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Here’s a handy FAQ from BoingBoing. Question #2 talks about masks:
http://www.boingboing.net/2009/04/28/swi…
I know in Japan we only wear the masks when we are sick, to not make others sick
She steals them when she’s waiting for the doctor to come in. Duh.
Now that I’ve seen the picture, no. She stole them from a trick from one of the many construction sites downtown. Or maybe it was the payment.
@2 And therein lies the difference between Japanese culture and American culture.
The Japanese ask “How can I prevent the spread of this disease to others?”
The Americans ask “How can I avoid getting this disease?”
@5
It’s not quite that simple. You’d get a lot of bad looks and comments and generally poor treatment in Japan if you were walking around sneezing and sniffingly and weren’t wearing a mask. In America, people go around acting like vicious assholes all the time, so there cannot be a built-in societal mechanism to promote good behavior and discourage bad behavior
@6 Andrew, I totally hear you, man. I lived in Japan for two years.
The first time I saw someone wearing a flu mask, I was confused.
The idea of donning such a mask to SELFLESSLY protect others, rather than SELFISHLY protecting oneself… well, that’s just plain un-American.
In a time like this, the Japanese have a serious set of customs, manners, and traditional courtesies to rely upon.
Americans, on the other hand, fall back on individualism, selfishness, and fear.
In a urban epidemic, Japan for the win.
I hope we are not going to be inundated with awkward ‘Doctor’ jokes, because they just highlight the difference between a real doctor and a PhD.