rosewein

i think it was here i hitching though with my friends and the man who was driving us stopped the car to show us an ice sculture. non of us where even pertenmding to beniterested because for the first time in our lives we saw tesilated snow flakes. to our amazment the driver says “they where not lying to the children.”

over 6 years ago

I was in Japan, outside the Korean Embassy. There where some people yelling with Japanese flags, I’d seen them driving up and down the street the day before. There were several guards outside the building and I wondered why I didn’t notice them before, While I was waiting for my ticket number to come up on the L.C.D. screen I watched the sad faces of the workers behind the counter staring though the Perspex beyond the waiting people, into the now very noisy street. I asked the guy behind the counter with my head nearly though the crescent in the Perspex so I could hope to hear him over the din. “Who are they?” I heard him say the word “neo-Nazis” but I hoped it was my own mind playing tricks in the noise. As I was leaving I asked once of the guards again “who are they?”

He smiled; he struggled with his English, and said, “They say we are the enemy”

I crossed the street with the intention of tearing the head off the tiger mascot leading the parade, it was then saw two little boys no older than 7. It froze me; I had never been so close to something I felt was so wrong. I stared at the schoolgirls incredulous that, such nice looking people could march the streets shouting hate all day.
The parade crossed the street. I hoped they would cross back over; I wanted to say something, do something I wanted it to end. I decided my voice would only convince these people of their righteousness, I was an outsider too. I worry this was in fact cowardice. That I was justifying my weakness.

I decided to hurry on to the airport and get, but by the time I had reached the train station I was calmer, I had met nice people here. Yuka had met me and shown me round and sorted out all my problems, and she did not hate Koreans. I became determined to not allow this to ruin the country for me, given the short length of my stay it will defiantly be my clearest memory. When I was talking to her she expressed concern that people thought of the Japanese as cruel. Watching the faces of the embassy workers, I did think it was cruel. But those people exist everywhere; they are only part of a society.

I had to question my conviction to free speech; I was asking myself why is this allowed? , Why doesn’t someone stop them? I have always been insistent that everyone should have the right to say whatever the hell they want. “What about the Nazis” people always ask. I do believe that they have as much right to speak as and one else; the thing I have a problem with is seeking out the victims to serve as an audience, that is just mean. Laws should not stop people thinking or saying things but they should stop meanness. over 6 years ago

grew up here so have no iidea what to say. do one winter once just to see if you can.

over 6 years ago