James Grey Says: http://www.debito.org/?p=8830#comment-247695
May 1st, 2011 at 8:06 pm
With respect to Michelle, and Jonholmes, I think the pair of you have hit the nail on the head. I think that the Japanese generally view Japan as the most perfect, harmonious, cultured, and beautiful country on earth. As Debito said in a different thread, the attitude towards foreigners is that being allowed to work in Japan is it’s own reward (what do you want rights for anyway? we’re doing you a favor), so I think they are envious of the fact that we can leave anytime we want. Because of the employment system, they stand to be socially disenfranchised (for gods sake, think of your bonus and annual pay rise man!) if they quit on the spur of the moment, whereas many NJ don’t have those things to lose- we are largely disenfranchised from the outset.
From a different perspective, how many of you have been surprised when asked by long-standing Japanese friend or colleague ‘how do you like Japan?’, and you reply positively (in general), but mention one negative aspect (‘it would be nice if I could get a pension/vote’, or ‘I don’t like Japanese men spitting off the train station platform’) to be told huffily ‘why don’t you just go home then!’ You see my point? The Japanese standard response to even the most trivial of NJ criticisms is ‘go home’. When Fukushima happened, and many NJ did just that, the Japanese must have been completely wrong-footed.
I think this maybe why we some some of the bitchiness towards NJ that left, from the NJ that didn’t. Some of the NJ that stayed are maybe jealous too. Stuck in a dead end job, trying hard to fit in, married with children (so can’t leave), too old and with no relevant work experience to get a job back home. Or maybe they think that by staying, they will be somehow instantly recognizable to the Japanese as being somehow ‘less gaijin’?
前半のコメントに関する批判は、tepido orgでもしたのでそれをみていただくとして、特に太字の部分は注目したい。
外国人で残った人も日本を去った外国人を嫉妬しているのかもしれない。行き詰まった仕事をかかえ、日本社会に溶け込もうとして、また、結婚をして（それ故日本脱出できず）、老いぼれて母国では関連する仕事にもつく経験もない。あるいは、日本に留まることによって”外人”っぽくないようにみらるとでもいうのか？？
そもそもこのブログは日本にくるな、日本で仕事をするな、などというメッセージをおくり続けてきましたが、ついには、今回の震災で日本に滞留した外国人まで目の敵にしだした模様。
このヘイトブログの運営者をコラミストにしているニフコJapanTimes はどういうつもりなんでしょうね。
