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> Is Japan of 1950 also Japan of 2050? Its a sort of ship-of-Theseus issue Is a house the same house if your tear it down and build a factory? > but when we r
by tivert 4y ago
> Is Japan of 1950 also Japan of 2050? Its a sort of ship-of-Theseus issue
Is a house the same house if your tear it down and build a factory?
> but when we recognize that cultures evolve, grow, mix, adapt, and continually become something wonderful, it's less of a concern in my mind.
It should be noted that's the opinion of Western liberals, who are pretty culturally imperialistic and expect and demand that other cultures adopt their values and adapt to their preferences.
- pjc50 4y agoThe house argument is silly when applied to Japan of all places, which is known for frequently doing demolish-and-rebuild for wooden construction. Even one of the famous castles.
- tivert 4y ago>> Is a house the same house if your tear it down and build a factory? > The house argument is silly when applied to Japan of all places, which is known for frequently doing demolish-and-rebuild for wooden construction. Even one of the famous castles. You misunderstood what I said, read it again. Is a factory the same house, if it was built on the same plot of land? It's an entirely different thing, and it's just nonsensical to bring up ship-of-Theseus in a case like that.
- tomrod 4y ago> It should be noted that's the opinion of Western liberals No, it's my personal opinion and observation. Synthesis of external influence is unavoidable -- people being people -- and paradoxically faster when formally made verboten. Else why does China have a Great Firewall (proves external influence is attempted to be avoided) to prevent cultural intrusion and a massive flow of graduate students expatriating (evidence of the paradox)? A culture can avoid or embrace. It's not a normative "Western Liberal" value called out, it's a positive acknowledgement of human behavior.
- tivert 4y ago> Synthesis of external influence is unavoidable -- people being people Yeah, but that's not what's being discussed here, which is the importation of literal foreign people (immigration) in order to keep declining population numbers up, which is quite different. Immigration is a solution that strongly reflects Western liberal ideas and priorities.
- tomrod 4y ago> which is the importation of literal foreign people (immigration) in order to keep declining population numbers up, which is quite different. I disagree. Especially in modern times, immigrants moving somewhere else (i.e. exercising their natural right and freedom to move elsewhere) is a difference of degree of external influence, not a difference of kind. Thus, in scope for discussion.
- mc32 4y agoNations also have the right to self-determination and may opt to not subsidize population growth deficits through the importation of a population. Japan gets to decide. They may decide then want to assimilate with China (or Philippines), or they may decide they want to remain natively Japanese. That's their call.