Whats up faggots.

[kthx]

And then in Sweden they hand out wristbands and rape whistles to try to stem the huge amount of rape that takes place from refugees, while plowing sidewalks instead of streets with snow first because its sexist to women otherwise, and want to stop people from driving cars because apparently driving is done more by men and its sexist. I don't see many of these countries doing well in the future.

[Jerome Scuggs]

Japan is a capitalist country that offers a high level of social benefits to its citizens

hold the phone are u saying that such a concept is not only possible, but that it's been done, and it hasn't turned into venezuela?

pinch me i must be dreaming

edit: the weird thing about this is japan ACTUALLY has a problem with people dropping out of society and refusing to work, which is weird because even with that problem, by your own analysis they seem to be doing quite fine. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hikikomori

[kthx]

You know comparing cultures is much harder than simple numbers.

[Jerome Scuggs]

You know comparing cultures is much harder than simple numbers.

woah woah woah woah suddenly you're concerned about the complexities of saying a country is "capitalist" or "socialist" and using it as a straightforward example? maybe you should apply this sort of thinking to your venezuela analogy. holy shit, are we making progress here??????

[Jerome Scuggs]

now that i think about it japan is an interesting culture to study, because they are hypercapitalist (i'm not joking one single bit when i say that methamphetamines are literally more culturally acceptable in japan than marijuana, because businessmen over there do alot of meth) and, mysteriously, have a huge problem with 1) suicide 2) birth rates 3) social anxiety

makes me think about something karl marx pondered, 200 years ago:


edit: it's interesting to read this in the aftermath of the "yolo" trend, where our youth collectively decided that not enjoying life while they're young in order to be old and rich is not the sort of life they wanna live.

[Jerome Scuggs]

also i know that posting a screenshot of marxist literature was probably super triggering so allow me to post some biblical christian literature to even you out

[Jerome Scuggs]

come to think of it it's sort of weird that the christian right completely misses the fact that Mohammad was a merchant and like 90% of the battles he fought were rooted in his desires for economic expansion

jesus was totally a commie

edit: sorry ill stop "furiously multiposting" aka getting stoned and letting my mind wander thru all these interesting thoughts within a 30-minute timespan

[kthx]

I'm out drinking ill answer this tirade once I'm not hungover Jerome

[qan]

(i'm not joking one single bit when i say that methamphetamines are literally more culturally acceptable in japan than marijuana, because businessmen over there do alot of meth)

Should say, this isn't exactly true. All drugs are about equally shunned, so that marijuana=meth=heroin=cocaine=MDMA=LSD, etc. It's illegal, so it's bad.

The use of meth, cocaine and other stimulants is probably about as common as marijuana use, because stimulants sometimes increase productivity. But when someone gets caught with such drugs it's a massive scandal. It's certainly not used routinely by businessmen, anything like that. Only evil people use drugs -- so goes the belief. Well, also, rich college kids, because they're above the law and it's a sign of status to be able to get them.

Also, yeah, Japan is pretty capitalist, but at the same time, there are very few people who are medically uninsured. Either you get insurance through your workplace or through the government. Both are reasonable, and the fees associated are reasonable as well. It's also pretty comprehensive, including dental, chiropractic, mental, etc. So for example, a root canal reconstruction that would have cost about $1500-2000 in the US with dental insurance cost me about $40 in Japan.

Their pension system is also excellent. Japanese retired at 60 until just a few years ago (now bumped to 65). And when you get your pension, which is guaranteed by the govt (no evil, mercenary companies firing you on some bullshit just before retirement to prevent paying it out), it's quite a decent amount. So much so that it's probably going to ruin the economy shortly. But, hey, old people vote.

[Ephemeral]

Hi Qan!
I think that comparing US society to Japan society requires a bit more context.

In Japan, the priority is
1.Country
2.Company
3.Family

In US, the priority is
1.Family
2.Self
3.Personal Time

In the US ‘Work-Life’ balance is a must, most people view a job as secondary and have very little loyalty to a company. In Japan the priority is on work life and work is considered the center of life. There are many Japanese traditions that re-enforce this priority.
The US Left was done a good job convincing many people under50 that we are have screwed over the rest of the world, that we owe everyone money/restitution and a high quality of life. There are plenty of examples in this thread of this mindless, lemming like thinking which is the result of the US education system. Compare the US/Japanese school systems; 180 days in US and200 days in Japan. Look at where the US ranks in student performance…



In the US, we have a law with the minimum number of school day;180. Note this is the minimum, yet every single school in the US does just the minimum. Nothing like setting the bar high. Doh, does it not speak to anyone that no US school system thinks, “gee, we keep graduating a bunch of low ranking dumbasses, perhaps we ought to make the school year longer until we put the US back in at least the top 10?” No, of course not. No one wants to work harder, no one wants to intrude upon our leisure time. Why work hard when we are owed a good life by the government? No one in Japan thinks or feels like this.
Eph

[Jerome Scuggs]

Should say, this isn't exactly true. All drugs are about equally shunned, so that marijuana=meth=heroin=cocaine=MDMA=LSD, etc. It's illegal, so it's bad.

i'm not super invested in like, dying on this hill or whatever but for what it's worth there were ~16.5k meth arrests compared to ~3k weed arrests last year, which follows a general trend where there are far more meth-related drug cases than marijuana. amphetamines were first synthesized in germany but the meth- formation was first synthesized in japan. more specifically i read an interesting AMA by an American who sold weed in Japan, i figure someone who was this experienced in the japanese black market's a good source to lean on

on face i know they're all illegal but in reality certain types are used more than others and there are different cultural norms at play regarding their acceptance

[qan]

No one wants to work harder, no one wants to intrude upon our leisure time. Why work hard when we are owed a good life by the government? No one in Japan thinks or feels like this.

Hmmm. There are a lot of hard-working people in the US, just as there are a lot of lazy sods in Japan. (Trust me. The guys with dyed blond hair popping a squat in the parking lot of the convenience store, a FamiChicken in one hand and a 9% alcohol tallboy of Strong Zero in the other are not exactly "driven" individuals. But they do like to drive past your house on their mopeds at 2am, revving the engine into an early grave.)

Sure, generally speaking, the Japanese probably have a better work ethic. Though in reality, the two countries work roughly the same number of hours per week on average -- with the US actually working about 60 hours more per year than the Japanese. https://www.usnews.com/news/best-cou...orked-per-year

As far as education goes, the education system is based on rote learning. It's ... really bad. At any subject that requires long-term memory, critical thinking, or real understanding, the Japanese often fail. But give them a list of concepts they have to memorize for the test coming up next week and they will cram like no other. Only to empty their brains of all that they "learned," to be filled up with the next set of concepts that will be tested for. (Want proof? Japanese spend 6 years learning English, but their foreign language ability is rated 60th our of 61 countries in which this is measured. The reason is that learning a language absolutely can't be done via rote methods, and the Japanese are slow to adopt new ways of thinking, which is their greatest strength and greatest weakness.)

Meanwhile, Japanese science generally doesn't produce much original or ground-breaking research, there's not many famous Japanese mathematicians, not a hell of a lot of great Japanese literature is being produced, Japanese music is largely absolute garbage (except a few notable exceptions)... The US might not score as well on standardized tests, and there's definitely been a decline in the quality of education over the years, and an embrace of the culture of stupidity to some extent. But the US still is an absolute monster in terms of innovation and actually USING what is learned.

(The point I was making in saying that originally was that Japan is not really hyper-capitalist, and like most countries, includes some socialist elements, as it should: it has a pretty good support network in terms of health care, social security, etc. Much better than, say, "Communist" China, ironically enough. But, indeed, it's a unique culture and a big part of its success is certain cultural values.)

The US Left was done a good job convincing many people under50 that we are have screwed over the rest of the world, that we owe everyone money/restitution and a high quality of life.

I don't know if the US owes everyone restitution, but the US military-industrial complex sure does make a killing by knocking down countries and then rebuilding them. This is a very old game at this point. Especially after the Cold War ended, the money faucet had to keep flowing, so constant, low-level war became not just desirable but a necessity. Surely you don't think that the US is blameless...? Of any country, it's the single greatest threat to world peace. I'm glad I'm an American, and the US has so many great things going for it, but that is absolutely not one of them.

[qan]

i'm not super invested in like, dying on this hill or whatever but for what it's worth there were ~16.5k meth arrests compared to ~3k weed arrests last year, which follows a general trend where there are far more meth-related drug cases than marijuana. amphetamines were first synthesized in germany but the meth- formation was first synthesized in japan. more specifically i read an interesting AMA by an American who sold weed in Japan, i figure someone who was this experienced in the japanese black market's a good source to lean on

Hmmm, fair enough. I did check out the guy's AMA and he does claim meth is more common. But then again, that's just a single opinion, based on Tokyo, and specifically the clubbing scene he frequented to sell his drugs, which means his sample's certainly a bit biased.

As for the arrests, it's an interesting point. But, one thing to consider: regular Japanese will consider smoking marijuana once just to say they've done it (especially as it's becoming legal in many countries and all hell hasn't yet broken loose in those places). On the other hand, only committed "druggies" would ever touch meth. Weed use I'd still argue is more common, but also far more subdued and irregular. Someone hooked on meth will be buying it regularly, putting themselves at risk constantly. Weed users are less likely to be habitual users, especially as they have to "appear normal" and can't let anyone know they use it, as it's unlikely anyone they know is a fellow smoker. Snitching in those situations is sort of a moral duty. ("Have to help them clean up their life before they overdose!") In other words, they would probably risk buying only very rarely, and would keep it extremely quiet. Also, I think it's more common in the countryside, where some people still do grow it. Just generally much more low-key. Whereas meth users would go to the club until 6am, get stumbling drunk, yell, piss in the streets, brag, go to blowjob parlors/soaplands, get in fights, etc.

[Jerome Scuggs]

Of any country, it's the single greatest threat to world peace. I'm glad I'm an American, and the US has so many great things going for it, but that is absolutely not one of them.

this is why it's critical to bring socialism to the US. it's the only country we can't invade

[Jerome Scuggs]

http://www.businessinsider.com/world...8-1/?r=US&IR=T

lol i just deleted a genuine rage post re: this article

tl;dr: chile elected a socialist, the CIA killed him and installed a right-winger whose policies were given the thumbs up by the "chicago boys", a group of economists led by milton friedman. said right-winger routinely tossed leftists out of helicopters until his own crimes caught up with him. post-pinochet the world bank then rigs their statistics to make chile's economy look worse when a socialist gets elected, and better when a conservative gets elected. this is probably a factor in why Pinochet's grandson is forming a new right-wing party and gaining support.

literally none of the things i posted except that last sentence/link are personal opinions or theories, the wiki page on pinochet plainly admits that this is what the US/CIA did and the world bank admits it did what it did.

it's hard to remain clearheaded when i read about shit like this and then read posts like "if you want to see the results of socialism, look at (country that we directly destabilized or indirectly economically ruined)" and "the US doesn't owe any country anything" etc

we created north korea when we broke our postwar occupation agreements with the soviets, we've invaded haiti countless times for "reasons", we armed the soviets to fight nazis then armed jihadists to fight commies and now we're stuck in an almost two-decades struggle against the jihadists. we just concluded an arms deal with saudi arabia, birthplace of a majority of the 9/11 hijackers. central america was all but owned and operated by american businessmen (see: the dole corporation aka united fruit aka chiquita), giving birth to the term "banana republics", and we left in a hurry after basically looting resources & infrastructure.

but we talk about all these countries like they all had a clean, fresh slate and, through only their own inferiority, managed to somehow screw up each of their respective countries or regions, and we act shocked and confused when people from these countries are skeptical about our mythical devotion to peace and progress.

gee whiz this wound up becoming a ragepost anyways

edit: forgot to mention one of the more obvious ones as well: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CIA_activities_in_Iran

i hate to be that guy who is now basically just linking wikipedia pages but that's what is frustrating, this isn't some obscure pizzagate style conspiracy theory. these are well-established facts fit to publish on wikipedia.