Policy Differences between America and Japan

By Mai Kawamoto

I have been surprised at some American customs since I have come to America. Viewed by Japanese people, they are funny, incredible and unacceptable customs. However these differences come from the present political and social culture.

Americans are “The squeaky wheel gets the grease”. The Japanese are the culture of “Silence is golden”

These expressions will hold true for the American and Japanese character. ”The squeaky wheel gets the grease” means the person who asked for some help will get the help. For Americans, it is said that they would better to share their feelings as much as possible. In contrast, “Silence is golden” means the person who doesn’t distinguish himself will end up winning. For Japanese it is better to identify with the group as much as possible. There is one more proverb that is a symbol of the Japanese character “The nail that sticks out gets hammered down”. As you can see, the American and Japanese characters are opposite. Sometimes Americans say something in excess. On the contrary, Japanese always hide their thoughts. These traits reflect the background of the two countries. The American society follows the notion that “The weakest always goes to the wall” and Japan society perpetuates outdated stereotypes by the education and the mass media.

Drunk Driving

Drunk-driving accidents are a serious problem that happens every year. Moreover there are also victims. The drunk-driving laws are stricter now to reduce fatalities in both countries. In fact, there are big difference in the laws between America and Japan. For America, when a driver drinks alcohol and is driving, if a police officer catches the driver 4 times, the driver will be punished as a murderer. On the other hand, for Japan the strictest punishment is a revoked driver’s license. The driver has to pay a fine less than five thousand dollars. When I heard about the strict American law, it got me thinking that Japanese laws are too easy on drunk-drivers. However as a consequence of these different punishments, I think there is more frequency drunk driving deaths in the US than Japan.

Crack in the bathroom stall

In every American public bathroom the stall has cracks between the doors and the wall. We can see people through the cracks. I still remember the surprising and embarrassing time when I used the bathroom stall. Moreover I couldn’t understand why there are cracks. In Japan a bathroom stall is completely closed. Japanese people value their privacy, even more so in the bathroom. Sometimes they protect their privacy from strangers too much. On the other hand for Americans, they protect their safety out of tear. They want to make sure they are safe by being able to check through the cracks. I’ve thought Americans overprotect their safety. Nevertheless, recently I have gotten used to the cracks. In my opinion, these different situations are for domestic security.

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