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2011年04月01日
原発長期化 食にきめ細かい対応を
昨日の夕方、タイのテレビでフランスの大統領が来日、日本の菅首相と会談しているのを放送していた。
タイ語の放送なので詳しくはわからないが、なにやら福島原発に関連しているようだ。
サイトで調べてみて驚いた。
仏は１８日、専門家の派遣、原発事故に対応するロボットを含む資材１３０トンの搬送など独自の救援計画を発表したそうですが、ル・モンド紙によると日本側はこれを拒否したとの事。
お手上げ状態なのか今頃になって仏に支援要請したのではと推測される。
このいきさつ、日本ではまったく報道されていない。
日本で報道されなくても現地の新聞でいずればれますよね。
世界各地よりの支援の手は、素直にありがたく受け入れるべきだと思います。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 31, 2011
Government needs to take targeted responses to Fukushima plant, radiation leaks
社説：原発長期化 食にきめ細かい対応を
The continuing crisis at the quake- and tsunami-hit Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant has bred a number of tough problems for the government and the plant's operator, the Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO).
原発対応が長期化する中で、さまざまなジレンマが進行している。
Workers at the plant are placing top priority on efforts to cool down the reactors. However, the more water they pour into the reactor buildings, the more water holding radioactive substances collects below. This contaminated water has now presented an obstacle, disrupting efforts to cool the reactors.
東京電力福島第１原発の現場では、原子炉の冷却を進めることが何より大事だ。ところが、原子炉に水を注げば注ぐほど、高濃度の放射性物質を含む汚染水が漏れ出す。汚染水は現場の作業を阻み、ますます解決を遠のかせている。
With some of the pressure vessels around the reactors feared damaged, the situation is not likely to be resolved soon. Even if workers overcome all the difficulties and manage to get the reactors under control, it will still surely be years before the crisis is completely settled.
原子炉の圧力容器が一部壊れているとも考えられ、底の抜けたバケツに水を入れるような状況が続く可能性が高い。それを乗り越え、安定化させられても、最終的な収束には何年もかかるだろう。
In this unprecedented crisis, we urge TEPCO and government ministries and agencies involved to combine their wisdom in finding a solution. Drastic measures, like creating a pool to hold the leaking radioactive water, need to be taken.
経験のない困難な事態だが、知恵を結集したい。汚染水を移動させるには、閉じこめ専用の池を造成するなど、思い切った対策も必要だ。
Meanwhile, the leak of radioactive substances has created another problem for the government: ensuring the safety of food while also not ruining agricultural producers in radiation-effected areas.
原発から漏れる放射性物質は、食の安全や安心と、産業維持との間にもジレンマを生んでいる。
The Cabinet Office's Food Safety Commission (FSC) has compiled a report concluding that temporary standards defining the acceptable amounts of radioactive material in foods such as milk and vegetables -- which were worked out following the crisis at the plant -- are appropriate. The FSC was temporarily considering raising the upper limit on the amount of cesium allowed in foods, but decided to leave a final decision on the matter to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry.
野菜や牛乳などに含まれる放射性物質はどこまで許容できるか。内閣府の食品安全委員会は、原発事故以来の暫定基準を妥当とする報告をまとめた。放射性セシウムは基準値引き上げも検討されたが、最終判断は厚生労働省にゆだねられている。
It is difficult to assess the long-term impact on people's health from low-doses of radioactive material in food, but some people are skeptical of the government's comparisons between health hazards from the detected radioactive substances and that of cigarettes or radiation from CT scans.
食物などから受ける低線量の被ばくは、長期的影響の評価がむずかしい。リスクの受け止め方も人によって異なる。たばこの害やＣＴなどとの比較に納得できない人もいる。
Although radioactive material in foods should be limited as much as possible, questions remain as to how standards should be applied during emergencies like the current one. Some experts say that because Japan's standards are strict compared to those of other developed countries, there should be no problem if they are relaxed.
本来はできるだけ抑えるべきだが非常時の運用をどう考えるか。国際基準からみて今の基準は厳しく、緩和は問題ないという声もある。
A judgment on whether the current restrictions are appropriate and how they should be implemented could put the survival of farmers at stake. Restrictions on shipments and consumption of agricultural products that apply to entire prefectures, which have been seen after radiation started leaking from the Fukushima nuclear plant, are too strict and could deal a fatal blow to local farmers.
規制基準の妥当性や運用は、農家の存亡にもかかわる。これまでのように、県単位での出荷や摂取の制限は影響が大きすぎる。
The government should provide a detailed explanation to consumers if it comes out with new standards.
政府は、改めて基準を決めるにあたり、丁寧な説明ときめ細かい対策が欠かせない。
In particular, the government should show its estimations of cancer rates for specific age groups based on what kinds of contaminated foods they eat, and for how long.
Without this detailed information, new standards could breed harmful rumors that might cause consumers to shun all agricultural products from areas with contamination.
消費者に対しては、風評被害を防ぐためにも、大づかみな言い方では足りない。年齢別に、何をどれぐらい食べ続けると、何年後にがんになる人の割合がどれだけ増える、といった具体的な言い方で説明してもらいたい。
The government should also show a clear comparison between the standards of Japan and other countries on radioactive material in foods.
国際基準とのわかりやすい比較もほしい。
Furthermore, the government should provide guidelines for judging whether foods are safe, based on the amounts of radioactive substances in various food products, water and the air, and it should be quick in releasing data.
複数の食品や水、空気中の放射性物質の量を勘案した上での判断材料もいる。データの即時公表も大切だ。
The government should also make its safety measures for farmers in the affected regions targeted for different circumstances. For example, the government should assess the levels of radioactive materials in vegetables grown outdoors versus those grown in greenhouses, and deal with them differently.
農家に対しては、地域別にきめ細かい対策を進めてほしい。露地物とハウス栽培でも、測定値を評価した上で、異なる対策をとるべきだ。
Monitoring of radioactive substances in agricultural products should be strengthened, and restrictions on the shipment of agricultural products should be eased or lifted as the safety of the products is confirmed.
計測を充実させ、出荷制限を柔軟に解除していくことも必要だ。
Japan was unprepared for and lacked knowledge of the widespread effects of the radiation leaks it now faces. 日本はこれまで、長期にわたる広範囲な放射線影響について備えも理解も足りなかった。
Facing the future, we also need to be on guard for possible contaminated marine products and their effects on health.
今後、直面するであろう海産物への影響にも備えておきたい。
毎日新聞 2011年3月31日 2時31分
タイ語の放送なので詳しくはわからないが、なにやら福島原発に関連しているようだ。
サイトで調べてみて驚いた。
仏は１８日、専門家の派遣、原発事故に対応するロボットを含む資材１３０トンの搬送など独自の救援計画を発表したそうですが、ル・モンド紙によると日本側はこれを拒否したとの事。
お手上げ状態なのか今頃になって仏に支援要請したのではと推測される。
このいきさつ、日本ではまったく報道されていない。
日本で報道されなくても現地の新聞でいずればれますよね。
世界各地よりの支援の手は、素直にありがたく受け入れるべきだと思います。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 31, 2011
Government needs to take targeted responses to Fukushima plant, radiation leaks
社説：原発長期化 食にきめ細かい対応を
The continuing crisis at the quake- and tsunami-hit Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant has bred a number of tough problems for the government and the plant's operator, the Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO).
原発対応が長期化する中で、さまざまなジレンマが進行している。
Workers at the plant are placing top priority on efforts to cool down the reactors. However, the more water they pour into the reactor buildings, the more water holding radioactive substances collects below. This contaminated water has now presented an obstacle, disrupting efforts to cool the reactors.
東京電力福島第１原発の現場では、原子炉の冷却を進めることが何より大事だ。ところが、原子炉に水を注げば注ぐほど、高濃度の放射性物質を含む汚染水が漏れ出す。汚染水は現場の作業を阻み、ますます解決を遠のかせている。
With some of the pressure vessels around the reactors feared damaged, the situation is not likely to be resolved soon. Even if workers overcome all the difficulties and manage to get the reactors under control, it will still surely be years before the crisis is completely settled.
原子炉の圧力容器が一部壊れているとも考えられ、底の抜けたバケツに水を入れるような状況が続く可能性が高い。それを乗り越え、安定化させられても、最終的な収束には何年もかかるだろう。
In this unprecedented crisis, we urge TEPCO and government ministries and agencies involved to combine their wisdom in finding a solution. Drastic measures, like creating a pool to hold the leaking radioactive water, need to be taken.
経験のない困難な事態だが、知恵を結集したい。汚染水を移動させるには、閉じこめ専用の池を造成するなど、思い切った対策も必要だ。
Meanwhile, the leak of radioactive substances has created another problem for the government: ensuring the safety of food while also not ruining agricultural producers in radiation-effected areas.
原発から漏れる放射性物質は、食の安全や安心と、産業維持との間にもジレンマを生んでいる。
The Cabinet Office's Food Safety Commission (FSC) has compiled a report concluding that temporary standards defining the acceptable amounts of radioactive material in foods such as milk and vegetables -- which were worked out following the crisis at the plant -- are appropriate. The FSC was temporarily considering raising the upper limit on the amount of cesium allowed in foods, but decided to leave a final decision on the matter to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry.
野菜や牛乳などに含まれる放射性物質はどこまで許容できるか。内閣府の食品安全委員会は、原発事故以来の暫定基準を妥当とする報告をまとめた。放射性セシウムは基準値引き上げも検討されたが、最終判断は厚生労働省にゆだねられている。
It is difficult to assess the long-term impact on people's health from low-doses of radioactive material in food, but some people are skeptical of the government's comparisons between health hazards from the detected radioactive substances and that of cigarettes or radiation from CT scans.
食物などから受ける低線量の被ばくは、長期的影響の評価がむずかしい。リスクの受け止め方も人によって異なる。たばこの害やＣＴなどとの比較に納得できない人もいる。
Although radioactive material in foods should be limited as much as possible, questions remain as to how standards should be applied during emergencies like the current one. Some experts say that because Japan's standards are strict compared to those of other developed countries, there should be no problem if they are relaxed.
本来はできるだけ抑えるべきだが非常時の運用をどう考えるか。国際基準からみて今の基準は厳しく、緩和は問題ないという声もある。
A judgment on whether the current restrictions are appropriate and how they should be implemented could put the survival of farmers at stake. Restrictions on shipments and consumption of agricultural products that apply to entire prefectures, which have been seen after radiation started leaking from the Fukushima nuclear plant, are too strict and could deal a fatal blow to local farmers.
規制基準の妥当性や運用は、農家の存亡にもかかわる。これまでのように、県単位での出荷や摂取の制限は影響が大きすぎる。
The government should provide a detailed explanation to consumers if it comes out with new standards.
政府は、改めて基準を決めるにあたり、丁寧な説明ときめ細かい対策が欠かせない。
In particular, the government should show its estimations of cancer rates for specific age groups based on what kinds of contaminated foods they eat, and for how long.
Without this detailed information, new standards could breed harmful rumors that might cause consumers to shun all agricultural products from areas with contamination.
消費者に対しては、風評被害を防ぐためにも、大づかみな言い方では足りない。年齢別に、何をどれぐらい食べ続けると、何年後にがんになる人の割合がどれだけ増える、といった具体的な言い方で説明してもらいたい。
The government should also show a clear comparison between the standards of Japan and other countries on radioactive material in foods.
国際基準とのわかりやすい比較もほしい。
Furthermore, the government should provide guidelines for judging whether foods are safe, based on the amounts of radioactive substances in various food products, water and the air, and it should be quick in releasing data.
複数の食品や水、空気中の放射性物質の量を勘案した上での判断材料もいる。データの即時公表も大切だ。
The government should also make its safety measures for farmers in the affected regions targeted for different circumstances. For example, the government should assess the levels of radioactive materials in vegetables grown outdoors versus those grown in greenhouses, and deal with them differently.
農家に対しては、地域別にきめ細かい対策を進めてほしい。露地物とハウス栽培でも、測定値を評価した上で、異なる対策をとるべきだ。
Monitoring of radioactive substances in agricultural products should be strengthened, and restrictions on the shipment of agricultural products should be eased or lifted as the safety of the products is confirmed.
計測を充実させ、出荷制限を柔軟に解除していくことも必要だ。
Japan was unprepared for and lacked knowledge of the widespread effects of the radiation leaks it now faces. 日本はこれまで、長期にわたる広範囲な放射線影響について備えも理解も足りなかった。
Facing the future, we also need to be on guard for possible contaminated marine products and their effects on health.
今後、直面するであろう海産物への影響にも備えておきたい。
毎日新聞 2011年3月31日 2時31分
2011年03月31日
被災した子ども 泣いたっていいんだ
大震災・大津波で大きなショックを受けている子供たちに焦点を当てた毎日新聞の力作。
社説の中では朝日、読売と一線を画す優れた記事だと思います。
タイに住んでいてテレビで被災地の様子を毎日眺めているだけでこんなに落ち込みます。
被災した子供たちの苦しみは察するにあまりあります。
それでもこの子供たちが明日の日本を背負っていくことだけは間違いないでしょう。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 30, 2011
Japan must not overlook mental health of children in disaster zone
社説：被災した子ども 泣いたっていいんだ
There are many elementary school children making the rounds of disaster evacuation shelters to look for their missing parents.
父や母を求めて避難所を回っている小学生がいる。
Others are searching the rubble of collapsed buildings for mementos such as photos as well as their belongings. がれきの中から思い出の写真やカバンを探す子どもたちもいる。
Some children were seen to smile during their school graduation ceremonies.
卒業式では笑顔も見られた。
People across the country are trying to cheer up these children in quake- and tsunami-hit areas.
「がんばれ」。けなげな姿に全国から声が上がる。
More than 10,000 people have been confirmed dead and some 16,000 others remain missing following the March 11 Great East Japan Earthquake.
死者１万人以上、行方不明者１万６０００人以上。
Facing this unbelievable reality, anybody would want to encourage child survivors to help them conquer hardships already experienced and those sure to come.
信じられない現実を前にしたら誰だって励ましたくなる。
どこかに希望を見つけたくなるものだ。
However, children are already doing their best.
しかし、子どもたちは十分にがんばっている。
Even though they do not understand what has happened to them as much as adults and cannot express their feelings, they can also suffer from disaster trauma and become overwhelmed with grief after losing their family members, their homes or both.
現実に起きたことを大人のようには理解できず、気持ちをうまく伝えられなくても、恐怖やショックによるトラウマ反応、家族や自宅をなくした喪失感は子どもの心にも起きる。
Rather than simply urging children to overcome the disaster, what is needed is to look for subtle changes in their emotions and provide appropriate psychological support.
今、必要なのは励ましよりも、小さな変化に周囲が気づき適切なケアをすることだ。
Children who have experienced such a massive disaster tend to complain of insomnia and loss of appetite, act infantile, be frightened by loud sounds, easily lose their temper, have nightmares and refuse activities they enjoyed before the traumatic event.
眠れない、食欲がない、赤ちゃん返りをする、大きな音におびえる、いらいらする、夢にうなされる、好きだったことをしなくなる。
If children begin to show these symptoms, adequate care should be provided to them, such as telling them, "You're all right," and avoiding letting them sleep alone, in order to reassure them.
このような様子が見られたら注意が必要だ。「大丈夫だよ」と声をかける、寝るときは一人にしない、スキンシップを心がけるなど、安心感を与えるための配慮が必要になる。
Some children repeatedly talk about what they saw and experienced in the disaster, but adults around them should understand this as a sign that they are trying hard to accept the shocking reality and patiently listen to what they have to say.
被災体験を繰り返し話す子もいるが、衝撃的な現実をなんとか受け入れようと苦しんでいるサインだと思って辛抱強く聞いてほしい。
Pep talks like, "Never say die" and "There are some other people who are in more difficult situations.
Overcome this hardship," must be avoided.
「弱音を吐くな」「もっと大変な人がいる。負けるな」などの叱咤（しった）激励は禁物だ。
Adults may say these things to children to encourage them, but they can be counterproductive, driving a child into a psychological corner.
こちらは一生懸命に励ましているつもりでも、子どもを追い詰めるだけという場合がある。
Some children are afflicted with survivor's guilt when the rest of their families lost their lives in the disaster.
自分だけ生き残ったことで罪悪感に苦しんでいる子もいる。
They should rather be convinced that they do not have to hide their tears or their feelings.
泣きたいのに我慢したり、つらい気持ちを隠したりする必要はないことを伝えるべきだ。
The Japanese Association of Clinical Psychology and the National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry (NCNP) have guidelines on their respective websites on dealing with children who have experienced a massive disaster.
被災した子どもへの対処法については日本臨床心理学会や国立精神・神経医療研究センターがホームページで紹介している。
Mental health experts are working in quake-hit areas, but they cannot look after all the children who need their care.
心のケアの専門職が被災地に入っているもののとても足りる状況ではない。
Academic societies specializing in children's mental health are providing telephone and e-mail counseling, and such services should be fully utilized.
関係学会はメールや電話相談も開設しているので積極的に利用してほしい。
Children can initially endure the harsh living conditions at shelters because they maintain a sense of tension after the disaster. If their evacuation is prolonged, however, they may suffer from sudden depression or feel physically ill.
被災直後は気持ちが張っているため休まなくてもがんばり続けられるが、長期化すると急に落ち込んだり体調を崩すことがある。
Minor symptoms that children show immediately after a disaster can be dealt with if adequate care is provided. 被災後の小さな症状は適切な配慮をすれば一過性のものとして回復することが多い。
However, post-traumatic stress disorder should be suspected if children continue to show such symptoms for more than a month.
In that case, expert treatment is required.
しかし、そうした症状が１カ月以上続いたらＰＴＳＤ（心的外傷後ストレス障害）の疑いがあり専門的なケアを受けることが必要だ。
Even children who did not experience the quake could show symptoms such as insomnia if they repeatedly see shocking images of the disaster on TV.
また、衝撃的な映像を繰り返し見ることで直接被災していない子どもにも不眠などの症状が起きる場合がある。
There are reportedly some cases where children who were not hit by the disaster complain they feel anxious and suddenly begin to cry in class.
不安を訴え、教室で突然泣き出した子もいるという。
Close attention should be paid to subtle changes in children's words and deeds so as not to overlook any sign that they are developing psychological problems.
日常の中の異変を見落とさないでほしい。
Efforts to provide mental care for children in quake- and tsunami-devastated areas have come to a crucial stage. これからが正念場だ。
The nation as a whole is urged to protect both the mental and physical health of children.
小さな命をみんなで守りたい。
毎日新聞 2011年3月30日 東京朝刊
社説の中では朝日、読売と一線を画す優れた記事だと思います。
タイに住んでいてテレビで被災地の様子を毎日眺めているだけでこんなに落ち込みます。
被災した子供たちの苦しみは察するにあまりあります。
それでもこの子供たちが明日の日本を背負っていくことだけは間違いないでしょう。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 30, 2011
Japan must not overlook mental health of children in disaster zone
社説：被災した子ども 泣いたっていいんだ
There are many elementary school children making the rounds of disaster evacuation shelters to look for their missing parents.
父や母を求めて避難所を回っている小学生がいる。
Others are searching the rubble of collapsed buildings for mementos such as photos as well as their belongings. がれきの中から思い出の写真やカバンを探す子どもたちもいる。
Some children were seen to smile during their school graduation ceremonies.
卒業式では笑顔も見られた。
People across the country are trying to cheer up these children in quake- and tsunami-hit areas.
「がんばれ」。けなげな姿に全国から声が上がる。
More than 10,000 people have been confirmed dead and some 16,000 others remain missing following the March 11 Great East Japan Earthquake.
死者１万人以上、行方不明者１万６０００人以上。
Facing this unbelievable reality, anybody would want to encourage child survivors to help them conquer hardships already experienced and those sure to come.
信じられない現実を前にしたら誰だって励ましたくなる。
どこかに希望を見つけたくなるものだ。
However, children are already doing their best.
しかし、子どもたちは十分にがんばっている。
Even though they do not understand what has happened to them as much as adults and cannot express their feelings, they can also suffer from disaster trauma and become overwhelmed with grief after losing their family members, their homes or both.
現実に起きたことを大人のようには理解できず、気持ちをうまく伝えられなくても、恐怖やショックによるトラウマ反応、家族や自宅をなくした喪失感は子どもの心にも起きる。
Rather than simply urging children to overcome the disaster, what is needed is to look for subtle changes in their emotions and provide appropriate psychological support.
今、必要なのは励ましよりも、小さな変化に周囲が気づき適切なケアをすることだ。
Children who have experienced such a massive disaster tend to complain of insomnia and loss of appetite, act infantile, be frightened by loud sounds, easily lose their temper, have nightmares and refuse activities they enjoyed before the traumatic event.
眠れない、食欲がない、赤ちゃん返りをする、大きな音におびえる、いらいらする、夢にうなされる、好きだったことをしなくなる。
If children begin to show these symptoms, adequate care should be provided to them, such as telling them, "You're all right," and avoiding letting them sleep alone, in order to reassure them.
このような様子が見られたら注意が必要だ。「大丈夫だよ」と声をかける、寝るときは一人にしない、スキンシップを心がけるなど、安心感を与えるための配慮が必要になる。
Some children repeatedly talk about what they saw and experienced in the disaster, but adults around them should understand this as a sign that they are trying hard to accept the shocking reality and patiently listen to what they have to say.
被災体験を繰り返し話す子もいるが、衝撃的な現実をなんとか受け入れようと苦しんでいるサインだと思って辛抱強く聞いてほしい。
Pep talks like, "Never say die" and "There are some other people who are in more difficult situations.
Overcome this hardship," must be avoided.
「弱音を吐くな」「もっと大変な人がいる。負けるな」などの叱咤（しった）激励は禁物だ。
Adults may say these things to children to encourage them, but they can be counterproductive, driving a child into a psychological corner.
こちらは一生懸命に励ましているつもりでも、子どもを追い詰めるだけという場合がある。
Some children are afflicted with survivor's guilt when the rest of their families lost their lives in the disaster.
自分だけ生き残ったことで罪悪感に苦しんでいる子もいる。
They should rather be convinced that they do not have to hide their tears or their feelings.
泣きたいのに我慢したり、つらい気持ちを隠したりする必要はないことを伝えるべきだ。
The Japanese Association of Clinical Psychology and the National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry (NCNP) have guidelines on their respective websites on dealing with children who have experienced a massive disaster.
被災した子どもへの対処法については日本臨床心理学会や国立精神・神経医療研究センターがホームページで紹介している。
Mental health experts are working in quake-hit areas, but they cannot look after all the children who need their care.
心のケアの専門職が被災地に入っているもののとても足りる状況ではない。
Academic societies specializing in children's mental health are providing telephone and e-mail counseling, and such services should be fully utilized.
関係学会はメールや電話相談も開設しているので積極的に利用してほしい。
Children can initially endure the harsh living conditions at shelters because they maintain a sense of tension after the disaster. If their evacuation is prolonged, however, they may suffer from sudden depression or feel physically ill.
被災直後は気持ちが張っているため休まなくてもがんばり続けられるが、長期化すると急に落ち込んだり体調を崩すことがある。
Minor symptoms that children show immediately after a disaster can be dealt with if adequate care is provided. 被災後の小さな症状は適切な配慮をすれば一過性のものとして回復することが多い。
However, post-traumatic stress disorder should be suspected if children continue to show such symptoms for more than a month.
In that case, expert treatment is required.
しかし、そうした症状が１カ月以上続いたらＰＴＳＤ（心的外傷後ストレス障害）の疑いがあり専門的なケアを受けることが必要だ。
Even children who did not experience the quake could show symptoms such as insomnia if they repeatedly see shocking images of the disaster on TV.
また、衝撃的な映像を繰り返し見ることで直接被災していない子どもにも不眠などの症状が起きる場合がある。
There are reportedly some cases where children who were not hit by the disaster complain they feel anxious and suddenly begin to cry in class.
不安を訴え、教室で突然泣き出した子もいるという。
Close attention should be paid to subtle changes in children's words and deeds so as not to overlook any sign that they are developing psychological problems.
日常の中の異変を見落とさないでほしい。
Efforts to provide mental care for children in quake- and tsunami-devastated areas have come to a crucial stage. これからが正念場だ。
The nation as a whole is urged to protect both the mental and physical health of children.
小さな命をみんなで守りたい。
毎日新聞 2011年3月30日 東京朝刊
2011年03月29日
「復興庁」 (reconstruction agency)
未曾有の大災害、復興庁のような機能性に富んだ機敏な組織を作って被災地の復旧に全力をつくすことが大切。
「復興庁」 (reconstruction agency) 長官には岩手選挙区の小沢一郎さんが適任だと思います。
政治の表舞台で活躍してほしい。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 28, 2011
Reconstruction efforts require centralized headquarters, strong local representation
社説：復興への政府体制 機動的な司令塔整備を
Debate is taking place over the government's approach to the reconstruction of areas in eastern Japan that have suffered grave damage from the recent earthquake and tsunami.
東日本大震災で被災した地域の復旧、復興に向け政府の体制を見直す議論が起きている。
One of the ideas that have emerged within the government and ruling party is the establishment of a reconstruction agency.
「復興庁」のような新組織を設けることで各省の行政を統括する構想も政府・与党内に浮上している。
To rebuild the vast number of communities that were wiped out by the massive tsunami on March 11, such an organization must be able to propel various ministries and agencies to come together, as well as conceptualize progress from a mid- to long-term perspective.
巨大津波で広範な地域が大きな被害を受けた被災地の復興には中長期的視点に立つ構想力と同時に、各省を束ねる推進力が必要だ。
It would not be in our best interests to expend more energy than is necessary in creating the organization.
組織づくりそのものに過大なエネルギーを費やすことは得策でない。
What we are aiming for is a flexible control group that is quick on its feet.
機動的な司令塔を目指すべきである。
Currently, government support for disaster victims is being supervised by a special disaster victim support headquarters that spun off from an emergency disaster relief headquarters comprising all Cabinet ministers.
政府の被災者支援は全閣僚による「緊急災害対策本部」から「被災者生活支援特別対策本部」を分離させる形で現在、進んでいる。
More than two weeks have passed since the disaster hit, and the restoration of infrastructure -- such as residential construction, roads, and ports -- and deliberations to draw up a major supplementary budget are expected to shift into high gear.
大震災から半月を経て住宅建設や道路、港湾など社会資本の復旧、大型補正予算編成などに向けた検討も今後、本格化する。
As the scale of reconstruction plans for the latest disaster is expected to far exceed that following the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, their success is contingent upon the government's strong leadership.
復興計画は阪神大震災を大きく上回る規模とみられるだけに、政府が取りまとめを強力に主導できるかが問われる。
The Teito (Imperial Capital) Reconstruction Agency was launched after the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake to help rebuild the nation's capital.
１９２３年の関東大震災の際は「帝都復興院」が発足し、首都再建にあたった。
Based on this experience, some government and ruling-party insiders are suggesting the formation of a similar Recovery Agency to oversee wide-ranging administration in the aftermath of this month's devastation.
こうした経験を参考に「復興庁」のような組織を新設し、多分野にわたる行政を統括する案も政府・与党内にはある。
To centralize the reconstruction-related administration, the idea of establishing a central-command type system is a good one.
復興行政をできるだけ一元化するため、司令塔的な体制を整えること自体は賛成だ。
However, there are several points that must be considered in doing so.
だが、いくつか留意すべき点がある。
First, we should avoid launching any organizations that could be redundant, as we've seen repeatedly in the past whenever the government has established new organizations or agencies.
まず、これまで政府が新組織を作る際、再三見られたように、各省に屋上屋を架すような愚は避けるべきだ。
The agency needs to be a simple organization specializing in giving out commands.
司令塔機能に特化した簡素なものとしなければならない。
Most importantly, however, it must have the ability to map out guidelines for reconstruction.
最も重要なのは、復興の指針を決める企画立案機能だ。
Many of the areas affected by the recent disaster have rapidly aging populations and suffer from depopulation. Measures to prevent secondary disasters from tsunami must be implemented, but the affected area is extremely vast.
被災地の多くが高齢化が進む過疎地であり、津波の２次被害への備えも迫られる。被災地域も非常に広範囲にわたる。
A wide-range of information and insight must be gathered in order to simultaneously revitalize communities and prevent future disasters while acknowledging the differences between the latest disaster and the Great Hanshin Earthquake.
防災と地域再生をどう両立させるか、阪神大震災との状況の違いも踏まえつつ復興に取り組めるよう、幅広く知見を集めねばならない。
When the Great Hanshin Earthquake took place in 1995, the government launched the Hanshin-Awaji Restoration Committee, an advisory panel to the prime minister.
９５年の阪神大震災の際、政府は首相の諮問機関「阪神・淡路復興委員会」を発足させ提言活動を行った。
This time, however, we should set up a more powerful consultative body -- comprising senior officials from the ruling party, various experts, as well as members of the business world -- that, along with the secretariat, would have a strong mandate.
今回はさらにそれを強化し、政府・与党首脳部はもとより有識者、経済界も参加した協議機関を設け、事務局とともに強い権限を与えるべきではないか。
Calling on opposition parties to participate, and having implementing agencies and organizations employ liaison committees made up of administrative vice ministers is one way to go about the restoration process.
野党に参加を呼びかけたり、実施機関は各府省の事務次官で構成する連絡会議を活用したりするのもひとつの方法だろう。
Even more important is to avoid departing from the general rule that the major players of the reconstruction process are local communities.
さらに重要なのは、復興計画の主役は自治体という原則を踏み外さないことだ。
Accordingly, to address concerns and implement revitalization plans that defy prefectural boundaries, the involvement of multiple governors and various community members go without saying.
地域の実情に応じ、県境にとらわれない復興計画を策定するため関係県の知事はもとより、地域のさまざまな人たちが参加することは当然だ。
The national government must avoid any anachronistic moves such as forcing its plans onto local communities.
国が上からプランを押しつける時代錯誤は禁物である。
毎日新聞 2011年3月28日 東京朝刊
「復興庁」 (reconstruction agency) 長官には岩手選挙区の小沢一郎さんが適任だと思います。
政治の表舞台で活躍してほしい。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 28, 2011
Reconstruction efforts require centralized headquarters, strong local representation
社説：復興への政府体制 機動的な司令塔整備を
Debate is taking place over the government's approach to the reconstruction of areas in eastern Japan that have suffered grave damage from the recent earthquake and tsunami.
東日本大震災で被災した地域の復旧、復興に向け政府の体制を見直す議論が起きている。
One of the ideas that have emerged within the government and ruling party is the establishment of a reconstruction agency.
「復興庁」のような新組織を設けることで各省の行政を統括する構想も政府・与党内に浮上している。
To rebuild the vast number of communities that were wiped out by the massive tsunami on March 11, such an organization must be able to propel various ministries and agencies to come together, as well as conceptualize progress from a mid- to long-term perspective.
巨大津波で広範な地域が大きな被害を受けた被災地の復興には中長期的視点に立つ構想力と同時に、各省を束ねる推進力が必要だ。
It would not be in our best interests to expend more energy than is necessary in creating the organization.
組織づくりそのものに過大なエネルギーを費やすことは得策でない。
What we are aiming for is a flexible control group that is quick on its feet.
機動的な司令塔を目指すべきである。
Currently, government support for disaster victims is being supervised by a special disaster victim support headquarters that spun off from an emergency disaster relief headquarters comprising all Cabinet ministers.
政府の被災者支援は全閣僚による「緊急災害対策本部」から「被災者生活支援特別対策本部」を分離させる形で現在、進んでいる。
More than two weeks have passed since the disaster hit, and the restoration of infrastructure -- such as residential construction, roads, and ports -- and deliberations to draw up a major supplementary budget are expected to shift into high gear.
大震災から半月を経て住宅建設や道路、港湾など社会資本の復旧、大型補正予算編成などに向けた検討も今後、本格化する。
As the scale of reconstruction plans for the latest disaster is expected to far exceed that following the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, their success is contingent upon the government's strong leadership.
復興計画は阪神大震災を大きく上回る規模とみられるだけに、政府が取りまとめを強力に主導できるかが問われる。
The Teito (Imperial Capital) Reconstruction Agency was launched after the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake to help rebuild the nation's capital.
１９２３年の関東大震災の際は「帝都復興院」が発足し、首都再建にあたった。
Based on this experience, some government and ruling-party insiders are suggesting the formation of a similar Recovery Agency to oversee wide-ranging administration in the aftermath of this month's devastation.
こうした経験を参考に「復興庁」のような組織を新設し、多分野にわたる行政を統括する案も政府・与党内にはある。
To centralize the reconstruction-related administration, the idea of establishing a central-command type system is a good one.
復興行政をできるだけ一元化するため、司令塔的な体制を整えること自体は賛成だ。
However, there are several points that must be considered in doing so.
だが、いくつか留意すべき点がある。
First, we should avoid launching any organizations that could be redundant, as we've seen repeatedly in the past whenever the government has established new organizations or agencies.
まず、これまで政府が新組織を作る際、再三見られたように、各省に屋上屋を架すような愚は避けるべきだ。
The agency needs to be a simple organization specializing in giving out commands.
司令塔機能に特化した簡素なものとしなければならない。
Most importantly, however, it must have the ability to map out guidelines for reconstruction.
最も重要なのは、復興の指針を決める企画立案機能だ。
Many of the areas affected by the recent disaster have rapidly aging populations and suffer from depopulation. Measures to prevent secondary disasters from tsunami must be implemented, but the affected area is extremely vast.
被災地の多くが高齢化が進む過疎地であり、津波の２次被害への備えも迫られる。被災地域も非常に広範囲にわたる。
A wide-range of information and insight must be gathered in order to simultaneously revitalize communities and prevent future disasters while acknowledging the differences between the latest disaster and the Great Hanshin Earthquake.
防災と地域再生をどう両立させるか、阪神大震災との状況の違いも踏まえつつ復興に取り組めるよう、幅広く知見を集めねばならない。
When the Great Hanshin Earthquake took place in 1995, the government launched the Hanshin-Awaji Restoration Committee, an advisory panel to the prime minister.
９５年の阪神大震災の際、政府は首相の諮問機関「阪神・淡路復興委員会」を発足させ提言活動を行った。
This time, however, we should set up a more powerful consultative body -- comprising senior officials from the ruling party, various experts, as well as members of the business world -- that, along with the secretariat, would have a strong mandate.
今回はさらにそれを強化し、政府・与党首脳部はもとより有識者、経済界も参加した協議機関を設け、事務局とともに強い権限を与えるべきではないか。
Calling on opposition parties to participate, and having implementing agencies and organizations employ liaison committees made up of administrative vice ministers is one way to go about the restoration process.
野党に参加を呼びかけたり、実施機関は各府省の事務次官で構成する連絡会議を活用したりするのもひとつの方法だろう。
Even more important is to avoid departing from the general rule that the major players of the reconstruction process are local communities.
さらに重要なのは、復興計画の主役は自治体という原則を踏み外さないことだ。
Accordingly, to address concerns and implement revitalization plans that defy prefectural boundaries, the involvement of multiple governors and various community members go without saying.
地域の実情に応じ、県境にとらわれない復興計画を策定するため関係県の知事はもとより、地域のさまざまな人たちが参加することは当然だ。
The national government must avoid any anachronistic moves such as forcing its plans onto local communities.
国が上からプランを押しつける時代錯誤は禁物である。
毎日新聞 2011年3月28日 東京朝刊
2011年03月28日
Take a break from bad news ひととき心を緩めて
３月１１日の午後、コンケンの自宅で国会中継をみていた。
突然地震警報が発令されて、あーまたかって思っていた。
すぐに国会がグラグラと揺れだして、菅首相が青くなって天井を見つめていた。
すぐに国会中継が中断されたのでカイちゃんをお迎えに小学校まで出かけた。
カイちゃんとセブンイレブンでお買い物をしてから帰宅してびっくり。
お母さんが「あなた、日本が大変なことになっていますよ！」と叫んだのだ。
すぐにタイのニュース番組をみたら、東北地方で大規模な地震が発生、死者は三万人に達する見込み。
タイ語のニュースでもはっきりと聞き取れ、ショックで腰が抜けてしまった。
死者三万人の根拠はCNNのニュースが情報源だった。
地震発生からわずか数時間での発表は多分どんぶり勘定だろうと高をくくっていた。
NHKのこの時点での死者数は数百人にすぎなかった。
時間の経過とともに死者の数はうなぎのぼり、CNNの発表がオーダーで正しかったことが実証された。
多分米国の偵察衛星のデータをCNNがもらっているんだろうなって思った。
あれ以来なんだか気分が落ち着かない。
毎年この時期、二週間ほど家族旅行をするのがスラチャイ家の習慣となってしまっている。
でも、今回ばかりはそのような気分になれなくって家族に迷惑をかけている。
今朝、スラチャイの症状を代弁してくれるような記事を発見したので掲載します。
（スラチャイ記、コンケンの自宅にて）
(Mainichi Japan) March 27, 2011
Kaleidoscope of the Heart: Take a break from bad news
香山リカのココロの万華鏡：ひととき心を緩めて ／東京
At the Tokyo hospital I work at, many patients have come in with complaints after the earthquake. "I can't sleep because of the frightening aftershocks," they say, or "I can't ride in elevators," they say, because they are afraid the power will cut while they are inside.
私が勤務する東京の病院にも、震災の影響を受けた患者さんが、大勢やって来る。「余震が怖くて眠れない」「エレベーターに乗れない」という訴えもあるが、災害と直接、関係ない訴えも多い。
However, I also hear complaints that are not directly related to the disaster, like, "For some reason I can't stop crying," "I get irritated without good reason," or "I keep standing up and sitting down and can't relax."
「なぜだか涙が止まらない」「やたらとイライラする」「落ち着かず立ったり座ったりしてしまう」などがそれだ。
Even though they are not in the disaster areas, these people have been exposed to a long shower of images and words about the disaster, which has probably tired their minds and bodies.
この人たちは、直接、被災地にいなくても、長い時間、映像や情報のシャワーを浴び、心身が疲労していると思われる。
I say to these people, "Let's try staying away from television and the Internet for a while and spending some time listening to the music you like, reading the comics you like, making cakes, or doing whatever you did in your free time before all of this."
そういう人には「少しのあいだ、テレビやネットから自分を遠ざけて、好きな音楽を聴いたりマンガを読んだりケーキを作ったり、いつもしていたことをしてみましょう」とすすめている。
One person argued against my recommendation: "But doctor, even if I temporarily spent some time relaxing like that, it doesn't change the fact that the earthquake happened. My mother's hometown was badly damaged. No matter how much I escape into fun things, when I am pulled back into reality nothing will have changed. Wouldn't I become even more depressed?"
私のことばに、こう反論した人がいた。
「でも先生、そうやって一時、穏やかな時間をすごしたとしても、震災が起きたという事実は変わりません。母の故郷の町も大きな被害を受けたんですよ。いくら楽しいことに逃避しても、はっと現実に戻ると何も変わってないわけでしょう。そうなると余計に落ち込むのでは」
Indeed, that is one view.
たしかにそういう考えもあるだろう。
However, I still think that escaping into recreation is good.
しかし、私はそれでも「逃避だっていいじゃない」と思うのだ。
With a disaster this large, obviously people within the disaster area have been hit hardest by far, but even those outside those areas have been emotionally hurt.
これほどの災害になれば、被災地にいる人はもちろん、そうでない人も、心はボロボロに傷つく。
It may take a long time to make a true recovery, and it is necessary to take small rests.
本当の意味で立ち直るには長い時間がかかるかもしれないが、ひととき、“止まり木”のようなところに心を避難させることも必要だ。
Be it 30 minutes or an hour, get away from the reality in front of you and immerse yourself in the world of a video game or a TV series.
３０分でも１時間でも、目の前の現実から逃避して、ゲームやドラマの世界に浸る。
Take your time drinking a cup of tea and say out loud, "Ahh, this is good."
時間をかけてお茶を飲み、「ああ、おいしい」と声に出してみる。
Even if it's only for that time, you can put a stop to feelings of uneasiness and hopelessness.
その間だけでも、不安や絶望の感情にふたをする。
Resting oneself this way, even if it's an escape into a fantasy or virtual world, will give one strength to recover.
そうやって、たとえ幻想やバーチャルの世界を使ってでも、ひととき心を緩め、ほっとする時間を持つことは、必ず回復の力につながっていく。
If people spend 24 hours a day looking at nothing but sadness and struggle, it will wear down their emotional energy, and it could delay their recovery to their normal selves.
２４時間ずっと悲しい、苦しい、ばかりでは、心のエネルギーはどんどんすり減り、回復が遅れてしまう可能性もある。
I believe that having a brief time of fun, even if some might consider it self-deceit, will prepare one to face the future in a positive way.
それよりは、たとえまやかしだったとしても、ひととき楽しい気持ちを味わったほうが、少しだけ前向きな気分で現実に取り組んでいくことができるはずだ。
The reality we are confronted with will not go away any time soon.
目の前の現実は、すぐには変わらない。
Neither, perhaps, will the bad feelings that accompany it.
つらい気持ちも、長く続くかもしれない。
Even so -- no, I should say "because" of that -- we should take a brief escape from reality.
それでも、いやそれだからこそ、ほんのひとときの現実逃避を。
That is my recommendation. (By Rika Kayama, psychiatrist)
そうすすめたい。
毎日新聞 2011年3月22日 地方版
2011年03月12日
Massive Japan quake, tsunami leave scores dead
昨日、インターネットで国会中継をみていた。
この日、朝日新聞が、朝一番で、菅首相が韓国人よりの政治献金を受けたという記事を掲載していた。
それで、自民党の議員が例によってネチネチと菅首相をいたぶっていた。
｢これらの５つより、首相の考えを選択しなさい｣って、まるで意地悪な教師が出来のわるい生徒をいじめる様。
スラチャイのテンションもあがりっぱなしでイラチャイ状態。
突然、テレビ中継で地震警報！
警報からわずか数分で国会が揺れだした。
それでテレビ国会中継は打ち切られて、地震関連ニュースばかり。
菅首相が審議を中止し首相官邸に戻り対策本部をたちあげたのを、あとのニュースで知った。
１０ｍを超す津波はまるで昔みたアメリカ映画、巨大津波がニューヨークを襲うシーンのようだった。
燃え上がる火の手、押し流される船、車、家屋、根こそぎ倒された樹木、農作物、飛行場の滑走路…。
大自然の大きな力の前に成すすべがない人々。
大きな衝撃を受けました。
地震でその尊い命を失った方々、大きな被害を受けた人々に対し、心よりお悔やみ申し上げます。
（スラチャイ）
毎日新聞の力作です。まるで情景がみえるようです。英文のみです。
↓
Massive Japan quake, tsunami leave scores dead
巨大地震、津波で多数の死者（スラチャイ訳）
TOKYO (AP) -- A ferocious tsunami spawned by one of the largest earthquakes ever recorded slammed Japan's eastern coast Friday, killing hundreds of people as it swept away boats, cars and homes while widespread fires burned out of control.
Hours later, the tsunami hit Hawaii and warnings blanketed the Pacific, as far away as South America, Canada, Alaska and the entire U.S. West Coast.
Police said 200 to 300 bodies were found in the northeastern coastal city of Sendai. Another 88 were confirmed killed and 349 were missing. The death toll was likely to continue climbing given the scale of the disaster.
The magnitude 8.9 offshore quake unleashed a 7-meter tsunami and was followed by more than 50 aftershocks for hours, many of them of more than magnitude 6.0.
Dozens of cities and villages along a 2,100-kilometer stretch of coastline were shaken by violent tremors that reached as far away as Tokyo, hundreds of kilometers from the epicenter.
"The earthquake has caused major damage in broad areas in northern Japan," Prime Minister Naoto Kan said at a news conference.
The government ordered thousands of residents near a nuclear power plant in Onahama city to evacuate because the plant's system was unable to cool the reactor. The reactor was not leaking radiation but its core remained hot even after a shutdown. The plant is 270 kilometers northeast of Tokyo.
Trouble was reported at two other nuclear plants as well, but there was no radiation leak at any.
Even for a country used to earthquakes, this one was of horrific proportions because of the tsunami that crashed ashore, swallowing everything in its path as it surged several kilometers inland before retreating. The apocalyptic images of surging water broadcast by Japanese TV networks resembled scenes from a Hollywood disaster movie.
Large fishing boats and other sea vessels rode high waves into the cities, slamming against overpasses or scraping under them and snapping power lines along the way. Upturned and partially submerged vehicles were seen bobbing in the water. Ships anchored in ports crashed against each other.
The highways to the worst-hit coastal areas were severely damaged and communications, including telephone lines, were snapped. Train services in northeastern Japan and in Tokyo, which normally serve 10 million people a day, were also suspended, leaving untold numbers stranded in stations or roaming the streets. Tokyo's Narita airport was closed indefinitely.
Jesse Johnson, a native of the U.S. state of Nevada, who lives in Chiba, north of Tokyo, was eating at a sushi restaurant with his wife when the quake hit.
"At first it didn't feel unusual, but then it went on and on. So I got myself and my wife under the table," he told The Associated Press. "I've lived in Japan for 10 years and I've never felt anything like this before. The aftershocks keep coming. It's gotten to the point where I don't know whether it's me shaking or an earthquake."
Waves of muddy waters flowed over farmland near the city of Sendai, carrying buildings, some on fire, inland as cars attempted to drive away. Sendai airport, north of Tokyo, was inundated with cars, trucks, buses and thick mud deposited over its runways. Fires spread through a section of the city, public broadcaster NHK reported.
More than 300 houses were washed away in Ofunato City alone. Television footage showed mangled debris, uprooted trees, upturned cars and shattered timber littering streets.
The tsunami roared over embankments, washing anything in its path inland before reversing directions and carrying the cars, homes and other debris out to sea. Flames shot from some of the houses, probably because of burst gas pipes.
"Our initial assessment indicates that there has already been enormous damage," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said. "We will make maximum relief effort based on that assessment."
He said the Defense Ministry was sending troops to the quake-hit region. A utility aircraft and several helicopters were on the way.
A large fire erupted at the Cosmo oil refinery in Ichihara city in Chiba prefecture and burned out of control with 30 meter-high flames whipping into the sky.
From northeastern Japan's Miyagi prefecture, NHK showed footage of a large ship being swept away and ramming directly into a breakwater in Kesennuma city.
NHK said more than 4 million buildings were without power in Tokyo and its suburbs.
Also in Miyagi, a fire broke out in a turbine building of a nuclear power plant, but it was later extinguished, said Tohoku Electric Power Co. the company said.
A reactor area of a nearby plant was leaking water, the company said. But it was unclear if the leak was caused by tsunami water or something else. There were no reports of radioactive leaks at any of Japan's nuclear plants.
Jefferies International Limited, a global investment banking group, said it estimated overall losses to be about $10 billion.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the 2:46 p.m. quake was a magnitude 8.9, the biggest earthquake to hit Japan since officials began keeping records in the late 1800s, and one of the biggest ever recorded in the world.
The quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometers, about 125 kilometers off the eastern coast, the agency said. The area is 380 kilometers northeast of Tokyo.
A tsunami warning was extended to a number of Pacific, Southeast Asian and Latin American nations, including Japan, Russia, Indonesia, New Zealand and Chile. In the Philippines, authorities ordered an evacuation of coastal communities, but no unusual waves were reported.
Thousands of people fled their homes in Indonesia after officials warned of a tsunami up to 2 meters high. But waves of only 10 centimeters were measured. No big waves came to the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. territory, either.
The first waves hit Hawaii about 1400 GMT (9 a.m. EST) Friday. A tsunami at least a meter high were recorded on Oahu and Kauai, and officials warned that the waves would continue and could become larger.
In downtown Tokyo, large buildings shook violently and workers poured into the street for safety. TV footage showed a large building on fire and bellowing smoke in the Odaiba district of Tokyo. The tremor bent the upper tip of the iconic Tokyo Tower, a 333-meter steel structure inspired by the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
Osamu Akiya, 46, was working in Tokyo at his office in a trading company when the quake hit.
It sent bookshelves and computers crashing to the floor, and cracks appeared in the walls.
"I've been through many earthquakes, but I've never felt anything like this," he said. "I don't know if we'll be able to get home tonight."
Footage on NHK from their Sendai office showed employees stumbling around and books and papers crashing from desks. It also showed a glass shelter at a bus stop in Tokyo completely smashed by the quake and a weeping woman nearby being comforted by another woman.
Several quakes had hit the same region in recent days, including a 7.3 magnitude one on Wednesday that caused no damage.
Hiroshi Sato, a disaster management official in northern Iwate prefecture, said officials were having trouble getting an overall picture of the destruction.
"We don't even know the extent of damage. Roads were badly damaged and cut off as tsunami washed away debris, cars and many other things," he said.
Dozens of fires were reported in northern prefectures of Fukushima, Sendai, Iwate and Ibaraki. Collapsed homes and landslides were also reported in Miyagi.
Japan's worst previous quake was in 1923 in Kanto, an 8.3-magnitude temblor that killed 143,000 people, according to USGS. A 7.2-magnitude quake in Kobe city in 1996 killed 6,400 people.
Japan lies on the "Ring of Fire" -- an arc of earthquake and volcanic zones stretching around the Pacific where about 90 percent of the world's quakes occur, including the one that triggered the Dec. 26, 2004, Indian Ocean tsunami that killed an estimated 230,000 people in 12 nations. A magnitude-8.8 temblor that shook central Chile last February also generated a tsunami and killed 524 people.
(Mainichi Japan) March 11, 2011
この日、朝日新聞が、朝一番で、菅首相が韓国人よりの政治献金を受けたという記事を掲載していた。
それで、自民党の議員が例によってネチネチと菅首相をいたぶっていた。
｢これらの５つより、首相の考えを選択しなさい｣って、まるで意地悪な教師が出来のわるい生徒をいじめる様。
スラチャイのテンションもあがりっぱなしでイラチャイ状態。
突然、テレビ中継で地震警報！
警報からわずか数分で国会が揺れだした。
それでテレビ国会中継は打ち切られて、地震関連ニュースばかり。
菅首相が審議を中止し首相官邸に戻り対策本部をたちあげたのを、あとのニュースで知った。
１０ｍを超す津波はまるで昔みたアメリカ映画、巨大津波がニューヨークを襲うシーンのようだった。
燃え上がる火の手、押し流される船、車、家屋、根こそぎ倒された樹木、農作物、飛行場の滑走路…。
大自然の大きな力の前に成すすべがない人々。
大きな衝撃を受けました。
地震でその尊い命を失った方々、大きな被害を受けた人々に対し、心よりお悔やみ申し上げます。
（スラチャイ）
毎日新聞の力作です。まるで情景がみえるようです。英文のみです。
↓
Massive Japan quake, tsunami leave scores dead
巨大地震、津波で多数の死者（スラチャイ訳）
TOKYO (AP) -- A ferocious tsunami spawned by one of the largest earthquakes ever recorded slammed Japan's eastern coast Friday, killing hundreds of people as it swept away boats, cars and homes while widespread fires burned out of control.
Hours later, the tsunami hit Hawaii and warnings blanketed the Pacific, as far away as South America, Canada, Alaska and the entire U.S. West Coast.
Police said 200 to 300 bodies were found in the northeastern coastal city of Sendai. Another 88 were confirmed killed and 349 were missing. The death toll was likely to continue climbing given the scale of the disaster.
The magnitude 8.9 offshore quake unleashed a 7-meter tsunami and was followed by more than 50 aftershocks for hours, many of them of more than magnitude 6.0.
Dozens of cities and villages along a 2,100-kilometer stretch of coastline were shaken by violent tremors that reached as far away as Tokyo, hundreds of kilometers from the epicenter.
"The earthquake has caused major damage in broad areas in northern Japan," Prime Minister Naoto Kan said at a news conference.
The government ordered thousands of residents near a nuclear power plant in Onahama city to evacuate because the plant's system was unable to cool the reactor. The reactor was not leaking radiation but its core remained hot even after a shutdown. The plant is 270 kilometers northeast of Tokyo.
Trouble was reported at two other nuclear plants as well, but there was no radiation leak at any.
Even for a country used to earthquakes, this one was of horrific proportions because of the tsunami that crashed ashore, swallowing everything in its path as it surged several kilometers inland before retreating. The apocalyptic images of surging water broadcast by Japanese TV networks resembled scenes from a Hollywood disaster movie.
Large fishing boats and other sea vessels rode high waves into the cities, slamming against overpasses or scraping under them and snapping power lines along the way. Upturned and partially submerged vehicles were seen bobbing in the water. Ships anchored in ports crashed against each other.
The highways to the worst-hit coastal areas were severely damaged and communications, including telephone lines, were snapped. Train services in northeastern Japan and in Tokyo, which normally serve 10 million people a day, were also suspended, leaving untold numbers stranded in stations or roaming the streets. Tokyo's Narita airport was closed indefinitely.
Jesse Johnson, a native of the U.S. state of Nevada, who lives in Chiba, north of Tokyo, was eating at a sushi restaurant with his wife when the quake hit.
"At first it didn't feel unusual, but then it went on and on. So I got myself and my wife under the table," he told The Associated Press. "I've lived in Japan for 10 years and I've never felt anything like this before. The aftershocks keep coming. It's gotten to the point where I don't know whether it's me shaking or an earthquake."
Waves of muddy waters flowed over farmland near the city of Sendai, carrying buildings, some on fire, inland as cars attempted to drive away. Sendai airport, north of Tokyo, was inundated with cars, trucks, buses and thick mud deposited over its runways. Fires spread through a section of the city, public broadcaster NHK reported.
More than 300 houses were washed away in Ofunato City alone. Television footage showed mangled debris, uprooted trees, upturned cars and shattered timber littering streets.
The tsunami roared over embankments, washing anything in its path inland before reversing directions and carrying the cars, homes and other debris out to sea. Flames shot from some of the houses, probably because of burst gas pipes.
"Our initial assessment indicates that there has already been enormous damage," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said. "We will make maximum relief effort based on that assessment."
He said the Defense Ministry was sending troops to the quake-hit region. A utility aircraft and several helicopters were on the way.
A large fire erupted at the Cosmo oil refinery in Ichihara city in Chiba prefecture and burned out of control with 30 meter-high flames whipping into the sky.
From northeastern Japan's Miyagi prefecture, NHK showed footage of a large ship being swept away and ramming directly into a breakwater in Kesennuma city.
NHK said more than 4 million buildings were without power in Tokyo and its suburbs.
Also in Miyagi, a fire broke out in a turbine building of a nuclear power plant, but it was later extinguished, said Tohoku Electric Power Co. the company said.
A reactor area of a nearby plant was leaking water, the company said. But it was unclear if the leak was caused by tsunami water or something else. There were no reports of radioactive leaks at any of Japan's nuclear plants.
Jefferies International Limited, a global investment banking group, said it estimated overall losses to be about $10 billion.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the 2:46 p.m. quake was a magnitude 8.9, the biggest earthquake to hit Japan since officials began keeping records in the late 1800s, and one of the biggest ever recorded in the world.
The quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometers, about 125 kilometers off the eastern coast, the agency said. The area is 380 kilometers northeast of Tokyo.
A tsunami warning was extended to a number of Pacific, Southeast Asian and Latin American nations, including Japan, Russia, Indonesia, New Zealand and Chile. In the Philippines, authorities ordered an evacuation of coastal communities, but no unusual waves were reported.
Thousands of people fled their homes in Indonesia after officials warned of a tsunami up to 2 meters high. But waves of only 10 centimeters were measured. No big waves came to the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. territory, either.
The first waves hit Hawaii about 1400 GMT (9 a.m. EST) Friday. A tsunami at least a meter high were recorded on Oahu and Kauai, and officials warned that the waves would continue and could become larger.
In downtown Tokyo, large buildings shook violently and workers poured into the street for safety. TV footage showed a large building on fire and bellowing smoke in the Odaiba district of Tokyo. The tremor bent the upper tip of the iconic Tokyo Tower, a 333-meter steel structure inspired by the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
Osamu Akiya, 46, was working in Tokyo at his office in a trading company when the quake hit.
It sent bookshelves and computers crashing to the floor, and cracks appeared in the walls.
"I've been through many earthquakes, but I've never felt anything like this," he said. "I don't know if we'll be able to get home tonight."
Footage on NHK from their Sendai office showed employees stumbling around and books and papers crashing from desks. It also showed a glass shelter at a bus stop in Tokyo completely smashed by the quake and a weeping woman nearby being comforted by another woman.
Several quakes had hit the same region in recent days, including a 7.3 magnitude one on Wednesday that caused no damage.
Hiroshi Sato, a disaster management official in northern Iwate prefecture, said officials were having trouble getting an overall picture of the destruction.
"We don't even know the extent of damage. Roads were badly damaged and cut off as tsunami washed away debris, cars and many other things," he said.
Dozens of fires were reported in northern prefectures of Fukushima, Sendai, Iwate and Ibaraki. Collapsed homes and landslides were also reported in Miyagi.
Japan's worst previous quake was in 1923 in Kanto, an 8.3-magnitude temblor that killed 143,000 people, according to USGS. A 7.2-magnitude quake in Kobe city in 1996 killed 6,400 people.
Japan lies on the "Ring of Fire" -- an arc of earthquake and volcanic zones stretching around the Pacific where about 90 percent of the world's quakes occur, including the one that triggered the Dec. 26, 2004, Indian Ocean tsunami that killed an estimated 230,000 people in 12 nations. A magnitude-8.8 temblor that shook central Chile last February also generated a tsunami and killed 524 people.
(Mainichi Japan) March 11, 2011
2011年03月11日
The rise and fall of a 'naked bureaucrat' in China
読売、朝日とは一味ちがう毎日新聞の力作。
想像を絶する中国の新幹線がらみの汚職。
日本の田中角栄が列島改造で歴史に残る立派な新幹線を残したのとは好対照。
中国でこのまま全線の開業をすれば大事故は必至。
調査と補強工事、撤去新設工事に１０年くらいかかるかも知れない。
なにより驚くのはこれらの汚職官僚たちの逃げ腰・及び腰の姿勢。
そこには中国を愛する気持ちのかけらも見受けられない。
稼ぐだけ汚職、賄賂で稼いで、妻子だけ先に安全な国に住まわせる。
この裸官さん、多分裁判で死刑を宣言されると思う。
中国は判決から刑の執行までがとても素早い国。
日本は異常に遅い。
１７年前の地下鉄サリンテロの首謀者、刑務所で丸々と太っている＾＾。
で、中国のNo.1って誰？
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 10, 2011
The rise and fall of a 'naked bureaucrat' in China
木語：「裸官」さんがそろうと＝金子秀敏
＜ｍｏｋｕ−ｇｏ＞
There is a new Chinese word that is pronounced "rakan" in Japanese. The word literally means "naked bureaucrat."
中国には「裸官」という新語がある。
The Japanese word, "hadaka ikkan," which also contains the kanji character for "naked," means rising from nothing. However, "rakan" has an opposite meaning.
日本語の「裸一貫」は人生のスタートラインに立った状態だが、中国の「裸官」は逆だ。
It refers to high-ranking bureaucrats who have succeeded in gaining promotion at home, while keeping their families and savings overseas.
出世競争で勝ち上がった高級官僚のなかで、妻子と預金を国外に出し自分だけ中国にいる人たちを指すという。
There are reportedly many rakan in China.
大勢いるらしい。
They are apparently prepared to flee their home country anytime if they are caught accepting bribes.
裸といっても貧乏で着物がないのではない。汚職が発覚したら逃げられるように身辺を整理している人である。
Zhang Shuguang, former deputy chief engineer with China's Railway Ministry, is one rakan who failed to flee China.
逃げそこなった裸官さんがいる。
Zhang had his wife and children live in three luxurious mansions in Los Angeles and he reportedly has saved a total of 2.8 billion dollars in accounts at banks in the United States and Switzerland.
妻子は米国ロサンゼルスの豪邸３軒に住まわせていた。米国とスイスの銀行に総額２８億ドル（約２３００億円）の預金があるそうだ。
The scale of corruption cases in China is indeed large.
さすがに中国の汚職はスケールが大きい。
He played a leading role in building a large high-speed railway network in the country.
その人物とは、これまで「中国高速鉄道の父」としてメディアにもてはやされてきた人物、鉄道省運輸局の張曙光局長（停職中）である。
As of the end of last year, China had 4,670 kilometers of high-speed railway lines, while the total extension of Shinkansen bullet train lines in Japan is approximately 2,300 kilometers.
中国の高速鉄道は昨年末現在で総延長４６７０キロに及ぶ。日本の新幹線は約２３００キロ。
Japan spent nearly half a century to build these Shinkansen lines, and it took China only four years to build twice the length of Shinkansen lines under the leadership of Zhang.
この路線を半世紀近くの時間をかけて建設した。張局長はその倍の線路を約４年で作り上げた。
Zhang imported Japanese and European technology for high-speed trains and used China's own technology to modify the vehicles.
車両は、日本の新幹線や欧州の高速鉄道を輸入して「中国独自の技術」で改造した。
China spent only two years to achieve the maximum speed of 350 kilometers per hour (kph) while it took a decade before the operators of European high-speed railways raised their maximum speed from the 200-kph level to over 300 kph.
欧州の高速鉄道が時速３００キロ台で運行するまでに１０年かかったが、中国は２年で時速３５０キロ走行を実現した。
Furthermore, a Chinese high-speed train created a world record of 480 kph during a trial operation between Beijing and Shanghai.
北京−上海間の試験走行では時速４８０キロの世界記録を樹立した。
The father of China's high-speed railway was praised for these achievements.
お手柄連発の「中国高速鉄道の父」だ。
However, his downfall suddenly came as his boss, the railway minister, was dismissed for accepting kickbacks from contractors over the construction of high-speed railway lines.
しかし上司の鉄道相が高速鉄道工事のリベートを受け取った容疑で解任された。
Law enforcers also began questioning Zhang in February over his role in the scandal.
鉄道相の右腕といわれた張局長も２月から取り調べが始まった。
The incident has prompted the Chinese government to convene emergency meetings to scrutinize the safety of the country's high-speed railway network.
いま、中国政府内部では、高速鉄道の安全性を見直す緊急会議が始まったという。
Critics have pointed out that the network was rapidly expanded over an extremely short period of time, that large-scale construction works on new lines were conducted simultaneously in multiple locations and that inexperienced and poorly trained migrating workers hired by subcontractors worked at the construction sites.
あまりにも短期間に路線を延ばした。あちらでもこちらでも同時進行で大型工事を進めた。訓練も経験も乏しい下請けの出稼ぎ労働者が工事現場で働いた。
They also suspect that inspections on the completed work were sloppy, and that construction materials were supplied without conducting sample surveys because the large demand for them could not be filled.
工事の施工検査がずさんだったのではないか。資材の供給が追いつかずサンプル検査もなしに製品を納入したのではないか。コンクリートを固める石炭灰が足りず減量したのではないか。
If not enough attention was paid to safety in developing this high-speed railway technology, a serious accident could happen at any time.
高速運行の独自技術が安全を考慮したものでなければ、いつ大事故が起きるかもしれない。
Some news reports say the dismissed railway minister needed a massive amount of money to buy the post of deputy premier.
前鉄道相は副首相ポストを買うために巨額の資金が必要だったという報道がある。
Zhang may have increase the amount of construction work in a bid to allow the minister to gain more kickbacks and show his loyalty to his boss.
局長が工事量を増やしたのは私利私欲だけでなく上司のリベートを増やそうと忠勤を励んだのかもしれない。
Is the post of deputy premier on sale in China and if so, who is selling it?
「副首相」ポストを売っているのか。売っている人はだれだ。
No answer to these questions can be found on Chinese websites. (By Hidetoshi Kaneko, Expert Senior Writer)
中国のネットには書いていない。（専門編集委員）
毎日新聞 2011年3月10日 東京朝刊
想像を絶する中国の新幹線がらみの汚職。
日本の田中角栄が列島改造で歴史に残る立派な新幹線を残したのとは好対照。
中国でこのまま全線の開業をすれば大事故は必至。
調査と補強工事、撤去新設工事に１０年くらいかかるかも知れない。
なにより驚くのはこれらの汚職官僚たちの逃げ腰・及び腰の姿勢。
そこには中国を愛する気持ちのかけらも見受けられない。
稼ぐだけ汚職、賄賂で稼いで、妻子だけ先に安全な国に住まわせる。
この裸官さん、多分裁判で死刑を宣言されると思う。
中国は判決から刑の執行までがとても素早い国。
日本は異常に遅い。
１７年前の地下鉄サリンテロの首謀者、刑務所で丸々と太っている＾＾。
で、中国のNo.1って誰？
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 10, 2011
The rise and fall of a 'naked bureaucrat' in China
木語：「裸官」さんがそろうと＝金子秀敏
＜ｍｏｋｕ−ｇｏ＞
There is a new Chinese word that is pronounced "rakan" in Japanese. The word literally means "naked bureaucrat."
中国には「裸官」という新語がある。
The Japanese word, "hadaka ikkan," which also contains the kanji character for "naked," means rising from nothing. However, "rakan" has an opposite meaning.
日本語の「裸一貫」は人生のスタートラインに立った状態だが、中国の「裸官」は逆だ。
It refers to high-ranking bureaucrats who have succeeded in gaining promotion at home, while keeping their families and savings overseas.
出世競争で勝ち上がった高級官僚のなかで、妻子と預金を国外に出し自分だけ中国にいる人たちを指すという。
There are reportedly many rakan in China.
大勢いるらしい。
They are apparently prepared to flee their home country anytime if they are caught accepting bribes.
裸といっても貧乏で着物がないのではない。汚職が発覚したら逃げられるように身辺を整理している人である。
Zhang Shuguang, former deputy chief engineer with China's Railway Ministry, is one rakan who failed to flee China.
逃げそこなった裸官さんがいる。
Zhang had his wife and children live in three luxurious mansions in Los Angeles and he reportedly has saved a total of 2.8 billion dollars in accounts at banks in the United States and Switzerland.
妻子は米国ロサンゼルスの豪邸３軒に住まわせていた。米国とスイスの銀行に総額２８億ドル（約２３００億円）の預金があるそうだ。
The scale of corruption cases in China is indeed large.
さすがに中国の汚職はスケールが大きい。
He played a leading role in building a large high-speed railway network in the country.
その人物とは、これまで「中国高速鉄道の父」としてメディアにもてはやされてきた人物、鉄道省運輸局の張曙光局長（停職中）である。
As of the end of last year, China had 4,670 kilometers of high-speed railway lines, while the total extension of Shinkansen bullet train lines in Japan is approximately 2,300 kilometers.
中国の高速鉄道は昨年末現在で総延長４６７０キロに及ぶ。日本の新幹線は約２３００キロ。
Japan spent nearly half a century to build these Shinkansen lines, and it took China only four years to build twice the length of Shinkansen lines under the leadership of Zhang.
この路線を半世紀近くの時間をかけて建設した。張局長はその倍の線路を約４年で作り上げた。
Zhang imported Japanese and European technology for high-speed trains and used China's own technology to modify the vehicles.
車両は、日本の新幹線や欧州の高速鉄道を輸入して「中国独自の技術」で改造した。
China spent only two years to achieve the maximum speed of 350 kilometers per hour (kph) while it took a decade before the operators of European high-speed railways raised their maximum speed from the 200-kph level to over 300 kph.
欧州の高速鉄道が時速３００キロ台で運行するまでに１０年かかったが、中国は２年で時速３５０キロ走行を実現した。
Furthermore, a Chinese high-speed train created a world record of 480 kph during a trial operation between Beijing and Shanghai.
北京−上海間の試験走行では時速４８０キロの世界記録を樹立した。
The father of China's high-speed railway was praised for these achievements.
お手柄連発の「中国高速鉄道の父」だ。
However, his downfall suddenly came as his boss, the railway minister, was dismissed for accepting kickbacks from contractors over the construction of high-speed railway lines.
しかし上司の鉄道相が高速鉄道工事のリベートを受け取った容疑で解任された。
Law enforcers also began questioning Zhang in February over his role in the scandal.
鉄道相の右腕といわれた張局長も２月から取り調べが始まった。
The incident has prompted the Chinese government to convene emergency meetings to scrutinize the safety of the country's high-speed railway network.
いま、中国政府内部では、高速鉄道の安全性を見直す緊急会議が始まったという。
Critics have pointed out that the network was rapidly expanded over an extremely short period of time, that large-scale construction works on new lines were conducted simultaneously in multiple locations and that inexperienced and poorly trained migrating workers hired by subcontractors worked at the construction sites.
あまりにも短期間に路線を延ばした。あちらでもこちらでも同時進行で大型工事を進めた。訓練も経験も乏しい下請けの出稼ぎ労働者が工事現場で働いた。
They also suspect that inspections on the completed work were sloppy, and that construction materials were supplied without conducting sample surveys because the large demand for them could not be filled.
工事の施工検査がずさんだったのではないか。資材の供給が追いつかずサンプル検査もなしに製品を納入したのではないか。コンクリートを固める石炭灰が足りず減量したのではないか。
If not enough attention was paid to safety in developing this high-speed railway technology, a serious accident could happen at any time.
高速運行の独自技術が安全を考慮したものでなければ、いつ大事故が起きるかもしれない。
Some news reports say the dismissed railway minister needed a massive amount of money to buy the post of deputy premier.
前鉄道相は副首相ポストを買うために巨額の資金が必要だったという報道がある。
Zhang may have increase the amount of construction work in a bid to allow the minister to gain more kickbacks and show his loyalty to his boss.
局長が工事量を増やしたのは私利私欲だけでなく上司のリベートを増やそうと忠勤を励んだのかもしれない。
Is the post of deputy premier on sale in China and if so, who is selling it?
「副首相」ポストを売っているのか。売っている人はだれだ。
No answer to these questions can be found on Chinese websites. (By Hidetoshi Kaneko, Expert Senior Writer)
中国のネットには書いていない。（専門編集委員）
毎日新聞 2011年3月10日 東京朝刊
2011年03月09日
Foreign minister's resignation damages international confidence in Japan's diplomacy
菅直人首相は８日夜、在日外国人からの違法献金問題で辞任した前原誠司前外相の後任に松本剛（たけ）明（あき）外務副大臣（５１）を昇格させる人事を決めた。
９日午後に皇居で認証式が行われる予定。
菅首相、今回は動きが速かった。
副外務大臣を外務大臣に昇格させた。
岡田幹事長のほうが適任ではないか。
重要な国際会議が目白押し。
国際社会ですでに名前の売れている岡田幹事長を選任して欲しかった。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 8, 2011
Foreign minister's resignation damages international confidence in Japan's diplomacy
社説：短命「半年」外相 損なわれた外交の信用
The resignation of Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara over his receipt of political donations from a foreign resident has badly damaged the international community's confidence in Japan's diplomacy. He stepped down because accepting political donations from non-Japanese people could constitute a violation of the Law to Regulate Money Used for Political Activities.
前原誠司前外相が就任からわずか半年足らずで辞任したことは、「日本外交の信用性」を大きく傷つける結果となった。
Although his resignation was unavoidable considering the serious deadlock in Diet deliberations, it has poured cold water on the government's efforts to restore its diplomatic power.
厳しい国会運営を考慮すればやむを得ない判断ではあったが、菅内閣、民主党政権にとって急務である「外交力の立て直し」に悪影響を与えたのは間違いない。
Maehara, one of the few legislators from the ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) who are experts in diplomacy and national security, was the mainstay of diplomatic policy in the government, a field in which Prime Minister Naoto Kan is weak.
民主党内で数少ない外交・安全保障に精通した国会議員の一人である前原氏は、菅直人首相が苦手とする外交分野の大黒柱だった。
In particular, Maehara played a leading role in improving Japan-U.S. relations, which had been strained when former Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama was in power. He agreed with his U.S. counterpart to hold foreign and defense ministerial talks, known as "two-plus-two," in spring in a bid to set common strategic goals as part of efforts to deepen the bilateral alliance, and break the deadlock over the relocation of U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa Prefecture.
鳩山政権時代に揺らいだ日米関係修復の中心になり、１月の外相会談では共通戦略目標策定など日米同盟深化や米軍普天間飛行場移設問題の節目となる外務・防衛担当閣僚による安全保障協議委員会（２プラス２）を今春に開催することで合意し、その後の首脳会談を成功に導く責任者だった。
There is no denying that the resignation of Maehara, who has maintained friendly relations with U.S. officials, could cast a shadow over these bilateral consultations.
米国と良好な関係を築いてきた前原氏の辞任が一連の協議に影響する可能性を否定できない。
Besides hosting talks with Washington, Tokyo's diplomatic schedule is tight from next week to June. A Group of Eight (G8) foreign ministerial conference is scheduled for March 14 and 15, while a meeting between Japanese, Chinese and South Korean foreign ministers is due to be held in Kyoto on March 19 and 20. G8 and Japanese, Chinese and South Korean summit meetings are also expected to be later held. Moreover, Tokyo and Beijing have been considering a visit by the Japanese foreign minister to China to hold talks aimed at improving bilateral ties.
日米関係のみならず、来週から６月にかけて外交日程は目白押しである。さっそく今月１４、１５両日に主要８カ国（Ｇ８）外相会議、１９、２０両日には京都で日中韓外相会談が予定されている。それぞれ首脳会議も控えており、日中関係改善を目指した外相訪中も検討されていた。
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano, a key member of the Kan Cabinet, is tentatively doubling as foreign minister, but it is Prime Minister Kan's responsibility to appoint a new foreign minister at an early date.
枝野幸男官房長官が外相臨時代理を兼務する態勢を脱し、早急に新外相を任命することは菅首相の責務である。
The DPJ-led government must be reminded that frequent changes of foreign ministers over such a short period of time is a serious concern in that it has damaged the international community's confidence in Japan's diplomacy, and that a steady government is indispensable to create a stable administration, which will serve as a basis for diplomatic power.
今、民主党政権に特に強調しなければならないのは、外相の短命交代劇が外交の信用失墜を招く重大性であり、外交力の基盤となる安定した政権づくりの必要性である。
During a news conference in which he announced his resignation, Foreign Minister Maehara underscored the need for diplomatic consistency.
He said the foreign minister of another country told him, "You're Japan's sixth foreign minister since I became foreign minister."
Maehara added that Japan's political situation should be stabilized so that prime ministers and foreign ministers do not change frequently.
前原氏自身、辞任表明会見で、他国の外相から「自分が外相になってあなたは日本の６人目の外相だ」と言われたことを紹介し、「外交は継続性が大事だ」「首相や外相がコロコロ代わらない政治の安定を作らなくてはならない」と語った。
Japan's diplomatic efforts to nurture mutual trust and improve relations with China, which caused a boat collision off the disputed Senkaku Islands, have come to a crucial stage. The same has happened with Russia, with which Japan currently is involved in a dispute on the sovereignty over the Northern Territories.
尖閣諸島沖事件を引き起こした中国、北方領土問題を抱えるロシアといった大国との信頼構築・関係改善は、日本外交にとって正念場を迎えている。
Since the latter half of last year, China and Russia have undoubtedly taken advantage of the weakened Japan-U.S. alliance, the DPJ-led administration's lack of diplomatic power and the Kan administration's fragile power base to take tough stances toward Japan.
中露両国の昨年後半以来の対日強硬姿勢の背景に、日米同盟の乱れに加えて、民主党政権の外交力の欠如、政権基盤の弱体ぶりがあったことは間違いない。
A short-lived foreign minister cannot nurture mutual trust with his or her counterparts in other countries. Such a foreign minister damages the world's trust in Japan's diplomacy and cannot hold serious diplomatic negotiations. 短命外相の下では、他国の交渉相手との信頼関係が築けず、外交の信用を損ね、真剣な交渉は困難となる。
Other countries take advantage of such a foreign minister's weakness in their diplomatic talks with Japan, which is detrimental to Japan's national interests.
国内政治が不安定であれば、他国に足元を見られ、付け入るスキを与えることになりかねない。国益にはマイナスだ。
If the DPJ-led administration cannot easily bolster its power base, it should prioritize a thorough review of its strategy in an effort to restore its diplomatic power and strengthen the Prime Minister's Office's leadership in working on important diplomatic issues, such as Japan's relations with the United States, China and Russia. 政権基盤強化が簡単でないとすれば、まず、外交力立て直しで必要なのは戦略の練り直しであり、対米、対中、対露など重要課題での首相官邸の指導力強化である。
However, one cannot help but wonder whether Prime Minister Kan still has such power.
菅首相にその力が残されているだろうか。
毎日新聞 2011年3月8日 2時31分
９日午後に皇居で認証式が行われる予定。
菅首相、今回は動きが速かった。
副外務大臣を外務大臣に昇格させた。
岡田幹事長のほうが適任ではないか。
重要な国際会議が目白押し。
国際社会ですでに名前の売れている岡田幹事長を選任して欲しかった。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 8, 2011
Foreign minister's resignation damages international confidence in Japan's diplomacy
社説：短命「半年」外相 損なわれた外交の信用
The resignation of Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara over his receipt of political donations from a foreign resident has badly damaged the international community's confidence in Japan's diplomacy. He stepped down because accepting political donations from non-Japanese people could constitute a violation of the Law to Regulate Money Used for Political Activities.
前原誠司前外相が就任からわずか半年足らずで辞任したことは、「日本外交の信用性」を大きく傷つける結果となった。
Although his resignation was unavoidable considering the serious deadlock in Diet deliberations, it has poured cold water on the government's efforts to restore its diplomatic power.
厳しい国会運営を考慮すればやむを得ない判断ではあったが、菅内閣、民主党政権にとって急務である「外交力の立て直し」に悪影響を与えたのは間違いない。
Maehara, one of the few legislators from the ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) who are experts in diplomacy and national security, was the mainstay of diplomatic policy in the government, a field in which Prime Minister Naoto Kan is weak.
民主党内で数少ない外交・安全保障に精通した国会議員の一人である前原氏は、菅直人首相が苦手とする外交分野の大黒柱だった。
In particular, Maehara played a leading role in improving Japan-U.S. relations, which had been strained when former Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama was in power. He agreed with his U.S. counterpart to hold foreign and defense ministerial talks, known as "two-plus-two," in spring in a bid to set common strategic goals as part of efforts to deepen the bilateral alliance, and break the deadlock over the relocation of U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa Prefecture.
鳩山政権時代に揺らいだ日米関係修復の中心になり、１月の外相会談では共通戦略目標策定など日米同盟深化や米軍普天間飛行場移設問題の節目となる外務・防衛担当閣僚による安全保障協議委員会（２プラス２）を今春に開催することで合意し、その後の首脳会談を成功に導く責任者だった。
There is no denying that the resignation of Maehara, who has maintained friendly relations with U.S. officials, could cast a shadow over these bilateral consultations.
米国と良好な関係を築いてきた前原氏の辞任が一連の協議に影響する可能性を否定できない。
Besides hosting talks with Washington, Tokyo's diplomatic schedule is tight from next week to June. A Group of Eight (G8) foreign ministerial conference is scheduled for March 14 and 15, while a meeting between Japanese, Chinese and South Korean foreign ministers is due to be held in Kyoto on March 19 and 20. G8 and Japanese, Chinese and South Korean summit meetings are also expected to be later held. Moreover, Tokyo and Beijing have been considering a visit by the Japanese foreign minister to China to hold talks aimed at improving bilateral ties.
日米関係のみならず、来週から６月にかけて外交日程は目白押しである。さっそく今月１４、１５両日に主要８カ国（Ｇ８）外相会議、１９、２０両日には京都で日中韓外相会談が予定されている。それぞれ首脳会議も控えており、日中関係改善を目指した外相訪中も検討されていた。
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano, a key member of the Kan Cabinet, is tentatively doubling as foreign minister, but it is Prime Minister Kan's responsibility to appoint a new foreign minister at an early date.
枝野幸男官房長官が外相臨時代理を兼務する態勢を脱し、早急に新外相を任命することは菅首相の責務である。
The DPJ-led government must be reminded that frequent changes of foreign ministers over such a short period of time is a serious concern in that it has damaged the international community's confidence in Japan's diplomacy, and that a steady government is indispensable to create a stable administration, which will serve as a basis for diplomatic power.
今、民主党政権に特に強調しなければならないのは、外相の短命交代劇が外交の信用失墜を招く重大性であり、外交力の基盤となる安定した政権づくりの必要性である。
During a news conference in which he announced his resignation, Foreign Minister Maehara underscored the need for diplomatic consistency.
He said the foreign minister of another country told him, "You're Japan's sixth foreign minister since I became foreign minister."
Maehara added that Japan's political situation should be stabilized so that prime ministers and foreign ministers do not change frequently.
前原氏自身、辞任表明会見で、他国の外相から「自分が外相になってあなたは日本の６人目の外相だ」と言われたことを紹介し、「外交は継続性が大事だ」「首相や外相がコロコロ代わらない政治の安定を作らなくてはならない」と語った。
Japan's diplomatic efforts to nurture mutual trust and improve relations with China, which caused a boat collision off the disputed Senkaku Islands, have come to a crucial stage. The same has happened with Russia, with which Japan currently is involved in a dispute on the sovereignty over the Northern Territories.
尖閣諸島沖事件を引き起こした中国、北方領土問題を抱えるロシアといった大国との信頼構築・関係改善は、日本外交にとって正念場を迎えている。
Since the latter half of last year, China and Russia have undoubtedly taken advantage of the weakened Japan-U.S. alliance, the DPJ-led administration's lack of diplomatic power and the Kan administration's fragile power base to take tough stances toward Japan.
中露両国の昨年後半以来の対日強硬姿勢の背景に、日米同盟の乱れに加えて、民主党政権の外交力の欠如、政権基盤の弱体ぶりがあったことは間違いない。
A short-lived foreign minister cannot nurture mutual trust with his or her counterparts in other countries. Such a foreign minister damages the world's trust in Japan's diplomacy and cannot hold serious diplomatic negotiations. 短命外相の下では、他国の交渉相手との信頼関係が築けず、外交の信用を損ね、真剣な交渉は困難となる。
Other countries take advantage of such a foreign minister's weakness in their diplomatic talks with Japan, which is detrimental to Japan's national interests.
国内政治が不安定であれば、他国に足元を見られ、付け入るスキを与えることになりかねない。国益にはマイナスだ。
If the DPJ-led administration cannot easily bolster its power base, it should prioritize a thorough review of its strategy in an effort to restore its diplomatic power and strengthen the Prime Minister's Office's leadership in working on important diplomatic issues, such as Japan's relations with the United States, China and Russia. 政権基盤強化が簡単でないとすれば、まず、外交力立て直しで必要なのは戦略の練り直しであり、対米、対中、対露など重要課題での首相官邸の指導力強化である。
However, one cannot help but wonder whether Prime Minister Kan still has such power.
菅首相にその力が残されているだろうか。
毎日新聞 2011年3月8日 2時31分
2011年03月08日
Maehara resignation another sign Japanese politics is badly broken
(Mainichi Japan) March 7, 2011
Maehara resignation another sign Japanese politics is badly broken
前原外相辞任：政治不全が止まらない＝政治部編集委員・古賀攻
The public's lingering ambivalence regarding Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara's resignation can be attributed to the utter improbability of the brouhaha making any contributions toward straightening out the tangled mess that Japanese politics has become.
辞任した前原誠司外相をめぐって割り切れなさが残るのは、この騒動がもつれにもつれた日本の政治の立て直しに何ら貢献しそうにないからだ。
The scandal erupted when it emerged that Maehara had been receiving 50,000 yen annually from a 72-year-old South Korean resident of Kyoto in violation of the Political Funds Control Law. The benefactor runs a small barbecue restaurant, and has known Maehara since he was in his second year of junior high school.
年５万円の献金主が京都に住む在日韓国人の女性だったことから、政治資金規正法の問題が生じた。７２歳になる女性は小さな焼き肉店の経営者で、前原氏が中学２年生だったころからの知り合いだという。
What are we to make of the gap in significance between the facts surrounding the donations and the foreign minister's resignation because of them?
その事実関係と、外交責任者の引責辞任という出来事とのギャップをどう考えればよいのだろうか。
One former prime minister and a member of the opposition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) said that it was the fact that the political funds law had not been honored -- and not the specific circumstances of the donations -- that was the problem.
"The donation amount is not the issue here," he said. "That a figure such as the foreign minister had not taken a law banning politicians from accepting donations from foreign nationals seriously is the issue."
自民党の首相経験者は「額の多寡は問題ではない。外相ともあろう者が、外国人からの献金禁止を深刻に考えていなかったことが問題だ」と語る。
There is no question that Maehara's blunder must be criticized. Small donations can amount to a lot if collected from large numbers of people. Considering that the Political Funds Control Law was laid down in the spirit of preventing the will of specific foreign countries from influencing domestic politics, foreign ministers must be careful -- perhaps even more than other politicians -- to abide by such rules.
確かに前原氏の脇の甘さは指弾されるべきだろう。個々の献金額は小さくても、同じ条件で多数の人から献金を集めるケースだってあり得る。特定国の意思が国内政治に反映されることを防止するという規正法の精神に照らせば、外相の地位にある者は一般の政治家以上に厳しく身を律する必要がある。
What should not be overlooked, however, is that Maehara's donation scandal suddenly surfaced at a time of political gridlock, in which forcing a choice between resignation and keeping one's post seems to be the ultimate mission of the Japanese political world.
しかし、見過ごせないのは、八方ふさがりの状況下で前原氏の献金問題が急浮上し、進退の決着だけがゴールのように動いてしまう政界のありようだ。
It is obvious that the LDP, which unearthed the latest scandal, has an ulterior motive: to crush Maehara, rumored to be a prospective successor to Kan, before he gains momentum, and to push Prime Minister Kan to dissolve the lower house. Kan will find himself cornered, no matter how determined he may presently be to stay on task, if Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Ritsuo Hosokawa -- who recently bumbled over a ministry directive regarding social security -- is also driven to resignation, setting off a resignation "domino effect."
今回の事案を掘り起こした自民党側に、前原氏が「ポスト菅直人」に躍り上がる芽をつぶし、菅首相による衆院解散へ引き込む思惑があるのは明らかだ。年金問題で不手際があった細川律夫厚生労働相とともに「ドミノ辞任」に突き進めば、いくら強気の首相でも後がなくなる。
Meanwhile, it appears that one reason Maehara resigned relatively soon after his violation of the political funds law became public was his judgment that doing so would help him maintain his chances of becoming prime minister more so than would waiting until the drama had played out over an extended period of time. He left much business unfinished, including the upcoming G8 meeting of foreign ministers that is set to begin on March 14, and a meeting of Japanese, Chinese and South Korean foreign ministers scheduled for March 19. Kan lacked any zeal to fight to keep Maehara at his post, betraying a general sense of incompetence within the Kan administration.
一方、前原氏が比較的早期に辞意を固めた背景には、引き際を誤って転倒するよりも、首相候補の地位を保った方が得策という、やはり内向きの計算がうかがえる。今月１４日から主要８カ国（Ｇ８）外相会議、１９日からは日中韓外相会談が控えているが、それらを投げ出しての辞任だ。菅首相にも強引に続投させる気迫はなく、政権全体に無力感が漂う。
While the ruling and opposition parties carry out their domestic political rivalry, politics continues to lose its original function -- namely to govern Japan and serve its people -- leaving Japan behind the rest of the globalized world. Prolonged political paralysis only serves to hurt Japan's national interests and the interests of the Japanese people. (By Ko Koga, Senior Writer, Political News Department)
こうして与野党が「政治的内戦」を繰り返しているうちに、政治が本来なすべき機能は損なわれ、日本はグローバル化した世界の潮流についていけなくなる。政治不全が止まらず、日々傷ついているのは、国益そして国民益だ。
毎日新聞 2011年3月7日 東京朝刊
Maehara resignation another sign Japanese politics is badly broken
前原外相辞任：政治不全が止まらない＝政治部編集委員・古賀攻
The public's lingering ambivalence regarding Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara's resignation can be attributed to the utter improbability of the brouhaha making any contributions toward straightening out the tangled mess that Japanese politics has become.
辞任した前原誠司外相をめぐって割り切れなさが残るのは、この騒動がもつれにもつれた日本の政治の立て直しに何ら貢献しそうにないからだ。
The scandal erupted when it emerged that Maehara had been receiving 50,000 yen annually from a 72-year-old South Korean resident of Kyoto in violation of the Political Funds Control Law. The benefactor runs a small barbecue restaurant, and has known Maehara since he was in his second year of junior high school.
年５万円の献金主が京都に住む在日韓国人の女性だったことから、政治資金規正法の問題が生じた。７２歳になる女性は小さな焼き肉店の経営者で、前原氏が中学２年生だったころからの知り合いだという。
What are we to make of the gap in significance between the facts surrounding the donations and the foreign minister's resignation because of them?
その事実関係と、外交責任者の引責辞任という出来事とのギャップをどう考えればよいのだろうか。
One former prime minister and a member of the opposition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) said that it was the fact that the political funds law had not been honored -- and not the specific circumstances of the donations -- that was the problem.
"The donation amount is not the issue here," he said. "That a figure such as the foreign minister had not taken a law banning politicians from accepting donations from foreign nationals seriously is the issue."
自民党の首相経験者は「額の多寡は問題ではない。外相ともあろう者が、外国人からの献金禁止を深刻に考えていなかったことが問題だ」と語る。
There is no question that Maehara's blunder must be criticized. Small donations can amount to a lot if collected from large numbers of people. Considering that the Political Funds Control Law was laid down in the spirit of preventing the will of specific foreign countries from influencing domestic politics, foreign ministers must be careful -- perhaps even more than other politicians -- to abide by such rules.
確かに前原氏の脇の甘さは指弾されるべきだろう。個々の献金額は小さくても、同じ条件で多数の人から献金を集めるケースだってあり得る。特定国の意思が国内政治に反映されることを防止するという規正法の精神に照らせば、外相の地位にある者は一般の政治家以上に厳しく身を律する必要がある。
What should not be overlooked, however, is that Maehara's donation scandal suddenly surfaced at a time of political gridlock, in which forcing a choice between resignation and keeping one's post seems to be the ultimate mission of the Japanese political world.
しかし、見過ごせないのは、八方ふさがりの状況下で前原氏の献金問題が急浮上し、進退の決着だけがゴールのように動いてしまう政界のありようだ。
It is obvious that the LDP, which unearthed the latest scandal, has an ulterior motive: to crush Maehara, rumored to be a prospective successor to Kan, before he gains momentum, and to push Prime Minister Kan to dissolve the lower house. Kan will find himself cornered, no matter how determined he may presently be to stay on task, if Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Ritsuo Hosokawa -- who recently bumbled over a ministry directive regarding social security -- is also driven to resignation, setting off a resignation "domino effect."
今回の事案を掘り起こした自民党側に、前原氏が「ポスト菅直人」に躍り上がる芽をつぶし、菅首相による衆院解散へ引き込む思惑があるのは明らかだ。年金問題で不手際があった細川律夫厚生労働相とともに「ドミノ辞任」に突き進めば、いくら強気の首相でも後がなくなる。
Meanwhile, it appears that one reason Maehara resigned relatively soon after his violation of the political funds law became public was his judgment that doing so would help him maintain his chances of becoming prime minister more so than would waiting until the drama had played out over an extended period of time. He left much business unfinished, including the upcoming G8 meeting of foreign ministers that is set to begin on March 14, and a meeting of Japanese, Chinese and South Korean foreign ministers scheduled for March 19. Kan lacked any zeal to fight to keep Maehara at his post, betraying a general sense of incompetence within the Kan administration.
一方、前原氏が比較的早期に辞意を固めた背景には、引き際を誤って転倒するよりも、首相候補の地位を保った方が得策という、やはり内向きの計算がうかがえる。今月１４日から主要８カ国（Ｇ８）外相会議、１９日からは日中韓外相会談が控えているが、それらを投げ出しての辞任だ。菅首相にも強引に続投させる気迫はなく、政権全体に無力感が漂う。
While the ruling and opposition parties carry out their domestic political rivalry, politics continues to lose its original function -- namely to govern Japan and serve its people -- leaving Japan behind the rest of the globalized world. Prolonged political paralysis only serves to hurt Japan's national interests and the interests of the Japanese people. (By Ko Koga, Senior Writer, Political News Department)
こうして与野党が「政治的内戦」を繰り返しているうちに、政治が本来なすべき機能は損なわれ、日本はグローバル化した世界の潮流についていけなくなる。政治不全が止まらず、日々傷ついているのは、国益そして国民益だ。
毎日新聞 2011年3月7日 東京朝刊
2011年03月03日
An obsession with optimization
もともとウインドウズはアップルコンピュータに付属のソフトのコピー。
スラチャイは大昔からアップルのソフトの優秀さに舌を巻いていた。
その後、ms-dos時代を経てウインドウズの時代へと移行、現在に至る。
なにしろ米国のビルゲイツが世界のパソコンソフト業界を独占しているのが気にいらない。
アップルもi-padで盛り返してきてはいるがマイクロソフト社に遠く及ばない。
日本で何故日本独自のシステムが開発できないのか長い間の疑問だ。
この分野に乗り出せば日本の失業率は大幅に改善されることであろう。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 2, 2011
An obsession with optimization
発信箱：最適化の最先端＝滝野隆浩
I've previously written in my columns that I don't like Japanese texts written horizontally on the Internet as Japanese characters are designed to be written in vertical lines, and that pictograms frequently used in e-mails are intolerable.
However, I'm interested in Julian Assange, the 39-year-old founder of Wikileaks who has been released on bail after being arrested on suspicion of sexual assault.
横書きが嫌だの、絵文字が許せないだの本欄で書き連ねてきた私ではあるが、同じネットの世界でも、内部告発サイト「ウィキリークス」や、英警察が性犯罪容疑で逮捕・保釈中の創設者、ジュリアン・アサンジ容疑者（３９）には関心がある。
This is because I believe that his thoughts that all information should be disclosed will drastically change the world.
情報はすべて公開すべきだ、という思想は、世の中を大きく変えていくと思うから。
Mainichi Shimbun staff writer Kenjiro Sato, who traveled to Australia, Assange's home country, told me an interesting story about Suelette Dreyfuss, a researcher with the University of Melbourne who authored a book on hacking with cooperation from Assange.
彼の出身地オーストラリアを取材した佐藤賢二郎特派員から、興味深い話を聞いた。
同容疑者の協力でハッキングに関した本を書いたことのあるメルボルン大学のスーレット・ドレイファス研究員の話。
Sato quoted Dreyfuss, who has been acquainted with Assange, as saying that he cannot forget Assange's behavior when he moved house.
３年ほど付き合って、彼の引っ越しの姿が忘れられないという。
Assange was packing his belongings, and whenever there was even a small space in a cardboard box, he redid the whole thing until he completely eliminated the space.
自分で箱に荷詰めをしていたが、彼は少しでも隙間（すきま）があると初めからやり直し、全く隙間がなくなるまで何度も詰め直しした。
Dreyfuss recalls that Assange was a perfectionist in terms of optimization.
ドレイファスさんはこう分析しているという。「彼は最適化に関しては完全主義者だった」
Optimization is a key word in the computer world.
＜最適化＞はコンピューターの世界では大事な言葉らしい。
It refers to the process of putting things in order, which is indispensable for ensuring the maximum efficiency in the performance of systems.
そのシステムを最も効率的に働かせるために欠かせない、いわば「整理整頓」作業。
Assange, who apparently cares little about his appearance or clothes, pursues perfect optimization when he operates computers.
外見や服装にはほとんどこだわらないアサンジ容疑者が、パソコンに向き合うときは完璧目指して突き進む。
He has thus been successful in establishing technology for coding and decoding information and using it to disclose 250,000 U.S. diplomatic telegrams.
そうして高度の暗号化技術を確立して、米外交公電２５万件を公開し続けている。
Due to the imbalance of his personality, he has gained even more followers.
そのバランスの悪さがむしろ、信奉者を増やしている部分があろう。
Kiosks at railway stations are a fine example of optimization in Japan.
日本における最適化の極致が駅の売店にあると思う。
Newspapers and popular cigarettes are on display at the front of their booths while black ties for funerals are also kept at the back of the booths.
新聞やたばこの売れ筋は手前に、奥には葬儀用ネクタイなどが実はある。
The way workers can quickly take money and give back change is remarkable.
中にいるおばちゃんの、釣り銭手渡し技術も見事だ。
The sophisticated system at kiosks appears to reflect Japanese people's mentality.
あの洗練されたシステムは、日本人の精神性そのものではないか。
Japan is probably the most advanced country in terms of optimization, but it also raises questions as to why it cannot be No. 1 in the Internet world. (By Takahiro Takino, Senior Writer)
最適化ではたぶん世界の最先端をいく日本なのに、ネット世界ではどうして一番になれないのだろう。不思議だ。（社会部）
毎日新聞 2011年3月2日 東京朝刊
スラチャイは大昔からアップルのソフトの優秀さに舌を巻いていた。
その後、ms-dos時代を経てウインドウズの時代へと移行、現在に至る。
なにしろ米国のビルゲイツが世界のパソコンソフト業界を独占しているのが気にいらない。
アップルもi-padで盛り返してきてはいるがマイクロソフト社に遠く及ばない。
日本で何故日本独自のシステムが開発できないのか長い間の疑問だ。
この分野に乗り出せば日本の失業率は大幅に改善されることであろう。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) March 2, 2011
An obsession with optimization
発信箱：最適化の最先端＝滝野隆浩
I've previously written in my columns that I don't like Japanese texts written horizontally on the Internet as Japanese characters are designed to be written in vertical lines, and that pictograms frequently used in e-mails are intolerable.
However, I'm interested in Julian Assange, the 39-year-old founder of Wikileaks who has been released on bail after being arrested on suspicion of sexual assault.
横書きが嫌だの、絵文字が許せないだの本欄で書き連ねてきた私ではあるが、同じネットの世界でも、内部告発サイト「ウィキリークス」や、英警察が性犯罪容疑で逮捕・保釈中の創設者、ジュリアン・アサンジ容疑者（３９）には関心がある。
This is because I believe that his thoughts that all information should be disclosed will drastically change the world.
情報はすべて公開すべきだ、という思想は、世の中を大きく変えていくと思うから。
Mainichi Shimbun staff writer Kenjiro Sato, who traveled to Australia, Assange's home country, told me an interesting story about Suelette Dreyfuss, a researcher with the University of Melbourne who authored a book on hacking with cooperation from Assange.
彼の出身地オーストラリアを取材した佐藤賢二郎特派員から、興味深い話を聞いた。
同容疑者の協力でハッキングに関した本を書いたことのあるメルボルン大学のスーレット・ドレイファス研究員の話。
Sato quoted Dreyfuss, who has been acquainted with Assange, as saying that he cannot forget Assange's behavior when he moved house.
３年ほど付き合って、彼の引っ越しの姿が忘れられないという。
Assange was packing his belongings, and whenever there was even a small space in a cardboard box, he redid the whole thing until he completely eliminated the space.
自分で箱に荷詰めをしていたが、彼は少しでも隙間（すきま）があると初めからやり直し、全く隙間がなくなるまで何度も詰め直しした。
Dreyfuss recalls that Assange was a perfectionist in terms of optimization.
ドレイファスさんはこう分析しているという。「彼は最適化に関しては完全主義者だった」
Optimization is a key word in the computer world.
＜最適化＞はコンピューターの世界では大事な言葉らしい。
It refers to the process of putting things in order, which is indispensable for ensuring the maximum efficiency in the performance of systems.
そのシステムを最も効率的に働かせるために欠かせない、いわば「整理整頓」作業。
Assange, who apparently cares little about his appearance or clothes, pursues perfect optimization when he operates computers.
外見や服装にはほとんどこだわらないアサンジ容疑者が、パソコンに向き合うときは完璧目指して突き進む。
He has thus been successful in establishing technology for coding and decoding information and using it to disclose 250,000 U.S. diplomatic telegrams.
そうして高度の暗号化技術を確立して、米外交公電２５万件を公開し続けている。
Due to the imbalance of his personality, he has gained even more followers.
そのバランスの悪さがむしろ、信奉者を増やしている部分があろう。
Kiosks at railway stations are a fine example of optimization in Japan.
日本における最適化の極致が駅の売店にあると思う。
Newspapers and popular cigarettes are on display at the front of their booths while black ties for funerals are also kept at the back of the booths.
新聞やたばこの売れ筋は手前に、奥には葬儀用ネクタイなどが実はある。
The way workers can quickly take money and give back change is remarkable.
中にいるおばちゃんの、釣り銭手渡し技術も見事だ。
The sophisticated system at kiosks appears to reflect Japanese people's mentality.
あの洗練されたシステムは、日本人の精神性そのものではないか。
Japan is probably the most advanced country in terms of optimization, but it also raises questions as to why it cannot be No. 1 in the Internet world. (By Takahiro Takino, Senior Writer)
最適化ではたぶん世界の最先端をいく日本なのに、ネット世界ではどうして一番になれないのだろう。不思議だ。（社会部）
毎日新聞 2011年3月2日 東京朝刊
2011年03月01日
Do emoticons cheat on the art of true communication?
確かに時代はかわりつつある。
しかしながら、絵文字が例えばフェイスブックの｢いいね！｣のように人の心を打つことは少ない。
絵文字を探している時間のほうがもったいない。
それよりも投稿前に文章を校正して誤字､脱字、文章構成をチェックし訂正する作業のほうが有意義である。
スラチャイもこの記事の投稿者（毎日新聞記者）と同じ考え。
ことばはへたでもいい、自分のことばで表現すべきである。
投稿前に原稿を校正するのは最低限のルールではある。
忙しくてそれもままならない場合も多々ありますが＾＾。
カフェでは絵文字使用禁止サイトもあるくらいです。
特に男性の年配者は絵文字の使用は差し控えたほうが無難だと思います。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) February 28, 2011
Do emoticons cheat on the art of true communication?
発信箱：絵文字はずるい？＝滝野隆浩
The most surprising thing I've heard in recent days came from a junior reporter about his use of "emoji" while I was having drinks with him. "Emoji," literally meaning picture ("e") and letter ("moji"), refer to "emoticons," or pictographs used in text messages, e-mails and other wireless communications.
"Emoji are better at communicating my feelings (than words are)," he said. I tried to convince him that he should make time to speak with his girlfriend in person, and when that's not possible, at least talk to her on the phone, but to no avail. He maintained that he had the perfect emoticons to accurately express what he was feeling at any point in time.
最近聞いた中で一番驚いた言葉は「絵文字のほうが、ボクの気持ちは伝わるんですよ」である。後輩記者から酒席で聞いた。携帯メールで使う、あの１文字分の小さなイラスト。彼女にはなるたけ会って話せ、時間がないならせめて電話を、と諭しても通じない。その瞬間の気持ちそのものを表現する絵文字が彼にはあるのだという。
There appear to be anywhere from several thousand to around 10,000 types of such pictographs, including those that blink on and off and others that move. It's not that I never employ emoticons, but I'd say that at most, I use perhaps 20.
ネットで検索すると、ぴかぴか光ったり、ぴこぴこ動いたりするのもあって数千から１万種類はあるらしい。私も使わないわけではないが、せいぜい２０種くらい。
So how do emoticon users find the right icon that accurately represents what they're feeling at a given moment? Major cell phone operator NTT Docomo says that its latest models emphasizing usability, which are said to be easier for older users to maneuver, are outfitted with a function that interprets the mood of a text message and displays the "appropriate" emoticons. How helpful.
多数の中からその時の気分に合うマークをどうやって探すのだろうか。ＮＴＴドコモに聞いたら、高齢者にも使いやすい最新機種には、語尾などで判断して自動的にその文章に合った絵文字を表示してくれる機能があるらしい。ありがたいことだ。
About 20 years ago, we ran a series on parents and children with troublesome relationships. One 50-year-old father said that he "spoke" every night with his son via e-mail. I recall being taken aback when the man said that he found it easier to be honest through the medium. Locating the article from years back, I found -- though I'd forgotten about it until I reread it -- that the father had confessed to me: "I say things through my computer that I can't say in person. Maybe that's unfair of me."
２０年ほど前、関係がうまく築けない親子のことを連載記事に取り上げた。５０歳の父親は毎晩、息子と「パソコンメール」で「会話」をすると言った。メールのほうが本音で話せる、と聞いて驚いたことを思い出す。改めてその時の記事を探した。もう忘れていたが、その父親は私に、こう打ち明けていた。＜面と向かって言いにくいことを（パソコンの）画面で言った。私はずるいのかもしれない＞
Technological developments change the way people think. It's not uncommon nowadays for people to profess their love and navigate the subtleties of family ties -- including negotiating the terms of a divorce -- via e-mail. The number of people who see the use of e-mail and other wireless messaging systems for such purposes as unfair or underhanded is probably on the decline. Maybe the automatic emoticon display function incorporated into the latest cell phones will soon become the norm.
技術の進展が人間の考え方を変えていく。いまメールで愛を打ち明け、親子関係の機微を伝えるのは当たり前なのだろう。離婚交渉をメールでする時代だというから。それを＜ずるい＞と感じる人は、たぶん減っている。絵文字だって、もうすぐ「自動表示」が当たり前になるかもしれない。
It doesn't feel right to me, though. I don't care if we're stumble through our words. At least they're our own words that we squeeze out of our minds and hearts after much thought and deliberation. Even if the words don't come right away, that silence in and of itself is a true reflection of our inner worlds. (By Takahiro Takino, City News Department)
なんだか、いやだ。ぶきっちょでもいい。自分の言葉を使わなきゃ。悩んでしぼり出す自分自身の言葉。出せなくて無言でも、それが「いまの気持ち」だ。（社会部）
英訳
毎日新聞 2011年2月23日 東京朝刊
しかしながら、絵文字が例えばフェイスブックの｢いいね！｣のように人の心を打つことは少ない。
絵文字を探している時間のほうがもったいない。
それよりも投稿前に文章を校正して誤字､脱字、文章構成をチェックし訂正する作業のほうが有意義である。
スラチャイもこの記事の投稿者（毎日新聞記者）と同じ考え。
ことばはへたでもいい、自分のことばで表現すべきである。
投稿前に原稿を校正するのは最低限のルールではある。
忙しくてそれもままならない場合も多々ありますが＾＾。
カフェでは絵文字使用禁止サイトもあるくらいです。
特に男性の年配者は絵文字の使用は差し控えたほうが無難だと思います。
（スラチャイ記）
(Mainichi Japan) February 28, 2011
Do emoticons cheat on the art of true communication?
発信箱：絵文字はずるい？＝滝野隆浩
The most surprising thing I've heard in recent days came from a junior reporter about his use of "emoji" while I was having drinks with him. "Emoji," literally meaning picture ("e") and letter ("moji"), refer to "emoticons," or pictographs used in text messages, e-mails and other wireless communications.
"Emoji are better at communicating my feelings (than words are)," he said. I tried to convince him that he should make time to speak with his girlfriend in person, and when that's not possible, at least talk to her on the phone, but to no avail. He maintained that he had the perfect emoticons to accurately express what he was feeling at any point in time.
最近聞いた中で一番驚いた言葉は「絵文字のほうが、ボクの気持ちは伝わるんですよ」である。後輩記者から酒席で聞いた。携帯メールで使う、あの１文字分の小さなイラスト。彼女にはなるたけ会って話せ、時間がないならせめて電話を、と諭しても通じない。その瞬間の気持ちそのものを表現する絵文字が彼にはあるのだという。
There appear to be anywhere from several thousand to around 10,000 types of such pictographs, including those that blink on and off and others that move. It's not that I never employ emoticons, but I'd say that at most, I use perhaps 20.
ネットで検索すると、ぴかぴか光ったり、ぴこぴこ動いたりするのもあって数千から１万種類はあるらしい。私も使わないわけではないが、せいぜい２０種くらい。
So how do emoticon users find the right icon that accurately represents what they're feeling at a given moment? Major cell phone operator NTT Docomo says that its latest models emphasizing usability, which are said to be easier for older users to maneuver, are outfitted with a function that interprets the mood of a text message and displays the "appropriate" emoticons. How helpful.
多数の中からその時の気分に合うマークをどうやって探すのだろうか。ＮＴＴドコモに聞いたら、高齢者にも使いやすい最新機種には、語尾などで判断して自動的にその文章に合った絵文字を表示してくれる機能があるらしい。ありがたいことだ。
About 20 years ago, we ran a series on parents and children with troublesome relationships. One 50-year-old father said that he "spoke" every night with his son via e-mail. I recall being taken aback when the man said that he found it easier to be honest through the medium. Locating the article from years back, I found -- though I'd forgotten about it until I reread it -- that the father had confessed to me: "I say things through my computer that I can't say in person. Maybe that's unfair of me."
２０年ほど前、関係がうまく築けない親子のことを連載記事に取り上げた。５０歳の父親は毎晩、息子と「パソコンメール」で「会話」をすると言った。メールのほうが本音で話せる、と聞いて驚いたことを思い出す。改めてその時の記事を探した。もう忘れていたが、その父親は私に、こう打ち明けていた。＜面と向かって言いにくいことを（パソコンの）画面で言った。私はずるいのかもしれない＞
Technological developments change the way people think. It's not uncommon nowadays for people to profess their love and navigate the subtleties of family ties -- including negotiating the terms of a divorce -- via e-mail. The number of people who see the use of e-mail and other wireless messaging systems for such purposes as unfair or underhanded is probably on the decline. Maybe the automatic emoticon display function incorporated into the latest cell phones will soon become the norm.
技術の進展が人間の考え方を変えていく。いまメールで愛を打ち明け、親子関係の機微を伝えるのは当たり前なのだろう。離婚交渉をメールでする時代だというから。それを＜ずるい＞と感じる人は、たぶん減っている。絵文字だって、もうすぐ「自動表示」が当たり前になるかもしれない。
It doesn't feel right to me, though. I don't care if we're stumble through our words. At least they're our own words that we squeeze out of our minds and hearts after much thought and deliberation. Even if the words don't come right away, that silence in and of itself is a true reflection of our inner worlds. (By Takahiro Takino, City News Department)
なんだか、いやだ。ぶきっちょでもいい。自分の言葉を使わなきゃ。悩んでしぼり出す自分自身の言葉。出せなくて無言でも、それが「いまの気持ち」だ。（社会部）
英訳
毎日新聞 2011年2月23日 東京朝刊