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The author doesn't make a compelling case at all, and instead correlates the general trend of post-industrial transition to elements of Japanese culture and sen

The author doesn't make a compelling case at all, and instead correlates the general trend of post-industrial transition to elements of Japanese culture and sensibilities gaining appeal with younger generations in the US. That may be so, but it's doubtful the US can even undergo the same kind of transition as Japan. Inequality in Japan -- although on the rise -- is famously low, and the income disparity between people with low educational attainment and high educational attainment is not drastic. Taxes on the rich are high, and inheritance taxes also, making it difficult to accumulate and retain large amounts of wealth through multiple generations, which keeps inequality lower. The US has higher levels of inequality, and incomes correlate with a number of confounding factors that amount to structural stratification that's difficult to overcome. Egalitarian stagnation of young generations, kept orderly by generous government safety nets, a process that could easily take place in Japan, or Denmark, or a hypothetical post-boom Qatar, could hardly happen in the US.

torstenvl 8y ago
Yeah, there are a number of ways that superficially similar phenomena are radically different between the two. For one, American life delays are heavily attributable to economic uncertainty about basic needs like healthcare, whereas Japan has a healthy social safety net (related to your point about income equality and tax structure). Effective fertility rate in particular is also radically different. As the author of the OP article points out, Japanese youth are delaying relationships and sex. In America, however, as in most other industrialized countries, the declining birthrate is mostly attributable to birth control, not abstinence.
- mistermann 8y ago
  A lot of Canadians are using birth control far longer than they'd prefer because they're hoping to some day reach a point where they feel economically secure enough to reproduce.
- stuartaxelowen 8y ago
  The social safety net here in Japan is amazing, but the stigma of relying on it is so high that utilization by those most in need is very low, and that taking risks that could potentially lead to needing to utilize it are strongly avoided (among other social reasons for low risk taking).

torstenvl 8y ago

Yeah, there are a number of ways that superficially similar phenomena are radically different between the two. For one, American life delays are heavily attributable to economic uncertainty about basic needs like healthcare, whereas Japan has a healthy social safety net (related to your point about income equality and tax structure). Effective fertility rate in particular is also radically different. As the author of the OP article points out, Japanese youth are delaying relationships and sex. In America, however, as in most other industrialized countries, the declining birthrate is mostly attributable to birth control, not abstinence.

mistermann 8y ago
A lot of Canadians are using birth control far longer than they'd prefer because they're hoping to some day reach a point where they feel economically secure enough to reproduce.
stuartaxelowen 8y ago
The social safety net here in Japan is amazing, but the stigma of relying on it is so high that utilization by those most in need is very low, and that taking risks that could potentially lead to needing to utilize it are strongly avoided (among other social reasons for low risk taking).