Should Japan have its own military force?

Japan seeks to boost military spending-
“Should Japan have its own military force?”

   I am against Japan having its own military force for three main reasons.
   First of all, it is banned by law. After WW2, the 9^tharticle of the Japanese Constitution prohibited acts of war and banned settlement using force. This article also states that to accomplish this, armed forces with war potential will not be maintained, although armed forces for self-defense is considered alright in Japan. Thinking about all the people who had been hurt in WW2, I think it is not right to construct an army again and make the same mistakes of the past.
   Secondly, the American military has already caused many problems in Japan, and I don’t think the citizen’s image of the military is really great. We sometimes hear on the news about the soldiers in the United States Forces Japan (various divisions of the United States Armed Forces that are stationed in Japan), that they are caught drink-driving or committing violent acts toward Japanese citizens. In fact, in Okinawa where a large United States Force is stationed, the number of crimes committed by American soldiers since 1972 is over 5,747 in total. Another problem that is still unresolved about the American military is the noise and commotion jet planes make while making flights. If Japan also had an army of its own, the citizens would be even more annoyed, so I think Japanese will not be too enthusiastic about letting the number of soldiers increase.
   Finally, I am against Japan having its own military force because of the amount of money that military activities cost. In the 2011 GDP ranking of war expenditure , Japan marked 6^th place with about 54 billion dollars spent in one year. If another military force is established or the number of armies increase, too much money will be needed in the military field when it should be spent on other things.
   In conclusion, I am against Japan having a military force of its own because of the law, problems that the American military have already caused, and the military budget. Choosing if Japan needs one is a hard decision, but I think we should learn from past experiences and never forget about the sacrifices that were caused by war.

Best Christmas Ever Spent Abroad

     My best Christmas that I've ever spent abroad is when I was 9 years old. That year my family chose to spend the holidays on a Disney cruise (a cruise hosted by Disney) sailing for a total of seven days (December 22nd to December 28th), visiting the Bahamas Islands and a key reserved just for Disney called Castaway Cay. I will try and remember all I can about the events there while on the cruise.
     In the morning of Christmas Eve, my second morning on the cruise, our family first went to play jackpot bingo but won nothing since we don't have much luck. After that we went down to the lobby of the ship, where there was a big decorated Christmas tree in the center of the room. Underneath that tree there sat Santa, and other passengers were lining up to take pictures with him. I also lined up with my parents and brother and got my picture taken. He actually gave us presents like pillows, which I still have in my room. He also gave us cookies, which he recommended that we should put them on the tables in our room for the real Santa when he comes at night. After we left the cookies in our room and ate dinner, we went to a musical in the theatre. I think it was a musical about another side of the Cinderella story although I don't remember the details. When the musical was over we visited some souvenir shops and then went to our room to sleep. At that time, I wondered how Santa could come into our securely locked room and eat the cookies that we left for him. I imagined he was a very high leveled lock picker.
     In spite of my worries, the cookies were gone when I woke up in the morning which was a relief. On that day I think I went to the pool on the deck and swam for a long time while watching Disney movies on a big screen up front. Unfortunately there is nothing else I can remember about the 25th so I guess Christmas Eve on the ship left more impressions.
     The rest of the trip was very exciting and left by in a hurry. When we finally reached home, there was a Christmas present left on the bed for us from the real Santa. I was very glad he didn't forget to give us presents while we were on the trip.
     Spending Christmas in a cruise was a very nice experience. To say the truth, this was our second time on the Disney cruise. Last year we sailed on this cruise for the first time, and since we liked it so much we decided to visit again this year. I recommend this ship very much, especially to families with children (but there were many elders on the ship who says it’s their 40th time on this cruise). I really hope to go on the Disney cruise again in the future with my family. That year's Christmas and Christmas Eve was the best one I have ever spent abroad.