Case in point:
About 6,700 miles separate Tokyo, Japan from New York City. Right now, those 6,700 miles are serving as a buffer between the different effects that Friday's 8.9 magnitude earthquake that struck Sendai and triggered tsunami waves from Asia all the way to the Pacific is having on people around the world.
This really came to my attention today during one of my journalism lectures. As a side note (and don't get me wrong), there is of course a huge overlap between the U.S. and Japan when it comes to lending a hand and extending sympathies and aid to those affected by the quake. Tons of Americans, as well as the Japanese, are doing their part and helping in any way they can, whether through prayer or through donations. But naturally, we ultimately aren't as negatively affected by the tragedy as those who live on the coast of Japan. We don't "know how they feel," because we've never experienced anything like it (and hopefully never will). It's not that we don't care, it's just that we don't understand.
Where the Japanese see unequaled tragedy, we (in addition to tragedy) see politics and economics.
This morning my professor -- as opposed to pulling an article about the massive devastation that will take years to clean up, or one about how the death tolls are now expected to rise into the tens of thousands -- showed us an article about the positive effects the disaster had on the U.S. stock market. The Dow Jones Industrial rose nearly 60 points Friday, a relatively modest gain, but a gain nonetheless. And lumber companies and manufacturers who produce materials needed for construction are about to reap some serious monetary benefits from such a tragedy. Oil prices fell below $101 per barrel as demand lowered in Japan, surely exciting some Americans and serving as the silver lining in the disaster that we only make passing remarks about, as we're all 6,700 miles removed from any real danger.
In the words of my professor: "As sad as it may be, there is some real money to be made in natural disasters."
It's not right and it's not wrong, just fairly interesting.
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