Wednesday, September 26, 2007

The Human Face of Nova's Decline...

I've read quite a few message board posts along the lines of "Good riddance! They deserve it!" I don't think people who post things like that understand the effect Nova's implosion is having on ordinary human beings who work for the company. It's one thing to deplore Nova's business tactics (and believe me, I do) and it's another to gleefully celebrate something that's damaging lives.

Don't get me wrong. For the company itself, I have no feelings whatsoever. But for the Japanese staff, the teachers and the students, this is bound to be a very troubling time. People who've done nothing wrong are being put out of apartments, losing out on scads of money and generally being sent scrambling for job security. For some of these people, living in Japan is an adventure that's going to come to a crashing, tragic end all too soon.

For them, I have a lot of sympathy and wishes for all the best.

So it's one thing to be interested in what's happening with Nova, but it's quite another to celebrate the true cost of it- what's happening to these people. When I think of the kinds of "Screw Nova!" messages I've seen about this, I can't help but think of the kinds of people who would dance a joyful jig after killing a dog or kicking the crutch out from under an old woman's shoulder.

Read this and this and then decide if you want to crow about Nova as if it were some top-down embodiment of evil, instead of merely a flawed corporation full of ordinary people. These people aren't Nova, they're individuals.

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