They don't share borders and they certainly don't share this weird white /guilt European liberal mentality of co-opting their culture as some kind of pay back for past crimes. Hiroshima, Nagasaki or Fukashima, it gets weird.
New York City is an island too. Both NYC and Japan are very crowded.
My thought on the matter is that this COVID is more transmitted and spread through plumbing and/or HVAC system. This would explain how some nursing homes got slammed others didn't. And NYC with huge numbers of multiunit structures got hit.
You know, that is one of the things that I thought, especially since that cruise ships were hit so hard and they all have a central air system. Interestingly enough, so do Navy ships, which is why I thought of that when they said they had cases, and then said they had a reinfection on the THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
Not only that, but at first they thought the virus was transmitted by touching things, which is why they told us at first to disinfect everything with wipes, but now we find out it is mostly airborne, which is why they are telling us to wear masks.
I also thought about something else..............................a few years back, I saw a documentary that said because we are getting better with cleaning solutions and making things sanitary, our abilities with our immune systems is going down, because they don't have to fight bacteria and viruses as much. Interestingly enough, assisted living facilities keep a lot of things cleaner than most other places, meaning that because their immune systems didn't have to fight, they got weakened in the process.
Me? I practice social distancing, and when I have to go out, I make a list of what I need, go out and get what is on the list, then come home immediately afterwards. I don't shake hands anymore, nor do I hug people that I don't live with. I also wear a mask, and when I come home, I wash my hands.
And why do I wear a mask? Because it is more easily transmitted via the air than it is on surfaces.