With what appears to be a bid to boost the already oppressive nature of a Japanese government building, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare in Tokyo has disallowed discourse in its elevators. In fact, even a wary wee whisper is considered out of line, as silence only is suggested.
A move that has allegedly been watched with interest over at the Ministry of Culture, with rumours abound that it is all set to ban smiling and eye-contact in its building from April.
shinobi says
If it didn’t say “” Silence Please” in english above it, I would have come to the conclusion that it was a sign advacating nose-picking.
Japanese signs are always messed up like that….
Shanghai-Sam says
Talking is one thing.
Elevator Farting is another. They should tackle that issue first.
Paul says
Indeed. Talking is the only way to mask the sound of farting. Shanghai-Sam should be congratulated for bringing up this important point.
Polite citizens find it nigh on impossible to discuss fart ettiquette in lift-based situations. All too often a short report such a quack or a parp is emitted, usually totally innocently below the murmur of conversation. In a silent lift, the cheese cutter is quickly identified and shunned, leading to ostracism and in many cases, death. Social stigma is avoided in a noisy lift. Stench is a shared burden, (sometimes even an ice-breaker) and therefore the social impact is smaller.