Two observations are puzzling me about the extensive TV coverage of the Japan crisis. Maybe those familiar with, or in Japan, can comment. First, as hard as I've looked, I've only seen one Prius on the road or being washed away. The majority of cars look sort of like Honda Fits. Where is the 'most popular car in Japan'? More surprising to me is that I've not seen any Japanese interviewed who have spoken English. Even the rebels interviewed in Libya speak some English, and many of those interviewed in Egypt speak English better than some of us in the US. What portion of the Japanese can speak at least some English? Just curious.
Most of the "washed away" bits are not huge urban areas. Japanese and most of the word prefer small cars. The Prius is HUGE (in physical form factor) everywhere but the states. In big cities, Prii with their folding mirrors are extremely common. Did you take Spanish/French/German in high school? You could probably communicate with it if you tried, but more than likely not fluently. When something tragic happens usually you revert to your first language. For instance one of my Chinese friends who is perfectly fluent in both Chinese and English called me on the phone screaming at me in Mandarin after they got in a car accident and took quite a bit to realize they were doing it.
Are the interviews originating from US reporters in Japan? Or are they from Japanese sources feeding the domestic market, then borrowed and translated by US outlets?
I've seen a few. There was one Prius washed up in the damage. Then there was a silver one backing out of a petrol station and then a red one parked up on a road. Sad that I noticed such things in such a terrible disaster.
