Why Is Japan So Rich?

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  • čas přidán 20. 05. 2024
  • Why is Japan so Rich? How did the Land of the Rising Sun become one of the wealthiest countries in the world? This video will start from Japan's isolation to the Meiji Restoration all the way to the Asian Financial Crisis in the 1990s.
    Join Patreon: / historyscope
    Credits
    - Research: Mrs Scope
    - Animation: rbbrduck.nl
    - Audio: Seb. Soto
    - Writing and Voice Over: Avery from History Scope
    Social Media
    - Discord: / discord
    - Twitter: / scopehistory
    - Instagram: / officialhistoryscope
    - Facebook: / averythingchannel
    Sources
    R. H. P. Mason, J. G. Caiger (1997) A History of Japan. Tuttle Publishing, Tokyo
    C. Totman (2000) A History of Japan. Blackwell Publishing, Malden

Komentáře • 2,7K

  • @bartleyhoran9833
    @bartleyhoran9833 Před rokem +981

    You wouldn't believe you're Dutch with that pour. Absolutely shocking. 12:31

    • @atomicmelodies
      @atomicmelodies Před rokem +20

      LOL

    • @sgt290983
      @sgt290983 Před rokem +90

      I saw the poor pour, then immediately scrolled the comments.

    • @sgt290983
      @sgt290983 Před rokem +63

      Perhaps we just got trolled as so we would comment.....

    • @monge999
      @monge999 Před rokem +7

      @@sgt290983 same ahah

    • @thexiroy
      @thexiroy Před rokem +15

      I immediately recognize the Dutch accent :)

  • @MasayaShida
    @MasayaShida Před rokem +1560

    Japan was the first country willing to invest and build us a bridge in Cambodia, even as our country had yet to stabilize after fall of communism. They are helping us build sewage systems and other critical infrastructure. They are a great country.

    • @luongo7886
      @luongo7886 Před rokem

      As Asians, we should be allies with Japan, South Korea, Australia, Vietnam, America and the West rather than with china. china will start World War III very soon and it will drag the whole world down to destruction.

    • @harvxxp3774
      @harvxxp3774 Před rokem +55

      @@jonaspete then study the history of Cambodia why there is a genocide during the cold war

    • @luongo7886
      @luongo7886 Před rokem +1

      @@jonaspete Because the Chinese monsters told their Khmer Rouge slaves to do so. Evil china MUST PAY for their crimes against humanity!

    • @KeooVAL
      @KeooVAL Před rokem +93

      @@jonaspete Bro is asking him like HE is the one who did it lmao

    • @headshot21000
      @headshot21000 Před rokem +8

      @@KeooVAL right 😂. How many men how many

  • @user-vw8it9oo8h
    @user-vw8it9oo8h Před rokem +1219

    Behind the success of the Meiji Restoration was the 250-year peaceful Edo period. During this period, small schools called terakoya (寺子屋) were born all over Japan so that children of farmers other than samurai could study. As a result, Japan's literacy rate has reached an astonishing rate. I think that was the foundation for learning overseas technology.

    • @HistoryScope
      @HistoryScope  Před rokem +199

      I don't think I did enough to show this in the video. Looking back at it, I did mention that Japan was highly aware of the outside world but I never mentioned how they understood the outside world (afterall, if you don't understand engineering how are you ever going to understand a steam engine). I should have added 1 or 2 lines about education, you're right.

    • @rosemcginnis914
      @rosemcginnis914 Před rokem +52

      Tokugawa period is the key to Japanese industrialization, this video is very poorly made and has errors, also is very propagandist anti-West

    • @user-bm6us5xu9n
      @user-bm6us5xu9n Před rokem

      No. they just can lie very well to the world like Fukushima.

    • @user-pm5ef4np7o
      @user-pm5ef4np7o Před rokem +39

      @@rosemcginnis914 If you have an opinion about the video that is great. However, please add why you think that. I saw your comment and was just shocked, and you give no reason for your thought process so I can not understand why you think so.

    • @moderatelymodest
      @moderatelymodest Před rokem +7

      @@HistoryScope ur reply here is what knowledge seekers need….. its much appreciated

  • @oys9420
    @oys9420 Před 11 měsíci +372

    As a Japanese hardware engineer, I cannot help but mention the US forced the use of foreign semiconductors for Japanese electronics in 1986 to late 90s, which caused a serious impact on the japanese electronic industry. This forced us engineers to use MPUs from Motorola, Intel, and Texas Instruments instead of Hitachi, Sharp, and Toshiba. Our situation was quite bad, so my colleague went to Korea to "help" Samsung, who paid well to the Japanese.

    • @TokyoTaisu
      @TokyoTaisu Před 11 měsíci +6

      Haha I'm sure Samsung ensured he got "helped" as well in the Gangnam clubs.

    • @user-pv9ln2pg2u
      @user-pv9ln2pg2u Před 10 měsíci +20

      Japan's population is not large enough, the domestic market is not large enough, the Japanese semiconductor industry needs to rely on the U.S. market, which allows the U.S. can hold the market hostage by raising tariffs to coerce the Japanese government.
      Now the U.S. wants to hit China's semiconductor industry, but China's domestic market is huge, the U.S. is difficult to succeed.

    • @theburden9920
      @theburden9920 Před 9 měsíci +5

      @@user-pv9ln2pg2u china needs semiconductors because china is the largest consumer of semiconductors they are proned more than japan so they have to be independent

    • @roar5853
      @roar5853 Před 9 měsíci +19

      If one is well paid, we call it a 'work' not 'help'. I think the expression 'help' sounds absurd. America is absorbing global talents by offering high salary now. Even some developing country's big companies hire global talents in the same way. We don't say those workers are 'helping'. Such expression seems based on emotional sentiment and victim mentality about the fact that they left Japan. Japan is the first and still a few democratic country in Asia with freedom. It wasn't such a thing as a humanitarian action or aid. Nor forced labor. They had a good job offer that could support their family. That's it.

    • @aaabbb-ff1sp
      @aaabbb-ff1sp Před 8 měsíci +10

      It's really funny Japan, a US vassal state by definition, refers to itself as a democracy...😂

  • @ashleyw5064
    @ashleyw5064 Před 11 měsíci +74

    Japanese colonial was fundamentally different from the colonies of other countries.0:33 18:34
    The colonies increased life expectancy and literacy rates, built schools, railroads, power plants, and airports, opened up the slave class, and treated them like the Japanese in terms of pay.
    There are also records of teaching them agricultural techniques, increasing rice yields, and buying rice at a fair price.I don't know about natural rubber or anything like that, so if anyone knows, comment. If possible, please include evidence.
    When there were deaths from starvation in the colonies, there were also deaths from starvation in Japan, and the massacre of Comfort Women is doubtful if you check the records created by the U.S. military at the time to process the postwar period.
    When there was conscript labor, the Japanese had conscript labor as well.
    There is no other country like that. Very interesting.
    What we have to be careful about is that there are people who have been educated that Japan is a terrible country without any evidence.

    • @user-us2zp1yf6g
      @user-us2zp1yf6g Před 2 měsíci +11

      You are the only one who researched the real history of Japan. If you listen to the words of those who criticize Japan, there are many people who are swayed by emotional theory.

    • @soncho4203
      @soncho4203 Před 2 měsíci +12

      南京事件についても調べてみてください。この事件は不可解な点がいくつもあります。

    • @38m99
      @38m99 Před 2 měsíci

      @@soncho4203南京事件の資料館に展示している酷い写真資料の多くが、日本の新聞社である朝日新聞や毎日新聞の出版している、写真集から引用したものが多いことも知ってほしい。しかも引用元の書籍には写真と一緒に撮影者が撮影時の状況の手書きも一緒に掲載されている。しかし、南京事件の資料館に展示されている写真は引用元から手書きの状況説明部分を切り取って展示している。これは明らかに無関係の写真であることをわかっていて、印象操作のため出来事を捏造していると言わざるを得ない。実際に捏造の例であったのは、鶏を現地の人から購入した日本軍人の写真を、解説部分を切り取って現地人から食料を強奪した日本軍人と紹介されている。

    • @user-gq6de6bi2v
      @user-gq6de6bi2v Před měsícem +2

      누가 가족들 다 죽여도 돈 준다고 하면 좋아할 놈이네ㅋㅋㅋ

    • @ashleyw5064
      @ashleyw5064 Před měsícem +4

      @@user-gq6de6bi2v Such people are in every country.Even in your country it is the same again.
      I believe your comments do not suit your character.

  • @helloiamenergyman
    @helloiamenergyman Před rokem +1808

    Fun fact: according to my dad who is part of the japanese community here in Brazil, some of the japanese immigrants who visited japan post ww2 thought that japan won the war, because they couldn't believe that a country that had just lost a war could be so prosperous.

    • @businessmanbrute2211
      @businessmanbrute2211 Před rokem +106

      They definitely didn't knew about how much loan japan has in debt.

    • @carlrodalegrado4104
      @carlrodalegrado4104 Před rokem +58

      that's what's going to happen if lose against the U.S.A. with a post war economic plan guess what happens if Japan lost to the U.S.S.R. or was slapped a treaty compared to the Treaty of Versailles

    • @Grrrrrgfifj
      @Grrrrrgfifj Před rokem +166

      @@businessmanbrute2211 you deffo don’t know how much they lend

    • @Tethloach1
      @Tethloach1 Před rokem +19

      Persia vs Greeks = respect Greek power
      Allies vs Turks = respect Turkish power
      France vs Germany = respect German power
      USA vs Vietnam = respect Vietnam's power
      Briton vs USA = American freedom
      Anti- Communist powers: (stop communism and build empires)
      Germany - no empire
      Japan - no empire
      Italy - no empire
      Balance of power Team: (keep power balanced)
      Briton - empire
      USA - capitalism
      France - empire
      Russia - USSR
      China - Communism

    • @kimibellzhong5670
      @kimibellzhong5670 Před rokem +42

      The Japanese government also encouraged Japanese woman to become pmrostitudes for American soldiers in an attempt to please them.

  • @chillout914
    @chillout914 Před rokem +32

    Japan is for us tunisians without a visa and also they invested in my country so much and helped us i think our good relations because we helped the before and look how they give back amazing country and people

    • @user-lm6jy6zs3m
      @user-lm6jy6zs3m Před měsícem

      I am glad to hear you say so, as a Japanese.
      You will be blessed, and we will not only improve our international standing, but also find a way to make the most of trade.
      We will make each other happy. This is also the way for Japan, a small country, to live.
      I wish Tunisia and Japan eternal development!

  • @YuuSHiiiN
    @YuuSHiiiN Před 11 měsíci +614

    One of the reasons for Japan's economic stagnation that you forgot to mention was the Plaza Accords in the 1980s that the US essentially blackmailed Japan to sign. Japan had a thriving semiconductor industry at the time and there was the potential to overtake the US as the #! economy in the 80s. Obviously, that didn't sit well with US high tech companies, and they basically planted false evidence of Japan supposedly stealing their patents, hence the Plaza Accords was signed and Japan took a HUGE hit towards their high tech manufacturing which never truly recovered.

    • @aptmap5181
      @aptmap5181 Před 11 měsíci +1

      An old narrative that did not measure up with facts. The rise and decline and rise again of Japan was in fact due to the decline and rise and decline again of CCP China. The Japan Miracle in 1960's coincided with the Dark Ages (Cultural Revolution) of China. US picks Japan as their Far East manufacturing partner. When Deng opened up the Chinese market for the world they sucked the lives out of their Asian neighbors. Now with Jizz-ping as the CCPee King-for-life he chose to pick fights against the free world and present Japan with the opportunity to rise again as seen by the stock market reaching 30-year high

    • @chad_dogedoge
      @chad_dogedoge Před 10 měsíci

      US always doubt Japan Loyalty , the US instead invest in China which is a traditional enemy

    • @jeffreykalb9752
      @jeffreykalb9752 Před 10 měsíci +63

      I think you have never worked in the semiconductor industry, but are making excuses for Japan's failure, which was real. The Plaza accords were in response to charges of dumping, which was certainly going on, not technology theft. But the real reason Japan fell behind in semiconductors is that it failed to transition from low-cost commodities like DRAMs to higher value-added designs, like microprocessors. At the same time, even lower cost competitors from Asia, just as hard working, companies like Samsung, entered the market at the low end. Japan could not get a share of the processor market at the same time its market share in commodities was consumed by the South Koreans. It lost a two front war and afterwards could no longer generate the capital necessary to compete in the ever more expensive fabrication processes. And all this happened while the Japanese real estate bubble collapsed. I recall in 1989 at Cypress Semiconductor, the president declared at a company meeting that if an American company wanted to compete in DRAMs, it would only place third behind South Korea and Japan... in that order.

    • @C-3POII45I4
      @C-3POII45I4 Před 10 měsíci +24

      In fact, Japan was not the only country that signed the Plaza Accord, including France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, which signed the Plaza Accord. However, Japan was the only country that subsequently fell into Economic stagnation.

    • @DD-sr9xm
      @DD-sr9xm Před 9 měsíci +26

      What? The Plaza Accord was about unwinding extreme usd strength caused by US interest rates going to 20%. The usd strength created massive dangerous trade deficit in the US and surplus in Japan and Germany. Japan was benefiting from an under-valued yen and running a huge trade surplus. The Plaza Accord was an agreement to rebalance currency values, a weaker usd and a stronger yen, mark and pound. The stronger yen eventually contributed to the Japanese asset bubble. But pre Plaza Accord Japan benefited from a weak yen through exports then post Plaza Accord Japanese benefited with massive asset inflation.

  • @samuelrodriguezrivera6856
    @samuelrodriguezrivera6856 Před 4 měsíci +6

    very informative! a lot of good topics asked and answered. Thanks for making these!

  • @momo-cchi5978
    @momo-cchi5978 Před rokem +308

    3:25 You are LITERALLY the first person that'd EVER explained to me WHY everybody and they mama wanted Japan to open up and start trading with them. Every other "educational channel" would just gloss over that topic smh. 😅

    • @willywonka4340
      @willywonka4340 Před rokem +26

      logistics and geopolitics are way underrated

    • @BRYCONIC
      @BRYCONIC Před rokem +4

      Wikipedia is great

    • @willywonka4340
      @willywonka4340 Před rokem +14

      @@BRYCONIC I stopped giving Wikipedia money when they started taking political stance instead of staying neutral. These days they really lean hard to the left

    • @kingace6186
      @kingace6186 Před rokem +8

      There was one more thing. The US's interest to get just one* more market to sell its goods to at the advantage of American corporations; the defining trait of American imperialism (ie: Banana Wars). That's why they were the first to succeed in making Japan open up.
      The new companies that were being founded under the Meiji Restoration only thrived by dealing with these American business interests.

    • @SusCalvin
      @SusCalvin Před rokem +4

      The scramble for ports isn't new when Perry shows up. Age of sail vessels also had to land and make repairs or take in fresh water, food, rope, canvas, timber and all the things a sailing ship with some hundred blokes on it need.
      Port towns would have whole little industries build up for servicing the ships and the people who crew them. The european power who controlled a port town would get to put down the rules for it, from how long pubs could be open to banning import of competing tobacco.

  • @noby5456
    @noby5456 Před rokem +300

    I wanted a reference to national character.
    While Western countries are basically heavily individualistic, Japan tends to value the group more than most Asian countries.
    I think this is one of the factors that have greatly influenced Japan's development today.
    Also, in education, there has been a system similar to private-level schools called (terakoya) since the Edo period, and the literacy rate at that time was one of the highest in the world, which is probably another reason for the rapid development of the country.
    I need to study a little more.
    Nevertheless, it was very interesting to see this way of looking at Japan's history from overseas.

    • @may-ky6jl
      @may-ky6jl Před 10 měsíci +33

      Towards the end of Edo period, English Photographer took Panorama pictures of Edo. He said that most cleanest Capital compare to Europe and all of Asia. The Capital looked much better buildings than Kyoto and larger city. All plumbing systems were there with running clean water and waste water without waste.
      Japanese were Vegetarian for thousands years. so no mess from animals, nor humans were seen at all. That was English man's diary with photos of Edo.
      Also he took Panorama view of East from Atago Yama. mountain.
      Japanese literacy was over 70%
      and England was only 20% .

    • @GATE12JPN
      @GATE12JPN Před 10 měsíci +29

      @@may-ky6jl Important point of view.
      It may seem surprising, but Edo (Tokyo) is a city of rivers. Most of the rivers are now culverts. Some researchers argue that Edo was better equipped than Venice.
      The development of rivers that suffered from flooding supported the development of Edo. Modern Tokyo is built on the legacy of the Edo period, such as well-maintained roads and regular trains.

    • @may-ky6jl
      @may-ky6jl Před 9 měsíci +2

      @@freneticness6927
      British literacy in 1700 that is as low as 30%.
      the late 1400s 10% of men were literate, climbing to 20% in the 1500s, 30% by 1650, 45% by 1714, and 60% by 1754. For women was : 10% by 1600, 25% by 1714, and 40% in 1754.

    • @HistoryScope
      @HistoryScope  Před 8 měsíci +18

      Lots of countries have such a mentality without getting rich. While even more countries which don't have that mentality did get rich.
      "national character" doesn't appear to influence the wealth of a country as much as competent economic policy.

    • @josephjeon804
      @josephjeon804 Před 7 měsíci +2

      ​@@HistoryScopesource?

  • @Asidders
    @Asidders Před 7 měsíci +10

    This is incredibly well explained. I've spent months researching some of the topics you talk about and you do it so seemingly easy in just a few minutes. I'm stunned!

  • @tamuraschlee5524
    @tamuraschlee5524 Před 5 měsíci +2

    I love listening to your video while at work. Thanks for the efforts.

  • @pablolarrain385
    @pablolarrain385 Před rokem +43

    This is so convenient I was just asking this question in my history class today! Thanks History Scope!

    • @churblefurbles
      @churblefurbles Před rokem

      Its a convenient answer indeed, leaving out the factor of quality of human capital as always.

    • @AttyKev
      @AttyKev Před 11 měsíci

      woah. careful now on the "facts" 20:38

  • @crobatgaming5661
    @crobatgaming5661 Před rokem +7

    Nicely explained! As someone who already know all this i love this type of colourful presentation

  • @OroguSaki
    @OroguSaki Před 6 měsíci +88

    Great video, very educational overview of Japan's recent history. As a person living in Japan for quite a while, there are a few inaccuracies:
    1. If Heiniken is the same in Netherlands as it is everywhere else in the world, then Sapporo is definitely better.
    2. Some reasons for Japan's stagnation:
    - As you mentioned, Japan was outcompeted by other developing nations. It's quite harder to succeed when you're no longer the only one doing it.
    - Japan's conglomerate companies are notoriously slow and difficult to adapt. For example, even they were leading markets like smartphones, they never could catch up to the new software-driven smartphones and got completely annihilated by the likes of Apple and Google. Their camera business soon followed, and decades later they are still unable to produce a good smart product.
    3. Western ideas of feminism and serving Japanese women the ideal of joining the industrial workforce, benefited their companies at first, but was short sighted, and certainly didn't help them in the long-run. It harmed the institute of family, it created a sexless generation of eternal teenagers, and Japanese greatest challenge right now is infertility and very disadvantageous demographics.
    In might sound obvious, but Western ideas aren't always the best; Western nations that idealize the "career woman" still suffer from infertility despite having very comfortable work-life balance, and tons of child-raising benefits. In fact, it would be quite arrogant to believe that Western ideas are always the right ones. Japan had gender equality in their own way. They had more defined gender roles, different but equally important ways that one contributes to their family, and that doesn't mean men and women weren't equally valued and respected.

    • @websoup
      @websoup Před 5 měsíci +6

      You made some very good points.

    • @blee100
      @blee100 Před 5 měsíci +9

      Hello, from another person who has lived in Japan for quite some time.
      1.) infertility is the inability to procreate at the most basic and physical level, not the lack of desire to.
      2.) creating a system for women to gain upward mobility and define themselves other than potential wives and walking, talking incubators is not a western ideal. It’s an ideal that flows through a society which has achieved adequate resources to provide individuals with the time to reflect on their own wants and needs. Your apparent prioritization of procreation does not and should not dictate how individuals, or women, spend their time and energy. If suddenly you were able to carry children, would you feel comfortable giving up all your ambitions to birth children and care for a household. Probably not, so why on earth would you sit here and act like it’s “their place”. It’s really gross. I think women can have important traditional roles in the household if they so choose to take on that role. Men also have an important role in the traditional sense but that role comes with a lot more freedom and autonomy. Women couldn’t even vote until after the war. Cut the crap.

    • @Sango-po5pi
      @Sango-po5pi Před 19 dny

      About this idea that having a career woman decreases fertility
      I beg to differ. To this day, most japanese women are still either housewives or work only part time. The reason they don't have kids is because of economic stagnation versus cost of raising those kids, and most importantly, their husbands are too overworked at the end of the day to get-it-up, let alone even make it home. They are literally too tired to have sex.

  • @ferminromero2602
    @ferminromero2602 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Great video. Thanks for posting this!

  • @teeganater
    @teeganater Před rokem +22

    You’ve easily become a top 5 channel for me. Keep up the good stuff, i feel like im learning a lot

  • @CliffCardi
    @CliffCardi Před rokem +37

    The “Just in Time” production started by Toyota greatly reduces parts and labor costs-but there is one drawback. If there is a sudden and great disruption in the global supply chain, say a pandemic, then it will take a LONG time to get back to normal operational quotas as and efficiency.

  • @Thunderbolt4
    @Thunderbolt4 Před rokem +28

    今の日本はまず人口減少の問題を解消しなければならない
    1.2億人の人口を維持できるように
    その次に日本を守ることをする。スパイを取り締まる法律を作ったり、国内や未来への投資を活性化する

  • @raeldor
    @raeldor Před 8 měsíci +72

    The efficient policy decisions around education and industrialization after the war is just mind blowing to me. Having spent a lot of time in Japan I can say, even though it's not a perfect country, the spirit of co-operation here is very strong. In the US it often feels like political parties are fighting each other for the sake of it and not working together for the good of the country.

    • @MikeBNumba6
      @MikeBNumba6 Před měsícem +3

      US politics do work together when it comes to making lives easier for the rich corporations.

    • @Sango-po5pi
      @Sango-po5pi Před 19 dny

      Efficient is possible when you're not relying on selfish politicians to come to agreement to do so. In Japan's case, the emperor made decisions and the government followed

  • @jkkmane
    @jkkmane Před rokem +12

    Thank you for subtitles. Such an appreciated feat when the creators adds it.

  • @Felipe-pk1nz
    @Felipe-pk1nz Před rokem +49

    The Japanese are such clever and smart people, I am just so fascinated by their expertise during industrialization, while I am watching the video

  • @commiepig8016
    @commiepig8016 Před 8 měsíci +4

    Well narrated 😊

  • @orlanduhden5842
    @orlanduhden5842 Před rokem +1

    I really enjoyed this video, thank-you for sharing. 🙂

  • @crimsonnight824
    @crimsonnight824 Před rokem +206

    The thing I really like about this channel is how economics, history and politics are explained very simply. Definitely one of the best history channels out there.

    • @dfsdh432v9
      @dfsdh432v9 Před rokem +1

      economics and econometrics is totally different thing.
      econometrics is an application of statistics.
      😂

    • @earlysda
      @earlysda Před 11 měsíci +3

      Crimson, this video is mostly fiction. If you want to know the real history of Japan, find a real history channel.

    • @crimsonnight824
      @crimsonnight824 Před 11 měsíci +2

      @@earlysda would you care to point out the inaccuracies to History Scope then? I'm very aware that not all history videos are completely 100% accurate. History is prone to bias and sometimes simplification due to time constraints fails to portray the full picture.

    • @earlysda
      @earlysda Před 11 měsíci +1

      @@crimsonnight824 Sure, Crimson. At first, I thot there might just be one or two inaccuracies that would be hardly worth mentioning, but seeing lots of them in just the first 2 minutes 3 seconds, I gave up.
      .
      0:46 "Japan was the first country that managed to catch up with the other developed nations of its time".
      This is completely false, and even strange in its use of English.
      .
      0:49 Actually, Japan never became an example for Greece. Korea and Taiwan were former colonies of Japan.
      .
      1:20 Actually, the time is called the "Edo" period, not Tokugawa, altho that phrase is used in some situations.
      .
      2:03 This lie was the back-breaker for me: "Japan was... fully aware of the outside world".Totally, completely, laughably false.
      I refuse to waste any more of my time on this, and feel sad for those who think they are learning something when actually they are being fed fiction.
      .

  • @stavroshadjiyiannis6283
    @stavroshadjiyiannis6283 Před rokem +271

    There are three main reasons why Japan has stagnated during the past three decades. First, many trade restrictions have been imposed on them by the US and the EU, while at the same time these restrictions have been removed for China. Second, with the plaza accord, Japan was forced to revalue the yen quite substantially. Thirdly, the lack of cheap immigrant labour has certainly taken its toll.

    • @maplemiles3381
      @maplemiles3381 Před rokem +10

      Cheap labour's I can see lack of immigrants but cheap labour seems over the top. I think the long shifts they work. I think they make a lot of money unlike say in China where their is no such thing as overtime pay.

    • @saywhat664
      @saywhat664 Před rokem +58

      Plaza Accord, as Japanese strongly agree. That’s the beginning of the downhill.

    • @mckendrick7672
      @mckendrick7672 Před rokem

      Cheap immigrant labour has propped up Western countries, but it's not a solution to the problem, only a band-aid. The West is simply kicking the problem down the road, and when it finally does blow up it'll be far more disastrous because Western nations will have become far less culturally stable.

    • @iPlayOnSpica
      @iPlayOnSpica Před rokem +24

      Western countries are actually facing the same stagnation, but they're being offset with foreign labor. Without foreign labor, they would be in the same situation as Japan with negative population growth. However, as we can see around us, it has become an area of conflict and cultural degradation (the US especially likes to spin up race issues from nothing so its people don't unite and demand for reforms).

    • @numbersix8919
      @numbersix8919 Před rokem +33

      You left out the most fundamental problem. The real estate bubble. It was started by the BOJ which directed banks to lend ever more and more money for home mortgages. According to the head of the BOJ this was a "necessary shock to enable the introduction of structural reforms, to make the Japanese economy more efficient." Ten years after the Bubble had burst, MITI (the Ministry of International Trade and Industry), which had directed strategic investment during Japan's pre- and post-war industrial expansions, was deposed from its premier position in the government bureaucracy, stripped of its powers, and made subservient to the Ministry of Finance. Ever since, neoliberal reforms of the usual kind (social spending cuts, austerity, privatization, de-regulation of capital, shift to temp jobs, outsourcing, contracting, offshoring, mergers, foreign investment) have degraded purchasing power, job security, and the confidence to have children or start families or even to go on dates.
      The Japan Postal Savings accounts, mainly the savings of ordinary salary- and wage-earners, totaled over $2 trillion -- liquid, not notional -- before privatization, the largest single accumulation of capital in the world at that time. In neoliberal terms, the small interest paid to small savers for their no-risk investment equals inefficiency. The Japan Postal Savings wasn't the only attraction, of course, but it was quite a tempting one. The scourge of neoliberal economics is the West devouring itself from the inside out.
      PS About 20 years after the Bubble hit its high point in Japan, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, the quasi-governmental mortgage underwriters in the US, started following the same policy as the BOJ had done, with even more catastrophic results. The majority of people of the US have not only not recovered, they have lost their hope of ever doing so, and life expectancy is now declining, a first in human history (excluding the former USSR during its decade of neoliberal "shock therapy").

  • @uknrfc
    @uknrfc Před 7 měsíci +43

    French anthropologist Emmanuel Todd says Japan was the only country that voluntarily increased its literacy rate outside Europe. And its driving force came from family structure; lineal family structure which are also seen in Germany, southern France and Scotland.
    I think the lineal family structure was the main reason why Meiji restoration was succeeded.
    Speaking about colonization policy, there was interesting contrast between Western countries and Japan. They say Western countries exploited from its colony, on the other hand Japan invested to its colony. Japan invested huge amount of money to Korean Peninsula to make Korea into modernized society.
    I think America was not justice during WW2. America should have to be judged for massive massacre of Japanese civilians during war.
    Thirty years of Japan’s stagnation began due to economical attacks from America by using manipulation of dollar exchange ratio.
    And still continues due to austerity policies imposed by economists trained in America.

    • @CerridwenAwel
      @CerridwenAwel Před 6 měsíci +5

      Not saying the US strategy didn't bring evils with it, but the most guilty for the bombings, as I see it, was Emperor Hirohito and his exploitation of bushido, and actually, were the US to follow with their original strategy, there would have been way more deaths than what the bombings caused. The difference is that a nuclear explosion is much more dramatic and horrifying than consecutive bombings. Thankfully, those bombings and USSR's invasion of manchuria led Hirohito to finally surrender. But the version of history we learn isn't taught in Japan. I'm from South America by the way.
      And if we talk about being judged for war crimes, there's a lot for the Japanese to answer to, as well. The rest of Asia and the world knows it well. Koreans don't have such happy memories of the Japanese occupation.

    • @user-kankan10
      @user-kankan10 Před 5 měsíci

      ​@@CerridwenAwelそれならば朝鮮半島の近代に国民は朝鮮のリーダーにどのような扱いを受けていたのか振り返ってみるといい。地理的にも中国と近かったため沢山の奴隷が連れて行かれた。日本が負けたときこのリーダー一派が再び戻ってきただけに過ぎない。

    • @CerridwenAwel
      @CerridwenAwel Před měsícem

      @@popcorn9006 don't mistake explanation for justification. One thing is the reasoning behind it, the other is whether there was justice or not. There's no justice in any war. War is the opposite of justice. And this reply of yours shows it quite well. People lose the ability to see both sides and be impartial. They go to the extreme, not to the middle. And that's human. So no, don't misconstrue me thinking that I'm justifying anything. I merely try to be neutral, and try to understand what truly led the events to be.
      There's no fixing anything if people aren't even aware of what actually were the mistakes and ride on divergent stories, to demonize an enemy and feed their resentment. But it feels good, doesn't it, to attack and talk of how absurdly horrible it all was, and how anyone who dares to not embrace the resentment, and even *gasp* try to understand the devil, they are all automatically horrible people. Yeah. It's been like that since the dawn of time. We really addressed none of our mistakes. But to satisfy you: it was indeed a heinous aggression, with terrible aftermath, and perhaps a great mistake in strategy. But it was not intended to be so. Such is ignorance. But go on, hate me to your heart's content. If that makes you happy, go for it. It does seem to be your cup of tea. About Korea: funny that the Koreans have such a deep resentment for the Japanese, it's as if the merits pale in comparison... But such is war isn't it? I'm sure the Koreans are just ungrateful psychopaths, for not recognizing the great advancements brought forth by Japan... aren't they?

  • @danever159
    @danever159 Před 11 měsíci +1

    that next video sounds great. cant wait.

  • @AdamWaltersPDX
    @AdamWaltersPDX Před rokem +54

    I did a year abroad at that "agriculture college" also known as Hokkaido University. Most amazing university. I studied agriculture sustainability. They know what they are doing.

    • @roar5853
      @roar5853 Před 9 měsíci +3

      Hokkaido have amazing dairy products too!❤

    • @m45u
      @m45u Před 5 měsíci

      I'm a HU student. I'm surprised Hokudai is mentioned in the comments!

    • @AdamWaltersPDX
      @AdamWaltersPDX Před 5 měsíci +2

      @@m45u Great place. Peter is a great guy too. :) I'm visiting Sapporo now. We should hang out haha.

    • @m45u
      @m45u Před 5 měsíci

      @@AdamWaltersPDX I'm glad to hear that:) Yeah, Sapporo is nice place(weather in winter is a litlle bit harsh tho). Sapporo has less snow this year, so hope you enjoy your visit!

    • @KenKobayashiRasmussen
      @KenKobayashiRasmussen Před 2 měsíci

      With your education and knowhow and especially your experience in Hokkaido, can you tell me why the Hokkaido milk is so different from my country's milk? Makes everything taste better, ice cream, stews...

  • @Plantrum
    @Plantrum Před rokem +18

    Love the videos man. Keep it up!

  • @bigschoolgaming8002
    @bigschoolgaming8002 Před 8 měsíci +28

    From a foreign perspective, the Japanese economy may appear to be stagnant. However, Japan has the world's highest foreign net worth and an abundance of US Treasury bond dollars. Japan also issues the yen, which is its key currency, and through currency swaps with Asia, for example, prevents the collapse of Asia currencies and bankruptcies. I would also like to add that Japan's financial system is rock-solid; for example, Japanese banks provide letters of credit to South Korea, but if this were to stop, South Korea would be unable to trade with foreign countries.

    • @user-ed7rh5dr9v
      @user-ed7rh5dr9v Před 5 měsíci +1

      The example is wrong. Korea's international trade began to shift from letters of credit to remittance methods in the 2010s, and as Korea's economy continued to grow, Korean bank credit rating and Korean foreign exchange reserves increased. As of 2023, the impact of Japanese letters of credit on the Korean economy I think it is insignificant.

    • @wayamato9226
      @wayamato9226 Před 5 měsíci

      正しい解釈です〜

  • @W_Bin
    @W_Bin Před rokem

    Excellent informative doc! Thanks! Subscribed.

  • @skysky6403
    @skysky6403 Před rokem +55

    I love Japan❤️🇯🇵

  • @setsaimu
    @setsaimu Před rokem +125

    One of the things that people forget about that contributed greatly in Japan’s rapid growth was the people themselves. Long before the Meiji restoration, Japan had been renowned for their diligence and discipline and persistence. This was seen across all facets of Japanese society. The reason why Japan completed in 80 years what Western societies needed centuries to complete was because of this unsung discipline and determination. And as horrible and disgusting Imperial Japan was, one of the things allied soldiers admired about Japanese soldiers was their incredible discipline. And this carried on into the Cold War era. The Japanese are one of the most hard working and disciplined peoples of the world. As someone who grew up there for 18 years, it’s incredible to see how disciplined and diligent the Japanese are. Of course, this was at their own detriment socially but is still incredible.

    • @Emilechen
      @Emilechen Před rokem +9

      excellent remark,
      in fact, the Japaneses are excellent tacticans and executors, but they don't use to have great strategists or world-class leaders in their History, expect some few exceptions like the Meiji emperor,
      an advantage in the past can become the obstacle in the future,
      without doubt, Japan is a very successfully nation from 1850 until today, the biggest challenge for Japan is it is hard to go farer,
      it means that Japan is already at its zenith, later is just the decline,
      Japan loses their absolute domination in more and more traditional industrial fields such as smartphone, shipbuilding, television, computer, and even automobile due to the rise of electric car, face to the Chinese and Korean competition,
      and in some new and strategic fields, Japan hasn't been more advanced than China, such as civil drones, 5G drones, civil jet, space exploration, rocket and space station, hypersonic weapons...
      in the past, without competition from China, Japan can earn many money by ita products, then invest them in R&D,
      today, Jaoan loses markets shares and incomes, they don't have enough money to maintain their technological advance,
      if France and Germany can create the EU and becomes its leaders, having its own Sphere to compete with China and US,
      Japan doesn't have it, Japan doesn't have any organization in which Japan is the main leader,
      the lack of political power status is a lethal disadvantage for Japan,
      yeah, Japaneses are hard working and have discipline, but theses quality can also be possessed by the competitors of Japan,
      so Japan doesn't have other unique and special great advantages in the future, even Japan can still be an developped and rich country, it can't avoid to become a secondary power such as Spain, Netherlands... the decline is inevitable,

    • @stargirl6659
      @stargirl6659 Před rokem

      It’s still not clear to me. Where Japanese discipline or not?

    • @thekarmicbrat
      @thekarmicbrat Před rokem +14

      I mean to be honest the work culture in Japan is sincerely toxic. The country rebuild itself at great personal cost and lots of sacrifices. It wasn't really that "'good," and it's a good thing that now the country is changing.

    • @Emilechen
      @Emilechen Před rokem +2

      @@thekarmicbratJapan is a very successfully country in 19 and 20th centuries, but the success of yesterday may become obstacle if tomorrow,
      today the Japanesea seem to losse the enthusiasm and become too conservative, they need courage to reform and change,

    • @devinmes1868
      @devinmes1868 Před rokem +7

      Japan would have not gotten as far as it did without the west to model itself after. The rapid industrialization and westernization of Japan was the result of having an example to follow, that being western countries. And they followed it very strongly, to the point where they even copied their model of colonization against "inferior races". Where would they be without their examples to follow and the institutions necessary to follow them?
      Japanese discipline has been able to shine through because they have the necessary institutions to allow it to shine through. Without them, it wouldn't even matter, and thus, you wouldn't know it exists.

  • @jajasaria
    @jajasaria Před 8 měsíci +1

    thank you for a educational video. love your explanation

  • @eagl3ye
    @eagl3ye Před 6 měsíci +31

    Having studied Japanese, visited Japan, and other countries in East Asia, I always found it interesting how there was both a strong enmity and admiration for Japan among Chinese and South Koreans.

    • @haplol7267
      @haplol7267 Před 5 měsíci +1

      japanese are trying so hard to glorify their war crimes

    • @cheerful_crop_circle
      @cheerful_crop_circle Před 5 měsíci +1

      Lol

    • @user-nw3sj9ud2k
      @user-nw3sj9ud2k Před 2 měsíci +1

      In World War II, Japan invaded China and Korea, and Japanese soldiers brutalized the people of the invaded countries like the SS did, with the difference that Japan has not apologized for it to this day, and is even publicly honoring the executed war criminals

    • @dddiving
      @dddiving Před 2 měsíci +4

      As a Chinese, I gotta push back a bit. Given the brutal history of Japanese invasion during World War II and their reluctance to fully acknowledge their wrongdoing, most chinese folks hold a pretty negative view of japan. the admiration you mentioned might be more of a thing among koreans, but personally, I've never come across anyone around me who's all gung-ho about japan.

    • @esta176
      @esta176 Před 2 měsíci

      This is because the Chinese Communist Party is conducting anti-Japanese education to prevent criticism against them.@@dddiving

  • @apollocreed1000
    @apollocreed1000 Před rokem +113

    This model is very hard to copy. Japan's biggest advantage over other countries that have not succeeded in developing is their social cohesion. The population trust their leaders and don't fight each other, so they can achieve shared goals very easily.

    • @rayg4988
      @rayg4988 Před rokem +4

      ​@@kijesticproductions7640no u r wrong. Japan started first then Korea then China. The time line doesn't match so to compare China number now is not exactly fair. China is actually exactly on the same path as other east Asian nations except they now got a huge push back from the US because China grow to the same level as Korea and Japan prosperity means it will eclipse the US due to its size.

    • @HANAMARUchin
      @HANAMARUchin Před rokem +8

      The feeling of admiration for the emperor unites the Japanese people.

    • @lapisanyta
      @lapisanyta Před 11 měsíci

      @@rayg4988 The economy growth of China is made at the expense of its own people, so no, China can't get to the height of Japan even without US push back.

    • @barista_2060
      @barista_2060 Před 11 měsíci

      Also geography probably

    • @apollocreed1000
      @apollocreed1000 Před 10 měsíci +1

      @@kijesticproductions7640 The China that had a massive civil war in the 40s and is still threatening Taiwan and oppressing Hong Kong? Not really the same cohesion level is it?

  • @gatuarhin
    @gatuarhin Před rokem +341

    A big reason why the Meiji Restoration worked in Japan but other similar movements around the world didn’t is because the average Japanese person was far wealthier and better educated than in other countries. Due to being an island, Japan didn’t have a large centralised standing army in its borders. This not only meant that citizens had lower taxes since less money was needed for the military, but it also meant that the army couldn’t slow efforts to industrialise, like what happened in the Ottoman Empire.
    The feudal nature of governance combined with all of this meant that it was easier for people to get educated, move to cities and start businesses. These reasons also led England, Venice and medieval Hungary to prosper (the mountains around Hungary had a similar affect).

    • @HistoryScope
      @HistoryScope  Před rokem +55

      From the sources I've read Japan was considered a poor country, even compared to the Ottoman Empire.
      My sources state that Japan's plans worked because they never indebted themselves to other countries. While the Ottoman Empire spent 13% of its budget repaying debts to other countries, Japan repaid its debt to Japanese people. So any money that was borrowed came from Japan and stayed in Japan.
      This had 3 consequences.
      1. The profits stayed in Japan, instead of going to another country (as was the case for a lot of others)
      2. The Japanese were personally invested in making the Meiji Restoration work.
      3. Foreign countries couldn't meddle as much in Japanese affairs because they had no leverage over the economy.

    • @gatuarhin
      @gatuarhin Před rokem +16

      @@HistoryScope I was mainly talking about other countries who tried to industrialise like Thailand and Korea rather than European countries when I said that they were wealthy, the Ottomans were already actively industrialising well before Japan. The main thing though is that literacy in Japan was very high and businesses were doing well even before the Meiji restoration, which allowed for the fast industrialisation after opening up the country.
      The Janissaries were one of the main factors holding the Ottomans back but even after they were removed, the Ottomans kept getting into large expensive wars (that still necessitated a large army) and they kept losing and taking on debt from those wars. The Ottomans were taking a lot of foreign debt for industrialisation in part because they didn’t have enough public money or domestic private investors to quickly industrialise their massive country, unlike Japan.
      Island countries or countries that were otherwise naturally defended didn’t need large armies and thus had stronger merchants and nobles compared to their governments. This meant that they had more of the nation’s manpower and resources going towards economic innovation and growth, and so they industrialised more easily and with less obstacles.

    • @awakeningEmpath
      @awakeningEmpath Před rokem

      explains why DPRNK's are so poor spending 25% of their GDP on the military for a war that never happens

    • @clintmarkching9140
      @clintmarkching9140 Před rokem +7

      ​​​​​@@gatuarhinJapan during the late bakufu period particularly the peasants were not literate and certainly not wealthy. As one of the policy enacted by Tokugawa Ieyasu was to keep the people poor so they will not be threat to the shogunate. One of the major reason meiji restoration was successful, because the transition of power and political stability is more or less "stable", those who opposed the reforms are few and easily dealt with and no major battle/war occured in the japanese soil prior to the meiji restoration and then after that the only major event that tried to oppose the modernization was the last stand of saigo takamori to the central govt which was easily dealt with. After that centralization of political power to the natl govt was achieved and reforms are easily conducted and the policy of the govt that time was strong economy strong military and they tried to emulate the european powers as much as possible in everything.

    • @clintmarkching9140
      @clintmarkching9140 Před rokem +12

      I would also add, the Joseon dynasty failed to modernize because the nobility opposed it to the point the real power was not in the imperial family but those powerful ministers who were very conservative as any change were threat to their powers and their backward thinking😂😂

  • @user-bf5nj9hr8d
    @user-bf5nj9hr8d Před rokem +87

    Beautiful story of Japan. I didn’t know how strong and dedicated and cultural discipline they were for a long time and finally they succeeded at last. Good luck and many blessings to Japan 🇯🇵

    • @nami9078
      @nami9078 Před 11 měsíci +12

      ありがとうございます😆❤️🇯🇵

    • @earlysda
      @earlysda Před 11 měsíci +1

      This video's story is not of the real country of Japan.

    • @theearth4529
      @theearth4529 Před 11 měsíci +2

      ​@@nami9078 such a long text for "thank you" omg

    • @SC-jt3uf
      @SC-jt3uf Před 11 měsíci +2

      @@earlysda no

  • @yoshishimizu4056
    @yoshishimizu4056 Před měsícem +8

    I'm a Japanese. The title says "Why is Japan so rich?" but Japan is no more rich and declining.....tks to USA.

  • @user-pt5yo7xp6j
    @user-pt5yo7xp6j Před rokem +39

    It has become clear that the reason for Japan's lack of economic growth is unrelated to population or aging. The main cause is deflation, which has persisted for a long time. This phenomenon, in which the value of goods decreases and the value of money increases, is very advantageous for public servants and pensioners. It cannot be solved by innovation or other means. However, Abenomics began financial easing ten years ago, and finally in 2023, signs of deflation escape have emerged. Japan has achieved a growth rate of 2% and will continue to grow slowly. As a result, the amount of Japanese government bonds issued has increased, but 90% of them are denominated in yen and borrowed domestically, so there is nothing to worry about. With economic growth and gradual inflation, the value of debt wilcontinue to decrease

  • @Durkadur_II
    @Durkadur_II Před rokem +165

    Your videos are so good man, I've watched many "History of Japan" videos but somehow you managed to make the same old story feel brand new, keep it up!

    • @cloudynguyen6527
      @cloudynguyen6527 Před rokem +15

      True, most history of Japan videos always praise about admiral Perry and joke about how him force Japan to open. But I never quite understand why Japan insists on isolation or other country even wants to trade with Japan, until after this video.

    • @HistoryScope
      @HistoryScope  Před rokem +17

      I had those same questions when writing this video.
      I'm glad I was able to answer them for you as well

    • @andrewpritt8739
      @andrewpritt8739 Před rokem +4

      @@nomulahemanth3109 Bro quit spamming him!

    • @blankspace1126
      @blankspace1126 Před rokem

      @@nomulahemanth3109 the fact you spammed so many comments and wrote so many words proves exactly how insecure you are about India.

    • @g76agi
      @g76agi Před rokem +1

      ​@@nomulahemanth3109And yet 10% of the population still lives on less than 2.15$ a day, again, no one wants to end up like india, no offense

  • @hirochillax
    @hirochillax Před 5 měsíci +20

    Japanese here. Japanese people were able to recover from the devastating post-war situation in a remarkably short period due to several key factors. Firstly, Japan's island geography made it challenging to rely on foreign aid, fostering a foundation for cooperative efforts among villagers to overcome difficulties. Additionally, the well-established education system of "terakoya," advanced schools dating back to the samurai era, played a crucial role. Japanese people's diligence led to the production of quality goods, sparking an industrial revolution known as the bubble economy. This era was characterized by prosperity and continuous growth.😅

    • @salvadorvizcarra769
      @salvadorvizcarra769 Před 4 měsíci

      Propaganda, but NOT History, has led us to believe that the Empire of Japan began its territorial expansion in the 1930’s, invading China, creating the puppet State of Manchukuo and “Provoking” the war with the Western Powers. But, Was this really, how events happened? Did Japan invade China and South East Asia? It seems so. However, the Propaganda does NOT say that for centuries, all Asia was invaded by Western Powers. England occupied India, Burma (Myanmar); Borneo, Sumatra, Singapore, Malaysia and China (Hong Kong, Nanking, Shanghai, etc). France dominated all Indochina. The Netherlands intervened by the Force of its Arms, to all of Indonesia. And Belgium, Germany, Portugal, Spain, and of course, also the United States were in South East Asia cuz, for example this country, the US, occupied the Philippines since 1898. (Spanish-American War). Thus the panorama in the 30's, the Empire of Japan, when defeating to the Tsarist Russian Empire, it also decided to "Grow" by invading its neighbors. In those years, all European nations had colonies in Africa, India, the Middle East, Australia, Asia and America. (England came to occupy almost ¼ part of the planet). For its part, the US, in 113 years of existence as a nation in those years, had "Grown" 711 the size of its territory from its original 13 colonies. Now is the picture clear? Japan for its part, had fought on the side of the winners in World War I (1914-1918), and they, the Japanese, not awarded any "Gain". The western victors of WWI divided the world. Japan was excluded. Thus, Japan's motives for attacking and expanding as the Europeans and the US did seem clearer, right? Then they, the Japanese, attacked China in 1931, which was occupied by 6 Western Powers for almost a century. None of the Western Powers occupying China at this time, OPPOSED or fought Japan for Invading China. NONE! Then, 11 years later after having occupied the territory of China and coexisted without any problem with the Western Powers within China, they, the Japanese, attacked Hawaii, which in turn, this Island had been occupied and annexed by the US in 1898. (In 1900-01, Hawaii became US territory and Hawaii ceased to be an independent nation after more than 630 years of sovereignty. By the time Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, the United States had just completed the 40th anniversary of the military occupation and annexation of Hawaii). They, the Japanese, attacked Singapore, which was then a Colony of England. They, the Japanese, attacked the Philippines, which were occupied by the US and whose Gov’r, Douglas MacArthur reined as Emperor. Yup… Truly like an Absolute Autocrat. Therefore, the Japanese did NOT attack (In the 40’s), Singapore, Burma, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Borneo, Timor, the Philippines, etc. In reality, the Japanese attacked England, France, Holland, the US, etc. That is, the Japanese attacked the Western Powers invading all of Asia. That is the verifiable truth. The Empire of Japan didn’t invade. Japan fought against the Invaders. But, Propaganda has made us believe that the good guys were us, the US. And of course… Nanking was a horrendous Genocide committed by Japan, but, it was no more horrendous than the 12 Genocides committed by the United States in his History and all over the world. Nor was it less horrendous than the Genocide committed by King Leopold II of Belgium, in Central Africa. Nor was Nanking more or less horrendous than the Genocides that the British Empire committed in America, Africa, Australia, Middle East, India and also in China too. In the Philippines (1898-1902), the US Army produced a Genocide of One Million people dead. ONE MILLION. And now, the Japanese are our friends and allies... Yup… But, to fight against China, AGAIN!!! Well… No More. No More British Malaya nor British Borneo nor British wherever. No More French Indochina. No more Dutch Indies. No More Portugese Domains. No More US Domain here. Asia is for Asians and “The China Sea” belongs to CHINA. Westerns powers have nothing to do in Asia. NOTHING!!!

  • @nichtSchwindeln
    @nichtSchwindeln Před 11 měsíci

    This video is very good bud thanks for theese informations you given us!

  • @Kokudou_Risa
    @Kokudou_Risa Před rokem +106

    "USA never colonized other people"
    Philippines: ........

  • @Dr.Kananga
    @Dr.Kananga Před rokem +14

    They are rich despite the very high public debt, which begs the question: why is this different for each western country? The first whim of answer to why Japan is so wealthy is because they manage to nationally share their economic and commercial wealth prior to let capitals go abroad, this includes resources as well. This means their economy set priorities that must be satisfied prior to investing elsewhere.

  • @Nielson941
    @Nielson941 Před měsícem +7

    Western media doesn’t understand East Asia very much. Japan has developed to its peak, almost everything is so advanced than the US and Europe…therefore it has to slow down, but still one of the richest and most developed countries country in the world, its economy never collapsed or bankrupted , western media just exaggerated. So….China now might heading to Japan’s path, because China has been progressing too much too fast, and now has to slow down, but wont be collapse either.

    • @Yourstruly467
      @Yourstruly467 Před 24 dny +1

      That's absolutely amazing to see such advancement from a nation. How they rose up after WW2 is beyond fantastic!

  • @SusCalvin
    @SusCalvin Před rokem +59

    I've started to think of the technology in isolationist Japan as early modern period level, not medieval level. They have clocks and firearms and all that but all of it is much closer to 1600 Europe than 1300 Europe.
    During the sengoku jidai, people are fighting eachother with armies that would easily compare to european field armies of the time. Large non-aristocratic conscripted/recruited soldiery fill the ranks, the arquebus is becoming a main element but not so strong that you can do away with spears and protective positions.
    There are cottage industries in the cities. Clockmaking in Europe was a cottage industry where artisans filed down cogs in their workshop-homes. Japan ends up with the sort of central government that can organize and field these kinds of armies.

  • @user-cx3yk3nx6w
    @user-cx3yk3nx6w Před 3 měsíci +14

    As a Korean, I learn briefly about Japanese history in class. In school, we learned that the reason for Japan's success in modernization was the development of urbanization and commerce. I don't remember the exact terminology, but the shogun took the daimyo's family hostage and made them visit Tokyo regularly, and commerce developed along the daimyo's route to Tokyo. It also teaches that residential areas were determined based on social status, so the upper class lived in the castle and merchants flocked there, leading to concentrated urbanization.

    • @user-ky6zl4hn1c
      @user-ky6zl4hn1c Před 2 měsíci +2

      その通りです!

    • @user-tu4fe5fd4h
      @user-tu4fe5fd4h Před měsícem

      よく知っていますね。
      凄い!

    • @user-tl4tj4zx2u
      @user-tl4tj4zx2u Před měsícem +1

      参勤交代

    • @user-cx3yk3nx6w
      @user-cx3yk3nx6w Před měsícem

      @@user-tl4tj4zx2u Yes, I remember learning about the Sankin Kottai system in school. thank you for reminding me

  • @knightyyknight1494
    @knightyyknight1494 Před rokem +17

    thats why i respect them soo much as a country, they choose revenge a different way and captivated the world with their decision. Love that for them.

  • @sharkbaitinnewengland8156
    @sharkbaitinnewengland8156 Před 3 měsíci

    Thank you for sharing!!!

  • @adrees
    @adrees Před rokem

    Fantastic video. Very informative

  • @captainamerica5826
    @captainamerica5826 Před rokem +43

    I admire the Japanese for there work ethic and there intelligence that small country has gave so much to the World 🇯🇵🇺🇲❤️💪

  • @redinthesky1
    @redinthesky1 Před rokem +20

    The insane work ethic focused on quality

  • @abdumalik-tp3je
    @abdumalik-tp3je Před 10 měsíci

    thank you and your team i enjoy watching your contents

  • @user-cv6qk6lk5d
    @user-cv6qk6lk5d Před rokem +21

    It is often said in Japan that Japan is at the end of its life. ......about 30 years.
    But Japan is still a vibrant country. some power which I cannot notice is definitely accumulating.
    Japan can grow again. I believe it.

  • @01seiyer74
    @01seiyer74 Před rokem +11

    近代から現代に繁栄している国家は、その前の封建制の時代に栄えていていた国家であると思います。
    日本の封建制の江戸時代は工業化近代化という面では貧弱であったが識字率が高かった等文化的には栄えていた。
    それらがベースとなり近代から現代に栄えたのだと思います。
    I think that the nations that are prospering from the modern era to the present day are the nations that were flourishing in the previous feudal era.
    During the feudal Edo period in Japan, Japan was poor in terms of industrialization and modernization, but it flourished culturally, with a high literacy rate.
    I think that they became the base and prospered from the modern era to the present age.

  • @user-nq2oz3es1z
    @user-nq2oz3es1z Před 11 měsíci +6

    Strictly, Edo was not the capital, but the governmental centre.
    the capital was Kyoto because Emperor lived there
    while Shogun's government or Bakufu ruled Japan.

  • @snz844
    @snz844 Před 6 měsíci

    thank you for sharing such a wonderful video!

  • @eclkt
    @eclkt Před rokem

    Thank you for the video

  • @user-qc4vh7do5i
    @user-qc4vh7do5i Před rokem +9

    In the last 30 years, prices and taxes have gone up, but wages have not. We Japanese call this the "(失われた30年)lost 30 years." People in this generation (born between 1971 and 1974) were in a category with a high percentage of the population by age, and did not have the economic leeway to marry or have and raise children.
    Therefore, in 2025, the age-specific ratio of Japan's population will change dramatically, becoming a "super-aging society," and the social structure and systems will reach a major turning point. expected to have an impact.

  • @BennygoatHistory
    @BennygoatHistory Před rokem +36

    Fantastic video! Always loved Japan and their history, especially their background in industry and economics

  • @thathandsomedevil0828
    @thathandsomedevil0828 Před 10 měsíci +5

    Great video! Very informing!! I love Japan and the Japanese, really itching for a visit!!! 👌😁 👍🇯🇵

  • @williamjayaraj9257
    @williamjayaraj9257 Před 9 měsíci

    Thank you very much for this video.

  • @itseveryday8600
    @itseveryday8600 Před rokem +188

    I don't think Japan has caught on to the concept of 'work smarter, not harder'. I think there''s a lot of room to improve effiency in Japan's work culture such as reducing paper work, and 'zan-gyou' (overtime work). Once Japan wake up to this concept, our productivity will increase.

    • @earlysda
      @earlysda Před 11 měsíci +13

      Very true!

    • @CrabTastingMan
      @CrabTastingMan Před 11 měsíci

      Japan's "prosperity" was just trillions of US taxpayer dollars. All that asian version of Marshall Plan money which was gonna go to capitalist china went to Japan alone because Japan destroyed all the capitalist regimes left in Asia and even allied with the CCP in May of 1945 to communize China (from there more nations Japan destroyed would have easier time using China as a springboard to get communism spread). Much like how West Germany grew prosperous right after WW2. Both Axis Powers were also behind making Europe and Asia more communist after all.
      US poured 6 trillion in 20 years in Middle East, now imagine dozens of times that money just for Japan especially every time there was a communist-capitalist war on the continent and US Senators needed a moneylaundering scheme where they get Congress to give the money to Japan, Japan pours a bit of that back at legalized lobbying firms in Washington DC so senators can legally get a boost to their political funds in a roundabout way.
      Do you think if a nation got itself rich on its own two feet, it would ever have gotten into an unprecedented 30 year recession and deflation economy in the first place, which somehow "coincides" with the end of the Cold War? This is no different from when East Germany's economy floundering when Soviets had to stop pretending communism makes nations prosperous. Japan never got here on its own two feet. Its history since samurais was always about massacres, at least 3 times the tax rate of world averages to build big armies to invade and steal from others (and switch sides whenever they desired. While selling tons of Japanese girls to Portuguese slavers to buy muskets, like what was going on in 18th century Western African nations)
      Starting ith massacre of the Japanese native tribes because that was the shogun's job as the "Sei-i Taishogun," or the "Grand General to Conquer Barbarians." Not just any grand general, but it was a national project to eradicate natives. Japan eliminated Ezo, Hayato, Kumaso, and ran off Ainu, Nivkh, Oroks to Siberia. Okinawans were too far to eradicate so they made do with 90% tax rates which was a bit higher than the already high 75% average on the Japanese mainland, which made the Japanese peasants very cynical about the samurais ruling them, and had 3000 ikki uprisings in the 250-year "peaceful" Edo Period alone (That's 1 per month on average), because peasants got tired of starving so much that they had to kill their own kids in Mabiki rituals just to survive (look it up, there's even a book on it) to the point Edo Period saw a population growth stagnation because of too many infanticides (Nobuhiro Sato in the 19th century said 1/3 households kill a baby each year, giving rather specific numbers of recorded infanticides per region). Even China today has 55 minorities, some even thriving to reach a population of 40 million. America today after 250 years still has 550 nations of natives alone. Even the small island of Taiwan has 15 natives nations left. Japan has Ainu and Okinawans left, and only on the very far north or very far south on very remote islands, and the Okinawans absolutely resent the 400 years of massacres and samurai oppression, that they developed Karate to fight the samurai with inconspicuous farming tools because samurai confiscated all their swords and spears already, fearing uprising. It's why Nunchaku are actually grain-threshers, and Tonfas are grindstone handles, and lots of Karate moves make more sense if they are paired with such farming tools.

    • @Toanharry
      @Toanharry Před 11 měsíci +15

      Người nhật bản quá bảo thủ nếu cải thiện được điều đó thì nhật bản sẽ rất mạnh

    • @akangsamuel9021
      @akangsamuel9021 Před 11 měsíci +4

      ​@@Toanharry that's what has made them to be what they are.

    • @sm1purplmurderedme583
      @sm1purplmurderedme583 Před 11 měsíci

      yes exactly

  • @ElectrostatiCrow
    @ElectrostatiCrow Před rokem +17

    If Japan didn't go through the lost decade and grew its popularity through birthrates it would probably have an economy between 15 to 20 trillion dollars.
    The average Japanese person was twice as rich as the average American during their economic peak.

    • @Priyanand-kj5ch
      @Priyanand-kj5ch Před 7 měsíci

      Japan isn't a big country there isn't that much housing space for all Japanese if it was like that and even if it had everything they lack startup culture, the students are dreaming for having a job in Corps

  • @Professor_Pat
    @Professor_Pat Před 11 měsíci

    Thank you explaining this topic.

  • @tesokaaita6049
    @tesokaaita6049 Před rokem +21

    You and we ourselves also recognize the past 30 years as a period of stagnation in Japan, using the phrase “lost 30 years.”
    However, for some reason it still maintains the world's third largest GDP.
    Perhaps the state's stagnation period and the stagnation that individuals feel are different things.

    • @user-us2zp1yf6g
      @user-us2zp1yf6g Před 2 měsíci

      その通り。政治家が自己中心的な政策や、増税を繰り返したりするので国内的な政策においてはうまく行ってない。

  • @Kenny-yl9pc
    @Kenny-yl9pc Před rokem +15

    I would appreciate it if you would include all the territory of Japan, if you show and highlight it on a map. For example, you left Okinawa and the Ryukyu/Nansei islands out. Japan is much bigger, than just the “main” islands.

  • @roar5853
    @roar5853 Před 9 měsíci +14

    Japan is rising again. Not just industrial sector but also tourism and cultural sectors🎉

    • @gentlemon2252
      @gentlemon2252 Před 2 měsíci

      Think again, it just dropped to no.4 in global nominal GDP. It's in the path to well-deserved oblivion.

  • @aptmap5181
    @aptmap5181 Před 11 měsíci +8

    Japan rises again! New highs in stock market and manufacturing sectors

  • @DeathStrikeEP
    @DeathStrikeEP Před 10 měsíci +1

    0:59 kinda funky map (It's missing chunk of east Asia among other things). Thank you for your amazing videos

  • @nicehan777
    @nicehan777 Před 9 měsíci +3

    I really don't understand why people who get angry when they think of Japan are trying to get along with North Korea, China, and Russia, which are directly or indirectly responsible for the Korean War

  • @tadashiogitsu
    @tadashiogitsu Před rokem +4

    Stagnate is one way to put it. If the economy relies heavily on importing resources from the other countries, you have to come up with a way to take balance between import and export. If the labor cost grow faster than export-import balance sheet, price of Japanese products increase to the point it will lose its competitiveness. One (ex. individual's income) is NOT unrelated to economy. In particular, the resource importing cost cannot be solved solely by making production efficient. Understanding those interrelationship is the key. I am really baffled by my observation that many professional economist seem to disregard the importance of interrelated issues.

  • @JY-tq4ir
    @JY-tq4ir Před 4 měsíci

    great video, watching half of it

  • @MRSZ5440
    @MRSZ5440 Před rokem

    This was very interesting educational historic information you never get to old to learn thanks for the upload.

  • @el_iron_duke
    @el_iron_duke Před rokem +242

    I am Indian and I heard a story from my uncle about some Japanese travellers coming to India during the colonial era. They saw white men treating the Indians like animals, throwing food and money towards them and the desperate Indians running towards the food and money to pick it up. It was like feeding birds for the Europeans. The Japanese travellers were horrified by the sight of the degradation of a country from whom they have had so much cultural influence in the past. The thought of the Japanese turning to be like this for the Europeans horrified them even more. These travellers spread the news of such events in their country horrifying their own people. Such stories played an important role in why the Japanese were so hell bound in industrialising and reaching the same level as the Western powers.

    • @brothermalcolm
      @brothermalcolm Před rokem +5

      Did u mean china instead of india?

    • @el_iron_duke
      @el_iron_duke Před rokem +66

      @@brothermalcolm I am from India and my Uncle is from India. The story he told us about was from India. But I wouldn't be surprised if the same was the case in the European ruled areas in China. In Vietnam there is video footage of White women throwing food to poor Vietnamese children like they are birds so I'd say this was true all over Asia.

    • @jacques.cousteau
      @jacques.cousteau Před rokem +15

      Stop the cap, this never happened😂😂 or find me a source for that

    • @el_iron_duke
      @el_iron_duke Před rokem +46

      @@jacques.cousteau this story was told to me by my uncle. Idk from where he learned that but there is a video footage of French women throwing food to hungry Vietnamese kids like a pastime which is a similar instance to what my uncle told me. So such cases might have happened in several places. The humiliation faced by Asians and people from other continents under European colonisation knew no limits. From forced migration to places far away from their homes to being kept in human zoos. So this isn't impossible.

    • @fromfareastindy8234
      @fromfareastindy8234 Před rokem +75

      What you have heard is correct.
      Because most Japanese people know this kind of story.
      In fact, it was not necessarily only India that attracted attention, but China, for example, which was being exploited by opium, which was shocking to Japan at the time.
      As you say, Japan imported many religions, cultures, etc. from India and China for a long time.
      For us Japanese, China and India are civilized countries with a long history, and if those countries are being exploited by Western countries right before our eyes, it is enough for us to feel that Japan is next.

  • @HeckaZecka
    @HeckaZecka Před rokem +36

    I don’t think there’s a country I respect more than Japan

  • @arasgeylani
    @arasgeylani Před 7 měsíci

    Bravo, excellent video.

  • @xHiNoTorix
    @xHiNoTorix Před 11 měsíci

    Great video! The way you poured the beer killed me inside though ;)

  • @emitindustries8304
    @emitindustries8304 Před rokem +4

    Excellent video, great animation, and very educational. And some good humor too.

  • @pseudotatsuya
    @pseudotatsuya Před 6 měsíci +15

    Korea was not Japan's colony, was an annex. Unlike western countries' colonization, Japan made universities and infrastructures in Korea. There were no slaves.
    The word "Comfort women" is completely wrong. Some women applied for sex workers by their own and salary was paid. Korean sex workers also worked for U.S. soldiers in Korea, but no one calls them as comfort women.

  • @jon134a
    @jon134a Před rokem

    Great video. Thanks

  • @Letotheon
    @Letotheon Před 11 měsíci +2

    a very great video! I would've loved a closer look to deflation and de demographical Issues they are facing and waht role the high worktimes are playing in the massive decrease of population but overall very educational.

  • @AVNGwebdev
    @AVNGwebdev Před rokem +6

    *grasp* 0:48 the channel said Taiwan is a country, instant subscribe!

  • @RyuseiYamaguchi
    @RyuseiYamaguchi Před 11 měsíci +5

    7:31 Meiji is actually the name of the era (Gengō), and Emperor Meiji obtained the current title after his death, which was the end of the era.

  • @johnnydeals
    @johnnydeals Před 6 měsíci

    Great content

  • @Macro-Mates
    @Macro-Mates Před 5 měsíci

    Really nice in-depth video on Japan and its evolution! Hopefully they do bridge the gap between their inflation and income as there has been a closing fear for the last 30 years. Looking forward to future videos!

  • @miparun
    @miparun Před rokem +97

    This is a really good video to learn Japanese history for me(Japanese). Japanese people are more likely to be pessimistic, so we are currently concerned about the economic crisis and low birth rate, unthoughtful government. I'm glad to have studied Japan from a third-party perspective.

    • @fabricliver
      @fabricliver Před rokem +26

      In terms of pessimism, Italy and Japan are on the same level. We share the same fate, though: to be small but resourceful nations.
      Keep African and Islamic immigration out of your beautiful nation and you will have no problems. ❤

    • @happy-nb9jd
      @happy-nb9jd Před rokem +1

      Japan took away Korea's resources.

    • @earlysda
      @earlysda Před 11 měsíci

      miparun, please understand that very little in this video is actually of the real country of Japan.

    • @happy-nb9jd
      @happy-nb9jd Před 9 měsíci

      @@Uribo_BFV 일본 너희들이 한국을 침략했잖아!!! 반성은 안하고 정말 뻔뻔하네. 나라에서 교육 제대로 하라고해라.

    • @user-og3pq2eu7h
      @user-og3pq2eu7h Před 8 měsíci +27

      @@happy-nb9jd勉強をするべきなのはあなたの方だと思います。。私たちは侵攻ではなく同意の上での併合を行いました。

  • @TheboyInPurple915
    @TheboyInPurple915 Před rokem +16

    You can see how much the animations have improved

  • @uncreativename9936
    @uncreativename9936 Před 5 měsíci +3

    If you wanna know more about the Japanese economy from WWII and after, particularly the economic slump. I'd highly recommend Richard Werner's "Princes of the Yen". He was an economist working in Japan in the 90's and he invented quantitative easing, which is what the Federal Reserve did in the US in response to the 2008 housing crisis. Japan never properly implemented QE, they did Werner's second step of it in the 90's and it didn't work since they never did the first step.

  • @jcorey333
    @jcorey333 Před 11 měsíci +2

    This is a really great video! I love the depth and entertainment.

  • @hakusai3325
    @hakusai3325 Před 9 měsíci +5

    コメント欄を見ると、日本に詳しすぎる

  • @kiseiryuo1071
    @kiseiryuo1071 Před 10 měsíci +33

    I think that the characteristic of Japanese people is overwhelmingly methodical. For example, the board game Go, which I use as an icon, is popular in East Asia. The game originated in China, but was developed in Japan. In Japan, there were detailed records of Go games that took place hundreds of years ago, but there were no records left in China and South Korea, so it was difficult to develop Go after the end of World War II. Only Japan could do it. However, SouthKorea is the strongest in this competition now, followed by China, and then Japan. Unfortunately, Shogi, a chess-like game, is much more popular in Japan today, and it is difficult to attract good talent for Go.

    • @user-vp1xr5yh6k
      @user-vp1xr5yh6k Před 7 měsíci

      In Chinese history, written records have been used for a long time to record various things, and there is absolutely no such situation as you mentioned without written records. Only some technologies and ancient books will be stolen or destroyed during the Japanese invasion of China

  • @Japan_Silent_Walk
    @Japan_Silent_Walk Před rokem

    So educational, informative, and fun. 👍👍👍🍀

  • @aymanardo1322
    @aymanardo1322 Před rokem +8

    japan is inspiration for every country especially non-european

  • @regorflora7915
    @regorflora7915 Před rokem +8

    Japan did not fall economically. Yes its growth peaked and slowed but it did not fall

  • @George83_Thomas
    @George83_Thomas Před rokem +13

    Remember my visit to Japan, had a great time. It was an excellent place for meeting Japanese people. Hope to return one day

  • @volts7230
    @volts7230 Před rokem +2

    This is a pretty good presentation it lays it out without bias. Japan in the developing years after the war was really a difficult place to be in my uncle a merchant marine then saw this when his ship catered to moving cargo from South East Asia to Japan. On the part of the US never been having be the bad guy well we all know where that lies they are very well known for gun boat and gun point diplomacy in the mid to late 1800s. The annexation of Hawaii and the Philippine Insurrection (Philippine American War) are examples plus the Tuskegee Experiments is another one. The item on Japanese industry being inter connected is true our Toyota cars are made of parts from different companies that are quality checked and assembled into different car models. This enables us to get off brand parts easier that work and have a life comparable to the same brand part but in turn we still support the Japanese company that produces it. But I still think the people disciplined enough and driven enough add in the government efforts then to catch up was the true determinant on all of these things. Besides the markets in Japan really are behaving differently I can remember Dyson had to do added research to tie up with a Japanese manufacturer to introduce his Dyson Model Vacuum cleaners to the market add in the difference in Culture and Language well we can see that its truly a difficult act to get into those markets unless the company knows how to navigate the waters of commerce. The thing is I often observed in international relations the US always acts towards its own benefit not the benefit of its allies nor its friends. I think this behaviour is also the way other countries act although some are better at turning the Public Relations machine to make it seemingly act as the good guy while other countries act don't have that PR machine to do the work.