There is a memorial in Japan to Hachiko, the faithful dog. Hachiko waited at a train station every day for his master to return, and accompany him home. One day in 1925, the master died at work and never came back. Hachiko, however, went to the station every afternoon for the next ten years until his death, just in case his master showed up. So impressed were the local populace, that they erected a statue of Hachiko, who exemplified the quintessentially Japanese qualities of loyalty, perseverance and duty.
One day, there will be a statue erected to another symbol of selfless dedication and stoic discipline – the anonymous workers of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant, who toiled tirelessly and anonymously to prevent or contain a disastrous nuclear meltdown which would endanger their fellow citizens.
An unwritten honor code pervades the Japanese zeitgeist, as evidenced by the long orderly lines for food, water, and basic supplies; by the absence of rioting or looting that characterizes the breakdown of human society in the face of natural disaster; and by the ethic of uncomplaining perseverance, gaman, which allows the Japanese to endure unspeakable deprivation with magnificent dignity and grace. The response of the populace in other disaster stricken countries stands in sharp contrast – Haiti and Hurricane Katrina come to mind immediately.
Americans in contrast, despite, or perhaps because of, their belief in their own exceptionalism, treat life as a competition, ruthlessly running roughshod over weaker opponents. A society based on unrestricted free enterprise, without compassion for the weak to temper its excesses, has its limits exposed by extreme stress. The looting post Katrina was just a symptom of the chasm between rich and poor, and the logical end result of a me-first philosophy engendered by a system that values winning above all else.
That is not to say that it is all good in Japan. The Japanese ability to endure without complaint for the national good allows inert and incompetent governments to stay in power. The hapless response of the current government to this admittedly unprecedented disaster exposes this dichotomy in the national character. In addition, the closely knit fabric of their society, which allows them to embrace a shared outlook, can also lead to discrimination against those who do not fit in. Burakumin, an ethnic underclass, are stigmatized, along with Korean and Filipino workers. Bullying is a major problem, from kindergarten all the way to the upper echelons of the corporate elite. Japan’s shamefully arrogant treatment of its Asian neighbors is well known and historically documented, despite their best efforts to ignore, or forget it. Atrocities against China and South Korea are obvious examples. The Rape of Nanking ranks with the Holocaust and the Genocide of Rwanda in the annals of human cruelty.
So while the Japanese are no saints, they do have something to offer the world – an alternative path. When faced with overwhelming odds and the utter destruction of an entire way of life, perhaps we could aspire to emulate their compassion, their dignity and their self sacrifice for a common good. Inherent in their philosophy is a recognition that we are all in this together, that as fellow travelers we owe it to each other as much as ourselves, to be kind to one another along the way.
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