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While I haven't been to Japan, a documentary [1] on expats living in Japan had a part (if my memory serves me) where the same sentiment was expressed, ie, "don'

While I haven't been to Japan, a documentary [1] on expats living in Japan had a part (if my memory serves me) where the same sentiment was expressed, ie, "don't involve yourself". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prNYOW0_kms https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prNYOW0_kms PS - Even if my memory is from another source regarding Japan, the documentary showed me a lot I didn't know.

mikekchar 10y ago
I've only watched the first 20 minutes of the documentary, but I'm impressed. It's probably one of the most accurate portrayals of what it's like to be a foreigner living long term in Japan that I've seen. Like always, documentary directors usually like to be controversial, so I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop ;-) In terms of "don't involve yourself", I wouldn't say that's really true. The very few times I've seen anyone in trouble, people have rushed to come to their aid. I live in the countryside, though, so it might be different than the big city. Social duty is a big part of Japanese culture, though, so I can't really imagine people ignoring others in distress. As a brief diversion, I recently went to Tokyo and was surprised by how many more homeless people there are now than there were roughly 10 years ago. People seem inured to that kind of distress (as they are in any big city, I guess), which is too bad.
- personlurking 10y ago
  Thanks for your comment. The sentiment I recall is, for instance, related to a thief that's running away after having just stolen a purse and you have the ability to stop him. It was said in regards to big city living and making yourself part of the act in some manner, where you might get pulled into the police station to make a statement and spend hours on something you didn't want to be a part of. Again, I've never set foot in the country, so I can't say either way. Another smaller example might be someone is talking on their cell phone on the train, and thus a Japanese person wouldn't go up to the one yapping on the phone to tell them it's rude, per Japanese standards.
  - mikekchar 10y ago
    Oh I see. Yes, in that instance, I think you are probably right. Generally speaking, people like to cause the least overall disruption even if the outcome will be sub-optimal. I might be wrong, but I think in the case of stopping a thief or asking someone to be quiet on the train, there may be a fear of not being able to control the situation. So the disruption may escalate. For helping someone who is injured or comforting a lost child, there is less fear and people seem to act more quickly. Even as I write this, I'm not entirely sure of the distinction, though. It is strange :-)

mikekchar 10y ago

I've only watched the first 20 minutes of the documentary, but I'm impressed. It's probably one of the most accurate portrayals of what it's like to be a foreigner living long term in Japan that I've seen. Like always, documentary directors usually like to be controversial, so I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop ;-) In terms of "don't involve yourself", I wouldn't say that's really true. The very few times I've seen anyone in trouble, people have rushed to come to their aid. I live in the countryside, though, so it might be different than the big city. Social duty is a big part of Japanese culture, though, so I can't really imagine people ignoring others in distress. As a brief diversion, I recently went to Tokyo and was surprised by how many more homeless people there are now than there were roughly 10 years ago. People seem inured to that kind of distress (as they are in any big city, I guess), which is too bad.

personlurking 10y ago
Thanks for your comment. The sentiment I recall is, for instance, related to a thief that's running away after having just stolen a purse and you have the ability to stop him. It was said in regards to big city living and making yourself part of the act in some manner, where you might get pulled into the police station to make a statement and spend hours on something you didn't want to be a part of. Again, I've never set foot in the country, so I can't say either way. Another smaller example might be someone is talking on their cell phone on the train, and thus a Japanese person wouldn't go up to the one yapping on the phone to tell them it's rude, per Japanese standards.
- mikekchar 10y ago
  Oh I see. Yes, in that instance, I think you are probably right. Generally speaking, people like to cause the least overall disruption even if the outcome will be sub-optimal. I might be wrong, but I think in the case of stopping a thief or asking someone to be quiet on the train, there may be a fear of not being able to control the situation. So the disruption may escalate. For helping someone who is injured or comforting a lost child, there is less fear and people seem to act more quickly. Even as I write this, I'm not entirely sure of the distinction, though. It is strange :-)