Trigger 2: Idolisation of something that does not exist
Click here to go to Trigger 1 – Identity. Terminated
Click here to go to Trigger 3 – Unchangeable Human Nature
The Food Poisoning Chronicles
I was around the time when the Gyoza Scandal broke out. Gyoza is a meat filled dumpling, hugely popular in Japan. For those who are interested in the story, please click here. Gyoza Scandal.This food poisoning incident occurred in 2008 where gyozas made in China were tainted with methamidophos, a chemical used as a pesticide in China.
The imported gyozas caused around a dozen Japanese to be hospitalised. This news received continuous airplay for almost 3 weeks. All my students were lamenting about the ethics and moral laxity of Chinese people generally, even though the instigator was one Chinese man.
Rewind 8 years from the Gyoza Scandal, there was an outbreak of tainted milk products by Snow Brand in 2000. Snow Brand is a Japanese company and the contaminated milk caused 13,000 people to be sick. Click here if you want to read about it. Snow Brand Scandal.
And another rotten food controversy happened in 2007 at the ubiquitous Fujiya company, a brand famous for delectable sweets. Click here for the story. Fujiya.
There was a contrast in how my students saw these food poisoning scandals. With the Chinese incident, the moral angle was always highlighted yet in the Japanese cases, they were quick to pass it off as negligence. I did find the double standard blatant but I quickly dismissed that as normal, after all, aren’t most of us a little patriotic?
2010. Wikileaks
One day I was returning home from work, suddenly, a newsflash on my phone. Leaked documents implicating the creation of ISIS terrorists by America. Click here for information Iraq Dump.
When I read that, I was flummoxed. So many countries were involved in the fight against terror and 9 11 was a call to arms for every country that valued life, democracy and freedom…….and now?? The ‘enemy’ that America is fighting and involving all its allies is in fact, its own progeny?
The Reaction……
I naturally waited for the discussions to ensue in my classes because everyone in Japan knew about the ‘Terror’, after a week, nothing. 2 weeks later, nothing. Then I asked my students what did they think of this news? They all looked perplexed.
Not even one student knew what I was talking about. This was a wake up moment for me. I was always told that Japan, like all developed nations had freedom of press. Why wasn’t this reported on mainstream Japanese media?
The Potemkin Village Media
If poisoned gyozas which made 10 people sick, can make national headline news, why not a leak that could stop a potential world war 3? I was already discovering a lot of things on my own but this was the bell that made me question everything I now saw on the media. What is left out, is equally as important as what is reported.
What was really unsettling now, was hearing my students repeatedly say that Japan should adopt American values. Because Japan censors almost all negative American news, the average Japanese believes that America is a country that champions free speech, democracy and peace. Flawless.
The Pious
The faithful Japanese to ‘Americanism’ or ‘Westernism’ will never be deterred. Even when confronted with a rotund, pompadour wearing false prophet, who trumpets for global tariffs which will reduce Japan’s competitiveness, the need to worship can not be extinguished.
False reverence is further exacerbated by veiled truths to continue the proselytization that an ideal country or political system exists. Conversely, unabated negative propaganda demonising a perceived ‘enemy’ will continue to drive a wedge between the most important connection of all. That of humans.
No country is perfect. Everywhere, people help each other out. Everywhere, people make mistakes.
When the lie is the only thing you want to believe in, no evidence will ever be the truth.
Click here to go to Trigger 1 – Identity. Terminated
Click here to go to Trigger 3 – Unchangeable Human Nature