My opinion this week(165)

Amazing amount of money

  Sogo Department Store that is under reconstruction now announced that
total excess debt of the group reached 580 billion yen as of February ,
2000. What an amazing number it is ! If Sogo were an ordinal business 
firm, it would have gone bankrupt much earlier. How could they stay 
alive until today ? 

 About a few weeks ago, Sogo requested renunciation of credit to their
major banks amounting 639 billion yen by the end of year 2001. Some of
abandonment of such credit are 180 billion yen from Industrial Bank of
Japan, 97 billion yen from Long Term Bank of Japan and so forth. They 
are amazing amount of money , too. 

 Where had so much amount of money gone ? How can those banks accept 
such easy going  request from Sogo ? They are obliged to listen to Sogo's
request anyway, for there are no other alternatives.

 Mr.Mizushima, a substantial owner of Sogo, retired from the Chairmanship
so quickly. I wonder how will the management who are left behind handle
this serious situation. I also wonder what responsibility will those bank
management take for borowing  so much amount of money in vain?

 Don't let them say that such claims from outside world are not appropriate.
As a people of this country, we can cast a big question against those banks
to which so much amount of public fund have been injected from tax of people
in this country.

 All Japanese people surely has the right to raise any claims against such
easy going solution of Sogo and watch the outcome of the actions which 
follow from now.

 (I wrote this article in the morning of April 28th and uploaded it to
the free Home Page Diary Board. I went to the mail box to get a morning
paper I subscribe. I opened the front page and found the news that Vice
President of Sogo committed suicide for the big burden he may carry from
now on. What a cruel accident it is ! )

2000/5/6
Tadashi HAYASE
 

My opinion this week(166)

Virus mails

  According to Asahi Newspaper of May 7, about 45 million PCs or servers 
were invaded by virus mails scattered by a hacker who lives somewhere
in the world. In Japan about 40,000 PC users suffered from this virus.

  People got a mail with an attached file  from a unknown man. When
they opened it , a message appears on displays of their PCs saying
" I LOVE YOU ". Then all system and file data in the PCs are destroyed
at once. The same mail will be sent to address list stored in PCs one 
after another just like pyramid selling.

  How troublesome it is!  Many business firms and individuals are
annoyed by such serious delinquent acts. Hackers  should stop doing
such evildoing immediately.

  This is the first comment I have to write. But at the same time,
I would like to make another one following to the first one. I always
feel that many mass media tend to overact too much to this kind of
happenings. According to my observation, their reports are too much
sensational and emotional. In many cases they just threaten people 
who do not understand some of those  good  protection system and the
backup system preparing for that kind of happenings.

  Asahi Newspaper, for example, wrote in the editorial of May 7 issue
as follows: "In Japan, Cyber Police for a network world has just 
started. Internet will be able to become a convenient tool only after
when business firms and individuals finish some necessary protection
measures. Internet is still a kind of such dangerous world."

  I am not saying that the editorial is wrong. But I would like to
point out that those mass media are just threatening people who do
not really understand computers hardware and software protection 
and backup system. 

  In any business firms there are many group of people who are
very negative in using e-mails and Internet as necessary  business
tools. Those group of people will get another influential power
to delay the use of e-mail and Internet in their business whenever
such happenings about virus occurred. The conclusion of the editor of
the paper is that discretion is the better part of valor. 

  It is a common sense for any computer users to prepare for such
evildoing by virus mail. Provided that your PCs were invaded by
virus, you can reinstall all of operating system and data files
backed up for such happenings. No one have ever killed by virus as
a matter of fact.

 Don't be scared. Those hackers enjoy seeing such confusion accelerated 
by such reports by mass media.

2000/5/13
Tadashi HAYASE

My opinion this week(167)

Let's change politics

  Former Prime Minister Obuche has died. I saw TV news scene with tears
that the car carried Mr. Obuchi drove through the diet, Prime Minister's
House, etc. and to his own private house. There were many criticism as
to Mr. Obuchi's politics. But Okinawa Summit was the one decided by
his own judgment and many politicians and publics wish that the summit
are to be handled by himself. Many are sorry for that.

  I sincerely pray for the souls of the dead.
 
 In the meantime, such influential people as Messrs. Takeshite. Kajiyama,
and Hara resigned from political world. The general election for the
Lower House is coming up soon. It is expected that Japanese politics will
change greatly. More strongly speaking, that should be changed. What
I always feel strange is that there are so many hereditary diet members
in both parliaments. They succeed election district from their families
to become parliamentary members. There are quite a few of such diet
members today. In the present Mori Cabinet, there are Mr. Nakasone,
Minister of Education, Mr. Hori, Minister of Autonomy, etc. are typical
example. 

  I will not say that all hereditary diet members are no good. Some may
have a good quality as a politicians inspired by observing their great
grand fathers or fathers as politicians. But many are not necessary so
good taking hereditary merit into consideration. Their quality as politicians
and ambitious mind as politicians have no relations.

 There will be many such politicians that will be elected in that way in
next election. It is natural that ruling Liberal Democratic Party has so
many such hereditary members. If this continues, I guess that theory will
be no change at all concerning the present status quo of the political
world. 

  One citizen group started a very interesting political campaign recently.
They listed up ten Japanese parliamentary members who should not be 
reelected in coming general election. Those nominated are so called 
tribe group of people, very inactive members as a politician, hereditary
members, etc. None of those who work diligently regardless of any parties
are not included in that group. 

  Japan is now in the midst of structural change of society. We have to
start working to change political world at the beginning. One most 
effective means to change politics is the transfer of power. In relation
to the death of Mr., Obuchi, they will try to use it as a kind of political
strategy. They try to appeal the sympathy of the people. Don't be cheated
by such cheap tactics.
 
  It is true that Mr.Obuchi worked hard for the people and the country. 
Every people must have felt a great sympathy for his death. But the politics
which is to be vitalized from now is to be separated from such emotional 
way of thinking. Evrey people should make serious look at candidates and
candidate parties to be elected for the future of this country.

2000/5/20
Tadashi HAYASE