Dignity of The Japanese People

Let’s say you have had a really bad day. A really, really – No coffee this morning, idiot driver cut you off and made you late for work, guy in the next cubicle pitches your idea at the meeting you were late for and he gets the promotion you were banking on, cafeteria’s out of red Jello, you had to stay overtime and now your wife is mad at you – kind of day.

I think most people would empathize with you if you kicked the dog after a day like that (Brenda Nelson wouldn’t, but most people would). After all, you don’t normally kick the dog, but when you’ve had a day like that, you’ve got to vent somehow, and it’s better to kick the dog than the kids, right?

So what does any of this have to do with the disasters in Japan? It’s just a comparison between our cultures. In the west, we consider that our true character is how we treat others when everything is going well. If we are rude, inconsiderate, or otherwise badly behaved, it is because something or someone set us off. We wouldn’t normally behave that way, but to our way of thinking, kicking the dog because we had a bad day is excusable.

In eastern cultures, it is generally thought that difficult circumstances reveal the true character of the person. It is easy to be polite, generous, and self controlled when all is well. But the way that one behaves under extremely difficult conditions is the real test of inner strength and self discipline.

The news footage shows the Japanese people waiting patiently in lines to ask for information about their loved ones. They are stocking up on supplies, but not looting. In fact, Rex Murphy from the CBC news relayed a story about a store where the cash register was not working, so the people who had been waiting in line with their selections put everything back on the shelves.

The dignity of the Japanese people can be a bad thing when they do not tell foreign governments how bad their situation is or how much help they really need. But they have learned from previous experience. In 1995 the Japanese government was criticized for refusing offers of foreign aid after the earthquake in Kobe. So this time, the Japanese government was much quicker to accept offers of aid.

I have written about the politeness of Canadians (Are Canadians really nicer?), and someone commented about how the politeness of Canadians is just a veneer and how underneath we are just like everyone else. I know that I am biased, but I truly believe that Canadians are a polite bunch.

I know that these are generalities; that not all Canadians are polite, not all Islamics are terrorists, and not all Americans are self-absorbed, gun toting rednecks with entitlement issues. But some are. Shortly after Katrina hit, Oprah was interviewing people who lost their homes, and there was one woman talking about spending the night outside. She said, “We are Americans! We deserve better than this!”

If how we deal with tragedies and disasters shows our true character, the Japanese have shown themselves to be a polite, self-disciplined people with determination and a strong work ethic. As bad as things are right now, Japan will persevere and rebuild.