Photo/Illutration Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga walks past the mascots for the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games at the entrance to the prime minister's office on Jan. 22. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

In a Japanese game known as “10-kai kuizu” (10 times quiz), you ask someone to repeat a certain word--for example, “pizza”--10 times.

You then ask, “What do you call this?” pointing at your elbow (“hiji” in Japanese). The person is most likely to involuntarily blurt out “hiza” (knee) instead.

That is apparently because the brain is tricked into focusing on hiza, which sounds like pizza, the word the person has repeatedly said.

Let’s apply this to our situation today.

Getting numbers like 1,000 and 2,000 pounded repeatedly into our heads in news about the daily count of COVID-19 cases in Tokyo, we are inclined to feel as if the worst is over when the number dips below 1,000.

Repetition creates familiarity, desensitizing us in turn. That’s scary.

To be sure, far more people are being tested for the novel coronavirus today than before. Still, the last time a state of emergency was declared, we were alarmed by news of 200 or even 100 people testing positive.

The growing number of people who die at home or in temporary accommodation facilities nationwide is evidence that the health care system is under far severer strain than back then.

The current state of emergency is due to expire on Feb. 7, but some health care professionals don’t believe it will be safe to lift it yet, which is no surprise.

The longer the decision to extend the state of emergency takes, the greater the confusion it will cause front-line health care staff.

Yet, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has said the government plans to make the decision “a few days before the expiration date.”

Does it mean that he is still exploring the possibility of ending the state of emergency as scheduled?

I cannot help but suspect that his judgment is being clouded by a remark he has repeated in the past, just as in the “10 times quiz.”

It may be, “The Tokyo Olympics must be held as a proof of human triumph over the coronavirus,” or “The Go To Travel campaign is necessary for stimulating the economy.”

In another game, you tell someone to say “chandelier” 10 times and ask, “Who ate a poisoned apple?”

The person is most likely to say Cinderella, although the correct answer is Snow White.

If the Olympics are forcing us into something we don’t want, nor need, I would start thinking of them as the poisoned apple.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Jan. 29

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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