Well, I am living in America as a student exchanging from Japan. My host family in here does not know about Y2K 2000-year problem, although my friend told me about it. I could stay one more year but, well, do you think I should.. Or could it be worse here ?

-- ikuko (ikuko5@yahoo.com), January 15, 1999

Answers

I don't know if it will be better or worse, but in case of crisis you would be better off with your family.

Annie O'Dea

-- Annie O'Dea (tarotmaid@yahoo.com), January 15, 1999.

PNG says you'll be safer over there because Japan has almost no guns.

-- a (a@a.a), January 15, 1999.

ikuko,

Thats a hard choice. My personal choice would be to choose family and friends. But we each need to make our own informed choices.

Let me refer you to PNGs web-site. Hes over in Japan, and I believe, may be staying. Why dont you chat with him?

http:// www2.gol.com/users/png/index.html

Best of luck!

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), January 15, 1999.

ikuko,

I have the same dillema, do I stay here in the good 'ol US of A, or go back to Blighty (England). I don't know what I'm gonna do yet, probably stay here but I'll assess the situation throughougt '99.

From what I hear Japan is a relies totally on shipping for food and oil etc. to support the poulation. No port in the world is yet compliant and shipping is looking very very poor at this moment according to my research.

On the other hand there are not so many guns in Japan and my sense is that society (only been to Tokyo once)is more disciplined and probably better able to cope with deprivation. Just look how Japan rebuilt after WW II.

Over to you PNG - I know you are planning to stay in Japan.

It's a no brainer from the shipping point of view IMHO, otherwise it's a tough choice - good luck.

Andy

"The conveniences and comforts of humanity in general will be linked up by one mechanism, which will produce comforts and conveniences beyond human imagination. But the smallest mistake will bring the whole mechanism to a certain collapse. In this way the end of the world will be brought about."

Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan, 1922 (Sufi Prophet)

-- Andy (2000EOD@prodigy.net), January 15, 1999.

Ikuko-San: My family hosted a student from Japan in 1985-1986; I had a sister in Japan teaching English up until this month, and have a brother who works for a large (Japanese) corporation in Tokyo. You ask, "could it be worse here?" My personal opinion, based on all that I've read, is "no, it couldn't be worse here", generally speaking. I do not believe that my brother is going to leave Tokyo for the "relative safety" (whatever that is) of the USA, even though I, personally, would want to leave Japan to come back to face the future in my home of San Antonio, Texas. I think, ultimately, your decision should not be made on the basis of where could y2k be "worse", but upon the answer to this question: If you have to encounter extreme hardship (shiren, busshi no ketsuboo, kiga), in whose society would you rather do that-- with your family and friends back home in Japan or with a host family here who is not properly preparred and probably cannot "properly" prepare to survive a medium- to-worst case scenario? Only you can answer that. Extreme endurance and bravery will be required whether you go back home or stay here. I wish you well.

-- Albert E. Potts (Potts5116@aol.com), January 15, 1999.

Andy... Blighty? My best friend here in Japan is from Blighty. Small world, indeed.

Ikuko-chan: uchi wa doko?

moshi nihon no y2k no koto shitsumon arimasu ka...email kudasai. takusan nihongo no y2k BB URL aru.

eigo de ka nihongo de...

-- PNG (png@gol.com), January 15, 1999.