tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11311580.post5133055300544065473..comments2023-10-06T08:21:06.640-07:00Comments on akatsuki talks rot: Dichotomy of Japanakatsukirahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18077017365909795321noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11311580.post-13097036833680957562007-03-23T10:33:00.000-07:002007-03-23T10:33:00.000-07:00I acknowledge and agree with the points you have b...I acknowledge and agree with the points you have brought up. The post was perhaps too flippant. I guess the tongue-in-cheek tone did not come across.<BR/><BR/>I am in no way suggesting that Japan is even thinking of repeating the atrocities of WWII or the colonisation strategy of old. I was just trying to sum up a brief feeling of unease; that for some nations in Asia, the wounds have not healed. No doubt hampered by the unwillingness of the government (not individual citizens) to acknowledge some of the more brutal outcomes of their occupation of Asia. I also acknowledge the difficulty any government has in such situations, especially when terms of reparations are brought up.<BR/><BR/>As for the issue being more complicated than it's seen outside Japan, that's very true indeed. The language and physical barriers do not help.akatsukirahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18077017365909795321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11311580.post-22887654071812602062007-03-22T17:25:00.000-07:002007-03-22T17:25:00.000-07:00But don't you think there is a bit of difference b...But don't you think there is a bit of difference between an apology for a minor technical error by a particular agency and working out a national stance on a set of policies that are highly charged but have fundamentally different relevances and resonances for different generations of Japanese people. I mean it is routine for British railway companies to apologise for being late but it would be a bit more difficult to organise a unified apology on the British empire. Kind of easy for a US company to issue an apology and product recall but tougher to get an apology for the two genocides which arguably formed the basis of the nation (African slavery and the destruction of the American Indian nations). I think we have to be careful about simplistic use of the word "they" and "their culture". I know you are trying to sum up complex issues in a short blog post but I think this is a whole lot more complicated an than it is portrayed in the rest of the world.Nonjattahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17641859198300921918noreply@blogger.com