North-Sea
Lookout 9No.

Dec. 19 Winter 2012

Debate“Raising the consumption tax to 10% will help our economy”
Pro

Con

A1 If the government raises the consumption tax, they can use therevenues to sustain (support) the social security system including
pension and health insurance.
Present situation: Now, the Japanese people do not benefit from astrong enough social security system, and they need one. Our social
security system is going bankrupt. Before we go bankrupt, we should
do something. A raise in the consumption tax is the best solution.
Effect: Now, Japan is experiencing a declining birthrate and an aging
population. Japan needs more caregivers and care workers. It's a serious
problem. If the government raises the consumption tax to 10%, they
can use the revenues to take care of many of the elderly people.
Importance: When we become older, we will be able to benefit fromthat system. According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare,the number of people who are over 100 years old in Japan is 47,756(September, 2011). This number is about 312 times that of 1963. It
means that we have to consider a solution to our aging population
soon. So a raise in the consumption tax to take care of them is the bestsolution now.
A2 The Government can get out of the red (deficit).
Present situation: Japan has serious deficit problems. According to
the Asahi Shinbun, the Japanese debt is now at 943 trillion 809 billion
600 million yen. (June 2011) This is the worst it has ever been.
Effect: It's easy and fast for the Government to gather consumption
tax revenues. Whenever people buy something, they have to pay tax on
it, and nobody can evade paying the consumption tax, so it's aneffective way to gather revenues from everyone in Japan.
Importance: As long as people continue to buy something, The
Government can gather consumption tax revenues. In 1989, theJapanese government introduced a consumption tax. At first, people
complained about it, but they didn't stop buying things. Also, in 1997,
the consumption tax was raised from 3% to 5%, and after that people
didn't stop shopping. We can't say that raising the consumption tax isthe cause of a possible economic depression. Even if the Government
raises the consumption tax, rich people can buy expensive things andthe Government can get tax revenues from them. Also, if people knowthat the tax will be raised to 10%, of course they will want to buy
things before it is raised. This situation where many people buy
expensive things such as TVs, houses, cars, etc. in a short time isactually good for the economy.

DA 1 A raise in the consumption tax to 10% will widen the gap
between rich and poor.
Present situation: The consumption tax is regressive, which will
widen the gap between the rich and the poor. According to the
Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (2005), the tax
burden ratio for the rich is 1.4%, and the ratio for the poor is 4.2%.
So, this initiative will put a bigger financial burden on the poor than
the rich.
Effect: Because the tax burden on the poor will increase, it will makelife more difficult for them. Moreover, the Japanese consumption tax
on food is the highest of all the countries belonging to the OECD.
Food is a daily necessity, so everyone in Japan will have to pay higher
taxes.
Importance: According to a report by the OECD in 2005, Japan's
poverty rate, which shows the number of people who get less than half
the average salary, is much higher than most of the other member
nations of the OECD. To our surprise, Japan is ranked number fiveterms of poverty rate. From these data, we can argue that Japan is anation where the gap between the rich and the poor is wide. Thismeans that many people in our country barely have enough money fornecessities, and cannot spend money freely.
DA 2 After the consumption tax has been increased, a businessrecession is expected to take place.
Present situation: In 1997, Japan raised its consumption tax from
3% to 5%, so consumption tax revenues have increased. Other taxes,
such as the income tax and the corporation tax, however, were reduced
because of this raise in consumption tax. Because the consumption tax
is planned to be set at 10%, consumers will be reluctant to buy
products. They will care more about not wasting things, or they may
even be unwilling to buy anything. This will lead to decreased profits
for corporations and decreased corporation tax revenues. In addition,
because of these decreases, corporations will have a harder time to pay
salaries. That is why the corporation tax and income tax will have to be
decreased again. That is to say, this is a bad economic cycle, which is
why we argue that raising the consumption tax is connected to an
economic depression.
Effect : In 1997, consumption tax became 5% from 3%, but
consumption tax revenues increased by only one trillion yen whileother taxes decreased, so the total tax revenues were in fact reduced.
This is a fact. Moreover, business activities have become worse
nowadays. In other words, if the consumption tax becomes 10%, there
is a high possibility that business activities will slow down, like in 1997.
Importance: Economic depression is connected to a reduction in thenumber of contractual employments, so it also increases the number ofpeople who can't earn so much money. On the whole, the number ofpoor people will be greater, and it will be harder for them to pay taxes.
This plan is a burden for them. As a result, the present economic
depression will get worse.

Natsumi Okui
Masahiro Shimomura
Natsumi Yamazaki
Takayuki Sakazume
Manami Kikuchi
Shota Uchiyama

Amu Sasaki
Ryouhei Hama
Mebae Sakaguchi
Yoshifumi Ogura
Manami Tanji
Daiki Hisamatsu

2

No.9

Winter 2012

Student's
Voice-Similarities and Differences Between Studying in High School and Studying at University
There are several similarities between studying in high school and studying atuniversity. First of all, high school student groups are similar to university students
groups. People with common interests gather in groups such as sports, and hobbies.
Second, both high school students and university students have to get enoughcredits. If they don't get enough credits, they can't get promoted or graduate.
However, university students must worry about getting credits more than highschool students. Third, university course grading is similar to high school course
grading. There is a GPA in the high school and university, so students should get ahigh GPA, but Japan's GPA is not as important as America's.
Furthermore, there are several differences between studying in high school andstudying at university. First of all, university professors are not as strict as highschool teachers. If you are late or absent from a university class, professors willusually ignore you. By contrast, high school teachers would get very angry and tell
you off. Second, university is freer than high school, so university students candecide their own class schedule and their own part-time job. Third, university
courses are different from high school courses because university students study
major courses. On the other hand, high school students study general subjects.
Fourth, university facilities are not similar to high school facilities. For example, auniversity has many buildings, large land, big classrooms, and a school cafeteria.
However, high school does not have these things and has smaller classrooms.
As I have explained above, there are several similarities and differences between
studying in high school and studying at university.
Akihiro Yamamoto
First of all, university student groups are similar to high school student groups.
They make mutual friends with people with common interests and gather in groups
such as sports or fashion. Likewise, university students act as a group. They usually
eat lunch with their friends.
However, university professors aren't as strict as high school teachers. If you arelate or absent from a university class, professors would usually ignore you. By
contrast, high school teachers would get very angry and tell you off. Also university
class time is longer than high school's class time. For example, a university class is
90 minutes long, but a high school class is 45~50 minutes long. Moreover, almost
all university students work part-time. Similarly, high school students are also busy
because of club activities or study.
As explained above, there are similarities and differences between studying inhigh school and studying at university. If you go to university I am sure you would
have a nice experiences there.
Yukiko Tokusa
First of all, university student groups are similar to high school student groups.
That is, people with common interests like sports and fashion gather in groups.
Second, high school students are graded by their test scores and by their percentage
of attendance. Likewise, university students are also graded this way. Another pointis that university and high schools have similar facilities. Both of them have a lot ofclassrooms, a gymnasium, and a school store.
However, there are differences between them too. First, university professors
aren't as strict as high school teachers. If you are late or absent from a university
class, professors would usually ignore you. By contrast, high school teachers would

get very angry and tell you off. In addition, university students are more responsible
for themselves than high school students. You must know your entire schedule atuniversity, while high school students are told all their information by teachers.
As explained above, there are many similarities between studying in high schooland studying at university, but studying at university is freer regarding almost all
things, compared to studying in high school.
Emi YamaoFirst of all, university student groups are similar to high school student groups.
People with common interests gather in groups such as sports and fashion. Anotherpoint is that university facilities are similar to high school facilities. For example,
both university and high school have a student's dining hall and a library, a school
store, and a gymnasium.
On the other hand, university professors aren't as strict as high school teachers.
If you are late or absent from a university class, professors would usually ignore you.
By contrast, high school teachers would get very angry and tell you off.
In addition, university students are freer than high school students, because
university students can choose their subjects themselves. For example, they can
decide on their clothing, subjects, class times, and attendance. On the other hand,high school students must follow school rules. Moreover, school rules are usuallystrict, and there are too many rules.
In addition, high school students aren't as responsible as university students. If
you are in trouble, your family and your class teacher will help you. By contrast,
university students have to find their own solution to a problem.
As explained above, these are many similarities and differences between studying
in high school and studying at university.
Tsugumi Kito
Studying in high school is often similar and different to studying at university. I
will explain some of these similarities and differences for you.
One similarity is that both high school and university have student groups forpeople who have similar hobbies and interests. They gather together and spend timein a classroom, and some of them help the school or university. Also, both
university and high school students think about their future after graduating and so
attend several seminars and courses about the future after graduation.
On the other hand, there are several differences between high school anduniversity. First, university professors aren't as strict as high school teachers. For
example, if students make a noise professors don't pay attention, and if you are lateor absent from a university class, professors usually ignore you. In contrast, highschool teachers get very angry if you are late. Learning styles are also different. Inhigh school, all students learn the same subjects each day, but in university each
student learns different subjects. In addition, university students can choose thesubjects they want to learn, but high school students cannot. Furthermore,
university has more facilities than high school. For example, there is a cafeteria,
bookstores and many computer rooms.
As explained above, high school and university have both similarities anddifferences. However, I think there are more differences, and university gives more
importance to students' freedom.
Masaki SatoNo Smoking Please!
Generally speaking, many people think that smoking is disagreeable. I don't likesome heavy smokers and smoking areas. Now, there are three smoking areas at
Hokkai Gakuen University. In the old days there were two smoking areas, but inrecent years, HGU managers added on to the facilities. This plan met with strong
opposition from many non-smoking HGU students but their voice was ignored.
Non-smokers have rights too. I think that the status of smokers is weakening
because in many countries, smoking is prohibited in workplaces, public areas,
restaurants and universities. I dislike smoking because it has a lot of disadvantages.
For example, it is unhealthy, it has a bad smell, and smoking areas are an eyesore.
For these reasons, I think that we should cut back on smoking areas at Hokkai
Gakuen University.
Firstly, smoking is unhealthy. Everybody knows, smoking is bad for your health.
It is associated with an increased risk of cancer and heart attacks. My grandfather
was a heavy smoker and smoked around 10 cigarettes a day. As a result, he died of aheart attack at the young age of 64. If he had stopped smoking, probably, he would
have lived longer. You shouldn't jeopardize your health by smoking. For this reason,
I believe, smoking is unhealthy.
Secondly, cigarette smoke has a bad smell, so smoking is no longer allowed inpublic places. Smokers may not notice the smell of cigarettes, but non-smokers
don't like the smell. My friend is a smoker. He smokes at home, so every piece offurniture in his living room smells of cigarettes. I can't stand the smell of cigarettes.
When asked how they felt about dating a smoker, both male smokers and nonsmokers said they thought women who smoked were unattractive. Also, a growing
number of employers are refusing to hire smokers because of the bad smell. I think,
HGU should restrict smoking to places on the campus where nonsmokers can't
smell the cigarettes.
Thirdly, smoking areas are an eyesore. It may make some people feel terrible.
Smoking manners aren't the only problem. I think that people have a tarnishedimage of smoking areas. Where possible, these areas should not be located at theentrances of buildings like they are at HGU. HGU must cut back on smoking areas
because a lot of visitors think that the university is clean. Additionally, HGU shouldmake a thorough distinction between where people can and cannot smoke. A ban
on smoking and the separation of smoking areas from public view is currently being
promoted in public facilities such as schools and government offices. I feel, thereputation of the university is very important, so HGU should do the same.
In conclusion, smoking areas may be needed for smokers, but HGU should cut
back on smoking areas that can be easily seen. I hope that non-smokers become
more assertive of their right to a smoke-free environment. I feel smoking isn't
healthy, cigarette smoke smells bad, and smoking areas look bad, that's why I want
the university to cut back on smoking areas at HGU.
Toshiki Uesugi

No.9

Winter 20123

Bests & Favorites
The best day in my life by Misato

My third year's high school festival was one of the best days of my life. At myschool, we got some prizes in the school festival for the best shop, the best class flag,and the best performance, for example. All prizes have first, second, and third place.
My class prepared hard to win prizes. Of course, other classes also prepared hard. We
discussed a lot, and we decided to open a pizza shop in my class, but it was notnormal pizza. It was like a spring roll. We calculated costs for the shop. Actually, we
had to spend less than 30,000 yen to make pizza, decorate the room and make a flag.
Preparing was really hard. Sometimes we had a quarrel but we were soon friends again
and cooperated. Finally, we managed to make a wonderful shop. Our shop looked likean Italian restaurant, and it had a really nice atmosphere.
The day before the school festival, there were some performances such as dances,songs and special ability performances. There were also some prizes for this. My bestfriend and I sang a song in English. We were nervous but we sang the song well, andmy classmate ate a watermelon quickly. It is one of her special abilities. I think she canbecome a very good comedian. At the school festival, many customers came. We werevery busy making pizza. There were few people in my class compared with otherclasses, so it was hard run everything smoothly, but I did my best because my family
and friends came to my class and encouraged me. I was really pleased when customers
said our pizza was tasty. After the school festival, students' association announced theresults. Fortunately, my class got many prizes. We won the best shop prize, the best
flag prize and third prize for performance. We were so pleased that we cried.
Through this event, I learned a lot of things. For example, I learned how tocooperate with my class mates, how to resolve differences of opinion, and theimportance of friends and family. I reconfirmed again, our class was wonderful! I will
never forget that day.

One of the best days in my life by Sena

I will never forget the day when I won a marathon competition at my junior highschool. When I was at elementary school, I lost to Daiki, a junior student in a
marathon competition. He was fast at running. I was very sad. However, I beat him ata junior high school marathon competition. This is the story of the race.
I remember the day clearly. It was a hot August day in Chitose, and I was fourteen
years old and a second-grader. The race was held near the school on an eightkilometer course. There were two hundred runners from first, second, and third grade.
The race started with a starting gun. I ran as fast as I could and at the end I was about
fifty meters ahead when I hit the goal tape. Daiki was second. After the race, he toldme I was very fast. Also, my friends and family celebrated my victory with me, so I
was happy. Then, later that day, my family and I went to a restaurant and the foodtasted much better than usual.
This was the one of the best days in my life because I practiced hard to beat Daiki
for a long time. In addition, my effort paid off. Finally, I beat him. I learned that if
you are strive very hard, surely that effort will pay off.

A school trip in junior high school, one of the best days of my life, by Kento

I will never forget the day when I went on a school trip in junior high school. We
went to Aomori when I was in third grade. At the time, I had never left Hokkaido,
and hardly ever traveled with friends, so I was especially looking forward to going.
This trip was a three day trip, but the best day was the first day, which we mainly
spent travelling, but I enjoyed it so much.
In the morning, we took a bus and left Sapporo. In the bus, I was talking with mybest friends about different things and we really warmed up there, but I sometimes felt
sleepy because the jotuney was too long. In the afternoon, we had lunch on the bus.
After that, we played cards and visited some places. It was very fun for us. I think I
yearn for this kind of sightseeing because I hardly experience it now I'm an adult. I
feel lonely now. In the evening, we arrived at the hotel at last and I went to the hotel
room with five of my friends. We were watching TV and talking to each other about
important things that we usually do not talk about. Taking a bath in the hotel withfriends was also great fun. After nightfall, we continued talking until we got tired, so it
was very hard for me to get up the next day, but they are precious memories.
I want to go to Aomori with my friends again. I learned that the most important
thing is not where I go but who I go with.

The best day in my life- Motoyo

Although, I have had several good days, the best day in my life was the farewellparty in Aspen, Colorado.
I went there with my classmates and two escorting teachers and when I was asecond grade junior high school student. We stayed with a family separately. In theparty, we enjoyed ourselves a lot, for example, taking some pictures with our hostfamilies with all of us gathered together in a big group, eating and drinking manykinds of foods and drinks. We also danced Yosakoi! I was a little sad then because I
knew that we had to part from each of our host families. After the party broke up, I
went back to my host family's house to watch fireworks. It was so beautiful.
The next day, most of my classmates cried a lot because they were very sad toleave. It became my most unforgettable memory, so if I can, I want to meet my hostfamily again and talk with them about various things.

My Favorite Place

Animals are important to people's lives. Many people think that we can feel happy
when we see a variety of animals‘ faces and actions. Especially, a zoo is my favorite
place. Thus my favorite place is Asahiyama Zoo. I have two reasons for this.
First, Asashiyama Zoo makes a lot of effort. When I went there, I saw a lot ofanimals even though it was in the middle of winter. It must be really hard to let
animals live as they are. For example, lions usually live in a warm area and it is hardfor them to live in a cold area. Also, there are white bears and their habitat is a reallycold area, but in the Asahiyama Zoo we can see them in the really hot summer. It goesup to over 30˚C in that area, but still white bears can live in that environment.
Because of these kinds of efforts that the Asahiyama Zoo staff makes to let animals live
as they are, it had the most visitors among all the zoos in Japan.
Second, I respect the idea of the director of Asahiyama Zoo. When I was a highschool student, the Asahiyama Zoo's director came to my high school and talked to us
and I was moved by his speech. He really thinks and cares about the animals and I
actually could see how he takes care of the animals and how he tries to attract visitors.
For example, when I went to Asahiyama Zoo, I saw penguins flying in the water and I
could really enjoy it. The director set up a special place for observing penguins. We
could walk through a see-through tunnel in the water and observe them. He said that
this place lets humans and penguins get closer physically and mentally.
In this way, Asahiyama Zoo has a lot of fascinating points we can enjoy and know
more about animals. Therefore, my favorite place is Asahiyama Zoo.
Kodai Saito

My favorite singer

My favorite singer is Avril Lavigne. She was born in a Province of Ontario in
Canada. She is 28 years old. She looks younger than her age. She is 158 centimeterstall. She has an older brother and a younger sister. She began singing with her motherin church from the age of two. When she was twelve, she began playing the guitar.
Her first album ‘Let Go’ was a huge hit in America, Canada and Australia. She wasjust seventeen. Her hit singles include ‘Complicated’ , ‘Sk8er Boi’ and ‘Girlfriend’ .
‘Complicated’ was chosen as the best-selling song in Canada. Her 2nd album ‘Under
My Skin’ and 3rd album ‘The Best Damn Thing’ is ranked 1st. She got married to
Deryck Whibley in 2005, but they divorced in 2009. She appeared on some Japanese
TV programs. She holds concert tours in many countries. She hates paparazzi.
Kanako Fukuda

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

This is my favorite book. I had already seen this movie before I read the book, so
it was easy for me to read and understand. The book tells about love among thearistocracy of England about two hundred years ago. The main characters are twosisters, Elinor and Marianne. Their characters are opposite. Elinor, the older one, isreserved and practical, but her younger sister is emotional and believes in true love.
Marianne falls in love with a rich and handsome man named Willoughby. But heleaves her suddenly and for no reason, and Marianne is heartbroken. It seems she will
never be happy again and never be able to love again. But there is another man,Colonel Brandon, who is not so young, handsome or cool as Willoughby but who
always loves her and cares for her. Finally she notices that Brandon is a precious
person. He proposes to her, and they are married.
Elinor also finds a man who loves her, named Edward, but he has alreadypromised to marry another woman. It seems that they will never be together, but inthe end, Edward comes and tells Elinor that the other woman has rejected him. So
they are married after all.
So the story has a happy ending for both sisters.
Erika Komatsu

A World Famous Singer from Sapporo

Hatsune Miku is a famous Japanese singer, but she is not a person. She is a singing
application for PCs, developed by Crypton Future Media, Inc. The company is basedin Sapporo, so many people say that Miku is from Sapporo. When Miku was releases,
she fascinated many “otaku,” which means people who are interested in cartoons,comics or video games. Many of them bought Miku and made their own original
songs, and then they let Miku sing the songs and posted the videos with their own
songs on Nico Nico Douga, which is a Japanese website like YouTube. A few years
later, many foreign otaku were fascinated by Miku, so she became a world famous
singer. Surprisingly, Miku appeared in a Toyota commercial for the Corolla car for theAmerican market. Furthermore, Google also used her to promote Google Chrome,
which is why I am sure Hatsune Miku is a world famous singer.
Hatsune Miku is not just a singer, but also a dancer. We can let her dance with thefree Japanese software, MMD. It stands for “Miku Miku Dance,” and we can use it tocreate 3D movies. Moreover, Miku appears in a rhythm game that is called Hatsune
Miku: Project DIVA. THe gameplay is similar to other rhythm games, but we areallowed to choose from a lot of songs sung by Miku, and she dances during the
gameplay. That is why she is not just a singer, but also a dancer. I am proud of her as afellow Sapporo citizen.
Daiki Hisamatsu

4

No.9

Winter 2012

Movies Movies Movies
Cinderella Man
Cinderella Man is a movie based on
the true story of heavyweight boxer
James J. Braddock, played by Russell
Crowe. It begins in New York City inthe late 1920s. James (“Jimmy”)
always got money for his family by
fighting. But on October 29, 1929 thestock market crashed and the economy
failed. Most people lost their jobs andlost their money, and he and his family
became poor at this time. He even lost
his boxing license.
Every day Jimmy stood outside the locked gate of the docks
waiting to get a job loading heavy sacks. His right hand was broken,
so it was almost impossible for him to do it, but he kept trying. His
family was so poor that they couldn't even pay their electricity bill, so
he had to work. But he dreamed of returning to the boxing ring.
Then one day in 1934 he finally got a chance to fight. Though hiswife was opposed to the idea, he decided to fight anyway. He won.
After that he got a chance to fight the champion, Max Baer.
Everybody expected Jimmy to lose because Baer was so strong he had
killed two men in the ring. Jimmy's wife begged him not to fight, but
he decided to go through with it despite her opposition.
The world champion fight between Max Baer and James
Braddock took place at Madison Square Garden on June 13, 1935. It
was very exciting. Baer was looking for the knockout, but Braddock
stayed away from him. The fight went all fifteen rounds. When the
final bell rang, the two fighters were beaten, bloody and tired. In theend, the new heavyweight champion of the world was James J.
Braddock!
Cinderella Man is not just a story about boxing. It is the story of afamily who stayed together through hard times and the story of aman who fought for what he loved and believed in. The moral I
learned from it is: “Where there's a will, there's a way. Never give up!”
Wataru Hatamoto

Fast Food Nation
The movie Fast Food Nation is a good example of American fast
food culture for three reasons. First, it shows people eat much junkfood almost every day. For example, people eat snacks, frozen foods,
candy, and other unhealthy food. In this movie, hamburgers are themodel of junk food. Recently, people can always get them anywhere
because fast food chains have expanded. All American cities have
many fast food restaurants such as McDonald's, Burger King,
Wendy's, Jack in the Box, and other restaurants. The reason fast foodrestaurants can expand is that their products are sold at reasonable
prices, so people canbuy them easily. Why
can fast food restaurants sell products at
reasonable prices? The
reason is that the foodis produced by mass
production, but it isalso a big problem.

Second, the film questions the safety of food. Mass production is
one of the problems. In this movie, for example, beef patties are
mixed with cow manure. A company must cut down on personnel
expenses by using mass production, so laymen remove the insides
from cows. Many chemical “spices” are also part of the problem.
Tastes and smells are artificial, so the actual taste of the meat is notimportant. Many fast food companies pursue only low costs andefficiency, so we should make sure whether products are safe or not.
The actor Bruce Willis appears as a company executive, and he says
people should not worry so much about dirty food as long as workers
cook it properly at high temperatures.
Finally, Fast Food Nation shows the immigration problem isrelated to American fast food culture. The company employs
immigrants at low cost, so the company can do mass production. In
this movie, immigrants are treated as slaves by the factory boss (whois also Hispanic). In turn, the factory boss is treated poorly by thecompany's executives. Many workers live together in small houses orapartments to save money, and at the factory there are many physicalrisks. This relationship has given fast food culture the problems
mentioned above. Everything is related to fast food's influence, so weshould reconsider the costs and benefits of fast foods in our daily
lives.
Rina HorigomeNight at the Museum
The movie Night at the Museum isa good example of American multiculturalism for three reasons. First, in themovie, there are many races such as
Indian, Hispanic, Asian, and others.
This shows that America has changed
to multiculturalism. Also, there arestrong, positive women in the movie,
unlike in old traditional American
movies. Second, the main character,
Larry, (Ben Stiller) is low status and has
bad luck. He has lost his job manytimes and is divorced from his wife.
In this movie there are Indians, Romans, Aztecs, and Hispanics,
and they're in the same museum. At first, there were many
confrontations between them, but they began getting along with eachother. In addition, main characters of traditional movies have powerand good images, but this movie's main character is the opposite. He
had a brilliant school career and built some companies, but he failed
at many business ventures. He had a wife, Erica, but they divorced
because of his failures, and she took their son Nicky to her place with
her new husband. Nicky loves his father and he often goes to see him.
After that, Larry manages to get a night watch job at the American
Museum of Natural History.
Beside these male characters, women like Rebecca and Sacajawea
are important characters. Rebecca, who studies enthusiastically about
Sacagawea, is a museum guide in the daytime. Sacagawea is a
Shoshone Indian who was a guide and interpreter for Lewis and
Clark in 1805. In traditional movies, women had no power, so thisshows that women's social position has increased. Indeed, America
has changed from being traditional to multicultural and has moreegalitarianism.
Yuria Ikeda

No.9

Winter 2012

5

My Ideal Job
Junior High School Teacher
My ideal job is a junior high school teacher. I've had this dream since I
was a junior high school student. To be a teacher I have to have kindness,leadership ability, patience, the ability to understand and some other abilities.
I think that the most important ability is the power of understanding.
Because students are so childish towards teachers and teachers are stubborn
towards students, students are different from adults so teachers have to havethe power of understanding. They say that although it is easy to get a teacher's
certificate, it is difficult to pass the examination. Because the number ofpeople who want to be a teacher is many, there is a great deal of competition
to be a junior high school teacher.
Shota Araya

The Right Job for Your Personality
I wanted to be a hair dresser in my childhood because my father is a hair
dresser. But as I grow older I no longer think so. I wanted to be a kindergarten
teacher when I was an elementary school student because I like playing withchildren. When I started a part-time job, I was good at talking with various
people and now, I'm able to get acquainted with the people. So I do not
dream of the future that has not been clearly decided yet. In the future I want
to work with a lot of people. Since I have been studying English, I also want
to work where I can use the power of my English.
Kotoko Satou

Police Officer
My ideal job is to be a police officer. There are a couple of reasons for this.
First, I think that organized groups of gangsters are increasing so Japan has

become more dangerous than before so we should avert this danger. Second,my father is a policeman and he is working in Sapporo now. I have seen his
figure since I was a child. That's why I think that I am influenced by myfather. But if I really want to become a police officer, I need to build up mybody because I do not know when danger will occur. So it may be difficult forme to be a police officer because I am not good at training although I like toexercise. For these reasons, my ideal job is to be a police officer.
Shouhei Okuyama

PianistMy ideal job is a pianist. I want to be a pianist in the future because I likethe piano's sound or tone. When I was an elementary school student, I
started to learn and play the piano. It was enjoyable. So, I am practicing the
piano now. The requirements for this job is playing skill. To get this job is very
difficult. If I want to get this job, I have to practice playing the piano more
and more. And I need to do it a lot of times. But I like playing the piano so I
practice more and I want to be good at playing the piano.
Kaori Kawai

Wedding Planner
My ideal job is a wedding planner. I like to see that people are happy. To
become a wedding planner, a person needs the ability to think of people's
happiness and ability to plan. It is difficult to get this job because it is not easy
to think of two other people's happiness. I must help them create memories
of a life time. I think that it will make me happy if I can create theirhappiness.
Yui YoshidaFears
I'm afraid of bees and small ants, because they are poisonous. I have neverbeen stung by a bee but I hear it is very painful and people sometimes die. We
shouldn't run away but I always run quickly and I have been afraid of small
ants for three years. Once, when I woke up in the morning, I found lots ofants walking all over my bed, so I was shocked.
Misaki
When I was a child, I was afraid of crows because their eyes and claws arescary. When I was nine years old, I was attacked by a crow and I went tohospital. I think they are devils.
HayatoI'm afraid of gangsters. They often threaten other people and may become
violent, so I'm scared of them. I don't want to be an adult like them, and I
never want to have anything to do with them. I have many different fears like
this, but I don't have a problem for the moment. I think it is usual for us tobe afraid of things and it is not bad. We don't need to hide our weak points orfears.
Kento
I'm afraid of dentists. When I was young, I would often go to dentists
because I had bad teeth, so I was often treated by them. During treatment, I
heard the noisy sound of drills. The sound was so high tone that my headhurt as if someone hit it. The sounds always made me crazy. That's why I am
afraid of dentists.
Shouhei
When I was a child, I was afraid of swimming in pools because I nearlydrowned in a swimming pool.
HonokaI'm worried about TOEIC test because it's difficult for me but it is very
important for me to measure my English skills so I'm trying hard to get readyfor this test now.
Yuri
When I was a child, I was scared of ghosts. I believed in ghosts because mymother said ghosts eat children if they stay up late.
Moe

I'm worried about my future because I don't know what I want to do yet. I
spend every day with no concrete goal, so I worry so much about it now.
TomokoMy club teacher is very scary. There were some strange reasons he got
angry with me, for example, he said “Your face is rude!” or “You made theweather bad!”. So I was afraid of him. I am also afraid of gorillas. When I wasa junior high school student, I went to Maruyama Zoo. There was a gorillaand it threw some poop at me! So I am afraid of gorillas.
Hiroki
When I was a child, I was afraid of horror video games. The reason is that
I once saw my father playinga game called “Bio Hazard”. My father hit many
zombies. I felt bad and was scared but, carelessly, I watched the game that myfather played. Probably, I might be interested in the game now. However, I
am not afraid of speaking to large groups because I belonged to a student
council in my high school. I often announced something on the stage.
Initially, I was anxious and nervous. But after I tried it, I got confidence andmental power.
TakeshiThere are three things I am not afraid of. First, I'm not afraid of the movie“Ring” because I love horror movies very much now. Second, I'm not afraidof cutting my finger in my part time job because I got used to using a kitchen
knife to make dishes and my skill of cooking has improved but cutting myfinger is very painful. Third, I'm not afraid of ghosts because they don't exist
in the world and I have never seen one. I'm worried about giving a speech in
public because I'm shy. When I am tense, I can't consider anything so it isdifficult for me to talk to people I have never met before. In the future, when
I do presentations at a company, I might feel tense so I need to practice givinga speech in public and talking to many people from now.
Yuto

6

No.9

Winter 2012

Biographies
Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury, born Farrokh
Bulsara, was a vocalist of the rock band
‘Queen’. He was born in Zanzibar, but
he immigrated to India. He started
playing the piano at the age of 5. He
immigrated to Britain in 1964. He
attended Ealing Art College, where helearned graphic design. He joined
Queen in 1970. He composed a large
number of songs. He played the piano and the keyboard.
Queen's fourth album called “A Night at the Opera”, was ahuge hit in many countries. Their hit singles include“Bohemian Rhapsody”, and “You're My Best friend”. Queen's
albums were a huge hit in many countries, for example,“News of the World”, “Jazz”, and “The Game”. Freddie diedof a disease in 1991. He was forty-five years old. Many people
think of him as the world's best vocalist.
Kento Ichimura

Shinji Kagawa
Shinji Kagawa is a famous
Japanese football player whoplays for the English club,
Manchester United and theJapanese national team. He
started playing football at
the age of 6. Cerezo Osaka
noticed his talent and so he became the first player in Japan tosign a professional contract before graduating high school. In
2012, Shinji moved to the U.K. to play the Manchester
United. The team is a world-famous big club. However, heplays fair with other star players. His strong point is dribbling.
It is fantastic and grabs audiences. He is hugely popular inboth the U.K. and Japan. Many people are hopeful of his
performance in the U.K.
Okuya Suzuki

Monkey Majik
Monkey Majik is a Japanese - Canadian pop rock band
formed in 2000 in Sendai. The band currently consists ofCanadian brothers, Maynard Plant and Blaise Plant, eachacting as lead vocalists and guitarists, as well as two Japanese
members, Tax on drums, and Dick on bass. Monkey Majik iscurrently signed to Binyl
Records, a subsidiary of Avex
Records, and are managed by
Edwards Entertainment
Group. Due to the natural
blend of both Eastern andWestern pop rock influences,

English Lounge

Monkey Majik has often been referred to as a “hybrid band.”
Much of the bands music has been cross - promoted via
television programs, commercials, and movies. I like theband.
Shunsuke Ishigaki

ShineeShinee is a South Korean idolgroup which consists of five boys.
They are thought of as “contemporary band”. The groups name isShinee. It is a new word theycreated which combines the ending“ee” to “shine” to mean “shining”,
and it means “those who shine”. As
a contemporary band, they show trends in music, dance, andfashion. They had debut in South Korea in 2008. Their firstmini album was “Replay”. This is their debut song. They heldan event at the Abbey Road Studios in 2011 where the Beatles
recorded most their music. That was the first Asian group torecord there. In addition, they made a while world contract
following Hikaru Utada in Asia. My favorite member is Lee
Taemin. He was born on July 18, 1993. He is 19 years old.
He is the youngest in member the group. He likes singing anddancing. He began dancing the age of 8. He can play the
piano, so he plays the piano in concert. They had debut inJapan in 2011. They gave concerts this year at Japanesearenas. I went to the concert in July. I love Shinee!!
Miho Ishikawa

SMAPSMAP is a Japanese pop singing
group. They are national idols. The
members of SMAP are Masahiro,
Ta k u y a , G o r o , Ts u y o s h i a n d
Shingo. Masahiro Nakai was born
August 18 in 1972 and he is from
Kanagawa. Takuya Kimura wasborn November 13 in 1972 and heis from Tokyo. Goro Inagaki wasborn December 8 in 1973 and he is from Tokyo. Tsuyoshi
Kusanagi was born July 9 in 1974 and he is from Saitama.
Shingo Katori was born January 31 in 1977 and he is from
Kanagawa. They had a debut on September 9, 1991. Their
debut event was held at the Sebuen amusement park. This
event was held in the heavy rain. Their first single was “Can't
stop!!-LOVING”. This CD was supposed to be the No.1 inthe rankings, but it couldn't take No.1. At first, they weren't
very popular. However, now they are a national idol group.
They are famous Japanese singers and also actors. SMAP is agreat group of entertainers.
Manami Yokoo

Bring your lunch and come and enjoy a chance to chat in English
12:10-12:35

No.9

Winter 20127

Politics
Should the Japanese Government
Terminate JUST?
The Japan-U.S. Security Treat (JUST) is one of the great topics fordebate. Many Japanese have their own opinions and argue on theInternet, and some famous professors have published books related to
JUST. However, we cannot find the best solution because the topic has
many points at issue, such as trust between Japan and China, armament
expansion, and economic sanctions. Though many people have theirown ideas, many questions and claims seem to be off the point in
discussion and debate.
Some Japanese say that the Japanese government should terminate
JUST. The reason is related to the relationship between Japan and
China, and the economy. Goh Chok Tong, who was the second prime
minister of Singapore, claimed that JUST destroyed the relationshipbetween Japan and China, so after terminating it, the relationship will be
good. In 1997, the JLP, which is one of the political parties in Japan, also
made exactly the same claim. Moreover, improvement in the relationshipseems to bring good economic effects. Japan-China B2B (2008) said, "If
I take this opportunity, it will not be easy to restore the relations between
China and Japan. And now, the two countries lay emphasis on theconstruction of a strategic two-way reciprocal relationship. The firstthing to do is to establish strategic reciprocal relations to trust each other.
Further, China and Japan are two important countries with profits ineconomic development of the Asia-Pacific region, rather than a menace
to each other." China is growing in terms of economy, and the Chinese
economy has surpassed America's, so China is more important than
America in terms of the economy. Therefore, some people say JUST
should be terminated.
Some people disagree. One of the reasons is that Japan seems todepend on American power. They think that is because Japan cannot
protect herself. Therefore, if JUST is terminated, Japan cannot rely on
American forces, so Japan will expand her military to get self-defense
power. That will cause an arms race in Asia, which would increase therisk of war. That is why some Japanese say that the Japanese government
should not terminate JUST. Moreover, they have negative opinions of
the economic impact. They think if JUST is terminated, cooperation
between Japan and America will be destroyed because cooperation isbased on JUST. If cooperation is destroyed, America will take economic
sanctions when something inconvenient happens, and the economic
sanctions will make the Japanese economy worse. That is a big
disadvantage for Japan. Therefore, some Japanese do not want the
government to terminate JUST.
Compared to the advantages, the disadvantages are much more
serious, but we should not make a decision yet because this issue is quite
complicated. For instance, noise created by American forces in Okinawa
causes diseases related to stress, but American forces prevent arms
expansion in Asia. One of the most important points is that the treaty
makes our lives better. Another is how many people will be saved thanks
to the treaty. In this case, terminating JUST may cause a war, as
mentioned above. That means many people may die if JUST is
terminated. Given the type and quantity of potential damage, theJapanese government should not terminate JUST.
Daiki Hisamatsu

The Japanese Government
Since 2009, the Democratic Party of Japan has had political power.
When they got political power, Prime Minister Hatoyama tried to raise
the rate of carbon dioxide and to review public enterprises, among otherthings. At that time, problems came out such as distrust of money and adouble power structure. That is why the Hatoyama's cabinet's approval
rating dropped. It was popular to search for the administration's wasted

money. Nevertheless, national loans were issued that were larger than in
the past. The government printed Y44 trillion in national loans in 2010,
which is the largest so far.
Recently, the government has been arguing about the consumption
tax. Before a change of administration, they said they would not makeup the deficit with a new consumption tax. Prime Minister Kan andPrime Minister Noda, however, insisted clearly on the reconstruction of
the economy by raising the consumption tax. Noda advocated raising
the consumption tax from 5% to 10% during the election, but contrary
opinion appeared from the Ozawa faction of the party and other parties
working with the coalition. The reasons are insufficient cuts in
expenditures and harmful effects to the economy. People's opinions are
divided on this issue of raising the consumption tax.
Those who do not agree that the government should raise the tax
oppose it for a number of reasons. One is the regressivity of the tax. It isa heavy burden on the poor, so it is difficult for the poor to make aliving. The consumption tax is 5% now, and the poverty rate is 16%. If
the consumption tax is raised to 10%, some think it is impossible to
make a living. Those who do not agree with the government's idea thinkthat the government should raise other taxes such as the income tax andintroduce a luxury tax. By doing so, the government will not worsen thesituation for the poor.
Of course, there are people who agree with the government's idea. As
I said before, Japan has a large amount of national loans. According to
the Department of Treasury, all loans are Y900 trillion. If it continues toincrease, Japan may fall into financial crisis. Corporate and income taxes
are already very high, so if Japan raises these taxes, some companies andsome high income earners will complain that it is unfair. Furthermore,
Japan had a bad accident, the Tohoku Earthquake, so Japan needs areconstruction fund as soon as possible. According to a Japan ResearchInstitute article, the government needs more than Y40 trillion forreviving the stricken area.
If Japan raises the tax to 10%, it can increase the revenue about Y13
trillion more than this year's revenue. Some of those who agree with thegovernment's idea think that the government should raise the tax
temporarily and set the period of time. Actually, I do not know whether
raising the consumption tax is right or not. I agree with the opinion thatthe government should raise the tax for a set time in order to revive the
Tohoku area and its people.
Yuki Ishikawa

S TAFF
Lookout,no.9
Editor-in-chief
Assistant Editors◆◆◆

Winter 2012
B.Bricklin Zeff
Patrick O'Brien◆◆◆
Publisher:
Faculty of Humanities
Hokkai-Gakuen University
Printed by i-Word◆◆◆
The views expressed in Lookout
belong to the individual contributors,
and do not necessarily reflect theviews of the editors or HGU.

8

No.9

Winter 2012

We are on the lookout!

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
North-Sea Lookout is a place you can publish your own opinions about any topic that concerns you. If you want to write
a letter to the editor, please put it in Prof. Zeff's mailbox. If you prefer, you may have your name withheld from publication
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This issue shows the high level of writing in English achieved by Hokkai-Gakuen University students.
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