Sunday, March 20, 2011

Why aren't Japanese looting?

Over at ROK Drop, GI Korea poses the above question (also asked at CNN and elsewhere), with some concluding that "Japanese are far more developed humans than Koreans will ever be" (it's a K-blog comments section, so what would you expect?).

I've been discussing this very thing with "M" and some other people from Japan or who have lived in Japan, and these are the conclusions we came up with:
  1. Thanks to the graying of Japan, the number of elderly and older people in the affected area is proportionately much higher than in other areas around the world that have been affected by earthquakes and/or major tsunamis.
  2. Just about everything worth looting has been destroyed in the affected area.
  3. Too much shock to loot.
  4. Strict adherence to a family registry has engrained in people the idea that their bad acts, if found out by the authorities, could adversely affect their family members, which seriously lowers the propensity to commit such bad acts long before opportunity arises.
  5. None of the big league sports teams in the Sendai area just won a national championship.
Back at ROK Drop, the discussion diverged into how South Koreans would handle such a disaster. I believe that what would happen is that there would be little or no looting, but there would be a lot of pushing and shoving at some (not all) of the areas offering assistance, as well as a lot of yelling at aid officials.

Back to Japan, some are offering other answers, and I myself would like to submit that the no-looting condition of Japan is not only a goal for other places, but is also an achieved state in many cases. There was little or no looting after 9/11, nor after the major quakes that struck California in 1989 or 1994 (I think).

Honestly, if I lived in this neighborhood and I thought all this merchandise was going to end up being worthless thanks to the flooding, I'd be tempted to loot, too.


3 comments:

  1. Just read his article.
    He wants a panic in Japan
    I think we should clam down because of such time.
    http://www.chosunonline.com/news/20110316000048

    this is funny.
    that is the korean mentality
    http://www.fnnews.com/view?ra=Sent0301m_View&corp=fnnews&arcid=110318105847&cDateYear=2011&cDateMonth=03&cDateDay=19

    when great Kanto earthquake happend in 1923, many korean did riots ,looting and raping the Japanese women practically in chaos of fear.
    at last rumor was widespread in Japan that the korean laege mob attck the Japanese.. sad story

    only some foreigner got panic like him
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGY5TlekcZs



    you dont know what korean did in Japan after ww2
    they did riots, looting, murder....

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vL5_MXpSxkM
    Taboo of Koreans resident in Japan
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qR1k05L6VU

    ReplyDelete
  2. I don't know who pissed all over hoihoi's rice balls, but to see him lose his sh!t over this blog entry is hilarious.

    The GI Korea and CNN blog are both from Americans. The Telegraph post is written by a British man. If two Americans and Brit write about the lack of looting in Japan what does little boiboi51 do? Why he lashes out at Koreans to even the score. Naturally.

    Meanwhile South Korea is sending Japan tons of LNG, boric acid in addition to the 100+ rescue workers already in Japan WHILE hoihoi and his fellow 2ch slime balls take shots at Koreans.

    Thank you little boiboi51 for actually making these people:
    http://www.japanprobe.com/page/4/

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=BJ0fZr_xR5c

    look pretty fair minded in comparison. It was deemed impossible by some but somehow you've managed.

    In closing little boiboi51, perhaps your outrage is better spent on the people who really are making Japan look bad.

    Tepco
    http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/03/16/bloomberg1376-LI7CHJ07SXKX01-27JLEJH6UQPBTE0NLL2I2HSRRJ.DTL&tsp=1

    Japanese government.
    http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Asia/Story/STIStory_646444.html

    Japanese hospital workers with SUPER happy feet.
    http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503543_162-20044591-503543.html

    Domo arigato and Oyasuminasai.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nat,

    Some fact checking on 9/11:

    http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/09/21/national/main312056.shtml

    ReplyDelete

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