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> this articles makes it appear as if Japan was the outlier but the truth is that the US is. I think what makes Japan the outlier is their shockingly low viole

> this articles makes it appear as if Japan was the outlier but the truth is that the US is. I think what makes Japan the outlier is their shockingly low violent crime rate, crime rate against children (abductions, etc) and one of the lowest drug use in first world countries. I remember during the 80s, one of the big things being pushed for by politicians was a low crime rate and low drug use (same time D.A.R.E came into the world). Looks like Japan discovered that utopia. Japan certainly has it's cultural problems (which country doesn't?) but I'd love to have their problems instead of our own. It would be nice to be worrying about working 12 hour days instead of worrying about being shot on my way to work every day (last year, a bullet ricocheted of the concrete near me kicking up a piece or a rock which hit me in my leg, requiring stitches).

EiZei 11y ago
So you'd rather give up your free time (and freedom at work) rather than risk the incredibly unlikely possibility of being shot by a random stranger?
- mahranch 11y ago
  You're looking at this from a selfish, individualistic point of view. I'm looking at society in general - I'm looking at the bigger picture. Japan completely eliminated shooting deaths via guns thanks to their ban on guns (source:http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/07/a-land-without-guns-how-japan-has-virtually-eliminated-shooting-deaths/260189/ http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/07/a-l...). They also have the lowest crime rate in the world. Orders of magnitude less than America's. In a way, it really is a utopia compared to what we're living in. Would I trade some free time and a little freedom at work (both of which, are being addressed by Japanese companies and are "fixable" so they may only be a temporary problem) in order to save thousands of lives every single year, reduce the crime rate an order of magnitude, and make our country objectively safer and nicer? And also raise our quality of life (Japan is ranked higher on the "where-to-be-born" index) Why yes, yes I most certainly would.
  - kuschku 11y ago
    And now look at Germany – we got the same results at Japan, but even improved life in every aspect for the average citizen compared to the US.

EiZei 11y ago

So you'd rather give up your free time (and freedom at work) rather than risk the incredibly unlikely possibility of being shot by a random stranger?

mahranch 11y ago
You're looking at this from a selfish, individualistic point of view. I'm looking at society in general - I'm looking at the bigger picture. Japan completely eliminated shooting deaths via guns thanks to their ban on guns (source:http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/07/a-land-without-guns-how-japan-has-virtually-eliminated-shooting-deaths/260189/ http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/07/a-l...). They also have the lowest crime rate in the world. Orders of magnitude less than America's. In a way, it really is a utopia compared to what we're living in. Would I trade some free time and a little freedom at work (both of which, are being addressed by Japanese companies and are "fixable" so they may only be a temporary problem) in order to save thousands of lives every single year, reduce the crime rate an order of magnitude, and make our country objectively safer and nicer? And also raise our quality of life (Japan is ranked higher on the "where-to-be-born" index) Why yes, yes I most certainly would.
- kuschku 11y ago
  And now look at Germany – we got the same results at Japan, but even improved life in every aspect for the average citizen compared to the US.