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In Russia, Anime (Supposedly) Kills You.
As a psychology enthusiast, this news really bothers me. Over the past couple of weeks, six Russian teenagers committed suicide. The thing was that these kids had the good life. So what happened? A well-renowned Russian child psychologist named Olga Makhovskaya, blames anime in an article published by “The Voice of Russia”.
Now why would she blame anime? One fact is that the teens had a history of watching anime. Olga proclaims that anime characters talk about death like it’s the greatest thing ever. She also says that the Japanese make a big deal about death. Olga even goes on to say that anime destroys the borderline between reality and fantasy and teens won’t be able to tell things apart because of that.
First off, what kind of anime is this psychologist talking about? Does she think that all the kids who died watched the entire run of Neon Genesis Evangelion and/or Puella Magi Madoka Magica? Even if they did, I doubt they wanted to kill themselves after watching those series. Another problem I have with Olga is she starts off with this statement, “Of course anime by itself cannot be the cause of teenage suicides” and then she goes off talking like it IS the cause. She also lost so much credibility to me when she said that anime destroys teens’ perceptions of reality. Isn’t extensive research supposed to be a huge requirement for a job as a psychologist?
You can read the article about the supposed link between anime and teen suicide in Russia here. Just another sad example of the West failing to understand anime and blaming serious problems on entertainment.
Perhaps what Olga should do is watch this amazing video of how anime inspires.
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Japan Is Awesome, Sexism, Women In Power, and English Gintama - Fun Links To Check Out
Here are some goodies to read and share with friends.
Made Better in Japan - The Wall Street Journal takes a look at the rise of high-detail Japanese fashion, food, clothing, and service. Basically, Japan is incorporating many international styles and blending them into products that are just as good as the original source. It’s amazing to see how the country can make Brooklyn coffee better than (or just as good as) actual Brooklyn coffee. The part of the article where they go into jeans is very enlightening. Now whether that detail can succeed in the global world is a whole different story.
ANNCast #106: S-E-X-X-I-S-M - A controversial subject makes headwaves in the most recent ANNCast. A very lively discussion and the guests make a good point about how the anime community isn’t that bad in terms of sexism, when compared to the video game community. Funny how they also mentioned Bakuman. I definitely agree with how bad sexism is in video game fandom, as the fighting game community is VERY guilty of this.
A More Peaceful World If Women Were in Charge? - Networking is important. That’s the MO. Also, you need to be both aggressive and sympathetic at the same time. Man, we need Olivier Milla Armstrong to be the ruler of the world.
Sentai Filmworks Confirms English Dub of Gintama Movie - If you ask me, this movie is perfect for a dub. Why? The Benizakura arc doesn’t have too many crazy jokes. Plus, the movie introduces a majority of the main cast.
Celebrate Valentine’s Day with Street Fighter X Tekken - Send these cards to your special someone. Seriously. Just do it. Bear hugs are awesome.
Now, if you excuse me, I must go and be FOREVER ALONE.
