Miguelito
26th April 2003, 23:55
I don't think people are respectful enough towards others now-a-days. Don't get me wrong, I'm as much for fighting authority as anyone here. But at what point is it independence and at what point is it disrespect?
Example: I traveled to Japan last summer with a group of 14 other American students with the purpose (atleast I thought) of learning something about the Japanese culture. When we arrived the other students were nothing but disrespectful from the moment we touched ground. At a traditional Japanese Tea Ceramony they refused to try the green tea or eat the bean candies in front of them, I ended up eating all the bean candies and drinking most of the tea while they screamed "EWWW GROSS" the entire time, just so the hostess wouldn't be offended when she returned. At the Buddhist Temples some even wanted to spit on the inscense in front of the monks, and they cracked constant jokes about how "inferior" the Japanese culture was in comparison to the American.
I think it's bullshit to be forced to conform to someone else's rules and laws, but when you're a guest in someone else's home or country you should respect their culture and rituals.
Example: I traveled to Japan last summer with a group of 14 other American students with the purpose (atleast I thought) of learning something about the Japanese culture. When we arrived the other students were nothing but disrespectful from the moment we touched ground. At a traditional Japanese Tea Ceramony they refused to try the green tea or eat the bean candies in front of them, I ended up eating all the bean candies and drinking most of the tea while they screamed "EWWW GROSS" the entire time, just so the hostess wouldn't be offended when she returned. At the Buddhist Temples some even wanted to spit on the inscense in front of the monks, and they cracked constant jokes about how "inferior" the Japanese culture was in comparison to the American.
I think it's bullshit to be forced to conform to someone else's rules and laws, but when you're a guest in someone else's home or country you should respect their culture and rituals.