This looks like a classic case of war making strange bedfellows. The Dear Leader looks a model of sanity compared to the latest international foamer at the mouth prsident Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran, ex-chief torturer of Evin Prison. Far better to send a light water reactor to the good ole' Democratic Republic of NK than have an Iran DPRK missile alliance develop. ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー This is indeed a very strange situation. Rejection I guess was the only option left for America, in this aspect. Very strange indeed. john ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー Is North Korea trying to save face?
Also, I wouldn't be surprise if Koizumi's landslide win sent NK a message -- a leading Tokio newspaper found that 84 percent of those elected to the new House favored removing political restrictions on Japan's armed forces. ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー 最後のコメントは、リチャード・ハロランの評論(ホノルル・アドバタイザーなど米国紙にも 転載)を参照。北朝鮮は信用できないし、軽水炉なんてトンでも、という感じの受け取り方の ように見える。
"Typically undecideds vote for the challenger but because they are already thinking of the CDU as the incumbent, they ended up voting for the Social Democrats instead."
そして、連立について、 Within the next few days, party leaders will go beyond tonight's rhetoric and discuss the possibilities for coalitions, grand or otherwise. Ironically, the one party unlikely to be a part of any government is the one that made the most progress, the Free Democrats. As one FDP member told me, "That is what I call a shit success."
ttp://austinbay.net/blog/?p=588 9/19/2005? site admin @ 11:18 am NoKo Deal? Stay tuned for November 北朝鮮との取引だって? 11月まで(評価を)待て
The headlines are large: North Korea agrees to drop its nuclear programs. This is great news, though a closer look suggests the real deal amounts to agreeing to agree on talks in November. Still, China has stepped up and used its political influence. NoKo has said it will end nuclear programs ? but note Pyongyang specifies nuclear energy programs. Getting China to nudge the North has been a US diplomatic goal, so perhaps China’s push is a small plus for Washington. (See this Washington Post article.)
One huge strategic point not mentioned in the article, but a real concern of South Korea: What happens when North Korea finally collapses? South Korea sees Germany’s economic struggles ? West Germany absorbed East Germany but the economic and social costs were (are) huge. North Korea is in much worse shape than East Germany. This is why sending North Korea power from South Korea can be viewed as “getting a leg up” on the future. At some point South Korea will have to “re-wire” North Korea. Building generation capacity at the border and running new transmission lines north is a pay-off to Kim Jong Il’s shakedown scam. It’s also preparation for his regime’s collapse. Call it a dicey little game played with a terrorist regime. There is no perfect answer.
戦後の日本の政治史でも最も衝撃的な選挙となった9月11日の、小泉首相の勝利によって 日本には、なにかとてつもないことが起こっている。(Something quite extraordinary has just transpired in Japan)小泉首相は自己の属する自民党を壊しているのであり、選挙戦で 小泉首相の主敵となったのは自民党の造反派であった。自民党の支持者というのは従来は、 腐敗した内側志向の政治マシーンを許容し、それとともに繁栄してきたのであり、そうしたも のが自民党の特徴であった。
Tokyo has insisted that North Korea return Japanese nationals abducted over many years to teach North Korean agents Japanese as a prerequisite for extending aid. Although Kim Jong-il’s government has admitted to the abductions, it insists that those still missing are no longer alive. However, Japan wants concrete evidence of this. 日本は北朝鮮に拉致されて工作員の教育などの当たらされてきた日本人の帰還が支援開始 の前提条件といっている。金正日政権は拉致を認めているが、拉致された日本人で日本が 帰国を求めている人は既に死亡したと主張している。日本側は、その主張の根拠を求めて いる。
“The most important thing is for those who have been abducted to return to Japan,” said a foreign ministry official. If North Korea provided evidence that those abducted were no longer alive, “that would be a new development”, the foreign ministry official said. 「最大の懸案は拉致被害者の帰国である」と外務省の高官は言う。もし北朝鮮がそれら拉致 被害者の死亡の証拠を提出するならば「そうなれば、事態が新しいものになる」と高官は言う。
In that case, the Japanese public would be looking for signs that the North Korean government had made a serious effort to resolve the issue, said Mr Okonogi. その場合、日本の国民は北朝鮮政府が真剣な努力をしたのかを問うことになろう、と 小此木教授は言う。 ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー 現実離れした仮定で、妙な記事を書き、掲載するFTの編集者が何を考えているのか理解で きない。ここで語っているのは日朝国交回復への道なのだが、あまりに酷い現実無視。もし NYTやWaPoやWSJの記者が米朝国交正常化をこういう風に扱う記事を書いて掲載す れば基地外扱いされるのは確実と思える。(合意事項には米朝国交回復を目指す、というの が含まれているが、金正日政権について、それが実現すると考える人はなかろうものを)
But the negotiator, Christopher Hill, had misgivings because the vaguely worded agreement left unaddressed the date disarmament would happen, and hinted at a concession to North Korea that President Bush and his aides had long said they would never agree to: discussing "at an appropriate time" providing North Korea with a civilian nuclear power plant, which would keep that nation in the nuclear business.
All day Monday, Washington time, the Bush administration said the only appropriate time would be well after North Korea dismantled all its nuclear facilities and allowed highly intrusive inspections of the country. On Monday evening, less than 24 hours after the deal was signed, North Korea declared that the United States "should not even dream" that it would dismantle its nuclear weapons before it receives a new nuclear plant.
As described by senior Bush administration officials and Asian participants in the talks, Mr. Bush agreed to eventual discussions on providing a nuclear plant only after China turned over a draft of an agreement and told the Americans they had hours to decide to take it or leave it.
"They said, 'Here's the text, and we're not going to change it, and we suggest you don't walk away,' " said one senior American official at the center of the debate.
So after two days of debates that reached from Mr. Bush's cabin in Camp David to Condoleezza Rice's suite at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York to Tokyo, Moscow and Seoul, Mr. Bush gave the go-ahead on Sunday evening, once he had returned to the White House, to signing a preliminary accord with Kim Jong Il, a leader he has said he detests.
"The risk of this agreement is exactly what many hawks in Washington had warned about," said Peter Beck of the International Crisis Group in Seoul. "You reduce the sense of urgency and let people grow comfortable with the status quo."
In the end, participants in the discussions said, Mr. Bush decided he had little choice but to sign. He concluded several years ago that there were no acceptable military options for taking out the North's two separate nuclear programs. Mr. Bush sounded cautious about it on Monday after a meeting in the Cabinet Room. "Now there is a way forward," he said. "They have said, in principle, that they will abandon their weapons programs. And what we have said is great, that's a wonderful step forward, but now we've got to verify whether or not that happens."
Despite that history, the new agreement does not explicitly address the existence of a uranium program. North Korea still denies having one, despite growing evidence that it at least tried to develop bomb fuel that way with Pakistan's help.
A senior administration official said the uranium program was covered by the agreement because it required North Korea to dismantle all of its existing nuclear facilities, not specific plants or labs. But the accord did not require North Korea to own up to what the administration had described as its biggest deception, meaning that unless the North admits to the program in a declaration of all its nuclear facilities, inspectors would have to work to uncover the uranium program in an adversarial way down the road.
To break the impasse, Ms. Rice came up with a compromise during meetings on Saturday afternoon with her South Korean and Japanese counterparts. Each country, she suggested, would issue separate statements describing their understanding of the deal, with a specificity that is not in the agreement itself. The South Koreans and Japanese went along with the idea, though South Korea, one official said, complained that it would "sour the atmosphere." Russia and China issued vaguer statements that left unclear the sequence of events.
As this unfolded over the weekend, the Chinese increased pressure on the United States to sign - or take responsibility for a breakdown in the talks. "At one point they told us that we were totally isolated on this and that they would go to the press," and explain that the United States sank the accord, the senior administration official said.
In the end, it was not necessary. The American delegation surprised some of the other parties on Monday morning with word that it could accept the agreement, sealing a deal.
ttp://www.timesleader.com/mld/timesleader/12689175.htm U.S. State Department spokesman Adam Ereli emphasized earlier in Washington that the "appropriate time" for discussing the reactor means only after the North comes in compliance with those conditions. "It's a theoretical proposition in the future, contingent on dismantling having taken place, resigning up to the NPT and having IAEA safeguards in place," he said Monday in Washington. (AP)
``Companies in Japan still have potential to boost their profits and investors are betting on the strength of the economy,'' said Soichiro Monji, who helps oversee $28 billion as senior strategist at Daiwa SB Investments Ltd. in Tokyo.
The tough love approach has worked. Banks, by and large, are now back in the black. And what's good for Japan's banks is good for Japan Inc. With capital directed more to companies that can use it best, return on equity for Japan Inc. has jumped and corporate balance sheets have strengthened. In August, following a round of record corporate earnings reports, the International Monetary Fund revised its 2005 growth projection for Japan's gross domestic product from 0.9% to 1.8%. The same month, bank lending rose 0.2% -- the first increase since October, 1998. Tokyo land prices, which fell for 13 consecutive years and form the collateral for many bank loans, are rising again
A Chinese government spokesman says all six participating nations should "solemnly implement their commitments in a serious manner" to ensure a nuclear-free Korean peninsula. The spokesman says it's unlikely North Korea misunderstood the language of the agreement.
Above all, given Mr Kim’s unpredictability and his regime’s history of going back on agreements, it would be premature to celebrate the success of the talks until North Korea actually opens its nuclear facilities to the IAEA inspectors and begins to dismantle them and disarm any existing nuclear bombs. So far, there is no timetable for this or for North Korea’s re-entry into the international nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
しかしながら、そういう意味の少ない合意ではあっても、決裂よりはうんと良かった、という。 Despite all these caveats, the tentative deal reached in Beijing on Monday is better than no deal at all. ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーエコノミストの評論は中国が調停役として果たした多大の労力には触れておらず、北朝鮮の態度に 大きな変化が無いから信用できいない、という見方で、その点ではNYTやWSJのような中国の 朝鮮半島非核化(=日本の核武装防止)およびアメリカとの関係悪化の防止(=北朝鮮への宗主国 としての責任を果たす)を重く見る立場と全く異なる考え方、ということになる。
ttp://www.slate.com/id/2126586/ No Nukes Is Good Nukes Today's North Korea breakthrough is great. Now comes the real work. By Fred Kaplan Posted Monday, Sept. 19, 2005, at 2:14 PM PT
It's a significant breakthrough. But it could easily have been accomplished two and a half years ago, had President George W. Bush been willing. It is also nothing like an actual agreement, just a preliminary step before the real negotiations?where, if history holds, North Korea will frustrate us with tricks and backtracking, and we just have to hang on tight.
Although China did not feature prominently in yesterday's communique from the six-party talks in Beijing, there is reason to believe it played the major role in forcing North Korea to foreswear nukes. ttp://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110007284
During the Six-Party Talks, the Pyongyang regime had been insisting on a light-water reactor -- generally considered less threatening in its capacity to produce fuel that could be used for nuclear weapons -- for its electrical energy needs. The September 19 agreement states that the parties "expressed their respect and agreed to discuss at an appropriate time the subject of the provision of a light-water reactor to the DPRK."
That "appropriate time," according to Hill, will come only after North Korea has completely and verifiably dismantled its nuclear weapons program. Verification, he said, would be conducted using the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Hill said North Korea must return to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and comply with IAEA safeguards before it can expect any help in building nuclear plants for civil use.
China's real issue with Japan, disguised by historical complaints, lies in the fact that Japan under Koizumi has become a stauncher ally of the United States. Most notably, the U.S.-Japanese joint statement on common goals in the Taiwan dispute, implying that Japan might not simply stand by in case of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, angered China last February. China also opposed Japan's bid for permanent membership on the UN Security Council, which rightly had the support of the Bush administration. Japan, the second- largest contributor to the UN after America, deserves the seat, which would be another sign of its having become a normal country. ・・・ A big "peacefully rising" nation versus a small "normally rising" nation - that's the new feature in the East Asia theater.
JAPANESE stocks surged to highs not seen since 2001 as property prices in Tokyo rose surprisingly and foreign investors bought heavily on the view that Japan’s economy has emerged from a 13-year slump.
One Tokyo broker said: “We are hearing a very loud sucking sound as the capital flies over here from China.”
ある東京のブローカーが言うには「中国から日本に投資する、大規模な、お金の流れがある」
Economists are predicting a Tokyo-led recovery in consumer confidence and spending, with many believing that yesterday’s figures may mark Japan’s definitive release from the long grip of deflation. Analysts noted the “safe haven” status of Tokyo stocks as American markets adjust to recent interest-rate rises and as the eurozone assesses the implications of the German election.
We might inadvertently stave off the inevitable, and give Kim Jong Il's regime a new lease on life. With democracy on the march around the world, this is not the time to get to "yes" with one of the most repressive totalitarian regimes on earth. 金正日と取引することは政権を長引かせる手伝いをすることであり、世界中でも最も圧制的 で専制的な政権をささえるのは、民主主義を広めるドクトリンに反している。
Much of the credit for the North Korean deal must go to China, but the Bush administration can mark the end of a successful diplomatic week.
Good news came from all over the globe. In Afghanistan, the parliamentary elections were labeled a success by foreign monitors; in Vienna, the US gained strength in its attempt to pressure Iran and possibly refer the Iranian nuclear issue to the UN Security Council. In New York, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice managed to gather leaders from both Arab and European countries to discuss ways to isolate Syria until it meets the demands of the international community. Rice also had a friendly meeting with her Libyan counterpart, which was a first in American diplomacy.
So it is Italy for the next few months and a new election further down the road. But it is also Italy in a more interesting way and that is the good news. Italy means that change proceeds on the level below a stalemated government. Quietly, this is where change has been eating away at Germany Inc, and the engine has been the market rather than the state.
The market comes in two parts. One is Europeanisation West in the guise of the EU, which has been acting as the most powerful force for change. The EU has broken down barriers to the free movement of goods and capital. It has forced governments to dismantle state monopolies in the utility, airline and telecom sectors. It has nixed national procurement and it has told member states that takeovers are good and subsidies bad.
Europeanisation East means that Germany's China is right next door, in all those low-wage countries to the east that joined the EU last year. In Poland, an average hour in manufacturing costs $US4 ($5.20); in Germany, $US32. So Porsche makes its new Cayenne SUV in Bratislava, Slovakia. Under this pressure, business and labour have quietly agreed to raising weekly work hours and lowering all kinds of fringe benefits.
Though enshrined in law, nationwide collective bargaining agreements that mandate the same wages in booming Bavaria as in the depressed east survive on paper only, as management and labour cobble together contracts on the shop floor to ensure the survival of the company.
Thirty per cent of German employment is temporary or part time, allowing for precisely the flexibility the country's labour laws formally proscribe. So during the past six years Germany's unit labour costs have fallen dramatically when compared with Spain, Italy and France.
The moral of this tale is that the competitiveness of the German economy has soared while an immobilised state has proven unable to go the Thatcherite or Reaganite route. So three cheers for reality.
And weep not for Germany. It is staring at Roman conditions in Berlin but enjoying Italian- like conditions right below the steel and concrete level of party politics.
On Monday morning, Germany woke up in Italy, so to speak. Almost everybody can flirt with almost everybody else but an engagement, let alone marriage, looks as easy as Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner ending The War of the Roses with a renewal of their vows.
The future of the six-party talks, as always, remains uncertain. But negotiations between the U.S. and North Korea -- whether in bilateral or multilateral forums -- have always been zero-sum deals. At present Pyongyang seems to be reaping tremendous gains. North Korea can therefore rightly view Monday's joint statement as a diplomatic triumph -- a multilateral broadening, and political deepening, of the gains from the Clinton-era "Agreed Framework."
Share prices closed higher on continued interest by foreign investors who are betting the local economy is set for sustained growth as indicated by some recent upbeat data and following the landslide win at the recent snap election by the party of reform-minded Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, dealers said.
Brokers said non-Japanese investors placed net buy orders of 35.80 mln shares ahead of the market opening, comapred to 18.8 mln shares yesterday. 今日の外人買いは、差し引きで3580万株の買いこし、昨日は1880万株の買いこしであった。
China's success in orchestrating a landmark six-nation accord on ending North Korea's nuclear program has clinched its role as a major peacemaker in the region _ regardless of the challenges ahead for the deal, analysts say.
Just hours after the deal was struck, communist North Korea said it will not dismantle its nuclear facilities until it gets light-water reactors from the United States. But Washington has already rejected that demand, calling into question the North's commitment to the accord.
"China has worked to construct a lasting peace in Asia to the benefit of the entire world," said a commentary Tuesday in the communist party's newspaper, People's Daily. "There is no turning back."
The potential impact of the deal stretches beyond nuclear disarmament to include pledges by rivals North and South Korea to improve ties, and by both Japan and the United States to move toward normalizing ties with Pyongyang.
It's a status China appears to be cultivating by seeking to work more closely with the United States. そうした国際舞台での中国の地位は、中国がアメリカとより密接に動くことを求めることで実現される ものである。
Despite lingering friction over trade and human rights among other issues, China's leaders are seeking greater influence _ and possibly support for their claim to the self-ruled island of Taiwan _ through cooperation with Washington, says Ding Xueliang, a professor at Hong Kong's City University.
"China is trying to work with Washington on all sorts of international issues," says Ding. "If that model can be used in other international crisis situations Beijing and Washington can really contribute to the situation in Asia."
Contrary to what Keynes believed, in China state control of investment has not only failed to tame the "animal spirits" of the free market but is actually a source of additional instability
ブッシュ大統領は北朝鮮の政治犯収容所の囚人であった Kang Chol-hwanをホワイトハウスに呼んで 話をしている。最近では Jay Lefkowitz を北朝鮮人権特使に任命している。これは北朝鮮人権保護 法がそうすべき事を定めているためだ。ライス国務長官は世界の何処に住む人も尊厳をもって生きる 権利を有すると述べている。彼女はそれに続けて、北朝鮮に住む人も同じ、と述べているのだ。
レーガン大統領がソヴィエトにそう求めたのと同じように、ブッシュ大統領はt Mr. Lefkowitzが 北朝鮮の強制収容所を訪問出来るように要求すべきである。今後の具体策を取り決める中で、そう した(人権問題改善)ことこそ、北朝鮮の人々がブッシュ大統領に期待することであろう。しかし 一番大事なことなのだが、北朝鮮からの軍事攻撃に備えるべきである。北朝鮮への諜報を宜しくし て核開発施設などを直接に、瞬時に破壊できる準備をすべきである。それは日本や韓国といった周 辺国に軍事紛争の及ぶ前に、それに対処できるよう備えることが特別に重要であるからだ。
China knows North Korea will eventually collapse, and it wants to have the determinative voice in the creation of a "United Korea." Combining South Korea's dynamic economy and abundant technical skill with North Korea's material resources puts a regional powerhouse on China's border. Hence, China plays a careful, long-range game.
Atsushi Mizuno, a Bank of Japan policy- maker, said Japan's core consumer prices, may start to rise in October. Mizuno made the remarks in a speech at a business meeting on September 15 in Tokyo that the bank published late on Tuesday.
Japan has been suffering from "deflation for a very long time," said Yuuki Sakurai, general manager of financial and investment planning in Tokyo at Fukoku Mutual Life Insurance Co, which manages US$45 billion in assets. "Overall, land prices have stopped falling and it's a good sign."
Levy’s conclusion: “What you’re going to see is increased capital flows into Japan seeking higher rates of return, so my outlook for Japan is positive and well-above expectations both by the private sector and government officials.”
All parties to the Beijing agreement stand to benefit from this agreement. The North not only received pledges of economic cooperation but also an artfully worded nonaggression commitment from the United States as well as the prospect of normalized relations with both the United States and Japan. This is tolerable price for a denuclearized Korean Peninsula. Also, President Bush learns to change a regime's behavior by diplomacy rather than by force.
ブッシュ政権は多分、朝鮮半島の非核化のために、金正日の目の前に経済発展の成果をぶら下 げて見せるという中国の戦略にのっかって(bought into China's strategy)いるのであろう。 将来、交渉がゆき詰まったら、それらの経済支援のお預けを行うことも必要であろう。
しかしながら、ひとたび口にすれば、資本主義の(禁断の)林檎の味は偉大なる指導者にとっ て、あまりにも魅力的であることだろう。(Once bitten, though, the capitalist apple may be too tempting for Dear Leader.) ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー これは他の多くの北朝鮮論と全く違うユニークな評論で、経済政策で中国が北朝鮮の官僚に勧めて いる「市場主義経済」への道に行くため、いまさら引き返せない北朝鮮は中国のシナリオに導かれ る以外に行き場が無い、という見方。とても面白いけれど、中国の指導する市場化もリスキーな シナリオなので、北朝鮮の先行きが明確とはいえないような。
The United States, Japan, and China will need to cooperate effectively together on both regional and global challenges. Given China's terrible losses in World War II, I appreciate the sensitivity of historical issues with Japan. But as I have told my Chinese colleagues, I have observed some sizeable gaps in China's telling of history, too. When I visited the "918" museum at the site of the 1931 "Manchurian Incident," I noted that the chronological account jumped from 1941 to the Soviet offensive against Japan in August 1945, overlooking the United States involvement in the Pacific from 1941 to 1945! Perhaps we could start to ease some misapprehensions by opening a three-way dialogue among historians.
Clearly, there are many common interests and opportunities for cooperation. But some say America's commitment to democracy will preclude long-term cooperation with China. Let me suggest why this need not be so.
Freedom lies at the heart of what America is... as a nation, we stand for what President Bush calls the non-negotiable demands of human dignity. As I have seen over the 25 years since I lived in Hong Kong, Asians have also pressed for more freedom and built many more democracies. Indeed, President Hu and Premier Wen are talking about the importance of China strengthening the rule of law and developing democratic institutions.
U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission that concerned the Taiwan Strait and China’s military modernization. Senator Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) appointed Donnelly in February 2005 to the twelve-member commission, which is charged with assessing the national security implications of the United States’s bilateral trade and economic agreements with China
With that in mind, we need to clear away obstacles that we imposed upon ourselves over the years to cooperate with Taiwan and use all the tools that our defense establishment has to push Taiwan faster and harder to buy the systems and make the changes needed to become too costly for China to attack. And this includes making our displeasure with the Pan-Blues clear and strengthening President Chen’s hand as he strives to enact his defense reforms. If we are serious about Taiwan’s defense then it is time to get much more involved in helping the Chen government and military accomplish its reform goals -- or we may well look back at this period and wish we had.
>>103 NHKも共同と同歩調で報じてる。 But as I have told my Chinese colleagues, I have observed some sizeable gaps in China's telling of history, too. から後の数行の中国批判は、ちゃっかり無かったことにして、靖国批判に持ってくる。ひどすぎ。
>>103 ゼーリック発言、今朝の早朝午前3時からののNHK−BS「ワールドニュースアワー・アジア」で たしか、シンガポール・CNAがこのニュースを取り上げました。 ゼーリック発言のうち、ニュースで取り上げたのは、(覚えているところでは) China's rapid military modernization and increases in capabilities raise questions about the purposes of this buildup and China's lack of transparency. (ry it should openly explain its defense spending, intentions, doctrine, and military exercises. と、 Closed politics cannot be a permanent feature of Chinese society. It is simply not sustainable - as economic growth continues, better-off Chinese will want a greater say in their future, and pressure builds for political reform: の箇所辺り。特に後者の所では、 ゼーリック、「一党支配は持たないぞ」と過激なこと発言してるなと思いながら見てました。
The vote is a victory for conservatives who are eyeing a second vacancy on the Supreme Court that will be created by the retirement of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, a crucial swing vote.
"This may be, I hope, a turning point in our legal system," Senator Jeff Sessions, Republican of Alabama, told his colleagues on the Judiciary Committee.
If some of Germany's leading politicians are to bebelieved, the idea of a grand coalition ruling the country is as welcome as the devil coming for dinner, but some leading economists say it could be preferable to an unwieldy three-party coalition.
However, senior politicians admit in private that a grand coalition - possibly with neither Ms Merkel nor Gerhard Schroder, chancellor, at the helm - remains the most likely outcome following Sunday's indecisive poll.
Leader Kim Jong-il personally mentioned the names of U.S. President George W. Bush, his father and former President George Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as one of those U.S. figures who would be welcomed in the North, said the source, requesting anonymity.
“North Korea seems to see a visit by incumbent or former U.S.presidents, or the current secretary of state to normalize bilateral relations as well as resolve the nuclear dispute and improve the dignity of Kim Jong-il,”the source said.
"China has its own security and economic concerns. It sees North Korea as a destabilizing factor in the region. It wants to keep it as a buffer state. It doesn't want the Korean Peninsula to be nuclearized or destroyed," the diplomat said.
BEIJING, Sep. 23 (Yonhap) -- Chinese President Hu Jintao said Friday he had no plans to visit North Korea in the near future.
Hu, however, expressed his intention to visit North Korea at an opportune time by saying "It is true Chairman Kim Jong-il has invited me (to visit North Korea) and I accepted the invitation."
The Chinese president highly valued the cooperation between South Korea and China which helped produce the agreement, saying "The joint statement is the document containing the first substantial progress made for a couple of years."
Let me now turn to the challenge posed by North Korea's nuclear ambitions. In the Six Party Talks, we and the Republic of Korea have conveyed a common message to North Korea: that our objective is the complete, verifiable and permanent dismantlement of all its nuclear programs. Supported as well by Japan, China and Russia, we have made clear that the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula is the key to long-term stability and cooperation in Northeast Asia, and to addressing North Korea's acute economic needs. The agreement reached in Beijing this week is a vital step toward the early achievement of these goals.
However, as the President has emphasized, the key question is verification of the North Koreans' implementation of their commitments. If confirmed, I will make it a top priority to work with our ROK allies to help devise an effective verification regime so that the promise of this week's agreement can be fulfilled.
Looking beyond the Six Party Talks, it is also necessary to address the problem of North Korea's denial of basic human rights to its own people. Assistant Secretary Hill made this clear in his statement at the closing plenary session in Beijing on Monday. I look forward to working with our South Korean partners on ways to ease the suffering of the North Korean people and to promote reform in the DPRK, even as we provide humanitarian food assistance targeted to those most in need. The new U.S. Special Envoy on Human Rights in North Korea will be a key player in the Administration's efforts on this important issue, and I look forward to working with him as well.
Let me conclude by summing up my main priorities, if I am confirmed as the next U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Korea: 私の思う韓国大使の仕事の優先順位は以下のとおりです
-- to strengthen the security alliance between our two countries and adapt it to changing circumstances, in Northeast Asia and beyond; 北東アジアとその外での韓米同盟の強化
-- to build upon our global partnership with the ROK, tackling key international challenges such as terrorism, energy security and global health concerns; テロやエネルギー安全保障、 グローバル健康問題などでの韓国とのグローバル・パートナーシップ構築
-- to promote broader economic and trade relations, and to increase opportunities for U.S. companies in Korea, including the resumption of American beef imports; アメリカ企業の経済 と貿易の拡大、機会の増大、牛肉輸入再開
-- to work with our Korean partners to secure effective implementation of the agreement in the Six Party Talks on denuclearizing the Korean peninsula, and to promote reform and respect for human rights in North Korea; 6者協議の合意事項の実施、核廃棄、北朝鮮の人権問題
-- to use all means, including the Internet, to increase understanding of the United States and its policies among younger Koreans, emphasizing our security and economic ties as well as our shared values; and 韓国の若年層などへの米国政策の理解の推進、共通価値観や経済、 安全保障のつながりの強調
-- to work with the Korean Government to fully implement the recent agreement in principle to build a new Embassy in Seoul to represent the United States and better serve our citizens. 韓国政府との同意にもとづき、新米国大使館をソウルに建設し米国国民にサービスすること
In a survey of global fund managers conducted by Merrill Lynch in the weeks prior to the election, 41% said Japan had the most favourable outlook for corporate profits, while 34% suggested the Japanese market is the most undervalued. 選挙の前の週にメリルリンチの行ったグローバル・ファンド・マネジャーの調査では41%が企業 収益で最も好ましい国とし、34%が日本市場は最も過小評価されているとしている。
Of those responding to the survey, 41% indicated they planned to overweight the Japanese market in the next 12 months. この調査で、41%は、今後の一年間で、日本株をオーバーウエイトする計画と答えている ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー 大卒採用、売り手市場に・日経調査で募集継続4割 <日経、9、24>
In the past few months, however, some of the top investment banks have been urging investors to back Germany as an economy about to be boosted by supply-side economic and tax reforms. If only the labour market could be made more flexible(ry
But that's a political risk for Pyongyang. Russian, Chinese, Japanese, U.S. and South Korean engineers and construction personnel working on transportation projects in North Korea mean Kim must open his prison nation's cell door just a crack. For Eastern Europe's Cold War regimes, cracking the cell door was the beginning of the end.
in my opinion, we have to get people to say that we Germans as a whole can't afford to trail behind the rest of Europe in this way. For the good of Europe, but also for the good of our own future, we must become braver and more hopeful. And preserve our society. That has been missing entirely.
The contentious issues between Japan and China ? such as the demonstrations in April in China and the territorial disputes between Japan and South Korea ? remind us that managing nationalism is the key to the future stability of East Asia ・・・・ ・・・・ Considering nationalism in the context of legitimacy of authority, attention must be paid to the tendency of a country's leaders to resort to fanning the flames of nationalism when they are faced with an erosion of their legitimacy. It goes without saying that when nationalism is used in this way, management of nationalism among neighboring countries becomes very difficult. Thus, once democracy is achieved, it becomes a reliable basis for legitimacy of authority that diminishes the need to use nationalism as a tool.
The Japanese equity market has performed well this year and, in the aftermath of the election, we see the potential for more upside. The political setting provides a good backdrop for the economy and other near-term factors should boost equities' performance.
"Rightwing bloggers will do everything in their power to prevent another Katrina triangle, where the confluence of blogs, media, and Democratic leadership exposes the real Bush and shatters the conventional wisdom about his ability to lead."
I alternated between informal conversations with a small blogger brain trust - Kos, Atrios, Digby, Steve Soto, Bill of Liberal Oasis, Dave Johnson, among others* - and meetings with Beltway stalwarts such as Bob Shrum, Tad Devine, and Joe Lockhart. I attended communications strategy sessions where veteran consultants presented one set of ideas, then plunged into Democratic Underground’s forums to read thousands of impassioned arguments to the contrary. I studied opposition research memos and matched them against posts on Free Republic, Crush Kerry, and Little Green Footballs. I prepared daily blog reports, trying to convey the mindset of the netroots, the jargon, things as small and blog-centric as the distinction between a Kossack and a Freeper.
Simply put, without the participation of the media and the political establishment, the netroots alone cannot generate the critical mass necessary to alter or create conventional wisdom.
Despite the astronomical growth of the netroots (see Bowers and Stoller for hard numbers), and the slow and steady encroachment of bloggers on the hallowed turf of Washington’s opinion-makers, it is still the Russerts and Broders and Gergens and Finemans, the WSJ, WaPo and NYT editorial pages, the cable nets, Stewart and Letterman and Leno, and senior elected officials, who play a pivotal role in shaping people’s political views. That is not to say that blogs can’t be the first to draw attention to an issue, as they often do, but the half-life of an online buzz can be measured in days and weeks, and even when a story has enough netroots momentum to float around for months, it will have little effect on the wider public discourse without the other sides of the triangle in place.
Three years after becoming China's top leader, Hu Jintao has solidified his grip on power and intimidated critics inside and outside the Communist Party with the help of the man once seen as his most potent rival. Skip to next paragraph Goh Chai Hin/Agence France-Presse
President Hu Jintao of China, center, and Vice President Zeng Qinghong at a conference in Beijing in March. They have sought a "smokeless war" against "liberal elements" that they have said were backed by America. Mr. Hu, China's president and Communist Party chief, and Zeng Qinghong, vice president and the man in charge of the party's organizational affairs,
Handbook for bloggers and cyber-dissidents Contents: Bloggers, the new heralds of free expression What’s a blog ? The language of blogging Choosing the best tool How to set up and run a blog What ethics should bloggers have ? Getting your blog picked up by search-engines What really makes a blog shine ? Personal accounts: - Germany - Bahrain - USA - Hong Kong - Iran - Nepal How to blog anonymously Technical ways to get round censorship Ensuring your e-mail is truly private Internet-censor world championship
このサイトから英語版、中国語版、フランス語版がダウンロードできるようになっている。 例えば、匿名性の確保の方法("How to Blog Safely")という部分は: ttp://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=15012 * Introducing Sarah * Step 1 - Pseudonyms * Step 2 - Public computers * Step 3 - Anonymous proxies * Step 4 - This time it’s personal ! * Step 5 - Onion Routing through Tor * Step 6 - MixMaster, Invisiblog and GPG * How much anonymity is enough ? How much hassle is too much ?
LAタイムズ:何故、日本の小泉改革は失敗するのか By Frank Gibney ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー このところ海外メデイアでは(特亜のものを除いて)小泉マンセー気味で、小泉批判というのは 極少なかった(国内メディアに比べれば無いといっても良いくらい)のだけれど、これは久しぶ りの小泉改革批判反論。
The trouble is, the prime minister's victory knocked out the opposition Democratic Party of Japan, which is generally pro-reform, effectively pushing a sound two-party system further off into the country's future. In fact, many of the Liberal Democrats who survived the election backed postal reform principally out of fear. They will probably seek to water down any reforms now that they have kept their seats.
Honda Katsuichi. The Nanjing Massacre: A Japanese Journalist Confronts Japan's National Shame. Trans. Karen Sandness. Ed. Frank Gibney.<−−−−− Armonk, N.Y: M. E. Sharpe, Inc, 1999. xxvii + 367 pp. Photographs, maps, expository notes, index. $65.00 (cloth), ISBN 0-7656-0334-9; $24.95 (paper), ISBN 0-7656-0335-7.
Poles trickled out to vote Sunday in the country's first general elections since joining the EU last year. Opinion polls predict a center-right coalition will sweep the corruption -stained Left from power.
The prime minister also stressed that he would not set an "arbitrary date" for withdrawing British troops from Iraq. His comments followed speculation of a planned withdrawal of British forces by May 2006 following recent clashes between troops and Iraqi police in Basra. A report published by the Observer indicated that ministers had begun making plans to pull out of the country, and had informed the Japanese government of its intentions. But the Ministry of Defence has insisted that the British military presence in Iraq will remain until "the job is done", denying the Observer's suggestions that withdrawal will begin after December's elections.
Australia has about 1400 troops in and around Iraq. The 450 in al-Muthanna were originally scheduled to stay for 12 months only, which expires in April. A spokesman for Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said no decision had been made on when to begin withdrawing troops. "That decision will not be made until Iraqi security forces can operate of their own accord," he said.
Blair denies Iraq pull-out date ttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4279618.stm Prime Minister Tony Blair has denied reports that British soldiers will start withdrawing from Iraq next May.
ANOTHER UPDATE: Some readers think we need congressional hearings, in which university presidents are called upon to explain the shortage of male students. Okay, but give Larry Summers a pass -- he's suffered enough! この問題で議会は聴聞会を開いて、大学の学長を呼んで、何故男性の学生が少なすぎなのか説明させ るべきという意見も寄せられている。だけど(女性蔑視問題で話題になった)ラリー・サマーズ学長 は呼ばなくてもよい鴨、何しろ彼は充分叩かれたからね。
"It is a mandate for change, but not quite the mandate financial markets had hoped for," said Lars Christensen, senior economist at Dansk Bank in Copenhagen.
The markets will be cheered, however, that the once mighty populists who promised to roll back market reforms failed to make big gains in the elections.
Earlier this month, Japan said it had sighted five Chinese warships in the East China Sea, where China is developing a gas field close to an area also claimed by Japan. 日本は今月、東シナ海で中国の5隻の艦船が日本との資源紛争のある海域に出現したと報道している
Details in the plan of threats to Japan up to 2008 also cover a possible attack by North Korea and an "extremely slight" possibility of an attack by Russia, Asahi said. この防衛計画は2008年までの脅威に対するものであるが北朝鮮の脅威についても述べており、また たいへんありそうに無い脅威としてロシアにも触れている。
(財務省発表の記事を書いたあとに、専門家のコメントを追加) "The survey shows Japan's recovery is strengthening considerably. It could lead to a solid reading in next week's tankan survey," said Hidenori Suezawa, chief strategist at Daiwa Securities SMBC. Takuji Aida, chief economist at Barclays Capital, agreed, adding that the strong sentiment among manufacturers suggested the businesses were pulling out of a high-tech downturn. "The shift in the index to positive territory shows the completion of an inventory adjustment in the information technology sector," he said.
"Companies upgraded their capital spending plans for the fiscal year, which is a good sign for the economy," said Seiji Adachi, senior economist at Deutsche Securities.
One worry, however, has been soaring oil prices. While Japan is far more energy-efficient than the United States and most other industrial nations, it imports almost all of its oil. Higher oil prices could weaken the U.S. economy and hurt business for Japanese exporters, although Japan has shown resilience so far.
Rice addressed the U.N. General Assembly on Saturday morning, New York time, then met with foreign leaders. In one-on-one discussions the foreign ministers of South Korea, Russia, Japan and China promised her not to provide a reactor to North Korea until it had fully ended its nuclear program, and agreed to issue side statements with that commitment. Bush signed off on the deal, and a few hours later in Beijing the six parties announced the agreement.
Pritchard, who was the point man for North Korea under former Secretary of State Colin Powell. "The Chinese have attempted to play as even a hand as they could, and they just haven't given up." Pritchard says that Beijing is less committed to a nuclear-free North Korea than Washington is?China's main concern is to avoid a collapsed state on its border. But the fact of an agreement shows that the two giants can find common ground. "There is no daylight whatsoever between us [the U.S. and the Chinese]," says a senior U.S. diplomat with knowledge of the negotiations. "No one is giving these guys any nuclear cooperation until they're out of the nuclear business."
Don't break out the Dynasty wine yet. The negotiators didn't actually sign the agreement, because, so far, there is nothing to sign. The real negotiations, which the U.S. hopes will focus on dismantling the North's nuclear programs, are set to resume in November. "I can't imagine they'll be harder," says Hill. "I just cannot imagine it, but you know, sometimes we have to imagine the unimaginable."
NPTの専門家(the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center in Washington, D.C.)の書いてい るエッセイで、簡単に言えば「金正日はどんなことがあろうが、核開発はあきらめるはずが無い」 というもの。
Clearly, Condi Rice knows this. That's why she says the U.S. will not even discuss providing light-water reactors until Pyongyang completely disarms and rejoins the NPT. Still, the deeper negotiators delve into the endless issues that must be resolved to disarm Pyongyang, the clearer the dangers and costs of doing so are likely to become. As long as that's the case, the reactor picture on my wall stays up.
日本が軍備増強をしなくてはと考えることには中国の責任が大きい。ケ小平は「日本の眠ってい る犬(軍事的鷹派)を眠らせたままにしておけ」というアドバイスをしたのだが中国人はそれに 従っていない。日本は中国と同じくらい古くて深い文化を持っている国で、興奮させたりすると 厄介な国なのだ。(Japan has a culture as deep and almost as old as China's, and the Japanese can be formidable if aroused.)
That is because its leaders have been unwilling or unable to follow Deng Xiaoping's sensible advice to let sleeping dogs lie in Japan. Japan has a culture as deep and almost as old as China's, and the Japanese can be formidable if aroused.
"Immediately after the official results, we are ready to start talks with the Platform about economic policy. We are deeply convinced that they can be effective," said conservative leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski. 法と正義党のJaroslaw Kaczynskiは「正式な選挙結果の発表の後すぐに、市民プラットフォーム 党と経済政策などの連立の話し合いに入るつもりであり、我々は市民プラットフォーム党の政策 の効果的でありえることを確信している」とのべた。
"We are ready for immediate talks with no initial conditions," he told a separate news conference. 市民プラットフォーム党の Donald Tuskは「我々はすぐに話し合いを始める用意があり、無条件 でそれに応じる」としている。
"The Chancellor is preventing a rapid coalition agreement between the country's large parties by absurdly clinging to power," the FTD said. "This stance is irresponsible because it prolongs the period of uncertainty."
CDU; "We are convinced a Christian Democratic-led government in Germany and a centre-right coalition in Poland will lead to a clear improvement in German-Polish relations," said Friedbert Pflueger, a foreign policy expert for Merkel's Christian Democratic alliance (CDU/CSU). 中道右派政権を歓迎し、ポーランドの中道右派政権とドイツのCDUが、ドイツと ポーランドの関係をさらに改善してゆくことを期待している
新しい方の危険の多い自由購入宅金融について警告している部分は Mr. Greenspan again cautioned on the risks of alternative mortgage products, saying they could be "cause for some concern" for two reasons. These loans expose borrowers to more interest-rate and house-price risk than the standard 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage and they allow "marginally qualified, highly leveraged borrowers to purchase homes at inflated prices," he said. "In the event of a widespread cooling in house prices, these borrowers, and the institutions that service them, could be exposed to significant losses," Mr. Greenspan said.
APは↑、ロイターと同じような感じでバランスの取れた要約の記事に見える。AP記事に添付 された専門家のコメントは; "Housing is a fault line in the economy that Greenspan is indeed worried about, but he doesn't think a housing (slowdown) will undermine the expansion," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Economy.com. ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー ttp://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=aGyEy4SWhYXI&refer=news_index Greenspan Say Speculation Adds to Home-Price Surge (Update3)
ブルームバーグは他と切り口の違う記事で、グリーンスパンの指摘した非従来型住宅金融の リスクを表に出した記事に見える。 The abundance of interest-only loans and ``exotic'' variable-rate mortgages ``are developments that bear close scrutiny,'' he said. ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー 幾つかの記事を読んでみると、要約と紹介の仕方で読者の受ける印象は変わる。最善なのは 読者がオリジナル演説の全文を読んで自分で判断することと思われ。
ただし、過去においては中国はWMDやその技術の大きな拡散者であったが、その傾向は減少してきて おり、特に北朝鮮やイランの核拡散問題では、効果的な輸出規制が必要との政治的意思が生まれつつあ るようだ、という。イランのミサイル問題などに関してアメリカ政府は中国の企業にかってWMD拡散 を理由に制裁を課しているケースが幾つか有る。 ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー ランド研究所のニュースレリースでは: ttp://www.rand.org/news/press.05/09.26b.html Monday September 26, 2005 RAND STUDY SAYS CHINA FAILS TO ADEQUATELY CONTROL WMD EXPORTS 論文の全文は; ttp://www.rand.org/pubs/monographs/2005/RAND_MG353.pdf
September 27, 2005: The north, sensing that it was not going to get the bribe it demanded, and be able to hold on to its nuclear weapons, has agreed to eliminate its nuclear weapons program, before the goodies are delivered. As a practical matter, no one believes that the North Koreans will make it easy to work out a deal. There are growing divisions among senior North Korean officials, with policy changing quickly as one faction or another gets control of the press releases. It all has the air of arguing over how to arrange the deck chairs as the Titanic goes down. There is a growing sense that the government structure up north could just suddenly collapse, as happened in Eastern Europe in 1989. The North Korean leadership has been studying the events of 1989 since 1989, and have the same fears.
"The mystique has faded," said Akihiko Sasamoto, who heads the Asian casting division of Hakuhodo, one of Japan's biggest advertising and marketing agencies. "You no longer have this distinction between foreign artists and Japanese artists. So we don't need to spend a big amount of money on a Hollywood star."
"Five years ago, two years ago even, I could never have imagined this happening," said Tomoko Kamiguchi of Dentsu Casting & Entertainment, which negotiates with talent agencies to get stars for its clients' ads.
It is a remarkable development in a country where Koreans have long faced discrimination. Koreans born and raised here have felt compelled to adopt Japanese names to fight their way up the entertainment, sports or corporate ladders.
ttp://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-rumors27sep27,0,5492806,full.story?coll=la-home-headlines The New Orleans Times-Picayune on Monday described inflated body counts, unverified "rapes," and unconfirmed sniper attacks as among examples of "scores of myths about the dome and Convention Center treated as fact by evacuees, the media and even some of New Orleans' top officials." Indeed, Mayor C. Ray Nagin told a national television audience on "Oprah" three weeks ago of people "in that frickin' Superdome for five days watching dead bodies, watching hooligans killing people, raping people." LAタイムズ
小泉首相が再び靖国を参拝した場合、中国政府は強く反発し、国際会議での日中首脳間の交流などに 影響が出る可能性がある。 また、小泉政権下でナショナリズムが高まっているのではないかとの質問 に対しては 「あなたが目にしているのはナショナリズムではない。日本国民は(第2次大戦などの) 過去を深く反省している」と答えた。 ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー ttp://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1801126,00.html September 28, 2005 The Times How a lowly samurai inspired Koizumi to put rebels to sword By Richard Lloyd Parry and Robert Thomson タイムズ・オブ・ロンドン(3ページの記事)
“There are people who oppose me, leaders of the ruling party who call me a dictator, ‘Hitler’,” he says. “It is rather a complicated picture. Partly (I won because of) appreciation of my track record over the past four years and public support for the reforms I’ve advanced. I think these are all intertwined.”
KOIZUMI'S WORDS
‘Leaders of the ruling party call me a dictator, Hitler. It is complicated’
‘I am reading about the harsh life of a samurai warlord. Every day they faced death. There are a lot of lessons to be learnt’
‘China doesn’t welcome a growth in Japan’s political influence’
‘Japanese people have very deeply reflected on the past. They have remorse about the Second World War and more than any other people have the strong conviction that they must never again wage war’
He passionately denies a commonly expressed suspicion: that under his leadership, Japan is undergoing a resurgence of nationalism. “What you see is not nationalism,” he says. “I believe that Japanese people have deeply reflected over the past. They have remorse about the Second World War, and the strong conviction that they must never again wage war.”
In accordance with the Decision of the State Council Establishing Administration Examination and Approval Matters That Must Remain Subject to Administrative Permits and relevant administrative regulations, the establishment of Internet News Information Service Work Units provided for in paragraph (1) or paragraph (2) of the foregoing clause shall be subject to examination and approval by the State Council Information Office.
おまけに、
Article 9. No organization may establish an Internet News Information Service Work Unit operated by a sino-foreign joint venture, sino-foreign cooperative venture, or wholly foreign owned venture.
Internet News Information Service Work Units that cooperate with a sino-foreign joint venture, sino-foreign cooperative venture, or wholly foreign owned venture to engage in an enterprise involving an Internet News Information Service shall report to the State Council Information Office and carry out a security evaluation.
(i) violating the basic principles as they are confirmed in the Constitution; (ii) jeopardizing the security of the nation, divulging state secrets, subverting of the national regime or jeopardizing the integrity of the nation's unity; (iii) harming the honor or the interests of the nation; (iv) inciting hatred against peoples, racism against peoples, or disrupting the solidarity of peoples ; (v) disrupting national policies on religion, propagating evil cults and feudal superstitions; (vi) spreading rumors, disturbing social order, or disrupting social stability; (vii) spreading obscenity, pornography, gambling, violence, terror, or abetting the commission of a crime; (viii) insulting or defaming third parties, infringing on the legal rights and interests of third parties; (ix) inciting illegal assemblies, associations, marches, demonstrations, or gatherings that disturb social order; (x) conducting activities in the name of an illegal civil organization; and (xi) any other content prohibited by law or rules.
the use of the Internet to post news information and provide current event electronic bulletin services, and transmit to the public current event news report information. (Article 2)
At the moment, the fight for the presidency overshadows the expected talks on forming a new government. In this young party system, one can imagine them splitting as easily as forming the foundation of a Reaganite conservative party. But there's no denying that the political shift in Poland brings a unique opportunity to remake the country -- and the region -- in a way not seen since independence in 1989.
In short, the splintered German electorate decided not to go left or right, backward or forward. Or perhaps better said, German voters tried to go both left and right, backward and forward, by following the advice of that American sage Yogi Berra, who famously counseled, “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.”
I have been struck by the gloomy, even fatalistic attitude prevalent in Germany. Faith in God, or at least faith in the church, faded away in the postwar decades. Faith in the economy evaporated after the euphoria and cost of reunification. And now, faith in the state and its politicians is at an all-time low (as evidenced by the election results).
As the election approached, I made sure to ask every German I encountered?shopkeepers and taxi-drivers, hotel clerks and corporate leaders?the same question: “Who is going to win the election?” Surprisingly, they all gave me the same answer: “Nobody.” And they were right. Nobody wins until Germany takes a risk and moves beyond this intersection.
“South Koreans told (the U.S. delegation) . . . if you don’t follow through, get us to the next level, we consider this an alliance issue,” Derek Mitchell, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said at a news conference in Washington on Tuesday. ワシントンで火曜日に行われたニュース・カンファレンスで、CSIS(シンクタンク)の研究者の Derek Mitchellが「韓国は6者協議で、アメリカに対して、合意案に妥協しないのであれば、韓国は 韓米同盟の見直しを迫られると告げて圧力をかけた」と述べた。
Mitchell, a former U.S. Department of Defense official, said there is a “high level of frustration” within the George W. Bush administration and in Congress over the pressure applied by South Korea and China to make the concessions to the North at the six-party talks.
Folklore: Ray Nagin said on September 5th on the Oprah Show, "They're murdering people in there (the Superdome)." (VIDEO HERE) スーパードームの非難所で殺人が行われている
Fact: Both sources (Louisiana National Guard and State health department officials) said no one had been murdered inside the stadium. 殺人は無かった
Folklore: Ray Nagin said on September 5th on the Oprah Show, "They're raping people in there (the Superdome)." (see above Oprah-Nagin video clip) スーパードームで強姦が行われている
Fact: The vast majority of reported atrocities committed by evacuees ? mass murders, rapes and beatings ? have turned out to be false, or at least unsupported by any evidence. 嘘
Folklore: "There are Babies dying!" cried Nagin... "The children!" screamed Oprah. (see above Oprah-Nagin video clip) 赤ん坊が死んでゆく、子供たちが!
Fact: There are no known babies that died in the Superdome スーパードームで赤ん坊の死は無い
Folklore: Mayor Nagin on the Today Show, "It wouldn't be unreasonable to have 10,000..." (VIDEO HERE) 死者が1万人を超えてもおかしくは無い
Facts: There have been 885 deaths in Louisiana attributed to Hurricane Katrina: 死者は885人 ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー 問題はTVでこうした発言をしてアメリカ国民(外国の国民も)を驚かせたのがニューオーリンズの 市長であること、それをセンセーショナルにメディアが悪用したことにあるわけで・・
The days of weak leaders are over in Japan. With or without Koizumi, the change in leadership style is here to stay. Japan introduced a number of important institutional reforms in the 1990s, including a change in the electoral rules in 1994, and the strengthening of the cabinet and the prime ministerial office in the late 1990s.
All these changes were designed to turn Japan in-to a British-style parliamentary democracy. Koizumi is a product of this new political structure. He was the first to understand how the new political rules of the game worked. Under them, individual politicians cannot survive by bucking party leaders. Koizumi's victory has taught ambitious politicians the need to rally behind a strong leader. There is no going back.
What will happen now? In the short run, there will be bolder policy shifts. Postal privatization is just the first step. We can expect Japan to address its multiple challenges. Japan is experiencing an unprecedented degree of demographic aging. By 2025, nearly a third of the population will be above 65. In the United States, in contrast, less than one-fifth of the population will be older than 65. Japan also has one of the worst fiscal deficits among the industrialized countries. Major reforms to address these issues are finally on the agenda. The most likely scenario is a reduction in benefits for the elderly as resources shift toward the active working population.
Tax increases will most likely take two forms. One is a moderate hike in the consumption tax rate coupled with a social security reform that increases the government's commitment to a basic social minimum. The other is elimination of existing tax loopholes.
Internationally, Japan has to redefine its role in the world. Japan's so-called Peace Constitution has prevented the country from deploying its troops abroad for military purposes. Koizumi wants to change Article 9 of the Constitution in order to legitimate the Self Defense Forces as a "military" and to facilitate future deployments outside Japanese territories.
With only one year of his term remaining, Koizumi may not deliver all these reforms himself. But the "new party" that he brought to power is likely to carry forward this agenda. The end result is likely to be a Japan that looks very much like Britain both domestically and internationally. Japan will develop a more pro-market face and be ready to take on a more active role in the U.S. global security strategy.
American business and policy makers will cer-tainly find the new Japan easier to understand and to deal with. Whether a country like China will welcome the change is another issue.
In Washington, especially at the Pentagon, there is a suspicion that both China and South Korea share an "engagement- at-all-costs attitude" and that they will want to stay at the table, even if negotiations reach an impasse, Mitchell said.
Einhorn said the Americans worry that even before the North has taken steps to dismantle its weapons programs, the South will take massive steps to help Pyongyang develop its devastated economy.
If that happens, Pyongyang may decide it can reach its goals without denuclearizing, he said.
この記事はコリアタイムズと同じような感じで書かれているけれど、アメリカ側の不満で コリアタイムズが「ブッシュ政権と議会」としていたところが「国防省」になっている In Washington, especially at the Pentagon, there is a suspicion that both China and South Korea share an "engagement- at-all-costs attitude" and that they will want to stay at the table, even if negotiations reach an impasse, Mitchell said.
CSISのサイトにはAP記事の紹介があって ttp://www.csis.org/press/050927_assocpress.pdf End to Korea atomic arms deemed arduous The Associated Press 9/27/2005, 11:14 a.m. CT AP記事 このCSISの掲載記事にはMitchelの同盟運運の発言は含まれていない。
Some commentators believe the parties are awaiting the final result from a constituency in the eastern city of Dresden, even though it is not expected to change the balance of power. Voting there was postponed until Sunday after the death of a candidate. 話し合いの進展は日曜日のドレスデンの投票後と言うことになるのかしらん?
The shift by China's government on these issues in the last year naturally reflects on the priorities and inclinations of the country's paramount leader, Hu Jintao. His dislike of dealing with the media?not shared by his predecessor, Jiang Zemin, who appeared loquacious by comparison?reinforces the perception that he does not hold the media in high regard.
The government reported earlier today that commercial sales, or combined sales at the wholesale and retail levels, rose 4.6 pct in August from a year earlier. Sales at the wholesale level increased 5.6 pct year-on-year, while retail sales grew 1.5 pct.
'The data confirmed the present state of fundamentals,' said Mitsushige Akino, a chief fund manager at Ichiyoshi Investment Management. ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー フォーブスの記事の参照しているデータと言うのは↓
アメリカ議会の下院外交委員会のサイトにビデオがあって: ttp://wwwc.house.gov/international_relations/fullhear.htm September 28, 2005: 10:30 a.m., 2172 Rayburn House Office Building Hearing and Briefing: United Nations Rhetoric or Reform: Outcome of the High-Level Event Briefer: Mr. Mark Malloch Brown Hearing Notice, The Honorable Henry J. Hyde, The Honorable John R. Bolton ttp://boss.streamos.com/real/hir/34_fc092805.smi リアル・プレィアーで低画質の委員会の模様を見ることが出来るけれど、これは全部で2時間半 もあるものなので、ちょっと暇がないと見ていられない。
通信が途絶して正確な情報の伝わらない状況で流言蜚語が飛び交うのは理解できる。人はそういうも のを好んだりするから。しかしながら、大手メディアのジャーナリストや責任ある公職に有る人たち は、もう少し注意深く、責任有る立場をわきまえて話すべきだ。 ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー ttp://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/006/137flvhf.asp Reporting Katrina Why so many journalists painted an exaggerated picture of the situation in New Orleans. by Hugh Hewitt 09/29/2005 12:00:00 AM