Fetish was more of an ironic misnomer. When you have a wooded area roughly the size of the pine barrens called "suicide forest", it's not just those that don't want to be a burden doing themselves in there.
Hara-kiri, and it referred to specifically honorable suicide through disemboweling. The more formal literary term for it was seppuku. There would also often be someone there, someone close to them or an executioner, that would behead them once they saw them in pain, to spare them a long death.
Since it was ritual in front of people, it's not really the same as someone quietly committing suicide at home. Could be motivated by the same reasons of honor though.
Makes sense to me, honestly. Who wants to take care of Grandma when she doesn't know where she is and who you are anymore? The US care system wants to demonize anyone that suggests "maybe its time for her to go" since they don't get to continue raping her family of $$$$
I've been there, and while it's a beautiful country and there is much to be admired about their well oiled machine of a society, it's strangely depressing. Imagine being surrounded by other people, but completely isolated at the same time. Ever seen 50+ people packed into a train car and it's dead silence? Even when people DO talk to each other, it's a closely followed script of saying what you're supposed to say and allowing the other person to say what they are supposed to say. Nobody deviates from the script out of consideration for the other person.
The cultural norms and pressure to conform are ever-present. From an outsider looking in, I'm glad I could just absorb the neat things about Japan and then just leave. Being trapped in that society must be the ultimate test of ones ability to handle social pressure.
I guess Japan doesn't count suicides as "covid deaths"
Weellll... Japan🤨. Love 'em, love the country (not as much as the USA of course). But they do have some kind of a fetish with suicide. Sad really 😢
Fetish was more of an ironic misnomer. When you have a wooded area roughly the size of the pine barrens called "suicide forest", it's not just those that don't want to be a burden doing themselves in there.
Hari kari
Hara-kiri, and it referred to specifically honorable suicide through disemboweling. The more formal literary term for it was seppuku. There would also often be someone there, someone close to them or an executioner, that would behead them once they saw them in pain, to spare them a long death. Since it was ritual in front of people, it's not really the same as someone quietly committing suicide at home. Could be motivated by the same reasons of honor though.
Makes sense to me, honestly. Who wants to take care of Grandma when she doesn't know where she is and who you are anymore? The US care system wants to demonize anyone that suggests "maybe its time for her to go" since they don't get to continue raping her family of $$$$
I've been there, and while it's a beautiful country and there is much to be admired about their well oiled machine of a society, it's strangely depressing. Imagine being surrounded by other people, but completely isolated at the same time. Ever seen 50+ people packed into a train car and it's dead silence? Even when people DO talk to each other, it's a closely followed script of saying what you're supposed to say and allowing the other person to say what they are supposed to say. Nobody deviates from the script out of consideration for the other person.
The cultural norms and pressure to conform are ever-present. From an outsider looking in, I'm glad I could just absorb the neat things about Japan and then just leave. Being trapped in that society must be the ultimate test of ones ability to handle social pressure.
Dave Barry does Japan. Definitely a must read!
Don't forget WWII.... "Please don't kill yourselves, we need to defend the position!"