Regarding the Jan. 14 Kyodo article " Gakkyusha also gets donation fever": Every time I hear of more news related to the "Tiger Mask Phenomenon," I feel that Japanese people are answering some purpose.
Last year Japan was depicted as having a serious problem, exemplified partly by the discovery of a 111-year-old mummified man in an apartment. It became clear that there were similar cases all over Japan. We became aware of some people's indifference to others and the thin connections between them (because of greed for government checks).
This Tiger Mask Phenomenon, on the other hand, demonstrates people's kindness to others. I don't think many Japanese people want a lot of attention when they do a good deed. As an example, I had a teacher in elementary school who encouraged the class to write their opinions on paper. But it was not until she said she would read out the opinions anonymously that most of us followed her by actually stating our views.
Likewise, many Japanese are shy about making a donation to children if it means revealing their names. Only after borrowing the name of manga figure Naoto Date of Tiger Mask fame did a lot of Japanese people start donating. The phenomenon warms our hearts during the recent cold spell.