Kaleidoscope International Journal
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KALEIDOSCOPE International Journal Volume 5 Issue 1 Kaleidoscope International Journal, Boston College’s undergraduate-run publication focusing on international affairs and cultures, intends to: serve as an unbiased medium for students to publish research and opinions on international affairs; share personal experiences in regards to the cultures of the globe with the Boston College community; and promote a global outlook at Boston College. Editorial Staff Advisory Board Editor-in-Chief Nick Gozik, Director of the Office of International Programs & Director of the McGillycuddy-Logue Center for Omeed Alerasool Undergraduate Global Studies Timothy Karcz, Assistant Director of the Center for Human Managing Editor Rights and International Justice Madison Montgomery Hiroshi Nakazato, Professor of Political Science & Associate Director of International Studies Senior Copy Editor Adrienne Nussbaum, Director of the Office of International Patrick Reynolds Students and Scholars Prasannan Parthasarathi, Professor of History & Director of Senior Layout Designer Graduate Studies Sacha Ramjit Laura Rumbley, Associate Director of the Center for International Higher Education Copy Editors Sean Babar Special Thanks Ray Bellis Mary Crane, Thomas F. Rattigan Professor of English & Director Christine Donohue of the Institute for the Liberal Arts Rebecca Gioioso Susan Dunn, Administrative Assistant of the Center for Centers Garrett Lau Willow Sommer Monetta Edwards, Program and Events Administrator of the Center for Centers Layout Designers Michelle Muccini, Web Design and Communications Specialist Mirabella Daguerre of the Center for Centers Linda Yoonhye Kim Yasmin Nuñez, Finance and Administration Manager of the Yunqing Wang Center for Centers Administrative Officers This publication is funded by the Institute for the Liberal Arts (ILA). Omar Eloseily Cover Photo: “26 Martyrs Memorial” by Mary Popeo Emily Liddy The information provided by our contributors is not independently verified by Kaleidoscope. The materials presented represent the personal opinions of individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of Kaleidoscope or the Boston College community. Please direct any questions or comments to: [email protected] Letter from the Editor Welcome back to another volume of the Kaleidoscope International Journal! The Fall 2013 journal marks the fifth issue that I have had the pleasure to work on as Editor-in-Chief. This semester we welcome Madison Montgomery and Patrick Reynolds as our new Managing Editor and Senior Copy Editor, respectively, along with seven new members of our staff. I would specifically like to thank the new members of our Advisory Board for their valuable advice and support. Featured in this issue is Mary Popeo’s fascinating insight into the Christian community in the Japanese city of Nagasaki. Having spent time in Nagasaki pursuing her quest to understand Japan’s Christian heritage, she took several great photos, including that on this issue’s cover. Rounding off the culture section, Nicholas Volpe guides us through the failure of NFL Europe and the rise of the International Series, as he explains the past and present of American football in Europe and elsewhere. Ashley Dowd spent time in Argentina, exploring its dark history. In Memorializing Argentine State Terrorism, she explains how Argentina is promoting artistic and architectural expression as a means of remembering and understanding the period of military dictatorship known as the National Reorganization Process. The second article in the historical section recounts the various Soviet policies towards Central Asia and their residual effects on those societies and nations after the USSR collapsed. Our photo diaries this semester display three distinct and yet fantastic views from across the globe. Lastly, we end this issue with our current affairs section that focuses on the rising global power that is the People’s Republic of China. Katherine Ross explains the extent of Chinese internet censorship in the context of a post-Tiananmen society. Afterwards, Sean Ahn debunks the myth of a Chinese real estate bubble ready to burst. The entire Editorial Staff thanks you, our valued reader, for your continuing support. We hope you enjoy the Fall 2013 issue of the Kaleidoscope International Journal! Omeed Alerasool Editor-in-chief Table of Contents Cultural Japan’s Christian City 9 Mary Popeo The NFL’s Strategy for Globalization 14 Nicholas A. Volpe Historical Memorializing Argentine State Terrorism 23 Ashley Dowd Soviet Legacy in Central Asia 28 Chelsea Mickel Photo Diaries Taiwan 35 Angela Wang Germany 38 J.H. Daniel Lee New Zealand 40 Jessica Zuban Current Affairs The Great Firewall 43 Katherine Ross Chinese Real Estate “Bubble” 48 Sean Ahn Endnotes & References 52 Cultural 8 Kaleidoscope Journal Vol. 5 Issue 1 Popeo Japan’s Christian City: Exploring Nagasaki Through Public History By Mary Popeo “As the Japanese saying goes, ikari no Hiroshima, inori no Nagasaki: while Hiroshima rages, Nagasaki prays” Nagasaki’s Christian community gathers for a procession to Urakami Cathedral on the anniversary of the atomic bombing. Nagasaki is a city largely overlooked by Nagasaki’s Christian past, I set out to explore tourists and academics alike. A mere footnote in how the Christian legacy of the city manifests Lonely Planet’s infallible Japanese travel guide, it itself through public history. By spending a is portrayed as the lesser of Japan’s two bombed month in Nagasaki visiting museums, churches, cities, unnecessary to see for those already and World War II commemorative sites, I hoped visiting Hiroshima. Hiroshima and Nagasaki to discover whether Japanese people living in may share a similar bomb history, but as the Japanese saying goes, ikari no Hiroshima, inori and cared to preserve or promote it. I began no Nagasaki: while Hiroshima rages, Nagasaki withNagasaki the 26 identified Martyrs Museum,with this whereChristian director history Fr. prays. Unbeknownst to many, Nagasaki has one Renzo de Luca, S.J. generously offered me access of the most unique historical traditions in Japan; to his museum, library, and staff. a blend of Japanese culture and international imports, Nagasaki was the only point of entry to plan. I visited various museums with exhibits for foreigners during the Tokugawa isolation. pertaining My firstto weekChristian in Nagasaki history, went such according as the It served as an entrepôt for Jesuit missionaries Nagasaki National Museum and, of course, the in the 16th century and remains a center 26 Martyrs Museum. To experience active parish for Christian activity today. It is Nagasaki’s life, I attended Mass at Urakami Cathedral and distinctive history of diversity, suffering, and at Nakamachi Church. Additionally, I explored World War II-related sites, such as the Atomic and led me to visit. Bomb Museum and its accompanying Peace prayer that first piqued my curiosity last year Park. I visited Nyokodo, the one-room hermitage Eager to assess the modern influence of Cultural 9 Japan’s Christian City True to their name, kakure Christian churches are often tucked away in remote, mountainous areas. of Takashi Nagai, a survivor of the atomic kakure – or hidden – Christian martyrs and the bombing of Nagasaki, and heard speeches by bomb survivors at the Nagasaki National Peace I believed the Japanese to be reverent, balanced, Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims. andunquestionable in touch with influence nature. of ChineseOf the Buddhism,Christians Spending time at these sites provided in particular, I expected a small yet thriving me with a greater historical background of community that was determined to preserve this city. However, I became most interested in Christian traditions, was knowledgeable of the opinions of those who accompanied me to theology, and was passionately committed to religious formation. in my language skills, I made friends in the city What I found instead was that the whothese wereplaces. happy As I togrew show increasingly me around. confident In my Japanese were fairly apathetic towards, not conversations with college students and with only Christianity, but organized religion in professors, I gained insight into the general general. The consensus among my new friends population’s relationship to Nagasaki’s Christian seemed to be that religion was unimportant history. With these dialogues as a new source and that most people living in Nagasaki would of information, I realized it would have been not peg themselves as religious or pious. Even the Christians that I encountered took a fairly public history alone. neutral stance as well. Through the Nagasaki difficultAlthough to gauge I enjoyedpeople’s these attitudes conversations through Junshin Catholic University, I met a junior named Izumi Miyazaki. I soon began to spend time with learned I had a different conception of Japanese her Catholic family. While the Miyazakis were spiritualityat first and thanwas mygrateful Japanese for the companions. company, TakingI soon incredibly welcoming and hospitable, many of into consideration the unfathomable faith of the their beliefs left me curious. For example, Mrs. 10 Kaleidoscope Journal Vol. 5 Issue 1 Popeo Miyazaki did not rebuke Izumi for skipping However, Fr. De Luca also expressed Mass, reasoning that Izumi’s school and job regret over the condition of spiritual education in Japan. Unlike in the United States, Japan has Izumi deemed the differences between Catholics few forums for introducing spirituality or for