Comments on: Ramsay Ramblings 12/6/2007 http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/ Nick Ramsay blogging from Gifu, Japan. Wed, 20 Aug 2008 11:03:04 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 By: Contamination http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2929 Contamination Sat, 08 Dec 2007 14:22:48 +0000 http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2929 I am unhappy about referring to my son as a "half" but it beats having to explain the finer points to the average xenophobic Japanese person. I am unhappy about referring to my son as a “half” but it beats having to explain the finer points to the average xenophobic Japanese person.

]]> By: Keith http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2918 Keith Thu, 06 Dec 2007 22:35:26 +0000 http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2918 Al's comment on "At what point does a term cease to become politically correct? And why?" is interesting and could easily open up a whole new thread of conversation. However with the risk of playing "Devils advocate" and especially when I consider my previous postings in regards to "Finger-printing", i do think we have to look at Japan's continued phobia of losing it's identity. As I said in a prior posting, being called a "Skin head" is not something I enjoy but to try and make every Japanese person aware that it is not "PC" to say something like this, kinda makes me non "PC". In this I mean that each country has it's customs and culture and what is right in one country does not mean it is right in another. For us gaijing to jump up and down and say it is wrong is kind narrow-minded (Not passing the buck here guys because I know i'm guilty of it too!!) and do feel at times that at least in my case, i should stop worrying about it and accept that it is what it is. We all can moan and groan about the wrongs of Japan but I'm still here, many of the "posters" on this site either live in Japan or have extremely strong affiliations with Japan and we all certainly know that our own countries have their faults too. I do feel that there are aspects of Japanese culture that could be improved, however this culture has been around for over 2000 years and just because we feel something is not righteous here, does not mean that it isn't right!! I'm guilty of "Japan bashing" (harsh term maybe and do not really think we are on this thread at least!!) at times and while I may not accept some things here, I do feel that I need to make more of an effort to live with it!!! Keith Al’s comment on “At what point does a term cease to become politically correct? And why?” is interesting and could easily open up a whole new thread of conversation.
However with the risk of playing “Devils advocate” and especially when I consider my previous postings in regards to “Finger-printing”, i do think we have to look at Japan’s continued phobia of losing it’s identity.
As I said in a prior posting, being called a “Skin head” is not something I enjoy but to try and make every Japanese person aware that it is not “PC” to say something like this, kinda makes me non “PC”. In this I mean that each country has it’s customs and culture and what is right in one country does not mean it is right in another.
For us gaijing to jump up and down and say it is wrong is kind narrow-minded (Not passing the buck here guys because I know i’m guilty of it too!!) and do feel at times that at least in my case, i should stop worrying about it and accept that it is what it is.
We all can moan and groan about the wrongs of Japan but I’m still here, many of the “posters” on this site either live in Japan or have extremely strong affiliations with Japan and we all certainly know that our own countries have their faults too.
I do feel that there are aspects of Japanese culture that could be improved, however this culture has been around for over 2000 years and just because we feel something is not righteous here, does not mean that it isn’t right!!
I’m guilty of “Japan bashing” (harsh term maybe and do not really think we are on this thread at least!!) at times and while I may not accept some things here, I do feel that I need to make more of an effort to live with it!!!
Keith

]]> By: Mike http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2917 Mike Thu, 06 Dec 2007 20:19:10 +0000 http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2917 Im subscribing to comments now! Im subscribing to comments now!

]]> By: Mike http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2916 Mike Thu, 06 Dec 2007 20:18:42 +0000 http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2916 I think that since you live in Japan there are just certain things that you need to accept. One of these things is the Japanese misuse of English words. Yes, its derogatory in our countries but in Japan it's not. In fact it sounds more like a compliment(which is just as ridiculous) but as long as people don't say it in a bad way, what's the problem? Of course it's wrong to use it that way but man, if you are going to stress out everytime English is misused in Japan then I predict you will have a heart attack within 5 minutes of leaving your house. Don't get me wrong Net Buddy 4 Life, but for lack of a better expression you need to take a chill pill! It sucks that Japan is giving the gaijin are hard time, but maybe this just means that you need to take a long holiday outside the country. I know you are going to England next year but I just hope you will last that long. I remember that when I arrived on the JET program they said we should get out of Japan at least once a year. It's been a while since you last did this. We all know Japan is stressful country to live in, even for the Japanese! So I hope you will keep this in mind for when you hear negative things. I can understand the pressures of living in Japan but I'll bet that at the current moment things seem much worse than they are... Nick, come visit your net buddy in Canada.... Maybe you can just leave Mami and Rikuto behind for a couple of weeks and take some time out for you! You can do all of your work from my place and together we can hatch a scheme to blow other websites out of the water! Seriously man, just put down a 1000 bucks, get on a plane and come over! You dont need to pay for a hotel as you would be staying at mine, and food is really cheap too! Come on Nick! Do it! DO IT!!!! I'll go to work during the day and you can do your business business from my computer... then when i get home I can do my business business with you and then we can go drink and complain about our lives!! yeaaahhh!!! I think that since you live in Japan there are just certain things that you need to accept. One of these things is the Japanese misuse of English words. Yes, its derogatory in our countries but in Japan it’s not. In fact it sounds more like a compliment(which is just as ridiculous) but as long as people don’t say it in a bad way, what’s the problem? Of course it’s wrong to use it that way but man, if you are going to stress out everytime English is misused in Japan then I predict you will have a heart attack within 5 minutes of leaving your house.

Don’t get me wrong Net Buddy 4 Life, but for lack of a better expression you need to take a chill pill! It sucks that Japan is giving the gaijin are hard time, but maybe this just means that you need to take a long holiday outside the country.

I know you are going to England next year but I just hope you will last that long. I remember that when I arrived on the JET program they said we should get out of Japan at least once a year. It’s been a while since you last did this.

We all know Japan is stressful country to live in, even for the Japanese! So I hope you will keep this in mind for when you hear negative things. I can understand the pressures of living in Japan but I’ll bet that at the current moment things seem much worse than they are…

Nick, come visit your net buddy in Canada…. Maybe you can just leave Mami and Rikuto behind for a couple of weeks and take some time out for you! You can do all of your work from my place and together we can hatch a scheme to blow other websites out of the water! Seriously man, just put down a 1000 bucks, get on a plane and come over! You dont need to pay for a hotel as you would be staying at mine, and food is really cheap too! Come on Nick! Do it! DO IT!!!!

I’ll go to work during the day and you can do your business business from my computer… then when i get home I can do my business business with you and then we can go drink and complain about our lives!! yeaaahhh!!!

]]> By: Nick Ramsay http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2914 Nick Ramsay Thu, 06 Dec 2007 17:17:20 +0000 http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2914 I usually don't buy into all this political correctness, and still use words such as postman and policeman. It is an interesting topic, so I asked Rikuto what he thought. I couldn't quite make out his reply, but it sounded like: “<a href="http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/04/rikuto-wearing-new-hat-and-mittens/" rel="nofollow">IN THE WORLD SHOULD COOPER ATE LEHIGH?</a>” And that makes about as much sense as using a foreign word to describe something different to its actual meaning in the absence of a non-derogatory term in the native language! ;-) I usually don’t buy into all this political correctness, and still use words such as postman and policeman. It is an interesting topic, so I asked Rikuto what he thought. I couldn’t quite make out his reply, but it sounded like:

“IN THE WORLD SHOULD COOPER ATE LEHIGH?”

And that makes about as much sense as using a foreign word to describe something different to its actual meaning in the absence of a non-derogatory term in the native language! ;-)

]]> By: Nick Ramsay http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2912 Nick Ramsay Thu, 06 Dec 2007 15:24:33 +0000 http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2912 Thanks Murali, and good news! I got my rankings back already! Thanks Murali, and good news! I got my rankings back already!

]]> By: Nick Ramsay http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2910 Nick Ramsay Thu, 06 Dec 2007 14:58:10 +0000 http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2910 You really can't compare a multicultural environment such as yours to the homogeneous one of Japan. I'm a combination of English, Scottish and Italian, but didn't feel "different" from other kids at school in England. In Japan however, being called a "half" is a constant reminder that you are different to everyone else, and there really is no need for it. Being foreign isn't cool anymore (thanks to the Japanese media) :sigh: I will take your advice about encouraging him to be proud of having two cultural backgrounds, and I'll tell him to make sure people realize he isn't a "half", but a "double" :-D You really can’t compare a multicultural environment such as yours to the homogeneous one of Japan. I’m a combination of English, Scottish and Italian, but didn’t feel “different” from other kids at school in England. In Japan however, being called a “half” is a constant reminder that you are different to everyone else, and there really is no need for it. Being foreign isn’t cool anymore (thanks to the Japanese media) :sigh:

I will take your advice about encouraging him to be proud of having two cultural backgrounds, and I’ll tell him to make sure people realize he isn’t a “half”, but a “double” :-D

]]> By: Murali http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2903 Murali Thu, 06 Dec 2007 06:45:53 +0000 http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2903 Nice, to hear you still have your PR in place.My best wishes for you to regain your position in Google search result also. Nice, to hear you still have your PR in place.My best wishes for you to regain your position in Google search result also.

]]> By: D'Arcy http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2900 D'Arcy Thu, 06 Dec 2007 05:30:38 +0000 http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2900 I find your perception of "half" as being derogatory. Being a Canadian, and more specifically being from Newfoundland, I have a mixed background as do most of the people I know. As Canada is largely a nation of immigrants and their descendants, we are not only halfs but quarters, and every other combination you can imagine. I am not aware of anyone who is shies away from this, but rather most people embrace it. We tend to say that unlike the United States, which is most often viewed as a melting pot, in Canada we are a mosaic, all the richer for having a diversity. Sometimes, the whole is greater then the sum of the parts. Encourage your son to be proud of the fact that he is a "half" with two rich cultural backgrounds to draw on. I find your perception of “half” as being derogatory. Being a Canadian, and more specifically being from Newfoundland, I have a mixed background as do most of the people I know. As Canada is largely a nation of immigrants and their descendants, we are not only halfs but quarters, and every other combination you can imagine. I am not aware of anyone who is shies away from this, but rather most people embrace it. We tend to say that unlike the United States, which is most often viewed as a melting pot, in Canada we are a mosaic, all the richer for having a diversity.

Sometimes, the whole is greater then the sum of the parts. Encourage your son to be proud of the fact that he is a “half” with two rich cultural backgrounds to draw on.

]]> By: Al http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2899 Al Thu, 06 Dec 2007 05:07:31 +0000 http://www.longcountdown.com/2007/12/06/ramsay-ramblings-1262007/#comment-2899 I find these sociological questions really fascinating. At what point does a term cease to become politically correct? And why? Is it when the term begins to morph into a derogatory meaning like "retarded" to refer to a person with developmental disabilities or even ni**r to refer to an individual of African decent? Neither of these terms were considered negative until.... what point? Or is it when the group of individuals the term refers to decides that it is degrading like "Stewardess" to refer to female flight attendants? So in this case, we know definitively that "hafu" is not intended to be derogatory by the users. However, we do have a body of individuals that believe the word is English (I think I can make a case to the contrary) and definitely carries with it negative connotations. It would be interesting to take a poll of people in Japan that are the product of mixed relationships and see if they indeed find the word "hafu" derogatory. I'm not talking parents, I'm talking about the individuals themselves. At what percentage do we then declare that indeed the term is no longer politically correct? Let’s start with Rikuto. What does he think? Maybe someone out there looking for a thesis topic for a Sociology major would be interested in taking this on. I find these sociological questions really fascinating. At what point does a term cease to become politically correct? And why? Is it when the term begins to morph into a derogatory meaning like “retarded” to refer to a person with developmental disabilities or even ni**r to refer to an individual of African decent? Neither of these terms were considered negative until…. what point? Or is it when the group of individuals the term refers to decides that it is degrading like “Stewardess” to refer to female flight attendants?

So in this case, we know definitively that “hafu” is not intended to be derogatory by the users. However, we do have a body of individuals that believe the word is English (I think I can make a case to the contrary) and definitely carries with it negative connotations. It would be interesting to take a poll of people in Japan that are the product of mixed relationships and see if they indeed find the word “hafu” derogatory. I’m not talking parents, I’m talking about the individuals themselves. At what percentage do we then declare that indeed the term is no longer politically correct? Let’s start with Rikuto. What does he think?

Maybe someone out there looking for a thesis topic for a Sociology major would be interested in taking this on.

]]>