Scott Reynolds wrote:

> On 7/6/2003 8:09 PM, Eric Takabayashi wrote:
>
> > masayuki yoshida wrote:
>
> >>Although Eric ALWAYS points out the lack of our
> >>history knowledge, are American people far more knowledgeable about
> >>their own nation's past than Japanese?
> >
> > This is totally besides the point, and this attempt at diversion is a common
> > tactic among Japanese when confronted over Japanese political or social issues.
>
> Why is it beside the point?

Because he is trying to cloud the issue by turning the attention to America, which
does indeed have its own problems. But we're talking about Japan.

> This "Japanese youth are amazingly ignorant
> of history" line is just another variant on the "Japanese are unique"
> myth, and I really don't think it stands up very well to scrutiny. As
> Masayuki pointed out in another post, some kids (like he himself as a
> high school student) are interested in history and take the trouble to
> learn something about it by reading books, watching documentaries on TV,
> and the like. Others could care less. I think you can find both types of
> kids in just about any country.