I'm not asian, but even just as someone who likes history, I was disgusted by bigtexxx's ignorant comparison between the atrocities the Japanese committed in Asia and the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor was a terrible act of war, but what the Japanese did to China, Korea, Vietnam, and many other Asian countries was along the lines of what the Nazis did to the Jews or what Europeans did to the native americans. Also, I believe the US actually created something akin to the Japanese rape stations in Japan while they occupied them, using Japanese women. That, along with the nuclear bombs, have always been some things from our (U.S.) history that has really bothered me.
Japan has officially apologized for said atrocities. Numerous times. It's a lot more complicated than that - China and really both Koreas need "evil Japan" for nationalist legitimacy, Japan is fed up with what it views as being stuck playing the villain, and the Japanese government at times makes the US government appear sane, rational, and orderly. Incorrect. Japan created them for the US servicemen, for better or for worse.
Yes, my mistake. After looking it up, I do see that these were set up by the Japanese. Thanks for pointing that out. And, in order to properly frame your comments on Japanese atrocities , let me please point out to those reading this thread that you are a self professed fascist named after a Japanese historical figure.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wushe_Incident http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan_under_Japanese_rule Approximately, Japan massacred 650k native Taiwanese and 600k Koreans in the early ruling of both colonies. I am sorry you were not told of the truth.
HKer: time and money is all, self-centric, not very cultured, poor mandarin, poor English, difficult to understand, BUT follows rules, can be well-mannered if feels like it, has a good sense of political freedom. All in all, not too bad at all. Folks lets stop. I have pretty much dealt with people from all over the places of all walks in those Asian countries. Anything you put it there I will say I have a few friends from there are not like that. Any stereotype you have about the other people is a reflection of you.
The problem is that all you need is a few idiot politicians saying the wrong things, and some textbooks to defy the historical facts, and that basically negates whatever goodwill Japan had built up in apologising for those events. If Japan had taken a more German route, then I doubt that even the Chinese propaganda machine can find much material to vilify the Japanese people. I can kind of see your point that China may need such material for nationalistic pride, but I don't quite see it for Korea. Why would South Korea need an 'evil Japan' for national legitimacy, when it's a fairly free society?
Status is a big thing in the Korea society. As someone put it, it was a hierarchical for a long time, attributed to its nomadic roots. I bet a lot of you do not know Koreans are migrant Mongolians. If you know them well, they can be incredibly genuine. As to drinking, yes, it's prevent, but the culture of drinking is dying down in the younger generation. Fillipino are incredibly hardworking and warm-hearted. Have you been to one of their parties? Some of you need to get out a little more.
About Japanese, I enjoyed very much talking to my Japanese friends. A few warm Sakai, good sushi, oh boy, most humorous people I have ever met. Good folks. You just gotta understand where they come from. Politics is not all there is.
"Relatively better" compared to the occupation of China does not equate good, you know. Not to mention, that 650k number is completely ridiculous - Taiwan's entire population around the turn of the century was 3 million. That Wiki article makes no such claim, so I demand alternative evidence. Because of North Korea. The idea that the North Korean people are ignorant of the wealth of the South, and would not hesitate to overthrow Kim Jong Un if only they know the truth, is false. The people more or less know. North Korea does not justify its rule through material wealth - its argument is "Those South Koreans may be rich, but they are mongrelized Yankee slaves unlike us!" And the South Koreans accept that argument far more positively than you would expect - not anywhere near a majority, but enough so that politicians can't expect to get cheap political points by waving the flag and attacking their North Korean "brothers." But they can with Japan.
I see you've given up claiming to be part of the imperial japan and is now working hard to downplay Japan's ww2 doings by using numbers. I suppose toning down that 650k to, say, 100k makes it not a big deal right ?
I see no reason to put the "government propaganda" disclaimer. It comes off as kind of pointless. As pointless as saying it's propaganda that helped drove the hate towards Islam, for example, or towards the Nazis, or towards Communism. To me it feels like saying the Chinese hate is "wrong." But how wrong is it? If my history textbook's WWII section in high school covered the Nanking Massacre in detail, had a Steven Spielberg movie about it, have video games where I shoot Japanese should I blame the government for creating an environment that make me hate the Japanese more due to their war atrocities? I grew up where everything around me really told me that WWI/II Germany = Bad. People in Asia outside of Japan grew up where everything around them told them that WWII Japan was bad. I fail to see the distinction between the two.
My understanding is they all like to have German-style, kinky sex with tall guys, especially if their name is Dieter.
That's not a good analogy. You were told WWI/II Germany = Bad, not the current Germany= Bad. You would not see a Volkswagen got smashed on the street and its American driver was dragged out of the car and beaten because he had bought a freakin' Nazi German car, would you? Chinese are educated in a way that they should be ready to join the Chinese army and invade Japan in the future to get revenge. The hate against WWII Japan is more than justified. Like I said, the atrocities are egregious and every sane human being should condemn the Japanese for its brutality in WWII. That's for sure. But the hate against everything Japanese = bad should not be justified. Also, like I mentioned earlier, China is different from the rest of Asia in that its Japan-hate is growing due to its nationalistic education while the rest of Asia is trying to move on.
Last year, I had to tell a fairly senior employee in my organization that he needed to learn table manners. He was mainland Chinese. Slurped all of his food, held his knife and fork with a ridiculous elbows-out joystick grip, and ate with his mouth open in a very loud manner. Basically he ate like a dog. I would have to raise my voice to talk over him at business lunches/dinners. It just looks like horrible table manners and is indicative of a poor upbringing. Anyhow, I had quit inviting him to business meals as a result. In the Chinese culture, eating loud is a show of respect and a sign that you like the food. Bizarre, but true. Unfortunately, in the western world, it's extremely offensive.
