to do. Chances are, the radiation levels are so high that if they survive, they could very easily come down with a leukaemia or some other myelogenous cancer. They are beyond brave and loving because Fukushima poses a threat to the world in the worst case scenario.

A Du'er with nuclear know how and experience explained it VERY clearly and succinctly what would happen is the worse would happen.

acknowledges that the indiividual doesn't exist as an isolate in a vaccuum, but as an integral part of a social network, and that there are not just ties, but mutual obligations within that social network.

Our society's commitment to its version of "individualism" rejects the very idea of mutual support within society. (Remember the horror that greeted Hillary's It Takes a Village book, named after the African proverb that it itakes a village to raise a child?)

No doubt part of the weakness of our citizens' sense of mutuality is caused at least partly by the fact that our society is so diverse and multicultural, but it is also caused by relentless propaganda that drums into people the notion that everyone is--and should be--on his or her own.

saying that... we(collectively) have so much to learn

he said, yeah, here we would send poor people; young and old. They are disposal, in our society. I didn't know what to say....cuz he's right. :shaking head:

... nice job.

I used your post as the intro to my sharing this on Facebook. It reflects my thoughts, exactly. Very well said.

is hilarious.

double wow

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]All of them. Deserving of honor and thanks from a grateful nation and a grateful world.

n/t

This is the true spirit of the Samurai.. to serve, even if it means to the death.

nt

Gives me some hope for humanity. There is a lot to be said for Japanese culture and social solidarity.

DO YOU GET IT, you selfish, self-absorbed repukes?????

would any of YOU older ones do the same for US (see, this is what happens when you don't have enough coffee)

This is inspirational.

Amazing and selfless.

and these wonderful souls.

I echo all the wonderful sentiments above.

I am sooooo sharing this.



K&R

These are beautiful people and they deserve recognition.

indeed ,, wow, . cant say any more !!

where are the tepco excecs ? shouldnt they be doing this?

For this to happen in the USA the Republicans first would make sure the company doing the work was privatized, then they would charge the old people doing the work for receiving radiation treatments.

I had not heard this before, so I thank you for posting this story.

Really amazing

or that we are all dependent on each other. To put it more eloquently,

The concepts of Shinto, Japan's oldest religion is still alive today. While many may not believe in kami, some still do. The soul of the Samurai came from Shinto teachings.. Bushido is a Shinto concept. These men, who take on this task are true Samurai ..and hold up
Bushido in their hearts, even if it means to the death.

The word "Samurai" in Japanese means "to serve".

These men all, are true Samurai. To them I say.. BANZAI!!!

so I figured I better avoid saying anything

I need to surf around the web and learn something

Ooo, I missed that...were they only men making this vow?

Anyway, yes they are truly serving ...the World!!

I can give you a link... http://jinja.jp/english/s-0.html

Ganbatte ne!

No wonder, huh?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Respect_for_the_Aged_Day

K&R

And that includes my parents.

Tales of fire, hell and brimstone breeds fear of death. These things are inculcated into Western folk at an early age. Even when some of us become agnostic or atheistic in our views, there is still lingering fear that what we are taught just might be true.

Buddhists are not weighed down by fear of eternal hell, rapacious demons and a vengeful god. Like Christ, they believe they are coming back in some kind of Karmic cycle.

It is far easier to face the prospect of death when you are buddhist or something akin to it.

Nevertheless, I wish to join in the praise for these unselfish heroes/heroines. And lest we all forget, those brave soldiers who forfeited their lives in battle for our sake, or those among us who risked their lives, are just as worthy of praise.

A younger person would run the risk of giving up many years of their life. For an older person, that particular part of the risk is much, much smaller. Under those conditions, it would be immoral for them not to do it.

conscripting recruits for our armed forces. There may be SOME merit in that!

Without being Spock. Unbelievable...

The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few (or one).

Spock salute to you, Mr. Yamada

makes me wonder if the Vulcans were supposed to be the Japanese. I mean, we know that the Klingons are the Russians and the Romulans are the Chinese, and the Federation the USA ...

Compared to the individualistic selfishness of Americans.

There is nothing I can add to the sentiments already expressed in this thread. Just wow.

future generations of Japanese. In the US, the 1% would be looking for the young, elderly and poor to save their butts. I admire what they have volunteered to do but have to admit that, living in the US, I wouldn't do it. Between the 1 %ers, the Tea Party idiots, Republican elitists, and religious fruitcakes, I might consider that, should a similar incident occur, it that it might be natures way of cleaning house. I have started working my way through The Most Important Video You'll Ever See on Youtube.

Japan is often rated at or near the top in THE WORLD for it's health care system.
These old people know that if/when cancer hits them they will be taken care of.
They will also have the option of humane seppuku - most likely OD of morphine now a days.

I used to think of the Japanese as a hive mind, kin of still do, but I have ALWAYS respected their ability to get things done. Not only do the workers have strong work ethics, the COMPANIES REWARD loyal and hard working employees. There are limits to how much the CEO can make vs the lowest employee.

The Japanese are a weird mish mosh of tradition and modern culture. I truly love them for this.
Shinto is a beautiful religion and one with no blood on it's pure white cloak.

We could learn a lot from the Japanese towards improving our own lot here in America.

were an excellent (but certainly misguided) example of this devotion to their collective good. WHERE would you find young military kids - in OUR country - who would COMPETE to see who gets to dive to his death in an effort to protect their nation's honor??? You have to be RAISED with that kind of respect and responsibility to be able to be this selfless when you're an adult.

and people volunteered for that.

thanks for sharing

The executives of TEPCO should honor the sacrifice of these volunteers by committing ritual seppuku in a public place.

Building a nuclear reactor near the coast in an area prone to quakes and tsunamis is a surefire indication that they are worthy of a Darwin award. And the gov officals that lied to the public about the radiation levels should join them.

The executives will find a way to make money from this particular situation.

I am stunned by the apparent lack of information about the likely outcome for ANY human being participating in 'clean up' efforts at Fukushima, and exposed to the radiation levels extant at present--likely to worsen if the spent fuel rods stored near the damaged cores are compromised. At present, an exposure of more than a few minutes will result in radiation sickness and certain death within 48 hours. Indeed, the radiation levels are so intense, any electronics in contemporary robot technology would be destroyed within minutes.

The most recent reports indicate that

Spent reactor fuel cannot be simply lifted into the air by a crane as if it were routine cargo. In order to prevent severe radiation exposures, fires and possible explosions, it must be transferred at all times in water and heavily shielded structures into dry casks.. As this has never been done before, the removal of the spent fuel from the pools at the damaged Fukushima-Dai-Ichi reactors will require a major and time-consuming re-construction effort and will be charting in unknown waters.

eom

volunteer themselves to take on a similar task in this country.

This has nothing to do with Christ

but they are most certainly Christ-like.

and your anger at that suggestion is baffling.

-signed an nonreligious ethical humanist

I hope they are being paid well enough to make it worthwhile because most of them will have their lives shortened by the experience. Being able to leave something for children and grandchildren is also the aim along with putting the most sensible population to work on the cleanup. I don't think Mr. Yamada is the only older person to volunteer, I remember reading that many have in order to spare younger people who will be hurt more seriously.

What a profile in courage and sacrifice.

to a Kamikaze like effort to get a handle on this disaster.