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In my opinion, there's a lot of talk about how Japan or Asia is different, perhaps with truth and perhaps also with the idea of orientalism. In my view, the dif

by ue_ 9y ago

In my opinion, there's a lot of talk about how Japan or Asia is different, perhaps with truth and perhaps also with the idea of orientalism. In my view, the different cultures have different expressions of the individual, and likewise their expressions of conformity differ too. I also think that we may have trouble seeing this because it's all we have experienced, perhaps also the bias of categorising as conformity when there are many non-conformists. The truth is that I've heard the line about conformity a lot, and it's made me think about how conformity exhibits itself in the West, and I think that fails at least partially because "the West" is such a big mass of different cultures, and of course the same applies to the East. You may deny this, but could that be a bias of assuming conformity when thre is little at play? I don't mean to be attacking or even disputing your point, but personally it's an issue I have struggled with. Many humans desire to be the same, to be around the same people, so where might I fit in if I want to be accepted? To be either a perpetual foreigner treated well for being a foreigner, or a perpetual foreigner treated poorly for being a foreigner. These options are greatly saddening to me. Is it a matter of accepting my condition that I cannot conform by no fault of my own, or to attempt to steer society away from the pressure of conformity which drives many people to such sadness and suffering? Am I, as you say, obsessed with individualism to say this? Sorry for the rambling post.

Baeocystin 9y ago
Not the person you were replying to, but just chiming in- I (white guy) spent my childhood in SE Asia, as my Dad was a US diplomat. If I were to distill the entirety of my experiences down to a single, most-salient point, it was and is that people are stunningly similar across the globe. Sure, there are cultural differences. But for the most part, once you learn the base value structure of your new environment, the way people act is pretty much exactly like you would expect them to, given the variables and 'givens' in play. Yes, Japan, China, Korea etc are all different than the West. But it only takes a few months of effort before you figure out the basics, and it is just as easy to do as an adult as a child. You just have to be open to new experiences. Well worth it, in my opinion.
- Layla454 9y ago
  I just got paid $6784 working off my laptop this month. And if you think that's cool, my divorced friend has twin toddlers and made over $9k her first month. It feels so good making so much money when other people have to work for so much less. This is what I do, ====http://www.joinmate2.com http://www.joinmate2.com
- kwhitefoot 9y ago
  That chimes with my experience travelling in China a lot in the late 80s and early 90s. I was travelling on business sometimes as much as two months at a time and working closely with local people installing and debugging machinery in factories. One of the most interesting places was Jiexi in south China four hours on a dirt road from the nearest airport. Most of the houses were rammed earth but the place had a lively market (it was a 'small' town of about 30k people) and a substantial concrete multi-story overseas Chinese hotel where we stayed. The hotel lobby was one of the few places in town that had a television so it was always crowded with locals watching it. In conversations with people there (mostly through our interpreter) it was clear that the ambitions of most people there were much the same as where I come from (UK but living in Norway); they want a house to live in, a fridge, a washing machine, a television, a decent income, and a better life for their children.

by ue_ 9y ago

Baeocystin 9y ago

Not the person you were replying to, but just chiming in- I (white guy) spent my childhood in SE Asia, as my Dad was a US diplomat. If I were to distill the entirety of my experiences down to a single, most-salient point, it was and is that people are stunningly similar across the globe. Sure, there are cultural differences. But for the most part, once you learn the base value structure of your new environment, the way people act is pretty much exactly like you would expect them to, given the variables and 'givens' in play. Yes, Japan, China, Korea etc are all different than the West. But it only takes a few months of effort before you figure out the basics, and it is just as easy to do as an adult as a child. You just have to be open to new experiences. Well worth it, in my opinion.

Layla454 9y ago
I just got paid $6784 working off my laptop this month. And if you think that's cool, my divorced friend has twin toddlers and made over $9k her first month. It feels so good making so much money when other people have to work for so much less. This is what I do, ====http://www.joinmate2.com http://www.joinmate2.com
kwhitefoot 9y ago
That chimes with my experience travelling in China a lot in the late 80s and early 90s. I was travelling on business sometimes as much as two months at a time and working closely with local people installing and debugging machinery in factories. One of the most interesting places was Jiexi in south China four hours on a dirt road from the nearest airport. Most of the houses were rammed earth but the place had a lively market (it was a 'small' town of about 30k people) and a substantial concrete multi-story overseas Chinese hotel where we stayed. The hotel lobby was one of the few places in town that had a television so it was always crowded with locals watching it. In conversations with people there (mostly through our interpreter) it was clear that the ambitions of most people there were much the same as where I come from (UK but living in Norway); they want a house to live in, a fridge, a washing machine, a television, a decent income, and a better life for their children.