TJ Expert (65)
6 Seconds: Passionate Relationship
Six Seconds to a Passionate Relationship
HOW long is it since you experienced a little excitement in your relationship? How long since you felt that romantic spark that made you long to get home to your partner, knowing that you would be greeted with love and affection? For many couples, these feelings are a distant memory. They seem to be drowned by routines and trivialities. We blame our hectic lifestyles for the lack of love and affection in our lives. Can we find a solution that our schedules can tolerate?
A New Place
There is nothing like the first morning in a new, foreign place. At first it seems like any other morning; I’m half asleep and my body and mind has no recollection of the journey last night. Then the magical moment happens. Usually it’s an unfamiliar sound that jolts me out of my dozing state. Where am I? It can take a second before my mind manages to grab the memories. Then it all comes back to me. I feel a surge of joy rush through me. The best part is yet to come. I sink happily back into the pillows and let the cascade of foreign sensations seep in.
Everything is different from back home. The bed, the room, furniture and colors are all different. Even the texture of the sheet gives my skin an unfamiliar sensation. But the immediate surroundings are seldom what excite me. My focus stretches outside. I blend the sounds, scents and what I can glimpse through the window with my imagination.
A Philosophical View of the Economy
THE British philosopher A.N. Whitehead had many wise things to say about business and society. One of his wisest observations was his statement that a great society is one in which its busi- ness leaders “think greatly of their functions.” When they fail, Whitehead concludes, the consequences are “orgies of exploitation” followed by “a descending standard of living.”
This philosophical way of thinking about business and society is strikingly different from the dominant view of economists and politicians. They favor a more technical picture of economies operating in accord with impersonal laws. In this view economies are semi-autonomous entities obeying laws that are independent of the norms, mores and characters of the societies in which they are embedded. The moral vision of the nation’s business leaders carries little economic weight.
A PROBLEM NOT CONFINED TO THE UNITED STATES
See how one of the world’s most influential people in public affairs, communications and public relations, Daniel Yankelovich, views the world.
A PROBLEM NOT CONFINED TO THE UNITED STATES
DEMOCRACIES with capitalist economic systems like those in Japan, the United States and Europe have many features in common. One is to compartmentalize thinking about the economy as if it were an autonomous system that operated in isolation of the larger society to which it belongs. Such thinking can lead to serious miscalculations of the sort that currently threaten the social contract that now prevails in the United States.
Most economic theorists acknowledge that capitalism creates inequalities. This is a tradeoff that most Americans up to now have willingly accepted, despite the high value we place on equality. To reconcile the conflicting pulls of freedom and equality, Americans have settled on the principle of equality of opportunity as the underlying core value of democratic capitalism. Unfortunately, however, the traditional American value of seeking to “better oneself ” is beginning to show signs of erosion. This is because it is becoming increasingly difficult to realize.
Acting Appropriately
Acting Appropriately
There are things our children do that are absolutely objectionable. They may be dangerous, disrespectful, or even illegal. Sometimes they do or say things that are objectionable, but are very cute, demonstrate high intelligence and/or express feelings that we share with them, but for any number of reasons we don’t want to share with the world.
Bullying
A SUBJECT that unfortunately is on our minds today is bullying. Some children’s lives become a living hell because they’ve become the targets of a bully or several bullies. Death is the outcome in extreme cases. It is not unknown for a victim to commit suicide to escape from bullying. It appears to me that the attack on this outrage must be two pronged. We must help the victim and protect him physically and psychologically. And we must realize that the bully also desperately needs our help.
じめ”が深刻な社会問題となっています。いじめの標的となり、生き地獄の日々に耐えている子供がいます。死に至る場合さえあります。いじめを受 けている子供が地獄から逃れるために自殺 するのです。これについては2つのことを考えなければな らないと思います。いじめを受けている子供を助け、心身 ともに守ると同時に、いじめる側も助けを必要としている ことを理解する必要があります。
Chavez and the World
IN October 1999, after only eight months in office, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez made a state visit to Japan. I had the honor of meeting him at The Foreign Correspondent’s Club in Tokyo after he gave a speech that remains engraved in my memory. He shared with the diplomatic corps and journalists his discussion with the Emperor of Japan who had asked him how a country as rich in natural resources as Venezuela can have 80% of its population living under the poverty line. Chavez confessed that while he welcomed the Emperor’s concern, he was not expecting such a question from him.
The Emperor pinpointed the dilemma Chavez faced all his life: a huge disparity between the rich and the poor. How can it be that Venezuela’s vast natural resources could only benefit the elite? How can such a trend be reversed after plaguing his country for so long? How could anybody convince the country’s privileged class that it is in their interests that the fundamental rights of all Venezuelans are respected? Is it acceptable that foreign companies control 95% of the petroleum reserves of his country?
Chef Morimoto’s Sticky Ribs Featured
Chef Morimoto’s Sticky Ribs
Chef Morimoto’s sticky ribs are crispy, tender, salty, and sweet, making them perfect for impressing guests at any get-together. We serve them at many of my restaurants, and I’m excited to share the recipe with you. The ribs are braised first, then dunked in cornstarch and flash-fried to make them crispy. I then douse the ribs in my tasty hoisin sweet-and-sour sauce, giving them a unique Pan-Asian twist. Whether you’re an experienced chef or a new cook, this recipe is easy to follow at home with just a few simple steps and cooking instructions. I hope you enjoy making them as much as you’ll love eating them.
Depicting the World with a Zen Mind
Observing and Depicting the World with a Zen Mind
LOOKING over his collection of photos and prints that were exhibited at the “Tokyo” photography exhibition at the Shanghai Art Museum, most of Suzuki’s work focuses on large-scale ongoing construction projects in big cities. The lighting gives his subjects an imposing, dignified presence and a somewhat solemn appearance. These images convey a rich sense of structure and a gloomy, downcast mood, using an overwhelmingly black-andwhite palette. Amid this jumble infrastructure, however, Suzuki presents us with a simple vision. His critical, philosophizing eye exudes a certain aura that stares down the urban clamor of the city and lurches across the frame at the viewer – something that prompted me quite naturally to think of the gaze that often crops up in our conversations. Suzuki is an artist who has an excellent eye. This facility almost certainly owes itself to his long-standing collaborations with Junko Koshino, as well as his keen interest in the humanities, the great issues that confront society today, and the teachings of Eastern philosophy.
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