There was just a diary on the rec list titled the Japanese Are Not Like Us -Thank God For Them. While I understand and to some degree appreciate some of the sentiments expressed there, I feel I must write this diary to point out the very obvious: No, the Japanese are like us. They are not saints and we are not sinners. They are no better than we are.
The idea that the Japanese are not like us has been around ever since the First Contact back in the 1600s. It is an old argument where Japanophiles battle Japanophobes. Japanophiles think the Japanese are different, and better. Japanophobes think Japanese are different and worse. Notice, both agree that Japanese are different. Not like us.
Both are wrong. The assumption is wrong. In any other context, such an assumption about another people would be rejected by most on the left as exoticism at best and racism at worst. But somehow, when it comes to the harmonious and wonderful Japanese, the rules change. And somehow, when it comes the selfish and brutish Americans, the rules change yet again.
In truth, not only are the Japanese like us, they are just like us: they are people just like us. The cultural differences between our two civilizations are minimal. We are both advanced, industrial societies with thousands of years of cultural evolution that deal essentially with the same problems that humans face in the same ways when organizing themselves into civilized life. The cultural differences obscure how similar our nations and our peoples really are. And on the most basic level, obscure the very simple fact that we, all of us, are just normal people.
They are not saints, and we are not sinners. We are all human, and our respective societies equally full as foibles and worthy of praise. "They Japanese Are Not Like Us -- Thank God for Them"? Nonsense. You do no one any favor by putting them on some pedestal and demeaning us. We've sent a flotilla of ships, including an aircraft carrier, to distribute life-saving humanitarian aid. Our people, corporations and banks are donating tens of millions to help.
You want to thank god? Thank god for the good will of the American people. Better yet Donate To Japan Disaster Relief
There are, of course, cultural differences and nuances. Understanding and appreciating these differences helps our two countries get along better and thereby literally makes the world a better place. Follow me below the fold for an exploration on the once-again famous, much lauded and often misunderstood perseverance of the Japanese people.
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