I get a really mixed picture which is all secondhand. As I said in another comment, my ex (10 years ago) was Brazilian-Japanese and several of my brothers and

I get a really mixed picture which is all secondhand. As I said in another comment, my ex (10 years ago) was Brazilian-Japanese and several of my brothers and sisters in-law worked there as guest-workers in the second tier subcontractors. They weren't treated as true "Japanese" because they were born in Brazil. They were looked upon as ruffians. I also see stories, mainly not mainstream, about disaffection among young people with the conformity, the bullying in school, the lack of opportunity if you are not a graduate of U of Tokyo. And then there are the larger issues that you get with an aging population where the replacement rate is less than 1. Who pays the retirement bills? We are facing similar issues, but without the same urgency. This isnt real criticism, just impressions. I would love to have a Japanese native jump in.