What is Executive Order 11246? Executive Order (EO) 11246 (see, e.g., http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Executive_Order_11246) was signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on 9/24/65 that required Equal Employment Opportunity. The Order states that “It is the policy of the Government of the United States to provide equal opportunity in Federal employment for all qualified persons, to prohibit discrimination in employment because of race, creed, color, or national origin, and to promote the full realization of equal employment opportunity through a positive, continuing program in each executive department and agency. The policy of equal opportunity applies to every aspect of Federal employment policy and practice.” The Order requires similar equal employment opportunity with respect to federal contractors and subcontractors, as well as any federally assisted construction contractors and subcontractors, who do over $10,000 in Government business in one year. All such contractors and subcontractors are forbidden to discriminate in employment decisions on the basis of race, creed, color, or national origin.
The Essence of Taijiquan Part 2: Perspective from Taiji Qigong
In the August 2007 release of this website, I wrote the first part of a two-part series on “The Essence of Taijiquan.” That Part 1 article described the “Perspective from Taiji Push Hands.” Part 2 in this release describes the “Perspective from Taiji Qigong.” This article will briefly address the following three questions:
- What is Qi and what is Qigong?
- How is Qigong related to Taiji?
- What are some general principles and steps in Taiji Qigong exercises?
This discussion is based on material from several books:
- The Essence of Taiji Qigong: The Internal Foundation of Taijiquan, by Dr. Jwing-Ming Yang, 1997
- The Healing Promise of Qi: Creating Extraordianary Wellness Through Qigong and Tai Chi, by Roger Jahnke, O.M.D., 2002
- Qigong Empowerment: A Guide to Medical, Taoist, Buddhist, Wushu Energy Cultivation, by Shou-Yu Liang and Wen-Ching Wu, 1997
- The Roots of Chinese Qigong: Secrets for Health, Longevity, & Enlightenment, by Dr. Jwing-Ming Yang, 1997
Reflections on Atrocities in Asia During WWII
Seventy years have passed since the Nanking Massacre. The Nanking Massacre is undeniable, because it was witnessed and well documented at that time by many people, including western journalists, businessmen, diplomats, missionaries, and other international observers. However, the Japanese government has never officially (i.e., with a resolution passed by their Parliament) admitted to the Nanking Massacre, or other atrocities committed by the Japanese military during WWII, even though descriptions of these atrocities have also been found in the diaries and recorded interviews of former Japanese soldiers. As a matter of fact, many Japanese leaders and the Japanese mass media have said on many occasions that there were no such atrocities, and that those atrocities were fabricated by the Chinese. An example of such statement was the one made in March 2007 by the then Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe who denied that during WWII the Japanese military had forced foreign women into sexual slavery, euphemistically called Comfort Women.
Watershed Event in Teaching WWII Asian History in NJ Schools
The NJ Commission on Holocaust Education has just published “A Curriculum Guide for Secondary Teachers” on “The Nanking Massacre and Other Japanese Atrocities Committed during the Asia-Pacific War: 1931-1945,” and is distributing copies of this Curriculum Guide to all high schools in NJ. During the 14 years of WWII in Asia, over 25 million Chinese, and many more millions in other Asian countries, were killed. One particular atrocity that stood out was the Nanking Massacre that started on December 13, 1937. During a six-week period in just the city of Nanking, the then capital of China, about 300,000 Chinese, mostly civilians (including numerous women and children), were slaughtered by the Japanese military, over 20,000 Chinese females (including many young girls and grandmothers, or even great grandmothers) were raped, and one-third of the city was burned to the ground.
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