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Looting in Japan

First of all...prayers to the people of Japan.

But....I have been thinking that it is kinda strange that there has been no looting going on in Japan.

If that was in the US the looters would be all over things like white on rice.

Why is this?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Joe Boyd on March 16, 2011 at 10:07am

I lived in Japan for nearly three years while stationed in the Navy. Looting, destroying other peoples' property, it's just not in their culture.

Permalink Reply by Josh Potter on March 16, 2011 at 12:17pm

Daniel is right on the money. I grew up in a household with a dad and a mom even though they were divorced they were both very present. The notion of looting would never enter my mind for many reasons that were instilled in me by my family. As Dan stated they live in a world where there are consequnces.
In the US we have taken most of the consequence out of our decision making process because if you fail it isn't your fault. We start this process at a very young age.The kids on my boys basketball team think every game they play is a tie.

If this event happened in the US tomorrow the looting would start the very next day. I don't think that honesty has anything to do with love. I love my kids but I can't make excuses for them when they are wrong. I love my country but I can admit that it's inhabitants have some serious issue; that doesn't mean I would want to live anywhere else.
Daniel Easley said:

Ill take it a step farther and say that the reason they have more respect and honor is because they are still a family oriented culture. There was a time in the U.S. (before my days) when our culture valued family over self. Those family values taught a certain amount of respect for one another, and also to take honor in a family name.

P.J. Koshi said:
To be perfectly honest the US has a massive population of extremely selfish and desperate people! Japan's population is comprised primarily of people who value the well being of each other and the country as a whole i.e. what Dan said Respectful and Honorable. We are talking about the country we dropped 2 Atomic bombs on and has since rebuilt and yet again established itself as one of the world's elite super powers. Not to mention their striving ahead of the US on several fronts such as operations management and technological development. I have relatives in Japan and they are experiencing something unlike anyone in Hurricane Katrina or the 9/11 attacks. Massive Earthquake---Tsunami---Nuclear explosions---Wide Spread Radiation Exposure.

Permalink Reply by P.J. Koshi on March 16, 2011 at 12:32pm

I am not saying I want to live there but I do have family living over there and I know there is a definite distinction between the overall social philosophies in Japan and the USA. Another reason I think there is little to no looting is because those folks are smart enough to stay in and not risk exposing themselves to unknown levels of radiation just to pick up crap off the wasteland.

Joel Booth said:

Yes the U.S. is such a horrible place to live I wish I lived somewhere else where we didn't have any freedoms and had to pay a rediculous amount of money to go fishing for a day. I wish nothing but the best for the people of Japan but I would rather live here looting or not.

Permalink Reply by RFatt16 on March 16, 2011 at 1:05pm

My prayers are with them.

In regards to looting, a code of honor and respect. Honor is placed real, real high in the Japanese way of life. It would be nice if we(USA) could take some classes from them.

I think the real question is how do they move forward? I know they have rebuilt before but time now are different. I think they have a GDP somewhere near 170% and its expected to rise over 200% with this disaster. How do you rebuild everything when you're stretched past your limits??? Hope everything works out

Permalink Reply by Steve Hastings on March 16, 2011 at 1:11pm

My prayers are with the people of Japan. I hear everyone say "its' sureal" I assure you its real. Terribly real.

I think the reason you don't hear about the looting is not because it doesn't exist, its because they can't fit it in edge wise with all the sensationalizing they do around the Ticking Nuclear Time Bomb that is going off..... Tongue pressed firmly in cheek here.

Guys its about what sells on the news. When the Nuclear issue is confirmed under control, there will be the "rest of the story" that comes out.

Permalink Reply by Josh Potter on March 16, 2011 at 1:40pm

Steve,

I am willing to bet you an expensive Japanese made crankbait that you are wrong about the looting. I'm not saying there won't be ANY looting but there won't be enough to garner any real attention. In fact I won't be surprised to see news coverage in regards to the fact that there isn't any looting.

Our society is such a mess that we can't even imagine that there isn't looting.

Permalink Reply by Josh Potter on March 16, 2011 at 1:48pm

Rfatt is trying to say debt to GDP of 170%. GDP of 170% would make their economy 60x's greater than ours. Debt to GDP ratio explains who much an economy is growing in relation to it's debt. In other words Japan's debt is 170% more than their economy produces.
RFatt16 said:

My prayers are with them.

In regards to looting, a code of honor and respect. Honor is placed real, real high in the Japanese way of life. It would be nice if we(USA) could take some classes from them.

I think the real question is how do they move forward? I know they have rebuilt before but time now are different. I think they have a GDP somewhere near 170% and its expected to rise over 200% with this disaster. How do you rebuild everything when you're stretched past your limits??? Hope everything works out

Permalink Reply by RFatt16 on March 16, 2011 at 2:09pm

Yeah I'm a little slow but I'm glad someone caught on and knows of what I'm trying to say LOL

Permalink Reply by Steve Hastings on March 16, 2011 at 2:11pm

Alright Josh, how many stories we talking about for that crank bait? Go ahead pick a number.... You can prove your naivety by answering.

:o)

Steve

Permalink Reply by Josh Potter on March 16, 2011 at 3:19pm

Let's do this Steve; you let me know when you see the first one. I will trust you are telling me the truth when you see one. You can assume I am naive but I am as cynical as anyone you probably know. It is part of my job description.

I don't think most people realize how different the Japanese culture is than the rest of the world. I could end up being wrong about this one but they operate from a different standard than we do. For example: there is not a single CEO in this country that has accapted any blame for their part in the financial crisis we have been in over the past 3 years. There are plenty of them defending themselves in court but not a single one of them has come out and said, "I am guilty and I'm sorry, I''l take my lumps. Japanies CEO's (many of them) have commited suicide for their roles in financial corruption. We will see how this shakes out.

Permalink Reply by Todd Parker on March 16, 2011 at 5:02pm