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Originally Posted by ryuhebi13
Is this true? I don't think it has anything to do with their religion but more the pressure these people are under. I don't know if Japan has a benefits system for unemployed people (will look it up) but I have seen photos of the homeless in Japan showing the stark reality of being out of work. Course, not all homeless are on the streets for that reason.
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The problem isn't the pressure, but in how they deal with it. Relatively speaking, Japan is a prosperous country where most people do very well. But many Japanese have a limited perspective about themselves and the world. In high school they work themselves to death to pass university entrance exams, but the universities are mediocre at best, where professors are little more than tape players reading uninspiring lectures to students who need real-world knowledge and guidance.
Working life is not that great either, the hours are long, the work boring, and the pay is seniority-based rather than merit-based, so even those young people who have talent or skill are unable to rise up in the company other than by putting in long years. In Japan the boss is always right, even when he is flat wrong.
The universities cater to this business system, so they don't bother to teach initiative, debate, or outside-the-box thinking. And many Japanese would love to live outside the box, but simply don't know how.
This system plays a great part in Japan's low birth rate, and Japan's increasing inability to compete in international business, and the suicide rate.