Yes, there is a word of warning this time. During next week, probably Tuesday if I can remember to, the images page will be refreshed again and this time, since the news has kept it mind lately, the subject will be the Emperors of Japan, the "Land of the Rising Sun" and the oldest monarchy still reigning in the world today. Today, as in the past, it seems to me that Japan is often treated unfairly, condemned for doing what other nations have done (by those nations themselves often enough) and today being criticized for past misdeeds by Communist China whose misdeeds are far, far greater than anything Japan has ever even been accused of doing. I don't know of any other country that has changed so radically (twice) in such a short time as Japan without the horror of a revolution and through it all it has been the emperors who have kept everyone calm, confident and devoted to excellence for their country while maintaining the best of Japanese culture.
I am very curious why people state that the Japanese Monarchy is the oldest. Really? I know British Monarchs descend usually from 1066 with William the Conqueror. The French Monarchists and many French People talk of 987 as the beginnings of the French Monarchy. The Japanese proclaim their monarchy from the Sun God. Really?? Wikipedia even states there is no historical evidence of any genealogical relationships and doubts the existence of many of the earlier Emperors. I think of the British Monarchy as the greatest and oldest in the West and the French Royal Family has the most amazing direct bloodlines. I am of the school that when Japan officially apologizes for her barbarous treatments of other nations in Asia during WW II then all the wounds of that horrible war will finally begin to heal.
ReplyDeleteThey state that because it is so. Yes, *really*. The oldest monarchy in Europe is undoubtedly the Danish monarchy. In Japan, you don't have to believe in the Amaterasu legend to see that the Japanese monarchy is still the oldest in the world. It is considerably older that unified Empire of China and that goes back to before any of the modern European monarchies existed (to the time of the ancient Greek city states). Personally, I don't like to dispute people's national legends, be it the Japanese emperors being descended from Amaterasu or the Ethiopian emperors being descended from King Solomon, even though most historians discount such stories.
DeleteAs for the Japanese apologizing for World War II, they have apologized on numerous occasions, however it serves the purposes of Communist China to never let the issue die because they can use that to claim victim status even though Maoist China killed far more Chinese people than the Japanese ever did even if the most extreme accounts are believed. They will never be satisfied and that's all there is to it. If you are worried about the Japanese not being sufficiently sorry for going to war, well, they had two atomic bombs dropped on them, I'm pretty sure they regret the whole affair. I really don't see much sense in wanting to further and further punish the only country in the world that has ever been subject to a nuclear attack.