Is Japan the Perfect Nation?

[@RareEarthSeries]

Seize the means of production: www.patreon.com/rareearth

[@scifience8297]

Rare Earth we must seize the means in order to establish Fully Automated Luxury Gay Space Communism

[@lucasvals4354]

“Muh culture” is not primarily why people oppose immigration. Race is the main issue and you forgot to mention it, intentionally or unintentionally.

[@MenelmacarGR]

@Pete Haskell Maybe not; but that's not the point this video is making. :)

[@aquila4460]

@@lucasvals4354 Race is just a facet of culture. Some people equate their race with their culture and so they oppose anyone who is not their race.

[@MenelmacarGR]

@@lucasvals4354 Well, read the passage after the video. ;)

[@commanderboreal1343]

“Robots or immigrants?” Japan: furiously developing gundam technology

[@veemon]

We haven't seen a Gundam yet, so I'd say they're failing on that front.

[@vxxiii4160]

That's exactly why so many jobs have been lost in countries like the US. Sure, immigrants take mostly jobs in agriculture or cleaning services, but the real losers are the ones whose jobs got automated.

[@vxxiii4160]

@@anonb4632 Indeed that's the case, but also remember that in those fields they're paid way more in the USA than in their home countries. That's why they chose to pursue the American dream, and they really do it out of necessity, not because they want to. The people who migrate most in recent years have been mostly from Central America and even Africa (who cross the sea and try to cross through Mexico). In the other hand, Mexico has had an important fall in immigration to the USA too.

[@SeruraRenge11]

Oh man, if the Gundams start immigrating here they'll take all the space war jobs

[@SeruraRenge11]

@Joshua Ngau Ajang Uh excuse me sir but Votoms is the name of the show, the actual mechs within the show are called ATs (Armored Troopers)

[@eu6207]

Moral of the story: Japan could not build better robots

[@keksitzee1094]

Then fire them! And build better robots!

[@Mew178]

Yet lol

[@Jake12220]

Yep give it another decade or two and they will completely stop immigration and just use better robots. Indeed all developed countries are soon going to face the issue of people being less cost effective than robots in almost every form of work. We will have to work out what function humans will play in a world that no longer requires them to work, which also means no longer requires them to study or to drive so much or to live much of the lives we now do. Certainly going to be interesting seeing how cultures develop in that world.

[@Jake12220]

@@lmonk9517 that was the view that many of us had for a long time, but with the recent rapid developments in artificial intelligence it seems even most skilled jobs are going to be at risk. The only jobs that are likely to maintain a human preference are ones where humans want the interpersonal connection. So jobs like nursing or psychologists where people want to be interacting with another person. Even those sorts of jobs may be at risk though, just look how quickly most people took to using self serve checkouts even when there are staffed checkouts serving no-one.

[@Jake12220]

@@lmonk9517 so go back a decade and we had an internet connected mainframe win jeopardy, a decade before that beating grand masters at chess. Within the last few years we have developed systems that can win at go(vastly more complex than chess to win) and since then even games like starcraft and indeed pretty much any computer game. The level of improvement show by artificial intelligence now that we have learnt to make them teach themselves is amazing. It won't be long before investment brokers, bankers, architects, lawyers, to a degree doctors (ai can already predict many problems far better than any doctor), mine workers and many engineering jobs, indeed just about any job you can think of. It's the combination of ai with robotics that will change the world. We no longer have to program a robot to do an action, we just need to show it once and it can repeat it or we just give the ai a set of goals and it will work out how to achieve them(including learning how to use the robotic systems completely on its own). It's insane how quickly this feild is developing and of course we will still have a few humans in charge, but the amount of jobs left for humans will be paltry.

[@SimWyatt]

My question is how do we move away from the idea that perpetual growth is the only means to prosperity? It's never going to be sustainable in the long run.

[@mattfrankman]

Economic history of any capitalist country shows that growth is a means to prosperity and stability, there are few if not no examples that disprove this.

[@PlatinumAltaria]

If you ask people whether they want more money they will say yes. In order to accommodate that you need growth. Growth must continue as long as the population grows, and continue until everyone is satisfied. The alternative is poverty, even for a few, and that's not acceptable. The problem isn't growth, it's that at present growth serves to enrich the people who already have more than enough, and does nothing to help those in need.

[@dopaminecloud]

Nothing is sustainable in the long run. People really do do it to themselves, knowingly or not. Biggest joke around is us complaining about issues we continue to perpetuate.

[@PlatinumAltaria]

@@AlucardNoir Growth is when wealth is added to the economy. Inflation is when the amount of money grows faster than the economy.

[@dragon76tatsu]

Within the current paradigm, enacting a system that looks beyond growth is indeed impossible, as the responses to your question have shown. Even retaining the same level of GDP with a declining population is seen as "stagnation" by most economists, meaning you're a "loser" is the competitive brinkmanship of modern nation state relations. The competitive model of capitalist behaviour encourages the drive toward monopolizing economic, social and political power, to a small group, thus permeating this thinking throughout policymakers. If we truly believe in progress, then a paradigm shift is necessary, sooner rather than later.

[@ALifeOfWine]

Maybe we need a system that doesn't rely upon an impossible everlasting economic expansion?

[@Obscurai]

So is there a system that can provide a stable soft landing for Japan given its declining population? In over three decades the Japanese have not found one.

[@danunpronounceable8559]

In such a system you sacrifice innovation and development. You condemn your nation to stagnation. This is not compatible with the human experience of desiring progress

[@sulphuric_glue4468]

@@danunpronounceable8559 Chasing progress is chasing destruction. Here in the developed west we have an unparalleled level of material luxury compared to our ancestors, and also unparalleled levels of depression, anxiety, apathy, of people who feel their life has no meaning, people who only care about the next product because if they dwelt on what they were doing with their life they would despise themselves. What is wrong with settling for what we have now?

[@phathergabe]

Scratchy314 capitalism is dependent upon constant expansion

[@_Azura_]

Society IS A PERFECTLY BALANCED GAME WITH NO EXPLOITS - IMMIGRANT GLITCH is broken!

[@XSpImmaLion]

Japan is "the other country" because of how mainstream media, international media coverage, and how lots of people who probably never lived and don't know enough about living in the country itself or it's culture chose to portray it. It's the country chosen to be the other place, open enough to take a peek, distant enough to draw comparisons to. In some aspects, it's portrayed as some sort of utopia, and in other aspects it's portrayed as weird, alien, insane, absurd.... and then sometimes with a tinge of racism and hatred. A linchpin that is still kinda relatable on some level, that also seems to be open to it. It's as distant a developed nation can get, while still being an allied country, which means being accessible. But in the end, it's just another country with people like me and you. It certainly has it's own unique cultural aspects because of a history of isolationism, but it often is less different in several aspects people think of than what it seems. Weirdly enough, a lot of attention is focused on aspects that are not as distant from western countries as what people may think. The biggest examples that have been popping up recently with regular frequency are talks about overtime in work, suicide rates and general happiness and satisfaction of the population. This is because decades ago, Japan really had some alarming rates, and people used to think very differently about work. The problem with suicide is also often covered in japanese media, not being a huge taboo topic in comparison to countries with a history of Christian religions. But much like what Evan said about immigration policies becoming far more open in recent years due to political decisions, what most people don't seem to realize is that at the same time there are also ongoing big transformations regarding suicide prevention and work policies in Japan in the past decade or so. So much so that, despite still having a pretty serious and heavy suicide rate, Japan is more or less on par with several western countries these days, including the US and Canada. A bit because their suicide rate has steadily lowered over the years, but mainly because the suicide rates in several developed countries including the US has pretty much exploded. So it'd be funny if it wasn't tragic that so many people are taking time nowadays to criticize Japan's suicide rates, when actually their own country have increased their own rates so much in such a short period of time that it'd make Japan blush in some way. The rates are staggering. We just don't pay a whole lot of attention on the topic just as much as your average japanese also don't. People often take Japan to talk about certain topics they don't pay much attention in their own countries because Japan is "the other country". It's easier to talk about their problems without seeing the problems in your own country, but it's also easier to talk about Japan's good aspects as something unachievable in our societies as cultural products - without taking sacrifices into account. I think what Evan seems as socialism in the video, which I partially agree with, I tend to see as collectivism instead. The concepts coincide in several aspects, but at least in my mind, the difference is origins and on concept. Without the heavy burden of politics, socialism is a social and economic system. I think because it was a devised system with it's set of rules, philosophy, ideals, methods and whatnot, it's often taken more from an ideological standpoint rather than an analytical one. Collectivism is more like a value, a standpoint, a cultural aspect that draws from something. As opposed to individualism, it puts the priorities of society over the ones of individuals. Which then has it's own set of advantages and disadvantages. But I make this distinction because you really don't see a whole lot of socialism in Japan from an ideological or political standpoint. Japan is a heavily capitalist society even if it has been in recession for several years, it's biggest investment groups and companies have been funding a whole lot of american gig economy (which could be seem as capitalism on the extremes), social work could be way better in Japan, and minority rights could be worked better too. From what I heard and seem in interviews with japanese people, I don't see many of them thinking in terms of politics, thinking they have political power, or seeing services and production at the hands of japanese people, as in public service. I mean, public healthcare, public education, and basic services all seem to be very good and well funded, but it's more like the government is making all decisions behind that, instead of power being on the hands of people. In turn, it seems that lots of japanese people are largely uninterested in politics overall. Which is a whole other thing to discuss, but kinda why I can't see Japan as a "socialist" society. In any case, just to reinforce, these are just my personal opinions, the opinion of a nobody living in a 3rd world country... xD So do take it with a grain of salt. But it's an interesting discussion anyways, I do think it's work talking and thinking about.

[@zackwyvern2582]

Fucking thank you. I have wanted to say all this to everyone who thinks they know Japan, to everyone who judges Japan, with their painful ignorance and defunct self-awareness. People don't know about Japan, but they think they do. All they know are stereotypes, rumors, impressions, delusions.

[@LucidFL]

this comment is longer and better than some of my english essays in high school

[@weekasi1]

@@zackwyvern2582 That is actually true about many countries. Finland has a lot of stereotypes attributed too. Mostly it comes down to people how they think.

[@maxkaye3221]

Yes! oh, man, single-handedly the best comment on Japanese ways of social organisation and misconceptions, especially in a video that almost choke-full of ill comments about how "jApaN suCkS nOOw". Made my...well... late evening, I suppose! :)

[@Shanaoh]

Yes Japan is like any other country but still has its uniqueness wether good or bad. I appreciate the effort you took on writing the comment and yes it is true that the Japanese youth like me are not interested in politics. We feel that there is no need to be invested in such things. We either go to school or work, have fun with friends or study or work overtime and finally go home. Then repeat the process. Politics is very personal and therefore no one just randomly asks someone they know and ask about their political opinion. You need the right moment to talk about it and in most cases, you’re either too tired or having too much fun to talk about something so sensitive. In the end, it’s not necessary for us in our daily lives. At least it’s not necessary for me. I watch political videos and I either agree or get very frustrated and that in it self is enough for me. Also Japan is no where near socialist. The few people who are invested in politics are mostly “right-wing.” The political spectrum isn’t as simple as left and right but there are probably some similarities with right-wing people in your country. In here, most are anti-communist and view socialism as some form of communism. Yes, there is a communist party in Japan, but they don’t hold much power in the parliament/senate.

[@Masada1911]

Maybe once they perfect cat girls

[@lucasvals4354]

Masada1911 That’d certainly get the population growing

[@illegalalien6542]

I can wait for a real life Eris

[@Tensho_C]

@@lucasvals4354 not the human population tho

[@AmericanIdiot7659]

I don't know seems kinda gay to me

[@explorer6607]

Watch cats

[@chipskylark5500]

Damn this man is good at making thought provoking videos.

[@LevisH21]

well yes. it's is a good propaganda video.

[@CastorRabbit]

@@LevisH21 My parents were immigrants. Asian. Like the Italians and Greeks before them, they assimilated. At this point, I believe the country (Australia) is overpopulated and no longer believe it is in our interests to pursue greater ethnic "diversity". Does that make me racist to Muslims or Africans? Probably but that's my honest feeling based on personal observation.

[@antonioa712]

Rare Earth: Japan has good wealth distribution Also Rare Earth 2 years ago: Japan's untouchables

[@StAngerNo1]

They are very few, so if you look at the total population they hardly weigh anything to total statistics, but yeah could have been mentioned.

[@dinsel9691]

And if you think those two are mutually exclusive.. you need to go back to school..

[@m.jackson8330]

I would argue that the wealth distribution in Japan is mainly the result of the cultural and familial expectations rather than top down wealth distribution management. Lived in Japan for six years, their welfare system is extremely restrictive. My wife and I hardly made any money our first year there, we were offered a welfare payment of $100, not per month it was $100 PER YEAR.

[@dionysianapollomarx]

He literally talks about xenophobia. That usually includes history of marginalizing an ethnic minority.

[@mehrshadvr4]

@@m.jackson8330 welfare is not the only way to redistribute wealth. Strong unions also reduce inequality.

[@tonooros3939]

Everybody's been talking about how the U.S. and China are goin for military victory's, meanwhile, Japan is over there goin for a culture victory with all these weaboos and video games

[@syntax2004]

You talk about Civ game?

[@noticemesenpai69]

Syntax 200 that was his joke yes

[@bluebloo5574]

They won in civilization 6

[@DnVFMVs]

Someday Weebos and gamer will rule the world

[@novalone3211]

@@DnVFMVs sad day

[@personzorz]

"Without growth, all of this is unsustainable" Wanna run that by me again?

[@dirremoire]

It's BS. Population growth is not sustainable. Japan's is doing it the right way, increasing productivity to expand GDP with a shrinking population.

[@tenkdkme]

@@dirremoire you did understand that they are doing it on bases of loans? At somepoint loans have to be payed back or atleast there wont be new loans or the people giving the loans (banks) wont get their money back and go bankrupt so no japans system is not the right way its basicly saying let some one in the future figure out a solution to the problem while also making the problem bigger for the future. Of course you can hope that the system works as long as you live but what about your kids or maybe even their kids

[@punishedredruby]

@@tenkdkme I guess that's why they don't want to have kids, huh

[@zackatwood2867]

Punished 'Red' Ruby Likely more complex...

[@punishedredruby]

@@zackatwood2867 I know. Making a joke here

[@karstensingh343]

I never really thought much about how different types of immigration affect the economy. This was a great video that changed how I understand the idea of immigration.

[@zhain0]

really?! REALLY?!

[@karstensingh343]

zhain0 really. I just considered it to be about the same. Kind of how Partys See to think about it

[@DavidJohnson-dp4vv]

Really so you never thought an educated family of four from Nigeria who immigrates legally and one works as a teacher and the other works as a nurse is no different than someone who comes illegally and washes dishes for 30% less than minimum wage. How could these two be anywhere close to the same thing one is set up for success the other will have a very difficult time. Magnify this times 10 million. 10 million people who come legally and work middle class jobs and they have a family they make 10% to 20% above average wage verses 10 million people who come illegally and they don't even have above a 5th or 8th grade education. What percentage of them will thrive? That makes zero sense at all how anyone could think millions of uneducated people could be good for any high income country.

[@MrDutchmarshal]

@@DavidJohnson-dp4vv Sheesh, the moment someone says "I get it now" you have to be a jerk about it?

[@Sam-vi2ho]

@@DavidJohnson-dp4vv Those low skilled individual are funnily enough usually the ones who turn into entrepeneurs, because it's easier than finding a good job. Just open a nice shop that caters to a niché or brings new exciting quisine to the table of natives. Or something trade related etc. I'd fucking kill myself if there wasn't authentic food from around the world where I live and I still wish there were more options. Fuck scandinavian food.

[@davidmcrae4791]

Moral of the story: Don't rage tweet.

[@lazergurka-smerlin6561]

Okay that I can very much agree with

[@TrickiVicBB71]

@@piplupsuper0 definitely true, twitter is trash.

[@punishedredruby]

@@TrickiVicBB71 can? Don't you mean "is"?

[@IxoraNera]

@@piplupsuper0 if you say twitter is cancer then what you call Facebook

[@dulapeepsinmybedroom5611]

@@IxoraNera death

[@gunnersabottank9474]

This is the first time I've caught a video of yours early so let me just say (& for the sake of The Algorithm): You're so well spoken and these videos are just so well put together. You present interesting ideas and situations in a way that is really, genuinely deep and thought provoking. Thanks for making these.

[@commenterperson4481]

Hit the bell icon...

[@commentcopbadge6665]

devontodetroit FFS! Complementing someone for their great work they do is "deepthroating" or "sucking them off" now. Good. Really good. What an era this is.

[@macroxela]

6:56 as someone who has lived on the Texas/Mexico border we lived with this constantly. Under Obama there were more deportations, family separations, and even deportations of U.S. citizens simply because they looked 'illegal' yet no one cared. But when Trump talked about doing so everyone lost it even though he never did as much as Obama.

[@ChangedMyNameFinally69]

Lol what? Have you seen some of the shit Trump's doing?

[@Vastatio]

@@ChangedMyNameFinally69 the facts are Obama deported more families than Trump has, sorry the facts trigger you.

[@ChangedMyNameFinally69]

@@Vastatio Lol what? You realize Trump is gonna show the real numbers right?

[@aloshyreji4313]

It's the rhetoric.. it's the racism involved in it and more importantly, splitting children from parents.. There is a civilised way to deport

[@macroxela]

@@ChangedMyNameFinally69 I have and it was actually worse in the border under Obama. Obama was a good president overall but his blind eye towards what was going on in my hometown (deporting refugees and American citizens to certain death, separating children from parents and cramming too many people into small cells) is definitely a blemish. Trump wasn't the first one to this, he simply continued what his predecessor let happen.

[@Andrew-gn9qp]

Japan has immigration but they have socially imposed mandatory assimilation, you need to speak Japanese fluently, adapt Japanese lifestyle, and adapt Japanese culture.

[@e.crabtree4313]

America did not assimilate: they do not speak the native American language fluently, adapt the native American lifestyle, and adapt native American culture. Quit the double standard.

[@e.crabtree4313]

@Vlad It's evident that having a conversation with a radiator is more profitable and engaging than to respond to your ignorance.

[@e.crabtree4313]

@Vlad Ooops! I forgot to block you. Ignorant creature. Who is your mother?

[@kaedehirooka6787]

Whats wrong with that. When you come to someones home what do you do? As a nisei in Canada I have adopted Canadian culture and have kept my japanese back ground as well

[@bjorntheviking6039]

@@e.crabtree4313 That's a solid argument against mass immigration. If you let a ton of people in all at once, they don't have to assimilate and form their own communities - otherwise known as colonies. This is why limiting the number of immigrants and assimilation is important, no one wants to be the new Amerindians.

[@joeymayson8279]

I love Japan and am studying Japanese but I still believe working in Japan is a nightmare

[@eddenoy321]

Working in the USA is a big nightmare as well.

[@HaohmaruHL]

I'm working in japan and yeah, it's a nightmare. You will have to assimilate to all the draconian rules and conditions they force down your throat. There's too much stress. Japan is only great if you visit it as a tourist. Living and working in japan is pretty tough, especially if you are coming from an outspoken and individualistic society like north america. The only way to exist here without stress is if you work for a foreign company with a foreign president.

[@martin8313]

@@eddenoy321 maybe compared to western europe or scandinavia but its far better than japan

[@eddenoy321]

@@martin8313 Except for the fact that we have to work in the USA just to have health insurance, which is STILL very expensive. In that regard, Japan and W. Europe are better. Everyone is going broke here.

[@ALeaud]

@@HaohmaruHL Yeah... I live in Tokyo too. I'm originally from North America. To be honest, my experience in Japan has been pretty great but most definitely if you don't look Japanese you won't be treated as Japanese. Sometimes even if you LOOK Japanese it's not enough. I'll give you an example: one time I was with some Japanese friends. 3 of them were Japanese born in Japan, 1 of them was Japanese but born in South America and the last was me (a foreigner). We tried going to a type of club where you can drink with girls and such (my friends idea). As we walked in they told me I couldn't get in. My South American-Japanese friend opened his mouth and immediately they said to him "NO" even though he speaks perfect Japanese. The problem? His accent. It wasn't Japanese enough and they didn't want a "foreigner" in their club EVEN THOUGH he's 100% Japanese and speaks the language.

[@madjurixl]

Japan: nice place to live, hellish place for work life

[@wolfbyte3171]

The cetacean family would like to disagree with that.

[@waynehanley72]

You mean that elitist, royalist society . . . led by the Prince of Whales! :)

[@andy56duky]

@@waynehanley72 or the shadow leaders that control them from behind by whispering into their ear.

[@Detril2000]

Finding a example of a capitalist nation that you find has a good wealth distribution and calling it socialist just shows a miscomprehension of both capitalism and socialism. I know that "socialism" is a term that has been greatly banalized in places, to the point that some people think that any nation with public healthcare is socialist, but I hope you'll abide more strongly to the meaning of the word in your future videos.

[@scrolling.shutter]

That's why he explained what he meant by "socialist", I guess.

[@williamstevenson8454]

Sorry man but dont why this needs to be pointed out as Rare Earth clearly explains their reasoning

[@rybread1346]

A nation with public healthcare has socialist policiest, just like America has socialist policies because of public police, firefighters, and schools. Don't be a dummy

[@mehrshadvr4]

What's the goal of socialism?

[@muhilan8540]

Look at the description

[@SB-hs4yn]

I lived in Japan for a better part of my life. I can say that Japan doesn't need immigrants. We just need better working conditions. Our working conditions are so dreadful and long that it really sucks the soul out of you. How will we have time to have children if we work 12 hours a day 6 days a week? How will we even date? We simply don't have time. If politicians really cared about this issue, they would do a huge labor law reform.

[@RareEarthSeries]

So you propose that the solution to the issue of them not having enough able bodied workers is to give more rights to the individual and stop them from working as much?

[@SB-hs4yn]

@@RareEarthSeries Exactly. If that doesn't happen, of course Japan will need immigrants. However, if the population can grow itself without the need of immigrants, that would be ideal. I was born in the US but my father is Japanese, he works at a fairly good company. It's considered one of the nicer companies and isn't a ブラック企業. He straight up told my mom and I that if he was working in Japan his whole life and never had the chance to move abroad to work, he would probably never have the chance to have children or even date because work consumes literally every second of your life here. It's quite sad really.

[@johnortiz6129]

Title: Is Japan a perfect country? Video: Hardcore logic about immigration

[@RareEarthSeries]

I went to university in Japan, speak Japanese, and have spoken Japanese on camera in this very series.

[@johnortiz6129]

@@RareEarthSeries I LOVE YOUR VIDEOS THANK YOU FOR ALL THESE

[@johnortiz6129]

@@RareEarthSeries huge fan :)))))

[@whatsup6787]

tomato totato Those arnt fake accounts as they have been used for a long tome now.

[@whatsup6787]

Rare Earth can I get a source of where you are citing these things as I want todo a little bit more research on this, thanks.

[@bttnat439]

3:51 Japan is the world's biggest creditor nation, US owns Japan $1.15 trillion of national debt Most if not all of Japan National debt owns by Japanese creditors.

[@justiceprovider9822]

@Jason Buford bless you

[@Hiddenkeymaster3]

I just took a screenshot of the end credits because of how profound these ones are.

[@SuperSiggiboy]

I always make sure to read those, they're great.

[@damyr]

For me, it's fascinating that people find profoundness and wisdom in something which should be a common sense. That's one of the greatest indication of how deeply disturbed and distorted humanity is.

[@selfishstockton6123]

Hiddenkeymaster3 Choose either these or those. “These ones” is incorrect.

[@danielwhyatt3278]

HOLY CRAP I DID THE EXACT SAME THING.😮😆👌🏼

[@PaladinJenkis]

I agree, they are rich.

[@wombatdk]

Honestly, while I don't always agree with the views you present, your channel deserves more attention, more viewers, more exposure. You present salient points concisely, non-confrontationally and in a way that's respectful, thought-provoking and quite simply insightful. Please keep on doing what you do. It's perfect. And you rock. I'll still disagree at times, but that's perfectly okay. You still rock!

[@zackatwood2867]

wombatdk This. 👍🏻

[@ottodidakt3069]

same here !

[@piccinini12521]

There is nothing good about his passive aggresiveness and non-arguments. Glorifying this shit is what kills western civilization.

[@frankfu1122]

wombatdk well said!

[@MrAsyo1]

@@piccinini12521 Lmao everything nowadays is 'killing western civilization'. How weak.

[@Rama_Guru]

I would love to see this subject done in Singapore, they have almost no responsibility to the immigrant worker, but they do care for Singaporeans; yes the big T loves immigrants, they however do not feel the same

[@S.aokihoshi6635]

I agree on this. It would be an interesting discussion. I think legal immigration in Singapore can be split between two major categories; low income workers and skilled workers. The attitudes of both the government and the general population towards both of these groups are vastly different. On the west of Singapore away from the suburban sprawl, there is a complex that houses all of these low income workers in a practical yet unappealing complex far away from the general population. I would certainly like to see these people receive more care from the government and even have the public change their mindsets to be more respectful of the people who literally built Singapore. The reality is that there really isn't a situation where both the economy and the benefits of these low income workers are both going to improve together. I understand that the Singapore government actually does try to push Singapore towards economic growth, thus I think it really depends on how we decide to balance the moral obligations with what is necessary and must be done for the nation. In the end there is no easy solution, but I would definitely like to see a discussion on this cause I live in and love this country and I wish to someday play my part in improving society.

[@hussainvandeliwala5585]

willy but in Singapore u can apply for PR within 1 yr and citizenship within 2 yrs of staying right?

[@kageyamareijikun]

willy Singapore has been utterly ruined by immigration. The foreign population is close to 50% and the government panders to them. Locals are discriminated and displaced, bullied and mocked by everyone from Chinese to Indians to Whites. And this whitie here is saying immigrants dont change the culture of the host nation?! I cant take him seriously. The native Singaporeans are dying and fading away. More and more (ironically) migrating to the West like Australia and Canada. Stop asking Japan to become like Singapore! Immigration DOES NOT WORK!

[@ihaveaname1894]

@@kageyamareijikun Tell me one instance you see firsthand when immigrants bullied singaporean (exclude angmoh bcoz the whites have been always superior even from as early as the 80's, i know u weren't born then most probably) Indians immigrant bullied singaporean? seriously?

[@kageyamareijikun]

Budi Yono lots of such cases especially in the workplace and public areas. You sound like an Indonesian. Observe longer in Singapore and you can see the high-caste Indians trampling over everyone. Yes, the whites are "superior", so thats the only race the Indians dont dare to offend. Thats why they keep their heads down in Silicon Valley/California. Not in Singapore though. Indians despise the Asians.

[@ingvar1996]

population decline is only an issue in a highly financed economy where a lot of interest has to be paid by future generations. In a net positive economy, it is no issue for a population to decline it even has benefits since population decline now means more wealth per capita.

[@Petethecoolguy]

They are a highly financed economy. Japanese government have public debt all the way to their eyebrows.

[@ingvar1996]

@@Petethecoolguy exactly, that's the issue!

[@シリコンバレー-u9p]

@@Petethecoolguy Half of the government bonds are owned by the Bank of Japan, and the Bank of Japan is a subsidiary of the government, so there is no problem.It's just that the paper money was printed paper money.There is no interest.In addition, Japan has the world's largest net foreign asset for the 30th consecutive year, with a net asset of 1,149.126 trillion yen.

[@ricaard6959]

That's not how it works, population decline has issues in all areas of society, most normal people want children eventually, that's point A, point B: fewer people means less innovation because of less competition, and innovation is what drives economic growth and pint C: You're not going to be investing any of that high wealth per Capita on things that create wealth, it's going to pay to keep an elderly population alive and fed, i.e. a declining population means declining wealth with every generation. There is this hyper liberal and quite frankly idealistic belief that population decline isn't bad and even if it is that it's solutions inhibit choice, which is true but that's what children are, they are an expense a big one at that but more than anything else in the world they're by far the most important thing. Also population s aren't declining because of people's choices either so you can't say it's disadvantages are only economic, in fact higher cost of living and stagnant wages(caused somewhat by lower level of innovation) is the main contributer to population decline.

[@foolwise4703]

You seem to base many of your arguments on two sentiments on which I do not per se agree: 1. "Economy always needs growth." This is historically a proven assumption but one that humanity can no longer afford to hold for long. As we measure our economy by the amount of resources we consume and are not on the way to establish circular resource flows, humanity will destroy itself holding this assumption. We can no longer afford to accept it. 2. "Population = Military strength". Again, this is a historical truth. This one I deny not out of idealism but because I think that it changed when technology became the undoubted master of war. Japan is not likely to attempt invasions on less industrialized countries, like the US have made a habit of in the last decades. They only need to defend, and this will be a question of economy, politics and technology, not of population.

[@hengineer]

And ironically, Trump is the only president in recent memory NOT to start another foreign conflict.

[@Americanbadashh]

@@cooldud7071 But they can convince the people who read these comments who may be one the fence or close to the fence and that reason alone makes it a comment worth making

[@bigboyman5743]

Should have also talked about increasing birth rates and mentioned how expensive is it to have children in the West.

[@janusjones6519]

This is a show about japan not about the west

[@bigboyman5743]

@@janusjones6519 japan IS the west and increasing the birth rate could be considered as another alternative instead of importing immigrants

[@janusjones6519]

@@bigboyman5743 birth rates in the west are declining check your facts. Also Japanese men don't want sex so it won't work

[@janusjones6519]

@@bigboyman5743 japan is not the west. I'm sure it very much likes to be. But it's not and never will be.

[@zahlen_0092]

@@janusjones6519 Japanese men...don't want sex? have you seen their (ahem) industry? love hotels are a huge thing there you know

[@killercaos123]

I would have liked it if this video came along with some citations too

[@MajorLeagueBassboost]

The reason why many people, as you say, take "economic concern" for xenophobia, is because so many people argue with xenophobia and not legitimate concern

[@the80386]

Many people opposing immigration start with racism and xenophobia as the core reason. But that has bad optics, so they try to package it up with other more 'logical sounding' reasons like economics, assimilation etc. Those aren't the real reason for their opposition though and a bit of investigative questioning gives their game away.

[@MajorLeagueBassboost]

@@the80386 exactly

[@m.jackson8330]

@@_-.-_-_.._--.-_-_----_-.--_._- Legit concerns include: undercutting domestic workers, failing to assimilate and creating friction with the local population (look up Sweden's 'no-go' zones), sending capital outside the country, chain migration, creation of crime-ridden ghettos, destabilizing and debasing the host country's native culture, language, & more

[@JeiBurke]

Its not "xenophobia" if I am not afraid of or interact with the cultures I am commenting on. Its disgust at the fact that Im watching a historic mistake that will have long term consequences based on OBSERVABLE EVIDENCE.

[@perhapsyes2493]

There's one thing you keep referring to: "Growth". Infinite growth on a finite planet. That's all that needs to be said, I believe. Efficiency only gets you so far.

[@zm1786]

@@anonb4632 all these losers love marvel movies so much they dont realize thanos was the good guy

[@Slenderman63323]

Who said that we stay on our finite planet? Obviously we will expand and build colonies on other planets

[@zm1786]

@@Slenderman63323 we should invest in space travel instead of welfare for the third world , but we all know reddit would choose the third world everytime

[@perhapsyes2493]

@@Slenderman63323 You sure about that? At this rate I'm not convinced we'll make it that long. Our planet is starting to change at horrifying speeds, population keeps growing. We don't have the tech to manage a self sustaining off-world colony yet. As long as a colony isn't self sustaining it does not "add" anything to that "infinite-earth" equation.

[@perhapsyes2493]

@Jason Buford Yes, and no. Just 2 degrees wouldn't doom us - if that were the end of it. Issue is that 2 degrees will put other series of events into motion which will cause endless issues. Permafrost melting, like we're seeing now is just one example. When that methane bubble pops things will change very, very rapidly.

[@ericchen7496]

Love your stuff; Rare Earth tells stories that need to be told

[@bobhope4288]

​@@Dkkm10 One can argue all day long about any video's quality, but at the end of the video if it makes you pause and think about your own life, then doesn't that qualify as more than just filler?

[@bobhope4288]

@@Dkkm10 Well, that says more about you than the video.

[@pablocores7877]

They’re probably one of the best channels on this platform.

[@supernova7966]

I smell SJW from this guy

[@metametodo]

From the very first video up to this day my internal reaction to your videos hasn't changed much, while being a very unique reception and feeling. There's something that I still can't pinpoint that causes some aversion, maybe your crude words. That aversion haven't disappeared, despite having seen pretty much every video on this channel. It's a really singular situation. And also since the very start I like your overall attitude, views, dares, questions, topics. There are some disagreements? Of course. But what you bring to me is so unique that I couldn't find anywhere else, and I certainly don't want to lose it.

[@NautyEskimo]

yea i wondered if anyone else felt this way. I cant seem to place my feelings on these videos and a positive or negative but instead just thought and questions on a topic. These videos are so good at framing an idea but never telling you what the solution should be.

[@test-mm7bv]

japanese growth PER CAPITA is on par with america since the 90's their economy is not collapsing - it's actually an international safe haven, despite its well known faults also, more immigration in japan is a tiny percentage of their population, unlike the us or eu this vid would benefit from being more specific with facts - we want a rational discussion, not another polemic about the virtues of immigration

[@ryanmassie448]

Um, the current state of the Japanese economy can be described as a stalled car it is in no way a rosy picture.

[@맥스웰방정식-d5z]

Their GDP per capita was highter in 80s than now, which means their economy stopped growing for 30 years. Their well known global companies have lost competitiveness to the neighbouring countries and been sold. The rate of their foreign exchange dept is over 250%. That means they have to pay back 250% of what they earn anually.

[@piccinini12521]

You won't can't reason with those idiots, communists worship infinite GDP growth and cheap labor to trigger those right wingers.

[@TheEviling]

Instead of immigration, they could try to encourage a babyboom. Lots of socities seem to make it harder and harder to raise a family.

[@ALeaud]

That's really hard. I'm an English teacher here in Japan and the Japanese guys I meet on a daily basis...... they're REALLY REALLY shy and VERY beta. These guys don't stand a chance.

[@Sam-vi2ho]

@@ALeaud Anime was a mistake

[@illegalalien6542]

@@Sam-vi2ho For the Japanese... For guys like me, it's free real estate

[@drsm7947]

In Japan its very expensive to raise child

[@physical_insanity]

While you make really good points, I feel like you're misrepresenting the "Anti-immigration" argument in the US. While I can't speak for everyone, most anti-immigration people in the US I know and have listened to and watched are actually pro-immigration, they're just not for open borders like many in the democratic party is. I agree that Japan needs more immigrants to fill it's population, as a temporary measure until the native population can get back on it's feet. But I don't want swathes of both skilled and unskilled workers just flooding the country near unrestricted, like what we have in the EU. 300,000 people enter the UK every year because of the open border policy of the EU and when you have massive numbers like that, integration becomes much more difficult for the migrants when they can just huddle with their own instead of mixing with the natives. In my home in the south, a small market town with a lot of historical significance, I've seen several traditions gradually become replaced by foreign and alien customs that nowadays would actually feel more at home in Londonistan. And it came with influx of immigrants that moved here over the years. I'm all for immigration, but with what the general idea that the overall populace of the world has of it, it's eroding national DNA and making us less diverse by proxy. And not only that, it's replacing the native populations of our countries. Japan needs immigration, that's a certainty, but without first carefully defining how they're going to allow more immigrants, I feel they're going to lose what makes them so appealing as a country in the first place: their culture and people.

[@Ravi9A]

nah, you are just racist, you couldn't possibly have thunk this through amirite?

[@NoobAlike]

Either we're all getting replaced by robots or we're all going to be farming to survive

[@normalgarlicbreadtm2854]

@Jon Goat yes we would, out ancestors were able, and so are we

[@illegalalien6542]

@Jon Goat Laughs in Amish

[@shabbii296]

They should encourage having children. If you import all your workers is it still japan? If the japanese become the minority is it still japan?

[@stafer3]

How? “They should have more children” is non answer. Every industrialized country wants that yet non achieved that. If there was some winning formula everybody would already use it. Obviously having your own children is easier and smoother than getting them from abroad. Germany is giving 220$ every month for every child. They are promoting part time jobs, so potential mothers don’t feel like having a child will get them out of carrier completely, they support daycare. Campaign after campaign. New and new ways are introduced to support having children. Yet, they don’t have any better results than countries that don’t have those things. Only way to increase birthrates is making people poor, religious, uneducated and rural. So you could potentially introduce some kind of religious sect that would push part of your society to 18. century lifestyle. But then you need some kind of mechanism to convert that excess of people back to something useful. Otherwise you end up like Israel where they have ultra orthodox people who have 8 children, but who don’t work and are burden on economy, and are pushing their religious laws on rest of society. So in a way, you would have all the same negatives as with current migration. Maybe language barrier would be lower. But with migration you at least can be picky. Take only who you like. With that hypothetical religious sect, you would have “inside” everyone.

[@shabbii296]

@@stafer3 not necessarily. They discourage it in most places. They could give tax benefits to those that have kids. They could pay single mothers. Look at everything Andrew yang has said on the subject.

[@stafer3]

@@shabbii296 Literally all European countries are already doing that and they all have fertility rate below America which doesn’t do anything for mothers. Giving more money doesn’t work in societies where money is no longer issue. You won’t bribe working woman with money. Because she can always earn more than what state can afford. Working women have children because they want to, not because they get benefits. It’s similar to “problem” US military faces. Good economy doesn’t drive military recruitment. You need people desperate to sign up. When unemployment is high and they face existential threat recruitment goes up. When everyone can get job somewhere else. Majority will choose somewhere else. Only those who want to join will join. No matter how many perks is military offering.

[@shabbii296]

@@stafer3 interesting.

[@ljj9494]

@stafer3 “Literally all European countries are already doing that” lol no. No they are not. Western culture especially Western Europe has discouraged motherhood for the better part of two generations now. That and the advent of the two income household is the problem. Making the economy work around one income households, offering benefits, and encouraging motherhood would work. You know how I know this? Because we literally did it for thousands of years. Up until recently this has almost never been a problem.

[@AndyJapandy]

Would a dip in population for a country as densely populated as Japan be bad in the long run? Sure, there would be economic fallout once the silver generation starts thinning out, but would dense cities be less dense, or would more and more people flee the countryside for work in the big cities?

[@NautyEskimo]

Its not a dip its a trend and the birth rate is declining but the life expectancy is increasing. Everything is still uncertain. No country in the history of the world has gone through an ageing like in japan. The main concern is that who will take the low skilled jobs that are physical demanding. The aging population will start to shift to only be middle class high skilled workers. In japan a lot of farm labor is being done by Chinese and thai immigrants for large scale farms.

[@AndyJapandy]

@@NautyEskimo we'll see what happens moving forward.

[@ousamadearudesuwa]

I have a major disagreement with the video with only one thing, Background checks. Immigration is pretty much as tricky and messy once a person starts thinking about it, as many people in the internet tend to misunderstand(with a liberal bias) that it has to do with xenophobia(which is flawed by definition) as the models that do work was with the Eastern Europeans and by giving the immigrant an environment to make them assimilate towards the natives, not the other way around. The reason for this is because if there a lot of immigrants of the same nationality creates a community that refuses to assimilate. A solution that many centrists offer is to allow a small amount of immigrants to properly assimilate with the community they are in rather than excluding them or making them enter in masses. If you want a better example as to why I disagree with you on this solution would be Cebu City, my hometown, where the Korean and Local immigrants from other provinces or from the Capital would immigrate here and form their own communities and not even once tried to assimilate with the local populace to the point that the locals would sometimes think of making them learn how to assimilate or return to their homeland. Aside from that, they become prey for criminals as they usually do not know things that locals knew.

[@Sam-vi2ho]

Ghetto formation is a real issue that a government has to stop from happening, which is happening in the first place because of greedy capitalists. Where I live we used to have denmarks most dangerious "ghetto". They split that shit up after many years and turned the ghetto into a huge retirement home. It's incredibly difficult for immigrants to integrate if they're put in a situation like this, where the only housing availible is in a fucking ghetto. Eastern europeans are still the most criminal demographic in europe by the way.

[@electronresonator8882]

immigrants don't assimilate, if you look back then what happened to native Americans and Australian's Aborigines, you know how destructive immigrants can be, that is why now Americans are making borders, and Australian refuse to accept people migrating to their countries, because they afraid of immigrants

[@mehrshadvr4]

But actually having a Chinese town, Japanese town and so on are nice too. It's like you are I a different country. But they will for in either way. You can't bring that many people in anyway to change the culture that much.

[@mehrshadvr4]

@@electronresonator8882 that's as masses. There were more immigrants than native people. Look at Chinese people who came here in the 1800s. They are pretty much American with a little bit of Chinese spices and not many of them are actually left full Chinese. They are nowhere near how Chinese are in China.

[@anssirepo8180]

Why should something be growing all the time, until the end of time?

[@potallegta]

It won't, but the only way to maintain stability and decelerate entropy is by building on the current condition through continuous growth.

[@anssirepo8180]

@@potallegta I don't like that

[@LIETUVIS10STUDIO1]

I love your stuff, but this is bad economics. Inbetween "socialism" definition, misunderstanding open borders, etc. You really need to do some reading of Moah Smith, Paul Krugman, Daren Acemoglu, etc. Japan is a very capitalist country. It has little to no worker control.

[@matarr222]

In the past, a concept of mutual obligation was common in Japan. This required unconditional loyalty from the employee and a certain level of care from the employer . The two parties represented themselves in this unwritten set of rules, so no employee representation in our sense was needed. This system no longer seems to work.

[@AAhmou]

That's exactly what ticked me off... That's an outlook worthy of classical economics, which are mostly obsolescent by now.

[@mrsteve7060]

Noah smith is a glue-sniffer academic deadwood

[@JK-gu3tl]

Japan is a market economy with high taxes (kids are taught at an early age that taxes are patriotic), and typical chaebol-like cronyism. Not to mention, it's heavily Keynesian: In spite of high domestic savings rates, their leaders insist on having inflation as a solution to their current problems. The gov't is the reason why Japan has a high debt to gdp ratio.

[@junsu21]

Yeah, he's clearly not an economist nor does he tip his hat to various theories. However, I did find his explanation really clear about how political parties in the West generally support certain types of immigrant populations. Most people, even on the news, have not been able to make it that clear.

[@ruki4929]

I remember seeing a whole bunch of backlash when the minister of Japan talked about getting more immigrants in; something about "abandoning the culture" and "losing who the Japanese are" or "Indians taking over" It's a weird idea on globalization; and as a recovering weeb, I can't say that part of me doesn't worry about that a bit too. As bad as that concern is. Obviously, I'm not saying that immigrants shouldn't' come in; I guess I can't help but wonder what'll happen to the traditional culture. If anything will happen to it at all.

[@ruki4929]

@@rahimaakter1569 go for it, my man - we all learn from our miatakes

[@Obscurai]

As generations come and go, so too does little bits of culture come and go. I'm sure you do not share the exact same culture as your great-grandparents. You do not attend the same festivals or cherish the same ideals as them. Static culture is just nostalgia, real culture adjusts over time to match the times.

[@zackatwood2867]

Ruki They need a combination of increased immigration and greater governmental/cultural support of larger families then... but that’s just my opinion. Immigration will run low over time and likewise with internal growth. Neither can solve the problem overall.

[@LowestofheDead]

Japanese culture has changed hugely across its history, even when completely isolated from the world. Every culture does. Japan's unique culture survived American occupation; it'll survive some economy-boosting immigrants.

[@ruki4929]

@@Obscurai That is a fair point - but I'm also an expat, so that was a little difficult from the get-go.

[@lostinidlewonder]

Decreasing population is good. Constant growth is something we are going to have to eventually abandon.

[@Slenderman63323]

It's human nature to grow and expand our society

[@sfepea777]

Population ebbs and flows. It’s decreasing now, but it will increase later.

[@gouledawad2377]

lol if u are not growing you are dying.

[@lostinidlewonder]

@@gouledawad2377 Yeah but human population growth is like bacteria, look what happens to bacteria once it cannot expand no more, mass death!

[@justiceprovider9822]

@@lostinidlewonder we have infinite space to grow. The end isn't near yet..............if only you would want it .

[@billshuey7422]

I have a simple question, nations existence is based on continued economic growth. Economic growth worldwide is now sustainable. So when is enough really enough?

[@billybob-ik5yv]

when we stop fucking and keep making babies maybe then since more population means more demand and u know etc etc and also human wants are not limited they will never be

[@JK-gu3tl]

Humans probably use resources at a more efficient rate than ancestors.

[@MorningtonCrescent]

Good video, with interesting insights. However, ‘Greeks’ are a national identity, borne through birth, culture etc. Islam is an Abrahamic religion, spanning many nation-states and cultures, bound by a ‘special book’ and claiming of special - and scripturally obligated - tenets, which claims to be the ‘final Word’. The difference between the two is gargantuan - please do not conflate nationality (or hyphenated nationality such as Greek-Canadian) with a self - and culturally - subscribing religion. To confuse the two is disingenuous and somewhat troubling and Ill-considered. Otherwise, an excellent video, highlighting many key factors on demographics, macro econ and pressure points. Subscribed.

[@canete571]

Short answer: No it ain't

[@leonasworkshop]

Your videos on Japan truly fascinate me, I love your videos and I love that culture, but nothing can ever be always positive and I love that you show that in all those videos.

[@HolligaMan]

With each new video more i appreaciate the shots. Keep it up, guys.

[@Deno2100]

I didn't see a single immigrant in Japan. Only US military members. That is it.

[@gigipeedee]

and see how peaceful their society is?

[@studyingADHD]

@@gigipeedee And there are plenty of homogeneous societies that are far from peaceful...So what's your point? It's clear that homogeneity does not inherently bring peace.

[@studyingADHD]

@@gigipeedee You're implying that homogeneity brings order to society, and now you're suggesting that homogeneity does not bring order to society. You can't have both. What you're trying to say is that brown people bring disorder to society. Not that homogeneity brings order. And I think that's a more difficult case to make. You'd have to explain why being a brown "immigrant" (person from another nation) is inherently opposed to being a peaceful and orderly. Here's a case study. "Brown" people excel in the US, where they out earn White Americans, score better on standardized tests and disproportionately attend prestigious research universities. Indian-Americans are our top earners, and have a disproportionately low crime rate. By all means, they are peaceful and very successful.

[@malokk5773]

Maintaining culture and the nation state are more important than endless economic growth.

[@Andrew-gn9qp]

Exactly. Japan is resilient because it maintains its culture and its nation-state. Look at all the multicultural countries in world history, they all collapsed, most famously the Holy Roman Empire, and the various other countries like it.

[@malokk5773]

@@Andrew-gn9qp Much like what we are seeing in the west today.

[@rim7961]

So video on Japan's work culture when? :D

[@xylonpesquera8605]

Can you please link your sources in the description? Thanks.

[@RareEarthSeries]

No, I prefer people have to google. In my opinion education comes from the personal journey towards information, not just arguing against whatever link someone was provided.

[@xylonpesquera8605]

@@RareEarthSeries thank you for your reply. It does seem a bit extreme for a simple request, but I will assume that you mean well. Personally I respect KZbinrs who link sources more, but I understand why you wouldn't want to. Thanks.

[@ANTIMONcom]

But should we have systems that depends on ethernal growth?

[@thebonniebluenetwork]

I'd say that this video wins the over-simplification award of the day. This is a deeply multidimensional issue.

[@RareEarthSeries]

Yep, which is why I kept it to economics and the failure of those policies to line up with their stated political brands. Did I say something factually wrong, or did you just feel like being generally dismissive?

[@inigo137]

A place where people die from overworking themselves in not even close to being remotely a good nation.

[@EngelSpiel]

Let alone a nation that has its own word for such an occurence - karoshi.

[@nevar108]

North Americans are not untouched by this issue! North Americans take less vacation time, work longer hours and work for longer years then the average in Japan....

[@Patchuchan]

True but the US can be almost as bad at times no federally mandated holiday time,few workers protections on the federal level, and silicon valley's enshrinement of the idea of working of long hours even though working more than 48 hours a week usually has a negative effect on productivity in the long run. Working 70 to 80 hours a week is an exercise in futility and you're not doing the yourself or the company a favor.

[@nevar108]

@Jon Goat I wasnt disagreeing. People point fingers at other nations thinking their's is immune from the issues they are pointing at. NA (US and Canada) is just as bad in a lot of ways as Japan when how they treat overworking. (speaking as a Canadian btw.)

[@ShredderZXTF2]

Why is it that when people mention the flaws of a nation, people ALWAYS bring up the US's downsides too? Does that somehow invalidate the concerns? We're not talking about the US.

[@s1lverFoX]

I disagree with almost everything you said in this video.

[@user-yl6jj8td2i]

Agreed. lets see him do the same video...but France or Sweden. He completely bypasses the fact that the universal medical care works because majority of Japanese eat healthy and walk everywhere.

[@temujinkahn22]

@@user-yl6jj8td2i Having people eat healthy and take up healthier lifestyle should the the base of any kind of social healthcare, the less people get sick, the less pressure you put on healthcare facilities.

[@paulrogers8725]

L sure, that’s probably why they live longer, but it really isn’t too much different from a European Healthcare system

[@Cool-Cat]

I'm sure Sweden would agree with you 100% flawless logic.

[@chanchoqatari3328]

LMAO, right?

[@hogatiwash7750]

He mentioned that there needs to be a limit though 11:28. And he said intentional immigrants are good while illegals and refugees are questionable. pay attention to the video instead of just being ready to shit on immigrants in general.

[@DaOneJoel]

As a Swede, this is the opposite of true.

[@abandonedchannel281]

I’ve never say a Swede complain about immigrants, but I see non Swedes complain about immigrants in Sweden

[@DaOneJoel]

@Jon Goat neo-nazis? Get off your high horse mate.

[@boi_mayor]

God some of my Japanese coworkers here who really like me still always ask me when I'm going back home for good. Japan has a real "tissue paper" approach to immigrants. They will use you because they need you, but the moment they're done they want you to leave with no recompense. Look at the huge Brazilian population here treated like second-class citizens. Japan as a whole tries so hard to just pretend the Brazilians aren't here but about 1 in 20 or so people here in Shiga are Brazilian immigrants or the children of Brazilian immigrants.

[@boi_mayor]

These Brazilians were welcomed with open arms because they are the descendants of Japanese migrants many years ago, but once they got here and it was clear they were more Brazilian than Japanese, they were cast aside and mostly ignored.

[@boi_mayor]

@Lisa P idk it still seems racist here. I mean I have some friends who speak fluent Japanese that get denied service to restaurants and even got kicked out of their apartments for "not speaking Japanese." I never came here with any inkling of a thought that I would actually assimilate into Japanese culture, but I really just was not prepared for the downright hostility I would be met with. Pretty much the moment you're out of Tokyo, Kyoto, or Osaka, most people glare at you in public and will refuse you service in public places. Call it whatever you'd like, I just see at as an extreme fear of change that I would class as destructive to their own society.

[@morisoba2550]

Even in US or EU, many foreign workers (especially Africans, Muslims and Asians) are actually treated like second-class citizens. Japanese have close minded insular mentality, which is another problem. For Japanese people, the case of Brazilians immigrants is a good example that the immigrants won't be integrated in Japanese society in the reality.

[@MegaTang1234]

Most people only look at immegration from the POV of the nation receiving immegration, never the POV of a nation losing it's brightest and most energetic due to emmigration. Remember, brain drain is a thing.

[@U00-m3v]

I'm japanese. Many negative comments. I'm sad and hard to be a perfect country.

[@lucaa.9709]

Konnichiwa!

[@sakaraist]

a few years ago, I went on an exchange program between some sister-schools from canada to japan. And even though at that point I could converse pretty well, almost everyone I met under the age of 40 or so would speak english to me(while still encouraging me to converse in japanese) in order to accommodate me.And those older who didn't formally learn english consistently portrayed kindness in their actions. I visited Kyushu, Shikoku, Chugoku, Kansai,Chubu & Kanto and the biggest recurring theme in each region, Was that if you treat them with respect and more importantly their culture with respect and make an effort to learn and integrate into it they will in general go out of their way to make you feel more comfortable. The biggest take-away any country should have from japan is how to be patient & respectful of others.

[@thelettre7954]

just as a perfect place cannot exist an unchanging culture cannot exist Japan is wonderful place but underlying issues should be addressed before they become unavoidable well said thank you

[@INVAZOR33]

/TheLettre7\ Japan is victim of its own success, the success of the ultimate welfare state, but at the same time its victim of its xenophobic culture.

[@lohphat]

Japan still has demons to excise -- discarded workers, increasing homelessness, abandoned elderly, a caste system, misogyny, racism, etc.

[@scarlet3080]

@@_-.-_-_.._--.-_-_----_-.--_._- From what I understand it's basically a high prejudice against people who come from a different group than ours. I'm sorry if it's wrong, though

[@jmbkpo]

@@_-.-_-_.._--.-_-_----_-.--_._- fear by disgust of different ethnic people

[@alfred1920]

INVAZOR33 yes, and look how it ended up for the west. try to compare the rate of terrorist attacks in countries like Paris and the UK to japan

[@shinren_]

This was a really really interesting video thanks for this one

[@acechimera7394]

Wish I could like this 2x, amazing video with some great points I hadn't considered before

[@AnubisofScorpio]

Oh sweet summer child, they laughed because they ARE making those robots. Skynet 2020!

[@vxxiii4160]

There's always going to be pros and cons in every nation.

[@Americanbadashh]

The biggest con of every nation is that is a nation

[@apteropith]

"Without growth, all of this is unsustainable." That's really weird, because _growth_ is unsustainable. How is this supposed to not end in disaster? Also: you'll find most socialists care little about "employment rates" or nation-state borders, and their solution to "illegal" immigrants not having protections is to _extend them._ And also to end imperialist wars. (The USSR was bad at a lot of this and can suck it. State-capitalism is a shitty way to do "socialism", in one or any other number of countries.)

[@cdmaster35]

Yeah sure, let's end growth, because that's a thing we can definitely do. We can totally just stop producing new things and new people, and we can also definitely have all the resources we need to take care of every human being that exists with a 1st world standard of living. ***END SARCASM***

[@GormHornbori]

Running a deficit is unsustainable. Unless you have growth outpacing the debt.

[@mehrshadvr4]

Well a recession is a restart.

[@zm1786]

Damn KZbin deleted my comment

[@JeiBurke]

@@cdmaster35 "We can totally just stop producing new things and new people" We have stopped creating new people THATS THE PROBLEM. Holy hell dude.

[@Joe-ff4if]

I met my wife when I was stationed at Naval Station Yokosuka. She along with many of her colleagues were Filipina nurses living in Japan. They were not treated fairly and most ended up quitting and going back to the philippines.i don't think Japan is ready for immigrants and I wonder if they ever will be.

[@Joe-ff4if]

@@anonb4632 Yes, but they are not treated equally. They are treated as second class citizens. I have seen it with my own eyes

[@zm1786]

@@Joe-ff4if that's because they Arent citizens .

[@zm1786]

@@Joe-ff4if only the west has the idea that anyone can become a citizen. Foreigners can never become citizens in china

[@PaladinJenkis]

Very intersting channel, I like tha fact that commenting is not blocked. I hope we all cann act civil and have a nice connversation about the topics at hand.

[@cwhy]

Through the whole video, your views are all sided on the country that's taking immigration, though. It is not even for economy growth, it is for nationalistic economy growth.

[@WinstonNewYork]

Right, but your opening thoughts about Japan, as a relatively homogenous society with a declining population, does not apply to America, nor to France and Britain, and many Western nations.

[@narvaromer8516]

Declining fertility rate and the aging population apply to most of Western nations.

[@JeiBurke]

Most if not all industrialized countries have low birth rates, its just the ones in the west think they can just replace themselves with Arabs and Africans

[@RagingHamster]

Another context regarding immigration to consider is cultural integration/assimilation. Take Sweden for example- in the 1950s-70s there were thousands of immigrants entering from Yugoslavia, Greece, Turkey, Hungary, Austria, and Italy. There were integration pains lasting 5-10 years, but arguably most nordic immigrants successfully integrated. Fast forward to 2015 and the refugee crisis. The last 5 years has not seen the same successful integration as in the past, things are rapidly deteriorating for Sweden, putting it lightly. My point being Sweden had every right to think immigration would work out. It worked out in the past. But it isn't working now. There will be no cultural integration this time.

[@Guyjinsan]

Wisdom. Thanks for an eloquent and intelligent commentary on this important issue.

[@piprod01]

There is concept of AM (Actual Machines) vs FM (Fucking Magic). In this case it maps very well onto immigrants vs robots. Politicians do what they do everywhere and and get sucked into FM solutions to AM problems. Here Japan's politicians are constantly doubling down on the bet that robots will be ready for prime time in just a couple of years and solve productivity, for litteral decades. I'm not saying that technology won't advance, but forgoing real solutions to problems in the assumption that "technology advancements will save us" is dumb. Assume that technology won't solve your problems, and if they do that's a bonus.

[@lazergurka-smerlin6561]

I've always been confused by the immigration debate like "Okay... you know more workers is going to make the job market more competitive and thus lower pay for the average worker yes? No? Okay umm how do I explain this." I mean the poverty stricken people that support figures like trump are people in low skill jobs that would have their salaries cut (ironically by trump) if a lot of workers started coming in. Especially low education workers that you tend to get from countries you'd want to leave. This reality is sort of recognised in sweden by it's nationalist party saying that the welfare state will be dismantled by immigrants which is a bit exadurated but it touches on the truth that not all immigration is beneficial to the individual member while most other parties hold to this absurd claim that ALL types of immigration is beneficial which might be true but only in the sense of total GDP not GDP per capita. But I feel this video puts it very well, even if I am not aligned 100%, it feels good to know that I'm not going insane

[@illegalalien6542]

I agree

[@arisraz]

As an economist, I have to say this video is well research, well written and well conveyed. One of your best videos so far. Keep up the good work!

[@thomasgrabkowski8283]

No, it’s not. Problems listed- insanely long working hours, low birth rate and declining population, high suicide rate, guilty before proven innocent justice system, and many others

[@faber3969]

outdated meme

[@Fife178]

Yes! Also the historical revisionism of their role in the massacre of over 300 million people in neighboring Asian countries in WWII that is comparable to Turkey's denial of the Armenian Genocide

[@putraappm]

@@Fife178 w😴w

[@satoau1]

the bigger problem caused by lack of immigration is lack of innovation. for ideas to flourish, differing ideas need to be exchanged, so when every one thinks the same nothing ever changes, which means nothing ever improves, and that's exactly why japan is failing. they tried to get around the problem by sending japanese abroad to learn new ideas and bring them back home to japan, but instead what happened was those new now more open minded japanese were discriminated against by their fellow japanese when trying to bring about improvements - "日本人なのにダメだね。" "そうね、やり方わ分かっていない。” ("he's japanese but no good." "yeah he just doesn't get how things are done.")

[@KalRandom]

I think it all comes down to. What is growth? Financial, Spiritual, Artistic, Poetic, ect… We think more stuff will make us happier. Yet humanity as a whole has never defined what is happy. Where do you get to the point of "I'm good" a feeling of not needing more, for some it's understandable food, for others it's the newest insert shinny thing here. Few ever stop to think, am I happy, and then why not.

[@theeccentrictripper3863]

Happiness is an illusion, a crack high we're chasing with no actual end. Humans are problem solving animals, we got to the top of the food chain by quickly assessing issues then finding ways to counter them, then moving on. Once you have accomplished X or Y, Z will appear and then that will be the new goal to reach. With this in mind no society let alone any one person can truly achieve a sense of permanent happiness without completely removing all ambition in any sense of the word. We should seek growth more than happiness, because as our capacity as individuals grow and deepen we will have more vectors from which to derive small moments of joy and contentment.

[@yussefthe3rd]

Good vid. Japan is going through an immigration boom, likely much larger than what the official numbers show. Is infinite economic growth the only model? Many countries will deal with population declines this century. Maybe redefining societal metrics beyond gdp is an important consideration to addressing population growth issues.

[@rollopolloboymarch1074]

For the record, Japan only empowered women as an agreement with the US, in order to help them rebuild.

[@Nadia1989]

"Empowered"... It's not a secret a woman's career is over as soon as she gets married, she's automatically reduced to a baby making machine. No wonder the birth rate is so low.

[@rollopolloboymarch1074]

@@Nadia1989 99 percent of women have jobs, not careers, married or not. And they all work to serve male bosses . A womans timeline for working is like 50 years at best but her peak fertile years are usually about 10.

[@cokebear1337]

@@Nadia1989 The birth rate is low because of economic factors. Birth rates are decreasing in western countries too, not just Japan. Immigrants bring up the birth rate in western countries, which is why more populations are not shrinking.

[@haoschlong4164]

@@Nadia1989 Most married women in Japan are employed, genius. And no, the reason for low birth rates is not because of ‘muh career’, but it is because marriage is unaffordable for most Japanese people. Surveys have shown that about 90% of Japanese women do indeed want to get married, though many are unable to because of economic reasons.

[@rachellerachelle2931]

Great video! I live in Japan (intentional immigrant) and I know that Japan is FAR from perfect. I think a lot of the reasons people think it is is because how few protests there are here about major social issues. So many people just grin and bear it, even though they can't stand the system either. Japan needs immigrants, but it also needs to get over its superiority issues, thinking that it's okay to treat them poorly and pay them much less for the same work that Japanese do (to be fair, this is true in many countries). They also need to do more to help integrate immigrants, because without help and support, it's not going to happen in one (or more) generations.

[@Knight766]

The 2 best ways to live in Japan. 1) Be a native and at least middle-class 2) Be a foregneir and at least a multi-millionaire Also weebs don't know shit about Japan

[@dohminkonoha3200]

I thought Paris is world most sophisticated city on the earth. In reality,

[@LiquidZulu]

I think you look at the culture change too narrowly, its whether that change is good that you should look at. When the Sikhs came to my country they integrated and enhanced the culture, now that Wahhabists are coming in there droves the opposite is taking place. Sikhs come looking to work hard for acceptance, not everyone shares their moral fortitude.

[@RodrigoSilvaRocha]

Sikhs are some of the most hardworking people you'll ever find in the US, and it's sad to see people threat them bad because they "look like Muslims", even though Muslims in the US are more progressive, accepting and less religiously radical than US evangelical Christians.

[@RV-cv2yt]

Yeah I believe that the mass immigration of a people that is very different culturally from the native poeple creates big problems . The mass imported immigrants (that are very culturally different to the natives) do tend to not integrate at all and form enclaves. When you combine that with the declining birth rates of the natives, you do not meet at all the conditions that facilitated the integration of foreigners in USA or Canada in the 20th century.

[@trexthethird4622]

@@RodrigoSilvaRocha He's talking about the UK

[@piterpraker3399]

@Lisa P My buddy's from Saudi Arabia - he's got a kind of fucky sense of humor about it, but he's as anti-immigration as I am when it comes to that region just because of what he saw growing up.

[@the80386]

@Lisa P Sikhism doesn't require one to be a vegetarian though.

Japan isn’t socialist. Socialism isn’t just lack of disparity. Socialism is a means of getting there.

[@malokk5773]

A means of getting to starvation and mass exicutions.

[@Tripserpentine]

@@malokk5773 Yes because the Netherlands and Scandinavia are so bad... lol look at the polar opposite the US, so many poor people, not even a healthcare system and some jobs rely on tips... lol not even a livable wage. Americans (who are not rich ergo the vast majority) can only dream to have some socialism in their shitty country.

[@malokk5773]

@@Tripserpentine Social programs are not socialism, and those countries have a much more free market system than the US. It makes those countries very attractive to business enabling people to work and pay the high personal taxes that fund those programs.

[@Tripserpentine]

@@malokk5773 And those are indeed socialist programs, the US has a bigger free market system that's why that country has no healthcare system or even livable minimum wages. Greetings a Dutch socialist.

[@malokk5773]

@@Tripserpentine I'm Canadian so I'm familiar with similar programs. You may consider yourself a socialist (because of ignorance) but your system is not Socialism.

[@LiWingLau]

"Who thinks that people often use race to feel superior because they know themselves to be personally inferior"--yeah, I have the same suspicion too, which is a sad comment about these people.

[@kenkozawa9810]

"these people"? that message is for everyone on earth...

[@besenyeim]

Right, it's true for other groups. Race, nation, company... Every time you hear "we are better than them", the person saying feels the natural fear from pain and tries to convince themselfs, they're being protected by the group. The better group they're part of. Plot twist: there are no groups in that sense.

[@iLiokardo]

Beautiful photography. I love clouds above the mountains in the distance.

[@reyfonseca1]

Quick note: I'm a Brazilian teacher, and lived in Japan for eight long years (2011~2018). I was an exchange student and, soon after graduation, started teaching in both Japanese and Brazilian schools there. After eight incredibly amazing and harsh years of dedication to learn Japanese language, adapt to Japanese culture and make a living there, I gave up. I quit. Now, I'm back to Brazil, thinking about new possibilities to start over in a more immigrant-friendly nation, maybe Canada. Because if 8 years of hard work (teaching children, for god 'sake'), Japanese proficiency and taxes paid was not enough to deserve a permanent visa (witch the government denied 2 times in a row, because it is, in the end, discretionary), nothing will ever be. Thanks for this video.

[@spindryer7746]

Lol so the only downside to having a high trust homogenous harmonious society is lack of money

[@lucasvals4354]

Spin Dryer They can just have more kids, immigrants are not needed if you make your own workers

[@patrek2798]

@@lucasvals4354 They can't have more kids because they have no time to take care of kids. They really shot themselves in the foot with the overtime tradition.

[@shehranazim4784]

Let me answer the title question as a foreigner who lives in Japan: lmao no

[@qaz120120]

In what way? I think a japanese person would disagree with him as well, but why you?

[@shehranazim4784]

@@qaz120120 putting aside the fact that no country in the world is perfect, any people living in Japan, native or otherwise, will have to deal with a lot of shit which tourists and students don't have to. Essentially, it would be for many of the same reasons as a Japanese person. Besides, being a foreigner just makes things more difficult, and you notice many things which could be made WAY simpler, but the Japanese just grit their teeth and get on with it because "it's always been that way". My two big gripes, that pretty much cover most of the bollocks, are the huge amounts of unnecessary bureaucracy and a general disinterest in making any sort of progress with regards to day to day life and work, be it administrative or technological. And yes, I'm being totally serious about the tech - Japan is not the futuristic utopia you dream of. They'll make toilets that wash your arse, vending machines that sell you a gourmet meal, yes. They'll then ask you to fax your documents in black and white to set up a fibre optic internet connection because their systems "aren't equipped to handle email", and give you a blank look if you try to pay for something at the supermarket with a card instead of carrying around wads of cash.

[@ex-voto]

@@shehranazim4784 very true. The #1 rule at the city office is: there is always another form needed, no matter how well prepared your documentation is, & you will need to drive across town to get it.

[@TheGreennaruto]

@@user-nu1uh4cj7i thank you so much for your input. It was soooo constructive and contributed greatly to the conversation. /s if you couldn't tell.

[@Elenrai]

@Rays Through Trees, Summer Breeze Nah, Denmark, while technically a hybrid of Scandinavian and German culture, will HAPPILY ignore bureaucracy if it means we're more EFFICIENT! I kid you not, I know some people that outright fake documents to keep things efficient :'D I once even got on an inland plane from one end of the country to the other with nothing but my social security card and a written note explaining I had no passport( I was not the one that decided I suddenly had to get on a plane) and I was allowed to board simply to keep things moving along :'D

[@jpe1]

Interesting definition of “socialist” at 4:53 In school I was taught that socialism was an economic system by which the workers control the means of production, as opposed to capitalism, where the means of production are controlled by owners (aka capitalists, meaning those who provide the capital) who are not workers. I’m not saying your definition is wrong, you give a definition that fits common usage, I’m fascinated by the fact that the word as come to mean something so radically different from what it originally meant.

[@ShaunDreclin]

Isn't what you're describing communism?

[@wave1090]

Read the description

[@SenorZorros]

what you are talking about is socialism. not socialism... More specific, you are talking about the Marxian definition of socialism which is worker control of the means of production. The term ""means of production" is a Marxian construct in itself. There are also many non-marxian and non-revolutionary forms on socialism which generally are more concerned with practical issues and worker's rights and less with the grand narrative.

[@trilldog]

Socialism is broad. You're describing communism, a form of socialism. Most modern socialists are democractic socialists, who recognise the efficiency of the capitalist system at producing wealth, but want systems in place to make it more fair in its distribution of wealth.

[@SenorZorros]

@@ShaunDreclin communism, according to communists is a anarchist system where the state has been abolished. It has never been achieved on a medium or large scale. In "communist philosophy" the preceding state of worker ownership through a state which is controlled by the workers is called socialism. According to a communist the "communist nations" were actually different flavours of socialist. According to a non-marxist socialist this is just all horrible misuse of the term socialism.

[@krim7]

The b roll footage in this video is amazing. Great job!

[@Crowniecrown]

The problem is the expectation that a company/worker has to make more money the next year than they did this year. Japanese birthrate increased from 2018-2019 and they are projected to slowly increase and stabilize. Regardless, if you visit any major area in Japan you will think than the country needs to depopulate or spread itself out more. Immigration is a temporary solution with potential long lasting consequences that primarily benefit rich companies that can get away with paying their workers next to nothing.

[@TheRealGuywithoutaMustache]

Even though I'm a weeb, I'll sit this one out and watch while eating popcorn.

[@arandomchinese6706]

We weebs should think it through.Recently I rewatched some old animes(ie.inuyasha)which was created some 20 years ago. I found these classic anime much more deep than most modern ones. It feels like,japan itself is declining. I guess if you stick on holding your culture unaffected by foreign influence,decling would be an inevitibility.

[@matt58274]

Why are robots and migrants the only option? Can't they raise their birthrate?

[@Sam-vi2ho]

Appareantly not.

[@marygebbie6611]

They've been trying, but it's not really working, and also too little too late at this point. The demographics are quite skewed.

[@drsm7947]

They cant because its very expensive to raise a child in japan

[@caseychapman5726]

"no, this rare earth"

[@hugootoole4175]

I thoroughly enjoyed this video and I encourage you to make more in the future. You present interesting, unique ideas and you have a way of turning complicated, intricate situations and making them easier to understand; and furthermore you do it without sacrificing the details and facts. The world needs more people like you. I admire your ability to present such interesting information in such an un-biased manner. Instant sub, and I can't wait for the next video. Love from Australia.