On Fri, 24 Jan 1997, Cynewulf wrote:

	Well, the information and everything is definately interesting, 
but, really, what does it matter if most of the people on the ML aren't 
aware of how hetero/homo/trans -sexual relationships are like in Japan?  
The fanfics written here aren't about Japan.  A story - a _good_ story, 
has more to do with the setting and personal opinions with which the 
author is familiar with, and is place to work-out and present ideas and 
concerns which he(she) finds important.  Just as, say, a Shakespearian 
play set in a roman ( or pseudo-roman) setting had less to do with that 
time period then it did with his own, so, too, can an anime fanfic be 
less concerned with accurately represent japanese customs and mores and be
more interested in presenting North 
American/European/Australian/Whatever/Personal concerns.

Actually, I was trying to point out that since the fan fictions are
already so Americanized, that people should not complain about other
subjects being put into it.  After all, if I was a purist, then all of
these fanfictions would be subject to a lot of needless critism for having
deviated from actual cultural and factural information.  To me, it is sort
of disturbing to see so many assumptions on life in Japan, but that is the
opinion of the writer, and it could and probably does occur that way in
another dimension of space-time, but I still enjoy the story.

	Well, I can accept honour as a reasonable explanation for why 
Ranma doesn't make a decision - but, really, it still strikes me as a 
somewhat too deep interpretation of the story.  Why didn't he solve his 
fiancee problem?  Because it wouldn't have been funny.  Why didn't he 
just walk back to Jusenkyou and jump in?  Take the curse out, and a lot 
of the comedy goes with it.

This is also true, but you also have to look at the society it was written
for to understand certain aspects of it.  From the American point of view,
it is all about commedy since Americans do not have the same social
strictures.  From the Japanese viewpoint, there are a lot more strictures
and cultural barriers within our society than one would give credance to
in North America.

	Oh, I agree on that entirely... if you don't like it, don't read 
it.  But since when is publicity, television, and book burnings 
'artifacts of the Christian communities'?  I thought this was an argument 
against censorship, or an explanation of japanese values - when did it 
become an exercise in religion-bashing?  Book-burners?  Funny... I 
could've sworn the Dominican friars, and the Franciscan and 
Benedictine monks, actually transcribed and preserved vaste quantities of 
classical literature.  You had an interesting argument going, but those 
cheap, far-too-easy to make shots at christianity really didn't help 
advance it any.

I have to appologize for that, but I am really only familiar with what I
have seen of Christians in my own country and with what happened here in
North America.  Christians in Japanese history are known to have killed,
murdered, and stole in the name of their God, without any reason given but
that their God is the only one.  Many texts, histories, and other
artifacts of cultural significance were lost because of the Christians,
both in Asia and in Europe and the rest of the world.  In Europe, women
were killed because they healled people.  One of the doctrines that was
litterally put to us by crusifying people was that women had no place in
healing or in political life.  If they did so, then they are against the
Christian God and should die by any means at hand.

Unfortuantely, this is the view of what Christianity is, and is unlikely
to change, without the Christians stopping a lot of things, including
lying about what happens in the country, burning of books, tapes, and
materials, atacking a business for producing materials with which they
do not agree, even when such materials are not produced, with either lies
about the company, management, or even physical attacks.

I have seen this happen too many times to be impressed with a lot of
Christianity, but you are right in the fact that I have no reason to
advance those views here.

I hereby appologize to the Christians on this list for my inappropriate
comments.

Hitomi

Ichinohei Hitomi
Hitomi@terminal.autobahn.mb.ca
http://204.112.189.3/~hitomi
"The beginings of wisdom is the ability to always ask questions."