Vincent

Vincent Cassell holds two masters degrees, speaks three languages and works for a major international corporation. Like the movie star shares a name with, Cassell is French. He lives the expat life in Tokyo, where he works for his company’s Japanese headquarters by day and is lead singer and rhythm guitarist in an underground rock band by night.

Cassell is intelligent, precise, kind, funny and, like many of his countrymen, is not one to mince words.

When the earthquake hit on the afternoon of March 11, 2011, Cassell was at work in the Roppongi district of Tokyo, a center of the city’s nightlife filled with dance clubs, sleek hotels, cramped and ubiquitous apartment buildings, and two of the Japanese capital’s most recognizable land marks, the Tokyo Tower and Roppongi Hills, a 40+ story shopping mall and office building.

“During the quake, we felt it was much stronger than anything most of us had experienced in the past, so we ducked and hold under our desk while everything was shaking,” Cassell said.

Following the first large aftershock, company security gathered employees in the core corridor of the building.

“We held still there for about 2 hours, if not more, while the giant building was being checked out for any damage,” said Cassell.

“In the Japanese scale meter, it was said to be a ‘strong 5.’ To compare, the level felt in Sendai was 7. Not only was it very strong even in Tokyo, but it was also extremely long, the two main quakes lasting for minutes,” he explained.

Though Cassell maintained a cool head in the immediate aftermath of the quake, fears of radiation affected his perception of the situation.

“Quakes are punctual and there is not much that can be done about them. Radiation, on the other hand, is controlled by a company that has been lying through their teeth for years,” he said, in no uncertain terms. “It seems the Japanese community is not half as concerned as they should be, while the foreigners are borderline paranoid.”

Not long after media outlets reported the fear of a nuclear meltdown, Cassell and his Japanese fiancée left Japan for the Philippines.

“I actually had vacations planned already, and just decided to go Philippines one day earlier, after the French embassy highly recommend their nationals to go,” he explained.

However, the decision caused problems with Cassell’s work situation, which as an expat is already a minor Gordian knot of competing national identities and multinational corporate policy.

“My company, unfortunately, did not feel like the situation was dangerous, and didn't do anything to help their workers feel safe. Although we have robust systems allowing us to work remotely, no one was authorized, at least in my division, to work from abroad,” he told us.

Cassell’s response to this conundrum is frank.

“People have to take vacations, there is no other alternative. Personally, I feel it was inhuman to have people work under such circumstances.”

From the Philippines, Cassell was afforded the opportunity to assess the situation in Japan from a new vantage point, one informed by both the Japanese and foreign media. When asked whether he thought the Japanese government was lying to its citizens, he answered in measured cadence.

“In a nutshell, I wouldn't be surprised if it were the case - this is a pretty opaque government after all, and they probably want to avoid having 30 million people flee from Tokyo at the same time.”

Cassell’s perspective on the earthquake, tsunami, radiation troubles and the aftermath of all of these exigencies is divided: there is the micro version, the human toll, and there is the macro version, the assessment of Japanese society and the Japanese people at large.

When Cassell first saw the images of the devastation in Sendai and the surrounding area, he felt “deep sorrow for those who lost families and friends, and genuine concern for the survivors whose fate seems to be still undecided.”

Regarding the manner in which the Japanese people will respond to the disaster, the expat had as many questions as he did answers.

“Will they be willing to sacrifice themselves like their parents and grandparents did after WW2? Or will social inequalities rise exponentially? Or maybe it will be finally time for Japan to reconsider their social model altogether...”

On March 22, Cassell returned to Tokyo. Though he is decidedly pragmatic in his assessment of the situation, the Frenchman was able to find positives in the situation, in particular the fear of nuclear meltdown.

“One main question that will need to be answered by Japan is one regarding their energy plan,” he said. He explained his position with an anecdote.

“I was talking to a taxi driver yesterday, and he was saying the media thought there will be energy shortage for the next couple of years. I guess it could actually be a good time for Japan to reconsider their use of electricity, the most obvious being the air-conditioning in subways, malls and offices: extremely hot in winter, freezing cold in summer.”

What will Japan’s response to the disaster be?

“Japan has proven, after WW2, they were able to survive the unimaginable, so they probably can overcome this as well. One interesting point will be to see how the youth reacts to this - more and more young people grew a profound hatred to the social system that has seen their fathers lose all sense of private life to the benefits of their companies.”

And how will Cassell react?

“To be honest, this is probably to early to answer such a question. Am I traumatized? Certainly,” he asserted. “But did this change my love for this wonderful country and inhabitants? Certainly not.”

Author's Note: Vincent spoke on condition of anonymity. If you know who he is, please don't say anything.

Vincent