{"id":6838,"date":"2021-02-12T01:09:27","date_gmt":"2021-02-12T01:09:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/?p=6838"},"modified":"2021-03-15T22:56:54","modified_gmt":"2021-03-15T22:56:54","slug":"todays-japan-living-with-karen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/todays-japan-living-with-karen\/","title":{"rendered":"Today&#8217;s Japan: Living with Karen"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In the US, 2020 is called the year of Karen.\u00a0 According to Wiki, \u201cKaren is a pejorative term for women seeming to be entitled or demanding beyond the scope of what is normal. \u201c\u00a0 A bit different from \u201cKaren\u201d is the Japanese \u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdfor jishuku keisatsu.\u00a0 <u>Jishuku keisatsu\u00a0<\/u>means \u201cpolice who monitor if people are practicing self-imposed restraints.\u201d \u00a0As a matter of fact, \u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf was one of the most popular words in 2020.<\/p>\n<p>On January 7, 2021, Japan <u>declared\u00a0<\/u>(\u5ba3\u8a00\u3059\u308bsengensuru) <u>a state of emergency\u00a0<\/u>(\u975e\u5e38\u4e8b\u614bhijojitai) in Tokyo and three surrounding prefectures for the second time.\u00a0 However, the declaration relies mostly on <u>voluntary\u00a0<\/u>(\u81ea\u767a\u7684\u306a jihatutekina) <u>compliance\u00a0<\/u>(\u5f93\u3046\u3053\u3068shitagaukoto) as the past national experience had led the nation into war.\u00a0 So the government can only suggest strongly not to do this or that.\u00a0 Some take this as <u>orders\u00a0<\/u>(\u547d\u4ee4meirei), while others take it as strong suggestions.\u00a0 <u>The latter\u00a0<\/u>(\u5f8c\u8005 kousha) goes out for a drink or two or three.\u00a0 While some people in <u>the former\u00a0<\/u>(\u524d\u8005 zensha) become \u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf trying to control the latter group with their own sense of <u>justice\u00a0<\/u>(\u6b63\u7fa9 seigi).<\/p>\n<p>\u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf use posts and letters to <u>threaten\u00a0<\/u>(\u8105\u3059odosu) some business owners anonymously as seen in the video news here.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"\u904e\u6fc0\u306a\u300e\u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf\u300f\u5e97\u3078\u306e\u5f35\u308a\u7d19\u3084\u843d\u66f8\u304d...\u306a\u305c\u305d\u3053\u307e\u3067\u3084\u308b\u306e\u304b\uff1f\u5c02\u9580\u5bb6\u306b\u805e\u304f\uff082020\u5e745\u670814\u65e5\uff09\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ue_-5ts-Dfg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>For the Japanese, <u>rules\u00a0<\/u>(\u898f\u5247\u30eb\u30fc\u30eb kisoku, ru-ru) are not grey but black and white. It <u>contradicts\u00a0<\/u>(\u77db\u76fe\u3059\u308bmujunsuru) their importance of <u>ambiguity\u00a0<\/u>(\u66d6\u6627\u3055 aimaisa) to <u>avoid\u00a0<\/u>(\u907f\u3051\u308bsakeru) <u>conflicts\u00a0<\/u>(\u5bfe\u7acbtairitsu) and uncomfortable feelings.\u00a0Rules are clear.\u00a0 Rules make it easy to live because you do not have to think.\u00a0But you lose the ability to think. Here is an interesting case when considering what rules mean to the Japanese.<\/p>\n<p>The most recent declaration of a state of emergency in January in Tokyo requested restaurants to stop serving alcoholic beverages by 7 pm, and to close by 8 pm to prevent COVID-19 from spreading.\u00a0 As these were not orders, it was up to the restaurants and patrons whether to follow these suggestions.\u00a0 Many have decided to follow the suggestions.\u00a0 HOWEVER, another problem surfaced.\u00a0 People started to get together and started to have a party and to drink early.\u00a0 Out came a neologism (\u9020\u8a9e zougo) \u2013 <u>\u663c\u98f2\u307f\u00a0<\/u>(day drinking, hirunomi).\u00a0 Is COVID-19 inactive until 8 pm?<\/p>\n<p>By drinking during designated hours, nobody is\u00a0<u>violating\u00a0<\/u>(<span lang=\"JA\">\u9055\u53cd\u3059\u308b<\/span>ihansuru) the suggested rules of not providing alcoholic beverages after 7 pm.\u00a0 So they are good, right?\u00a0 I understand the motivation of the\u00a0restaurants\u2019 side \u2013 they have to get as many patrons as possible to survive.\u00a0 But how about the customers\u2019 side?\u00a0 They are not breaking the suggested rules, and many at various ages say, \u201clet me have some relaxation!\u201d\u00a0 They do not realize why these suggested rules have been created \u2013 the basis of the government thinking is that people tend to get very loud when drunk, and tend to spread <u>droplets\u00a0<\/u>(\u98db\u6cab himatsu).\u00a0 Later, the government officials had to hold <u>press conferences\u00a0<\/u>(\u8a18\u8005\u4f1a\u898b kasha kaiken) to say that the COVID-19 was active also during the day so please try not to have parties during the day. \u00a0Duh\u2026\u00a0Have the Japanese lost the ability to think?<\/p>\n<p>However, things are pretty different in this 2<sup>nd<\/sup>state of emergency.\u00a0 There are fewer \u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf at least on the surface.\u00a0\u00a0Japan is a society that values <u>unity\u00a0<\/u>(\u7d71\u4e00\u6027 touitsusei).\u00a0 That sounds great, but that is the main source for \u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf.\u00a0 If you do not do what others do, then you are violating unity, and you are a problem. People are so tired of COVID that more people have started to <u>defy\u00a0<\/u>(\u9006\u3089\u3046 sakarau) the \u201cstrong suggestions.\u201d \u00a0So \u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf maybe feeling powerless and lonely?<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-6898 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2021\/02\/\u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf-350x197.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"350\" height=\"197\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2021\/02\/\u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf-350x197.jpg 350w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2021\/02\/\u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf.jpg 720w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/>Also, the inability to enforce orders by the government was another source to give rise to\u00a0<span lang=\"JA\">\u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf<\/span>.\u00a0 However,\u00a0<u>enforceability\u00a0<\/u>(<span lang=\"JA\">\u5f37\u5236\u529b\u00a0<\/span>kyoseiryoku) was added to the declaration of a state of emergency on February 3, 2021\u2013 \u201cJapan&#8217;s parliament on Wednesday enacted laws that will introduce fines for people and businesses that do not comply with restrictions imposed to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.\u201d (<a href=\"https:\/\/english.kyodonews.net\/news\/2021\/02\/672b77d898d6-japan-to-pass-bills-allowing-fines-for-antivirus-measure-noncompliance.html\">kyodonews.com<\/a>) \u00a0So more concrete and clearer \u201corders\u201d from the government discouraged \u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf to spread their own interpretation of justice.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Read this descriptive blog about \u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf https:\/\/ameblo.jp\/haruharuko3\/entry-12603795933.html<\/p>\n<p data-wp-editing=\"1\">Japanese people have not experienced so-called \u201clockdown\u201d.\u00a0During the first declaration of a state of emergency, they did experience a taste of \u201clockdown.\u201d\u00a0 But after the first declaration was removed on May 25, 2020, their lives have been much closer to normal than those in the US.\u00a0It is amazing to me that they are complaining how their freedom has been taken away while they can dine at restaurants before 8 pm, schools are fully open except for the higher education, and events with a capacity of less than 5000 or 50% of the capacity can be held.<\/p>\n<p>COVID-19 has surfaced many problems and weaknesses of the Japanese society, and how the society has been changing and not changing is evidenced by the recent Tokyo 2020 Olympics President Mori\u2019s\u00a0 SNAFU, which I would like to write about next time.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<img width=\"350\" height=\"197\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2021\/02\/\u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf-350x197.jpg\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2021\/02\/\u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf-350x197.jpg 350w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2021\/02\/\u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdf.jpg 720w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><p>In the US, 2020 is called the year of Karen.\u00a0 According to Wiki, \u201cKaren is a pejorative term for women seeming to be entitled or demanding beyond the scope of what is normal. \u201c\u00a0 A bit different from \u201cKaren\u201d is the Japanese \u81ea\u7c9b\u8b66\u5bdfor jishuku keisatsu.\u00a0 Jishuku keisatsu\u00a0means \u201cpolice who monitor if people are practicing self-imposed&hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"post-item__readmore\"><a class=\"btn btn--md\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/todays-japan-living-with-karen\/\">Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":173,"featured_media":6898,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[510876,548053,548051,94619],"class_list":["post-6838","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","tag-covid-19","tag-day-drinking-hirunomi","tag-jishuku-keisatsu","tag-karen"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6838","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/173"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6838"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6838\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6899,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6838\/revisions\/6899"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6898"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}