An Unhappy, Aggressive Japan?
The LAT has a rather depressing take on Japan's current climate. Michael Zielenziger discusses the usual phenomena -- aging population, record suicides, youth underemployment --associated with Japanese angst. He then goes on to ominously predict the possible impact that a Shinzo Abe government will have, asking "Is it so far-fetched to imagine a day when a re-armed, angry and nuclear-potent Japan cuts its ties with Washington in order to reassert a more independent foreign policy?"
I think it is. Falling birth rates may worry demographers and children's wear executives, but it's unlikely that it upsets the average Japanese very much. In fact, the birth rate has turned up, albeit marginally, which seems to indicate that some more good economic news will help matters further. Anyway, if Japan is in danger of dying out, so are Italy Spain, the U.K., and, masked by the overall (and relatively high) US birth rate, upper middle-class New Yorkers.
Moreover, while nationalism may be on the rise among some (a few?) of the young, Japan remains deeply committed to pacifism. Indeed, the key symbol of Japan's imperial state, the Emperor, is an institution that receives little attention among Japanese youth. The Japanese remain reluctant to assert themselves overseas. If there has been an uptick in the willingness of Japanese to consider nuclear weaponry, well, maybe a few North Korean missiles flying over Japan has something to do with it.
Few people would argue that Japan is a cheery nation filled with happy-go-lucky people. But it would be worthwhile to wait a couple of years to see if the exit from economic malaise might stem the negative trends and outcomes Zielenziger describes.
The LAT has a rather depressing take on Japan's current climate. Michael Zielenziger discusses the usual phenomena -- aging population, record suicides, youth underemployment --associated with Japanese angst. He then goes on to ominously predict the possible impact that a Shinzo Abe government will have, asking "Is it so far-fetched to imagine a day when a re-armed, angry and nuclear-potent Japan cuts its ties with Washington in order to reassert a more independent foreign policy?"
I think it is. Falling birth rates may worry demographers and children's wear executives, but it's unlikely that it upsets the average Japanese very much. In fact, the birth rate has turned up, albeit marginally, which seems to indicate that some more good economic news will help matters further. Anyway, if Japan is in danger of dying out, so are Italy Spain, the U.K., and, masked by the overall (and relatively high) US birth rate, upper middle-class New Yorkers.
Moreover, while nationalism may be on the rise among some (a few?) of the young, Japan remains deeply committed to pacifism. Indeed, the key symbol of Japan's imperial state, the Emperor, is an institution that receives little attention among Japanese youth. The Japanese remain reluctant to assert themselves overseas. If there has been an uptick in the willingness of Japanese to consider nuclear weaponry, well, maybe a few North Korean missiles flying over Japan has something to do with it.
Few people would argue that Japan is a cheery nation filled with happy-go-lucky people. But it would be worthwhile to wait a couple of years to see if the exit from economic malaise might stem the negative trends and outcomes Zielenziger describes.
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