ABSTRACT
In the search for a healthier United States-Japanese relationship, the most important challenge facing the ruling establishments of the two countries is not that of promoting cross-cultural understanding; rather, it is finding the courage and strength to induce their respective populations to face up to some unpleasant truths. One of the most important cultural differences between Japanese and Americans is the degree of vulnerability that they ascribe to their respective societies. To most Americans, in fact, any suggestion that the United States should show consideration for the vulnerability of a nation that, in a blinking of history's eye, has emerged as the world's second greatest economic power seems at best disingenuous. The one thing that might encourage a revival of nationalism would be a breakdown in relations with the United States with a related economic reversal in Japan.
