It's always refreshing to read about Japan from writers whose view on the country isn't dictated by either yellow fever (because in Japan they experienced a gir

It's always refreshing to read about Japan from writers whose view on the country isn't dictated by either yellow fever (because in Japan they experienced a girl acknowledging them for the first time in their lives) or a childish preoccupation with pop culture. As someone who spent a few years and Japan and was absolutely shocked about the living standards of the middle class there, I can vouch for the validity of this. Most western people are fooled by the fact that in Japanese culture, a great deal of money and energy is spent on the appearance of wealth in public, while the actual lifestyles are closer to those of poor people. For instance the well-dressed women in Tokyo decked out in designer brands from head to toe, slinging their Chanel bags, only if you ever date one of them and go to their homes, they live in small, dark, room in a dingy part of Tokyo, in midst of all the bags and boxes their expensive, showy clothes came in. The author isn't free of mistaking the appearance of Japan for the real thing when he says that crime is low in Japan - what's low is the crime statistics - because in Japan, the police is politically bound to keep the statistics low at any cost, in order for Japan to appear less crime-ridden than other countries, when it's not. This is just one aspect of the many ways Japan skewers statistics to appear better than it is on the international stage. For example, Japan has a huge underground of organized crime permeating all sectors of society. So it decided to just not define organized crime as illegal. Hence every Yakuza group is able to have official, known headquarters anyone can look up.