Japan is currently in a precarious situation.
But many Japanese seem to have chosen to ignore this.
Japan has completely missed out as the world’s axis has begun to shift from the West to the East.
A lengthy recession, political gridlock and – on top of all that – the devastating earthquake and tsunami. Citizens have decided to cut themselves off from the never-ending succession of dismal news.From the young to the old, the current state of Japan is much like the self-imposed isolation of the Edo Period. No one is looking outwards.
But it’s time for us to open up once again. We need the courage to take that first step. For if we don’t, Japan will sink into the abyss.I think that everybody, in our day-to-day jobs, needs to stop thinking so much about seeking immediate gain. Instead, we need to focus on the distant future – a society built on hope that we can take pride in as we pass it along to the next generation.
– Ando Tadao, architect
I do apologize to those who don’t read Japanese and are thus forced to rely on shoddy translations by Spoon & Tamago.
From an interview in GOETHE magazine (May, 2012).
(via Masahiro Minami)
