We talked a lot about politics and religion and it was really interesting to listen to them talk about where they thought Japan was headed. They were all very concerned about the increasing crime rates. When they were growing up in the 50’s, they could remember crimes that happened very well since there would only be one newsworthy crime every couple of years. Now, they say, there are way too many to remember – at least one per day. They said that while growing up (right after WWII), while they still had rules governing morality, they weren’t supposed to have any pride in Japan and instead of highlighting the lines in their books, they had to sit and cross out every sentence in their textbooks. While this was happening, they were watching TV shows from America (Patty Duke and I Love Lucy especially) and fell in love with American culture. They said that they thought the American idea of individualism was so great that they took some of those ideas and incorporated the bad parts of that view into their culture without incorporating the good. They felt that the sense of community that was so prevalent in Japanese culture is increasingly disappearing. They were saddened by the fact that the rules of morality that they had been brought up with (it was a government instituted code taught in schools) has gone by the wayside and they felt like Japan needed something to bring it back into a moral place. They didn’t feel that instituting religion was the answer, but that something needs to be done. They worry that the young people of Japan don’t have the upbringing or spiritual background to be good people anymore.

It made me wonder if America (with all the different religions and senses of right and wrong) will fare any better.

Anyway, we all had a good time and afterwards we went to Starbuck’s to relax and one of the girls said that her opinion of Americans had changed dramatically since having met me. She explained that she had been to America once (I believe SanDiego) and was on the shuttle to a shopping mall from the hotel. An older American lady sidled up to her, got right in her face and said, “I HATE Japanese.” She was shocked and hurt and went she came back to Japan, she figured all Americans were aggressive, blunt, forceful, obnoxious and mean. This was why she hired a Canadian man as her daughter’s teacher and when he left, they hired me. He confirmed her idea of Americans by telling her that yes, all Americans are like that. Canadians, he said, were a much calmer and nicer lot. But, she said, I really changed her mind about Americans. That’s one down and only 127 million more to go.

I came back on base on Friday for my dentist appt. and one woman scanned my ID, while another searched my purse and a guy wanded me down and asked whether I had anything to declare. I didn’t. This was still going on Saturday even after they’d caught the guy in Tokyo, so we’ll see what happens. The article says that he’s not a suspect and the officials made it clear that he was only a “person of interest,” but it sounded like they only didn’t have enough evidence to charge him.

It’s depressing to have it happen here. And I truly hope that this guy is not involved. We’ve barely recovered from the murder that happened three years ago. All of us that are associated with the military are seen as guilty by association. Like we don’t have enough people calling for us to leave Japan. I’m really afraid that they will enforce a curfew like they did in Okinawa after the alleged rape. Basically they restricted everyone on base to their homes. People who lived off base could go to work and then back home and that was it. I don’t know if they allowed dependents who worked off base to continue to work. Not being allowed to work scares me to death. It’s what keeps me sane and I know it would totally screw the school I work for. I don’t know if this is even in consideration, but I suppose anything can happen at this point.

This makes me want to go back to the states even more. Not because I’m afraid of anything. It just makes me so tired. I feel like I spend a ton of time with my students and Japanese friends being the “perfect American” that when something like this happens, I feel like I’m back to square one.

This topic has come up several times this week so I thought I’d write a bit about it. What got me started was an article that I found on the BBC Teaching English website. Often when I have a lesson, I’ll do a bit about what’s going on in the news. These articles are great for our lessons since they add new vocabulary and we get to actually talk about something current instead of just talking about grammar and other tedious things. So, this past Tuesday I had a lesson in which we talked about the new biometric visas required for foreign entry into the U.K. I explained to my student that fingerprinting was necessary for foreigners to enter both the U.S. and Japan as well. In the U.S., non-residents have had two fingers scanned on entry since 2004. And they are now starting to roll out the ten digit scanners in select airports, which bring along their own costs and benefits (the story about the guy whose fingerprints were misidentified and thus spent 43 days in prison or the guy whose prints were wrongly assigned to a convicted murderer scares the hell out of me). But I digress.

Anyway, my student had no idea that her own country required the fingerprinting of foreigners. She was also unaware of the ID card that foreigners are forced to carry at all times (and can be subject to sporadic police checks). Apparently the checks have become less frequent by the local police, but it can and still does happen. As a S.O.F.A. (status of forces agreement) sponsored individual in Japan, neither of these practices apply to me.

Then, later on in the week I came across Jason’s blog post about crime in Japan (which is extremely interesting, btw). Jason brings up a lot of interesting stats on the increase of crime and how the media keep touting the increase of crime by foreigners and how it’s such a problem. And I definitely think the inclusion of offenses like traffic tickets and the like are totally crazy. But, the Japanese are totally different from us and even though they are so international, they seem much less exposed to other cultures than Americans are. Americans have to deal with others from other areas so often that we’re somewhat forced to deal, but not so in Japan. I know I still get started at openly when traveling. My neighbor often warns me not to leave the house unlocked at any time due to the “foreigners” burglarizing the area – mostly Pakistani’s. I don’t know where she gets her “info” and I suspect it’s extremely false since in the year and a half I’ve lived here, the only place I’ve ever seen anyone of Indian or Pakistani descent is working in an Indian restaurant.

And in while I don’t want to defend the Japanese media for touting the giant increase of foreign crime, I wonder if that isn’t because of the big headline crimes. Sure there are drunken fights and DUI’s, but it’s the violent attacks. A few years ago a sailor here brutally attacked an elderly woman for a small amount of money. And then Monday there was another rape. In Okinawa a U.S. marine allegedly raped a young girl, which echoes the rape in 1995 which almost got the military kicked out of Okinawa. It definitely reflects badly on us, but they are pretty infrequent events (considering all the crime in America). I talked to another student about it on Friday and she agreed that while it was a shame and terrible, that Japan needs the U.S. military here in order to protect them from China and Korea. She definitely does not want to see us leave. I wonder if that is a popular sentiment.

I also came across this post where the author delves into how the police can pretty much do what they want. It just seems like such a paradox to me. They are terrified of foreigners and how “much crime they bring with them,” and yet the police can do pretty much whatever they want. They can fingerprint foreigners, keep them ID’d, keep them in prison for indefinite periods of time, question them at their discretion and whatnot.

Could it be the insecurity of not being able to defend themselves internationally that fuels the paranoia of being able to defend themselves against foreigners in their homeland, or is it just racism? I honestly don’t know.

We had a similar experience with Japanese neighbors soon after we moved in. We would let the Mini sit in the driveway to get warm for about five minutes before driving off. And we got another phone call from the neighbors to the landlord to the agent…that if we didn’t get our car fixed (it was too loud and smelly) that they would have to take “action.” Which means that they would go to housing and get us kicked out. Like they couldn’t just say, “I’m sorry, it’s very loud…perhaps you could refrain from allowing your car to idle in the driveway?” There was no first warning or request it was just if you don’t stop we’ll report you to the military, and they’ll come and make you behave. Believe me, before I was terrified of not being liked by the neighbors. Now even I’m afraid of leaving the car running for too long in the driveway after I’ve pulled in and parked. I always turn it off the minute I hit park. There’s no time to listen to the end of a song or take off my seatbelt. In. Park. Off. I’m also afraid of leaving our porch light on. We might bother someone with our light, and I get really annoyed if D.J. happens to leave it on after he comes in from grilling outside. I swoop in like a light nazi and berate him. “Why is this ON? You’re not outside. It doesn’t need to be on!”

I love Japan most of the time, but it’s times like this that I can only think…soon we’ll be back home in the states. Because at least when things annoy me, they at least make some sense to me. But then it gets me even more worked up because really…where is home, anyway? After all this travel and living abroad, I feel very separate and different from most Americans. And I’m separate and different from most military and from most Japanese and Spanish and Germans and Australians and Brits…and do I even have a home anymore? So (from my last post) I can communicate with just about anyone, but the question remains, do I really fit in anywhere anymore?