09-08-2005 09:52									#31
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There's no way like the American way... world's most unsustainable standard of living.

Trying to squeeze out some economic growth by constantly adjustiing institutions and government leads to short term gains at long term cost. Case in point are many US heavy industries, which cut payrolls and now are supporting huge numbers of pensioners with a small number of employees. Some have defaulted on pensions and externalized the cost to government or in worse cases the employees and the public at large.

The Japanese have the world's longest life expectancy, could it be mre coincidence that they look a little further down the road than us?

	09-08-2005 13:32									#32
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Have you looked at Japanese society today? It's capitalism run amok. Every season they're buying the next coolest trend....whatever so-and-so company is saying is the best/newest thing.

Thankfully it's only the city-folk. The country gang are too busy giving the bigwig companies the finger to care what they are saying is "cool".

Less power to the private industries equals a step in the right direction.

	09-08-2005 13:47									#33
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Timexwatch: I really dislike this one party rule, however, in the last 50 years they did a helluva job all things considered.

quote: Japan's Post savings accounts pay below market rates of interest. In addition, the government has used those savings to back many things that provided no service/benefit to the account holders such as currency buying/dumping to maintain the Yen at artificial trading levels (sometimes too low, sometimes too high), construction bonds for unneeded projects, etc. It is probably the greatest source of capital for financing pork barrel projects in Japan.

Now you see? That's wrong, and no way a commercial bank should behave.

	09-08-2005 14:18									#34
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quote: Originally posted by Smiley There's no way like the American way... world's most unsustainable standard of living. Trying to squeeze out some economic growth by constantly adjustiing institutions and government leads to short term gains at long term cost. Case in point are many US heavy industries, which cut payrolls and now are supporting huge numbers of pensioners with a small number of employees. Some have defaulted on pensions and externalized the cost to government or in worse cases the employees and the public at large. The Japanese have the world's longest life expectancy, could it be mre coincidence that they look a little further down the road than us?

*cough**cough**cough**cough*

	09-08-2005 15:09									#35
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quote: Originally posted by Timexwatch The Japanese parliament needs a big shakeup. If the LDP splits, then that'll be a large step forward for Japanese democracy.

The LDP has in power for so long that they start doing strange things, such as contemplating to mess with the peace time constitution.

	09-08-2005 17:09									#36
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quote: Originally posted by Frankychan Have you looked at Japanese society today? It's capitalism run amok. Every season they're buying the next coolest trend....whatever so-and-so company is saying is the best/newest thing. Thankfully it's only the city-folk. The country gang are too busy giving the bigwig companies the finger to care what they are saying is "cool". Less power to the private industries equals a step in the right direction.

That's funny, because Japanese people have one of the highest propensities to save money in the industrialized world. They may dote on their kids a bit and hand them some cash, but that's hardly indicative of the whole society. Kids blowing some cash to look like goofy thug rappers doesn't mean capitalism is run amok.

Want to see capitalism run amok? Look at China.

	09-08-2005 18:48									#37
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quote: Originally posted by Az Timexwatch: I really dislike this one party rule, however, in the last 50 years they did a helluva job all things considered. quote: Japan's Post savings accounts pay below market rates of interest. In addition, the government has used those savings to back many things that provided no service/benefit to the account holders such as currency buying/dumping to maintain the Yen at artificial trading levels (sometimes too low, sometimes too high), construction bonds for unneeded projects, etc. It is probably the greatest source of capital for financing pork barrel projects in Japan. Now you see? That's wrong, and no way a commercial bank should behave.

And that's the whole point. The Postal savings accounts are run by politicians, not commercial bankers. This is an attempt to make it run by commercial bankers.

	09-08-2005 19:06									#38
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quote: Originally posted by Timexwatch That's funny, because Japanese people have one of the highest propensities to save money in the industrialized world.

Used to, that is.

quote: Originally posted by Timexwatch Want to see capitalism run amok? Look at China.

The word you are looking for is "consumption." The place you want to look is the US, where personal debt is the highest in the world.

	09-08-2005 19:42									#39
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Japan isn't capitalism run amock. Japan is more substantially government and cartel-controlled than many other first-world countries. Its biggest bank (and the world's biggest bank) is government-owned, after all. Even the French don't quite have this kind of arrangement.

ITYM that Japan is consumerism run amock. But I don't know how you judge whether consumerism has run amock.

	09-08-2005 21:06									#40
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quote: And that's the whole point. The Postal savings accounts are run by politicians, not commercial bankers. This is an attempt to make it run by commercial bankers.

Umm, no, it's privatization.