Japan Denies WWII History

[Hans Tucker (Hans)]

Disturbing if the article is accurate.

http://www.news.com.au/world/japans-...-1226822379758

Those that forget the past are condemned to repeat it.

[Regulus (Trevor)]

That is a bit concerning Hans.
I don't mind if they want to change the treaty to allow them a military that is a bit more than the relatively small defensive force they have, and so as not to rely on the USofA and allies to bolster their military. They live in a dangerous neighbourhood.
I can even understand that growing up Japanese and carrying a burden of guilt about your country's and forefathers actions might encourage some attempt at amelioration; it would be unpleasant for a society that places emphasis on 'face'. However the idea of whitewashing facts from history is not a good start to good relations. Especially when it is documented and provable.
China will play it for all it's worth and so will North Korea.

I believe it is an attempt to recover honour for the entire culture but it's not the way to do it. The recovery is a generational thing and will take time-distance from the events. Probably another generation or so. In fact the current younger Japanese generation seems quite willing to let it all go.

Trevor

[noeyedeer (Matt)]

so sad. ww2 was such a horrific war .. no post war distress disorder or whatever it's called these days .. those guys were tough as nails .. and now this! no wonder I am kinda racist. to clarify I don't have any friends that aren't Caucasian.

matt

[noeyedeer (Matt)]

the Chinese would be the most upset .. the crimes Japan did in kampuchea is horrendous .. moreso then the Jewish holocaust... I mean in that province .. I forget sounds like what I said but it's not Cambodia

nanking ? either way .. most south east Asian countries hate the japenese

[David Niven (David Niven)]

Lest we forget, our diggers were butchered and eaten by Jap troops in WWII. There are articles on these urls,
http://www.smh.com.au/national/archi...004-2uzrd.html

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/736051/posts

Yes indeed, the ultranationalists in Tokyo is on the rise!

[Steffen]

Originally Posted by noeyedeer

America should drop another bomb ..

And thus you have lowered yourself to the same level as the ultranationalist sabre-rattlers...

Cheers
Steffen.

[noeyedeer (Matt)]

Originally Posted by Steffen

And thus you have lowered yourself to the same level as the ultranationalist sabre-rattlers...

Cheers
Steffen.

perhaps, but I have no remorse for them what so ever. the emperor was not held for trial lol ... yet most german generals were. no wonder Hitler escaped to the south Americas ...

matt

I'm sure the images of watching the natives on that island near Japan (I'm too drunk to remember) throwing themselves and their children off cliffs .. because the Americans were advancing ... lol if that's not mind control what is ...
saipan... here's an account www.wtj.com/articles/gabaldon/ scroll to the bottom third if you don't want to read the whole story

[BPO]

The Japanese are concerned with honour, rather than "face," a Chinese concept related to image. In Japan, it's possible to be poor yet completely honourable, but in China you can't be poor and have a lot of face. There, you can be the sleaziest, slimiest, crookedest scumbag imaginable and still have face, if you're wealthy and draped in bling.

As for contemporary Japan and WW2, most who were alive at the time want to forget, and those who weren't don't want to know. It's not taught in schools, and that's how the majority want it.

Japanese behaviour in Manchuria was beyond despicable. Genghis Kahn and his hordes would have been horrified by many of the things the Japanese did there. It was so bad it horrified the local German consular -- an avowed Nazi -- and he is considered to be a hero for his attempts to stem the slaughter. It doesn't get much worse than that.

The ultranationalist far right in Japan is an extreme group: Most Japanese are friendly and polite to a fault to foreign visitors, even though the majority would happily wind the clocks back to the time before they were forced at gunpoint to open their country to the predations of the rest of the world. It's not that they hate foreigners: they just don't want them in Japan as anything other than tourists.

On the other hand, I suggest you visit Japan before you condemn an entire race and society for the wartime atrocities of their forebears. Everyone of us has ancestors who did reprehensible things, yet you'd be howling with outrage if anyone suggested you're somehow responsible.

The Japanese are overall lovely people, and it's a wonderful and interesting place and culture. They're certainly very different in some respects, and, yes, they have their fringe of idiotic racists, just as we do. In fact, I'd say racism and bigotry is far more "in your face" in the west than it is in Japan.

Disclaimer: My wife is Japanese, and I've visited Japan many times.

[casstony]

Originally Posted by noeyedeer

America should drop another bomb ..

Not necessary - Japan is nuking itself. One accident with the spent fuel pools at Fukashima and much of the country will be ruined by airborne radiation.

[casstony]

Originally Posted by David Niven

Yes indeed, the ultranationalists in Tokyo is on the rise!

Extreme nationalism is on the rise in many countries due to economic hardship and high youth unemployment. History suggests it's only a matter of time before a serious regional conflict breaks out, possibly in Europe or china/Japan.

[AstralTraveller (David)]

While it's perfectly right to decry Japanese ultra-nationalists lets not get too smug. There are forces in this country right now who are interested in re-writing history, obscuring current affairs and hobbling any news outlet that does not toe the line. Unless good people start standing up we'll wind up with 'white Australia' and the stolen generations forgotten, piracy on the high seas, and testosterone and hubris dominating the public discourse. The battle for the past, and the future, is here and now.

[PeterHA (Peter)]

Hitler did not escape, he fled by killing himself in the Berlin Bunker.

[multiweb (Marc)]

Originally Posted by noeyedeer

... no wonder Hitler escaped to the south Americas ...

Woaaah.... do you get your news from the Daily Mirror or the SUN tabloids? I though it was made clear his skeleton was found in a B52 bomber on the moon?...

[AndrewJ]

Extreme nationalism is on the rise in many countries due to economic hardship

I would say its more due to the looming effects of overpopulation.
We are getting to a point where countries can no longer remain sustainable unless they expand their borders to grab others resources.
We are just emulating bugs in a petri dish fighting for space in the agar.

Andrew

[Camelopardalis (Dunk)]

I've travelled a fair bit in my life and lived in a bunch of different places and mixed with heaps of different people.

The one thing I've learned is that people are just people, and we are all more similar than we are different when it comes down to it. And there are evil elements amongst every society. In a modern society we are just more aware of it though media, and today we call them 'extremists'

[Steffen]

Originally Posted by AstralTraveller

While it's perfectly right to decry Japanese ultra-nationalists lets not get too smug. There are forces in this country right now who are interested in re-writing history, obscuring current affairs and hobbling any news outlet that does not toe the line. Unless good people start standing up we'll wind up with 'white Australia' and the stolen generations forgotten, piracy on the high seas, and testosterone and hubris dominating the public discourse. The battle for the past, and the future, is here and now.

Well said. Quoted in full for truth.

Cheers
Steffen.

[noeyedeer (Matt)]

Originally Posted by PeterHA

Hitler did not escape, he fled by killing himself in the Berlin Bunker.

Originally Posted by multiweb

Woaaah.... do you get your news from the Daily Mirror or the SUN tabloids? I though it was made clear his skeleton was found in a B52 bomber on the moon?...

nah it was some documentary I watched on Nat geo, based on some guys book and declassified fbi files. it was interesting. there's a bit on the web about it and how the DNA testing of the bunker bones were inconclusive etc...

matt

[Astro_Bot]

Originally Posted by AstralTraveller

The battle for the past, and the future, is here and now.

Indeed. But this isn't the first time, nor will it be the last.

Anyway, we're not the only people to notice how screwed up things are getting. From an article on Shaun Micallef's satirical show, Mad as Hell:

- the challenge this year will be less finding suitable subject matter, and more finding ways to be more ridiculous than reality.

[Kunama]

I foresee a big padlock in the future of this thread ...

[MattT]

Originally Posted by AstralTraveller

While it's perfectly right to decry Japanese ultra-nationalists lets not get too smug. There are forces in this country right now who are interested in re-writing history, obscuring current affairs and hobbling any news outlet that does not toe the line. Unless good people start standing up we'll wind up with 'white Australia' and the stolen generations forgotten, piracy on the high seas, and testosterone and hubris dominating the public discourse. The battle for the past, and the future, is here and now.

Couldn't agree more.

Just read Peter Reith's piece in The Age a day or so ago…

Matt 'noeyedeer' that book on Hitlers survival has been out for decades. I read it in the early 1990's. I bought it from a second hand book seller so it's older than that.
Matt