Many people in Japan have started their own austerity plan since the 3/11 catastrophic earthquake as a way to express sorrow for the national tragedy. While the intention is admirable, the effort actually hampered the economic recovery of the Tohoku region, a classic example of what people's good will turned detrimental. The backbone of modern economy lies in consumption and any unexpected cutback will for sure delay a speedy recovery and any self-help initiatives. Similarly, the power-saving theme which dominated the social mood the last few months lacks true economic benefit as any dip in power usage during the low-consumption months will not help store up the excess power capacity in preparation for the upcoming high-consumption months. It only reduces TEPCO's revenue, which is much needed for reparations to the affected residents around the nuclear plant. While abstinence in energy has helped us reflect on the way we have been using energy and is good for the environment in general, any senseless cut should be rethink twice. The real test of grit of this nation comes as we finally step into summer. Already we saw a 93.3% electricity usage yesterday under an unyielding 35 degree Celsius. We will see if any 自粛 practices in the last few months help us weather through this summer.
On a related note, I came across to this blog post few days ago and that resonates with this idea though the context is completely different. We like to believe that what we are doing are for the goods of others (為你好) but a lot of times, this is uncalled for and is not what your counterpart wants. What is likely the case is that we just like to self-glorify our sacrifice and claim righteousness for the sake of pride instead of listening to what the other person wants and develop mutual benefit. So next time you do something thinking that it is for the sake of that person, talk to them before proceeding.
Well, this is actually quite a dilemma to someone who truly wants to do something good for the society - are we really helping or just self-helping?
