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Gordon Graham
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Comments by "Gordon Graham" (@gordonbgraham) on "Why Japan’s Population Is Still Declining - Japanese interview" video.

@stevenguitink5947 Neither hikkikomori nor karoshi are specific to Japan, they simply have specific names. In the US an estimated 200,000 people die annually from "work-related stress"...that's "karoshi". In the same US...and Canada, basements are full of young people who have given up on life, many with university degrees and a mountain of debt who can't find work. OECD's numbers show that Japanese are 31st in the world for hours worked per annum. The fact is most Japanese work standard 40 hour work weeks. It's estimated that 70% of Japan's workforce commutes to work by train. Japan Rail cites the evening rush hour between 5~6pm as being the busiest in train stations throughout Japan...why? Because that's when MOST people are returning home.
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@jasonlucas2328 I've lived and worked in Japan since 1988. I work 40 hours a week, as do most of the people I know.
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@dayckat4547 The cost of living in Japan is not that high. You can rent a one room apartment in Tokyo for as low as $300 per month. I recently bought a home in Saitama on a 1/4 acre lot 50 minutes from central Tokyo for the equivalent of $150,000 USD. The same home would have cost at least 10 times that in my native Toronto, Canada where home ownership is out of reach for the working class. We have universal healthcare meaning everyone has equal access to one of the best healthcare systems on the planet. Clothing is cheap, eating out is cheap, used cars in mint condition are cheap, education is free up until University for public schools and subsidized for private schools for those who can’t afford it. I could go on and on, but these things I’ve mentioned matter greatly when raising a family. We’ve raised 5 kids in Japan on my modest salary with my wife staying home to rear the children.
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Japan ranks 27th in the world for hours worked per annum. There's a reason Japan Rail cites the hour between 5~6pm as the busiest in train stations throughout Japan...That's when MOST people are returning home from work.
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@datekaname2246 Japan Rail cites the hour between 5-6pm as the busiest in train stations throughout Japan, indicating that’s when most people are returning home. Also, karoshi exists throughout the world, only it’s call work related stress. It’s estimated some 250,000 die from work related stress in America annually.
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@parkb5320 According to Japan Rail’s statistics the hour between 5-6 pm is the busiest in train stations throughout Japan.
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Why would anyone pay a tutor to learn a language when there is so much online for free.
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@JF_76 Japan Rail cites the evening rush hour between 5~6pm as being the busiest in train stations throughout Japan. 70% of Japan’s workforce commutes to work by train. OECDs statistics show that Japan currently ranks 31st in the world for hours worked per annum. This is corroborated by Japan Rail’s numbers which count physical bodies passing through turnstiles.
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What Japan Rail's numbers reveal is what time most commuters are returning home, which is between the hour of 5~6pm. It's estimated that 70% of Japan's workforce commutes to work by train. This corroborates OECD's numbers that reveal that the average Japanese worker works a standard 40 hour work week. Certainly, there are sectors such as finance, marketing or agriculture in which overtime is excessive, but that's true of those sectors throughout the world. As for the hikkikomori phenomenon, that has mainly been facilitated by the age of the Internet in which people can cocoon at home and lead vicarious lives online. This is further facilitated in Japan by cheap rent, where one can rent a one room apartment in Tokyo for as little as $300 a month. Japan has an estimated 3000 homeless in a population of 125 million. Canada has an estimated 250,000 homeless in a population of 40 million. You can't rent an apartment in Toronto or Vancouver for under $2000 a month. Cheap rent, the Internet, Japan being a de facto social welfare state in which one could simply decide not to work and live cheaply in a one room apartment are the main contributing factors to the hikkikomori phenomenon in Japan. In North America it's down to enabling parents, ennui, a coddling of youth who feel entitled and as such above menial or manual labour...drugs...and the Internet. Certainly, mental health issues are at the core of some, but I would argue that mental health issues have always been an issue in Japan due to its lack of mental health care facilities. The hikkikomori phenomenon is relatively new. In Japan it's is mainly due to how easy an option it is due to cheap rent and the Internet.
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@pachjo123 I bought a 3 bedroom home on a 1/4 acre lot in Saitama, 50 minutes from Ikebukuro in central Tokyo, for the equivalent of $150,000 USD. The same home would have cost me at least 10 times that in my native, Toronto Canada. We have two living rooms, a western style one with hardwood floors, and a Japanese style one with tatami mats. There is a large bath with bay window with the tiles in pristine condition, two washrooms, one upstairs, one downstairs, the eat in kitchen is in excellent condition with no mould on any of the tiles and a large stainless sink. Our property has a blueberry bush that yields a ton of blueberries, a kiwi vine that produces more kiwi than we can eat and a half dozen persimmon trees. The floor plan is awesome, because there is a large hallway with high ceilings (and pot lighting) between the two living rooms downstairs so it's easy for people to have friends over etc. without disturbing the rest of the family. Oh...and I don't know anyone who sleeps around. We've raised 5 kids here on my modest salary without my wife working. Moving to Japan from Canada was the best decision I've ever made.
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The poorest countries have the highest birthrates. Also, Japan ranks 27th in the world for hours worked per annum. Most Japanese work standard 40 hour work weeks with a tonne of National holidays.
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@mrbanks456 How's Venezuela doing?
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@ethikzmedia why just reference one room apartments designed for singles? You can buy a 3 bedroom home in Tokyo for under $200,000 or rent one for around $700~$800 per month. Try that in Toronto, London, New York, Paris or Sydney…not a chance.
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@mam0lechinookclan607 I've lived in Japan since 1988. Until 3 years ago I rented a 4 bedroom apartment in Tokyo for ¥80000 ($700 USD). 3 years ago I bought a 3 bedroom house on a 1/4 acre lot, 50 minutes from the centre of Tokyo for the equivalent of $150,000 USD. The same home would have cost me at least 10 times that in my native Toronto, Canada. At least 10 times. Home ownership is out of reach for the working class in Canada and you can't rent a one room apartment in Toronto or Vancouver for under $2000 per month. You can rent a studio apartment in Tokyo for as little as $300 per month.
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@datekaname2246 according to Japan Rail’s statistics the hour between 5-6pm is the busiest in train stations throughout Japan, indicating that’s when most people are returning home
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@eigelgregossweisse9563 In Japan? Good looking young people that's who. Tinder is on fire, but you wouldn't know that unless you were a good looking young person in Japan. If you're a fat balding white guy who is teaching English in Japan or a nerdy recluse, you wouldn't understand as much. As with most places throughout the world...good looking young people are enjoying the graces of each other's company. So to speak
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@stxfdt1240 He’s right. Look at OECD averages for hours worked per annum. Japan ranks 27th
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@bentairyukiba The world's birthrate was 5.33 in 1960. It's 2.30 now. Is the world's population "dying"?
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@stevenguitink5947 See above as a response to that absolute piffle you wrote.
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Japan ranks 27th in the world for hours worked per annum. There's a reason Japan Rail cites the hour between 5~6pm as the busiest in train stations throughout Japan...That's when MOST people are returning home from work.
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@vrsc9312 Most Japanese work standard 40 hour work weeks. Japan ranks 31st in the world for hours worked per annum according to OECD's data. That data is corroborated by Japan Rail's data which shows that the evening rush hour between 5~6pm as being the busiest in train stations throughout Japan, indicating that is when MOST people are returning home.
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@irzilzon7041 spoiler alert...most people are polite in public. Japanese will most certainly tell you their true feelings once you get to know them.
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@ethikzmedia what?
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@melissasugi681 Japan Rail's numbers show that the busiest evening rush hour is between 5~6pm, indicating that's when most people are returning home. JRs numbers corroborate OECDs numbers that show most Japanese work standard 40 hour work weeks. (this is anecdotal but I also live in Japan and have since 1988. I run a youth ice hockey program. We practice 3 nights a week (8~9:30pm) and weekends (7~9am). We have 70 kids in our program. Roughly 90% of those kids are driven to games and practices by their fathers) Not everyone works in the corporate towers of Shinjuku or in agriculture, in fact, most don't. It's estimated that 70% of Japan's workforce commutes to work by train, so Japan Rail's numbers are a good metric by which to corroborate OECD's numbers.
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@RomanBarkov-h3m Do you know what a turnstile in a train station is? Do you know what it counts? People. Do you know what the busiest hour is according to Japan Rail’s statistics. It’s 5~6pm. Do you know what Japan Rail is? Japan’s number one rail service provider. Do you know that 70% of Japan’s labor force commutes to work by train? Do you know what the word “majority” means?
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@sandasturner9529 You should move to Japan. I've raised 5 kids here on a modest salary with my wife not working.
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@bellabana You know what else has been stagnant? Housing prices. As a result Japan has affordable housing and home ownership is not out of reach for the working class like it is in Canada, where I'm from. The average cost of a home in Tokyo is $300,000. The average cost of a home in Toronto is 1.2M. Canada has an estimated 250,000 homeless among a population of 40 million while Japan has an estimated 3,300 among a population of 125 million. As a father of 5 in Japan, I can attest, stagnation hasn't been all bad. Also, Japan ranks 31st in the world for hours worked per annum. Most Japanese work standard 40 hour work weeks. Not everyone works in the corporate towers of Shinjuku, where overtime is excessive. Also, re immigration. It's estimated that 50% of current jobs will have been made obsolete by AI and mass automation within the next 2 decades. Clearly, taking on immigrants the bulk of whom would more than likely end up unemployed is only going to put more stress on the public coffers. That's a very short-sighted solution. Japan already has endless lines for 3-5 year work visas to address any current work shortages. Japan is doing immigration right.
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It would have been interesting to hear why the Japanese who lived abroad returned to Japan
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There are too few daycare centres in Japan
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@malwads1836 Some people brought actual statistics when others brought…I heard it on a podcast. You let me know when you find any train company that allows passengers to sleep on their trains overnight. Commuter trains…not long distance overnight trains.
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@@Nijug0 True enough. Feedback from a native speaker is essential in language acquisition.
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A reduction in population is prudent considering AI and mass-automation will have made 50% of current jobs obsolete within the next 25 years...especially on an archipelago roughly the size of California (pop 40M) that is 80% mountainous, non-arable land on which food can't be grown and with a current population of 125 million. What's needed is not more people, but a more efficient economic system that doesn't require unsustainable population growth to sustain it.
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@0726-o9b Teaching history is a waste of time. You can learn that online. Math, science and literacy is where the focus should be. Japan annually ranks in the top 5 in those subjects in international testing among high school students.
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The world’s birthrate was 5.33 in 1960. It’s currently 2.30. I guess the world is dying out😢
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@itsuhitokomura7607 On average the Japanese workers worked longer hours in the Showa era. Currently, Japan ranks 31st in the world for hours worked per annum. On average most Japanese work 35~40 hours a week according to OECD's comprehensive data. That data is corroborated by Japan Rail's data which shows that the evening rush hour between 5~6pm is the busiest in train stations throughout Japan, indicating that is when MOST Japanese are returning home.
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KazamaKazuyoshi458 The blood sweat and tears of those who came before you built the foundation for you to mewl like a kitten sucking on a hind teat from the comfort of your home
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@o00nemesis00o Any easy economy? WTF is that?!! You people have no idea what you're talking about..."an easy economy" meant working long hours to build the world's 2nd largest economy! That your generation can't do jack squat but complain about it says more about you than it does them..."an easy economy"...Jeezus H Christ!
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@biowep1175 Yeah...Baby Boomer's worked hard to build the economy and raise the standard of living...while Gen Z mewls about what they don't have like a kitten sucking on a hind teat. It's similar throughout the world...Gen Z thinking life is to be handed to them
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Most Japanese work standard 40 hour work weeks which is why Japan Rail’s statistics show that the hour between 5~6pm is the busiest in train stations throughout Japan. That’s when MOST Japanese are returning home. It’s estimated that 70% of Japan’s workforce commutes by train. Also, there’s not a housing crisis in Japan. In fact, it’s the opposite. There’s affordable housing everywhere even in Tokyo where the average cost of a home is $350,000 and where you can rent a 3 bedroom apartment for as little as $400 a month.
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Japan has the fewest number of emigrants on the planet. You know what else is also extremely low...housing costs
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@mam0lechinookclan607 It’s verifiably true
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@wamnicho It's not a matter of math and science raising birthrates. It's a matter of birthrates levelling out to adjust to the current age in which AI and mass-automation will have made 50% of current jobs obsolete within the next two decades. People assume that a downward trend means downward to zero. Trends fluctuate for a myriad of reasons. Japan's birthrate was 1.25 in 2005 almost two decades ago. It's currently 1.34, a slight rise. Japanese families are still having kids, just not 3~5 like they did a generation ago. It's not necessary for Japan to "replace" the previous generation, only to sustain its own generation with a level of sustainability that matches its natural resources and viable economic potential which mass unemployment will only serve to impede.
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@lovepeace9841 People can read. There's plenty of sources online for them to learn history. What they should be focused on is agricultural science, being an archipelago that is 80% mountainous, non-arable land on which food can't be grown, and given the fact that AI and mass-automation will have made 50% of current jobs obsolete within the next 20 years, and given the fact Japan is surrounded by hostile neighbors that could shut down her shipping lanes the minute some geo-political turmoil happens in the South China Sea, such as a conflict between Taiwan and China. No, Love and Peace...history class can be eschewed for more practical purposes. Once a person can read, there is plenty for those interested in history to read whatever they like.
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In Japan, the housewife is Queen. She makes all the major financial decisions. She controls the banking and gives the husband a monthly allowance as though he were a 15 year old boy. In Japan, the group is paramount over the individual. The family unit is the most essential group and Mother is the leader of the family unit. The Me first concept that pervades in the West prevents Westerns from truly understanding Japanese society...and the fact that Mother is most certainly not a 2nd class citizen but Queen.
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Socialism and Communism are worse...look at Venezuela a country rich in natural resources with people starving in the street
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As someone who has raised 5 kids on a modest salary with his wife not working to stay at home to raise the children, I can confirm that raising children in Japan is not expensive. The government provides us with a stipend of ¥15,000 per month per child up until high school. It costs me ¥30,000 ($250) a month for National Health Insurance, the insurance covers medicine as well as dental. I’ve saved at least $50,000 alone in dental costs by not having raised my kids in Canada, where I’m from. Speaking of Canada, home ownership is out of reach for the working class while you can buy a home in Tokyo, Japan’s richest city for an average of $300,000. The average cost of a home in Toronto is 1.2 million. There are discount clothing stores everywhere as there are discount dry goods stores. Public school is free up to university and university is a fraction of the cost it is in North America. Raising children in Japan is very much affordable. I make around $50,000 a year and have raised 5 of them. None has been denied ski trips, piano lessons or the latest smartphone. The reason being, the cost of living is so cheap, especially regarding housing and essentials such as clothing, education and health.
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Most Japanese work 40 hours a week. Japan ranks 27th in the world for hours worked per annum
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@GreenHoleSun Japanese work 38.5 hours a week on average. The Internet is a cesspool of misinformation
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@foggylegg6362 well, they’re going to movies, clubs, going to see Christmas illuminations during their holidays and they’re going to love hotels. That’s dating. Maybe at 17~25 they’re not committing to long term relationships but as you’ve noted that’s a wise, practical decision.
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@stevenguitink5947 What Japan Rail's numbers reveal is what time most commuters are returning home, which is between the hour of 5~6pm. It's estimated that 70% of Japan's workforce commutes to work by train. This corroborates OECD's numbers that reveal that the average Japanese worker works a standard 40 hour work week. Certainly, there are sectors such as finance, marketing or agriculture in which overtime is excessive, but that's true of those sectors throughout the world. As for the hikkikomori phenomenon, that has mainly been facilitated by the age of the Internet in which people can cocoon at home and lead vicarious lives online. This is further facilitated in Japan by cheap rent, where one can rent a one room apartment in Tokyo for as little as $300 a month. Japan has an estimated 3000 homeless in a population of 125 million. Canada has an estimated 250,000 homeless in a population of 40 million. You can't rent an apartment in Toronto or Vancouver for under $2000 a month. Cheap rent, the Internet, Japan being a de facto social welfare state in which one could simply decide not to work and live cheaply in a one room apartment are the main contribution factors to the hikkikomori phenomenon in Japan. In North America it's down to enabling parents, ennui, a coddling of youth who feel entitled and as such above menial or manual labour...drugs...and the Internet. Certainly, mental health issues are at the core of some, but I would argue that mental health issues have always been an issue in Japan due to its lack of mental health care facilities. The hikkikomori phenomenon is relatively new. In Japan it's is mainly due to how easy an option it is due to cheap rent and the Internet.
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@foggylegg6362 I've raised 5 kids in Japan on a modest salary and my wife staying home. We live quite comfortably. We're thrilled with the care and attention they've received in the public school system here, which instils a sense of responsibility and community.
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@f430ferrari5 He's from Australia which ranks 20th in the world for hours worked per annum. Japan ranks 31st, so on average, Australians work more. He worked in the Eikaiwa industry, which is notoriously black. That most certainly colours his view of working life in Japan. The thing is, there are sectors such as finance, marketing and agriculture in which overtime is excessive and there are dead-end jobs like ALT (assistant language teacher) for which there is no opportunity for advancement. That's only a small frame of the overall picture, however. On average, Japanese work standard 40 hour work weeks and advancement in the workplace is largely based on two things, seniority and competence. Most foreigners working in Japan are not functionally literate, that is they lack the ability to read and write at a functioning level in the workplace which is why they can't advance. Imagine reading and writing at an elementary school grade 3 level and expecting to advance in the workplace in Australia, Canada or the US. Impossible. So, what happens is many of those who come to Japan looking for a fun and exciting life, get tied down to a dead end job with low pay and no opportunity for advancement. Many take their frustrations out in resentment of the Japanese and their culture. It's a pretty common thing among expats who have not been able to find success in Japan.
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@foggylegg6362 Young people are putting off "dating" until they've graduated university, started work and have learned to be an individual by living alone for a few years. More and more Japanese are putting off marriage until their 30s. Romeo and Juliette is for the movies. The Japanese are more practical than teenage love fantasies.
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@jjj2303 Don't hold your breath waiting for an answer...
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@moonshinershonor202 Except Japanese people don't ignore widespread problems and what does its social culture is "stunted" mean? It hasn't become Western culture? There's a lot of clever words in there but it's basically a word salad that says little if nothing at all. I read it as..."my life in Japan amounted to a dead end rut because I ended up in a McJob in which I couldn't advance (likely because he's functionally illiterate) ergo the Japanese are backwards.
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Let’s be honest. Most foreigners in Japan are functionally illiterate. Imagine not being able to read and write at a junior high school level in English and expecting to advance in the workplace in an English speaking country. It took me 15 years of diligent study before I could get my teaching license from a Japanese university, but once I did my salary tripled and my benefits increased. I now have 40 paid holidays on top of national holidays and 2 days off a week. I also receive a severance package of $150,000 USD upon retirement. As far as inflation goes it’s worse in Canada, where I’m from. Speaking of Canada, home ownership is out of reach for the working class. The average cost of a home in Toronto is 1.2 million. The average cost of a home in Tokyo is $350,000. We bought our home in 2020 for $150,000. It’s a 3 bedroom home on a 1/4 acre lot 50 minutes from Ikebukuro, the heart of Tokyo. The same home would have cost 10 times that in Canada for the land alone.
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@CounterScroll this is bs. People can’t “stay on trains” overnight. Trains go into the yard for maintenance and cleaning when they go out of service. Blatant lies like this reveal who you’re dealing with.
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@MyRadicalKanjiWorld sucks for you. Move back home then
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@khoirulanam9141 the majority of Japanese work 9-5, Monday to Friday
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Japan ranks 27th in the world for hours worked per annum. While there has been stagnation for 30 years, there are some good things that come from that, such as affordable housing which is one of the reasons Japan has so few homeless (an estimated 3,300) and Canada where home ownership is out of reach for the working class has so many homeless (355,000) despite having 1/4 of Japan's population.
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@wamnicho The world’s birthrate was 5.33 in 1960. It’s currently 2.30. The world is going to collapse according to your model. With fewer businesses Japan requires fewer consumers. Pre-pandemic Japan had 30 million visitors from abroad. That’s almost the entire population of Canada. Those numbers are returning. You can’t swing a cat without hitting a tourist. Those tourist spend…a lot. Speaking of spending, the Japanese are more spenders than savers. Most companies have a bi-annual bonus system in which employees receive 2-3 months salary in lump sum payments. Japanese buy big ticket items like washing machines and cars during those periods. Speaking of cars Japanese cars are the largest selling automobiles in the world. Japan also has the healthiest people in the world with the longest lifespans. Many Japanese still work in their 70s and 80s. The elderly in Japan are active…and consumers. They golf, hike, fish. farm, play gateball, dp ballroom dancing, take English lessons and travel. No, Japan need not replace its current population. Any current shortages in the workplace (prior to AI and mass automation making those jobs redundant) Japan addresses by providing 3-5 year work visas. Visas for which there are endless lineups for throughput Asia. The number of foreign residents in Japan in 1980 was 663,000. It’s currently 3 million. I’m a foreign resident. I bought a house, cars, send my kids to school etc. My son just entered college. Tokyo International University. There are plenty of foreign students. There are currently 250,000 foreign students registered in Japan. Pre-pandemic there were 350,000. Those numbers will see a rise to prepandemic levels again. Tuition for visa students is almost double what it is for native Japanese. Those students also pay for boarding, and spend money while enjoying their college life. Japan’s population leveling out to a more sustainable number is not the gloom and doom scenario that people from abroad hope it will be. If nothing else the Japanese are resilient. Meanwhile, the streets of Europe and North America are in chaos with people who are at odds with each other culturally, socially and politically. While Japan retains her social cohesion through cultural harmony. This too, serves Japan well in times of economic downturns.
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