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In many ways Japan seems like a paradise. Crime free, almost, 70%+ forest coverage, technologically advanced but still respect for long-standing cultural tradit

In many ways Japan seems like a paradise. Crime free, almost, 70%+ forest coverage, technologically advanced but still respect for long-standing cultural traditions. It's unrivalled social cohesiveness comes at the cost though of a lack of diversity. For example, I read somewhere it gets less than 100 asylum seekers a year.

Rainymood 9y ago
> social cohesiveness Also known as xenophobia. >For example, I read somewhere it gets less than 100 asylum seekers a year. And this is by definition a good thing? Don't forget the awesome working hours and working culture! It's so good that they even have a word for the awesome overworking: Karoshi [1]. I wouldn't romanticize Japan this hard as you are doing right now, it has it's own sleuth of problems just like any other country. [1] Karoshi (Overwork Death) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kar%C5%8Dshi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kar%C5%8Dshi
- hellofunk 9y ago
  Indeed, I say this time and again to friends and family who marvel at a lifestyle that has allowed me to live on several continents: there is no such thing as a perfect place to live.
- nostromo123 9y ago
  >>For example, I read somewhere it gets less than 100 asylum seekers a year. >And this is by definition a good thing? Been to Germany / Sweden lately?
  - icebraining 9y ago
    Yes. Had a great time too, very peaceful.
    - nostromo123 9y ago
      Great for you! Then I guess you were not one of the many women who are raped for not wearing a burka, or non-Muslims who are bullied in asylum centres, or homosexuals beaten up for holding hands, or Jews attacked for wearing a kippa, or or or...
- barking 9y ago
  Social Cohesiveness is not also known as xenophobia. Where foreigners tend to be so rare as to be exotic there tends not to be xenophobia. It's when the host community perceive themselves to be overrun that the xenophobia comes out.
squimmy 9y ago
>technologically advanced You might revise your opinion about that somewhere around the hundredth time somebody tells you that you have to communicate with them by fax.
- bjornsteffanson 9y ago
  I would definitely describe "putting two coins into a vending machine to receive a ticket to hand to someone in exchange for a tasty bowl of ramen" as more technically advanced than "table for two?...[waiting, waiting]...one ramen, please...[waiting, waiting]..."everything ok here?" "yes go away" [waiting waiting] ... "here's the bill"...[waiting waiting]..."have a nice night" Advanced tech doesn't have to be high tech.
  - DamonHD 9y ago
    Well no, it just seems completely bizarre and adds little value to the process in my experience and HO. (Still, happy to be corrected...) When just arrived in Tokyo for the first or second time and still feeling a bit nervous I went into an empty noodle place and was completely lost until the cook put down what he was doing and in utterly perfect English walked me through the whole process...
  - masklinn 9y ago
    The country is a very very strange mix of advanced and retardedly old tech. You can get hot drinks from bending machines in the middle of nowhere and just have to input a phone number in the GPS to be guided to a ryokan deep in the mountains of Akita, but kerosene heaters are almost universal (central heating is not a thing outside of large/business hotels) and many businesses require fax or physical stamps.
- barking 9y ago
  LOL, though I recently had the same experience of when a doctor's secretary rather imperiously informed me that my test results would be faxed to my GP. Maybe fax is regarded as more secure than email?
rangibaby 9y ago
> Crime free It's because there are police everywhere, which keeps petty crime under control. There is a bounty for turning in lost money (and if it is not claimed after a certain period the person who turned it in can keep the whole amount). Police are also mostly respected here because they (mostly) are helpful and don't harass citizens. Someone being beaten or shot by police like overseas just doesn't happen here. > lack of diversity I once worked at a place that was known for being a safe place for ethnic Koreans to "come out" about their real ethnicity. I was considered to be safe to work there because some were public figures and I would not recognize them, or at least not blab on social media about x TV presenter having Korean heritage. I guess my point is that a lot of things in Japan are completely different to how they appear to a casual observer. Even asking Japanese people is not going to get you far, because most people will not tell you their real feelings or opinions unless you are a very close friend.
- DamonHD 9y ago
  I've picked up substantial dropped money on the ground, handed it into the police, and had it returned to us in full after some time, in the UK; it's not just Japan! > close friend I terrorised one Japanese work colleague by crying in front of him on a train (can't remember whether in London or Tokyo), but another long-standing Japanese colleague/friend would be entirely cool about it I suspect!
- odiroot 9y ago
  This may be a bit ignorant but why do they care so much about someone being Korean / of Korean ancestry? Both are East Asian. It's really hard to understand for my European mind.
  - Cthulhu_ 9y ago
    Well they kinda invaded Korea for a long time for one. https://www.quora.com/Why-is-there-a-conflict-between-Korea-and-Japan https://www.quora.com/Why-is-there-a-conflict-between-Korea-... explains that one. European as in west-European? That part is relatively culturally and ethnically diverse; northern and eastern Europe are a lot less so, and tolerance towards foreigners is lower there. The English and French still really dislike one another for example, and they're much closer together than Japan and Korea.
TorKlingberg 9y ago
If you ever live in Japan, you will alternate between "wow, this country is so wonderful, why can everywhere be nice like this?" and "this is so dysfunctional, how has the whole thing not collapsed yet?" Both are true in different ways. Economically, Japan is not doing great though, and I worry about the future of the big companies. Also all foreigners in Japan seem to hate each other for ruining the "purity".
ersii 9y ago
> For example, I read somewhere it gets less than 100 asylum seekers a year. I'll clarify that image by tell you they roughly get 9000 asylum requests a year according to the Japanese Government themselves [1]. They are however extremely reluctant in accepting any of the requests, which is what I assume you were speaking about. To some I can imagine that's quite a shock and horror, for some, it's a dream. "Japan accepted just three refugees in the first half of 2017 despite receiving a record 8,561 fresh asylum applications, the government said on Tuesday" "Only four refugees were accepted in the first half of 2016, when fresh asylum applications totaled 5,011, the Justice Ministry said." [1] https://japantoday.com/category/national/japan-accepts-3-refugees-in-first-half-of-2017-despite-record-asylum-seekers https://japantoday.com/category/national/japan-accepts-3-ref...
- barking 9y ago
  I hadn't known the reason for there being so few. I assumed it was because it was 'off the beaten track'.
- krapp 9y ago
  And, it may be worth mentioning that Japan is more tolerant of immigration than asylum-seekers. Often, when Japan's refusal to accept refugees is held up as an ideal, the fact that not most foreigners in Japan aren't refugees seems to be overlooked.
taway_1212 9y ago
> It's unrivalled social cohesiveness comes at the cost though of a lack of diversity. Why is that a problem though? Does it make their life worse in some way?
- zhengyi13 9y ago
  Well, if you're the nail, and you have the temerity (or simply bad luck) to stick out, then you get hammered down, while everyone around you either pretends they don't see it happening, or tell you it's your fault. If you're there, and you're actively paying attention, you'll see an awful lot of nails.
  - taway_1212 9y ago
    The parent's point was that there actually aren't many nails, at least in terms of race/ethnicity ("no diversity"). To me it looks like a good situation to be in, because such homogenous society should much more frictionless.

Rainymood 9y ago

> social cohesiveness Also known as xenophobia. >For example, I read somewhere it gets less than 100 asylum seekers a year. And this is by definition a good thing? Don't forget the awesome working hours and working culture! It's so good that they even have a word for the awesome overworking: Karoshi [1]. I wouldn't romanticize Japan this hard as you are doing right now, it has it's own sleuth of problems just like any other country. [1] Karoshi (Overwork Death) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kar%C5%8Dshi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kar%C5%8Dshi

hellofunk 9y ago
Indeed, I say this time and again to friends and family who marvel at a lifestyle that has allowed me to live on several continents: there is no such thing as a perfect place to live.
nostromo123 9y ago
>>For example, I read somewhere it gets less than 100 asylum seekers a year. >And this is by definition a good thing? Been to Germany / Sweden lately?
- icebraining 9y ago
  Yes. Had a great time too, very peaceful.
  - nostromo123 9y ago
    Great for you! Then I guess you were not one of the many women who are raped for not wearing a burka, or non-Muslims who are bullied in asylum centres, or homosexuals beaten up for holding hands, or Jews attacked for wearing a kippa, or or or...
barking 9y ago
Social Cohesiveness is not also known as xenophobia. Where foreigners tend to be so rare as to be exotic there tends not to be xenophobia. It's when the host community perceive themselves to be overrun that the xenophobia comes out.

squimmy 9y ago

>technologically advanced You might revise your opinion about that somewhere around the hundredth time somebody tells you that you have to communicate with them by fax.

bjornsteffanson 9y ago
I would definitely describe "putting two coins into a vending machine to receive a ticket to hand to someone in exchange for a tasty bowl of ramen" as more technically advanced than "table for two?...[waiting, waiting]...one ramen, please...[waiting, waiting]..."everything ok here?" "yes go away" [waiting waiting] ... "here's the bill"...[waiting waiting]..."have a nice night" Advanced tech doesn't have to be high tech.
- DamonHD 9y ago
  Well no, it just seems completely bizarre and adds little value to the process in my experience and HO. (Still, happy to be corrected...) When just arrived in Tokyo for the first or second time and still feeling a bit nervous I went into an empty noodle place and was completely lost until the cook put down what he was doing and in utterly perfect English walked me through the whole process...
- masklinn 9y ago
  The country is a very very strange mix of advanced and retardedly old tech. You can get hot drinks from bending machines in the middle of nowhere and just have to input a phone number in the GPS to be guided to a ryokan deep in the mountains of Akita, but kerosene heaters are almost universal (central heating is not a thing outside of large/business hotels) and many businesses require fax or physical stamps.
barking 9y ago
LOL, though I recently had the same experience of when a doctor's secretary rather imperiously informed me that my test results would be faxed to my GP. Maybe fax is regarded as more secure than email?

rangibaby 9y ago

> Crime free It's because there are police everywhere, which keeps petty crime under control. There is a bounty for turning in lost money (and if it is not claimed after a certain period the person who turned it in can keep the whole amount). Police are also mostly respected here because they (mostly) are helpful and don't harass citizens. Someone being beaten or shot by police like overseas just doesn't happen here. > lack of diversity I once worked at a place that was known for being a safe place for ethnic Koreans to "come out" about their real ethnicity. I was considered to be safe to work there because some were public figures and I would not recognize them, or at least not blab on social media about x TV presenter having Korean heritage. I guess my point is that a lot of things in Japan are completely different to how they appear to a casual observer. Even asking Japanese people is not going to get you far, because most people will not tell you their real feelings or opinions unless you are a very close friend.

DamonHD 9y ago
I've picked up substantial dropped money on the ground, handed it into the police, and had it returned to us in full after some time, in the UK; it's not just Japan! > close friend I terrorised one Japanese work colleague by crying in front of him on a train (can't remember whether in London or Tokyo), but another long-standing Japanese colleague/friend would be entirely cool about it I suspect!
odiroot 9y ago
This may be a bit ignorant but why do they care so much about someone being Korean / of Korean ancestry? Both are East Asian. It's really hard to understand for my European mind.
- Cthulhu_ 9y ago
  Well they kinda invaded Korea for a long time for one. https://www.quora.com/Why-is-there-a-conflict-between-Korea-and-Japan https://www.quora.com/Why-is-there-a-conflict-between-Korea-... explains that one. European as in west-European? That part is relatively culturally and ethnically diverse; northern and eastern Europe are a lot less so, and tolerance towards foreigners is lower there. The English and French still really dislike one another for example, and they're much closer together than Japan and Korea.

TorKlingberg 9y ago

If you ever live in Japan, you will alternate between "wow, this country is so wonderful, why can everywhere be nice like this?" and "this is so dysfunctional, how has the whole thing not collapsed yet?" Both are true in different ways. Economically, Japan is not doing great though, and I worry about the future of the big companies. Also all foreigners in Japan seem to hate each other for ruining the "purity".

ersii 9y ago

> For example, I read somewhere it gets less than 100 asylum seekers a year. I'll clarify that image by tell you they roughly get 9000 asylum requests a year according to the Japanese Government themselves [1]. They are however extremely reluctant in accepting any of the requests, which is what I assume you were speaking about. To some I can imagine that's quite a shock and horror, for some, it's a dream. "Japan accepted just three refugees in the first half of 2017 despite receiving a record 8,561 fresh asylum applications, the government said on Tuesday" "Only four refugees were accepted in the first half of 2016, when fresh asylum applications totaled 5,011, the Justice Ministry said." [1] https://japantoday.com/category/national/japan-accepts-3-refugees-in-first-half-of-2017-despite-record-asylum-seekers https://japantoday.com/category/national/japan-accepts-3-ref...

barking 9y ago
I hadn't known the reason for there being so few. I assumed it was because it was 'off the beaten track'.
krapp 9y ago
And, it may be worth mentioning that Japan is more tolerant of immigration than asylum-seekers. Often, when Japan's refusal to accept refugees is held up as an ideal, the fact that not most foreigners in Japan aren't refugees seems to be overlooked.

taway_1212 9y ago

> It's unrivalled social cohesiveness comes at the cost though of a lack of diversity. Why is that a problem though? Does it make their life worse in some way?

zhengyi13 9y ago
Well, if you're the nail, and you have the temerity (or simply bad luck) to stick out, then you get hammered down, while everyone around you either pretends they don't see it happening, or tell you it's your fault. If you're there, and you're actively paying attention, you'll see an awful lot of nails.
- taway_1212 9y ago
  The parent's point was that there actually aren't many nails, at least in terms of race/ethnicity ("no diversity"). To me it looks like a good situation to be in, because such homogenous society should much more frictionless.