Japan Research
[日本語]
I’m doing all this research and writing because when I got back from my New York business trip, I felt something in the air in Japan. A stillness, stagnation, as if people were waiting for someone, something, to do something. To help make this country better.
The stillness…was something I noted. The humid air, the slowness of walking speed, the incredibly slow taxi that I rode to get home. The progression of culture. Everything was slow, compared to the rapid pace of New York.
[But actually, the Earth stillness. There has not been an earthquake in Tokyo in a very long time this season. And I felt, as I was talking a shower on my 2nd floor, swaying off the ground, in my mind. Much like an iPhone gives you a phantom buzz in your pocket. My “spidey senses” kicked in and told me that we need to be careful of an earthquake.
But regardless of my clairvoyant senses, I could be wrong about an earthquake incoming. Other people have shared their opinions so I will refrain, and keep to my specialities.]
On my first night back, with all of my luggage, I was standing at my usual transfer, Yoyogi Uehara, with my fancy new pants on, and sneakers, and a T-shirt. A man standing next to me looked at my outfit, and then looked down at his, as if to think, “the foreigners are so much richer than us.”
I wanted to tell him, that I lived in Tokyo too. I just opt to spend money on my personal body. Not a house, nor investments. I am poor too, just like him.
But coming from New York, there is a body of wealth in the mind, that I carry. Memories of success, literature, love, all these things, bring wealth to the mind.
On my way back to Tokyo, I held this page above in my US passport proud. And my full title, professionally is as such:
Steven Akira Shimamoto
Engineer/Specialist in Humanities & International Services
(Architect at Kengo Kuma and Associates)
And I realized, that I should bring my knowledge of philosophy, writing, sociology, anthropology, architecture, and urbanism back to Japan, as a descendent of Saito Makoto, governor-general of Korea, reformer, political figure, and Prime Minister from 1932-1934. And Sato Tokuji, a Buddhist philosopher and novelist from 1988-1970, 49th winner of Naoki Prize, a Japanese literary award.
This is not to say that I am any better than anyone, it is only for me to state, that I am not some random Japanese American person coming to Japan on holiday. My mother's side, the Satos have has a deep history in Japan. And my Japanese-American side, stands up against injustice.
But the most important thing that I can think of bringing back, is literature. English writing, and the philosophical ideas of the west that I have studies. Along with a knowledge of urbanism and architecture, that are powerful tools that can shape physical space using philosophy.
I can say now, that I don’t read much, but over a long time, had brought in the influences of English writers into my worldview.
Where I see the pitfalls of Japan, is the unconscious trust in the western culture that was essentially airdropped by the United States after WWII. Mainly, the capitalistic culture: mass consumerism, and corporate office life.
The people of the United States have always been weary of these. The literature of Ray Bradbury, and 1984 by George Orwell being the two staples that people read when they are in high school. From an early age, critical thinking is instilled within the young mind. And even if you had not read these foreshadowing warnings of our late capitalistic future, somehow or another the messages would trickle down, by word of mouth, from those who have.
And so society has a critical thinking backbone, that protects it against things that are too evil.
In Japan, it can be seen that there is a blind trust in modern technology, capitalism, and the corporate culture that the America had brought.
Furthermore, another philosophical reading that has not been widely consumed is Francis Fukuyama’s, The End of History and the Last Man, a book that was spoken to me by my philosophy teacher, a Sicilian man was trained in classical Greek philosophy.
In Fukuyama’s “The End of History,” he speaks of a time like Orwell’s 1984, where society is at a standstill, unable to communicate, debate, or come to any further conclusions to progress society.
Could it be, that we can get over this? In Japan, I believe freedom is salvageable. In the USA, under the new Trump regime, and the corporate power that he is putting into place, I am afraid that the Americans might not ever be able to get back to true freedom, but merely a perceived sense of freedom. I could be wrong, and I hope that I am.
In Japan, the only thing holding us back is the people themselves. I feel like I have a duty now, to help bring my critical thinking from American, and help the people in Japan break free of the chains that America put on them.
From an outsiders perspective, is it not sad, that everyone should be walking around, glued to their iPhones, unwilling to communicate with each other? I grew up in Cupertino, California, where Apple headquarters was located, where Steve Jobs went to work everyday. He had a vision for the future. And now it is the responsibility of the people who grew up in these early times of technology, to help steer the masses to be more critical of these powerful devices. They should not be used as entertainment, but rather an extension of the brain.
With artificial intelligence tools, we essentially have a super-powered intern in our hands, that can read over our ideas, critique them, research family history, global history, literature- all of these things.
There is no reason why we cannot push society forward.
And in Japan, it begins with Salary.
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I felt strongly, that in order to combat the problems in Japan, the first thing that must be reformed is salary. Which is where my Rice emails came from.
Because one of the partners told me, that all the European staff ask for raises, but the Japanese do not. And because of this, the Japanese staff are leaving the company. The first thing to do, would be to raise the salary, so that the common Japanese person can save for a future.
I might take time, and I might not do it yet, but I would like to try a gentle reform. A unionization of Architectural workers, for decent starting salary. I do not want to get in trouble, but as a Japanese American, I feel it is a duty of mine to at least try. It is not for me, it is for the Japanese people, who I feel are suffering so much from this low salary.
As the architectural thinkers like the Metabolists had done in the past, they used architecture as a vehicle to change society. I believe we can do the same.
Perhaps, in the future: The Architectural Union of Tokyo