by Xinhua writer Liu Chen
BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- In the latest shocking textbook scandal in Japan, Adolf Hitler is not portrayed as a warmonger and a mass murderer to be condemned but an inspirator to be cherished.
That is a horrible nightmare for any sensible adult, but the Japanese government said it's no big deal.
Recently, the Shinzo Abe administration reportedly okayed the use of "beneficial" or "appropriate" content from the Nazi leader's infamous screed Mein Kampf, or My Struggle, as part of its school curriculum, a perilous move in its longtime attempt to revive its past military glory.
How could there be any content "beneficial" or "appropriate" in a book that many view as a blueprint for the ruthless slaughter of about 6 million Jews during World War II (WWII)?
Tokyo made the unscrupulous move regardless of the fact that the tract had been blocked by the German government for 70 years and its publication remains highly controversial in many other countries.
In fact, greenlighting Mein Kampf as teaching material is the latest of a string of actions taken by the Abe administration to foster a nationalist and militaristic spirit in the country's young generation.
In March, a course of bayonetting, a melee combat means popular during wartime, was added to a new course guideline for primary and secondary schools in Japan.
Meanwhile, Tokyo approved a document that does not rule out using as textbook material the Imperial Rescript on Education, an edict to promote emperor-oriented and militaristic education signed by Japan's Emperor Meiji on Oct. 30, 1890.
In a recent land deal scandal, Prime Minister Abe and his wife were found advocates of imperialistic-styled pedagogy in a kindergarten in the western Japanese city of Osaka.
From ambitious overseas military presence to national education that encourages bellicose militarism, Japan reveals its ambition toward military rebuilding, which along with fascism, was the root cause of WWII and must be strongly condemned and eradicated thoroughly.
There is no room for the slightest ambiguity regarding historical issues that concern the principle of right and wrong.
The Abe government should educate its young people with the right conception of history, unequivocally guard against and oppose poisonous thoughts of war.
If Japan needs to extend the range of its school textbooks, A Farewell to Arms, an Ernest Hemingway classic on the grim reality of war, would be a far better choice.
