Sep 5

WIT Life #49: Regime Change

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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Interpreter/Translator/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03).  Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.

Since my last post there has been a huge shakeup in Japanese politics, with the Democratic Party winning in a landslide election and its leader Yukio Hatoyama poised to become the next Prime Minister.  His wife, Miyuki, has even been getting lots of press for her claim to have been abducted by aliens and taken to Venus when she was younger.  She is already fodder for late-night comedians, as this week she was the subject of a David Letterman Top-Ten list entitled “Signs the Japanese First Lady is Nuts.”

Analysts expect the Democrats to focus at least initially on their ambitious domestic agenda.  The party has pledged to change the postwar paradigm, promising to ease growing social inequality by handing more money and social benefits directly to residents rather than to industry or other interest groups.  It has promised to strengthen the social safety net and raise the low birthrate by giving families cash handouts of $270 per month per child and by charging lower gasoline taxes.  Such policies could bring about the start of recovery by lifting Japan’s flagging consumer spending.  Hatoyama has expressed a desire to move away from American-style capitalism.

The party has said it will rein in the powerful central ministries in Tokyo which have run postwar Japan on the Liberal Democrats’ behalf.  It plans to wrest away power from ministerial bureaucrats to ensure that spending more closely reflects public needs.  However, party’s leaders have not had much to say about how to address productivity, or Japan’s continuing battle with deflation or the overhang of a huge public debt.  Due to this, some people have not embraced its platform with much enthusiasm and are not optimistic about the Democrats’ ability to solve looming problems like the growing government debt and a rapidly aging population. Read More

Sep 4

JETAA Northern California 2009 Career and Networking Forum – Sept 27

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JETAA Northern California and the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco present:

The 2009 Career & Networking Forum

Sunday, September 27, 2009 – 1:00-5:00 p.m. – Kabuki Hotel

The Career & Networking Forum (CNF) co-sponsored by the JET Alumni Association of Northern California (JETAANC) and the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco, will take place on Sunday, September 27, 2009 at the Kabuki Hotel (www.jdvhotels.com/hotels/sanfrancisco/kabuki) at 1650 Post Street in San Francisco from 1:00-5:00 pm (registration begins at 12:30).

The event will include industry-related breakout sessions and a keynote address, as well as a networking session where attendees can meet representatives from various organizations, and discuss resumes and job hunting techniques with alumni. This event is FREE for all JET Alumni and $10 for Friends of JET (FOJ).

For all veteran alumni this is a great opportunity for you make some career contacts, catch up with old friends, and help recently-returned JETs. Through the industry-related breakout sessions, we are providing an opportunity for older alumni to help mentor newly returned JETs and JETs looking to transition into another career.

Following CNF the Consul General of Japan in San Francisco, Yasumasa Nagamine will be hosting a reception for recently-returned JETs at the Kabuki Hotel.  We would like to invite all JET Alumni attending CNF to this reception to help welcome back JET participants.

Please RSVP through the CNF registration link, also found below.

Tentative Schedule of Events:

• 12:30-1:00: Registration
• 1:00-1:10: Opening remarks
• 1:10-1:40: Keynote
• 1:40-2:45: Breakout sessions by industry
• 2:45-3:00: Break
• 3:00-5:00: Networking Session
• 5:00-7:00: Welcome Back Reception

>> Keynote Address: Timothy Morey, (CIR, Aomori City 1996 – 99) UC Berkeley Haas School of Business MBA, Senior Business Architect at Wipro Technologies. Focusing on the tools that can help you take action to realize your career aspirations.

>> Breakout sessions by industry
Hear from alumni who been there and done that. Get your questions answered from alumni who have all landed new jobs in a variety of fields.

>> Networking Session
What is the power of networking? Find out at this two hour-long session where you will have the opportunity to meet with Bay Area companies and organizations, and fellow alumni engaged in a variety of fields. Alumni will also be available to review your resume and help you showcase yourself and the skills you honed during your years on JET. You will not want to miss this opportunity to get a jump start on your career search!

**Be sure to bring an UPDATED resume and business cards (if you have them).
**Professional attire is required.

If you are interested in attending please register online by Monday, September 21, 2009. Space is limited so register now!

CNF Registration Link: https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dG9BSHhvRkpFSXZwbkJJeGc0Sm1DQ2c6MA.

***If your company or organization is interested in hosting a table during the Networking Session please contact cnf@jetaanc.org for more information***

Sep 4

Internship with JET alum Michael Auslin at American Enterprise Institute

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Hot of the JETAA DC yahoogroup, a really great JET-appropriate opportunity for JET alum academic and international relations types.  FYI, JET alum Michael Auslin is a professor of Japanese history and politics and currently the Director of Japanese Studies for the American Enterprise Institute in D.C.  See past JetWit posts about Michael Auslin here.

Japanese Studies:

An intern in this department will work under Resident Scholar Michael Auslin, head of AEI’s Japan Studies Program. Dr. Auslin is currently focusing on Japanese strategic thinking and security doctrine, as well as Asian maritime security issues.

Tasks include: researching, in Japanese and English, topics in Japan’s national security, maritime security issues, and Asia’s strategic security environment. The intern will also conduct research in support of publications and assist in the organization of AEI conferences and panel discussions. The ideal candidate for this position will have an interest in Japanese and Asian security affairs and reading ability in Japanese language.

All applications must be submitted online at www.aei.org/internships.

All applications must include a cover letter, resume, unofficial transcript, and short writing sample.

AEI internships are available to advanced undergraduate students, graduate students, and recent graduates. A minimum of a 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale is required. However, most successful candidates have at least a 3.5 GPA.

This internship is one of fifty offered by the American Enterprise Institute every semester. AEI’s internship program has repeatedly been named one of the top 100 internships in the nation. The work assigned to interns is highly substantive, consisting largely of academic research, conference attendance, and various other tasks in support of their particular department. Additionally, AEI internships offer a wealth of academically enriching opportunities, including access to our conferences and events; a series of policy lectures and career talks available exclusively to interns; and frequent intern happenings, informal gatherings providing the chance to interact with AEI’s prestigious staff.

If you have any questions, please contact Leslie.Forgach@ aei.org

Aug 20

Bankruptcy Bill #19 – Law Firm Raids

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BAPCPA Man and Bankruptcy Bill are cartoons created by Steven Horowitz (Aichi-ken, 1992-94) and Gideon Kendall.  For more cartoons, original bankruptcy haiku and even a bankruptcy country song, go to bankruptcybill.us.

(Click here to see larger version of the cartoon.)

Additionally, if anyone would like to take a stab at translating the cartoon into Japanese for JetWit’s Japanese fans out there, feel free to post in the comments section of this post.  Some cultural explanation might be helpful as well, given that Japanese bankruptcy laws are very different than the U.S.

Aug 19

BAPCPA Man #5 – 341 Meeting of Creditors

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BAPCPA Man and Bankruptcy Bill are cartoons created by Steven Horowitz (Aichi-ken, 1992-94) and Gideon Kendall.  For more cartoons, original bankruptcy haiku and even a bankruptcy country song, go to bankruptcybill.us.

(Click here to see larger version of the cartoon.)

Additionally, if anyone would like to take a stab at translating the cartoon into Japanese for JetWit’s Japanese fans out there, feel free to post in the comments section of this post.  Some cultural explanation might be helpful as well, given that Japanese bankruptcy laws are very different than the U.S.

Aug 19

JET alum working to build new Global MBA Program at Doshisha University

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Starting in September, Doshisha University in Kyoto will begin offering its Global MBA Program through its Graduate School of Business at Doshisha University in Kyoto.  And JET alum Eleanor Robinson (CIR Aomori-ken, 1999-2002) is actively involved in the administration of the program.

After leaving the JET Programme in 2002, Eleanor Robinson studied International Relations at Kyoto University with a focus on the history of Anglo-Japanese relations. She is still in the process of completing her PhD thesis while also currently working full-time as an administrator for the Graduate School of Business at Doshisha University in Kyoto. Her job is to translate documents, assist international students and a range of other tasks.  Eleanor notes that all of the classes on the Global MBA will be in English with an “Asia focus” and the program has a student cohort of 23 people from all over the world.

Links:

• Doshisha’s Global MBA – http://gmba.doshisha.ac.jp/
• Eleanor’s blog about her research and other work at Doshisha University:  http://eleanorinjapan.wordpress.com/
• JetWit Study Program Page (listing all graduate and other programs of study we know of that might be of interest to JETs and JET alums):  https://jetwit.com/wordpress/graduate-school/

Aug 18

New York de Volunteer Happy Hour Fundraiser – Friday 9/25

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7:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.

Enjoy Drink Specials, Raffles, and Prizes

http://www.nydevolunteer.org/activities/2009/2009.09.25_e.html

Location:

Slattery’s Pub

8 E 36th St. (btwn. 5th and Madison Ave.)

100% of cash tips will support to

NY de Volunteer’s

“Explore Japanese After School Program”

@ New York City Parks and Recreation Center

For more information regarding the FUNdRaiser please visit:

http://www.nydevolunteer.org/activities/2009/2009.09.25_e.html

Aug 18

WIT LIfe #48: Rousing the (Young) Electorate

Article/Journalism, Japan Trends, Translating/Interpreting, WIT Life Add Comment (1)

WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Interpreter/Translator/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03).  Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.

As we get further into August, the weather is not the only thing heating up in Japan.  People are greatly anticipating the national elections to be held at the end of the month, as many expect that at this time Prime Minister Taro Aso’s Liberal Democratic Party will lose its grip on power for only the second time in over half a century.  Voter surveys show that the Democratic Party  is favored to beat the LDP.  This largest opposition party vows to put more money in the hands of consumers, and support has soared for them and their ambitious election platform which includes Read More

Aug 11

BAPCPA Man #3 – Enter Subprimulus

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BAPCPA Man and Bankruptcy Bill are cartoons created by Steven Horowitz (Aichi-ken, 1992-94) and Gideon Kendall.  For more cartoons, original bankruptcy haiku and even a bankruptcy country song, go to bankruptcybill.us.

Update: Nice mention of BAPCPA Man on the independent law blog AboveTheLaw.com.

Additionally, if anyone would like to take a stab at translating the cartoon into Japanese for JetWit’s Japanese fans out there, feel free to post in the comments section of this post.  Some cultural explanation might be helpful as well, given that Japanese bankruptcy laws are very different than the U.S.

Aug 10

Procrastination: TranslationParty.com

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TranslationParty.com is a simple and amusing procrastination tool that demonstrates the hilarious quirkiness of machine translation.  Enter an English phrase and TranslationParty will automatically translate it into Japanese, then back into English, then back into Japanese, etc.  Until a Zen-like equilibrium is reached…

From Twitter @leesean via @myGengo.

Aug 9

What I Like About JetWit

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(Originally posted on April 28, 2009.)

Here’s your chance to help JetWit.  Just share a comment on this post saying what you like about JetWit.  (Or email your comment to jetwit [at] jetwit [dot] com and I’ll post it.)

Thanks for your help and yoroshiku onegaishimasu.

Update: Thanks to everyone who has posted comments so far!

Aug 9

Job: Freelance E -> J Legal Translation for Islands Hospice

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JetWit job poster Stephen Palanik (Fukushima Ken, 2004-08) learned of the following freelance translation opportunity through the Honyaku E <> J Mailing List and thought it might be of interest to former JETs. Stephen is a translator based in Hamamatsu city, Shizuoka Ken, and he periodically posts job listings and event information for JET alumni.

Islands Hospice is looking for a translator to translate 16 pages  (7100 words) of legal documents from English to Japanese.

For more information, see the additional posting on the Honyaku Home website, or contact Sohailah Sharp via e-mail, or phone at (918) 289-5408.

Aug 9

Job: In-House Translator at Nikko Asset Management (Tokyo)

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JetWit job poster Stephen Palanik (Fukushima Ken, 2004-08) learned of the following in-house translation opportunity through the Honyaku E <> J Mailing List and thought it might be of interest to former JETs. Stephen is a translator based in Hamamatsu city, Shizuoka Ken, and he periodically posts job listings and event information for JET alumni.

Nikko Asset Management is currently looking for a J to E translator (native English) to work full time in-house at their Tokyo HQ location. Material to be translated includes analyst reports, formal letters, articles, contracts and ad hoc documents.

They are seeking an eager and forward-thinking professional. Prior finance translation experience is not necessary, but it is important to be interested in finance, writing, and language; to be experienced in translation in any industry; and to be a quick learner. The compensation is about 6 million yen base plus bonus.

Interview selection will be based on resumes and writing samples. Interested parties should e-mail their resume and a writing sample directly to Ken Cogger, or to the Nikko Asset Management careers e-mail address to apply. The first interview will also include a brief translation test. Note that Nikko Asset Management is NOT currently seeking freelance translators.

Aug 8

JQ Magazine’s Summer 2009 “¼ Cheap Trick” Issue Is Out Now!

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The leader of a band that’s sold over 20 million records and brought the words “At Budokan” to the big time, the new Japanese ambassador to New York, a tour of Philadelphia that’s uncannily Zen, and chats with award-winning writers, French pastry operations managers and even a maid-outfitted cosplay superstar complete with bunny ears. All this and more in the new summer issue of JETAANY’s JQ magazine.

To preserve our budget for alumni events, and in an effort to be greener and save paper, JETAANY will begin charging for print copies of JQ Magazine. The cost is $12 for 4 issues and you will only have the opportunity to sign up once a year – annual subscriptions will occur each fall.  Please note that the magazine, in its entirety, is also available online. If you would like to sign up to receive a paper copy by mail, please follow the PayPal link below (Add to Cart) or e-mail magazinesubscriptions@jetaany.org for more information. Remember you must put “JQ subscription” and your desired mailing address in the Paypal comments box.

Editor: Justin Tedaldi – magazine@jetaany.org

Aug 7

WIT Life #47: The Times They Are A-Changin’

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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Interpreter/Translator/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03).  Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.

An article from this past Tuesday’s (August 4) Daily Sun newspaper caught my attention as it focused on gaijin.  It described how  foreigners are increasingly being recognized for the prestigious literature Akutagawa Prize.  Last year Chinese writer Yang Yi became the first non-native speaker of Japanese to win, and her comment at the ceremony held at a Tokyo restaurant was, “As a foreigner I have written novels and I am thrilled to have been recognized in this way.”  The 44-year-old Yang’s award-winning work titled “Toki ga nijimu asa” (A Morning When Time Blurs) is set during and after China’s democratization movement centering on the 1989 Tiananmen Incident.  The book follows a Chinese man who lived through those times and later moved to Japan, still holding on to his ideals.

This year further diversity was added to the proceedings of this 141-year old award when Read More