Into the World:
The Random Thoughts in My Mind

Only a few years ago, people speculated the possibility of Facebook and Twitter succeeding in Japan. With strong domestic competitors such as Mixi and other social platforms (such as online forums) in a country already highly literate and connected to the cyberspace, people doubted that “Western” SNS can take roots here. Additionally, the strong Japanese, and indeed East Asian, obsession with “cyber-anonymity” largely conflicts with an equally strong obsession for the opposite shown by the likes of Facebook. Then, in what seems like a quick flash of time, the potential dominance of both Facebook and Twitter has become a foregone conclusion. While domestic social platforms still lead in absolute numbers of visitors, the what-used-to-be “foreign novelties” from Silicon Valley have become household names. Their growth rates in the country have become the envy of all other dot-com firms in Japan, both foreign and Japanese in origin. Yet, a closer observation shows that the increasingly

"Freedom," now more than ever, has become the standard buzzword in the political literature of all countries. Whether it be promoting pro-Western democratic revolutions in the Middle East , or subverted rebellion against established regimes , the single word "freedom" somehow represents all concentrated anger of dissatisfied populations and suppressed ambitions of disenfranchised activists. It is a word that arose passions of millions and fears of all political censors. Generally when the word "freedom" is touched upon in the media and government announcement, it is almost always representative of political freedom, an ability of individuals to express their opinions and views without fear of persecution. Certainly, all democratic regimes (and several non-democratic ones) have actually enforced laws to guarantee freedom of expressions. No matter how marginal and violent the views are, as long as the views are not hurtful to other segments of society,

These days, I just cannot stop thinking about all the factors that go into a successful departure for England. Continuing to worry about the money to pay for LSE and the career afterwards , my weekend "to-do" list is filled with determined thoughts of looking for scholarships, grants, jobs (part-time at school and full-time after graduation)...yet, somehow, my mind keeps getting distracted by other things (such as, well, writing this blog post). A friend and coworker with previous degree recently informed of the difficulties she confronted as she wrote up her dissertation for honors in her political science degree. This 163-page monster, filled with well-researched data and citations , was indeed well-written, and no doubt time-consuming...and scary enough, this was for an UNDERGRAD political science degree. Now, a masters student has to surpass this, right? Deeper in research and more in volume is probably something for which I should be mentally prepared. Funny thing ho

"We are going to see the cherry blossoms!" My Chinese coworker told me rather joyfully as we randomly met up on the road back home. Now that is one sentence I have not heard for a look time. April is here and the cherry blossoms ("sakura") are in full bloom. Every year, these symbolic flowers of Japan attract millions of people to head out to the parks, picnicking after the endless pink trees in annual tradition of "flower-watching" ("hanami" or 花見). Yet, this year, the parks were empty. Even as the cherry blossoms lining the streets create tunnels of natural pink, there are only a few people sitting under them, their conversations without any of the drunkenness and boisterousness of the past years, and their whole "picnic" seeming to last no more than a casual business lunch of a Japanese salary-man. Pedestrians passing by the picnickers can even sense embarrassment, and even guilt, in their eyes, even as they cautiously sip away

"I found this place is more Japanese than global." Meeting around 40-50 new employees in my company, doubtful comments such as this was sprinkled throughout the otherwise joyful conversations. Unfortunately, they were not joking. The smell of exaggerated promises seeping through the Tower has already been scented and picked up by many a few too many noses. Predictions are already abound about what percentage of the Class will remain in a few months time. "What do they know? They have only been here for one day!" Our 10-year veterans can surely dismiss the sentiments as "inexperienced sentiments of juvenile energy," bound to be extinguished as the new graduates mature into professionals. Perhaps so, some of the group will definitely grow into their jobs (as have some of my own class), but if their independent thoughts stay vigilant , the odds are that their growing "quietness" sources itself from self-suppression rather than satisfaction. Le

Turn on any Japanese morning news show, the horoscopes of the day is just as routinely reported as the weather. Just as knowing the weather gives the audience ideas on what to wear and bring physically, the horoscopes play exactly the same role "mentally." That is, knowing one's "fortunes" before the day starts may somehow give one the ability to avoid the social "traps" that may bring the person very much socially-based and highly personal "disasters," whether it be demotion, break-ups, or public embarrassment. The nature of the negative consequences of "bad luck" reported on these televised horoscopes goes a long way to imply just how much Japanese people care about their "public images." In a country where for women going to local convenience store without make-up on is widely considered not socially acceptable (and Go forbid, if women actually try that one at work ...), hearing "today, you have high possibility