Japan+and+the+Pacific+Rim

__Pg. 812 - 823 Notes__

MI: Countries in East Asia saw differing patterns of changes and continuities in the governments ruling them. ++: Taiwan, for example, was still under rule of China's Chiang Kai-shek, a communist leader. ++: Others, like the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaya were independent as a result of post-war decolonization.

MI: Japan underwent a process of recovery assisted by the U.S; this meant that Japan's government was reworked to fit the ideals of the U.S., for the most part. ++: American authorities pressed for a disbandment of Shintoism, and the implementation of a government system where Parliament would reign supreme, and the emperor would be just be a symbolic person. ++: Japan was stripped of its military force during its recovery phase, becoming a major nation w/o having a powerful military presence, besides the U.S.

MI:Korea's postwar saw a split in the two regions; the north was controlled by the Soviet Union, while the south was controlled by the United States. ++: The north waged war against the south as a way to unify the nation; the U.S. retaliated, and then provoked the Chinese to push back the U.S. ++: Both supporting nations pumped money and military equipments into the two Koreas so that neither one would be able to conquer one another.

MI: Hostility towards communist regimes in China led to some independence for certain nations. ++: Taiwan opposed the communist rule, and was backed up by the U.S. in terms of economy to help better defend themselves. Conflicts eventually settled down between the communist regime and the nationalist parties. ++: Other nations obtained independence, such as **Hong Kong** from Britain.

MI: Japan's culture underwent a transformation brought upon by Western influences; however, certain aspects stayed relatively the same. ++: The government began to actively promote birth control and the such, indicating a higher involvement of government activities within the lives of the civlians. ++: The arts were mixed with Japanese old-styled tradition methods combined with techniques learned from the West. Architecture was the same way. ++: Tea ceremonies, holidays, were kept the same in Japan as a way to celebrate the old-fashioned.

MI: Japan quickly restored its economic status, and soon surpassed even large major nations such as Great Britain. ++: This was due to active participation of the government in the economy, as well as businesses and industries where the employers actually cared about the employees, thus raising morale and loyalty. ++: Higher standards in schools helped to challenge and expand the minds of the youth, thereby allowing them to work efficiently in future jobs, although somewhat scarce.

MI: Like Japan, Korea's post-war growth rate was also very similar in regards to the increases in their national economies. ++: Korea saw successes in particular industries, such as textiles, whose jobs managed to take away nearly one-third of the jobs in Japan. ++: Most importantly, it was the work of several rich and generous businesses such as **Hyundai** who helped to build schools, factories, etc. for the common people.

MI: Countries in the Pacific Rim all shared commonalities in their economic successes, but that soon soured. ++: The expansion of industries and factories, combined with group loyalty, were key to creating successful economies in the Pacific Rim. ++: Economic activity began to decline in the late 20th century, and unemployment rates plagued the Pacific Rim countries.