Why do so many people on the internet like to characterize Japan as sex-crazy?

[Yuuki]

I despise Japan, but not individual Japanese people. The sexism and hideous treatment of women reaches disgusting, strange levels in Japan's mainstream that are just not okay. Having to separate women from men in trains is the least of that country's sexist nightmare problems.

It's no South Africa, but I'd never visit the country or feel comfortable walking its streets.

It doesn't sound like you know what you're saying here. Please do elaborate on the whole "sexism and hideous treatment of women reaches disgusting, strange levels in Japan's mainstream" thing. That's an awfully long sentence, with an awful lot of opinionated/subjective "info", with an awful ton of generalization/assumptions.
Putting aside the fact that walking down a Japanese street is one of the safest places on earth to walk around, the country has some of the lowest reported rape rates in the world (around 23x less than USA after factoring population difference) and almost non-existent petty crime. Please do tell us about what sort of "sexist nightmare" problems you faced. Sounds like women in Japan are beheaded on sight.

Guessing from some of your previous posts, it wouldn't be too surprising to see you hopping onto any train of thought where even the slightest amount of sexism (only against females of course) = exaggeration & generalization ahoy.

Let me just put it this way - Japan isn't perfect and definitely has it's issues with sexism against women. But they are far cry from the kind of "nightmare" issues you have in mind, you would have to live and work there for several years before you even began to notice the higher-up sexism that happens, it's extremely subtle and you will be hard-pressed to find Japanese people who are willing to discuss it with you. Even then, Japan is far from a special case in that aspect.

 

[Trippy Turtle]

Because its hilarious?
And don't act like that isn't a good reason. It might not be nice but a lot of things people do aren't nice.
Its the same as asking why people act like the media is set of destroying the world. It gets attention and its entertaining. Doesn't mean your local news anchor has a score of bodies in his basement.

 

[Neonsilver]

I have once read an article that stated that the japanese are or were quite open about sex and what they are doing about censoring pornographic content is something that came from the americans after WW2.

Don't know how accurate that article was, it was a long time ago that I read it so don't ask for a link to it.

 

[SuperUberBob]

Why do people think Asians can't drive?

Oh they can't. That's not a stereotype. I lived in Asia for 4 years and one of my biggest peeves is Americans who complain about other American drivers. My family has no idea how good they have it.

-----------------------------------------

Japan and most of Asia from my experience is sexually repressed. College-aged Chinese girls who have had sex are in the minority in the schools I've taught in.

Of course if you go to the right places in any major Asian city, you can definitely see where the stereotype comes from.

 

[Weaver]

Becuase Kanamara Matsuri is a huge celebration in Japan and is totally normal?

The Kanamara Matsuri is centered around a local penis-venerating shrine once popular among prostitutes who wished to pray for protection from sexually transmitted diseases. It is said that there are also divine protections for business prosperity and for the clan's prosperity; and for easy delivery, marriage, and married-couple harmony. There is also a legend of a sharp-toothed demon (vagina dentata) that hid inside the vagina of a young woman and castrated two young men on their wedding nights. As a result, the young woman sought help from a blacksmith, who fashioned an iron phallus to break the demon's teeth, which led to the enshrinement of the item.

Here's one of thousands of pictures you can google

Spoiler

More to the point: I know Japan is a functioning society that isn't full of sexual deviants. However, they aren't doing themselves any favours via the media they export.

 

[El Danny]

This is the country where you can by dirty knickers from vending machines. I'm sure Japan isn't full of sex-obsessed perverts, but it's certainly earned its reputation.

 

[DefunctTheory]

Becuase Kanamara Matsuri is a huge celebration in Japan and is totally normal?

The Kanamara Matsuri is centered around a local penis-venerating shrine once popular among prostitutes who wished to pray for protection from sexually transmitted diseases. It is said that there are also divine protections for business prosperity and for the clan's prosperity; and for easy delivery, marriage, and married-couple harmony. There is also a legend of a sharp-toothed demon (vagina dentata) that hid inside the vagina of a young woman and castrated two young men on their wedding nights. As a result, the young woman sought help from a blacksmith, who fashioned an iron phallus to break the demon's teeth, which led to the enshrinement of the item.

Here's one of thousands of pictures you can google

Spoiler

More to the point: I know Japan is a functioning society that isn't full of sexual deviants. However, they aren't doing themselves any favours via the media they export.

...

Did I just read about a folktale about a woman who got an iron 'marriage aid' to banish a vaginal demon?

...

Christ.

 

[Bertylicious]

I always assumed it was from their conduct during the second world war. All that terrible business in China and Thailand and everywhere.

Also I was watching the original Bubblegum Crisis (massive shoulder pads for the win!) the other day and that did feature a running incest gag with a 15 year old lad desperately trying to see his sister naked. On the other hand they had a gay man in a central, authorative, role who has a normal, friendly, relationship with his straight police partner so it's all swings and roundabouts.

 

[Amir Kondori]

There is the train groping, the used panties being sold in vending machines, tubgirl, hentai, hentai games, strange pixelated porn, waifu, pillow women, mouse pads with boobs, and many other things I am forgetting at the moment.

 

[Talvrae]

It might be exagerated... but how many contry sell dirty girls underwears in a distributing machines?

 

[The_Echo]

So... how about it. Why does everyone think they're all sex-crazy when that's definitely nowhere near the extent which everyone thinks?

Americans are fat. The French are rude. Germans are angry. The Chinese are strict. The Irish are drunks.

Cultural stereotypes. That's your answer.

(Though this perception is NOT helped by the cultural-dissonance on how both the West and East view sexuality).

Though you've summed it up a bit there yourself.

Japan has an annual penis festival [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanamara_Matsuri], and hentai has made its presence known globally. Not to mention the myriad of anime [http://sompreto.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/one-piece-nami-new-world.jpg] and video game [http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120724095248/tekken/en/images/c/cd/Ttt2cgiChristie.png] characters whose designs are... less-than-modest.

When this becomes the majority of what one sees from a country, one might think that country is thinking with the wrong head.

 

[GabeZhul]

In footnotes: The west is very closet-prude. We don't talk about sex, we shun it, we treat it as something dirty that you are not even supposed to think about until you are at least 20.

Japan? It's like that, except squared. They are so repressed it's not even funny, and their anime, manga and, especially relevant in this case, the hentai industry are their scarce few outlets that reach the west, which we then latch onto as a way to say "yes, we consume this weird shit, but at least we are not as weird as the people who made this must have been". The rest just snowballs down from there.

As such: An extreme outlet for an extremely repressed society -> The rest of the word doesn't know the circumstances (like that tentancle-porn exists to circumvent censorship regulations and such) -> The world takes everything at face value -> Inaccurate and extremely silly stereotypization.

Factor in the west's enduring animation age ghetto as well (thinking that drawn animation is for kids, a sentiment that is often still going strong even today), which when combined with some early mis-marketed hentai movies in the 80s set the bar for the public consciousness about Japanese import, and you can see how the whole thing started.

Not to mention, today you can also count the lopsided, self-driving effect of the stereotype: People looking for weird and freaky porn often search for Japanese because the stereotype makes them think they would find what they need. This creates a market that Japanese AV studios can use, so they make weird shit for this audience, which in turn reinforces the stereotype.

In the end there is no single reason, but there are quite a number of factors

 

[James Joseph Emerald]

I know a girl living in an apartment in Japan, whose had all sorts of experiences with the sex-crazed culture. For example, it's so hot out that she can dry her clothes in minutes if hung outside, but she had to stop doing it because twice all her underwear was stolen by some pervert.
Also, all the kids in her English class would should "oppai!" (boobs) at her whenever they saw her. And she said she tries to avoid public transport as much as possible, because you will get groped.

But apparently even worse than the perverts are the racists. Japan is full of racists, especially outside the major cities. The kind that stare at you and cross the street to avoid you. She said it's very alienating.

I don't really know why their culture might be especially like this, though she said in her experience it's due to a severe lack of discipline among children. The kids she deals with are 12-15, old enough to know better, but when they act out nothing happens. All the proper teachers are really timid and afraid to punish children, and it's illegal for a temporary teacher to do any disciplining. So they grow up without properly learning right from wrong. That's her theory.

Spoiler: I personally like this one

I personally like this one:

 

[Entitled]

Japan and most of Asia from my experience is sexually repressed. College-aged Chinese girls who have had sex are in the minority in the schools I've taught in.

Why the hell exactly do you keep track of the virginity of the college girls you have taught?

 

[SuperUberBob]

Japan and most of Asia from my experience is sexually repressed. College-aged Chinese girls who have had sex are in the minority in the schools I've taught in.

Why the hell exactly do you keep track of the virginity of the college girls you have taught?

Are you dense enough to think that I actually poll my students or something like that?

Given that sex outside of marriage is illegal and morally condemned in China, it's not a huge stretch.

 

[SuperUberBob]

Japan and most of Asia from my experience is sexually repressed. College-aged Chinese girls who have had sex are in the minority in the schools I've taught in.

Why the hell exactly do you keep track of the virginity of the college girls you have taught?

Given that sex outside of marriage is illegal in China, it's not a huge stretch.

Is that a double entendre? lol

No idea how you drew that impression.

Just out of curiosity guys, how common do you think these vending machines are?

Because I've lived here for years upon years. I've hung out in seedy parts of Shinjuku. I used to live in a red-light district. I've never seen them. I've never heard a Japanese person mention them.

They've been banned for some time now.