as if it were Hiroshima. Anyone know the history of > > > > > all this? > > > > > > > > Contrary to what one might think today, just about every major (and even > > > > bum-f**ked in the case of Gifu) city outside of Kyoto was pretty much > > > > flattened by bombing. > > > > > > Even Fukuyama was carpet bombed, with (they include injuries) a casualty count > > > of 80,000. Lack of media or public attention and a focus on the A-bombings, > > > particularly of Hiroshima, has contributed to this ignorance or apathy among > > > Japanese. Many even forget the Tokyo firebombing. > > > > As far as the majority of contemporary Japanese is a post-war > > generation, using the word 素orget' is not appropriate. You mean > > failing to recall person's real experience by the term? > > The Japanese term for not actively telling the young about Japan's suffering during the war is > indeed "forget". Just tonight I was at my children's' nursery school annual summer festival, but > for some reason, "peace" was the theme. Instead of the usual children dancing or fireworks finale, > the children and parents stood in a circle holding hands singing along to some song I've never > heard before saying we are "one world". > > Right. One world with war, terrorism, SARS, etc. Then there is Japan which is so safe and > peaceful. I am under the impression that when you talk about the history of Japanese modern war times you ALWAYS provide with your arguements based on morality. However, I would say that moral perspectives are one of ways for interpreting history. To take an example, how is war a moral issue? If you are in charge of war tactics and strategy and must decide something important, and if I am not in a such position, then can you and myself reach the same understanding of the war? > And next month, we'll hear about Hiroshima, and to a much lesser extent, Nagasaki again. Maybe > Koizumi and the Emperor will make some vague speeches about their "remorse" again or the trouble > that occurred in Asia. Thay are standing in their own positions. You are in a different position from theirs. The 'remorse' is a strictly political expression, I suppose. Masayuki