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Many countries offer retirement homes and financial aid for their seniors but the Japanese are a people with a strong sense of honor and admitting that they are

Many countries offer retirement homes and financial aid for their seniors but the Japanese are a people with a strong sense of honor and admitting that they are in need of social, emotional and financial help can be very difficult. So difficult that they evidently prefer going to prison.

IronWolve 9y ago
Wow, Reading your comment made me wonder how bad it was, 1 in 6 will be over 80 and by 2025 they will need an additional 130,000 caregivers.
- jxramos 9y ago
  sheesh, I wonder what other bizarre unanticipated outcomes we'll be hit with as we witness the further greying of a population.
  - DanBC 9y ago
    Life, With Dementia gives an interesting (moving) account of prisoners caring for other prisoners who have dementia. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/health/dealing-with-dementia-among-aging-criminals.html http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/health/dealing-with-dement...
- pen2l 9y ago
  Good observation. And I gotta say, while I once scoffed at the idea of robots helping out at home and giving some sense of company, it seems that such things actually might help in this case. My colleague was recently in a car accident and is now wheelchair-bound. I can tell sometimes that when I’m helping, he feels conflicted in that he doesn’t want to appear helpless and pitiful, but at the same time needs help doing some things. Having a handy robot helper would be an enormous emotional relief for him and would give him the sort of empowerment he really needs.
  - appleiigs 9y ago
    They don’t need robots, they need immigration. Japan has been relatively xenophobic compared to other nations/cultures.
    - Retric 9y ago
      Every country will eventually get stuck with a stable population and as long as the average person lives to be over 80 they are going to make up a large chunk of the population. PS: Japan also has a rather high population density. The shrinking population is likely to end up as a good thing. PPS: The 200% debt to GDP ratio is rather fictitious as 40% of that is owned bey the Japanease government dropping their actual debt load closer to 120%.
      - ekianjo 9y ago
        > PPS: The 200% debt to GDP ratio is rather fictitious as 40% of that is owned bey the Japanease government dropping their actual debt load closer to 120%. you make it sound like a debt at 120% is nothing or not even a problem.
        deleted 9y ago
        [deleted]
      - AboutTheWhisles 9y ago
        The debt is only owned by the government because they are printing money like crazy to convert their debt to 0% interest bonds. Japan is in an enormous amount of financial trouble and the moment inflation starts to show and panic sets in the race will be on to get out of yen into anything people can get their hands on, which will only make the problem worse.
        Retric 9y ago
        Don't bet on that. They bought up 40% of their bonds and only hit 0.02% inflation. Now it's possible they might cause some inflation if they keep going but hitting 2% inflation would be a good thing and they have plenty of room to continue. PS: Remember deflation is a very real issue. Fighting that by buying government bonds seems to be the most ethical way to distribute free money.
kolpa 9y ago
It's more precisely that they have a strong sense of filial responsibility (vs larger societal responsibility). Children are expected to financially and socially support parents. The shame is in admitting that family support is absent or insufficient. History and future plans: http://www.historyandpolicy.org/policy-papers/papers/the-care-of-older-people-in-japan-myths-and-realities-of-family-care http://www.historyandpolicy.org/policy-papers/papers/the-car...
krapp 9y ago
>but the Japanese are a people with a strong sense of honor and admitting that they are in need of social, emotional and financial help can be very difficult. So difficult that they evidently prefer going to prison Is it that sense of "honor", or is prison the only source for the social, emotional and financial help that exists for them?
tspike 9y ago
It is very interesting to me that going to prison is a better face-saving technique than accepting help.
- kwhitefoot 9y ago
  Was there actually help to be had?
PhasmaFelis 9y ago
It's weird how many absolutely toxic and awful things get called "honor." Honor killings, deadly fights over minor insults to one's honor...

IronWolve 9y ago

Wow, Reading your comment made me wonder how bad it was, 1 in 6 will be over 80 and by 2025 they will need an additional 130,000 caregivers.

jxramos 9y ago
sheesh, I wonder what other bizarre unanticipated outcomes we'll be hit with as we witness the further greying of a population.
- DanBC 9y ago
  Life, With Dementia gives an interesting (moving) account of prisoners caring for other prisoners who have dementia. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/health/dealing-with-dementia-among-aging-criminals.html http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/health/dealing-with-dement...
pen2l 9y ago
Good observation. And I gotta say, while I once scoffed at the idea of robots helping out at home and giving some sense of company, it seems that such things actually might help in this case. My colleague was recently in a car accident and is now wheelchair-bound. I can tell sometimes that when I’m helping, he feels conflicted in that he doesn’t want to appear helpless and pitiful, but at the same time needs help doing some things. Having a handy robot helper would be an enormous emotional relief for him and would give him the sort of empowerment he really needs.
- appleiigs 9y ago
  They don’t need robots, they need immigration. Japan has been relatively xenophobic compared to other nations/cultures.
  - Retric 9y ago
    Every country will eventually get stuck with a stable population and as long as the average person lives to be over 80 they are going to make up a large chunk of the population. PS: Japan also has a rather high population density. The shrinking population is likely to end up as a good thing. PPS: The 200% debt to GDP ratio is rather fictitious as 40% of that is owned bey the Japanease government dropping their actual debt load closer to 120%.
    - ekianjo 9y ago
      > PPS: The 200% debt to GDP ratio is rather fictitious as 40% of that is owned bey the Japanease government dropping their actual debt load closer to 120%. you make it sound like a debt at 120% is nothing or not even a problem.
      - deleted 9y ago
        [deleted]
    - AboutTheWhisles 9y ago
      The debt is only owned by the government because they are printing money like crazy to convert their debt to 0% interest bonds. Japan is in an enormous amount of financial trouble and the moment inflation starts to show and panic sets in the race will be on to get out of yen into anything people can get their hands on, which will only make the problem worse.
      - Retric 9y ago
        Don't bet on that. They bought up 40% of their bonds and only hit 0.02% inflation. Now it's possible they might cause some inflation if they keep going but hitting 2% inflation would be a good thing and they have plenty of room to continue. PS: Remember deflation is a very real issue. Fighting that by buying government bonds seems to be the most ethical way to distribute free money.

kolpa 9y ago

It's more precisely that they have a strong sense of filial responsibility (vs larger societal responsibility). Children are expected to financially and socially support parents. The shame is in admitting that family support is absent or insufficient. History and future plans: http://www.historyandpolicy.org/policy-papers/papers/the-care-of-older-people-in-japan-myths-and-realities-of-family-care http://www.historyandpolicy.org/policy-papers/papers/the-car...

krapp 9y ago

>but the Japanese are a people with a strong sense of honor and admitting that they are in need of social, emotional and financial help can be very difficult. So difficult that they evidently prefer going to prison Is it that sense of "honor", or is prison the only source for the social, emotional and financial help that exists for them?

tspike 9y ago

It is very interesting to me that going to prison is a better face-saving technique than accepting help.

kwhitefoot 9y ago
Was there actually help to be had?

PhasmaFelis 9y ago

It's weird how many absolutely toxic and awful things get called "honor." Honor killings, deadly fights over minor insults to one's honor...