Dick Schmidt
03-18-2011, 06:09 PM
In Japan, they are called the Faceless Fifty, and most likely they are all “Dead Men Walking.” When the Japanese authorities ordered the evacuation of the stricken nuclear power plant hit by the tsunami, fifty men volunteered to stay behind and have refused to leave. They are fighting to save the lives of thousands of people and doing a wonderful job, working until exhausted and then returning again to work in hellish conditions even though many of them are starting to show the first symptoms of radiation poisoning. One man who was getting sick was asked why he didn’t leave: “Because another would come and take my place. I can still work.”
I’ve never been a big fan of the Japanese “group think” way of living, but in times of crises, they have been remarkable. There has been no looting, food and energy are scarce in much of the country but rationing has not been necessary because no one is hording. Prices of hard to get items have remained stable. Thousands of ordinary people have chosen to remain in the danger area to help rebuild their stricken cities without pay. Hundreds of thousands are in temporary makeshift shelters, their homes destroyed, but they remain polite and undemanding; the shelters are kept spotlessly clean.
Compare their actions to what happened here during and after Katrina, a minor inconvenience compared to what is happening in Japan. When you are tempted to take satisfaction in the damage to the Japanese economy, or moan about high prices of iPads or gasoline, take a second and remember the Faceless Fifty. Ask yourself, would I do that? Would I and my neighbors behave as well?
Dick
I’ve never been a big fan of the Japanese “group think” way of living, but in times of crises, they have been remarkable. There has been no looting, food and energy are scarce in much of the country but rationing has not been necessary because no one is hording. Prices of hard to get items have remained stable. Thousands of ordinary people have chosen to remain in the danger area to help rebuild their stricken cities without pay. Hundreds of thousands are in temporary makeshift shelters, their homes destroyed, but they remain polite and undemanding; the shelters are kept spotlessly clean.
Compare their actions to what happened here during and after Katrina, a minor inconvenience compared to what is happening in Japan. When you are tempted to take satisfaction in the damage to the Japanese economy, or moan about high prices of iPads or gasoline, take a second and remember the Faceless Fifty. Ask yourself, would I do that? Would I and my neighbors behave as well?
Dick