Yohheizm

AP
Japan tragedy seared into the world's imagination
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JOJI SAKURAI
Published: Mar 19, 2011


FILE - In this March 12, 2011 file photo, the town of Minamisanriku is submerged in water after a strong earthquake-triggered tsunami in Miyagi prefecture, northern Japan. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING ALLOWED IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE

TOKYO (AP) - There are events in history that sear themselves into the world's collective imagination, and enter the realm where myth meets heartbreaking reality.

Japan's tragedy is one of those events. Already, it seems reasonable to surmise it could prove one of the most significant calamities of our time - one that shapes policies, economies, even philosophies for decades to come in an increasingly interconnected world.

There is the sheer, surreal force of the images emerging from afflicted zones: cars perched on rooftops, ships sitting in rice paddies, helicopters in a David-and-Goliath battle against radiation-spewing nuclear reactors.

And the way it haunts us with some of our most basic fears: Death by water. Or rubble. Or nuclear fallout.

Add to that, it's a crisis with an impact that will be felt around the planet: Japan is one of the most advanced countries in the world, its third-largest economy, its most successful car-seller and its second-most generous giver of foreign aid.