So I gave up on going to the supermarket, because there was not a parking spot to be had. I drove to a Wawa superstore about a mile away, and picked up some basics there. But I still wanted to get some fruit and some chicken cutlets, so I went to what is commonly referred to in the neighborhood as “the Korean Polish store” — because it used to be a Polish grocery store (still is) but was bought by a Korean couple.
When I was spoke to the owner, he started complaining about the weather. He didn’t understand why it was changing. “Global warming,” I said, and mentioned it was in the 60s in Alaska. He started going off about Congress and rich people. “Where do they think they can hide?” he said. “Don’t they have children and grandchildren?” A man after my own heart.
Then he told me something I hadn’t heard. He said it was commonly believed in Japan (who knows? Not me) that the island is going to sink into the ocean in the next 40 years, and that this is why Japan is building up military power once again (that part is definitely true). He said they plan to eventually take over other islands and land in the region so they have a place to live and grow food.
“The Japanese government is renting land from Myanmar — “you know, Burma?” — to grow rice. “They have a hundred-year lease,” he said. “Because they don’t believe Japan will still be there.”
I’ve given up being shocked by what some people believe, but one thing’s certain. With the loss of most of it’s coastal plain due to rising sea levels, Japan won’t have to lose the entire island to be in a world of hurt.