In "The Japanese," Japanologist and former U.S. ambassador to Japan Edwin O. Reischauer wrote that "no people have committed themselves more enthusiastically to internationalism than the Japanese or have so specifically repudiated nationalism."
"One need only scratch the surface, however, to discover the superficialities of their internationalism and the strong sense of separateness the Japanese feel."
Indeed, he wrote, "most Japanese so strongly identify themselves with their country and their fellow Japanese that they have no need for the word 'patriotism' or for patriotic symbols."