Japan: The most unhappy country?

[@PepGuard-tp4ny]

The thing about competition is that there is always someone better than you and that can destroy you.

[@Thing-vc2qm]

It's just amazing to see your life change over the years and hearing your thoughts once in a while. Whishing you and your family the best!

[@nikkimontgomery6889]

Firstly, sincere congrats to your genius son, successfully battling in the arena of Japanese education! And, to his amazing Mom and Dad! I have lived in both Japan and Korea back in the 70s and 80s. Speak both languages at intermediate level, and did my Masters thesis field study at Seoul National University. But, sadly decided not to become an expat there….. I found the culture wonderful in so many ways, but inextricably bizarre in others. So I understand your analysis. The multi dimensional intensity of these societies conflicted with my American value system at an almost elemental level. It’s one of my greatest life regrets. Now that I’m retired, I may visit, but probably not. However, best wishes to you and your family. I’ve been following your channel for years - you are a forthright and talented young man!

[@unrested]

Thanks a bunch for sticking with me for so long. I’ve heard Korea is even harder than Japan when it comes to testing and entrance exams. On top of it you still have a draft too right? I’ve even heard working as an English teacher in Korea is harder due to how strict the testing is for students

[@AutomHatter]

What a fascinating topic Scott. Love your videos!

[@justapickedminfan]

Something I noticed is that despite working longer hours, time use is not nearly efficient as in the US. Like, there is a lot of down time where you must pretend you're doing something worthwhile. It's like they value the idea of "looking productive" more than actually spending time productively.

[@unrested]

You are completely right. In fact in some countries like Sweden and Norway who have implemented 4 day work weeks have shown large increases in efficiency as workers come in refreshed and ready to go full speed for 4 days

[@kikusama]

This is why Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (RIP) passed the over hours law back when I was living in Japan. A lot of my Japanese friends were happy about it because they could go home. but I also know people were not happy it too. It was a way to cut back on the insane overtime people were doing.

[@unrested]

He passed that but the percentage of business that actually followed through with restricted hours was comically low. Now everyone is back to the same 60 hour work weeks as well usually working on Saturdays too

[@kikusama]

@@unrested so sad 😞

[@DylanJo123]

I wonder what those people who were not happy are thinking. Probably out of touch CEO or bigwigs that dont care about people's happiness, just profit

[@kikusama]

@@DylanJo123 surprisingly they were employees who felt the company would expect them to do the same work in less hours. . . causing more stress. I heard from a friend that when they got to the max number of hrs, they would clock out and still work the rest of the hours not clocked in. They didn't want the company to get in trouble. The mind set in Japan for some people is just hard to change.

[@DylanJo123]

@@kikusama Now that is some cultural differences if i ever heard it. I cant imagine anyone in the US thinking like that lol

[@aiden9586]

Thanks for the video Scott. Best of luck to your kids in all of their studies, they sound like super high achievers. The education system in Japan sounds really difficult.

[@maxxrenn]

“Sorry Afghanistan, that sucks” 😂😂😂

[@thrax1831]

"We need a cute girl for a desk job to wlcome people into the company" Whats wrong with that? For jobs like that physical appearance directly translates to how well you can do your job. Just like cheerleaders, they cant be middle aged fat and ugly. Its not discrimination, its a job requirement because its something you need to do the job. What would have been weird is if its a job for a secretary and it said i want i cute girl as my secretary to have something cute to look at while working or something along those lines.

[@Lunaeincola]

Yeah japan sounds like a great country as long as you are tourist or work for international company tbh ,,,great video Scott as always, really enjoy the filmed walking in japan while sharing stories ! Also your wife and you are real power couple ! Love hearing about your dynamics work ,you seem to have a healthy relationship! We need more of that !

[@JesusChrist2000BC]

Was Ryan boundless some kind of prophet after all? LOL

[@harukaru84]

thank you for this analysis, it's very to the point. also you got all the bragging rights for your genius wife and son :D

[@elenakursteiner4729]

So cool and kind that you talk about your Family and Wife. Japanese people are super lonely,it's what I saw just now.But they are strong and resistable also.I hope the Country finds the way out of that problem, somehow .Thank you for the Reportage ❤️.

[@unrested]

Yeah I hope the best for Japan

[@chasemathis2016]

Since Japanese stubbornness was mentioned shortly after WW2... I think this is why the Pacific theater was so brutal. You had two sides who would rather die than lose, and they were at war with each other. "Give me liberty or give me death" and all that... Both sides refused to acknowledge the bell like that one episode of South Park. The US and Japan are 2 of the most stubborn nations in history. Edit: I was also a horrible student. English was my best subject in school. It's also the only one I had to retake because I couldn't be bothered to read A Tale of Two Cities. It sucks. The book sucks.

[@unrested]

I agree completely. I see huge faults in our American system run by greed and stubbornness

[@sleepyhunter]

I think this unhappiness has been bubbling under the surface for a while. I honestly like your approach to parenting bu involving your child in deciding their future. Your eldest choosing to go the traditional Japanese way and your youngest choosing to goes his own way. I know I'm biased but life is too short to be overly stressed about tests and work. It should be enjoyed with friends, family and lovers.

[@unrested]

I completely agree.

[@TheCajunGaijin]

In theory they could go to an English juku though. I did teach at one. 😅 I feel extra bad for the ones that were going to a different juku before or after coming to English Juku though. But this is such a fascinating video though. Because ideally I'd like my son to go to middle school or high school in Japan just so he can have a firm command of the language. He'll be in kinder there starting in September. But I wonder how beneficial it will be when there is so much stress involved with the pay in Japan being so low comparatively to the US. Of course job depending. Regardless just trying to setup my son for the best possible future.

[@unrested]

It depends. Is he going to compete with Japan schools or American schools. He’ll return to American years ahead in math and science but be behind in English. Or if he decides to compete for good schools in Japan IT WILL BE STRESSFUL there is no question. Which is worth it? I’m not sure I have an answer

[@Naturenerd1000]

In the US half the people are happy and half are miserable.

[@unrested]

Still better than nearly 80 percent here. In a seperate study on age only 20 percent of Japanese said they would look forward to the future of aging past retirement here

[@thrax1831]

The whole problem with the happiness index stuf. Is that its so subjective. People who live in way worse countries are ranked above japan in that report. Those people would probably think japan is a paradise compared to their countries. I would know cus Im living in one of them, and almost every single aspect of Japan i hear americans talkng about being a bad thing is either the same or better in Japan than how it is in my country. The only thing I can think of that is worse in japan than here would be the cram schools etc for kids. Anything else Japan is just a straight upgrade. Im actually planning to move to japan by the end of this year so I'll get a more personal view of the situation, and a fairer comparison. But thats honestly how i see it.

[@lelouchemperor8424]

Does anyone remember Eishine? He did alot of videos with Sharla and Rachel and other vloggers. What happened with that guy? I would be super interested to know.

[@chiptoothtech4937]

WELL SAID SCOTT! BEEN HERE FOR ALL OVER 9 YEARS AND NO IMPROVEMENTS BAR NONE IN TERMS OF ECONOMY GOVERNANCE AND EDUCATION HERE IN JAPAN THIS WILL BE MY LAST YEAR IN JAPAN AFTER ALMOST A DECADE TIME TO SAY SAYONARA!!!

[@Aozoraa33]

Spoiler alert, I left Japan a few years ago, now I'm thinking of going back. The grass isn't greener on the other side, depending on where you're going there might not even be any grass left anymore...

[@chiptoothtech4937]

TO EACH HIS OR HER OWN. I HAD IT. BAD ECONOMY ETC. TENSIONS WITH OTHER ASIAN COUNTRIES AND THE LIST GOES ON.... THANKS FOR YOUR INPUT BUT GOOD LUCK TO YOU

[@unrested]

Hey thanks for watching. Yeah it’s rough to leave this wonderful country. There are so many things I love about Japan. Life is simple, trains run great, food is cheap, customer service is great, combinis everywhere, but economically it’s a sink hole for gaijin who want to have a family.

[@serendipitous6]

I would also posit that Japanese folks can be the most brutally honest about themselves in many respects....

[@unrested]

Yeah they can be harsh when judging themselves

[@theshadowman1398]

This is severy F up specially knowing that most end up with a regular office job which I can get where I live just based on work experience and not on to which university I went to. Also any company that has more than two job interviews I turn it down myself. And they are actually shocked by that. I simply tell them that I am applying for a regular job not the bloody CEO so there should not be a whole stage proces.

[@WANDERER0070]

UNhappy ? Depends who you ask I supose. People who work for themselves are happy just like you 😂 see Paolo from Tokyo

[@dongdongvu1]

if the population keeps declining, all this competitiveness will fade too, when the best schools have few applicants admission standards will loosen up

[@unrested]

Yeah that is true but at what cost? Far less workers means the retired have reduced ss and pensions which are already insanely low. Some people are trying to survive on less than 600 dollars a month

[@dongdongvu1]

@@unrested absolutely. they need some pop. growth. high population in Canada is causing problems. heavy competition for jobs and housing/healthcare i'd say elderly who rent are better off in japan than canada where rent is $2000 a month for a basement

[@WANDERER0070]

Jpan Gov should pass a Law making sure Overtime work gets paid ! Preferably at double time 😊 youd see hapiness increase quickly and bosses being less anoying

[@SIG442]

It's a really sad affair indeed, Japan is such a lovely country only to get destroyed by greedy companies and a government that refuses to act accordingly. I wouldn't be against a massive uprising of the people against this bs. It's really sad to see the Japanese being treated like modern day slaves. Yes technically they do get payed, but what is money if you can't really use it? What is money if you don't have the time to spend it? For that matter, being payed too little as your company refuses to pay you a decent wage? It's really disgusting and I am 100% standing behind the Japanese people if they decide to rise up against this nonsense. It makes absolutely no sense to just be used and abused your whole life only to serve some false god (CEO of your company) that ruins your entire life.

[@DioJeanBaptiste]

ah what goes up must come down

[@unrested]

So true. Alas I would love to see this great country rise again

[@Mefistosteles484]

Are you deleting my comment or it's just my KZbin account?

[@Mefistosteles484]

Yeah, something wrong happens.

[@chappiescollectables]

Well he is an ackerman afterall

[@unrested]

Kenny Ackerman in fact. Which I named him before the manga but crazy right? Sometimes people think my family use Ackerman as a nickname and that we are otaku for the titan series

[@chappiescollectables]

@@unrested hahaha no way. That's bad ass. Wouldve been hilarious if you named your other son Levi and if you had a daughter, Mikasa 😂 Also Kenny in AOT is extremely competitive so that's another coincidence.

[@VOIDTheft1]

Thank you for this unpropagandistic video. I knew it already, but it's always good that somebody dares to bring it in the open.

[@Beerpongmaster14]

with one single move youre gonna tank your channel, i kept you around outta love but yyou want me to pay monthly to watch content? you had a good run man, but everything ends

[@zimzam9166]

Another weeb who got butt-hurt about Japan because working at an eikaiwa isn't exactly the same as anime. Clearly needs to watch Boundless's dream crusher vids

[@unrested]

lol you mean Ryan boundless the person I talked about 2 videos ago? Been living here 15 years and have had multiple conversations with Ryan. Awesome dude. Welcome to the Channel btw my fellow weeb

[@zimzam9166]

@@unrested the very one. By the way, will you do a video on Hiding In My Room? That guy is my favourite, except for you, of course ❤️

[@unrested]

@@zimzam9166 yeah I actually really want to do one on him but I need to find a decent history of his insane back and forth with his many exs and ex wife. I actually really liked his stuff back in the day and cheered him on at the beginning of his life here in Japan but as I saw him unravel and his complete lack of empathy and very low levels of humanity it got harder and harder to watch and support him

[@ApsaIar]

one big reason could be the massive influx of western propaganda in the political sphere of japan. leading to 'leftist' policies on education and immigration and religion. all of these things have also led to massive unhappiness in all western countries that are currently afflicted by it. japan is in the early stages... good luck to japan.

[@unrested]

Really? Can you give a few examples? Manga, games, anime, movies and education/ work culture seem pretty cut off from leftist propaganda. Like I said Japan does not change easily.

[@Rbear-SF]

Japan is an amazing country! Education in America is not great. China and Japan have tough but excellent schooling systems. I wish I had a better education. In America, they encourage unhealthy habits. They want you to be overweight and sick. America is not a good country, so I plan on moving to Japan in a couple of years. I tend to switch jobs frequently because I get bored easily and won't tolerate mistreatment from management. I'm starting my own online skincare business because I dislike working for others, especially with the rise of online job opportunities due to the pandemic. It's unfortunate how people in Japan tend to overwork. Life is too short. It's good to have discussions about this topic. I used to watch Kanadajin3 videos about Japan, where she only focused on the positive aspects and praised the country. It made me hesitant to explore the darker side of Japan and do my own research. However, I still have a love for Japan and now I feel it's important to educate myself about the reality of the country. #japan

[@unrested]

Yeah americas eating habits are still incredibly bad. Schools definitely got the food right here in Japan

[@Rbear-SF]

At 20:02 there is a swastika on that person's mailbox or mini shrine??? What does that symbol mean in Japan?

[@unrested]

The swastika is diagonal and reversed what you are seeing is the symbol for a shrine. Yes nazis did take this symbol and repurpose it for themselves

[@ManiacalForeigner]

It's called a "manji" in Japan, and it's a common Buddhist symbol there. The swastika has been used by many different cultures all across the world with different meanings, usually relating to the sun, and commonly seen as auspicious, bringing prosperity. It is a shame how nowadays it's exclusively associated with the Nazi "Hakenkreuz". Nobody deserves to have a monopoly on such an ancient and meaningful sign.

[@Rbear-SF]

@@ManiacalForeigner Thank you so much! I've never tried to educate myself on the symbol outside of what Germany used it for!

[@Rbear-SF]

@@unrested I really need to educate myself better! Thank you! This is really interesting! Thank you!