Japan's Future -- Fucked

[Oradea]

good post HSH
This lack of thinking and balanced opinion or information and the HAWK right wing Gov. will lead these naive people into conflict yet again.

Well, we all know that a bit of a war will have a reducing effect on that burdening population problem. Just gotta work out a way of swapping the 20 year old soldiers for 60 year old ones, and a population fix has presented itself.

[dingosatemybaby]

Italy allows immigration and a few asylum seekers every year, the place is full of immigrant Slavs, Turks, Polish, Egyptians...so if the Italians are not re-producing they simply import a few people

Not simple when the unemployment rate is high (7.7% at the last report, albeit down from a high of 11.5%). The debate in Italy parallels that in Japan. The right blames rising crime on foreigners and opposes relaxtion on immigration procedures. EU nationals can work freely across borders but Poles, for instance, are not choosing Italy in any great numbers. There are labour shortages in the north but no work in the south. Predictions are for the population to fall to 40 million by 2050. Depopulation of rural areas is an acute problem.

Dare one hope: Depopulation in rural areas in Italy = affordable second homes in Toscana?

Certainly any rural depopulation in France seems to have been more than offset by the hoards of Brits buying mini-chateaux there.

-dingo
-well, the depopulation is offset during vacation season, at least...

[dingosatemybaby]

On a more serious note...
Rural depopulation, whether it be in Europe, Japan, the US, Canada, etc., is being offset, in the more picturesque rural areas at least, by the growth in the number "exurban" folks who are opting for quality of life considerations over the grime, crime, and congestion of the urban world.

[Buraku]

[Buraku]

[Buraku]

China overtook Japan as the world's largest holder of foreign-currency reserves last month, the latest evidence of China's rising influence as an international financial power.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000101&sid=aIFnH1cZG8yM&refer=japan
The Chinese government's currency assets excluding gold rose to $853.7 billion as of Feb. 28, surpassing Japan's $831.6 billion, according to Bloomberg News calculations using government data. China's reserves, which now account for 20.1 percent of the world's total of $4.3 trillion, climbed a third during the past year. Japan's reserves account for 19.5 percent of the total.

[jingai]

http://www.globalpublicmedia.com/articles/507

If the ability to refine it is severly crippled what will happen to the ability to harvest the fall grain and bean crops in the US?. American agriculture is completely dependent on diesel fuel to power it's machines. I suppose the US could import enough diesel fuel in the short run to make up for the shortfall on an emergency basis, but this would be very expensive at least. What will happen to the price of food?

Putting aside all the other reasons for the decline of Japan I would put the potential for lack of food production at the top. They aren't even talking about it. Even perverts and Ishihara have to eat.

Self-sufficiency (autarky) is so 1930s. Guess you're not into the globalization thing, eh? I think the solution is to invade the fertile unpopulated lands to the east (USSR) and west (China). Oh wait a second, there are people there already. Oh well, guess they'll have to go as we need more living space.

Anyway, we import significant quantities of diesel fuel from abroad already. You can also make a diesel substitute (syngas) from coal and we've got plenty of that in the US.

I think the bigger problem isn't running out of things but rather quick, unforseen changes. Oil shocks, crop failures, wars are a lot more economically damaging than problems you see coming and can try to avoid. This is why I'm really worried about global warming- it's like termites eating away at our house. The roof is still on for now, but we are so paralyzed by the thought of losing our house that we just stare at the termites instead of replacing the roof with a better, more sustainable one.

[homesweethome]

Self-sufficiency (autarky) is so 1930s. Guess you're not into the globalization thing, eh? I think the solution is to invade the fertile unpopulated lands to the east (USSR) and west (China). Oh wait a second, there are people there already. Oh well, guess they'll have to go as we need more living space.

Anyway, we import significant quantities of diesel fuel from abroad already. You can also make a diesel substitute (syngas) from coal and we've got plenty of that in the US.

I think the bigger problem isn't running out of things but rather quick, unforseen changes. Oil shocks, crop failures, wars are a lot more economically damaging than problems you see coming and can try to avoid. This is why I'm really worried about global warming- it's like termites eating away at our house. The roof is still on for now, but we are so paralyzed by the thought of losing our house that we just stare at the termites instead of replacing the roof with a better, more sustainable one.

Since you brought it up, I will say that I happen to agreen with Kim Jong Ill's "Chi Chong Shi Sou", which is basically a bunch of crap saying: "I can do whatever I want" Fine with me, I agree with this in practice, but not in theory. Besides, I don't want to be the man I just want the man to leave me alone!

Globalization? 1930's? I don't know nothin' bout, can't even pronounce the names of those folks. I just know what they done.

That's the big issue with me if you want or care to know.