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Why the Japanese Don't Litter
11–20 of 61 posts
Re: Why the Japanese Don't Litter
#12Google in Images "Japanese school children clean their classrooms" and you'll find dozens of photos, not just of putting things away, but literally scrubbing the classroom floors. Even one photo of the guys cleaning the urinals. Maybe a prank shot. But may as well not be.
The Japanese see cleanliness and orderliness as a primary virtue and leaving a place that they have used clean is taught and reinforced by peer behavior at a young enough age as to become second nature. The fans at Toulouse probably didn't even think about it.
Re: Why the Japanese Don't Litter
#13Google in Images "Japanese school children clean their classrooms" and you'll find dozens of photos, not just of putting things away, but literally scrubbing the classroom floors. Even one photo of the guys cleaning the urinals. Maybe a prank shot. But may as well not be. The Japanese see cleanliness and orderliness as a primary virtue and leaving a place that they have used clean is taught and reinforced by peer beh…
Not a prank shot - they have actually managed to convince generations of kids to clean their school's toilets using chemicals and no special training. They mask it as "culture" but it's a cost saving measure, they could be getting lessons and an education during that time.
Re: Why the Japanese Don't Litter
#14Japanese dont litter ? This must be a good joke !! Japanese litter everywhere where they feel safe to do it. Go to a Hanabi Taikai (fireworks in summer) and on your way back you will be WALKING on litter for 1 kilometer. Go hiking in the mountains and you will see the extent of Japanese littering when noone is looking. Mountains of cans thrown away by hikers. Go in the countryside and see whay people leave on the side of the street. Oh yeah, they do litter just like everyone else, they are just a little more ashamed to do it public, and in the city the public services are just very efficient at cleaning up anyway.
Re: Why the Japanese Don't Litter
#15Japan's very low number of public trash cans isn't just because of this "tradition and culture of courtesy and bringing trash home". It is also a direct result of a Sarin gas terrorism attack that hit the Tokyo subway system in 1995, whereupon some of the weaponry was deposited in a public trash can. Afterwards, the number of public trash cans was dramatically reduced. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarin_gas_attack_o…
> It is also a direct result of a Sarin gas terrorism attack that hit the Tokyo subway system in 1995,
Precisely, the author is just plain ignorant. By the way the same thing happened in France after the metro bombinga.
Re: Why the Japanese Don't Litter
#16Google in Images "Japanese school children clean their classrooms" and you'll find dozens of photos, not just of putting things away, but literally scrubbing the classroom floors. Even one photo of the guys cleaning the urinals. Maybe a prank shot. But may as well not be. The Japanese see cleanliness and orderliness as a primary virtue and leaving a place that they have used clean is taught and reinforced by peer beh…
> but literally scrubbing the classroom floors. Even one photo of the guys cleaning the urinals. Maybe a prank shot. But may as well not be.
The kids have to. You know, it's imposed by the teachers.
Re: Why the Japanese Don't Litter
#17Japan's very low number of public trash cans isn't just because of this "tradition and culture of courtesy and bringing trash home". It is also a direct result of a Sarin gas terrorism attack that hit the Tokyo subway system in 1995, whereupon some of the weaponry was deposited in a public trash can. Afterwards, the number of public trash cans was dramatically reduced. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarin_gas_attack_o…
> It is also a direct result of a Sarin gas terrorism attack that hit the Tokyo subway system in 1995, Precisely, the author is just plain ignorant. By the way the same thing happened in France after the metro bombinga.
And in the UK after enough IRA bombs in wastebins.
Re: Why the Japanese Don't Litter
#18In Tokyo, I do very occasionally see people eating while walking or even inside a train. It's probably more common now simply because there are more take-out possibilities, e.g. take-out from Starbucks. There seems to be less stigma now.
The article paints a little bit of a rosy picture regarding people and their trash. I do often take home my trash so that it can be properly disposed of (the city picks up different kinds of trash on different days, for proper disposal or recycling), but I do this somewhat reluctantly. Who wants to carry around trash? And sometimes, if I'm lazy, I put the trash into the outside trash bins of whatever convenience store happens to be nearby. In fact, I think the now ubiquitous presence of convenience stores goes a long way to explain why there are very few public trash cans.
While most people here do not litter, there is a small percentage who do, either regularly or because they're drunk and have lost their sense of social responsibility. But there's always a group of volunteers (often senior citizens) who clean things up every morning. Also, the well-heeled routes are often in front of stores or restaurants, and it's not surprising that someone will be cleaning up in front.
But overall, there is very little littering.
Re: Why the Japanese Don't Litter
#19If you are actually wondering "Why the Japanese Don't Litter" let me save you the trouble of reading this article, which basically can be summed up as "Because they don't."
And that, right there, is an profound summary of why a strong, common culture is so important for a social unit: it's the only proven way to escape the prisoner's dilemma of society. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOK6mE7sdvs
Careful comrade, you're bordering on crimethink there. Why, next you'll be reading unsanitized research papers! Be on the right side of history, comrade.
Re: Why the Japanese Don't Litter
#20In Tokyo, I do very occasionally see people eating while walking or even inside a train. It's probably more common now simply because there are more take-out possibilities, e.g. take-out from Starbucks. There seems to be less stigma now. The article paints a little bit of a rosy picture regarding people and their trash. I do often take home my trash so that it can be properly disposed of (the city picks up different…
Ya it was cleaner when I was in Tokyo but people also smoke more there and the subways are crowded. Pros and cons.