Why is Japan the second richest country in the world?

lizards

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crepesack said:
nanotech, basic technology, advance technology, cars, center of asian investment, epitome of development in E. Asia, its a technopole, and also its people are very industrious, way better then us lazy ass americans.
1 sterotype alert (even worse yet it was used alongside a completly retarded statement)

2 as said before americans arent industrious? safe bet you werent the kid that got picked on for being smart problay the kid that was picked on for being dumb
 

lizards

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the captain said:
It's because the radioactive fallout from hiroshima and nagasaki turned everyone in japan into super humans that can work all day and night without tiring. It's one of the little known pro's about being nuked.
ya just ask megaton
 

dingy-boku

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Cellphones. I currently live in Japan as a result of my profession and I have to say that the cellphones here are years ahead of anywhere else in the world, you think your G3 is fast! That and the relatively low cost of technology has something to do with it. as for the military spending, its mostly into the JSDF, they like to keep themselves safe, with giant robots. I've seen them, its insane...25m tall and with beam cannons.
 

BLOONINJA 503

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dingy-boku said:
Cellphones. I currently live in Japan as a result of my profession and I have to say that the cellphones here are years ahead of anywhere else in the world, you think your G3 is fast! That and the relatively low cost of technology has something to do with it. as for the military spending, its mostly into the JSDF, they like to keep themselves safe, with giant robots. I've seen them, its insane...25m tall and with beam cannons.
We need to put your post in a time capsule. :]

Welcome to the escapist. get an avatar and you'll be set.
 

Anarchemitis

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Because USA helped them out economically after they surrendered in 1945 to ensure they had a strong ally in the pacific and a relay station to combat The Red Menace! of the Soviet Union and up-and-coming China. They've been a strong industrial power ever since.
 

Alex_P

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Read this?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_post-war_economic_miracle

-- Alex
 

black lincon

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DarkRyter said:
I'm assuming on that Military spending is going into Gundams.
Actually some Japanese robotics engeneers created a blueprint for the hardware side of a gundam-like robot, total cost- over $70 billion USD. Sorry I can't get you an article, it may lie somewhere in the depths of the feed sections of G4TV.com, I just rmember it because of the fact they used aluminum armor because the price of gundainium is so high *ba dum tish*.
 

jboking

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I'm just assuming, but I think this probably has something to do with it.
goodman528 said:
Japan has:

5th largest military expenditure in the world (~US$50billion)*, but officially no military
They heavily rely on exporting. They spend billions(assumption) on military technology but do not use it on their own military, they sell it to other countries who want it.
 

Captain_Caveman

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goodman528 said:
I think Japan is one of those countries that logically shouldn't be rich, because it doesn't have anything, yet it is very rich.
What they have is brainpower. You have countries like Saudi Arabia which are rich because of a natural resource like oil. And you have the exact opposite, which is Japan. All their money comes from ingenuity.
 

Raincloud

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Japan's economy can be viewed much like the US.

Think of it this way, the US is a giant mall that provides space to businesses (other countries) to sell their wares. We charge them a rent for using the space, charge them for maintenance on the mall, electric, water, so on and so forth. No matter what, we will make money by providing this service as long as we have tenents.

The Japanese are in a similar situation except they are the Asian Mall. They have a good working relationship with China that very few other countries can barely come close to bragging about. The Japanese also made a very lucrative deal with the US World Mall with a major discount incentive. Add to that, their ability in taking technology invented by someone else and making it better and cheaper. They also do not make their products in Japan but usually in the country they plan to sell it so they don't have import/export taxes to pay. Oh one more thing about Japanese companies, pay close attention to their shareholders. Toyota for instance, has 98% of it's shareholders living in America.

It is not surprising in the least that they would have such a large economy.
 

MsDevin92

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They have Mario and a variety of media that can make effeminate chainsaw-wielding shark-toothed prostitute-murdering Grim Reapers seem sexually desirable.
 

Ryuzix

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Kogarian said:
Wait, wait. I figured it out: Anime.
Well done. If I were Japanese I'd give you a medal. And a cookie.
Heres another answer:
Buy low
Make stuff
Sell high.
 

goodman528

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jboking said:
I'm just assuming, but I think this probably has something to do with it.
goodman528 said:
Japan has:

5th largest military expenditure in the world (~US$50billion)*, but officially no military
They heavily rely on exporting. They spend billions(assumption) on military technology but do not use it on their own military, they sell it to other countries who want it.
Japanese constitution article 9 bans all weapons exports. The Japanese rely on USA for military equipment, though they modify some of it and does the manufacturing in Japan. Japan's R&D on military is very limited.

Now, where does all that money go then? I think Japan is in a very similar situation as China. China has the 2nd largest military expenditure in the world (~US$70million). But China imports most of its hardware from Russia, though like Japan, China makes modifications and manufactures the equipment indigenously. Both has very ambitious aspirations for the future of their military, with the Japanese F??? fighter program and naval modernisation programs and the Chinese J??? next gen fighter program and naval modernisation program. This arms race has been going on since Deng's move from Mao's "people's war" to "limited war" doctrine in the '80s, which lead to modernisation on both sides.

So, next time you see news reports of Anti Japanese protests in China, or Anti Chinese acts in Japan, or tensions in the pinnacle islands. Well, this arms race is the under current.
 

Matronadena

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dingy-boku said:
Cellphones. I currently live in Japan as a result of my profession and I have to say that the cellphones here are years ahead of anywhere else in the world, you think your G3 is fast! That and the relatively low cost of technology has something to do with it. as for the military spending, its mostly into the JSDF, they like to keep themselves safe, with giant robots. I've seen them, its insane...25m tall and with beam cannons.
you must be living near Osaka then :p

When I was living there ( mind you I was a child and was only there 2 years, but still visit often to see friends and study) the big big export was and still is electronics, and other luxury items...Saw flip phones there, when the US had the big bricks at the same time....

combine my time living there, and the fact that professionally I work with companies in japan constantly, and spend time studying under my Roshi based in Tsukuba..

when it comes to agriculture, it's been mentioned right, Japan is a series of mountains, what areas that ARE farmable are well used, they terraced and can produce more than one would expect...the boon comes with that they KEEP most of the product IN japan, where as most heavy agricultural export large amounts... as most nations with low yield agriculture, they use it to subsidize rather than support.

another thing that has helped Japan is it's economy...Yes japan has been in a recession for years, however theirs is different than we see in the US and such, as almost none of it is personal debt. This is because there is no credit system, in fact many jobs wont even write a paycheck, they pay you in cash, people tend not to buy unless they have saved...so there consumerist nature has kept them fairly more stable to the point that when there is a dip in recession numbers, or a spike they have a fairly predictable patterns.

Education is not as good as many think... unless you have the money to go to a private school, elementary through high school will just pass you through, it is those wishing to excel in public school that will get scholar ships to good universities, those who lacked the drive are recruited in HS by a corporation and their education will completely revolve around " that one job" One of the main reasons salary men spend so much time at work, or piss drunk 24/7 is all the attempt to impress the boss, even at the risk of depression...though many by the time they reach their 30's and 40's start deciding they rather get payed less and work in smaller jobs like opening a Ramen stand, or fishing because they find themselves more free to be themselves.

but then there is that damn pachinko, and love hotels to eat away ones money >.<

that's an end to my little rant
 

Johnn Johnston

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The post-war economic help gave them a boost, which has been kept up by (I assume) having a large tertiary work sector, alongside a successful primary fishing industry.

Oh, and tourism.