Japan Watching: Society, Politics, Culture, Economy, Environment, And the World

Suicide is one of the favourite topics of Japan-bashing Westerners.  True, the level of suicides is high in Japan.  But too little is really known and understood about this tragedy.

Membership of the Japanese tribe is a question of blood.  Japanese nationality is based on jus sanguinis.  But what is surprising is that it was only in 1990 that the Japanese government allowed free entry into the country of foreigners of Japanese ethnic origin.  And it is also disturbing that these poor immigrants have such a difficult time in Japan.

My name is Yukiko.  I am an office lady.  I enter data into a computer all day.  At the end of the day my eyes hurt. 

This is the first question that a Japanese lady will ask you!  Some 90% of Japanese know their blood type.  Korea is the other country where people are obsessed with blood types.

So, yes, the Japanese are convinced that your blood type is a sure and sound indictor of your personality, temperament and compatibility with others.  They talk about it all the time.  It is hard to tell whether it is just cute conversation, or whether they really believe it.

When I first came to Japan some years ago, I was shocked when my mobile phone would not work, and also when my credit card was not accepted.  But then I learnt that Japan is becoming a modern version of the Galapagos Islands!

Yes, that is the question, are Japanese girls sexy?  As we continue our explorations into Japan’s low birth rate, this question is more relevant than ever.

This is the conclusion of the World Economic Forum’s 2009 Global Gender Report.  Sounds terrible, doesn’t it, a Global Gender Rank of 75^th out 134 countries covered.  But last year it was even worse, 98^th out of 130 countries.  Its ranking jumped largely due to increases in the proportion of women in professional and technical positions as well as legislators, senior officials and managers.

Japan’s population started declining in 2005.  By the end of the 21^st century, it will have halved from its present almost 130 million.  This is principally due to a dramatic decline in the birth rate these last 60 years.  At the same time, Japan’s population is rapidly ageing.  Its elderly population (aged 65 or older) could jump from 20 per cent of the total population in 2006 to 40 per cent by 2044. 

In today’s crisis-prone world of globalization, social contracts are coming under stress, exacerbated by ageing populations, thereby threatening the prospects for prosperity, peace, stability and security.  Nowhere is the more the case than in Japan.

Economists generally like global capitalism (globalization). Despite its occasional crises, it produces prosperity. Ethno-capitalism (kinship capitalism) is another kettle of fish.