Japan Tsunami

My heart goes out to the Japanese people. At no time in my somewhat extended life have I seen such massive destruction. There was a "Hat Trick" of earthquakes, tsunamis and nuclear powerplant explosions that even the most ambitious Hollywood movie blockbuster producer could not have dreamed up. I don't believe this particular combination of disasters has ever occurred before.

 

The epicenter of the earthquake was offshore

 At the risk of sounding insensitive, if these things were going to happen anyway, it couldn't have been in a better place. The Japanese are well known for being aware and prepared for earthquakes. Building codes, transport systems, utilities and infrastructure have all been designed with the risk in mind, but who could have expected the trifecta of disasters that all happened at one time? If this would have happened in any other country, things would have been much worse by several orders of magnitude.

Successful recovery by a real hero

That doesn't lessen my hurt though. I consider Japan and its people as good world citizens. They are innovative, productive, polite and keep to themselves, kind of like I wished my own country was.

Yes, they made some mistakes in the 1940's but since then the Japanese have been net contributors to the global population.. There is not one person on this planet that has not been influenced for the better by Japanese technology in some way.

Damaged F-16

Uncontainment

I spent some time in Tokyo a few years ago and  was impressed by the friendliness, efficiency, comfort and overall wackiness of the place. It all works well, though. My memories of that time make the recent events much more personal.

I can't help but notice the contrast between the way the Japanese are recovering from this disaster and the way things were back in the USA after the hurricane Katrina flooding in New Orleans. The Japanese response seems much more coordinated and united than the chaos, shootings, lootings and finger-pointings that happened in Louisiana.

US Navy assistance for Japan

I don't enjoy bashing my own country or people, but the stoic and purposeful way the Japanese are handling the recovery sets an example for all. Maybe its an Asian thing and the more I discover about that, the more it seems a better way of life....just my humble opinion.

I wish the best for the Japanese folks, they didn't deserve this.