Why Japan lost outgoing energy

It's been while since Japan began to see decline in students studying abroad. Now Chinese are the largest among international students studying in the U.S. The inward tendency has become the tendency of Japanese students.

Studying abroad widens your view of the world. If you stay long enough, you start to understand why things go in what direction and how. You may question why your home country do or doesn't do in this way or that way.

One of my major question is, why Japan still maintains simultaneous recruitment of newly graduate. I do know it was ideal for recovering Japanese economy. But, now the growth stopped or even declined, but the tradition continues. It is widely discussed that this employment style does not fit with current Japanese economy. But, companies keep doing anyway. It looks like they don't know any other way to hire.

This produces discrimination in age. Older graduates, with higher degree and more experience, are shut from the opportunity simple because they have already graduated. Only because you study abroad and could not make it on the recruiting schedule, you lose the opportunity even if you may be able to bring new idea, different view into the company. It's discrimination. If a company recruited in this style, you will be accused of violation of civil rights laws.

I join the argument that the fear of not being on schedule keeps students from studying abroad. Many are caught in finding jobs and forget about academic work and your dream. Instead of choosing what you want to do in career, employers have a say and give you training in what they want you to do. And that's bad because this gives companies a whole lot of power in your life.

My parents seem misunderstanding my dream. They think that I want to make a living with helping other. That's not wrong, but it's more than that. They think I can help others even if I work in a big private company. Maybe. But that's not totally true. Private companies' ultimate purpose is to make profit and distribute to stockholders, sometimes even by taking advantage of the weak. Great Recession are triggered by loans made for those who could not pay back. As a result, a lot of people lost jobs and houses.

That's not what I want to do. I want to work for an organization whose purpose is to make the world better place to live. I do understand I need to feed myself, but I want to utilize what I have learned for good cause, not just making money.

Any system made by human is not perfect. But this Japanese recruiting system should be removed, ASAP.

Are you worshiping Founding Fathers or Heavenly Father?

When browsing through my newsfeeds on Facebook, sometimes I come across some political meme or status. Some or them are rather funny, but many are quite filled with madness.

They are mainly against current administration. Increasing debt and deficit, gun control, overreaching federal government, Obamacares... They can go on and on.

Then, when I see the type of ads or status that says something like "Founding Father didn't intend this country to be ...," while putting very "Christian" status like scripture, it makes me think, especially if those are shared by a Christian.

I do know that they are proud of this country and they firmly believe in the Christian doctrine. But, these ads make me wonder "Are you worshiping Founding Father, instead of One True God?"

Obviously, Founding Fathers played important role in forming the idea of what this country is and where it goes. I understand they made Constitution and Bill of Rights to keep the government from overreaching to individual rights.

"Our Founding Fathers didn't intend that this country make everyone to have insurance"
"Our Founding Fathers didn't like this country to go into debts"

It looks like, they are serving Founding Fathers more than the Heavenly Father. Of course they are great contributors for American history and principles. We should not forget what they have done and dreamed. But, what does it do to worship them?

Time changes. There are so many problems. Poverty, child hunger, crime, unemployment. These are not something they intended this country to have. But rather these are due to many changes like urbanization, change of economy structure, auto-mobilization.

Take the last one for example. If you advocate freedom and equality as in the Constitution, shouldn't you also support individual's right to be able to go to places like workplaces or shops? Towns and cities might not be big enough to need a car back in late 18th century, but now it is. Unemployment may be high because some people cannot afford a car and driving is the only way to get around. If that's the case, the government should step in to promote their right to work by installing adequate transit system or providing a solution.

We should think first will of our God, who says "Blessed are the merciful."