薬師寺の東塔、解体修理始まる 完成まで７年
|
|
|
奈良市の薬師寺で１日、国宝の東塔の解体修理が始まった。全面的に解体されるのは１世紀ぶり。来春までに塔全体を囲む鉄骨造り７階建ての素屋根（高さ ４２．５メートル）を設け、約７年かけて修理する。素屋根は塔北側で組み上げ、完成した部分から南側へずらしていくスライド工法で建設される。（編集委 員・小滝ちひろ）
2011年8月31日 星期三
野田佳彥上任/福島核廠工人 染白血病亡
新任日本首相野田佳彦将自己比喻为一条泥鳅，要投身于日本“浑浊的政治”中，努力为自己的祖国取得一些成绩。
野田佳彥接棒「難逃短命魔咒」
上任首要挑戰「阻日圓升值」
【莊蕙嘉╱綜合外電報導】一如預期，日本國會參眾兩院昨選出原任財務大臣的野田佳彥為第95任首相，為近5年來第6位日本首相，野田同日宣布部分黨人事安 排。分析家認為，接替前首相菅直人剩餘任期的野田，恐逃不過「短命首相」魔咒；重建日本經濟和處理核災是他兩大考驗，料他將增稅減債，並以阻升日圓為施政方向。
現年54歲的野田昨在眾院475張有效票獲308票，下午在參院首輪投票雖未過半，第二輪仍以110票勝過自民黨黨魁谷垣禎一的107票。他在眾院投票後感性表示：「讓我們一起為人民流汗，這是我衷心期望。」
「經濟內閣」為主力
野田當選首相後，預定9月2日組新內閣。昨他先宣布民主黨內人事安排，包括請黨內大老輿石東出任幹事長，前外相前原誠司任政調會長，前內閣官房長官平野博文任國會對策委員長等。外界認為，野田內閣將以「經濟內閣」為戰鬥主力，財務大臣可能由民主黨前幹事長岡田克也出任。
外國媒體以「旋轉門」（revolving door）形容近5年日本首相更迭，自小泉純一郎以降，每位首相平均任期不過1年，「短命」到令人搖頭。
全球最高國債待決
2009年民主黨的鳩山由紀夫雖成功由自民黨手中搶到政權，但遷移普天間美軍基地的承諾跳票使他下台；繼任的菅直人處理311強震及福島核災不力而去職。換上野田內閣接替做到明年9月，短短1年能否做出成績，各方看法不樂觀。
地震及核災使日本東北百廢待舉，福島危機亦需解決；全球最高的國債、居高不下的日圓匯率和人口老化拖累經濟；反對黨掌握國會參院多數，考驗其斡旋能力。外交上對中、對美關係仍是重點。
主張重啟核反應爐
野田曾稱，擬將現行5%消費稅加倍，以籌措經費削減債務；阻升日圓也可能是施政重點。此外和菅直人不同，野田主張重啟日本停轉的核反應爐，也不支持菅直人主張的無核社會。他強調，「我們（政黨）的座右銘就是民眾生活擺第一，我也強調對中產階級的支持。」日本股匯市對野田當選反應平靜，日經指數小漲1.16%，美元兌日圓盤整，停留在76.84附近。
野田被公認是政壇中間派，表現並不起眼，擔任財相時作風也偏保守。但私底下有趣得多，他一天要抽2包菸，還能一口氣喝1升酒，尤好日本酒，且是柔道好手。
日本新首相 野田佳彥小檔案
●年齡：54歲，1957/05/20出生於千葉縣船橋市
●家庭：出身軍人世家，父親為陸上自衛隊自衛官，家中長子，弟弟也從政；已婚，育有2子
●學歷：早稻田大學政經學部政治系，首位出身松下政經塾的首相
●興趣：觀看格鬥，本身是柔道2段
●簡歷：
1987年：首度當選千葉縣縣議員，年僅29歲
1993年：首度當選參議員，迄今當過5任
2002年：自創黨內派系，2006年更名為「花齊會」，台裔參議員蓮舫為其成員
2010/06：出任財務大臣
2011/08/29：當選民主黨黨魁
2011/08/30：當選日本首相
資料來源：綜合外電、《蘋果》資料室
福島核廠工人 染白血病亡
日本東京電力昨宣布，曾在福島第一核電廠工作1周的40多歲協力廠商男作業員，本月16日因急性白血病過世，死者生前體外輻射暴露量為0.5毫西弗，體內為0，明顯低於日本政府目前容許上限。東電強調：「醫師診斷指，作業員之死跟在福島核電廠工作過沒關係。」《朝日新聞》引述東電的說法稱，急性白血病在發病前潛伏期數年，不會因死亡前短期暴露就發病。
先前健檢無異常
男子是8月上旬到電廠幫忙1周，負責開關福島英雄休息室的門和放射線暴露管理，先前不曾在電廠工作。結束福島電廠工作後不適住院，被診斷患急性白血病，於16日病逝。據悉男子先前健康檢查未發現白血球數量異常。
311東日本大地震引發海嘯造成福島電廠輻射外洩危機，日本政府被迫將電廠員工每年暴露的輻射上限，從原本100毫西弗暫時上調為250毫西弗，厚生勞動省考慮在年底前降回原本標準。
編譯陳怡妏
2011年8月30日 星期二
Volunteerism spreads among Japanese companies
Volunteerism spreads among Japanese companies
BY KENICHI GOROMARU STAFF WRITER
2011/08/30
Shiseido Co.'s "beauty volunteers" give free makeovers to victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake in Natori, Miyagi Prefecture, on Aug. 10. (Kenichi Goromaru)
Skylark Co. employees serve meals at an evacuation center in Onagawa, Miyagi Prefecture, on Aug. 9. (Kenichi Goromaru)
Volunteerism has gained new impetus among companies in a ripple effect since the Great East Japan Earthquake.
Companies such as Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. and Olympus Corp. introduced volunteer leave systems after March 11; however many firms use a system where volunteers must get approval as to when they want to work as volunteers in quake-ravaged northeast Japan.
Corporate volunteerism took ground after the Great Hanshin Earthquake of 1995.
A younger employee at a major electric company requested leave in late June. He was given the OK by his supervisor because his leave time would not affect the company.
"My request would have been turned down if it was a busy time," he said.
Mitsubishi Corp. plans to send 1,200 employees to disaster-stricken areas this fiscal year, which ends in March 2012.
Nippon Keidanren (Japan Business Federation) sent 20 teams of volunteers, consisting of workers from about 50 companies, between April and early August.
But needs in the area have changed, said a Keidanren official.
"We will have to consider sending people who can help support reconstruction," the official said.
One day in early August, a prefab meeting room in Natori, Miyagi Prefecture, was filled with women's laughter.
"You are a totally different person now," one woman said.
"My family members will be surprised," said another.
Beauticians from cosmetics giant Shiseido Co. visited disaster-stricken areas and gave free makeovers and massage services to about 27,000 people who live in evacuation centers and temporary housing.
"I feel great after having my makeup done,"said 59-year-old Shizue Shoji. "I feel confident and up to a challenge."
Another woman, 56, said, "I didn't feel like wearing makeup immediately after the earthquake. But now I feel as if I am returning to an ordinary life a little. Makeup has a great magic."
Shiseido's activities were first started by local workers in the disaster-stricken areas.
"For women, makeup provides them a zest for living," said Kaeko Matsuda, a senior official at the company's Tohoku branch office. "It can be an opportunity for disaster survivors to exchange feelings."
At a sports park in Onagawa, Miyagi Prefecture, restaurant chain operator Skylark Co. employees prepared food for evacuees, who live in the gym.
The menu on a day in early August was sliced pork and boiled sanma with a soy sauce flavor.
Yoko Kimura, 60, whose apartment was submerged by the tsunami, said, "When I first ate rice and miso soup at the evacuation center, I couldn't help crying. I am grateful, just grateful, for being able to have a balanced diet every day."
Akio Maru, a Skylark employee who helped prepare meals, said, "I was so happy when an evacuee leaving the center shook my hand."
The company had provided about 200,000 meals at Onagawa and Kesennuma evacuation centers by mid-August, when municipal school-lunch centers reopened.
SMBC Nikko Securities Inc. sent nearly 400 new employees to clear debris in July as part of their new employee training. They were not given detailed instructions.
According to Masaki Yamada, company social responsibility director, the attempt bore an unexpected result.
"Everybody acted creatively, and their teamwork was enhanced," Yamada said.
Hula Girls
Akihabara to host 'Hula Girls Koshien'
BY IPPEI NAKATA STAFF WRITER
2011/08/30
A former "Hula Girl," Junko Azuma (front), gives high school girls pointers on how to dance at the Akiba Square building in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward. (Ippei Nakata)
High school hula dancers practice (Ippei Nakata)
High school girls from around Japan will compete at the first Hula Girls Koshien contest at the Akiba Square building in front of Tokyo's JR Akihabara Station on Sept. 4.
The competition was supposed to be hosted by Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, where the 2006 Japanese movie "Hula Girls" was set, on March 23 but was postponed because of the Great East Japan Earthquake.
Girls from 13 high schools will compete. A joint practice session to help participants improve their skills and get to know each other was held on Aug. 22 at the Akihabara venue, with one of the original Hula Girls, Junko Azuma, providing instruction.
Eleven students from Tokyo's Asakusa Senior High School in Tokyo, Hanyu Daiichi Senior High School in Saitama Prefecture, and the Saitama Prefectural High School of the Arts attended the session.
Azuma, 44, was a former member of the hula dancers at the Joban Hawaiian Center resort, the forerunner of the Spa Resort Hawaiians, who were known as the "Hula Girls."
"Take a strong step," she told the students, "Stretch your leg slowly."
Erika Hirano, 16, a first-year student at the Asakusa Senior High School, said: "I want to give an energetic performance and make the audience want to dance along."
Rio Yoshida, 18, from Hanyu Daiichi Senior High School, said: "I want to enliven the mood at the event because the idea is to encourage reconstruction (following the earthquake). We practiced really hard, and we want to win the contest."
The movie "Hula Girls" is based on the true story of the creation of the Joban Hawaiian Center resort.
"Iwaki, whose main industry was coal mining, began to die in the 10 years after 1965," Kenichi Yoshida, the 39-year-old head of the competition's organizing committee said. "We managed to overcome the crisis by establishing the Hawaiian Center offering hula dance shows."
The city now finds itself in a new crisis because of the accident at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, immediately to its north.
"Like the Hula Girls who built the foundation for the revival of Iwaki, we expect the students who dance hula to be 'the symbol of reconstruction,'" Yoshida said.
The organizing committee was forced to move the event in the wake of the March 11 disaster, and decided on Tokyo because members wanted to get as much publicity as possible for the difficulties of Iwaki.
The event, which takes the "Koshien" part of its name from the national high school baseball tournament, will open at 12:30 p.m. on Sept. 4. The competition itself will start at 1 p.m. Admission is free. There are 350 seats as well as standing room.
A special event will also be held on Sept. 3 at the venue, with locally grown vegetables and other items from the Iwaki area on sale.
For more information, visit (http://www.hula-girls.net/index.html).
Iwaki 市: Memories, Washed Away/Iwaki once again finds hope through its "Hula Girls"
The Fair Trade Commission on Thursday searched offices of Yamada Denki
Co., the nation's largest chain of large-scale appliance and
electronics retailers, on suspicion that it demanded suppliers to
provide workers, in violation of the Antimonopoly Law.
The FTC believes the Maebashi-based company illegally pressured
manufacturers and other suppliers to provide staff to work as de facto
sales clerks in its stores. The FTC searched for evidence in the
chain's head office in the capital of Gunma Prefecture and some
branches.
---
VOX POPULI: Iwaki once again finds hope through its "Hula Girls"
Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a daily column that runs on Page 1 of the vernacular Asahi Shimbun.
2011/04/10
The 2006 Japanese movie "Hula Girls" is set in a decaying coal mining town in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, in the 1960s. Based on the real-life Joban Hawaiian Center resort that opened in Iwaki in 1966, the town is planning to build a mock-Hawaiian resort, and a young woman (Yu Aoi) is interested in responding to a recruitment ad for hula dancers. She tells her mother (Junko Fuji) so during supper, but the mother admonishes her sternly: "Forget it. Hawaii in these boonies here in the northeast? Ain't happening."
But the struggling town sees its only hope of survival in the Joban Hawaiian Center, which will use the region's natural hot springs. Miners' daughters get busy practicing hula dancing, but many locals remain hostile to this new project because it only suggests the imminent closure of the coal mines.
A hula dance instructor arrives from Tokyo and makes an impassioned appeal: "You've got to understand that these girls are determined to save the community. That's why they've become such accomplished dancers."
The ardor of the project's supporters gradually turns nonbelievers into believers, and this "Hawaii of the Tohoku Region" blossomed into a successful venture. It has since been renamed Spa Resort Hawaiians, and attracts about 1.5 million visitors a year.
Then the March 11 quake and tsunami struck, followed by the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant disaster 50 kilometers away. Spa Resort Hawaiians has been temporary shut down, and this is said to represent a worse crisis for the locals than when the coal mines closed.
About 30 hula girls, now out of work, will shortly begin performing in the Tokyo area and some parts of the Tohoku region, and later tour the nation. The last nationwide tour was just before the opening of the Joban Hawaiian Center, and it was to promote the new facility. The current tour will enable the dancers and disaster survivors to renew their resolve to revive their communities.
What transformed Iwaki's coal-sludge heaps into a tourist resort was the miners' sense of impending doom for their families and communities because of the moribund coal industry. Today, unfounded rumors of radioactive fallout are their bane. These people were made to pay--and are still being made to pay--for the nation's energy policy. My heart goes out to them.
Getting over the quake and tsunami damage will require far greater energy than developing a coal production center. The people of Iwaki will probably derive their energy from their love of family and community, but outsiders could also provide invaluable help, as did the hula dance instructor from Tokyo in the movie. And the greatest source of energy must lie in the town's young people, who must see their own future overlapping the nation's future. They will be like those hula girls who danced to revive their dying town.
--The Asahi Shimbun, April 9
* * *
起碼 Iwaki 市我造訪過 (約1992)
我是讀紐約時報的一篇文章*中注意到它的
我查Wikipedia 才知道它原先的漢字 不過它們可能是錯誤的 "岩樹" 是另一說法
The forms いわき, 石城, 岩城, and 磐城 are all ways of writing "Iwaki," which means "rocky castle". Today, いわき is the most common written form. Iwaki, Fukushima - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - [ 翻譯此頁 ]Iwaki (いわき市, Iwaki-shi) is a city located in the southern part of the Hamadōri coastal region of Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. ...
--------
*
Op-Ed Contributor
Memories, Washed Away
Iwaki 市: Memories, Washed Away/Iwaki once again fi...2011年8月28日 星期日
国保滞納者の差し押さえ急増、４年で５倍 朝日新聞調査
国保滞納者の差し押さえ急増、４年で５倍 朝日新聞調査
|
|
|
国民健康保険（国保）の保険料を滞納し、財産を差し押さえられる世帯が増えている。朝日新聞社が１９の政令指定市と東京２３区に聞いたところ、回答が あった３７市区の差し押さえ件数の合計が、２０１０年度までの４年間で５倍に増えたことがわかった。差し押さえた財産を換金するケースも急増。雇用悪化を 背景に国保料収納率の低下に歯止めがかからず、強制徴収が加速している実態が浮き彫りになった。
調査は７月、計４２市区を対象に０６～１０年度の差し押さえ状況を聞いた。仙台、京都両市と東京都渋谷区は１０年度分について「未集計」「非公表の段 階」と回答。大田、板橋両区は「古いデータが残っていない」と答えた。残る３７市区の差し押さえ件数は０６年度、計３４２９件だったが、１０年度は ４．９６倍の計１万７０２０件に増加。特に指定市の伸びが大きく、増加率は６．６倍に上った。
１０年度でみると、指定市では横浜（２９１３件）、福岡（１７４５件）、名古屋（１２５４件）の順に多く、北九州は９９件だった。２３区は杉並区の ９４３件が最多。差し押さえた財産の内訳は預貯金が５０％で最も多く、保険（２２％）、不動産（１５％）と続いた。３６市区が回答を寄せた差し押さえ金額 （滞納額）は総額９１億３千万円。４年前に比べて４．６倍となった。
「櫻亭雑誌」(正岡子規)
謎解き、達者な絵 子規が１１歳で編集した雑誌、初公開
|
|
| |
正岡子規（１８６７～１９０２）が少年時代に自作した雑誌２冊が、９月１９日の命日・糸瓜（へちま）忌にちなみ、１日から東京都台東区の子規庵（あん） で初公開される。１冊は子規が１１歳で編集した「櫻亭（おうてい）雑誌第六号」。早熟な「少年エディター」ぶりを示している。
「櫻亭雑誌」は松山での少年時代、週刊くらいのペースで出していた。半紙を和紙のひもでとじている。３～５号が「子規全集」に収録されているが、６号は未収録。謎解きなど子どもらしい内容の一方、驚くほど達者な絵も描かれている。
もう１冊は、１８歳の大学予備門時代に秋山真之（さねゆき）ら親しい友人７人で相互に人物評をした内容の「七変人評論第一編」。部分的には後に高浜虚子 が「ホトトギス」で紹介し、全集に収録されたため、３人は人物像がわかっていたが、今回の公開で、残る４人についての評も明らかになった。
いずれも１冊だけ作り、回覧していた。記念特別展「少年エディター子規」を監修した詩人の平出隆さんは「編集・デザインの感覚が非常に優れ、人を巻き込んでいく子規の特徴が、すでに見て取れる」と語る。
特別展は９月３０日まで。５００円。主催は財団法人子規庵保存会（０３・３８７６・８２１８）。（大上朝美）
drunken rampage at a Shinto temple.
Series in which food writer and presenter Stefan Gates immerses himself in some of the most extraordinary feasts and festivals on earth. By joining ordinary people in these strange and wonderful distillations of their culture and beliefs, he hopes to gain a revelatory insight into how the world thinks and feels.
Stefan attempts to get under the skin of the traditional Japanese reserve by joining in some amazing feasts and festivals, a journey which culminates with Stefan and 10,000 Japanese men wearing nothing but loin cloths in a drunken rampage at a sacred Shinto temple.
He starts his trip by helping a Shinto priestess carry a six-foot wooden penis around a suburb of Tokyo, as she bemoans how kids today seem to have lost their traditional Japanese reserve, before joining the Baby Sumo festival where parents compete to get their children to cry first, to give them good luck for the rest of their lives.
Finally, he embarks on the most extraordinary event of his life - the Naked Man festival. He meets up with Mr Kosaki, a man from the classic Japanese mould who has never told his wife he loves her, who has forsaken his love of music to become a salaryman, and whose work consumes his life. He is as different from Stefan as anyone could hope to be, until his friends arrive and everything changes.
They get wildly drunk, practically naked, and stuff themselves with sushi. Then those still standing head off on a terrifying, barrier-wrecking festival that finally allows the Japanese man to reveal himself as passionate, expressive and loving as anyone. It is all rooted in centuries of Shinto food-related tradition, but is really a huge primal scream from men who spend their days unable to express themselves.
2011年8月27日 星期六
Island as Unlikely Arts Installation
Cultured Traveler
Japanese Island as Unlikely Arts Installation
Kosuke Okahara for The New York Times
The Benesse House Museum on Naoshima island, where museums, installations and cutting-edge architecture blend with nature in novel ways. A “pumpkin” by Yayoi Kusama looks over the Seto Inland Sea. More Photos »
By INGRID K. WILLIAMS
Published: August 26, 2011
ON a chilly night last November on the tiny island of Naoshima in the Seto Inland Sea of southern Japan, I found myself alone in a dark concrete gallery, a sweater pulled over my pajamas. I was staying at the Benesse House Museum, a 10-room hotel set inside a contemporary art museum, on the island’s craggy southern coast, and still battling jet lag. So instead of tossing in bed, I visited the deserted galleries of the museum — guests of the hotel are permitted to wander beyond closing time. Before long, I was transfixed by Bruce Nauman’s art installation, “100 Live and Die,” a neon billboard of flashing phrases.
Multimedia
“CRY AND LIVE,” it read in large, glowing letters. “THINK AND DIE.” “SMILE AND LIVE.”
On my way to bed, I detoured past a whitewashed alphabet by Jasper Johns and the blue hues of a David Hockney swimming pool, the only sound in the galleries the scratching of my hotel slippers on the concrete floor. No guard hovered over Cy Twombly’s scribbles; no tour group blocked Jackson Pollock’s splatters. This was the essential appeal to the Benesse’s unusual hotel-within-a-museum setup: an exhilarating intimacy with art. The museum had been closed for more than an hour when I finally shuffled out of the gallery and crawled into bed.
That accessibility to art is not uncommon on Naoshima, where, thanks in large part to a corporate benefactor, a cultural convergence has been percolating over the past two decades, as museums, art installations, cutting-edge architecture and nature blend in astoundingly novel ways. The result is a sleepy island that has become an unlikely destination for globetrotting art pilgrims.
On that autumn night, I of course could not have known the terror that the following spring held for Japan or how frighteningly prescient some of Mr. Nauman’s glowing commands were. According to Yoshino Kawaura of the Naoshima Fukutake Art Museum Foundation, the area, which is about as far from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant as North Carolina is from New York, was not directly affected by the earthquake, tsunami and resulting rolling blackouts, or increased radiation levels. (Since April, the State Department’s travel alerts for Japan have advised visitors against traveling to destinations only within a 50-mile radius of the stricken nuclear plant on the northeastern coast; Naoshima is over 500 miles south of the plant.)
Still, Naoshima, like all of Japan, suffered a significant drop in foreign tourism after the disaster. At the Benesse House, Naoshima’s only hotel, most reservations in March and April held by foreign guests were canceled.
The island’s intriguing harmony of culture and nature, though, continues to attract Japanese tourists to the island even as foreign visitors are scarce. Overseas travelers, actually, are coming back as well: In May, Rei Namikawa, a representative for the Benesse hotel, wrote in an e-mail that foreign guests have slowly been returning as the crisis wanes, adding that the hotel was fully booked during the Golden Week holidays that straddle April and May.
The emergence of modern art and architecture in this relatively isolated place can be credited to corporate donations from Benesse Corporation, a Japanese company that specializes in test prep and language schools. The company’s chairman, a native of nearby Okayama, is the billionaire art-lover Soichiro Fukutake, whose longstanding support has fueled the transformation of Naoshima and a growing number of surrounding Seto Inland islands, particularly Teshima and Inujima — remote fishing islands with aging populations.
Over about 20 years, Benesse Corporation has financed one project after another. Last year, this accrual of art got a boost from the Setouchi International Art Festival, a 100-day celebration with works from 75 artists distributed among seven islands, including Naoshima. The festival ended on Oct. 31, but many of the featured works remain permanently. Teshima is now home to “Les Archives du Coeur,” an installation of recorded heartbeats by the French artist Christian Boltanski, and the Teshima Art Museum, which houses one work in a water-droplet-shaped structure created by the artist Rei Naito and the architect Ryue Nishizawa, a winner of last year’s Pritzker Architecture Prize.
The construction of the Benesse House Museum in 1992 marked the beginning of a fruitful partnership between Benesse Corporation and another Pritzker winner, the Japanese architect Tadao Ando. To date, he has designed seven structures on the small island, including three museums and the Benesse House Park building, which is studded with museum-worthy pieces.
On Naoshima, another recent addition financed by the corporation is the Lee Ufan Museum, a space wholly dedicated to the work of Mr. Lee, a Korean artist whose meditative works are on display as part of a retrospective at the Guggenheim in New York, running through Sept. 28. The new museum, which opened in June 2010, is the result of collaboration between Mr. Lee and Mr. Ando, whose modern concrete creations have been integral to the evolution of Naoshima’s art scene.
Naoshima, about three square miles in size, supports a population of about 3,300. Local residents have opened a few traditional guesthouses, which provide alternative lodging options to the Benesse hotel, and restaurants, but it is the art that brings visitors, my husband and me included, to the island.
Before my nighttime visit to the Benesse galleries, we had explored the other impressive buildings affiliated with the hotel. We clambered aboard a six-seat monorail that trundles up the wooded hill behind the museum, and discovered another of Mr. Ando’s sleek structures, a six-room hilltop annex called the Oval, which opened in 1995, one of four of the museum’s lodging options. The spare space is anchored by a dramatic black oval pool, and blends seamlessly into the natural surroundings, with tumbling waterfalls and a grassy rooftop lawn with panoramic views.
The next day, a rainy one, we hopped on a mini-bus to Honmura, on the eastern side of the island, where in an innovative effort called the Art House Project, artists have transformed abandoned houses into stand-alone projects that are woven into the fabric of this traditional neighborhood.
One contribution did involve the creation of a new structure. Titled “Minamidera,” the building was designed by Mr. Ando in 1999 to house a work by the American artist James Turrell. The work, “Backside of the Moon,” is an interactive, mind-bending experience for the viewer. (A full explanation would spoil the exhibit’s surprise.)
The artists’ messages are not always easy to decipher. At “Haisha,” the artist Shinro Ohtake has installed a hodgepodge of neon-light pieces and a two-story simulacrum of the Statue of Liberty. At the secluded “Go’o Shrine,” Hiroshi Sugimoto’s work is more straightforward: a glass staircase that descends from an above-ground shrine to a subterranean cave.
The island’s big-ticket draw, though, is Mr. Ando’s Chichu Art Museum. Chichu means “in the ground,” and indeed, the museum, built into a hilltop, is entirely underground, though it doesn’t feel that way to the visitor, thanks to a series of open courtyards and strategic skylights.
On the lowest level of the museum is an installation by the American sculptor Walter De Maria. On the floor above, a set of three progressive works by Mr. Turrell culminates with “Open Sky,” where viewers recline on stone benches to watch the evolving sky framed by the open ceiling; during our visit, raindrops pattered onto the floor.
But the central piece at Chichu will be familiar to most art lovers: one of Claude Monet’s famous large-scale water lily paintings, from the same series that is housed at the Musée de l’Orangerie in Paris (in 2009, the museum acquired four more, smaller Monet water lily pieces). To enhance the piece, a hazy sunset scene of clouds and willow trees reflected in a pond, the room that houses it features an inlaid floor of die-sized cubes of white Carrara marble and rounded walls that shimmer with natural light from above. And in a loop of life imitating art, a garden modeled on Monet’s own in Giverny has been installed outside the museum.
When the rain finally let up, we set out to find the many other works that are strewn about the island in outdoor installations, creating a sort of scavenger hunt for the visitor. On a densely wooded hill, spindly silver tines twirl above the treetops. At the end of a pier, a jumbo-size, polka-dotted yellow pumpkin squats above the sea. Beside a road, a band of 88 Buddha statues made from industrial slag blur the line between waste and art.
After completing our exploration, my husband and I spent our last evening on the island immersed — literally, as it turned out — in an art facility that is also a Japanese-style public bathhouse, or sento, called Naoshima Bath “I Love Yu.” (A bilingual word play, the name uses the character for “hot water,” which is pronounced “you.”) Opened in 2009, the sento was designed by Mr. Ohtake, the visionary behind the manic “Haisha” house in Honmura. Although many visitors simply snap photos of the bathhouse’s fantastically eclectic facade, fully experiencing this artwork demands active participation.
Once stripped of my notebook, camera and every last stitch of clothing, I soaked in the warm water, absorbed in the piece of art that surrounded me. As with so much of the work on Naoshima, the divisions between art and life simply dissolved.
IF YOU GO
GETTING THERE
From Tokyo or Osaka, take the Shinkansen (bullet train; english.jr-central.co.jp) to Okayama, change to the regional train line to Uno; from there, take a 20-minute ferry to Naoshima.
WHAT TO SEE AND DO
The Benesse Foundation’s Web site (benesse-artsite.jp) has detailed information in English about each art site, including admission prices, hours and directions.
WHERE TO STAY
Benesse House (Gotanji; 81-87-892-3223; benesse-artsite.jp) has Western-style rooms in the Museum, Oval, Park and Beach buildings. Rates for two start at 31,185 yen, or about $415, at 75 yen to the dollar, for a double room in the Park building, or 34,650 yen for the Museum.
Staying at a ryokan, a traditional Japanese inn, costs considerably less; the Naoshima Tourism Association lists lodging options at naoshima.net/en.
2011年8月21日 星期日
Swiss man takes the 2500km road less traveled
可能是30年英國人走過之路線嗎?
Swiss man takes the 2500km road less traveled
Swiss man takes the 2500km road less traveled
BY SOPHIE KNIGHT STAFF WRITER
2011/08/21
Thomas Kohler at the beginning of his walk (Provided by Thomas Kohler)
As the sweltering August heat continues, most people in Japan are trying to stay indoors and as inactive as possible.
Not Thomas Kohler, however. The Swiss travel agent is lugging a 14-kilogram rucksack for 20 kilometers a day in an attempt to walk the 2,500 kilometers from the northern tip of the Japanese archipelago to its southernmost point.
"After the quake happened, I was trying to think of ways I could help Japan. We've had enough bad news about Fukushima. I realized it was important to let people know that they could still travel safely in the country," he explains.
Kohler was forced to quit his job when 90 percent of his travel agency's customers canceled their vacations to Japan following the March 11 earthquake.
Fascinated by Japanese culture since childhood, he spent three years in the country studying the language during the 1990s and has visited every year since.
He came from Switzerland to volunteer in the tsunami-hit town of Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, after the disaster. Seeing the devastation, he resolved to travel the length of Japan, recording his impressions on a blog to show a more positive side to the country than was shown in coverage of the tsunami and nuclear disaster.
"Japan is a fantastic country, you never stop learning when you're here," he enthuses. "The people are extremely considerate and generous, and, as I'm Swiss, I also appreciate their desire to do things just right."
His native country has also given him the perfect training ground for his arduous journey. He spent months doing practice hikes in the mountains near his home in the city of Winterthur, testing out shoes, tents and sleeping bags with the help of a friend who sells expedition equipment.
"Many people are helping me do this, so I don't like to refer to it as a solo expedition," says Kohler. "I've got people translating the blog into English and Japanese and the Japanese tourist board is also helping me with logistics."
Kohler is, however, covering all of his own costs and faces a solitary battle against oppressive humidity, downpours, typhoons and snow on his epic journey. He also has the wildlife to contend with.
"I told some local people that I was planning to sleep on the beach one night, but they told me there were bears around. That plan didn't last very long," he says with a laugh.
Kohler started his trek on Aug. 1 in Cape Soya, Hokkaido, and anticipates reaching Cape Sata, at the very bottom of Kyushu, the southernmost of Japan's main islands, in December. He will walk along the west coast, along the Sea of Japan, bypassing the larger urban centers such as Tokyo and Osaka, in an attempt to explore Japan's "less touristy" side.
Despite the fatigue that comes with walking a half marathon on concrete surfaces every day, Kohler remains irrepressibly positive.
"Get along with yourself and you'll enjoy even lonely days," he says.
You can read Kohler's blog in English, Japanese and German at (http://www.japanfenster.ch/japantrip/en/).
2011年8月19日 星期五
無常觀 (1)
本來人民依賴國家而生活，巨大天災之後人民轉為信奉開示死後極樂世界的阿彌陀佛等的淨土信仰……
這次311日本東北關東大震災，媒體及官員大都以「未曾有」形容災難之大超乎想像。其實，細看日本的文學作品與史料，不難明白類似的大災難，非但不是「未曾有」，而且次數還不少。
首先讓我想到的是日本三大隨筆之一、中世紀的《方丈記》（另兩本是《枕草子》、《徒然草》）。《方丈記》寫的是安元（1177）大火、治承（1180）龍 捲風、福原（1180）遷都、養和（1181-1182）飢荒、元曆（1185）地震等天災人禍，可以說是作者鴨長明（鎌倉時代歌人，賀茂神社神官之子， 從中原有安學琵琶、俊惠法師學和歌。）歷經幾次重大災難的體驗。難怪一開頭就寫「水流不絕，並非原來之水」，解釋者大都引「逝者如斯，不捨晝夜」說受中國 影響，借用《論語》詞句，表明「無常」觀。
其實，鴨長明在這裡的「無常」之嘆，雖與佛教有關，但主要是從生活中親身體驗到的「無常」。上述幾種天災只要碰到其中一種，就足以讓人發出「無常」之嘆，何況接連而來！
試看安元大火的情狀：「安元3年（1177）4月28日，風大，不平靜的夜晚。午後八時左右，火從京都東南起，往西北燃燒，延至朱雀門、大極殿、大學寮、民部省；一夜之間，盡成灰燼。」而元曆3年（1185）的地震又是如何情狀呢？
鴨長明如此描述：「大地震頻頻發生，非比尋常。山陵崩裂，土石埋河，海水侵陸。大地裂開，水流湧出；大石崩裂，滾落山谷。船隻漂流海上，馬行道路無踏足之 地。京都裡所有寺、堂、塔，無一倖免，有的倒塌，有的傾斜。塵土飛揚，如煙霧迷濛。大地動搖，房屋倒塌之聲如雷。居家中之人，如非瞬間被埋，即如逃出屋 外，大地裂開，恨無翅膀可飛空中，願像龍可乘雲而去。」「海水侵陸」的結果不就是「海嘯席捲海邊房屋人車」的情景嗎？文中描述的情狀與這次日本大地震可說 大同小異。
日本有關大地震的記載，《方丈記》不是最早。平安時代的西元869年襲擊東北地方的太平洋沿岸引起大海嘯的貞觀地震，日本正史《日本三代實錄》的描述如 下：「貞觀11年（869）5月26日。發生發光現象，夜明如晝。房屋倒塌，大地裂開，多數人被活埋。馬牛哀號互相踐踏狂奔。陸奧國府多賀城的城郭、倉 庫、門、櫓、牆壁崩頹，死傷者不計其數。海發出如雷之聲。巨浪掀起漩渦、膨脹，大浪瞬間襲擊城下。大海廣數十數百里，分不清哪裡是陸哪裡是海。現在道路原 野盡在水中。既無法搭船逃走，亦登不了山，溺死者一千人。所有資產、種植之苗皆流失，手中幾已無物殘存。」
以當時日本總人口約五百萬而言，當時一千人，約略相當於現在的兩萬人。地震三個月後朝廷派遣陸奧國地震使到災區。當時的清和天皇於次月採取對災區免稅、埋葬遺體等措施。依記載貞觀地震之後，震源往關東、西日本移動，整個日本歷經數年的「動搖」。
以貞觀地震為主的前後幾年的天災（地震、火山爆發）造成國家無法掌握國民的動態，稅制也從人頭稅轉為土地稅，地方政府的權力增大，最後是武士登場。當時實 施的律令制度因此崩潰，甚至被視為國家重要事業之一的正史《日本三代實錄》的編寫在這一年畫下休止符。本來人民依賴國家而生活，巨大天災之後人民轉為信奉 開示死後極樂世界的阿彌陀佛等的淨土信仰，換句話說實際的生活體驗與宗教信仰結合在一起。「無常」觀逐漸成為日本人內心共有的深層記憶。
日本的天災雖無一定周期，但是大地震與火山爆發可說是「每隔一段時間」就會發生的「自然現象」。又如寶永4年（1707）發生的東南海地震，東海道西日本 一帶的低地都被海嘯侵襲，加上富士山噴火，關東降下酸性強的火山灰，農業受到重大打擊，使得江戶前期本來極速增加的人口和經濟成長因而停滯。依當時記錄， 寶永的海嘯不僅侵襲和歌山、德島高知海邊地帶，連當時經濟重心的大阪都受到嚴重打擊。地震發生後二小時海嘯到達大阪高達二公尺，有約兩千戶人家被沖走，將 近六百人溺死。海嘯甚至波及西日本，香川高松、岡山沿岸都觀測到近二公尺的潮位。西日本的低濕地帶的開發因此緩慢下來，人口成長也停止。此外，1923年 的關東大地震死亡人數約十萬五千人，許多文學作品都留下了傷痛紀錄。較近的1995年阪神大地震相信大家記憶猶新。
上述的每一次大地震都造成重大傷亡，不知多少家破人亡。一次又一次的巨大傷痛，必定以某種方式留下傷痕。因此「無常」的體悟，成了日本人共同的「人生觀」，而這種無常觀轉化為類似「宿命論」之後，再次遭逢巨變時往往能發揮深沉的巨大力量度過難關。
山本作兵衛Yamamoto Sakubei
山本作兵衛 日本語
维基百科，自由的百科全书
| 日語寫法 | |
|---|---|
| 日語原文 | 山本 作兵衛 |
| 假名 | やまもと さくべい |
| 平文式羅馬字 | Yamamoto Sakubei |
目錄[隐藏] |
[編輯] 略歷
明治25年（1892年）生於福岡縣嘉麻郡笠松村鶴三緒（今‧飯塚市），7歲起隨父、兄下坑，立岩尋常小學校畢業後，明治39年（1906年）入山內炭坑（今‧飯塚市）為礦工。以後輾轉於筑豐各地礦場當採煤工、鍛冶工，並以日記與筆記本留下見聞記錄。63歲起於福岡縣田川市的一處礦場事務所當值班警衛，「為了告訴子孫礦山的生活與人情」而開始執筆作畫，根據個人體驗與傳聞，以筆墨、水彩描繪明治至二次大戰戰後的北九州煤礦，並於餘白加註說明。先後完成1000幅以上畫作，主要作品有畫文集《炭鉱に生きる 地の底の人生記録》（1967年），世稱「礦山的繪師」。昭和59年（1984年）以年高體衰逝世，享年92歲。[編輯] 畫作登錄世界記憶遺產
原先，田川市希望以市內的舊三井田川礦業所伊田豎坑櫓等煤礦遺跡，作為「九州・山口的近代化産業遺產群」之一環申請登錄世界遺產，不過於2009年10月的考核中被刷下。但是當成相關資料提供的山本作兵衛記錄畫，獲得實地考察的國外專家高度評價。因此保存作兵衛畫作的田川市與福岡縣立大學決定為作品申請登記世界記憶遺產[1]。田川市所藏作兵衛畫作585幅（其中584幅是福岡縣指定有形民俗文化財）及相關資料（日記6本，雜記本與原稿等36件），加上山本家所有，由福岡縣立大學保存的繪畫4幅和相關資料（日記59本，原稿等7件），合計697件。田川市與大學雙方於2010年3月向巴黎聯合國教科文組織總部共同遞交推薦書，2011年5月25日獲准，成為日本登錄世界記憶遺產的首例[2]。
[編輯] 關聯項目
- 田川市石炭·歷史博物館
- 洪瑞麟 - 臺灣的煤礦畫家
[編輯] 腳注
- ^ 山本作兵衛の炭鉱畫697點、世界記憶遺産に. 讀賣新聞 九州發. 2011-05-26 [2011-06-25] （日文）.
- ^ 築豊の炭鉱畫、國內初の「記憶遺産」に 山本作兵衛作. 朝日新聞. 2011-05-25 [2011-06-25] （日文）.
[編輯] 外部連結
- 田川市石炭・歴史博物館「炭坑（ヤマ）の文化 ヤマの文化を見つめた畫家」
世界記憶遺産の作兵衛さん 自伝的映画、東京で再上映へ
日本で初めてユネスコの世界記憶遺産に登録された炭鉱記録画家、山本作兵衛（１８９２～１９８４）の絵画をふんだんに取り込んだドキュメンタリー映画が ２０～２６日、東京都内で上映される。映画完成から７年。国外で高く評価された「庶民」の快挙を記念しての再公開となる。
映画「炭鉱（ヤマ）に生きる」は２００４年に完成後、ほとんど劇場公開されず、あまり注目されなかった。今年５月の世界記憶遺産登録を機に東京都中野区の映画館「ポレポレ東中野」での再上映が決まった。
山本は７歳から還暦過ぎまで九州・筑豊地方の炭鉱で働いた。６０代半ばから絵筆を握り、亡くなるまでに膨大な作品を残した。素朴な画風だが細部が丁寧に描き込まれ、文章も添えた。
その仕事に感銘を受けた故萩原吉弘監督が、９９点を取り込んで映画にした。労働を終えた男女が汗を流す混浴共同風呂、「炭住」と呼ばれる棟割り長屋の夕 飯のにぎわい、メンコや竹馬で遊ぶ子どもたち。ストーリーは山本自身のメモを参考にした自伝的内容で、当時を知る元炭鉱夫らのインタビューやモノクロ写真 を交えながら展開する。
映画「炭鉱（ヤマ）に生きる」は２００４年に完成後、ほとんど劇場公開されず、あまり注目されなかった。今年５月の世界記憶遺産登録を機に東京都中野区の映画館「ポレポレ東中野」での再上映が決まった。
山本は７歳から還暦過ぎまで九州・筑豊地方の炭鉱で働いた。６０代半ばから絵筆を握り、亡くなるまでに膨大な作品を残した。素朴な画風だが細部が丁寧に描き込まれ、文章も添えた。
その仕事に感銘を受けた故萩原吉弘監督が、９９点を取り込んで映画にした。労働を終えた男女が汗を流す混浴共同風呂、「炭住」と呼ばれる棟割り長屋の夕 飯のにぎわい、メンコや竹馬で遊ぶ子どもたち。ストーリーは山本自身のメモを参考にした自伝的内容で、当時を知る元炭鉱夫らのインタビューやモノクロ写真 を交えながら展開する。
Japan cuddles up to its demons
Japan cuddles up to its demons
2011/08/19
The manga writer Shigeru Mizuki once claimed that Japan's traditional ghouls and hobgoblins, the "yokai," had been "erased by the brightness of electricity" in post-war Japan.
It was a nice rhetorical flourish, but the monsters' burgeoning popularity in modern Japan, which Mizuki's own "Gegege no Kitaro" horror stories have played an important part in fostering, implies the yokai might not mind the light that much after all.
Depictions of yokai reach far back into Japanese history and have evolved into an extraordinarily diverse bestiary of weird beasties including "kappa" water imps balancing water in holes in their heads, one-eyed spirits that look like umbrellas, and the old man with a huge elongated cranium who is sometimes considered the leader of these monsters, the "Nurarihyon."
Professor Kazuhiko Komatsu at the International Research Center for Japanese Studies says the roots of the yokai lie in pre-modern society's attempts to describe the world around it, but he says the beliefs also interrelate in a complex way with Japan's traditional animistic religion.
People in traditional Japanese society believed spirits could run wild and cause supernatural phenomena and worshipped them as deities to mollify them. Yokai can, Komatsu says, be seen as "undesirable paranormal phenomena caused by deities yet to be enshrined."
But, while the roots of the yokai reach far back into the mists of Japanese history, they have shown a remarkable adaptability to the modern world.
In fact, the diversity of the yokai world increased significantly during the Edo Period (1603-1867). "Oni" demons, fox spirits and ghosties originating from old and worn-out items had previously accounted for most depictions of yokai, but the Edo imagination went wild.
"People who moved away from the nature because of urbanization lost their fear of the yokai, and therefore, conversely, they increased in variety. They began to regard the yokai as entertainment," says Masanobu Kagawa, curator at the Hyogo Prefectural Museum of History.
In the 18th century, a flourishing consumerism developed around the ghouls. Picture scrolls and ukiyo-e woodblock prints featured yokai creatures in the manner of illustrated guide books. "Karuta" cards and "sugoroku" board games featuring yokai were popular.
"In a way, they were the 'Pokemon' of our time," Kagawa says, referring to the popular anime and trading card franchise. "The yokai quickly became accepted as (anime-like) characters."
Yokai continued their dance with modernity into the Meiji Era (1868-1912) but really came into their own after the war. Since its launch in 1959, Shigeru Mizuki's "Gegege no Kitaro" manga and anime series played a major role in establishing them in the modern Japanese imagination, helping to inspire the "yokai boom" of the 1960s, which coincided with a broader fascination with fantastical monsters, or "kaiju," in Japanese popular culture. One boys' magazine even ran imaginary anatomical drawings of the beasts.
Yokai have become a stock subject for comic books, novels and movies in contemporary Japan. Museums hold exhibitions about them and tourists flock to destinations with which they are associated.
Yu Ito, a researcher at Kyoto International Manga Museum, has studied the depiction of yokai in manga and says the trend since the late 1990s has been to associate them less with fear than with friendship, romance and the difficult-to-translate concept of "moe," referring to strong feelings for the subject of a fictional product such as anime or manga.
Plotlines have also shifted from mystery-solving and killing yokai to heart-to-heart exchanges between humans and the monsters, with environmental themes and ideas of harmonious coexistence emerging as a major theme.
But, whatever the changing tides of fashion, professor Komatsu says their role in Japanese culture is remarkably constant.
"The yokai always became the focus of attention when the society was filled with a sense of stagnation and during transition times like the Muromachi Period (1338-1573) and the last years of the Tokugawa Shogunate (that ended with the Meiji Restoration in 1868)," he says. "I think that we try to re-examine what we are from through the yokai."
Protect and revive：日本重建困難重重
2011年08月15日 06:08 AM
FT大參考：日本重建困難重重
Protect and revive
英國《金融時報》 王明 報導
Laying out a vision for reconstruction of Japan's tsunami-devastated north-east coast, a government-appointed council of experts made clear the goal should be much more than merely rebuilding the region's shattered towns. “It is our most profound wish,” wrote the panel of worthies from academia, regional government and the private sector in June, “that the reconstruction efforts following the disaster will reverberate around Japan, leading to the revival of the entire country.”
日本東北沿海地區今年遭到海嘯重創，在為該地區規劃重建藍圖時，由政府任命的專家委員會闡明，目標不應當只是重建損毀的城鎮。這個由學術界、地方政府和私營部門精英組成的委員會在今年6月寫道：“我們最深切的願望在於，災後重建工作將在全日本引發迴響，帶動國家的複興。”
Such hopes are easy to understand. The destruction wreaked on communities along hundreds of kilometres of the Pacific seaboard has created that rarest of things in a developed nation: an apparently blank slate, crying out for a new approach.
這種願望很容易理解。太平洋沿岸上，被摧毀的社區綿延數百公里，形成一個發達國家極其罕見的景象：一塊看似空蕩蕩的地盤，呼喚著一種新的建設方式。
Few in Japan would argue against the notion that revival is needed. Anaemic economic growth, dysfunctional politics and increasingly unsustainable state debt have contributed to a sense of national malaise, compounded by the failure of safety systems at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant crippled by the tsunami on March 11. In a May interview with the Financial Times, Naoto Kan, prime minister, said the nation had found itself at something of an impasse. “As we overcome the crisis created by this disaster, we must also overcome the preceding crisis, what could be called Japan's structural crisis,” he said.
在日本，極少有人會否認復興的必要性。經濟增長乏力、政治體系失靈、政府負債水平越來越難以持續，這一切都讓人感覺到國家萎靡不振。今年3月11日，海嘯損毀福島第一核電站(Fukushima Daiichi)的安全系統，更加劇了這種感覺。日本首相菅直人(Naoto Kan)5月在接受英國《金融時報》採訪時指出，日本發現自己身陷僵局。他說：“我們在克服天災帶來的危機時，也必須克服在此之前出現的危機，那可以說是日本的結構性危機。”
The question now is whether the world's third-largest economy can use the disaster as a catalyst for effective action to address the difficulties that have dogged it since the huge asset bubble of the 1980s burst.
現在的問題是，這個世界第三大經濟體能否將天災當作催化劑，採取有效措施，應對從20世紀80年代巨大的資產泡沫破裂以來，就一直困擾著它的各種困難。
Tohoku, the region of which the devastated coast is part, would certainly be a good place to start. It is widely seen as a prime example of some of Japan's most deep-rooted problems, including a rapidly ageing and declining population, insecure public finances , and farming and fisheries industries stuck in apparently terminal decline. If reconstruction of coastal communities offers answers to such problems, the region could really become a model for the nation.
被摧毀的沿海地帶屬於東北地區(Tohoku)，該地區肯定是一個很好的起點。人們普遍認為，東北地區體現著日本某些最根深蒂固的問題，包括快速老齡化、人口下降、公共財政沒有保障、農漁業顯然難以擺脫衰落趨勢。如果沿海城鎮的重建能夠為這樣的問題給出答案，東北地區的確可以成為日本的榜樣。
Such a result can hardly be assumed, however. While by international standards, Japan's short-term response to the disaster was often impressive, the ongoing nuclear crisis at Fukushima Daiichi in particular has exposed plenty of government failings. Confidence in official promises to protect the population from radiation exposure has been battered by revelations of inadequate monitoring and confused decision-making over evacuation areas.
然而取得這樣的結果絕非輕而易舉。雖然按照國際標準，日本對災害的短期應對往往令人印象深刻，但是福島第一核電站仍未解決的核危機暴露出了政府的大量失職之處。官方承諾保護民眾免受輻射侵害，但在輻射監測不足、有關撤離區域的決策混亂等問題暴露後，民眾對這種承諾的信任受到了損害。
For the tens of thousands of residents from towns around the plant who are stuck in far-flung temporary accommodation, reconstruction remains a distant dream. And last month, beef from hundreds of cattle contaminated with levels of radioactive caesium far above the official limit was found to have been distributed to shops across the country.
核電站周圍城鎮的數万名居民至今仍暫住在偏遠的臨時居所中，對他們來說，重建仍然是一個遙不可及的夢。上月，數百頭受到嚴重超標的銫輻射污染的牛身上的牛肉，被發現已經配送至全國各地的商店。
Mr Kan and his cabinet have also been struggling to come up with a coherent energy policy amid divisions over the future of nuclear power in Japan, and whether or not to restart reactors stopped for safety checks or maintenance after the disaster. The population has responded admirably to calls for cuts of up to 15 per cent in peak-time electricity use in Greater Tokyo and other areas, which have forced companies to shift working hours and left workers sweltering in their offices. But uncertainty about future energy supply is fuelling fears of an acceleration of the exodus of manufacturing to China and elsewhere.
在另一方面，對於核電在日本的未來，對於在災後為了安全檢查或維修而暫停運行的反應堆是否應該重新啟動，日本國內意見不一。在這種背景下，菅直人和他的內閣難以拿出一套連貫的能源政策。在東京都市圈和其他地區，民眾對高峰時間節電15%的號召做出了令人敬佩的響應，這一號召迫使企業調整工作時間，並讓員工在辦公室裡忍受悶熱天氣。但是，有關未來能源供應的不確定性，正令人更加擔憂製造業將加速搬到中國和其他國家。
Optimists cite Japan's recovery from the second world war, which left many cities as smoking ruins, as an example of how such difficulties can be overcome. But Tadao Ando, one of the nation's leading architects, speaks for many when he wonders aloud whether his compatriots are the equal of the postwar generation. “It seems to me that now we are lacking those kinds of children, and the adults aren't working so hard,” he says. “To live is to fight, but we have created a nation that dislikes and avoids fighting.”
樂觀者以日本在第二次世界大戰後恢復元氣為例，說明能夠克服這些困難。二戰後，日本許多城市變成了冒煙的廢墟。但是，日本著名建築師安藤忠雄(Tadao Ando)公開質疑，現在的日本人能否與戰後一代相提並論，他的話說出了許多人的心聲。 “在我看來，我們現在似乎缺少那種孩子，成年人也沒有那麼勤奮，”他說。 “生活就是拼搏，但我們已經造就了一個厭惡拼搏、迴避拼搏的民族。”
Mr Ando, a vice-chairman on the reconstruction design council that drew up the government's basic vision for revival, also laments slow decision-making among ministries and agencies. “Now the world is watching how Japan rebuilds. If reconstruction fails, then the world will lose confidence in Japan,” he warns. “And investment will not come to a nation that does not command confidence.”
作為東日本大震災復興構想會議(Reconstruction Design Council)的副主席，安藤忠雄也對各部和各政府機構之間的緩慢決策表示惋惜。復興構想會議負責勾勒政府的基本複興願景。 “現在世人在關注著日本的重建。如果重建失敗，全世界都會對日本失去信心，”他警告說。 “而如果一個國家無法贏得別人的信心，就不會有人來投資。”
Yet making a real success of reconstruction following a disaster whose scale would tax any peacetime government will be a huge challenge. The earthquake and tsunami left more than 20,000 people dead or missing and destroyed or seriously damaged more than 200,000 homes. Some 23,000 hectares of farmland were flooded with salt water. More than 21,000 fishing boats were lost. And the shift in the earth's plates that caused the magnitude 9.0 tremor reduced the height of land along the north-east coast, in some places by more than a metre, making harbours and towns even more vulnerable to future tsunamis and typhoons.
然而在如此嚴重的災難（其規模會使和平時期的任何一個政府都難以招架）過後，要想實現真正成功的重建，將是一個巨大挑戰。 3月的地震和海嘯造成超過2萬人死亡或失踪，破壞或嚴重損毀超過20萬套住宅。約有2.3萬公頃農田遭到海水浸泡，超過2.1萬艘漁船全損。這還不算，造成9.0級強震的地球板塊運動，降低了東北沿海地區的地面高度，在某些地方降幅超過1米，這會讓港口和城鎮在未來的海嘯和颱風中更容易受損。
The resulting costs impose an extra burden on an already heavily stretched government – gross state debt is more than 200 per cent of gross domestic product. Disposing of more than 20m tonnes of tsunami debris alone is expected to cost Y680bn ($8.6bn). Authorities plan to spend at least Y19,000bn on reconstruction in the next five years, to be financed mainly through special bonds and tax increases.
隨之而來的成本，給本來就已捉襟見肘的日本政府增加了額外的負擔——目前日本政府債務總額已經超過國內生產總值(GDP)的兩倍。僅僅是處置超過2千萬噸的海嘯廢墟這一項，預計就要花費6800億日元（86億美元）。官方計劃在未來五年至少投入19萬億日元用於重建，主要的資金來源將是特別債券和增稅。
Such spending should ensure the north-east coast's infrastructure is largely restored. But the real questions are whether the safety of the area's residents can be assured and whether communities already suffering long-term economic and demographic decline can be made economically sustainable.
這樣的支出應當能夠確保東北沿海地區的基礎設施基本得到恢復。但真正的問題是，這些地區居民的安全有沒有保障，對於已經在經濟和人口結構上陷入長期衰落的社區，能否使其在經濟上做到可持續。
One core approach, laid out by the reconstruction design council, and a potential model for the rest of the seismically risky archipelago, is to put aside hopes of ensuring complete protection in favour of “disaster reduction”. Breakwaters, sea walls and dykes are to be rebuilt, ideally stronger than before, so that they can deal with smaller tsunamis and typhoons. But there is no intention of creating the huge barriers that would be needed to cope with a wave on the scale of that of March 11. Instead, settlements will be moved to higher ground or land will be raised. Greater emphasis will be placed on ensuring that residents are always able – and ready – to escape if necessary.
復興構想會議設想的核心方式之一（這種方式潛在可能成為地震高發的日本列島其它地區的榜樣）是：不再寄希望於完全防護，而是立足於“減災”。防波堤、防浪牆、圍堰都要重建，最好還要比之前更加堅固，以抵擋較小的海嘯和颱風。但不打算建造足以抵禦3月11日那種大浪的巨型堤壩，而打算將居民點和其它設施移到地勢更高的地方，或乾脆墊高地基。更加註重的一點是：確保居民在必要時能夠——而且準備好——及時逃生。
In the city of Ofunato in Iwate prefecture, which was hard hit on March 11, officials have already drawn up provisional reconstruction plans. Kimiaki Toda, mayor of Ofunato, flicks through pages of maps of the city centre and nearby harbour villages to show how homes can be built on new compact residential areas on nearby hills, and how highway and railway embankments will be used as inland barriers to shield residents.
在3月11日受災嚴重的岩手縣大船渡市(Ofunato, Iwate prefecture)，官員們已經制訂了暫行重建計劃。市長戶田公明(Kimiaki Toda)翻著大船渡市內和附近漁村的地圖，說明如何在附近山上建造新型集中住宅區，以及如何利用公路和鐵路的路堤作為內陸防護堤，以保護市民。
Yet moving tens of thousands from vulnerable lower ground raises problems of financing and land-use law. Mr Toda also recognises that reaching agreement within each community on how to rebuild will be tricky – and that some residents are likely to want to stay near the sea despite the risk.
然而，讓數万人從容易受災的低窪地帶搬遷出來，涉及到資金和土地使用法的問題。戶田公明還發現，與每一個社區就如何重建達成一致並非易事，而且儘管有風險，有些居民可能寧願住在海邊。
There is deep uncertainty about how to stem an often precipitous decline in the populations of many coastal communities, where few young people stay after secondary school, and ageing fishermen and farmers must struggle ever harder to find successors.
關於如何遏止許多海濱城鎮人口急劇下降的趨勢，各方全無頭緒。在那些地方，大多數年輕人中學畢業以後就離開了，日漸蒼老的漁夫和農夫們找到接班人的難度越來越大。
The disaster creates a chance to address the underlying problems of the farming and fishing sectors. There are calls for the creation of new zones where private companies could be granted fishing rights previously controlled by fishing co-operatives. Yet such proposals face strong opposition, a reminder that the apparent tabula rasa created by the tsunami does not mean that existing interests and habits have been erased.
災難為解決農業和漁業部門的根本問題提供了一個契機。有人提議開闢新的捕魚區，授予私人公司在此類區域的捕魚權（之前捕魚權一直由各漁業合作社控制）。但這些提議遭到一些人的強烈反對，這提醒人們：海嘯過後儘管看上去一片空蕩盪，但原有的利益和習慣並未消失。
More broadly, the government plans to establish special zones in the affected prefectures, where enterprise and job creation will be encouraged by tax policies and streamlined administration – another possible model for a nation where businesspeople complain that they are hobbled by red tape.
在更廣的層面上，政府計劃在受災地區建立特區，通過稅收優惠和簡化行政手續幫助企業發展，促進就業。對於這個商界人士常常抱怨受困於行政手續繁瑣的國家，這也有望成為一個榜樣。
But it is unclear whether policy reforms alone can stem the population decline on a coast lined with countless fishing villages. Mr Toda, for example, argues that more fundamental change is needed. Conservative communities need to become more welcoming environments for young people, where innovation is welcome. “This is not only an issue for Ofunato city. It's an issue for all of Japan,” he says.
但尚不清楚的是，在這個遍布漁村的沿海地區，單憑政策改革能否遏止人口下降趨勢。例如戶田公明就認為，還需要更加根本的改變。保守的社區需要營造歡迎創新、歡迎年輕人的環境。戶田公明表示：“這不只是大船渡市的問題。這是全日本的問題。”
The most rational policy response might simply be to consolidate some communities into safer planned new towns rather than trying to rebuild them. Yet this approach has little appeal in a region of strong local loyalties.
最理性的政策回應也許是：乾脆將一些社區合併起來，建成更安全的經過良好規劃的城鎮，而非試圖重建這些社區。然而，在這樣一個故土觀念極重的地區，這種方案沒有什麼號召力。
The town of Minami Sanriku in Miyagi prefecture was almost obliterated by the tsunami, which left 987 of its 17,666 residents dead or missing. About 70 per cent of homes and 85 per cent of its shops and businesses were swept away. Mayor Jin Sato survived only by clinging to a railing on the roof of the town hall as the torrent carried off dozens of colleagues.
宮城縣南三陸町(Minami Sanriku, Miyagi prefecture)在海嘯中幾乎全毀，17666名居民中有987人遇難或失踪。海嘯沖毀了約70%的住宅，約85%的店鋪和商用設施。海嘯的急流沖走了市政廳內幾十名公務員，町長佐藤仁(Jin Sato)靠抓緊屋頂上的一道護欄，才死裡逃生。
Homeless survivors are now scattered in prefabricated houses around the area or in temporary accommodation further afield. It is impossible to know how many will come back, but Mr Sato is determined the town will survive. The greatest need, he says, is for action from central authorities to prevent residents from losing hope.
如今，無家可歸的倖存者們分散居住於附近地區的活動板房內，或更遠地區的臨時住所內。人們無法知曉有多少倖存者會回到家鄉，但佐藤仁決心重建家園。他表示，最緊要的是：中央政府要採取行動，防止居民們失去希望。
The government has come up with a broad plan based on its reconstruction council's vision. But after an interlude of unity, feuding between a weakened Kan administration and opposition groups and party rivals determined to topple the prime minister has returned. “Despite the situation in the disaster area, politics are continuing as usual,” Mr Sato says. “We have had more than 100 members of the Diet visit and, while they are here, they all say how terrible it is and how they are going to do something. But when they get home, they seem to forget all about it.”
政府在復興構想會議的設想基礎上，拿出了一個粗略的計劃。然而，在短暫的團結之後，力量受到削弱的菅直人政府與決心要他下台的反對黨及黨內反對者之間爭鬥又起。 “儘管災區形勢嚴峻，但政治操作一如既往。”佐藤仁表示，“已經有100多名國會議員來參觀過，他們來的時候，都說這兒的情形太糟了，會採取行動。但一回到家，他們就好像把這些話都忘掉了。”
The effect of political scrapping should not be overplayed: the government and opposition have put aside their differences to pass vital reconstruction financing bills. The disaster has also underscored the resilience of corporate Japan, with companies in the disaster-hit areas bouncing back much more quickly than expected.
不應誇大政治爭吵的影響：政府和反對派已經擱置分歧，通過了關鍵的重建撥款法案。災難也凸顯了日本企業的複原能力，災區許多企業的恢復速度大大快於人們的預期。
Tohoku is now cited as the likely focus of a national drive to develop renewable energy. With public opinion turning against new atomic power plants, the redirection of investment, research and innovation towards wind, solar and biomass could become a source of national growth.
如今，東北地區被列為國家大力發展可再生能源時可能指定的重點區域。隨著公眾對建造新的核電廠的反對聲漸長，投資、研究和創新正在轉向風能、太陽能和生物質能源，這可能成為日本的一個增長點。
Indeed, for all its problems, few doubt Japan still commands formidable social, economic and financial reserves. Not least, the fortitude and determination shown by the people of Tohoku have offered an inspirational model for a discouraged nation.
的確，儘管有諸多問題，但很少有人懷疑，日本仍然擁有強大的社會、經濟和金融底氣。另外，東北地區人民展現出來的堅韌和決心，為深受打擊的日本民族提供了表率。
Along the north-east coast, residents are labouring hard to bring some semblance of normality to their shattered communities. The village of Okirai in Iwate prefecture, for example, is still littered with debris from the tsunami. But Sumiko Nakai, 85, can be found pulling weeds from a silted-up traffic island. “I thought it should be cleaned up a bit,” she says. “Rather than asking somebody else, it's better to do things yourself.”
在日本東北沿海地區，居民們正在努力讓受到重創的家園重現一絲正常。就拿岩手縣越喜來村(Okirai, Iwate prefecture)來說，儘管海嘯留下的垃圾仍隨處可見，但85歲的中井澄子（Sumiko Nakai，音譯）已經在積滿淤泥的安全島上拔除野草了。 “我覺得這兒應該清理清理，”中井澄子說，“叫別人做，還不如自己動手。”
譯者/何黎
FT大參考：日本重建困難重重
Protect and revive
英國《金融時報》 王明 報導
Laying out a vision for reconstruction of Japan's tsunami-devastated north-east coast, a government-appointed council of experts made clear the goal should be much more than merely rebuilding the region's shattered towns. “It is our most profound wish,” wrote the panel of worthies from academia, regional government and the private sector in June, “that the reconstruction efforts following the disaster will reverberate around Japan, leading to the revival of the entire country.”
日本東北沿海地區今年遭到海嘯重創，在為該地區規劃重建藍圖時，由政府任命的專家委員會闡明，目標不應當只是重建損毀的城鎮。這個由學術界、地方政府和私營部門精英組成的委員會在今年6月寫道：“我們最深切的願望在於，災後重建工作將在全日本引發迴響，帶動國家的複興。”
Such hopes are easy to understand. The destruction wreaked on communities along hundreds of kilometres of the Pacific seaboard has created that rarest of things in a developed nation: an apparently blank slate, crying out for a new approach.
這種願望很容易理解。太平洋沿岸上，被摧毀的社區綿延數百公里，形成一個發達國家極其罕見的景象：一塊看似空蕩蕩的地盤，呼喚著一種新的建設方式。
Few in Japan would argue against the notion that revival is needed. Anaemic economic growth, dysfunctional politics and increasingly unsustainable state debt have contributed to a sense of national malaise, compounded by the failure of safety systems at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant crippled by the tsunami on March 11. In a May interview with the Financial Times, Naoto Kan, prime minister, said the nation had found itself at something of an impasse. “As we overcome the crisis created by this disaster, we must also overcome the preceding crisis, what could be called Japan's structural crisis,” he said.
在日本，極少有人會否認復興的必要性。經濟增長乏力、政治體系失靈、政府負債水平越來越難以持續，這一切都讓人感覺到國家萎靡不振。今年3月11日，海嘯損毀福島第一核電站(Fukushima Daiichi)的安全系統，更加劇了這種感覺。日本首相菅直人(Naoto Kan)5月在接受英國《金融時報》採訪時指出，日本發現自己身陷僵局。他說：“我們在克服天災帶來的危機時，也必須克服在此之前出現的危機，那可以說是日本的結構性危機。”
The question now is whether the world's third-largest economy can use the disaster as a catalyst for effective action to address the difficulties that have dogged it since the huge asset bubble of the 1980s burst.
現在的問題是，這個世界第三大經濟體能否將天災當作催化劑，採取有效措施，應對從20世紀80年代巨大的資產泡沫破裂以來，就一直困擾著它的各種困難。
Tohoku, the region of which the devastated coast is part, would certainly be a good place to start. It is widely seen as a prime example of some of Japan's most deep-rooted problems, including a rapidly ageing and declining population, insecure public finances , and farming and fisheries industries stuck in apparently terminal decline. If reconstruction of coastal communities offers answers to such problems, the region could really become a model for the nation.
被摧毀的沿海地帶屬於東北地區(Tohoku)，該地區肯定是一個很好的起點。人們普遍認為，東北地區體現著日本某些最根深蒂固的問題，包括快速老齡化、人口下降、公共財政沒有保障、農漁業顯然難以擺脫衰落趨勢。如果沿海城鎮的重建能夠為這樣的問題給出答案，東北地區的確可以成為日本的榜樣。
Such a result can hardly be assumed, however. While by international standards, Japan's short-term response to the disaster was often impressive, the ongoing nuclear crisis at Fukushima Daiichi in particular has exposed plenty of government failings. Confidence in official promises to protect the population from radiation exposure has been battered by revelations of inadequate monitoring and confused decision-making over evacuation areas.
然而取得這樣的結果絕非輕而易舉。雖然按照國際標準，日本對災害的短期應對往往令人印象深刻，但是福島第一核電站仍未解決的核危機暴露出了政府的大量失職之處。官方承諾保護民眾免受輻射侵害，但在輻射監測不足、有關撤離區域的決策混亂等問題暴露後，民眾對這種承諾的信任受到了損害。
For the tens of thousands of residents from towns around the plant who are stuck in far-flung temporary accommodation, reconstruction remains a distant dream. And last month, beef from hundreds of cattle contaminated with levels of radioactive caesium far above the official limit was found to have been distributed to shops across the country.
核電站周圍城鎮的數万名居民至今仍暫住在偏遠的臨時居所中，對他們來說，重建仍然是一個遙不可及的夢。上月，數百頭受到嚴重超標的銫輻射污染的牛身上的牛肉，被發現已經配送至全國各地的商店。
Mr Kan and his cabinet have also been struggling to come up with a coherent energy policy amid divisions over the future of nuclear power in Japan, and whether or not to restart reactors stopped for safety checks or maintenance after the disaster. The population has responded admirably to calls for cuts of up to 15 per cent in peak-time electricity use in Greater Tokyo and other areas, which have forced companies to shift working hours and left workers sweltering in their offices. But uncertainty about future energy supply is fuelling fears of an acceleration of the exodus of manufacturing to China and elsewhere.
在另一方面，對於核電在日本的未來，對於在災後為了安全檢查或維修而暫停運行的反應堆是否應該重新啟動，日本國內意見不一。在這種背景下，菅直人和他的內閣難以拿出一套連貫的能源政策。在東京都市圈和其他地區，民眾對高峰時間節電15%的號召做出了令人敬佩的響應，這一號召迫使企業調整工作時間，並讓員工在辦公室裡忍受悶熱天氣。但是，有關未來能源供應的不確定性，正令人更加擔憂製造業將加速搬到中國和其他國家。
Optimists cite Japan's recovery from the second world war, which left many cities as smoking ruins, as an example of how such difficulties can be overcome. But Tadao Ando, one of the nation's leading architects, speaks for many when he wonders aloud whether his compatriots are the equal of the postwar generation. “It seems to me that now we are lacking those kinds of children, and the adults aren't working so hard,” he says. “To live is to fight, but we have created a nation that dislikes and avoids fighting.”
樂觀者以日本在第二次世界大戰後恢復元氣為例，說明能夠克服這些困難。二戰後，日本許多城市變成了冒煙的廢墟。但是，日本著名建築師安藤忠雄(Tadao Ando)公開質疑，現在的日本人能否與戰後一代相提並論，他的話說出了許多人的心聲。 “在我看來，我們現在似乎缺少那種孩子，成年人也沒有那麼勤奮，”他說。 “生活就是拼搏，但我們已經造就了一個厭惡拼搏、迴避拼搏的民族。”
Mr Ando, a vice-chairman on the reconstruction design council that drew up the government's basic vision for revival, also laments slow decision-making among ministries and agencies. “Now the world is watching how Japan rebuilds. If reconstruction fails, then the world will lose confidence in Japan,” he warns. “And investment will not come to a nation that does not command confidence.”
作為東日本大震災復興構想會議(Reconstruction Design Council)的副主席，安藤忠雄也對各部和各政府機構之間的緩慢決策表示惋惜。復興構想會議負責勾勒政府的基本複興願景。 “現在世人在關注著日本的重建。如果重建失敗，全世界都會對日本失去信心，”他警告說。 “而如果一個國家無法贏得別人的信心，就不會有人來投資。”
Yet making a real success of reconstruction following a disaster whose scale would tax any peacetime government will be a huge challenge. The earthquake and tsunami left more than 20,000 people dead or missing and destroyed or seriously damaged more than 200,000 homes. Some 23,000 hectares of farmland were flooded with salt water. More than 21,000 fishing boats were lost. And the shift in the earth's plates that caused the magnitude 9.0 tremor reduced the height of land along the north-east coast, in some places by more than a metre, making harbours and towns even more vulnerable to future tsunamis and typhoons.
然而在如此嚴重的災難（其規模會使和平時期的任何一個政府都難以招架）過後，要想實現真正成功的重建，將是一個巨大挑戰。 3月的地震和海嘯造成超過2萬人死亡或失踪，破壞或嚴重損毀超過20萬套住宅。約有2.3萬公頃農田遭到海水浸泡，超過2.1萬艘漁船全損。這還不算，造成9.0級強震的地球板塊運動，降低了東北沿海地區的地面高度，在某些地方降幅超過1米，這會讓港口和城鎮在未來的海嘯和颱風中更容易受損。
The resulting costs impose an extra burden on an already heavily stretched government – gross state debt is more than 200 per cent of gross domestic product. Disposing of more than 20m tonnes of tsunami debris alone is expected to cost Y680bn ($8.6bn). Authorities plan to spend at least Y19,000bn on reconstruction in the next five years, to be financed mainly through special bonds and tax increases.
隨之而來的成本，給本來就已捉襟見肘的日本政府增加了額外的負擔——目前日本政府債務總額已經超過國內生產總值(GDP)的兩倍。僅僅是處置超過2千萬噸的海嘯廢墟這一項，預計就要花費6800億日元（86億美元）。官方計劃在未來五年至少投入19萬億日元用於重建，主要的資金來源將是特別債券和增稅。
Such spending should ensure the north-east coast's infrastructure is largely restored. But the real questions are whether the safety of the area's residents can be assured and whether communities already suffering long-term economic and demographic decline can be made economically sustainable.
這樣的支出應當能夠確保東北沿海地區的基礎設施基本得到恢復。但真正的問題是，這些地區居民的安全有沒有保障，對於已經在經濟和人口結構上陷入長期衰落的社區，能否使其在經濟上做到可持續。
One core approach, laid out by the reconstruction design council, and a potential model for the rest of the seismically risky archipelago, is to put aside hopes of ensuring complete protection in favour of “disaster reduction”. Breakwaters, sea walls and dykes are to be rebuilt, ideally stronger than before, so that they can deal with smaller tsunamis and typhoons. But there is no intention of creating the huge barriers that would be needed to cope with a wave on the scale of that of March 11. Instead, settlements will be moved to higher ground or land will be raised. Greater emphasis will be placed on ensuring that residents are always able – and ready – to escape if necessary.
復興構想會議設想的核心方式之一（這種方式潛在可能成為地震高發的日本列島其它地區的榜樣）是：不再寄希望於完全防護，而是立足於“減災”。防波堤、防浪牆、圍堰都要重建，最好還要比之前更加堅固，以抵擋較小的海嘯和颱風。但不打算建造足以抵禦3月11日那種大浪的巨型堤壩，而打算將居民點和其它設施移到地勢更高的地方，或乾脆墊高地基。更加註重的一點是：確保居民在必要時能夠——而且準備好——及時逃生。
In the city of Ofunato in Iwate prefecture, which was hard hit on March 11, officials have already drawn up provisional reconstruction plans. Kimiaki Toda, mayor of Ofunato, flicks through pages of maps of the city centre and nearby harbour villages to show how homes can be built on new compact residential areas on nearby hills, and how highway and railway embankments will be used as inland barriers to shield residents.
在3月11日受災嚴重的岩手縣大船渡市(Ofunato, Iwate prefecture)，官員們已經制訂了暫行重建計劃。市長戶田公明(Kimiaki Toda)翻著大船渡市內和附近漁村的地圖，說明如何在附近山上建造新型集中住宅區，以及如何利用公路和鐵路的路堤作為內陸防護堤，以保護市民。
Yet moving tens of thousands from vulnerable lower ground raises problems of financing and land-use law. Mr Toda also recognises that reaching agreement within each community on how to rebuild will be tricky – and that some residents are likely to want to stay near the sea despite the risk.
然而，讓數万人從容易受災的低窪地帶搬遷出來，涉及到資金和土地使用法的問題。戶田公明還發現，與每一個社區就如何重建達成一致並非易事，而且儘管有風險，有些居民可能寧願住在海邊。
There is deep uncertainty about how to stem an often precipitous decline in the populations of many coastal communities, where few young people stay after secondary school, and ageing fishermen and farmers must struggle ever harder to find successors.
關於如何遏止許多海濱城鎮人口急劇下降的趨勢，各方全無頭緒。在那些地方，大多數年輕人中學畢業以後就離開了，日漸蒼老的漁夫和農夫們找到接班人的難度越來越大。
The disaster creates a chance to address the underlying problems of the farming and fishing sectors. There are calls for the creation of new zones where private companies could be granted fishing rights previously controlled by fishing co-operatives. Yet such proposals face strong opposition, a reminder that the apparent tabula rasa created by the tsunami does not mean that existing interests and habits have been erased.
災難為解決農業和漁業部門的根本問題提供了一個契機。有人提議開闢新的捕魚區，授予私人公司在此類區域的捕魚權（之前捕魚權一直由各漁業合作社控制）。但這些提議遭到一些人的強烈反對，這提醒人們：海嘯過後儘管看上去一片空蕩盪，但原有的利益和習慣並未消失。
More broadly, the government plans to establish special zones in the affected prefectures, where enterprise and job creation will be encouraged by tax policies and streamlined administration – another possible model for a nation where businesspeople complain that they are hobbled by red tape.
在更廣的層面上，政府計劃在受災地區建立特區，通過稅收優惠和簡化行政手續幫助企業發展，促進就業。對於這個商界人士常常抱怨受困於行政手續繁瑣的國家，這也有望成為一個榜樣。
But it is unclear whether policy reforms alone can stem the population decline on a coast lined with countless fishing villages. Mr Toda, for example, argues that more fundamental change is needed. Conservative communities need to become more welcoming environments for young people, where innovation is welcome. “This is not only an issue for Ofunato city. It's an issue for all of Japan,” he says.
但尚不清楚的是，在這個遍布漁村的沿海地區，單憑政策改革能否遏止人口下降趨勢。例如戶田公明就認為，還需要更加根本的改變。保守的社區需要營造歡迎創新、歡迎年輕人的環境。戶田公明表示：“這不只是大船渡市的問題。這是全日本的問題。”
The most rational policy response might simply be to consolidate some communities into safer planned new towns rather than trying to rebuild them. Yet this approach has little appeal in a region of strong local loyalties.
最理性的政策回應也許是：乾脆將一些社區合併起來，建成更安全的經過良好規劃的城鎮，而非試圖重建這些社區。然而，在這樣一個故土觀念極重的地區，這種方案沒有什麼號召力。
The town of Minami Sanriku in Miyagi prefecture was almost obliterated by the tsunami, which left 987 of its 17,666 residents dead or missing. About 70 per cent of homes and 85 per cent of its shops and businesses were swept away. Mayor Jin Sato survived only by clinging to a railing on the roof of the town hall as the torrent carried off dozens of colleagues.
宮城縣南三陸町(Minami Sanriku, Miyagi prefecture)在海嘯中幾乎全毀，17666名居民中有987人遇難或失踪。海嘯沖毀了約70%的住宅，約85%的店鋪和商用設施。海嘯的急流沖走了市政廳內幾十名公務員，町長佐藤仁(Jin Sato)靠抓緊屋頂上的一道護欄，才死裡逃生。
Homeless survivors are now scattered in prefabricated houses around the area or in temporary accommodation further afield. It is impossible to know how many will come back, but Mr Sato is determined the town will survive. The greatest need, he says, is for action from central authorities to prevent residents from losing hope.
如今，無家可歸的倖存者們分散居住於附近地區的活動板房內，或更遠地區的臨時住所內。人們無法知曉有多少倖存者會回到家鄉，但佐藤仁決心重建家園。他表示，最緊要的是：中央政府要採取行動，防止居民們失去希望。
The government has come up with a broad plan based on its reconstruction council's vision. But after an interlude of unity, feuding between a weakened Kan administration and opposition groups and party rivals determined to topple the prime minister has returned. “Despite the situation in the disaster area, politics are continuing as usual,” Mr Sato says. “We have had more than 100 members of the Diet visit and, while they are here, they all say how terrible it is and how they are going to do something. But when they get home, they seem to forget all about it.”
政府在復興構想會議的設想基礎上，拿出了一個粗略的計劃。然而，在短暫的團結之後，力量受到削弱的菅直人政府與決心要他下台的反對黨及黨內反對者之間爭鬥又起。 “儘管災區形勢嚴峻，但政治操作一如既往。”佐藤仁表示，“已經有100多名國會議員來參觀過，他們來的時候，都說這兒的情形太糟了，會採取行動。但一回到家，他們就好像把這些話都忘掉了。”
The effect of political scrapping should not be overplayed: the government and opposition have put aside their differences to pass vital reconstruction financing bills. The disaster has also underscored the resilience of corporate Japan, with companies in the disaster-hit areas bouncing back much more quickly than expected.
不應誇大政治爭吵的影響：政府和反對派已經擱置分歧，通過了關鍵的重建撥款法案。災難也凸顯了日本企業的複原能力，災區許多企業的恢復速度大大快於人們的預期。
Tohoku is now cited as the likely focus of a national drive to develop renewable energy. With public opinion turning against new atomic power plants, the redirection of investment, research and innovation towards wind, solar and biomass could become a source of national growth.
如今，東北地區被列為國家大力發展可再生能源時可能指定的重點區域。隨著公眾對建造新的核電廠的反對聲漸長，投資、研究和創新正在轉向風能、太陽能和生物質能源，這可能成為日本的一個增長點。
Indeed, for all its problems, few doubt Japan still commands formidable social, economic and financial reserves. Not least, the fortitude and determination shown by the people of Tohoku have offered an inspirational model for a discouraged nation.
的確，儘管有諸多問題，但很少有人懷疑，日本仍然擁有強大的社會、經濟和金融底氣。另外，東北地區人民展現出來的堅韌和決心，為深受打擊的日本民族提供了表率。
Along the north-east coast, residents are labouring hard to bring some semblance of normality to their shattered communities. The village of Okirai in Iwate prefecture, for example, is still littered with debris from the tsunami. But Sumiko Nakai, 85, can be found pulling weeds from a silted-up traffic island. “I thought it should be cleaned up a bit,” she says. “Rather than asking somebody else, it's better to do things yourself.”
在日本東北沿海地區，居民們正在努力讓受到重創的家園重現一絲正常。就拿岩手縣越喜來村(Okirai, Iwate prefecture)來說，儘管海嘯留下的垃圾仍隨處可見，但85歲的中井澄子（Sumiko Nakai，音譯）已經在積滿淤泥的安全島上拔除野草了。 “我覺得這兒應該清理清理，”中井澄子說，“叫別人做，還不如自己動手。”
譯者/何黎
2011年8月15日 星期一
Awa Odori dance festival, 2011
Quake survivors show their moves in Awa Odori dance festival
2011/08/14
The Awa Odori folk dance festival opens in Tokushima on Aug. 12, featuring an elegant "onna odori" in the city's Aiba district. (Tetsuro Takehana)
Dynamic "otoko odori" and graceful "onna odori" attract visitors to the traditional Awa Odori folk dance festival in Tokushima on Aug. 12. (Tetsuro Takehana)
TOKUSHIMA--A traditional Awa Odori folk dance festival opened Aug. 12 in Tokushima featuring a dance troupe from disaster-hit Sendai.
On the first day of the four-day event, a comical "otoko odori" was performed by the male dancers while the women put on an "onna odori," known for its elegant hand motions. The event is held during the Buddhist Bon season, when ancestors' spirits are believed to return home. The routines are characterized by high energy and lively movements.
The lyrics of one Awa Dori song include the lines: "Dancing fools and watching fools. Both are the same fools, so why not dance?"
The Tokushima City Tourism Association expects roughly 1.35 million visitors during the festival, about the same as last year.
Groups of choreographed dancers and musicians form teams, known as "ren," to become "dancing fools." About 250 teams are expected to perform this year.
Among the participants on Aug. 12 were Suzume Odori (sparrow dancing) dancers from Sendai.
On Aug. 14 and 15, Awa Odori teams from Sendai and Fukushima will perform.
2011年8月14日 星期日
JAPAN’S SURRENDER, RECONSIDERED
JAPAN’S SURRENDER, RECONSIDERED
The story, as told 40 years ago
August 14, 2011
GARETH COOK’S Aug. 7 Ideas article, on the reasons for Japan’s acceptance of the Potsdam Conference’s demands for ending the Pacific war in 1945, is devoted to the claim by professor Tsuyoshi Hasegawa of the University of California, Santa Barbara, that it was the Soviet entry into the war, not the dropping of the atomic bomb, that forced Japan’s surrender.
After reading the article, I reread the 1970 book “Imperial Tragedy’’ by Thomas M. Coffey, which presents a summary of the day-by-day and even hour-by-hour discussions in Tokyo that led Japan to surrender.
Prime Minister Kantaro Suzuki and Foreign Minister Shigenori Togo had favored surrendering even before the Soviet Union’s invasion of Manchuria. However, the army members of the Supreme Council for the Direction of the War wanted to fight on till the death of every man, woman, and child in the country.
To break the deadlock, Suzuki managed the get the council to take the almost-unheard-of step of inviting Emperor Hirohito to attend a council meeting and hear the members’ views before they reached a decision. Hirohito, like British kings, had been brought up to understand that while the monarchy reigned, it did not rule. However, he broke with precedent and spoke in favor of surrender. The generals, who revered the emperor, then gave in.
Although the Soviet attack had caused consternation, I could find nothing to indicate it was the main reason for Japan’s surrender.
Robert Meister
Brookline 
2011年8月13日 星期六
Japan risks another crisis over decontamination
Radiation in Japan
Hot concern
Japan risks another crisis over decontamination
Aug 13th 2011 | TOKYO | from the print edition
SINCE April, Kiki Tanaka and hundreds of other ordinary citizens have been uploading radiation measurements to Safecast.org, a non-profit group. On a fine summer day she drives to Nihonmatsu, 56km (35 miles) from the ruined nuclear plant at Fukushima, and notes her Geiger counter ticking higher: another step in the DIY defence against radioactivity.
This grass-roots monitoring reflects a loss of trust in the authorities. Until June the government in Tokyo took radiation measurements at just one site, as if that were enough to survey the city’s 2,200 square kilometres and 13m people. In fact levels are known to vary widely within even small areas, depending on weather patterns and building materials.
Safecast’s 20 fixed sensors and 15 mobile units, which identify “hot spots” by going from schoolyard to sandpit, seek to fill a gap in the official information. With half a million data points so far, they have tended to corroborate the government’s work, but have also revealed some places where radiation was worse than expected. “It was not until local people raised their voices that the municipal governments took it seriously,” explains Ryugo Hayano, a nuclear physicist at the University of Tokyo.
Hot spots have become a chief worry. Radiation in some parts of Fukushima city can be measured in the millisieverts per hour—a dangerous level, says an official dealing with nuclear policy. Children and pregnant women should leave, and possibly others. But the authorities are reluctant to announce bad news.
Any delay in the clean-up poses problems, as radioactive particles may seep into groundwater and contaminate crops. In a few places where the work has begun, such as Minami-Soma, people are given no guidance on handling hot material. Contaminated water drains into sewers and tainted soil sits piled under tarpaulins. Detection has been spotty. Cattle were tested, but their feed and meat were not. Even when human health is not at risk, mismanaging the clean-up does social and economic damage.
More than 10,000 people remain in shelters, five months after the tsunami that triggered the nuclear crisis. While the government dithers, Ms Tanaka and the amateur Geiger geeks at Safecast.org go where its radiation monitors do not.
2011年8月12日 星期五
2011年8月11日 星期四
この夏、美術館は動物園
この夏、美術館は動物園 各地で企画展続々
|
|
|
 |
動物を特集した展覧会がこの夏、続けざまに開かれている。写実画に浮世絵、木彫。多彩な仕掛けで幅広い客層を取り込もうと努める。美術館は夏休みで動物園と化したのか。
「美術館は動物園」展。開き直りが潔くすらある名前をつけたのが、小杉放菴（ほうあん）記念日光美術館（栃木県日光市）。馬を描いた放菴の油絵から、ア ルミや段ボールを使った若手の立体作品まで。９月４日にかけて、約１００点の動物たちがひしめき合う。田中正史学芸課長は「夏休みなので、羽目を外して楽 しいものをやりたかった」と話す。
その田中課長は今年初め、４点の作品を借りようと横須賀美術館（神奈川県横須賀市）を訪れた。が、１点はあきらめた。横須賀でも「集まれ！おもしろどうぶつ」展（８月２８日まで）を準備しており、予定の作品が重なったからだ。
さらに、山種美術館（東京都渋谷区）の「日本画どうぶつえん」（９月１１日まで）、はけの森美術館（東京都小金井市）の「朝倉文夫の猫たち」（９月１９ 日まで）、世界の民俗人形博物館（長野県須坂市）の「世界の動物人形大集合 ワールドアニマル」（１０月４日まで）、中山道広重美術館（岐阜県恵那市）の 「浮世絵あにまるらんど」（８月２８日まで）……。そして、お堅いイメージの京都国立博物館までも。「初の動物特集」と銘打ち、「百獣の楽園」展を開いて いる（８月２８日まで）。
動物を扱う展覧会は珍しくない。それにしても、これだけの数。いったいどういうわけか。
まず、集客への期待が挙げられる。中高年のファンの多い山種は「子どもにも楽しんでもらえる」（高橋美奈子学芸部長）として企画。２３日からは、蛾（が）が乱舞する速水御舟筆の重要文化財「炎舞」まで引っぱりだす。
もちろん、動物の作品をただ並べるだけではない。横須賀や山種は、子ども向けの学習シートを作った。「この猫は何をしているところでしょう」などと問い、興味を引くねらいだ。京博は作品解説の位置を下げ、文字数を減らした。
予算面の厳しさも背景にある。京博ですら「予算も人も減っている」（永島明子主任研究員）。収蔵品を中心に構成する館が多く、数多く作品が残る動物は格好のテーマだ。日光は、作品を借りるのは関東近辺にとどめ、輸送費を浮かせた。
そうした各館の思惑が、たまたまこの夏に重なったということか。続々と開かれる動物の展覧会について、山下裕二・明治学院大学教授は「いろんな分野を横断して展示がしやすい。収蔵品の活用もいい傾向」と評価する。
当の作家はどう思っているのか。動物の木彫が横須賀で展示されている三沢厚彦は「現代美術には難しいものが多いが、動物はとっつきやすい」。
そう、とっつきやすい存在。それは、高尚と見られがちな美術館が望む、自らのありようでもあろう。動物の展覧会には、そうした願望も託されているのかもしれない。（新谷祐一）
2011年8月9日 星期二
kaiseki cuisine/ ryōri (懐石料理)
Kaiseki - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- [ 翻譯這個網頁 ]en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaiseki - 頁庫存檔
Kaiseki (懐石) or kaiseki ryōri (懐石料理) is a traditional multi-course Japanese dinner. The term also refers to the collection of skills and techniques ...
Japan wants world to treasure its kaiseki cuisine
BY MITSUKO NAGASAWA STAFF WRITER
2011/08/10
Recreating the image of the seasons is one of the characteristics of kaiseki. In this course, gingko leaves add a bit of autumn color. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
With UNESCO recently honoring French cuisine as a cultural heritage treasure, the Japanese think it's time for their turn at the table.
Japan is considering asking the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization to add its "kaiseki" food culture--a traditional multi-course meal that symbolizes the essence of Japanese culture--to its Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists.
Although kaiseki is currently used to describe Japanese course meals in general, originally, meals served by the host of a tea party were referred to as kaiseki.
It is thought that the term, which literally means "bosom stone," came from the practice of Zen monks alleviating hunger by putting warm stones into the front part of their robes.
Originally, tea party guests had a kaiseki meal to relieve hunger before tea was served. It was simply composed of a bowl of rice, another bowl of soup and three side dishes. An extra plate with a snack was also offered for the guests to humbly enjoy sake.
Despite the exquisite image it projects, kaiseki is similar to home meals. To Japanese, it is an extension of their daily lives.
"Asa no chaji" (morning tea gathering), or "asacha" for short, begins at dawn to escape the scorching heat.
Kazuko Goto, a culinary specialist born to a tea master's family, gave an outline of kaiseki cuisine served during an asacha gathering.
The menu consists of seasonal ingredients to capture the essence of the summer, and bowls and plates are carefully chosen.
A plate of shiny "junsai" (brasenia) pleases the eye. The crispness of pickled cucumber charms the ear. And the rich red miso soup satisfies the body that craves salt in the summer. The combination is meant to deliver the message of refreshment.
"The ingenuity is exercised to suggest the presence of ice with the use of ingredients and bowls with crystal clearness, but ice will not be actually used," Goto said.
Sen no Rikyu (1522-1591), the celebrated tea master who perfected the "wabi-cha" style, once described the innermost secret of tea ceremony as "giving it a cool feel in the summer." The appearance is the key.
Kaiseki cuisine was refined into the style close to what we know today in late 18th century after it had been influenced by daimyo (feudal lords) who were fascinated by the tools of tea ceremonies and haiku poets who had insightful views on nature.
In the 19th century the Russian style service, under which each dish is served on a plate in succession, became widespread in French cuisine. In that sense, Japan was quick to introduce similar service.
As sugar became widely available, Japanese confections developed further in parallel with kaiseki cuisine.
"In addition to the value of sweetness, (the sweets) began to portray changes in time and emotions with their colors and shapes," Tomizo Yamaguchi, the president of Suetomi confectionery store, said. "A grain of 'azuki' bean can symbolize a firefly or a pebble from a river."
"(The introduction of) kaiseki was a revolution in the Japanese culinary history," Isao Kumakura, the president of Shizuoka University of Art and Culture, said.
There are three characteristics in kaiseki, namely 1) Each dish is served sequentially, 2) There should be no extra ornaments, and 3) It must make a strong statement.
The other extreme of kaiseki is "honzen ryori," a form of serving food at banquets by samurai families during the Muromachi Period (1338-1573). The grade was determined by the number of dishes, and less attention was given to how they tasted.
Honzen ryori food was also served by commoners for ceremonial occasions in postwar Japan. Kaiseki emerged as a counter to honzen ryori and became widespread.
During prewar years, kaiseki had a presence as a form of culture. Businesspeople who were enthusiastic about the tea ceremony competed over how much they could lose themselves in it. Reviews of tea parties were published in newspapers.
At an August asacha tea gathering, guests were impressed to see lotus leaves and flowers used as plates and bowls, records say.
Yoshihiro Takahashi, the 15th-generation owner of a long-established restaurant in Kyoto, Hyotei, talks about "Hamomatsu no Wan" (a bowl of soup with hamo pike eel and matsutake mushrooms) when he explains the spirit of Japanese cuisine overseas.
Hamo plays a major part in Japanese cuisine during the summer, and begins to be replaced by matsutake at the end of the season.
The soup captures the brief moment of seasonal transition. The hamo becomes less fatty and is not as tasty as during the mid-summer season. But it comes into harmony with matsutake without meddling with its scent.
"If you try to make it more special than it needs to be, you will leave a lingering sense of discomfort," Takahashi said. "I'd like to cherish values to make our guests feel it naturally."
訂閱：
文章 (Atom)