Hillary has GAMBARU!

[Auntie Bush]

According to Ann Curry on CNBC now. According to her Japanese mother she was taught to have GAmbaro...which means "Never give up! Even if there is NO chance of winning!" That's Hillary to a tee. She'll never give up! Much to the chagrin of most posters here.

I never watch the Today Show...so I don't know who she supports...but I know she should support Hillary if she listens to her mother. And all good little girls and boys should listen to their mother. Right?


Edited because I can't read my own writing. lol

[C_U_L8R]

1. There's only one honorable way to end it then

[Ichingcarpenter]

10. LOL..............

My son is getting his doctorate in Japanese language and culture
The Big S




:) :spank: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[maddiejoan]

2. It's actually

GAMBARU!


and it's now my new "GoMAMA"!



GAMBARU!!!!

[gcomeau]

Indeed. And you don't have it...

...you do it. Saying she has gambaru is like saying she has "tries hard". So sayeth my Japanese spouse.

[Auntie Bush]

9. Thanks.

lol I can't read my own writing after I copied it down. I think it makes a perfect slogan or saying for Hillary. Let's use it!

Hillary is going to be on CNBC in a minute with Cramer..

GAMBARU!

[pnorman]

48. "Ganbaru" is the plain form of the verb.

My nearby electronic dictionary says: "stick it out", among others. At sporting events in Japan, participants are frequently urged: "GAMBARE!", which is the imperative form of the verb. It means: "NEVER give up, no matter WHAT the odds!". Typically, that exhorter is wearing their head-band in a manner that signifies just that (hachi-maki mukou).

They are referring of course to the TEAM, and such spirit frequently prevails AGAINST strong odds. But a Japanese would be APPALLED to see that spirit displayed by one player against another on the same team. Perhaps I've spent to many years in Japan, but I too am appalled. How about you?

pnorman

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. I think you can get shots for that.

[SoonerPride]

4. Seppuku is the cure she seeks

Sadly, it may come to that.

[Auntie Bush]

13. I hope not!

That was quite an interesting story. Thanks for posting.

[TahitiNut]

5. The word is "gambaru"

And the "never give up" interpretation is a ridiculous westernized (sports meme?) interpetation. The philisophical core of the concept of gambaru is that the outcome is of trivial concnern compared to the moral 'rightness' (and sincerity) of the effort. Nancy Pelosi, for example, apparently knows NOTHING of gambaru ...nor, apparently, does Hillary.

In fact, gambaru is often seen as most significant when it is absent - and the person gets the desired outcome anyway. This is seen as a kind of moral/ethical failure.

[Auntie Bush]

7. I suggest you take it up with Ann Curry.

Her mother is Japanese and said that's what it means...so should I take her interpretation or yours? :shrug:

[TahitiNut]

8. Neither. I suggest you do your own research instead of spouting secondhand cartoonish crap.

I have no idea whether Ann Curry posesses a more accurate comprehension. I only have what YOU said ... which is a ridiculous oversimplification of a basic ethical concept.

It's really not a difficult concept. In some Western ("new age"?) circles it's described as "detachment from outcome" in acting with dedication to an action that's inherently correct from a moral perspective. Indeed, it emphasizes the deontological as opposed to the consequentialist ethic.

Bastardizing it for utilitarian purposes is intellectually dishonest.

[Auntie Bush]

11. Sorry but I heard it with my own two ears right from the horses mouth.

A horse named Ann!

[TahitiNut]

18. Uh-huh. So ANN didn't even know how to spell it either, huh?

FWIW, the Japanese-English transliteration ("Romanji") isn't a deep mystery ... or subject to much argument.

[Swamp Rat]

15. DING!!! ........... and in this corner...

Only on Pay Per View.... $49.95!

[rodeodance]

32. Lecturing hillary supports is real boring.

[foo_bar]

44. "...and it only annoys the pig"

[Ichingcarpenter]

14. Absolutely Correct

Damn, you're good...... that is my son's interpretation too,
and his explanation of the word.... it is also use in Japanese video-games
and I had to ask him on the meaning.

[TahitiNut]

22. Thanks. I confess to having a long-held fascination to such trivia ...

... having to do with ethics and honor and duty and such. I was "engaged to be engaged" to a terrific Japanese woman for two years and she was a wonderful guide to many aspects of Japanese life and culture ... sushi, etc. Thus, I was motivated to explore such ethical attitudes ... and she was willing to discuss them like a "teacher's aide." It made our evening hot-tub sojourns rich and rewarding (aloong with the 'normal' stuff). I could read up and she'd make it 'real.'

I'd really never been a "Japanophile" before then ... having a slight distaste for the pretentions of many who'd adopt the 'style' of accessorizing themselves. (Indeed, there's much I find distasteful about the culture. Misogyny being just one part.) I've always had a great preference for first-hand 'learning' - being almost phobic toward 'reading about' without 'doing.' (It's a common malady of math majors, I gather.)

When I find such a philosophical/ethical concept in one (ancient) culture that parallels a nearly identical philosophical/ethical concept in another culture, I'm inclined to sense there's an underlying 'truth' that transcends cultures. If nothing else, that's a large part of my personal belief system.

[Ichingcarpenter]

43. My kids explore all aspects of being citizens of the world

They give me an education since they don't feel they are
danish or american, but trapped in international cultures they are
are trying to understand.

They do know, very well, on ethnocentrism, even better than I do.

They try to take the best the world has to offer, in its wisdom and prejudices.
But we are victims of our times as are they. They have the advantage
of learning from our mistakes, if they are willing to listen.

I love the youth.

[godai]

23. Actually it's 'ganbaru'

More politely 'ganbarimasu'...a better translation is 'Do you best!' or 'I'll do my very best!'.

[TahitiNut]

26. .

がんばる

http://nihongodecarenavi.jp/en/en_entry_4290.html

[godai]

30. What you wrote is ga-n-ba-ru

There is no 'm' standing alone in Japanese.

[TahitiNut]

34. Sure it's not "ganbalu"?

:silly:

[godai]

36. There is no 'L' in Japanese

In spoken Japanese 'ru' and 'lu' sound quite similar but it's always written 'ru' in romaji.

And so ends our Japanese lesson for this evening. Ganbaru!

[Bonobo]

33. In all fairness, you're not quite right.

"Ganbaru" is made up of two characters.

"Gan" = Stubborness.

"Haru" = TO stretch or tighten.

So it really means to "pull stubborness".

OP is basically right.

[TahitiNut]

37. ....

Gambaru is, for one thing, a process-oriented concept that emphasizes the moral significance of an effort, or doryoku. What is important is that one makes the sincerest effort possible, and the outcome of that effort is secondary at best, and, in many situations, completely irrelevant. In other words, in the value system of gambaru, the process of making an effort is intentionally dissociated from the outcome that the effort brings, so that the effort can be evaluated, and admired, on its own merit.

At its best, this ideal rewards hard work and encourages equity among those who are willing to work hard. There is an implicit acknowledgment that a successful outcome may depend on factors out of our individual control, such as natural talent, luck, or, in the increasingly commodified world of amateur sports, the availability of financial resources.

But one has control over how much effort one makes, and it is this choice to gambaru that makes a person good, worthy, and admirable.

Gambaru works as an equalizing mechanism, because, for one thing, it allows the not-so-talented to compete against the talented on a more equal footing. But somewhat ironically, it also curtails competitiveness, even in those aspects of social life--like business or competitive sports--in which competition is supposed to be the name of the game. When making an effort becomes the goal in itself, the bull-headed, often senseless exhibition of the spirit of gambaru can overtake concern for the quality or efficacy of the effort being made.

As long as you "made the utmost effort," you can satisfy others and yourself with that simple fact, regardless of outcomes. The overt emphasis on the effort also makes winning or getting a positive result an almost undesirable position to be in, as it exposes the fallacy of equity that the value of gambaru is meant to project. Therefore, if the appearance of gambaru is important when you lose, it is even more so when you win.

There is nothing more irritating than a person who doesn't make as much effort as others and still gets the result. The only way to escape the scorn of jealous peers is the acknowledgment that he or she outdid everyone with the most strenuous effort, leading, at times, to masochistic display of extreme effort, which may be symbolically significant, but in actuality, not so effective.

Gambaru became a central value in postwar Japan, because it was a perfect fit for the vision of byodo shakai (egalitarian society), where everyone can aspire to become "middle-class." Particularly between the 1950s and 1980s, it was easy to believe in such a dream and keep on doing one's very best, because, with the continuously growing national economy, almost everybody was doing better each year and was rewarded for their hard work.

By the middle of the 1980s, it looked as though Japan had realized the postwar ideal of economic and social equity, where over 90 percent of citizens considered themselves "middle class." In this equitably affluent society, one could be at least as good as the Joneses next door, as long as he or she continued to gambaru. This belief, in turn, supported the unprecedented growth of the Japanese national economy, by securing the hard-working and loyal workforce who unquestioningly devoted their lives to their companies, and by extension, to their nation.

The bubble economy of the late 1980s changed many things, and among them was the decline of the postwar ideal of byodo. People became increasingly dissatisfied with just being the "same" as everyone else, and began to search for ways to distinguish themselves from the masses. Many aspired to live a life that was wan ranku appu or "one rank above," and acquired a taste for luxury consumer goods and services, for which they seemed to spare no expense.

When the bubble economy collapsed, ordinary "middle-class" Japanese did not only lose the economic means for conspicuous consumption. After a brief taste of the life "one rank above," many found themselves on the losing side in a society of kakusa (difference or inequality), where competition is stiff and hard work may go unrewarded, and where the gap between the wealthy and the poor continues to widen. Fifteen years later, it seems that many people have already lost faith in any kind of equity and allowed akirame (resignation) to permeate their outlook for the future.

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/features/language/20060713TDY15001.htm
http://patrickmccoy.typepad.com/lost_in_translation/2006/07/word_of_the_wee.html

[Bonobo]

39. A long way of saying hard work sometimes trumps skill.

BTW, I have been a Japanese-English translator for 15 years.

[TahitiNut]

40. Arigato

[foo_bar]

6. you might be on to something

Again, the outside world tried to contact the survivors living on the island by dropping leaflets out of a Boeing B-17 near the end of 1945. Printed on these leaflets was the surrender order from General Yamashita of the Fourteenth Area Army. Having already hidden on the island for a year and with the only proof of the end of the war being this leaflet, Onoda and the others scrutinized every letter and every word on this piece of paper. One sentence in particular seemed suspicious, it said that those who surrendered would receive "hygienic succor" and be "hauled" to Japan. Again, they believed this must be an Allied hoax.

Leaflet after leaflet was dropped. Newspapers were left. Photographs and letters from relatives were dropped. Friends and relatives spoke out over loudspeakers. There was always something suspicious, so they never believed that the war had really ended.

Year after year, the four men huddled together in the rain, searched for food, and sometimes attacked villagers. They fired on the villagers because, "We considered people dressed as islanders to be enemy troops in disguise or enemy spies. The proof that they were was that whenever we fired on one of them, a search party arrived shortly afterward."3 It had become a cycle of disbelief. Isolated from the rest of the world, everyone appeared to be the enemy.

http://history1900s.about.com/od/worldwarii/a/soldiersurr.htm

[Blue-Jay]

12. ?

[JVS]

17. OH NOES!

[FrenchieCat]

16. GAmbaro in this instance appears to mean......

that Hillary is a kamikaze about to commit Hara-kiri .
http://askville.amazon.com/difference-Hari-Kari-Seppuka-Kamikaze-details/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=6493851

Ann Curry's mother left that part out.....much to the chagrin of Hillary supporters who will be committing Seppuku en masse at the given hour.

[pompano]

19. One has to fund Gambaro....

A Gambaro-borrow?

Most of the money she's bard. Thats what Im reading from the M$M anyway?

Did her staff ever get a Gam-paycheck?

[BlueIdaho]

20. Unfortunately she ordered the Gumbo...

Her campaign staff can't get anything right these days.

[pompano]

27. It was a Gump-barrow.

In my bestest Forest Gump voice.....

"One day I decided to run for Pres. so I took off running and I just ran and ran and ran"

"Mah bo'at...th'ai'tzz ma bo'at" :-)

[Warren Stupidity]

21. It is more like Black Knight Aru

By the way gambaru results in hiding in caves on some hideous island for 20 years waiting for an opportunity to die for your emperor who in turn has long since moved on to contemplating cherry blossoms and his zen rock garden

[anonymous171]

24. [insert refernce to seppuku here]

[godai]

25. Kamikaze fits also. She'll take down Obama with her. n/t

[kwenu]

28. She probably got it in Tuzla when she was ducking for cover and crawling through the mud.

Penicillin should help.

[rodeodance]

31. yawn. get some new material.

[BlueIdaho]

35. Darn that inconvenient truth! nt.

[rodeodance]

38. no, just boring. You wear me out bro (or sis)

[BlueIdaho]

41. Ok lets try this on for size...

HRC looked right into the camera lens on SEVERAL occasions and lied her ass off. No sleep deprivation, no little exaggeration, an obvious lie. The same lie her daughter told about the same event. This is NOT some meaningless little "fib" this is her conscious effort to make you believe she has a level of experience she clearly lacks. No wonder you are tired of hearing about it - its a deal killer for someone who wants to be the next President of the United States.

[kwenu]

42. Coming right up.

[Bonobo]

29. Ganbaru spirit is not gonna do the trick.

[Ichingcarpenter]

45. My dog agrees

[TahitiNut]

46. It's not supposed to. "Virtue is its own reward."

The "goal" of a virtuous act is the act itself. It contains itself, in an ethical sense.

That (and other things) said, I do NOT regard her behavior as a demonstration of 'ganbaru.'

No way. No how.

Kucinich would be a far better model.

[Unbowed]

47. Gam...what? Hope it's not catching.

Nothing wrong with not giving up.

It's the way she tries to win that many of us take exception to. The Kitchen sink/Tonya Harding crap is beneath a Democrat.

hat's why many of us want to see her out of the race. She's making us all look bad.

She's not hurting Obama. He's sailing along to the nomination without breaking a sweat. She's more like a fly that keeps buzzing around, annoying but hardly of any consequence.