今日の英和対訳天声人語（おじさん的英語習得法、若い君ならもっと簡単かも。）

Indonesia prepares to bury more `martyrs'

　僕は英辞郎を使って英語を読みまくり、インターネットラジオのNHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースで時事英語を聞きまくってます。（＾＾；
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

Indonesia prepares to bury more `martyrs'

03/31/2005

In the Islamic world, bodies are interred, not cremated, perhaps in line with the belief in resurrection in the next world.

Usually, bodies are cleaned and draped with unbleached cloth before they are put in coffins.

2005年03月30日（水曜日）付
【天声人語】

　イスラム圏では遺体は土葬される。来世での再生を信じる教えからか、火葬にはしない。遺体は浄（きよ）められ、生成りの布で覆われ、棺（ひつぎ）に納められる。

The procedure is different in the case of earthquake or tsunami victims. They are buried in the clothes they wore when they died, with nothing done to remove traces of injury or bloodstains.

While it may sound odd to outsiders, Islam is said to attach a special meaning to deaths in a natural disaster.

　地震や津波で亡くなった場合は作法が異なる。死の際の着衣のまま、傷や血の跡も消さないで葬られる。むごいようだが、イスラムの世界では、天災の犠牲者は特別な意味を持つという。

When people die in a natural disaster, not of illness or old age, they are treated as ``martyrs,'' regardless of whether they are infants or very old. They are held to be as noble as those who have lost their lives in jihad. Even without being cleaned, they become figures that are very much respected.

　病気や老衰でなく、天変地異で亡くなると、幼児でも老人でも殉教者として扱われる。たとえば聖戦ジハードで命を落とした殉教者と高貴さにおいて同列で、そのままでも十分に清らかだという。

I learned this much about Muslims when I visited Sumatra in Indonesia early in February to cover the aftermath of the Dec. 26 tsunami disaster.

The stench of death still hung in the air in villages of Aceh province. Hundreds of bodies were being recovered every day. I saw piles of black plastic bags filled with corpses on a roadside.

　以上の知識は先月初め、インドネシアのスマトラ島で取材したときに教わった。訪れたアチェでは、村々にまだ死臭が漂い、毎日数百もの遺体が掘り出されていた。黒いポリ袋に入れられた骸（むくろ）が、道ばたに積まれていたのを覚えている。

On Monday night, a full three months later, Sumatra was hit by another giant earthquake.

``Last night, everyone had an illusion that a tsunami was coming,'' Yusdar Zakaria, 46, a local university professor, told me over the telephone. ``All members of my family moved to the room on the uppermost floor and spent the night there until dawn,'' he added.

According to Zakaria, the sounds of cars fleeing to higher ground and numerous motorcycle collisions made the town a noisy place until the early hours of Tuesday.

　津波の襲来から３カ月しかたっていないスマトラ島を再び大地震が襲った。「ゆうべはだれもが津波の幻に取りつかれた。家族みんなで最上階の部屋に移って夜を明かした」。地元の大学教授ユスダル・ザカリアさん（４６）は電話口で話した。市街地では、高台へ逃げる車やバイクの衝突事故が未明まで続いたという。

Many Indonesians had probably dropped their guard when thinking about another Big One striking. They no doubt thought they could rest easy since a disastrous temblor had hit in December.

It turned out that the next Big One struck before the bodies of the tsunami victims were all recovered.

Residents of the stricken areas must be overcome by a sense of powerlessness.

In areas where Muslims outnumber Christians, the coming days will see an increasing number of funeral processions for new ``martyrs.''

　あれほどの大地震の後だから、もう心配はない。そう楽観していた人が少なくなかったはずだ。津波による遺体の回収もまだ終わっていなかった。被災地の人々はいま、無力感に沈んでいることだろう。キリスト教徒もいるが、イスラム教徒の多い地域では、新たな「殉難者」たちを送る葬礼が本格化していく。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 30(IHT/Asahi: March 31,2005)

Who put an expressway over Nihonbashi?

　僕は英辞郎を使って英語を読みまくり、インターネットラジオのNHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースで時事英語を聞きまくってます。（＾＾；
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

Who put an expressway over Nihonbashi?

03/30/2005

With the end of March nearing, it is time to offer a collection of quotable quotes:

``Our island has been ruined. I want to cry,'' said an official of a local fishery cooperative of Genkaijima island where many homes were destroyed by the March 20 earthquake that hit northern Kyushu. He was speaking on behalf of all evacuated islanders who are still unable to return home for fear of aftershocks. They have had to pass up the chance to take advantage of the ongoing fishing season.

2005年03月29日（火曜日）付
【天声人語】

　最近の言葉から。「島が壊れた。泣きたいよ」。福岡沖地震で多くの民家が崩れた玄界島で、漁協役員がもらした。漁期のさなかに事実上の全島避難が続き、漁業の島が呻吟（しんぎん）している。

Ten years have passed since cultists released deadly sarin gas aboard subway trains in Tokyo. Complaining of the paucity of state relief, a victim said, ``With little done to help us, time has been at a standstill during the past decade.'' She is still suffering from the aftereffects of the gas she inhaled on her way to work.

　地下鉄サリン事件から１０年たった。「私たち被害者はずっと置いてきぼりのまま、時間が止まっています」。出勤途中に事件に遭い、今も後遺症に苦しむ女性は、国による救済の乏しさを訴える。

March 10, 1945, is still remembered as the day of massive U.S. air raids that flattened much of eastern Tokyo. The passage of 60 years has not assuaged the anger of novelist Katsumoto Saotome, who was 12 when the carpet bombing happened, over a statement issued by the Imperial Headquarters. He took particular issue with wording that dwelled on the fate of the Imperial Palace, but described the civilian casualty toll only as ``other damage.''

In one passage, Saotome noted, the Imperial Edict for Servicemen said, ``Think of life as worth no more than a feather.'' The novelist went on to say, ``The authorities (in those years) referred to the people by a name that likened them to `grass.' It was only natural that they thought of our lives as worth no more than bird feathers.''

　６０年前の東京大空襲を、作家の早乙女勝元さんは１２歳で経験した。皇居の安否には言及しながら、市民の被害を「其（そ）ノ他」で片付けた大本営発表にこだわる。「『死は鴻毛（こうもう）よりも軽しと覚悟せよ』とは、軍人勅諭の一節だが、民草と呼ばれた国民の命は、鳥の羽よりも軽かったのである」

A panel set up to determine the damage done by the government's quarantine policy regarding Hansen's disease has presented its final report on how that policy was administered.

According to the report, the now-repealed policy involved aborting pregnancies.

There was a specimen room at a sanatorium, but samples were often secretly disposed of. This is what probably happened to the fetus who would have become the daughter of former patient Tetsuo Sakurai, a blind poet.

Sakurai had chosen a female name, Mariko, before the fetus was lost to an abortion. His lamenting poem goes: ``Mariko, I can't see you in the specimen room. Where are you now?''

　ハンセン病問題の検証会議が、隔離の実態を最終報告書にまとめた。「真理子よ　そのお前は標本室にはいないのです　真理子よ　今どこにいるのです」。元患者で盲目の詩人、桜井哲夫さんは、堕胎手術で失った娘に詩で呼びかける。標本までもが、ひそかに処分されていた。

Photographer Haruo Tomiyama, 70, said, ``Even now, I am still furious. Who the hell gave the green light for building an expressway that runs over Nihonbashi bridge?''

One of the things that make this bridge special is that in commercial and other senses, it was the center of the capital during the Edo Period (1603-1867).

Even now, strictly speaking, all highways that lead from Tokyo start from the bridge.

For his lifework, Tomiyama has been compiling a socially satirical photo-essay titled ``Gendai Gokan'' (Contemporary meanings of words). His rebellious spirit, which one can find in many other people proud to be natives of Tokyo's Kanda area, keeps it readable.

　「日本橋の上に高速道路なんぞ通したのは、どこのどいつだって、今だって思ってる」と話す写真家、富山治夫さん（７０）は、東京・神田生まれ。江戸っ子の反骨が、ライフワークの社会戯評「現代語感」を支えた。

Claude Levi-Strauss, 96, the anthropologist known as the author of ``Tristes Tropiques,'' made a rare appearance in the French media.

When asked what he was going to do in the days ahead, he said, ``Don't ask me such a question. I am no longer a member of contemporary society.''

　『悲しき熱帯』で知られる文化人類学者のクロード・レヴィ＝ストロースさん（９６）が久々に仏メディアに登場した。今後の予定を問われて言った。「そんなこと、聞くもんじゃないよ。私はもう現代社会の一員ではないのだから」

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 29(IHT/Asahi: March 30,2005)

The battle between `media chivalric orders'

　僕は英辞郎を使って英語を読みまくり、インターネットラジオのNHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースで時事英語を聞きまくってます。（＾＾；
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

The battle between `media chivalric orders'

03/29/2005

A book from Hara Shobo, titled ``Shinpan Seiyo Kishido Jiten'' (Encyclopedia of European chivalry: Revised edition), lists the names of medieval chivalric orders.

Here are some: The Dog and Cock, the Scarf and the Broom Flowers, the Angelic Knights, the Fools, the White Falcon, and the Slaves of Virtue and Neighborly Love.

Medieval knights went into battle on horseback. The horses were said to symbolize power and royal sovereignty.

2005年03月26日（土曜日）付
【天声人語】

　「犬と雄鳥」「襟巻と金雀児（エニシダ）」「天使」「愚者」。これらはいずれも、昔の騎士団に付けられていた名前である（『新版・西洋騎士道事典』原書房）。「白い隼の騎士団」や「美徳と隣人愛の奴隷の騎士団」もあった。騎士にとっては、馬の背こそが戦場であり、馬は、力と王権の象徴でもあったという。

It is as if those knights of yore had suddenly descended from heaven upon present-day Japan. A financial firm affiliated with Softbank Corp. is being likened to a white knight for entering the fray between Livedoor Co. and Fuji Television Network Inc. over Nippon Broadcasting System Inc. shares.

　いにしえの時代の騎士が、突然、現代日本の空から舞い降りたような様相になっている。ニッポン放送の株を巡るライブドアとフジテレビの争いに、ソフトバンク系の投資会社が参入し、「ホワイトナイト（白馬の騎士）」になぞらえられた。

In a hostile takeover, a firm that comes in as a defensive ``reinforcement'' is referred to as a white knight. But it has been pointed out that the company could turn out to be a proverbial Trojan horse, should it come to hold the power of life or death.

　敵対的な買収を仕掛けられた時に、防衛のための「援軍」になる企業を、そう呼んでいるという。しかし、その「援軍」が生殺与奪の権を握るとしたら、後に災いを招く「トロイの木馬」になる可能性も指摘されている。

The Fuji shares that Nippon Broadcasting lent to the financial firm are described as the ``crown jewel.''

Such metaphors conjure an interesting mix of images. It is as if a medieval romance is unfolding-with galloping knights and the crown jewel-against the backdrop of a high-tech, electronic marketplace of the 21st century.

　ニッポン放送から投資会社に貸し出されるフジテレビの株は「クラウンジュエル（王冠の宝石）」と形容された。電子の回線を張り巡らせた２１世紀の市場での厳しい攻防に、馬にまたがった古い騎士と宝冠の物語が絡み合う不思議な取り合わせになっている。

Speaking of the white knight, I am reminded of Chapter 6 of the Revelation of St. John the Divine in the New Testament: ``And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals ... and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.''

　白馬の騎士では、聖書の「ヨハネの黙示録」が思い浮かぶ。「小羊が七つの封印の一つを開いた……見よ、白い馬が現れた。それに乗っている者は、弓を持っていた。彼は冠を与えられ、勝利の上にさらに勝利を得ようとして出て行った」（共同訳）。

How will the present-day story of the crown and the white knight end?

This is a battle between ``media chivalric orders.''

　現代の冠と白馬の騎士とは、どこに、どう帰着するのだろうか。「メディアの騎士団」同士の戦いだ。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 26(IHT/Asahi: March 29,2005)

You are what you eat; for Koizumi it's Italian

　僕は英辞郎を使って英語を読みまくり、インターネットラジオのNHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースで時事英語を聞きまくってます。（＾＾；
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

You are what you eat; for Koizumi it's Italian

03/28/2005

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi often displays his keen interest in teaching children the importance of good dietary habits. For two years in a row, he has taken up the issue of dietary education in his policy speeches delivered before the Diet.

What kind of dietary life is he leading himself? Is the prime minister eating properly?

2005年03月22日（火曜日）付
【天声人語】

　折々に小泉首相が「食生活の大切さを子供たちに教えたい」と訴えている。施政方針演説でも２年続けて、「食育」の問題を取り上げた。そう言う首相は、どんなものを食べているのだろうか。

A short column in the morning edition of The Asahi Shimbun offers a kind of diary on what Koizumi does every day. When one looks for entries on his outings for dinner, a clear pattern emerges. Evidently, Italian food is his primary choice. Sometimes, he returns to the same Italian restaurant about once every three days.

With Chinese food his next-favorite choice, he seems to keep a basic cycle of Italian, Chinese and Japanese food by turns for dinner.

　朝刊の「動静」欄から首相の晩餐（ばんさん）先を拾うと、際だった傾向が浮かび上がる。とにかくイタリア料理が多い。同じ店に中２日の間隔で通うこともある。これに中華が続く。伊・中・和の輪番が基本のようだ。韓国や中東、ロシアの料理は皆無に近い。地域の偏りが目についた。

As far as the entries I checked were concerned, his dinner outings for Korean, Middle East or Russian food were close to zero. In other words, his pattern was biased in favor of regional favorites.

According to Asahi reporters whose beat is the prime minister's official residence, Koizumi's breakfast and lunch consist of purely Japanese food. For breakfast, he usually dines on rice, miso soup, grated daikon radish and chirimen jako (boiled and dried baby sardines). For lunch, he almost always eats soba (buckwheat noodles).

Other eyewitnesses say the prime minister seems to be particular about what he eats. According to these people, he very much enjoys gyoza (fried meat-vegetable dumplings in flour wrappings), loathes raw vegetables, totally ignores condiments such as daikon pickles and kimchi on the table, and leaves uneaten all the fried pork cutlets when a dish of katsudon (pork cutlets over rice) is placed before him.

　首相官邸の担当記者によると、朝と昼は純和風という。朝食はご飯にみそ汁、大根おろし、ちりめんじゃこというのが定番で、お昼はだいたいソバらしい。「ギョーザに目がない」「生野菜は大の苦手」「たくあんやキムチには目もくれない」「カツ丼のカツは全部残す」。そんな目撃証言もある。かなり好き嫌いがあるようだ。

Fujiwara-no Michinaga lived in splendor during the Heian Period, which lasted from the eighth to the 12th centuries, but diligently watched what he ate as a sort of dietary therapy for his longtime diabetes. Either overeating or an unbalanced diet made him feel ill.

Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616), the health-minded founder of the Tokugawa shogunate, liked to eat barley and advised his retainers to live on a plain diet.

　平安の昔、栄華を誇った藤原道長は、過食か偏食か、長く糖尿病に苦しみ、食事療法に励んだ。ヘルシー志向の家康は麦飯を好み、臣下にも粗食をすすめたそうだ。

Among postwar leaders, former Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida, a self-acknowledged gourmet, hired his favorite chefs to work at his official residence and enjoyed sumptuous meals.

In contrast, former Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka, known for his impatience, had the reputation of going out for casual meals, such as katsudon and ramen noodles.

Indeed, as the old saying goes, a man is what he eats.

　戦後で言えば、食通を誇った吉田茂首相は、お気に入りの料理人を官邸に雇い入れ、美食を楽しんだ。せっかちな田中角栄氏は、カツ丼やラーメンといった手軽な品を好んだという。まさに食は人を表す。

Early last month, a cold forced Koizumi to take a rest from his official duties, the first time in his four years in office that he had given in to an ailment. Given that his nose is still running and his sneezes are unstoppable, it seems he is showing symptoms of cedar pollen allergies, or hay fever.

To quote another familiar saying, the food one eats provides the medicine one needs--in other words, eat well to stay well. If only to spread his message of proper dietary education, Koizumi should take a better look at his own diet.

　先月初め、首相は風邪で公務を休んだ。在任４年で病欠は初めてだ。その後も鼻水やくしゃみが止まらない。どうやら花粉症らしい。医食同源ともいう。「食育」普及のためにも、好き嫌いを見直して、どうかご自愛を。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 22(IHT/Asahi: March 28,2005)

Tange set himself huge task in difficult times

　僕は英辞郎を使って英語を読みまくり、インターネットラジオのNHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースで時事英語を聞きまくってます。（＾＾；
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

Tange set himself huge task in difficult times

03/25/2005

Foro Romano in central Rome is a cluster of ruins dating back to the old Republic. The nearby City Hall is said to have been built over the Tabularium, the ancient hall of records.

2005年03月24日（木曜日）付
【天声人語】

　ローマの中心部にあるフォロロマーノには、古代ローマの都市遺跡が立ち並んでいる。そばのローマ市の庁舎も、古代のタブラリウム（記録保管所）の上に築かれていると聞いた。

When the current Tokyo metropolitan government buildings were going up, I mentioned to the head of Rome's municipal museum department that the Tokyo government was abandoning its 30-year-old buildings for new premises that would cost more than 100 billion yen.

He remarked, ``It is fun, and a good thing too, to be able to fix and maintain a building built by your grandfather and his grandfather.''

Japan, however, has a tradition of constantly replacing old buildings. In fact, the new Tokyo metropolitan government headquarters came to symbolize that attitude.

　東京の都庁舎が建て替えられる頃、ローマ市の美術館局長に「東京では、築３０年ほどの庁舎を捨て、千数百億円かけて新庁舎を建てるところです」と話したことがある。答えはこうだった。「おじいさんや、そのまたおじいさんがつくったものに手をかけて暮らすのは、楽しく、よいことです」。建物がどんどん新しいものに変わる日本を、都庁舎は象徴していた。

Kenzo Tange, who designed both the old and new Tokyo government buildings, died Tuesday. In ``Tange Kenzo'' published by Shinkenchiku-sha, author Terunobu Fujimori, also an architect, described the architect as ``someone who gave form to the Showa Era (1926-1989).'' Indeed, Tange's works symbolized particular times in post-World War II Japan.

　新旧の都庁を設計した丹下健三さんが亡くなった。『丹下健三』（新建築社）を著した藤森照信さんが「昭和という時代に形を与えた人」と述べていたが、戦後の、その時々の日本を象徴する作品を残した。

Fujimori once asked him: ``You have studied the works of many architects of all periods around the world. Who do you think is the greatest?'' Tange answered, ``Le Corbusier (Charles-Edouard Jeanneret-Gris) and Michelangelo.''

　藤森さんが、丹下さんに尋ねた。「世界の古今の建築家の仕事をたくさん見てこられて、誰が一番と思われますか」。「……ル・コルビュジエとミケランジェロですね」

Tange was a high school student under the old school system in Hiroshima when he came across the work of Le Corbusier, acclaimed as one of the fathers of modern architecture, featured in a magazine in a library. The architect left such a tremendous impact on the young Tange that he decided to go into the profession himself.

He later recalled in ``Ippon-no Enpitsu-kara'' (From one pencil), published by Nihon Keizai Shimbun, ``I was completely taken by his style that was devoid of any decorative element but decidedly beautiful in a severe way.''

　近代建築の祖の一人とされるコルビュジエには、旧制広島高校時代に図書館の雑誌で出会う。衝撃を受け、建築家を志した。「装飾的なものを一切取り払いながらも、凛（りん）とした美しさを持つその設計に、私はすっかりほれ込んでしまった」（『一本の鉛筆から』日本経済新聞社）。

Perhaps Tange always sought that kind of beauty even when designing massive contemporary structures. And perhaps he understood better than anyone what a tremendously difficult quest that was in our times.

　現代の巨大建築であっても、必ずどこかに凛とした美しさを込めようとしていたのだろうか。この時代に、それを求め続けることの途方もない難しさを、誰よりも味わっていたのかもしれない。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 24(IHT/Asahi: March 25,2005)

Loyal pet dogs offer comfort as society grays

　僕は英辞郎を使って英語を読みまくり、インターネットラジオのNHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースで時事英語を聞きまくってます。（＾＾；
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

Loyal pet dogs offer comfort as society grays

03/24/2005

A letter that appeared in Asahi Shimbun editions distributed in Tokyo and its suburbs caught my eye a while back because it had a unique title: ``Motomu Yoken Homu'' (Looking for a home for pet dogs).

It was about a married woman's concern about the future of a puppy that her aged parents, now prone to injury and suffering from eye problems, had adopted after their previous pet dog died. What would become of the new pet when her parents grew too old to take care of it? The question weighed on her mind.

2005年03月23日（水曜日）付
【天声人語】

　少し前だが、「求む『養犬ホーム』」という投稿が東京管内などの本紙に載っていた。実家で、愛犬が病死し、子犬を飼い始めた。ところが、高齢の両親はけがをしたり、目の具合が悪くなったりした。犬の世話をできなくなったらどうしよう。そんな娘さんの心配だった。

Many elderly dog owners presumably share her concern.

According to the Pet Food Manufacturers Association, more than 12 million dogs are kept as pets nationwide. Approximately one in four ``elderly households'' (where one of the couple is 65 or older) keeps a dog.

　犬好きのお年寄りには身につまされる話だろう。ペットフード工業会によると、全国で飼い犬は１２００万匹を超え、老人世帯は４軒に１軒ぐらいが飼っている。

In ``Inu no Iru Kurashi'' (Life with dogs), author Koji Nakano writes: ``A dog in your old age is something more than just a pet. ... It is an animal that needs your care and protection. Above all, it is something that you can love with all your heart, without worrying about going too far.'' (The book is available as part of the Bunshun paperback series.)

　「老いてから飼う犬という存在は、たんなるペットという以上に……世話をやいてやるべき被保護者であり、そして何よりも安心してひたすら愛することのできる対象なのであった」。そう書いたのは作家の中野孝次さんだ（『犬のいる暮し』文春文庫）。

Nakano himself had a dog called Halas, a Shiba breed. His book, which describes his life with Halas, was a best seller. After Halas' death, he found life without a dog unbearable, and so he looked for a replacement. When the author died last summer, two Shiba dogs, a mother and daughter pair named Hanna and Nana, were living in his house.

　中野さんはハラスという柴犬（しばいぬ）との日々を描き、ベストセラーになった。ハラスの死後、犬のいない生活に耐えられず再び飼い始める。昨夏亡くなった時、ハンナとナナという親子の柴犬がいた。

Answering my call, the author's widow, Hide, 77, said, ``These dogs are 8 and 5 now. Both are in very good health.'' Even now, she said, when they hear footsteps outside her home, the dogs race toward the gate, thinking perhaps that their late master has returned.

``I think my husband was concerned about the future of his dogs right to his last moments,'' the widow told me. ``I feel obliged to keep on living until after the dogs live out their natural life span.''

　妻の秀さん（７７）に電話すると、「８歳と５歳になり、２匹ともとても元気です」。今でも外で足音がすると中野さんと思って門へ駆けていく。「夫も最期まで気がかりだったでしょう。この子たちに天寿を全うさせるまで私も生きなければと思っています」

When it comes to old age, humans can learn a lot from dogs, says Yoshihiro Hayashi, a professor of veterinary medicine at the University of Tokyo. ``Even as they grow old, dogs neither lament their physical decline nor worry about their future,'' he says. ``They just live on, content with the present.''

I have a feeling deep in my bones that, in this age of low birth rates and a steadily graying society, it is very unlikely that the numbers of elderly people living out their remaining years with such virtuous companions will soon decrease.

　東大教授で獣医学の林良博さんは「犬は老いても、我が身の老いを嘆いたり将来を思い煩ったりせず、現在を満足して生きる」と語る。そんな味のある相棒と共に老いを重ねたい。そう望む人は、この少子高齢の時代に減ることはない気がする。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 23(IHT/Asahi: March 24,2005)

March 20 a constant reminder of sarin attacks

　僕は英辞郎を使って英語を読みまくり、インターネットラジオのNHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースで時事英語を聞きまくってます。（＾＾；
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

March 20 a constant reminder of sarin attacks

03/23/2005

The dates of certain events stay with us. Even many years later, people will still talk about where they were and what they were doing when something especially memorable happened.

March 20, 1995, is one such date. It is the day that the Aum Shinrikyo cult carried out sarin nerve-gas attacks on the Tokyo subway system, killing 12 people and sickening thousands.

2005年03月19日（土曜日）付
【天声人語】

　日付で記憶される出来事がある。何年か後でも、その日どこにいて何をしていたかという話になる。多くの人が３・２０で記憶する地下鉄サリン事件は、明日で発生から１０年になる。

That morning, I left my home in suburban Tokyo later than usual. I had returned from a business trip the day before, and had to sort and put away the stuff I was unpacking.

When I came out of a train station in central Tokyo, I saw helicopters flying around. I learned of the attacks when I got to the office.

　あの朝は、東京郊外の家をいつもより遅れて出た。前日に出張から帰り、荷解きしたものを整理していたからだ。都心の駅で外に出たところでヘリコプターが舞うのを見、新聞社に着いて事件を知った。

Had I left home at the usual time or a little earlier, I could have been one of those people I saw on the television, lying sick and waiting for help.

I am sure many Tokyo commuters who worked in central Tokyo at the time share this thought.

　いつも通りか、やや早めに出ていれば、どこかで事件に巻き込まれた可能性はある。テレビ画面に映った横たわる人は、自分だったかもしれない。都心に通う人は、そんな思いを共にしただろう。

In the spring of the following year, the cult founder held responsible for the attacks made his first court appearance. When I noted during a meeting that a verdict before the end of the century was unlikely, some of my colleagues voiced surprise at the length of the Aum trials.

I later went to the cult's headquarters in the village of Kamikuishiki in Yamanashi Prefecture. When I saw the cluster of giant buildings that were called ``satyan'' by the cultists, I regretted the fact that nobody had the foresight to stop the crimes even though such bizarre facilities were in plain sight at the foot of Mount Fuji.

　翌春、元教祖の初公判があった。判決の時期について「今世紀中は無理ではないか」と社内の会議で述べた。その遠さに周りが少しどよめいたようだった。その後、教団の本拠地だった山梨県の上九一色村へ行き、サティアンと呼ばれた巨大な建屋の群れを見た。富士山のふもとに、これだけ異様なものが立ち並んでいたのに、なぜ犯行を許してしまったのかと悔やまれた。

Last year and the year before, I sat in the courtroom to watch the former cult leader's trials, albeit briefly.

He did not utter a word, but sometimes looked as if he was mumbling silently to himself or stifling a yawn. He seemed completely tuned out of the prosecutors' arguments, the presiding judge's statements and the intense feelings of anyone else who sat in the courtroom.

　一昨年と昨年、元教祖の裁判を短時間だが傍聴した。黙して、時に口をもぐもぐしたり、あくびをかみころしたりしている。検察の論告も裁判官の言い渡しも傍聴席の痛切な思いも、はぐらかされているようだった。

Aum schemed to create their own ``nation'' within a nation. Their target of attack was this nation, and innocent citizens were sacrificed instead.

March 20 continues to remind us that not only must we avert any recurrence of indiscriminate acts of terrorism, but we must also stand firmly by the survivors and bereaved families who need help.

　オウムは国の中に国を造ろうとたくらんだ。標的は日本という国家だった。市民は、いわばその身代わりにされた。無差別テロの再発防止だけではなく、被害者や遺族への手厚い支えもまた、３・２０が問い続ける課題だ。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 19(IHT/Asahi: March 23,2005)

Glass houses no match for surprise temblors

　僕は英辞郎を使って英語を読みまくり、インターネットラジオのNHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースで時事英語を聞きまくってます。（＾＾；
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

Glass houses no match for surprise temblors

03/22/2005

Sunday's earthquake in northern Kyushu provided another reminder that natural disaster can strike any part of Japan at any time.

According to experts, the epicenter of the quake was in the Sea of Genkai. The area had shown little seismic activity until now.

2005年03月21日（月曜日）付
【天声人語】

　やはりこの国では、大地震はどこででも起こると考えていた方がいい。昨日の九州北部を中心とする大きな地震で、改めてその思いを強くした。震源の玄界灘では、これまでは地震活動が弱かったという。

Novelist Kazuo Dan (1912-1976) spent his final years on Nokonoshima island in the Sea of Genkai. Atop a hill on this island stands a monument inscribed with his last haiku:

Howling winter winds that sound like a whistle/ Continues on many nights/ I wish to see flowers.

The neighboring island of Shikanoshima is famous for the discovery there of an ancient golden seal, a national treasure, that was believed to have been given by a Han emperor to a noble clan in Japan.

　玄界灘を望む能古島では、作家・檀一雄が晩年を過ごした。高台には、絶筆の句〈モガリ笛　いく夜もがらせ　花ニ逢はん〉を刻んだ碑があるという。隣の志賀島からは、国宝の「漢委奴国王」の金印が出土している。

These islands feed my fancy for ancient history and the sea. Television footage of the disaster showed horrendous images of homes that were destroyed. Close to the epicenter, the jolt must have been severe. I hope relief aid will arrive quickly.

　こうした古代や海のロマンに彩られた島々の中で、昨日は、何軒もの家が倒壊したすさまじい被害が映し出された島もあった。震源に近く揺れが大きかったのだろう。救援を集中させたい。

Sunday's temblor was the first since the Great Hanshin Earthquake of 10 years ago to directly hit a major city with a population of more than 1 million. Although the city of Fukuoka was spared catastrophe, the damage underscored the fragility of any contemporary metropolis. The windows of many high-rise buildings shattered, showering sidewalks below with broken glass.

Falling shards can easily kill and maim. The big cities that are sprouting up today all boast new buildings that look as if all their walls are made of glass. Together with more conventional buildings, I urge the authorities to thoroughly check them again for earthquake safety.

　今回の地震は、阪神大震災以来１０年ぶりに百万都市を直撃した。福岡では、記録的な大惨事にこそ至らなかったようだが、現代都市の弱さを見せつけられた。窓ガラスの多くが割れた高層ビルがあった。落ちるガラスは凶器となって地上の人々を襲う。近年、大都市には全面がガラス張りのような新しいビルが増えている。在来型のビルともども、揺れに対する備えを再点検してほしい。

The Central Disaster Prevention Council of the Cabinet Office released estimates last month that a major earthquake hitting Tokyo directly would kill 13,000 people and force 7 million people to evacuate their homes. The worst-case scenario puts total economic losses at 112 trillion yen, which far surpasses the national budget.

　「死者１万３千人。避難者７００万人」。先月、首都直下地震について、政府・中央防災会議が被害想定をまとめた。最悪の場合には、経済損失は国家予算をはるかに超える１１２兆円にもなるという。

Naturally, disaster relief must take priority. But I sincerely hope steps will be taken to analyze weaknesses that became evident Sunday in current countermeasures so as to enhance their effectiveness.

We must bear in mind that an earthquake will strike irrespective of whether we are prepared or we happen to live in areas that have never experienced one before.

　まずは被災地の復旧が第一だが、今回あらわになった弱点を精査し、全国で対策を進めたい。地震は、忘れていても忘れていなくても、そして、前例があってもなくても襲ってくるのだから。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 21(IHT/Asahi: March 22,2005)

New grads give top honors to principal's song

作詞者は当時校長だった小嶋登さん（７４）。一晩で書き上げ、翌朝、音楽の先生に作曲を頼んだ。

　知らなかった。そんなお年をめした方だったのか。小生ももっと張り切らなければ、、。（＾＾； 　それにしても歌も素晴らしいが、このエピソードも心に沁みる実にいい話しだ。英和対訳でゆっくり読み込むことでより深く味わえたような気がする。これからも出来るだけ続けていきます。

　僕は英辞郎を使って英語を読みまくり、インターネットラジオのNHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースで時事英語を聞きまくってます。（＾＾；
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

New grads give top honors to principal's song

03/21/2005

In a recent survey, Ongaku no Tomo Sha Corp. asked 230 music teachers around the nation what song their students were singing for the graduation ceremony.

The result was a bit of a surprise. ``Hotaru-no Hikari'' (Glow of fireflies), the traditional standard number for the occasion, ranked only third. ``Aogeba Totoshi'' (Song of gratitude), another perennial favorite, did not even make the top 10 list.

03月06日付
■《天声人語》

　あなたの学校では卒業式に何を歌いますか。音楽之友社が、全国の音楽教諭２３０人に尋ねたら、意外な結果が出た。定番のはずの「蛍の光」が３位で、「仰げば尊し」は１０位にも入らなかった。

The song that won the most number of votes was ``Tabidachi-no Hi-ni'' (The day of departure). I wonder if readers have heard it.

The song was born 14 years ago in the music classroom of a municipal junior high school in Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture. The then-principal, Noboru Kojima, 74, wrote the lyrics overnight and asked the music teacher to put them to music the following morning.

　１位は「旅立ちの日に」という曲である。耳にしたことがあるだろうか。今から１４年前、埼玉県秩父市にある市立中学校の音楽室で生まれた。作詞者は当時校長だった小嶋登さん（７４）。一晩で書き上げ、翌朝、音楽の先生に作曲を頼んだ。

``The song was meant as a present for the graduating students,'' explained Kojima when I saw him to hear his story. ``All the teachers got up on the platform and sang the song. This was supposed to be a one-time performance.''

Kojima reached his mandatory retirement age in March that year, but the song stayed. The following year, a music magazine printed the score just before the graduation season, and many primary, junior high and senior high schools around the nation picked it up. The simple lyrics caught the hearts of youngsters: ``The voice of my dear old friend/ Suddenly comes back/ With the memory of that time/I wept when we fought over something silly.''

　小嶋さんを訪ねた。「３年生を送る出し物として、教師全員が壇上で歌った曲です。その年限りの歌のつもりでした」。その年の３月で小嶋さんは定年退職したが、歌は残った。翌年、卒業シーズンを前に音楽雑誌が譜面を載せる。曲は全国の小中高校で演奏され、わかりやすい歌詞が生徒たちの心をつかんだ。「懐かしい友の声／ふとよみがえる／意味もないいさかいに／泣いたあのとき」

The song reminds me of the late singer-songwriter Yutaka Ozaki, who gave expression to the frustrations of young people. It is also similar in feeling to ``Okuru Kotoba'' (A present of words) by singer-actor Tetsuya Takeda.

Kojima, however, said of his work, ``I was trying to emulate the world of Bokusui Wakayama, a poet who wrote about dreams and longing.''

　どこか、若者の抑圧感を歌った故尾崎豊さんを思わせる。武田鉄矢さんの「贈る言葉」にも近い。でも小嶋さんは「夢や憧（あこが）れを詠んだ若山牧水の世界です」と話す。

``Hotaru-no Hikari'' and ``Aogeba Totoshi'' were created in the early years of the Meiji Period (1868-1912). Strongly reflective of the educational philosophy of that era, the lyrics urge students to work diligently to serve the nation and get ahead in life to repay their teachers.

　「蛍の光」や「仰げば尊し」は明治の初めに発表された唱歌である。刻苦勉励して国に尽くせ、師恩に報いて身を立てよ。歌詞には当時の教育観が色濃くにじむ。

``The old literary style of those lyrics is a bit too sophisticated for today's kids to really appreciate,'' noted Kojima.

In a departure from the past, many schools now let their students choose the song for the graduation ceremony. Instead of the traditional, government-approved numbers, Kojima's song, which is something of a summation of his 40-year teaching career, is being sung and heard around the nation this month.

　「文語調のあの歌詞がいまの子どもたちにはどうも難解なようです」と小嶋さん。昔と違って卒業式の歌は生徒たちの好みで決まるところが多い。官製の名歌を脇に押しやって、教職４０年の思いを込めた歌が今月、列島の各地に響きわたる。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 6(IHT/Asahi: March 21,2005)

Japan and U.S. have distant views of Iwojima

　僕は英辞郎を使って英語を読みまくり、インターネットラジオのNHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースで時事英語を聞きまくってます。（＾＾；
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

Japan and U.S. have distant views of Iwojima

03/18/2005

Baron Nishi is probably a familiar name to people who know the history of Japan in the days leading up to World War II. Born an aristocrat, his first name was Takeichi. He won a gold medal in the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, and served in the Imperial Japanese Army during the war. After a tour in Manchuria, he was shipped to Iwojima island, where he was killed in action.

2005年03月17日（木曜日）付
■《天声人語》

　バロン西といえば、戦前を知る世代には懐かしい名前かもしれない。本名を西竹一（たけいち）という。男爵（バロン）の家に生まれ、昭和の初め、ロサンゼルス五輪で馬術の金メダルに輝く。軍人として、満州から転じた硫黄島で戦死した。

It is said that U.S. soldiers on Iwojima tried in vain to get Nishi to surrender, calling out to him by name: ``Olympic hero Baron Nishi, please turn yourself in. You are too great a man to die.'' But Nishi refused.

Some think this story was made up after the war. According to official records, Nishi died on March 17 exactly 60 years ago.

　「五輪の英雄バロン西、出てきなさい。君を失うのは惜しい」。米軍が名指しで投降を呼びかけたが、西氏は抗戦を貫いた。そんな逸話が残る。後の創作とみる説もある。戦死公報によると、西氏が亡くなったのは６０年前のきょう３月１７日だった。

Mitsuhiko Niwa, 17, Nishi's great-grandson, visited Iwojima for the first time last weekend. Wearing a funereal black necktie and carrying two cameras, he walked around the island with about 110 people whose family members had also died there.

As many as 27,000 Japanese and American soldiers perished on the island, but Mitsuhiko found it surprisingly small. He had read many books about his great-grandfather, but it was only after ``stepping into dark, deep trenches and walking on blood-soaked beaches'' that he was truly able to feel his great-grandfather's ``physical presence'' for the first time.

　ひ孫にあたる丹羽満彦君（１７）は先週末、初めて硫黄島に渡った。黒いネクタイにカメラを２台携え、遺族ら約１１０人と島を巡った。日米で２万７千人もの将兵が散った島は、歩いてみると驚くほど小さかった。曽祖父（そうそふ）を描いた本は何冊も読んだが、「暗く深い塹壕（ざんごう）や血のしみこんだ浜を歩いて初めて生身の姿　を実感できた」と話す。

Mitsuhiko climbed Mount Suribachi, where young Japanese and American soldiers literally fought to the death six decades ago. A photograph of the Stars and Stripes fluttering atop the mountain is still well-known in the United States partly because the photo is effective for raising morale. Whenever a catastrophe comparable in magnitude to 9/11 occurs, the photo is invariably used on fliers soliciting donations or announcing meetings of bereaved families.

　満彦君が登った摺鉢（すりばち）山では６０年前、日米の若者が死闘を展開した。山頂にはためく星条旗をとらえた写真は米国では今も名高い。士気を高める効果があるのだろう。同時多発テロ級の大難があると、遺族の集会や篤志を募るビラにあの写真がきまって登場する。

Yasunori Nishi, 77, Baron Nishi's eldest son and Mitsuhiko's grandfather, noted: ``Japanese and Americans feel entirely differently about Iwojima. For us Japanese, it is an island for mourning the dead. For the Americans, it is an island for glorifying their victory.''

　「硫黄島に寄せる日米の思いは対照的です」と言うのは西氏の長男、西泰徳さん（７７）。満彦君の祖父である。「私たちには死を悼む島でも、米国民には勝ち得た栄光を祝う島のようです」

Mitsuhiko will enroll in an American university this autumn. He hopes to start horseback riding there-a sport his great-grandfather would have enjoyed into old age, had he lived in peacetime.

　満彦君はこの秋、米国の大学に進む。平和な時代であれば曽祖父が晩年まで楽しんだはずの馬術を、自分も米国で始めたいと考えている。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 17(IHT/Asahi: March 18,2005)

Stamp out piracy in the Malacca Strait

　天声人語を英和対訳させて読んでいます。テキストをエディタに貼り付けて、英辞郎のポップアップ訳を利用すると楽です。

　大量に英語を読むとヒアリングも向上します。NHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースをインターネットラジオで好きな時に聞いています。
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

Stamp out piracy in the Malacca Strait

03/17/2005

The second-century astronomer, mathematician and geographer Ptolemy theorized that Earth was the fixed center of the universe. The Egyptian port city of Alexandria served as the backdrop for his observations.

The scholar left behind what is known as the ``World Map of Ptolemy.'' But whether he actually drew it remains a mystery.

On the map, the Malay Peninsula, a land far away to the East, is denoted as Chryse (meaning golden peninsula), according to a Chuko paperback on legends of Zipangu, or Japan.

2005年03月16日（水曜日）付
■《天声人語》

　天動説で知られるプトレマイオスは、２世紀にエジプトのアレクサンドリアで活躍した。地理学者でもあり、本人の作かどうかは不明だが、「プトレマイオスの世界図」が残されている。そこでは、はるか東方のマレー半島はクリューセー（黄金半島）と記されている（『ジパング伝説』中公新書）。

The tugboat Idaten, with a crew headed by two Japanese nationals, was boarded by armed pirates Monday in the Strait of Malacca that runs parallel to the Malay Peninsula.

The shallow and narrow strait has a long history of piracy.

But the quake-induced tsunami last December dramatically changed the picture, apparently inducing pirates to lie low. Does Monday's attack on the Idaten (which translates as swift runner) signal that pirates are back in business?

　マレー半島に沿うマラッカ海峡で、日本人などが乗るタグボート「韋駄天（いだてん）」が海賊に襲われた。浅くて狭い海峡は、以前から海賊の被害が多発している。暮れの大地震と大津波の後は、なりを潜めていたというが、犯行を再開したのだろうか。

In the town of Malacca facing the strait, there is a knoll where the body of Saint Francis Xavier, a Spanish Jesuit famous for his missionary work in 16th-century Japan, is said to have been temporarily laid to rest.

One can get a good idea of how the town and the strait once looked to someone gazing down from this knoll by reading ``Kikyo'' (Homecoming), a novel written by Jiro Osaragi just after World War II.

　海峡に面した町・マラッカの丘には、日本で布教したフランシスコ・ザビエルの遺骸（いがい）が、一時安置されていたという。大佛次郎は、この丘からの町と海峡の眺めを、終戦直後に「帰郷」で書いた。

In the guise of a narrative on the history of Malacca by a resident Japanese painter, Osaragi says in the book: ``In the beginning, there was an indigenous dynasty. Then, the Portuguese arrived and attacked the town. They built a castle. Next came the Dutch who put the town under occupation. Later, the British put the modifying touches to the work of their predecessors. The British were succeeded by none other than the Japanese. ... I wonder what country will take over this mole-like tiny land hereafter.''

　日本人の画家に、土地の歴史を語らせ　ている。「王朝があって、そこへポルトガル人が攻め込んで来て城を作ったのを、和蘭陀（オランダ）人が来て占領し、その後で英国が手を入れたんですね。それから今度は、日本人が来て……この後は、また、どこの国が来るんでしょうかね。黒子（ほくろ）のように小さい土地だけれど」

Because of its strategic importance, the Strait of Malacca, which forms a boundary between Indonesia and neighboring Malaysia and Singapore, was the junction of routes of aggression by the major powers.

The scramble for control of the strait is long past, but piracy is still rife there-just as in the old days.

The task of finding ways to assure the safety of the strait requires a hands-on approach. This is something that Southeast Asia as a whole should embark upon, just like it did in the aftermath of the Dec. 26 tsunami disaster.

　インドネシアとマレーシア・シンガポールを隔てるこの海の要衝は、列強の侵略が交錯する場だった。その奪い合いも終わって久しいのに、昔ながらに海賊が横行している。津波の対策と同様に、東南アジア全体の目と手で、安全の道を探ってはどうか。

The time has long gone when the seas around the Golden Peninsula should be regarded as ``golden waters'' for pirates.

　「黄金半島」の周りを、海賊たちの「黄金の海」にしておく時代ではないだろう。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 16(IHT/Asahi: March 17,2005)

Livedoor bid strikes a blow in war of the media

　天声人語を英和対訳させて読んでいます。テキストをエディタに貼り付けて、英辞郎のポップアップ訳を利用すると楽です。

　大量に英語を読むとヒアリングも向上します。NHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースをインターネットラジオで好きな時に聞いています。
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

Livedoor bid strikes a blow in war of the media

03/16/2005

When Napoleon Bonaparte's army attacked Moscow in 1812, Russian forces fled after emptying the city of everything of value to the French. A conflagration that swept through the capital added to the deprivation of the occupation army.

Worse still, winter was approaching. There was no choice for the French but to withdraw.

2005年03月15日（火曜日）付
【天声人語】

　その昔、ナポレオンがロシアを攻めた時、ロシア側はモスクワをもぬけの殻にして逃げた。大火が起こり、冬将軍も迫って、ついにナポレオン軍は退却する。

Nippon Broadcasting System Inc. (NBS), the target of rival takeover bids, is said to be considering a similar scorched-earth strategy with the aim of making itself less attractive to its enemy, Livedoor Co., by shedding as many assets as possible.

Specifically, this strategy is reported to involve the sale of the NBS equity holding in a major subsidiary to the friendly bidder, Fuji Television Network Inc.

　価値あるものを空っぽにし、迫る敵の意欲をくじく「焦土作戦」を、ニッポン放送が検討中という。主要子会社の株をフジテレビに売ってしまう構想らしい。めまぐるしい動きが続くが、ここでは、今回の攻防とは何なのかを考えてみたい。

While developments in the tug-of-war over NBS are dizzying, what is the true significance of the dispute? Does it portend the rise of one medium and the decline of another?

History has shown time and again that the prevailing medium of a certain period gradually loses its influence until it becomes another more or less equal arm of the media as a whole.

Newspapers were the ``king'' of media after the Meiji Restoration of 1868. But they became just part of the media with the rise of television after World War II.

　これは、「メディア（媒体）の興亡」なのか。ある時代の最大のメディアが「メディアの一つ」になってゆく。これがメディアの歴史だった。明治以後、メディアの首座を占めた新聞は、戦後のテレビの興隆で、メディアの一つとなった。

One wonders if the rise of the Internet will force television to become a less influential medium.

Three kinds of medium-print, TV and the Internet-are competing to survive. The outcome of the contest will be determined by consumers judging the service and content provided by each of them.

As for the Livedoor-Fuji dispute, all I can say for now is that though it could lead to the rise of one medium at the expense of others, it is not clear whether the outcome will be of a tide-turning nature for whole industries.

　インターネットの興隆で、テレビは存在感の薄い一メディアになってゆくのか。文字、映像、電子情報という三つのメディアが絡み合う興亡の帰着は、その中身も含めた各メディアの競い方と、受け手の選択次第だろう。「メディアの興亡」をはらんではいるが、その帰趨（きすう）を決するほどの争いかどうかは、不透明だ。

Is it a struggle between the old and new generations?

For old generations, the standard raised by a new generation is always baffling. A generation consists of a group of people who would notch their limited histories as individuals in the everlasting history of humanity. Those who are born later are always entitled-indeed, destined-to challenge the established order. In this sense, it is a generational tug-of-war.

　それでは「新旧の攻防」なのか。新世代の掲げる旗は、いつも旧世代を戸惑わせてきた。世代とは、人類の悠久の歴史の上に個々人の限りある歴史を乗せた、ひとまとまりの集団だ。性急とも見える既存のものへの挑戦は、後から生まれた者の永遠の権利であり宿命でもある。その意味では「新旧の攻防」だ。

The scorched-earth strategy being mulled by NBS is intended to protect itself from a hostile takeover. My worry is whether it will also serve to protect the employees of the affected subsidiary and their families.

　「焦土作戦」は企業防衛の手段という。それが「焦土」にされる会社の社員や家族の防衛にもなるのかどうかが気にかかる。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 15(IHT/Asahi: March 16,2005)

Fabled fight of Livedoor, Fuji TV lacks virtue

　天声人語を英和対訳させて読んでいます。テキストをエディタに貼り付けて、単語の分らない所は英辞郎のポップアップ訳を利用すると楽です。

　大量に英語を読むとヒアリングも向上します。NHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースをインターネットラジオで好きな時に聞いています。
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

Fabled fight of Livedoor, Fuji TV lacks virtue

03/15/2005

An oak tree and a reed discuss who is the stronger in Aesop's ``The Oak and the Reed.'' (An Iwanami paperback gives a Japanese translation.) When a storm comes, the reed survives by bending as the wind gusts, but the oak is uprooted for standing tall to defy the wind.

03月12日付
■《天声人語》

　樫（かし）と葦（あし）が頑丈さを競い合った。大風が吹いた時、葦は体を曲げ突風に身を任せて、根こそぎにされるのを免（まぬ）かれたが、樫は、抵抗して根っこから覆されてしまった（『イソップ寓話（ぐうわ）集』岩波文庫）。

The moral of the story is ``Stoop to conquer.'' The idea is that one is better off not fighting or resisting someone who holds great power. True, I admire the reed's resilience and obstinacy. But I am not averse to the oak's proud defiance, either.

　強い者に対しては争ったり抵抗したりすべきではないという教えがこめられているという。確かに、葦のしなやかな対応ぶりや、そのしぶとさはいい。しかし風に向かって立ち続ける樫の姿にも、捨てがたいものがある。

Not that it matters who is what, but I was reminded of this fable as I followed the struggle between Fuji Television Network Inc. and Livedoor Co. to outdo each other and weather a storm.

　どちらが樫で、どちらが葦というのではない。吹きつけてくる大風をしのごうとして、手だてを競い合うフジテレビとライブドアの姿に、この寓話を連想した。

On Friday, the Tokyo District Court backed a court injunction, filed by Livedoor, against Nippon Broadcasting System Inc.'s planned issuance of subscription warrant to Fuji TV. I wonder what next step the latter is going to take.

Livedoor owes its current stature to the Internet's phenomenal growth in the media industry. Fuji TV is one of Japan's mammoth broadcasters established after World War II. The two rivals differ in history as well as function.

　東京地裁が、ライブドアの主張を認めて、ニッポン放送が予定していた新株予約権の発行を差し止める仮処分を決定した。フジテレビは、今度は、どんな構えでしのごうとするのか。ライブドアは、インターネットという新しいメディアの勢いに乗って大きくなってきた。フジテレビは、戦後の日本に築かれた巨大な電波メディアの一つだ。来歴も機能も異なる。

In another Aesop's fable, a fox and a leopard argue about their beauty. The leopard keeps bragging about the variety of hues decorating his fur.

The fox retorts: ``And how much more beautiful than you am I, who am decorated, not in body but in mind.'' The moral here is that beauty of the mind is more important than beauty of the body.

　イソップには、狐（きつね）と豹（ひょう）が競い合う話もあった。豹が二言目には体色の多彩さを言い立てるので、狐が言った。「わたしの方がどれ程美しいことでしょう。だって、体ではなく、心が多彩なんですもの」。体の美しさより知性の装いが大事なことを説いているという。

Again, I am not identifying Fuji or Livedoor with either of the animals. The rivals ought to be competing in the contents of their respective media. It is unfortunate that they are fighting over the number of shares.

　これも、どちらがどちらと言うのではない。本来、両者の競い合いは、それぞれのメディアの中身でするものではないか。それが、株の数の競い合いになっているところが残念だ。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 12(IHT/Asahi: March 15,2005)

Why so many years of waiting for a retrial?

　パソコンを使って英語と遊んでいます。

　毎日天声人語を英和対訳させて読んでいます。テキストをエディタに貼り付けて、単語の分らない所は英辞郎のポップアップ訳を利用しています。このやり方をすると大量に英語を読むことが出来ます。

　英語が聞き取れるようになるには、あくまでも大量の英語を読むこと、そしてヒアリングだと思います。NHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースをインターネットラジオで好きな時に聞いています。

　ささやかなやり方の提案です。毎日asahi.comをチェックし、英和対訳まで含めてご自身でやるようになればもう英語はあなたのものでしょう。（ちょっと大袈裟かな、、。（＾＾；）
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

Why so many years of waiting for a retrial?

Not one of the five former defendants was in the courtroom Thursday when their adamant plea for a retrial was finally granted by the Tokyo High Court. The five, accused in the ``Yokohama Incident,'' which is seen as the worst case of suppression of free speech in wartime Japan, are long dead.

Their families and kin, however, doggedly kept the issue alive. They were present to hear the presiding judge's decision to uphold a lower court ruling in favor of a retrial.

03月11日付
■《天声人語》

　裁判所には、長い間「再審」を求め続けていた元被告たちの姿はなかった。戦時下の最大の言論弾圧事件といわれる「横浜事件」の生き残りだったその５人は、ことごとく他界している。訴えを受け継ぐ遺族らが、東京高裁の「再審開始を支持」の決定を聞いた。

This has been a long battle indeed. Former defendant Toru Kimura, who was an editorial member at Chuo Koron magazine, wrote this haiku a few days before he died at 82 in 1998: ``My life/ Already sacrificed/ Hangs on the court's verdict.''

　それにしても、長い年月がかかった。〈捨てし身の裁きにひろういのち哉〉。元被告の元「中央公論」出版部員、木村亨さんが８２歳で亡くなる数日前に残した句にも、その思いがこもる。

In the Yokohama Incident, many people including Chuokoron-sha and Kaizo-sha editorial staff members were arrested and prosecuted by the ``thought police'' in Kanagawa Prefecture on suspicion of ``scheming to re-establish the Communist Party'' in violation of the wartime Peace Preservation Law.

The accused were repeatedly tortured, and four died in prison.

　横浜事件では、中央公論社や改造社の編集者ら多数が、「共産党の再結成に動いた」などの治安維持法違反容疑で神奈川県警特高課に検挙された。拷問が繰り返され、４人が獄死した。

The Tokyo High Court determined Thursday that the former defendants ``were tortured during interrogation and forced to make false confessions.'' Entered as evidence were police records of torture, documenting how the interrogators threatened the captives with ``the same fate as Takiji Kobayashi'' (a writer who wrote about the proletariat and who died under police torture) and berated them for tainting the war being fought for the greater glory of the Japanese empire.

According to ``Yokohama Jiken no Saishin Kaishi wo!'' (Start the Yokohama Incident retrial, published by Kinohana-sha), Kinju Morikawa, who led the legal defense team, was shocked when he heard 20 years ago from Kimura that no progress had been made in the 40 years since the war to redeem the honor of the falsely accused defendants.

　昨日、東京高裁は「元被告らは、取り調べ中、拷問を受け、やむなく虚偽の疑いのある自白をした」と認定した。「（拷問死した）小林多喜二の二の舞いを覚悟しろ」「この聖戦下によくもやりやがったな」などと迫った特高の拷問の記録もある。弁護団長の森川金寿さんは、２０年前、木村亨さんから、戦後４０年になるのに名誉回復がなされていないと聞き、愕然（がくぜん）とした（『横浜事件の再審開始を！』樹花舎）。

Now 91, Morikawa relied on a cane as he entered the courthouse Thursday. At his side was Kimura's widow, Maki.

It appears that the defendants' pleas for justice are still being heard. Still, it is outrageous that they had to wait for decades to clear their names.

　つえをついて高裁に入る９１歳の森川さんに、木村さんの妻まきさんが手を添えていた。木村さんたちの悲痛な訴えは、今もしっかり引き継がれているようだ。しかし、いったん失われた名誉の回復にどれだけの歳月と力を費やさなければならないのかとも思う。

If a retrial is determined, on trial will be the wartime judiciary, the state and, by extension, the war itself.

　再審が決まれば、裁かれるのは、当時の司法であり、国であり、あの戦争でもある。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 11(IHT/Asahi: March 12,2005)

60 years since Tokyo blazed in a fiery hell

　英語は日本語と語順が違うので頭の体操代わりに良いような気がしています。また、インターネットをやるようになってから英語を読むことに抵抗感がなくなりました。と言うよりもネットライフには必需品だと思います。

　毎日天声人語を英和対訳させて読んでいます。テキストをエディタに貼り付けて、単語の分らない所は英辞郎のポップアップ訳を利用しています。このやり方をすると大量に英語を読むことが出来ます。

　昔、中学時代に一時英語が苦手な時期がありました。あの時、このやり方を知っていたならと思います。英会話の勉強など１年もやれば飽きます。毎日ヒアリングの練習をしようがもともと理解できる語彙数が少なければ効果は見込めず、やるだけ無駄です。

　英語が聞き取れるようになるには、あくまでも大量の英語を読むこと、そしてヒアリングだと思います。決してその逆ではありません。NHKのラジオジャパン英語ニュースを聞いていますが、ほとんど聞き取れるようになりました。

　英語の苦手な中高生諸君に、かつて英語が苦手で損したおじさんから謹んで提案したいと思います。また、暇で何かやりたいと思っているおじさん族にも提案いたします。英和対訳で英語になじんだらお昼休みの10分をラジオジャパン英語ニュースを聞くなんていうのはどうでしょう。１日３回のニュース更新です。昔なら聞き逃さない為に、タイマーとラジカセ録音機組合せの予約録音でしょうが、インターネットラジオは聞きたい時にいつでも聞けます。

　ささやかなやり方の提案です。毎日asahi.comをチェックし、英和対訳まで含めてご自身でやるようになればもう英語はあなたのものでしょう。（ちょっと大袈裟かな、、。（＾＾；）
参考「こんな感じで英辞郎を使ってます」

60 years since Tokyo blazed in a fiery hell

``I moved my residence to Azabu. It is a painted two-story house. Hence the name Henki-kan (paint house),'' wrote novelist Nagai Kafu (1879-1959) in ``Henki-kan Manroku'' (Henki-kan essay).

Kafu lived there for many years until it was burned down in the U.S. firebombing of Tokyo in the early hours of March 10, 1945.

03月10日付
■《天声人語》

　「居を麻布に移す。ペンキ塗の二階家なり因つて偏奇館と名づく」（「偏奇館漫録」）。永井荷風が長く住んだこの家は、６０年前の３月１０日の未明、米軍による東京大空襲で焼かれた。

``My Henki-kan is in ashes. ... All I saw were flames gaining intensity and rising skyward. My tens of thousands of books on the top floor must have caught fire instantaneously,'' he recalled in ``Risai Nichiroku'' (Disaster diary).

Kafu remained on the scene for a while, watching neighborhood homes burn and observing people's reactions. Around that time, people were running about trying to flee from raging flames in Tokyo's working-class districts along the Sumidagawa river.

　「わが偏奇館焼亡す……火焔の更に一段烈しく空に舞上るを見たるのみ。これ偏奇館楼上万巻の図書、一時に燃上りしがためと知られたり」（「罹災日録」）。荷風は、家々の焼け落ちる様や人々の姿を、その場にしばらくとどまって見ていた。その頃、隅田川周辺の下町一帯では、猛火に追われた人々が逃げまどっていた。

Among pictures drawn later by survivors of that fiery hell, are images of corpses literally piled high at a train station, and the Sumidagawa overflowing with the dead. About 100,000 people were killed overnight.

　生き残った人たちが当夜の有り様を描いた絵には、駅構内で幾重にも折り重なったり、川の中を埋め尽くすようにしたりして息絶えた住民たちの姿がある。一晩で約１０万人の命が奪われた。

On the following day, The Asahi Shimbun's leading front page story was headlined: ``About 130 B29s bomb the capital indiscriminately/ At dawn yesterday.'' The story was a mere rehash of an official report from the Imperial Headquarters, and claimed that ``15 enemy planes were shot down.''

But nowhere was there any detailed account of the immense devastation that took place right before the reporters' eyes-a fact that appalls me anew, even though I am aware of the press censorship that was in effect back then.

　「Ｂ２９約百三十機、昨暁／帝都市街を盲爆」。翌日の朝日新聞の一面トップの見出しだ。大本営発表を伝えたもので、「十五機を撃墜す」とあるが、被害状況の具体的な記述はない。統制下ながら、目の前の大被災を伝え得なかったことを省みて粛然とする。

After Tokyo, the United States went on to bombard major cities including Nagoya, Osaka and Kobe, eventually targeting smaller cities as well. The hellish scene in Tokyo was thus repeated around the nation in varying scales.

　この後、米軍は名古屋、大阪、神戸など大都市での空襲を重ね、更には中小都市へも爆撃を加え続けた。東京の地獄絵は、規模こそ違っても全国で繰り返された。

Two days before the firebombing, Nagai received a ration of wine, which actually proved to be nothing more than crude grape juice that was too harsh to be drinkable.

He noted: ``(They are) trying to make wine vainly without any knowledge of winemaking. It's as foolish as declaring war without understanding the situation abroad.''

　荷風は被災の２日前に、ぶどう酒の配給を受けたという。ぶどうの実をしぼっただけで酸味が甚だしくほとんど口にできないものだった。そして、こう記している。「醸造の法を知らずして猥（みだり）に酒を造らむとするなり。外国の事情を審（つまびらか）にせずして戦を開くの愚なるに似たり」

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 10(IHT/Asahi: March 11,2005)