Point taken. But since we live in Japan, for practical purposes I guess I choose to lump us all together as many Japanese seem to do. But that being said, not all foreigners are created equal. There are the "good" ones who behave and the "bad" ones who don't. As one bad apple spoils the lot, so do the "bad" foreigners make it difficult for the "good" ones.Originally Posted by Maciamo
IHHO we must never forget that unless we obtain citizenship we can not expect to be treated exactly the same as others. Even if we do obtain citizenship, we will still be part of a small minority of the population, and ignorance about our situation is unavoidable, and we will continue to face unequal treatment. Do I think this is right? Of course not. But that's just how it seems to be.
I agree with Mike Cash that we (meaning everyone in the world) should not treat people differently just based on their country of origin, ethnicity, class, etc., but that is an ideal. We live in reality, and in reality people do discriminate. In terms of foreigners, between two people on this thread alone, we know of at least a dozen other foreigners who bailed on their last month's bill of cel phone use. Do you know of any similar cases? If you do, then I think we can all agree to see the beginnings of a trend: foreigners have a high likelihood of not paying for at least their last month of cel phone service in Japan. Say what you will about the Japanese, they're not morons. They can see the same trend just as easily as anyone else. It's perfectly understandable that they would then change their behaviors accordingly.
On the language issue, what percentage of non-asian foreigners (chosen just because they look different) in Japan do you think are competent enough in both Japanese language and the local geography to answer someone's question about directions? I would guess not a high percentage. The person in your example made a reasonable assessment of the situation in my opinion. I have posted similar experiences, and yes, I too was not very happy. But I think we have to take it with a grain of salt and step back to see a bigger picture.
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