WIT Life #79: After the testimony
Anecdote Article, Japan Trends, Translating/Interpreting, WIT Life 
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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
A thought-provoking article in Salon regarding Japanese reactions at home to President Akio Toyoda’s Congressional testimony and apology to dealers. It describes how the populace was moved by him getting choked up when addressing the latter, but also that the Japanese can be fickle in their acclaim for someone. I found it interesting as I am currently traveling as an interpreter for a seven-person group of political aides, and they are overwhelming in their opinion that Japan is getting the short end of the stick regarding this situation.
At one dinner they expressed difficulty in understanding why Americans are so upset (to which another guest replied because people have been dying), and why the company and correspondingly the country are being blamed when the cars that had issues were made in America with American parts. One person even said it feels like a case of Japan bashing, as Toyota might not be covering up and really didn’t know what was going on. Another said he thinks Americans are capitalizing on the chance to criticize the new auto leader over a small issue, and enjoying it a bit too much.
Though a healthy dose of schadenfreude is likely a part of people’s reactions here, I have also heard many Americans express sadness and disappointment that this could happen to a company as seemingly infallible as Toyota, as well as many Toyota owners who swear by their cars and say this crisis will not prevent them from buying the brand in the future. It remains to be seen how far the impact of the recall and Toyota’s handling of the situation will go, but unfortunately it does seem that the company will be the punchline of many jokes for a while.
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