/jp/ - Otaku Culture

They did, many times. It's just that no one in Asia takes it seriously because, let's be honest, Japan doesn't either. As far as the average Japanese person is concerned, World War 2 happened a million years ago and is about as relevant as the dinosaurs.

Unlike Germany after WW2, which to this day is beset by a very strong, apologetic tone towards its actions towards the jews during the Holocaust, the Japanese people were never indoctrinated with the idea that their country committed terrible crimes. Part of this is because of the inherent design of Japanese culture - because of the idea of submissiveness to the leaders is absolute, the responsibility for the country's actions is also the sole burden of its leaders, many of whom were executed after the war. So as far as the Japanese people are concerned, the pepetrators of the wartime atrocities have already been punished.

Another issue to consider is the Emperor himself, Hirohito. Despite his well-documented role in the war, Macarthur never punished him because he felt Hirohito was useful in gaining the trust of the Japanese people after the war. The people themselves, long indoctrinated with the idea of the divine emperor, saw in Macarthur's actions that, by extension, the Japanese people have been absolved of any crimes that they committed during World War 2. This has been a controversial decision that still inspires occasional debate in Japan to this day, many Japanese intellectuals are very acutely aware of this and believe that Hirohito should have taken responsibility for the war as well.

SLAP A JAP

SLAP A JAP