FormulaNova said..
You are living in Japan, correct? The place where people seem to have a bit more respect for society than other countries do. Also a place where if the government asked them to wear masks then most of them would?
Zero lockdowns you say? In a society where most people do the right thing?
Mind you I suspect a lot of them smoke without masks on, given the smell of some of the Japanese cars i have imported.
In a way, you've got that backwards. There's a proverb here that goes, "the nail that sticks out gets hammered". I think fear of societal pressure is not the same as respecting it, which becomes plain to see when people think society isn't watching them.
They *have* asked people to wear masks. And wash hands with the alcohol stuff, and not travel, and stay home from work if possible, recommended plastic screens in restaurants etc etc.
But the key point is that ... they've asked. There's no new laws, nobody is getting picked up by police for going outside their front door, given fines or police records, or shot at for surfing.
They've told people what the problem is, what your risks are, what steps you can take to mitigate your risks, and let the country get on with it.
The other key difference is the national philosophy that COVID was never unavoidable, it was never going to be eliminated, and "dancing with the virus" was going to be a part of life going forwards.
So yeah, people are doing the "right thing" but not through any threat of force or legal action. And not being forced to stay in their houses because of a handful of cases.
18% smokers here vs 12% in Oz

Yes, there's lots of standing around in groups smoking, especially right next to the entrances of well ... everywhere. Also it's only recently that some restaurants etc have started banning smoking indoors. So they go outside and stand ... right next to the door. Ugh. But if you're expecting people not to smoke in their cars, you're a bit mad