[Kurt Hansen]

I am truly thankful for this class. I’ve been a sub for almost 18 years. I got hired this year and decided to pursue a higher education and salary points. I was overwhelmed with work. I had a brand new job as a provisional Special Ed. teacher. I was studying for the CSET in secondary English and I decided to take a Asian Studies class at USC. I’m pretty nutZ. As crazy as it was to take on this additional responsibility, I’m very glad I did. As I mentioned in my introductory paragraph, I spent two years in Japan working at a resort, Huis Ten Bosch, telling the story of Mira anji and the opening of trade with Japan by the Dutch. I enjoyed my time there and studied the culture first hand. This class, not only fulfilled a quest of mine to learn more of Asia but also got me back in a classroom, (Non-training) to actually learn. As hectic as it was, It was an escape from the tasks associated with my new job and got my brain into a mode it hadn’t really been in in years. 

 

I have no negatives about the class. The schedule worked well. Even the Mondays. I was able to survive the traffic hassle, parking for football rallies and the Grammy winning USC marching band. I loved the class itself. I think you have found a wonderful combination of lecture from Dr. Dube and the guests, who always had various insights into the Asian culture, to surprise me.

The level of guest speakers was amazing. Each speaker was top in their field. Each speaker was interesting and presented the material in an informative and entertaining way and I truly enjoyed the wide variety of subjects presented. The professionals I surround myself with personally are dedicated and, more importantly, passionate about what they do. You’ve gathered a group of scholars who are not only tops in their field, but also passionate about their subjects.

It was an honor to be with all of you. I’m hoping I can rejoin you in March for Part one of East Asia. Barring training hell, I’ll be there. Thank you. Oh, yeah, thanks for the food, good stuff.

 

[Kurt Hansen]

I wrote earlier about Beijing’s One China idea. I hadn’t yet read President Tsai’s response. I admire how she got right to the point on Taiwan's sovereignty and Democratic values. I also wrote earlier that “Why would a democratic Taiwan want to put themselves in a position to be under China’s power when Hong Kong is struggling to keep its own identity. I’m not a big nationalist, but Taiwan must maintain its Taiwan first policy in order to survive against a superpower like China. President Tsai stressed Taiwan’s work in the area to create stability in the region and her desire to have strong cross strait relations with China. She also reiterates that China pressuring other nations to change their designation of Taiwan or doing military exercises in the strait are not the ways to have a successful relationship between the two countries. Finally she states that she hopes China should “Bravely move toward Democracy” 

She truly is a  great leader to be as open and honest with China and to stand up for her country's Democratic ideals and her people. China is a huge superpower and truth to that kind of power is not easy.

 

[Kurt Hansen]

I took a mini field trip to the Pacific Asia Museum in Pasadena with my daughters. It is a wonderful small space museum. It had a very nice flow through the exhibits, going from country to country. I appreciated that the museum had art, but also had artifacts from different countries at different time periods. There were many religious pieces depicting Buddhism, Daoism, Hinduism. These tend to be the pieces that last through time because of their spiritual value. In class, we discussed China, Japan and Korea through historical, economic, social and political ideals and the changes that happened through time. The museum is based on the people of these countries. It’s based on their art, beliefs and even their household items they used everyday. The final component of the museum was a zen garden with statues, water figures and exotic grasses and plants. It reminded me of the lecture on the meditation gardens and Japanese architecture. It was easy to understand why these gardens exist. It was enjoyable at the end of the museum to sit and just view the surroundings in a peaceful way. I really appreciated the museum. It wasn’t crowded and I had time to read up and study the items. I also enjoyed the variety of items on display. It was a very nice morning and allowed my family and I to learn more than what we covered in class. I would definitely recommend this museum. It was highly enjoyable in a Zen way.

 

[Kurt Hansen]

Xi Jinping made a speech during the 70th anniversary of cross strait relations advocating the reunification of China. He reiterates how much mainland China will respect Taiwan’s beliefs, religions and way of life for unification. He believes there is no other way to go and that we are the same, referring to Taiwan. He continues to say that there should be no violence between them yet he does not take military intervention off the table. If I’m Taiwan, I need only look to the southwest to realize China’s respect of others belief has severe limits. Hong Kong has had struggles to keep its autonomy since its transfer of sovereignty to China. Taiwan has been very successful economically, politically and socially. East Asia is always talking about reunification. The Koreas since 1953 and now China. The talks will always continue. Seeing it actualized will always be the problem. The closing quotes show Taiwanese compatriots excited about the reunification. I guess we’ll see.

[Kurt Hansen]

I liked “Gilded Age, Gilded Cage”. It seems that every story I read has a different perspective. This one seems so ordinary, yet shows the change in China. I didnt think about the changes that China has gone through and how they would affect someone like Bella, as well as her parents. Any societal change has an impact on every person. Additional freedoms given to anyone also creates stress. Less freedoms mean less options, but that also means conformity is the rule. When a government tells you what you can and cannot do, there is more of a requirement to not standout. Bella’s extra curricular activities are what makes her stand out from her standard school scores. The competition for the best schools takes on a new necessity to be your best. At the end, whether she wants to or not, she was invited to join the Junior Communist group. Her and her parents have adopted the new ways, made all the right moves and led her to the new age of Communist China.

 

[Kurt Hansen]

I knew that Tiananmen Square was a protest for Democracy, but I didn’t know any details. We always see the famous photo of the lone student standing in front of the tank, but I had no idea that 100s or maybe 1000s died. I also didn’t know that the protests had lasted for months and that a hunger strike was involved. I also didn’t know what started the protests. When thinking about it, do we ever feel that these protests accomplish anything? Did these protestors give their lives for nothing? My theory, probably not. This protest was against corruption and greed. The communist party at the time was divided and most likely corrupt. This protest and the growth it acquired before it was brought down must have been a wake up call to the party that their current methods probably didn’t have a great shelf life and that change was needed. Is the current communist party the same as the one in the 80s? No. Changes have been made. There is private ownership, jobs, more personal freedoms. Whether these protestors are responsible for the future changes we’ve seen or not, I believe it made the communist party (Party of the people, BTW), be more responsive to the people's needs. 

 

[Kurt Hansen]

https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/28/asia/hong-kong-reaction-trump-legislation-intl-hnk/index.html

The following article is important because this affects the future relationship between the United States, China and Hong Kong. It relates to the class because its China!!

 

President Trump signed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act to show support for Hong Kong protestors. The act allows the US to re-examine Hong Kong's special trading status with the United States every year. It allows sanctions and the reversal of the trading status if Washington decides to do so. The main purpose of the bill was to support freedom protests in Hong Kong. It shows the protestors that the west supports their democatic freedoms and autonomy.There are drawbacks however. Let's talk about the players:

The US - Stands up for pro-democracy in a time where it has stood up for very little around the world. Possibly even at the expense of expanding trade sanctions on both sides of the China/US trade talks. The US will probably not use any of the parts of the bill, using it more as a symbolic gesture.

China - Angry that the US is involving itself in its own internal conflict. China says, "We urge the United States not to insist on going down this path, or China would firmly strike back and the United States would have to bear all consequences," China is reliant on Hong Kong trade and stock market. If the US decides to take away Hong Kong’s special trading status, China loses economically.

Hong Kong - Protestors are happy. Their only hope is that the world recognizes their struggle and places pressure on China to work this out. Hong Kong officials are under intense pressure from Beijing to fix the situation and the United States position makes this even more difficult for them.

The United States has stood up for Democracy in Hong Kong. This bill signed by the President creates a symbolic gesture of support. Anything beyond that symbolic gesture creates problems for all the players involved. I do believe it was important for the US to show this support. It feels like we stand for nothing lately. This law finally shows Hong Kong, China and the world that we still believe in something. It also, hopefully, gives world focus to these protestors to put additional pressure on China to come to an agreement. 

 

 

[Kurt Hansen]

After reading “The Red Guard,” I keep thinking, “Where’s the poop?” It sounds like major propaganda. They wandered across the continent starving, entertaining, relying on handouts to survive. Each section tells us how just thinking about Mao allowed them to overcome all obstacles. It’s like a bandwagon. I read it and realize that every village and its occupants are part of the people's party. Plus these people sound so happy and contented leading Mao’s Red Army that I want to join in the parade. Every line shows the virtue of our army and the enemies of our beloved group are ruthless evil people who are vanquished by Mao’s followers. This diary doesn’t ring true. It's kind of like a political ad on Facebook. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

 

[Kurt Hansen]

 I wanted to talk about Zen, meditation and traditions. I’m always fast moving and I have difficulty slowing down. In Japan, they’ve turned slowing down into an art. I’ve been involved with tea ceremonies, Ikebana, and even meditation. These activities have meditation built into them. The tea ceremony is a series of steps to clear the mind and focus on the task. Ikebana is the activity of placing flowers in an arrangement. Even Bonzai is a mind freeing activity to make a small tree visually pleasing. One of my favorite things in Japan, which I wish I held onto, was the moments of Zen that clears the mind. My life here is hectic and I constantly feel like there's no time for the things I have to do, let alone time to meditate. In Japan, these calm times are worked into their culture, hobbies, design and architecture. I have a Bonsai tree at home, I think I need to take some time to trim my tree and clear my head.

 

[Kurt Hansen]

Japanese business practices are different than American business practices. When I worked in Japan, a group of us tried to negotiate a raise based upon our job description. The negotiations were so confusing. Just when we thought we had a deal, we found out we didn’t. I enjoyed hearing, re-living and getting a greater insight into those negotiations through our lecture. We had pauses, shrugs and recesses to talk to superiors more times than I can count. We would set out our reasons and they would appear to understand, only to return the next day and start all over again. We succeeded because we were able to use a go between who really understood our position and was able to convince our bosses that the raise was the right thing. Too many people, too many misunderstandings, too many time outs. I wish I had had this lecture so I could have used this knowledge to make my life a little easier at the time. 

 

[Kurt Hansen]

I’ve spent time in Tokyo and one of my favorite things is looking. There is so much to see. We’ve talked about the simplicity of much of Japanese architecture, but sometimes the most exciting things are the lights. Once you’ve seen the neon lights of Shibuya or Shinjuku, it's hard to forget. I couldn’t find anything. No idea of addresses and so many neon signs, I had no idea where to look. When You’re not looking for a specific place, the neon is spectacular. The signs rise up the side of every building and reach out into the street. There are so many signs vying for attention that it almost nullifies the effect. It's just another way that Japan is a magical place to visit. The contrast of sights from the simplest street vendor to the electric neon creates amazing sights that are difficult to duplicate. 

 

[Kurt Hansen]

When I was a kid, I watched Speed Racer, Astro Boy and Even Kimba the White Lion. These Anime cartoons were off the beaten track in the 60s and 70s, but they set up anime to be the giant success it is, in its current form. Today, anime is everywhere. Its gone from those old cartoons and manga to an industry in every aspect of world entertainment. The manga are available in every bookstore in the United States. They’ve continued on TV since Speed Racer and has spawned countless merchandise. The Power Rangers have been on Nickelodeon for 27 years. Anime movies have been some of the top grossing films every year. I’m also sure that these examples are nothing compared to gaming. Pokemon, Digimon, Yokai Watch, Final Fantasy and The Legend of Zelda series of games. These games are huge and have been for years. They create huge cultures and subcultures that will last forever. So many times we expect these fads to fade, but Anime continues on and on through reinvention and finding different inroads to permeate more and more of cultural society. I didn’t even talk about Hello Kitty and Sanrio.

 

[Kurt Hansen]

After all the success of the Japanese economy after World War Two, much of that due to United States support, many Japanese rebelled against the United States as far as limits put upon them by the United States. The Japanese often have issues with being inferior to the west. These feelings of inferiority led to the adoption of western ideals to  be taken seriously by the west, It also led to Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor in World War 2. After the war, Japan was assisted heavily by the US to rebuild their infrastructure as well as help rebuild their entire economic structure. This heavy dependence on the US caused a movement toward, "subordinate independence." Ths was an idea of saying “No” to the United States. Once again Japan felt inferior to its western counterpart and felt the need to exert its independence. Japan had made such strides economically and the United States was suffering through some economic trials that Japan felt they could survive without the restrictions the United States had placed on them. They expressed their inde[endence, but because of the global economy growth a nation could no longer survive without trade treaties with other countries, including the United States. I’m sure it helped the Japanese insecurity, but the Japanese economy did suffer and growth definitely slowed.

 

[Kurt Hansen]

Japan moved toward modernization during the Meiji period. They grasped on to a model they studied first hand and learned through history: the western model. As they moved into a more modern industrial age, the Japanese modernized and westernized in clothing, architecture and militarization. Gone are the Jpanese Yukata and in is the military uniform or western suit. Women wear less Kimono and more into a western style dress. Architecture wanders from simplistic, wooden structures and moves toward European splendor and more detailed interior design with many flourishes and curved design. The militarization includes invasion of nearby countries, destabilizing the region and using the western style of colonization to increase control, economics and resources of a region. Their need for modernization was understandable, their overzealous desire to be a western power caused more problems for the entire region and created even more animosity between Korea, China and Japan that lasts even today.

 

[Kurt Hansen]

The death of Qiu Jin was unceremonious, beheaded and body left as an example. Since her death, she became a martyr and her body and tomb location has changed based upon the political and social changes in China. It's interesting that her life and death is morphed into whatever the current dynasty or government entity needed from her to promote. Nine times her body was moved and her tomb rebuilt to use her martyrdom. Each government either moves her tomb to the forefront as an example to the masses or away from the limelight to lessen her impact. Her life and death has become less reality based and more based on myth and twisted history. It proves that national heroes or icons are yet another way for governments to use the past to shape the future any way they want to. Qiu Jin never had an idea of the communist revolution, yet the communist revolution has embraced Qiu Jin as a martyr for the cause. If and when communism falls, I’m sure the next form of government will find a way for Qiu Jin to embrace their ideals and support it long after her revolutionary spirit has passed.

 

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