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Japan crisis touches home.....

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Silverghost

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Today I went to our dry cleaners that we've known for years. The nicest people you could ever know. When I walked in, the owner who always has a smile on her face, is happy to see you, asks about the family, etc. was crying. Her brother, sister and several cousins have not been heard from since the tsunami hit. She showed me on a map where her sister lived - it was due west of the epicenter. I gave her a hug and held her hand for several minutes as the tears flowed down her face. I was kind of numb when I left.
 
Not much more that you can do... Hope her family turns out to be safe.
 
What speaks volumes about the Japanese people is the strength of character they have exhibited during this ordeal. Notice there have been no reports of looting or riots, etc.
 
I heard this on CNN yesterday:
The CNN reporter asks a storekeeper through an interpreter if he had been robbed due to the shortage of food. The storekeeper responded "yes"
The reporter said "I thought the Japanese people didn't do that sort of thing"
The storekeeper replied "who said they were Japanese?"
He had been robbed by foreigners.
 
From CNN's Jack Cafferty:

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:]Journalist and social commentator Ed West wrote in the UK Telegraph yesterday how struck he was by the Japanese culture throughout this ordeal. He observed how supermarkets cut their prices in the days following the quake and how vending machine owners were giving out free drinks as "people work together to survive." And West was most surprised by the fact that there was no looting.

Many have pointed to the popularity of Japan's distinctive Buddhist and Shinto religions as well as how the values of conformity and consensus are considered virtues in their culture. That's one explanation, but it probably has something to do with remaining true to your moral code even in the darkest hours.

[/QUOTE]

I read in an article the other day about the Japanese values of conformity and consensus being the root of how well they act in difficult times, but that we are more used to individualism in this country and would find the conformity stifling under normal conditions.
 
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