3 ms·

That is quite sad, the combination of a disproportionately older population, with one that is culturally risk-averse is a recipe for stagnation.

w1ntermute 14y ago
Yeah, the culture is fascinating and they have so many basic urban problems that we can't solve in America down pat (public transportation, crime, and poverty, to name a few), but economically they just don't have that spark, and their educational system is an outdated waste of time that does little other than prepare students for standardized tests via rote memorization. I don't know, maybe it's because life is so safe there that you don't see the desire to innovate that you see in America.
- mc32 14y ago
  JP is defo an interesting place for many reasons, but I would say that they did not 'solve' those issues so much as they were forced on to them. Little land means you are forced to make good land use, thus preference for trains over cars. Poverty is a grave issue in Japan. Lots of elderly crime --the fastest growing crime, is being attributed by some to elderly poverty. Yes, crime in general is relatively low. No argument there. But their clock is ticking. Low birthrate combined with a distaste for immigration along with a patriarchal society (relatively low involvement by women in the workforce) is a recipe for economic decline. My favorite pet peeve is how excited people find it that the Japan train operators will provide you with a tardiness note if they are over a minute late. People think "wow, the punctuality". I think "wow, what a horrible atmosphere where you have to account for being a minute late to the office" (while at the same time having to while away time at the office if the boss remains behind afterhours, else be labelled as being "different".
  - w1ntermute 14y ago
    > Poverty is a grave issue in Japan. When compared to America, this is a grave exaggeration. Whatever poverty you might see in Japan, it doesn't come close to matching the utter hell that many urban Americans live in at this very moment. The low birthrate has a lot of reasons behind it, gender discrimination in the workplace being one. Others include the high cost of education and a negative outlook on the future for any potential children. Regarding the delay certificate （電車遅延証明書）, they're also used in Germany, where they're called "Bescheinigung über Zugverspätung" ("certificate about train delay").
    - mc32 14y ago
      I would not say it's a grave exaggeration. There are differences. Poverty is not something one shows overtly, in Japan. One must, under all possibility, show social dignity. This means you don't panhandle, you don't push carts picking up recyclables, etc. There is a lot more poverty than one would think there was if one's assessment consists of just walking down the alleways or riverbanks. See what the Economist has to say http://www.economist.com/node/21549003 http://www.economist.com/node/21549003 And Asia Times [it's even more pronounced, now, 7 years later] http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Japan/GB11Dh01.html http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Japan/GB11Dh01.html

w1ntermute 14y ago

Yeah, the culture is fascinating and they have so many basic urban problems that we can't solve in America down pat (public transportation, crime, and poverty, to name a few), but economically they just don't have that spark, and their educational system is an outdated waste of time that does little other than prepare students for standardized tests via rote memorization. I don't know, maybe it's because life is so safe there that you don't see the desire to innovate that you see in America.

mc32 14y ago
JP is defo an interesting place for many reasons, but I would say that they did not 'solve' those issues so much as they were forced on to them. Little land means you are forced to make good land use, thus preference for trains over cars. Poverty is a grave issue in Japan. Lots of elderly crime --the fastest growing crime, is being attributed by some to elderly poverty. Yes, crime in general is relatively low. No argument there. But their clock is ticking. Low birthrate combined with a distaste for immigration along with a patriarchal society (relatively low involvement by women in the workforce) is a recipe for economic decline. My favorite pet peeve is how excited people find it that the Japan train operators will provide you with a tardiness note if they are over a minute late. People think "wow, the punctuality". I think "wow, what a horrible atmosphere where you have to account for being a minute late to the office" (while at the same time having to while away time at the office if the boss remains behind afterhours, else be labelled as being "different".
- w1ntermute 14y ago
  > Poverty is a grave issue in Japan. When compared to America, this is a grave exaggeration. Whatever poverty you might see in Japan, it doesn't come close to matching the utter hell that many urban Americans live in at this very moment. The low birthrate has a lot of reasons behind it, gender discrimination in the workplace being one. Others include the high cost of education and a negative outlook on the future for any potential children. Regarding the delay certificate （電車遅延証明書）, they're also used in Germany, where they're called "Bescheinigung über Zugverspätung" ("certificate about train delay").
  - mc32 14y ago
    I would not say it's a grave exaggeration. There are differences. Poverty is not something one shows overtly, in Japan. One must, under all possibility, show social dignity. This means you don't panhandle, you don't push carts picking up recyclables, etc. There is a lot more poverty than one would think there was if one's assessment consists of just walking down the alleways or riverbanks. See what the Economist has to say http://www.economist.com/node/21549003 http://www.economist.com/node/21549003 And Asia Times [it's even more pronounced, now, 7 years later] http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Japan/GB11Dh01.html http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Japan/GB11Dh01.html