CAUSES OF SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC DECLINE: WILL JAPAN FOLLOW THE WEST?

The most well-known' family psychologist in America was asked the following question about the rise and fall of nations. QUESTION: You have said on several occasions that a society can be no more stable than the strength of its individual family units. More specifically_r  you have said sexual behavior is directly linked to survival of nations. Explain how.

Dr. James Dobson, Ph.D. in clinical psychology, answered:

"A book could be written on that topic, but let me give you a short answer to it. This linkage you referred to was first illumi­nated by J.D. Unwin, a British social anthropologist who spent seven years studying the births and deaths of 80 civilizations."

"He reported from his exhaustive research that EVERY KNOWN CULTURE IN THE WORLD'S HISTORY HAS FOLLOWED THE SAME SEXUAL PREMISE: During its early days of existence, premarital and extramarital relationships [immoral sex relations] were strictly prohibited [forbidden]. Great creative energy was associated with the inhibition [or proper control] of sexual expression, causing the culture to prosper. Much later in the life of the society, its people began to rebel against the strict prohibitions, demanding the freedom to release their internal passions. As the mores [ethical rules of proper social behavior] weakened, the social energy abated [lessened], eventually resulting in the decay or destruction of the civilization."

"Dr. Unwin stated that the energy that holds society together is sexual in nature. [Kagawa was probably more correct in saying it was a combination of love and labor!] When a man is devoted to one woman and one family, he is motivated to build, save, protect, plan and prosper on their behalf. However, when his sexual interests are dispersed [spread out due to sexual looseness and immorality] and generalized, his effort is invested in the gratification of sensual desires."

"Dr. Unwin concluded: 'Any human society is free to either display great energy or to enjoy great sexual freedom? THE EVI­DENCE IS THAT THEY CANNOT DO BOTH FOR MORE THAN ONE GENERATION. '

IT IS MY BELIEF THAT THE WEAKENING OF AMERICA'S FINANCIAL

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POSITION IN THE WORLD AND THE DIFFICULTIES ITS FAMILIES AND CHILDREN ARE EXPERIENCING CAN BE TRACED TO OUR DEPARTURE FROM TRADITIONAL [JUDEO-CHRISTIAN] VALUES AND [BIBLICAL] CONCEPTS OF MORALITY.

I Focus on the Family.  February 1994, Vol. 18, No.2, 7)

[Japanese should not blindly follow the West in its mistaken beliefs about easy abortion, homosexuality, immoral sex education without proper moral guidelines, etc., or it can expect to face the same kind of increasing crime, moral and social problems as the West within one generation. It already has similar economic and political problems. As Reagan said, Japan needs to become a leader, not a follower, in the realm of ethical ideals, as Kagawa was.]

DEFINITIONS AND EXAMPLES OF INTERNATIONALIZATION

REPORT FROM JAPAN AFGHANISTAN MEDICAL SERVICE,

ABOUT PESHAWAR-KAI INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE THROUGH PEOPLE

WORKING SIDE BY SIDE WITH LOCAL PEOPLE

by Dr. Tetsu Nakamura

[Dr. Nakamura was born in Fukuoka City in 1946. He graduated from the medical department of Kyushu University, and he has been working at the Mission Hospital in Peshawar, Pakistan since 1984. He has provided treatment for patients suffering from leprosy (Hahsenbyou) and other diseases, who are refugees from the war in Afghanistan. He established the JAMS (Japan Afghanistan Medical Service) in Peshawar in 1988.]

Upon hearing the word "Peshawar," some people may think of Soviet attack against Afghanistan in 1979, or the boycott of the Moscow Olympics in 1980, or perhaps the civil war in Afghanistan followed by the withdrawal of the Soviet Army.

Peshawar is a city on the border of Afghanistan and the North­west Frontier Province of Pakistan. There are still 2,700,000 refugees remaining there [as of his writing in 1984]. Through our activities in Peshawar we have seen with our own eyes the intense tragedy in this developing nation that was a result of the war in Afghanistan, including 2,000,000 people dead and 6,000,000 refugees.

Peshawar-kai was formed in Fukuoka in September 1983. The main activities of the group are to help in the efforts in eradication of leprosy in the North-West Frontier Province, and to set up model medical clinics in areas of Afghanistan which now have no doctors. The^-members of Peshawar-kai have continued to enthusiastically contribute their time and effort, and moreover, in these past several years, 30 Japanese volunteers have come to Peshawar to work in the field. The course of action for the Peshawar-kai workers is to put down roots in the area and develop long term projects for achieving

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the goals of the group. We strive to have local people, not the Japan­ese volunteers, be at the center of the planning and executing of the projects. To achieve this goal, the parent organization of Peshawar-kai is the Japan Afghanistan Medical Service (JAMS), a group which has been approved by the Pakistan Government. There are currently 50 Pakistani staff members of JAMS working in Peshawar. When the war in Afghanistan was over [the civil war is not over even yet, as of 19941], many of the medical groups from Europe and the U.S. left the area, so these JAMS workers are performing a very important function.

Of course the main purpose of Peshawar-kai is to provide medical treatment, but international exchange has also come to be an important part of the group's activities. Our work here has given us the chance to look at our own country and the whole world from an Asian perspec­tive that is different from Japan's. We have had the opportunity to gain first-hand knowledge about the way of life of the Muslims and about the similarities and differences between them and the Japanese people. When we first arrived, our intention was to provide aid to these needy people. But now we realize that though they are outwardly impoverished, spiritually they are rich, and by living together with the local people, we feel we have been given a chance to re-examine our own lives. We in Peshawar-kai have learned that we are not just here to give monetary and technical aid to the people, as a parent would give help to a child. This types of aid is unfortunately representative of the current trend in Japan's policy towards developing nations. Peshawar-kai is instead walking and stumbling side by side with the local people, striving to provide good medical care.

Therefore I have complex feelings about the rise in Japan of the intense drive towards internationalization. I really feel that Japan is a society that frequently finds it easy to make the consideration of peoples of other societies second, putting priority on its own convenience. We in the Peshawar-kai believe that internationalization is first accepting other cultures and ways of thinking, both sides frankly recognizing their differences as well as their similarities, then working to live together in harmony.

Learning how to live harmoniously with people of different cultures will take more than having flashy 'international' festivals geared towardd entertaining Japanese people. Internationalization must be powerful enough to change our very selves.

From the perspective I have gained through my work in Pakistan, I am keenly aware of the gap between the colorful events that hype the benefits of internationalization, and the difficult reality of making it work in a place where the situation is so grim as it is in Peshawar [or in former Yugoslavia, or in South Africa, or in the Middle Easti] Therefore, the desire of the members of Peshawar-kai is to continue to strive to do our best to work alongside the-people of Peshawar, and through this, communicate to the people of Japan a different viewpoint on the developing countries of Asia that is essential if we are to reach real international understanding.

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 (Jerry Burks)

INTERNATIONALIZATION

Jerry F- Burks, FET Naha-Nishi Senior High School

 

Today, there are more than 150 nations in the world. None of them can survive entirely by itself. Every nation is interdependent on the other nations in many natters, such as national boundaries, trade, transportation, health, food, communication, and exchange of currencies. These dealings among nations are called internationalization. It is often times observed that nations cling to their authority in all matters concerning themselves. The great  advances  in transportation and communication have brought problems in addition to common interests to modern nations. They exceed a nation's physical boundaries. For the purpose of bringing soma order to the operations, more than 100 public stopgap international organizations have been established. They serve the internationalized community as quasi-official representatives in these and related fields. These are clearinghouses. They  neither  change  the  fundamental character of internationalization nor displace the nation as the cornerstone of the world system. These forces, rather, exhibit  a  real  and  essential  element   in  the internationalized world.  Here, we find some hope in the current struggle of humanity for security in the world.

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However/ man's emotional ties are to the traditional system of nations, with its emphasis on the sovereignty of each of the member nations. The reason for establishing these organizations is to have a way of dealing with global interdependence.

In theory nations are sovereign. This means that they do not have to account to anyone outside their boundaries for what happens inside their boundaries, nor do they have to observe any law to which they do not agree. It is agreeable that one nations's interpretation of the law may differ from other nations*. In practice, however, there is a generally accepted body of rules for the conduct of nations. These rules have been developed by custom over the years. For example, by the end of the Thirty Years' War in 1648, large parts of Europe were combined into nations. They, as well as many others in the world, developed a spirit which we call nationalism. Each nation looked upon itself as distinctive. In most instances, it developed its specific common language, a flag, a national music, and a growing tradition of national heroism. As a result, the people of each nation became united as "one."  it is important to note that each nation set itself apart. It embraced no allegiance higher than itself. This process was recognized as the accepted order of developing nations. It

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became a great advance over feudalism, because it adjusted political boundaries to the needs of commerce, industry, the arts, ideas, and defense.

Today, every  nation seeks two objectives for its survival; security and national interest.  These are the real aims of a nation's relations with others.  In dealing with another country, it may be scheming and hostile or it may be friendly and cooperative.  In the field of security, a nation has three goals: (1) Physical security - It wants to have freedom from fear of attack.  (2) Economic security - A nation needs raw material to feed its industries and to satisfy the enormous present-day demand for goods.  It seeks open-trade channels to find customers for its agricultural and industrial products so it can buy the things it needs. (3) Political security - This is the freedom to run its distinct affairs in its particular way without foreign control or meddling. Bluntly speaking, every nation should look out for itself first.  Some  leaders, nonetheless, insist   that  nothing  should  be  done  to  support internationalization, that is, no commitment should be made that does not serve their national interest.

How does a nation look out for itself? What is its national interest? These are difficult questions that confuse the international situation. Some people tend to

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regard short-term/ selfish ends as the -whole  national interest while they maintain the advantages they already have. In the broad sense, it is the national interest to do nothing that risks lowering the people's standard of living. It is also in the national interest to keep the peace/ unless there is something to gain from an easy war. Whatever attitude the nation holds, it affects every aspect of the life of its people (e.g./ agriculture and industry, education and home life).  All experience the results of internationalization.

The aims of the nations in .guiding their courses among the family of nations are like those of persons in groups. There exists one significant difference between the two, however. Nations often show the influence of Machiavelli (1469-1527). This Italian diplomat/ during the Renaissance, ruled out all except selfish advantage in the conduct of a nation. On the other hand, individuals moderate their goals in accordance with conscience.

A self-reentered and independent nation working wholly in its solitary national interest irritates its neighbors. The claim of one nation may oppose the interests of another. It means that these problems call for negotiation and settlement. To negotiate and to smooth their relations with one another, each nation sends

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