follow-up

In a creepy bit of synchronicity, a member of ONE OK ROCK (the band that Moriuchi joined as Taka after leavin NEWS?) has been arrested for molesting a girl on the train - touching her thigh for five minutes, apparently. I mention it primarily because the responses here at their community and here at what I believe is a gossip blog perfectly illustrate the concerns I expressed a few days ago about the negative influence these idols have over their fans. (apologies to darkeyedwolf and guiltyschu cos some of this repeats stuff I said to them earlier.) (and ayamachi but she should be used to it by now.)

So, because of this scandal, their upcoming tour and single release have been cancelled. And a lot of the fans - although far less than if it were a JE guy, I shudder to think - are saying stuff along the lines of "it's no big deal, he shouldn't be punished like that" or "why did she say something, stupid woman". They would rather tell themselves that what he did is ok than tell themselves that he did something shitty. Which means they're convincing themselves that groping women isn't bad. How could it be, if their idol did it? It must not be a big deal. Someone said "it's not like he jammed his fingers up her vagina." (Yeah, it is like that.)

Obviously this is a problem with celebrities in general - people idolize them and want to believe that they're good people, and that's why there's so much talk about celebrities being good role models. But I really think that these issues of sexism are worse and more dangerous to their fans because it's so much more difficult for people to realize that it's bad, compared to drug use or something. And I'm certainly not exonerating Western celebrities, it's just - if the Japanese idols that we love are being critiqued by their societies, it's not be translated. So there's a vacuum.

Dooooon't worry, I'm not going to start a community. If you guys thought it was bad, there's no way it'd fly in the fandom as a whole and just wouldn't be effective. I just wanted to add this to more clearly explain the reasons why I thought there was a problem. If fans can convince themselves that something this extreme is an okay thing to do, think how much easier it will be for them to assimilate all the little sexist comments.


Edit: Also, in reference to some of the discussion here about when it is and isn't appropriate to comment on this sort of thing - this guy's behavior, it is clearly wrong, yes? And there's nothing wrong with saying that what he did was wrong. Well, for me, making sexist comments is wrong and harmful in the same unambiguous way, and I see no problem with pointing it out. The cultural slack that I'm cutting is in my expectations and the moral implications of any behavior. I wouldn't say that sexist comments make someone bad or misogynist, because I don't fully understand the culture that leads to them making those comments. But that doesn't mean the comments themselves aren't bad or sexist. (On the other hand, I am making a moral judgement on the groping.) There are other reasons that I think that commenting on these things doesn't cross some sort of line of cultural respect, but that's the main one. (The feminist efforts of Japanese women in Japan is another one.)

I don't think people should be forced or expected to behave a certain way because of their gender, even if those expectations are more extensive and thus carry a greater sway over the behavior of the culture as a whole. I still don't think it's right. And I certainly don't think it's right for women to be objectified and viewed as pleasure objects that exist only for men and to be valued only for their bodies and appearance and what they can do for men. I think that's wrong, no matter what culture it is happening in. These are attitudes that I would like to change in all people, everywhere. I think that universally, people should be respected, treated as human beings, and given choices about how they want to live their lives.

Additionally, the tendency to view women as objects rather than people, to perpetuate negative stereotypes and to emphasize the role of women's bodies in their identites - I think these are major factors in encouraging violence against women. If Alex had been taught that a woman's body is her own, that she should be respected as a fellow human being, and that she is not there for his pleasure, maybe he wouldn't have touched her without her consent.

Fun Bible Trivia Part 6!

A quickie today. I've missed so many. ;)

The story of Noah - God floods the earth, kills almost everyone, then at the end he feels bad and promises he'll never flood the earth again? (If you ask me, he's being a bit tricky there - we might all be set on fire or something, so watch out.)

Anyway, he says, in Genesis 9: 12-16 (typed up from my NRSV HCSB):
. . ."This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creatures of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth."

Now, apart from being a fascinating example of an unconditional covenant, this story is also the etiology of the rainbow, yes? Etiologies pop up in the bible where you aren't expecting them. Anyway, fun fact - the reason it's a rainbow is that it's a bow as in "bow and arrows". The way they arc, they're pointing up, aiming at the sky - at God. So what God is basically promising is that he's going to threaten to fire arrows at himself if he ever tries to flood the earth again. "Oh, crap, there's a bow pointed at me. Better not destroy everything."


Note ironical icon.