"necoandjeff" <spam@schrepfer.com> wrote in message
news:odi2d.21809$aM4.9584@newssvr29.news.prodigy.com...
> "Musashi" <Miyamoto@Hosokawa.co.jp> wrote in message
> news:ZQh2d.3032$hv6.2388@newssvr15.news.prodigy.com...
> >
> > "Shez" <UseReplyAddress@nospam.uk.invalid> wrote in message
> > news:ghLW9WMRVJSBFwYz@zerex.nospam.co.uk...
> > > In the faraway land of sci.lang.japan, Musashi
<Miyamoto@Hosokawa.co.jp>
> > > said:
> > > >> Hmm. So you're saying that the British are not Europeans?
> > > >
> > > >Yes and No. If we are speaking strictly in a geographical sense, then
> > > >obviously British are
> > > >Europeans. But if we are talking about "how a people or nation
> perceives
> > and
> > > >calls themselves"
> > > >then I have met plenty of British people who rather pride themselves
in
> > > >being "British or English"
> > > >and consider themselves seperate from those on the "continent".
Perhaps
> > this
> > > >has somtehign to
> > > >do with being an island country, in which case it is understandable
> that
> > a
> > > >similar type of mentality
> > > >would have developed in Japan.
> > >
> > > Yes, Britain and Japan are very much alike in this respect, and indeed
> > > in many aspects of their historical relations with our continental
> > > neighbours - wars, invasions, cultural & linguistic influences (e.g.
the
> > > adoption of the Roman alphabet in Britain and Kanji in Japan, along
with
> > > a lot of loan words from what was otherwise an unrelated language).
Both
> > > were even saved from invasion by a divine wind that dispersed an
> > > invading fleet, IIRC.
> > >
> >
> > Finally someone who understands this.
> > I've never had much reception to this idea from
> > my American friends.
>
> I agree to an extent. But people sometimes tend to use "island nation
> mentality" to mean something much bigger. What I have an objection to is
the
> tendency Japanese have of explaining everything by pointing out that they
> are "shimaguni," even things with respect to which Japan and England are
> very, very different.
>
> Jeff
>

Can you give an example of that?
My objection to the shimaguni mentality concept is that some people use it
as an excuse for everything including lack of attention to human rights,
racism,
sexual equality in the workplace, etc etc. While the shimaguni mentality may
explain much of Japanese history, Japan really hasn't been a shimaguni since
the 20th century began so I don't see it
an excuse for not moving forward like any developed nation in the 21st
century.

Musashi