Learning from Japan
A close-up on Japan's 'lost decade': "By learning the wrong lessons from Japan, the United States and others are stoking renewed inflation and putting off the years of savings needed by their aging populations." -- Philip Bowring, International Herald Tribune
Interesting piece on two fronts: Japan may not have been wrong about how they handled their own financial crisis in the 90s, and the issue of saving is right up front and center. Both countries are massively in debt, but it seems the Japanese save more than Americans. Shocking, eh? Anyway. There are many differences between the two countries, so I can`t see how people compare like they do. For instance, Japan`s population is topping out now and immigration is of little significance, whereas the U.S. population is growing and immigration has a massive effect on the country. How it all turns out who knows. Certainly the experts have no clue. That much we can bank on.
Interesting piece on two fronts: Japan may not have been wrong about how they handled their own financial crisis in the 90s, and the issue of saving is right up front and center. Both countries are massively in debt, but it seems the Japanese save more than Americans. Shocking, eh? Anyway. There are many differences between the two countries, so I can`t see how people compare like they do. For instance, Japan`s population is topping out now and immigration is of little significance, whereas the U.S. population is growing and immigration has a massive effect on the country. How it all turns out who knows. Certainly the experts have no clue. That much we can bank on.
It's not surprising at all that the Japanese save more than Americans, since they are *richer* that Americans.
Let's face it: an average American is poor; people are in debt because they don't have the cash.
America, while having enormous natural resources, is actually a poor country with great advertising that makes the country famous. But it doesn't make most of her people any richer.
I mean, Canada has a higher standard of living, and that says a lot.
Posted by UX-admin on January 08, 2009 at 04:12 AM JST #
I would not say that Japan is richer I would probably say they are just more afraid to be poor than the average American. But that is slowly changing as many young people start to take on 40 year mortgages and own dozen of credit cards
Posted by Okinawa Info on January 09, 2009 at 12:09 AM JST #
I would postulate that the Japanese (like many Europeans) are generally more fiscally conservative due to their more recent brush with severe adversity. More citizens still alive in Japan and Europe still remember terrible conditions Post WW2 that lasted into the late 50's and early 60's, while most for Americans the fiscal crisis of the 30's is distant history that is just not relevant to them. Recent generations were sold on "easy and free credit" and "double digit profit" but did not have (or did not heed) the consul of older heads.
Those who smelled "rotten fish" and moved their life savings from the "stock market" to "cash" in time may not have been achieving 2 digit annual profits, but neither did they loose 80% to 90% of their holdings.
"those who do not remember history are doomed to repeat it"
Posted by oldguy on January 09, 2009 at 06:18 AM JST #