Edit: corrected a couple things in this post and the last. Commenter wanted to remain anonymous, so I'm deleting what they said...
We'll start on a term related to the last in
our previous post. Keep in mind I don't know why these words were chosen, and I haven't necessarily heard them, but I am putting them into my own English and context, and confusingly mathematical looking meaning breakdowns. I hope you remember junior high math order. Also, for some practical nuclear words, check out
this list.
天譴論 (tenkenron, (heaven+reproach)+theory) the belief that heaven is punishing us for our iniquities. 天譴, tenken, on its own means divine punishment.
水火 (suika, water+fire) flooding and fire. Used in 水火の苦しみ (suika no kurushimi) to mean great hardships. xの苦しみ is a common pattern in times like these; just fill in the x with the bad situation of your liking.
漏洩 (rouei, leak+leak) leakage. Especially recently, of radiation.
待避 (taihi, wait+avoid) wait for danger to pass, or make way for emergency vehicles.
退避 (taihi, escape+avoid) run away or take shelter from danger. Note this is a homophone for the previous item.
被災漁船 (hisaigyousen, (incur+calamity)+(fishing+boat)) a boat in the the wrong place at the wrong time that falls victim to a disaster. Like those ships that got swept inland by the Tsunami.
殺処分 (satsushoubun, kill+(dispose+portion)) killing off animals to avoid zoonoses (disease that humans can catch from animals). I think this one comes about because a lot of people can't donate blood if they lived in mad cow disease-laden countries. Unless I missed yet another bird flu story recently.
私利私欲 (shirishiyoku, (self+profit)+(self+avarice)) selfish desires. 私欲, shiyoku, and 私利, shiri,can mean self-interest on their own too.
Which brings us back to the governor of Tokyo, who said that we are suffering a form of
tenken for our
shiyoku. He apologized, but someone may well
satsushoubun him from his political party if he's not careful with what he says. He'd better
taihi until this scandal blows over.
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