Japan has a pervasive air of safety. As a foreigner who can speak a total of 4 words of Japanese, I felt completely safe wandering the streets alone at night, anywhere from the alleyways of Tokyo to the suburbs. There were surprisingly many people outside late at night, yet I never got a "sketchy" feeling from them like I would even in the most safe/affluent parts of America.
If I was in distress for any reason I am confident that I would be able to get assistance from any random stranger nearby. In fact, while on the train, I witnessed a girl collapse and start seizing. The train was relatively busy at that time but everyone sort of just reacted as if they shared a hive mind. 2-3 people kneeled down to try and help her, a few people got the attention of the conductor, and everyone was very respectful and helpful. I can just imagine what would happen if this occurred on Bart. You would probably either be ignored or people would record you on their phones and upload the video to Facebook.
> I can just imagine what would happen if this occurred on Bart. You would probably either be ignored or people would record you on their phones and upload the video to Facebook.
That's not my impression. (Unfortunately I can't think of an actual counterexample.) I think people everywhere tend to help out. I imagine that when Americans are reluctant to get involved, they feel they don't know what to do, and they're afraid they'll be criticized or even sued for supposedly making things worse.
If I was in distress for any reason I am confident that I would be able to get assistance from any random stranger nearby. In fact, while on the train, I witnessed a girl collapse and start seizing. The train was relatively busy at that time but everyone sort of just reacted as if they shared a hive mind. 2-3 people kneeled down to try and help her, a few people got the attention of the conductor, and everyone was very respectful and helpful. I can just imagine what would happen if this occurred on Bart. You would probably either be ignored or people would record you on their phones and upload the video to Facebook.