t******1
发帖数: 1376 | 1 http://edition.cnn.com/2010/BUSINESS/11/11/obama.twin.sisters.japan/index.html
我只負責轉貼 不代表個人觀點
Tokyo, Japan (CNN) -- Genetically, Toshiko and Fukuko Kubo are identical
twins. The 30-year-old sisters are physically indistinguishable, from their
height to their walk -- even the way they both break into a wide smile.
Their lives, though, are on two separate paths, mirroring the power shift
that is the economic story in Asia.
Toshiko lives in Tokyo, Japan. She has a graduate degree in art history and
longs to work amid the works of the great artists of the classical era of
art. Those dreams are shelved, she says, for a job with a steady salary and
benefits. She works in a job outside of the field of her choice, logging the
typical 14-hour work day expected in Japan. Toshiko doesn't hate her job,
but it doesn't exactly inspire her, either.
Despite her lackluster career path, Toshiko says by Japanese standards, she'
s lucky. Approximately one third of 20-to-30-year olds don't have full-time
jobs, according to Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
The ministry also shows the highest rate of unemployment is among people
under age 25.
"Japan is a difficult place to live for young people," says Toshiko. "Young
people don't have goals. We can't have dreams. Even if we have a dream,
there's no way to make it come true."
Gallery: Twin Tale: Rising China, Japan's setting sun
Japan's bubble burst 20 years ago and has remained stagnant. People in her
age group, says Toshiko, have never known a thriving Japanese economy.
Toshiko's twin, Fukuko, decided early on that the world offered more in life
than what she saw in Japan.
Fukuko decided in high school to study abroad in the UK. She became fluent
in English, a key to unlocking the job possibilities with multinational
companies overseas.
Like her sister, Fukuko also graduated with a master's degree, but in
contemporary art, with an undergraduate in architecture.
At first, she says, she tried to work in Japan. She was employed at a Tokyo-
based company when the sub-prime crisis struck the U.S. and unraveled into
the Lehman Shock in Japan. The company downsized and bought out employees,
including Fukuko.
Fukuko looked around and saw little hope for her young life in the mature
economy of Japan. "I think people are getting less optimistic about life,"
says Fukuko. "You feel this kind of depression. People are sort of stuck in
this environment where they are just worried about everything, and then work
for so many hours. I wasn't feeling happy either, because of all these
things around me. I needed to get out of that so I could feel fine."
Without a job or any concrete employment plan, Fukuko took off to Beijing,
China. Three days later, she landed an interview and then subsequently was
hired by an interior design company.
That would be impossible in Japan, says Fukuko, pointing out that Japanese
companies hire according to rigid rules and entrance exams, so landing an
interview quickly is out of the question.
Her current job in Beijing, she says, is challenging, rewarding and
interesting. Her new country, says Fukuko, is where her future lies.
"You can feel a lot of optimistic, energetic (feelings) here. People are so
optimistic. It's really, really powerful because everyone knows that the
economy is doing really well. Japan's the opposite. It's sort of going down."
When asked to share advice with young people in Japan, Fukuko says, "I think
people should go out."
Should they leave Japan? Fukuko quickly responds, "I think so. I think so."
We can't have dreams. Even if we have a dream, there's no way to make it
come true | s***i
发帖数: 1443 | 2 本来刚想说我们的同志终于成功打入敌人喉舌机构内部
再一看作者的名字 估计是来有意钓鱼的 |
|
