Troubling xenophobia and racism in sumo reform
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jobo
Grandmaster
in the opening salvo, he immediatly draws attention to the age of the committee and draws the conclusion that people in their 70s are automatically xenophobic, I'm not sure you can take on one perceived evil by perpetrating another set of stereotypes and discrimination
as the irony of this seem lost on him, I'm not sure we can take the rest of his reasoning seriously
all international sports carries and encourages xenophobia, its flag waving, mindless support, for people who share the same place of birth as yourselves, and a feeling of pride if they beat Johnny foreigner.
requiring people who take part 8n a sport, no matter the birthplace or status to abide by the culture of the sports doesnt seem unreasonable to me,that's the culture of japanese sports seems unsurprisingly to be very japanese in nature doesnt change that,
we've had the american culture of fist pumping and over celibtating even minor success creep into our sport, even the more gentiles ones, it's very un British and generaly a sign of being a bad winner
but over time things do seem to degenerate to the lowest common denominator, if left unchecked
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Xue Sheng
All weight is underside
@Steve
I know a person (American) who lived in Japan for a few years, he told me that he liked living there, but for a foreigner to live in Japan you have to understand, the people are nice enough, but you will always be considered an outsider. Even though he meant, and married his wife (Japanese) there, it made no difference. He was always a foreigner
A classmate/colleague (Chinese TCM Doctor who works with Japanese national teams) of my wife’s, lives in Japan and has for years. He sees no reason to pursue citizenship since, as a foreigner, there is no advantage to being a citizen because he will never have the same rights or be accepted as a native born Japanese person, because he is Chinese.
Another good friend of mine (American), who is married to a Japanese woman, wanted to live in Japan, but his wife was against it. I asked her why once and she told me that he would never survive there because he would never be accepted as an American.
But this is not just Japan, I have run into similar things dealing with China. And I have no doubt, to be an American in China these days, due to the politics, it is not pleasant.
I know a person (American) who lived in Japan for a few years, he told me that he liked living there, but for a foreigner to live in Japan you have to understand, the people are nice enough, but you will always be considered an outsider. Even though he meant, and married his wife (Japanese) there, it made no difference. He was always a foreigner
A classmate/colleague (Chinese TCM Doctor who works with Japanese national teams) of my wife’s, lives in Japan and has for years. He sees no reason to pursue citizenship since, as a foreigner, there is no advantage to being a citizen because he will never have the same rights or be accepted as a native born Japanese person, because he is Chinese.
Another good friend of mine (American), who is married to a Japanese woman, wanted to live in Japan, but his wife was against it. I asked her why once and she told me that he would never survive there because he would never be accepted as an American.
But this is not just Japan, I have run into similar things dealing with China. And I have no doubt, to be an American in China these days, due to the politics, it is not pleasant.
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dvcochran
Grandmaster
It the corporate consensus is to keep the product pure, there is nothing wrong with this thinking. It is not at all racist or xenophobic. Just silly to try and make that a headline.
Let's think of it as a recipe for a cake. Using poor quality materials or mixing techniques will result in sub-par results and something less than the intended product.
There is nothing at all different in the concerns of the Sumo community.
I commend them for trying to allow others to become part of the product. Unfortunately, the result has been a tainted, impure, and less quality product. How is factoring out the anomalies a bad thing?
Since we are talking about people as a component of the recipe, I would hope they can get to a point where the standard can be maintained regardless or origin. This requires people who choose to play in this arena to know the rules and traditions and play by them. Clearly, this carries a Ton of weight in the Sumo community so there is nothing wrong at all with expecting people to play by the rules.
That in no way means the standards (recipe) should be or need to be modified to fit a recipe component that does not produce the desired finished product. Far from it.
It is like saying "hey! Lets add concrete to that cake recipe!!! It will be great!! Now, doesn't that sound really, really stupid?
Let's think of it as a recipe for a cake. Using poor quality materials or mixing techniques will result in sub-par results and something less than the intended product.
There is nothing at all different in the concerns of the Sumo community.
I commend them for trying to allow others to become part of the product. Unfortunately, the result has been a tainted, impure, and less quality product. How is factoring out the anomalies a bad thing?
Since we are talking about people as a component of the recipe, I would hope they can get to a point where the standard can be maintained regardless or origin. This requires people who choose to play in this arena to know the rules and traditions and play by them. Clearly, this carries a Ton of weight in the Sumo community so there is nothing wrong at all with expecting people to play by the rules.
That in no way means the standards (recipe) should be or need to be modified to fit a recipe component that does not produce the desired finished product. Far from it.
It is like saying "hey! Lets add concrete to that cake recipe!!! It will be great!! Now, doesn't that sound really, really stupid?
OP
OP
Steve
Mostly Harmless
They seem to be at a crossroads. Hakuho is mongolian, but has lived in Japan since he was 15, and has been a citizen for many years. His wife is Japanese, and his impact on the sport of sumo is undeniable.
OP
OP
Steve
Mostly Harmless
So, foreign born sumo rikishi are sub par ingredients, or like concrete in cake? Come on, man. That's just silly. If you're not going to take some time to learn even a little bit about the topic, I encourage you not to advertise your ignorance.
Xue Sheng
All weight is underside
Yes, but will anything be done at all beyond talking. My wife's Colleague worked with Japanese olympic teams, I believe he is married to a Japanese woman, has lived there at least as long, if not longer, than Hakuho, but sees no reason to pursue citizenship because he is convinced it will make no difference. He will always be a Chinese person, and outsider, living in Japan.
I hope they do change, but based on Japanese society, I think it is very unlikely, although I hope I am wrong. And I don't think the Japanese see it as racism, it is nationalism to protect their history and culture and that is a major problem to overcome since it is, well, patriotic in their eyes
jobo
Grandmaster
well I watch the vid, have you? apart from the,age discrimination thing, the major complaint wasnt the nationality or citizenship of the people, it was that they were not following the ethos of the art,
if that's down to them being foreign or it's just american culture polluting everybody and every thing is debatable
dvcochran
Grandmaster
I watched the complete video and have read several articles regarding infiltration into to the Sumo community. I am certainly no expert but not ignorant to the topic.
So, you are a Sumo wrestler with vast experience? How about you regale us with some of your Sumo stories and experience?
That was pretty weak. Dude.
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