Latest 15 of 34 Total Comments Show All

• 

  tkoind2 at 03:41 PM JST - 28th May

  A few things will help. 1. Stop working people to death and encourage them to have a life outside the office. Work life balance would help. 2. Launch a campaign to promote mental well being and invest in councellors and clinical social workers to give people someone to talk to. 3. Address the socio-economic issues that plague a lot of people. 4. Start programs for employers and families to ID early warning signs. 5. Start a campaign to counter the "romanticised" image of suicide in the Japanese psyche.

• 

  westurn at 03:56 PM JST - 28th May

  Fact is, happy people in happy societies don't off themselves in record numbers year after year after year like the Japanese do ! Japan must seriously address the failed society it has built. There really is nothing positive to say about 14 hour working days, loveless relationships, and a nation where freedom of speech or expression is feverishly forbidden. Those of you living outside the shores of Japan, don't look here for guidance, shun the Japanese way of doing things at all costs ! It is a miserable existence and these "reported" thousands of suicides is just a sample... and believe you me, there are thousands more out there but major companies like "Japan Railroad" simply don't have the energy or resources to verify every incident on their train tracks. Last year they reported that Japan's suicide rates are actually about 30% higher but because suicide notes are rarely found, mny folks are just written off as "accidentaly" killed... while "sleeping" on the tracks ??? What a sad state of affairs ! 24 per 100,000 off themselves in nippon... compared to the US at less than half that ! Those of you that dare to argue my points about the failure of nippon... contemplate those figures a bit would ya !

• 

  TPOJ at 04:22 PM JST - 28th May

  Er, since you more or less stated that the suicides are rising due to a lack of He Who Shall Not Be Named, that makes me wonder...

  Can't say I've noticed your posts before, but honestly, even implying that the rising suicide rates in Japan can be attributed to a lack of Western religion, however tangental, is not only deeply insulting to Japan as a culture, it's pretty much asking for a gigantic flame war.

  Not questioning your beliefs, but you might want to consider how your statements will come across to people who don't share your mindset (i.e. the vast majority of the world.)

• 

  fingerless at 04:32 PM JST - 28th May

  I think it has to do a lot with the discouragement of creative thinking. Japanese people are just not very good at tackling problems individually. Then there is also a prevailing opinion that says it is perfectly acceptable to end your own life when you have become a burden to others.

• 

  capone at 04:39 PM JST - 28th May

  weak people choose the easy way out

• 

  conqueror_of_Uranus at 04:55 PM JST - 28th May

  weak people choose the easy way out

  In many cases, suicide is not the "easy way out".

  Have you ever been in a life-threatening situation? It takes some strong determination to look death in it's hollow black eyes and charge him head-on.

  Let's say you're Christian. You believe in the after-life and concept of Hell. To willingly submit yourself to the 5th level of Dante's Hell where you will spend eternity in a pool of boiling blood with murderers and raipsts does not sound like the easy way out.

  Even if you don't believe in the afterlife, you either need the determination of a hungry wolverine, or a lot of flying fccks that were never given to willingly face death and choose it.

• 

  Nessie at 05:27 PM JST - 28th May

  I wonder if they corrected these figures to account for demographic aging. There is a gradual tendency for the age structure to change, which means that high-risk age groups will be more represented in some years and less represented in others, although this won't have much effect in year-on-year comparisons.

• 

  GrouchyGaijin at 07:54 PM JST - 28th May

  My understanding is that murder is anger expressed outwardly, and suicide is anger expressed inwardly. Given the cultural norms here to "gamman" and to separate the "honne" and the "tate-mae" to preserve "wa" I'm surprised we don't actually have more than we do. I heard a talking head describe this number as being equivalent to "100 loaded Boeing 747's crashing" every year. And that is not including the casualties on the ground, i.e. those affected by the individuals' deaths. Much as I growl about Japan, I am always deeply saddened by the report each year of these kinds of numbers, especially as many of them include primary age and teens who felt they had no other option. Now THAT's a sign of a sad society indeed.

• 

  umbrella at 10:29 PM JST - 28th May

  Nothing that can be done. Japanese society is what it is.

• 

  WMD at 06:36 AM JST - 29th May

  Yes, these 30,000 plus suicides is the "price" japan is prepared to pay to keep their exclusive straitjacket society intact. It will never change.

• 

  dany505 at 07:06 AM JST - 29th May

  I wonder what the reason is. Is it the inability to process and deal with stress. Why is a country that is so modern/efficent so deffecitent in this area.

• 

  DenshaDeGO at 09:54 AM JST - 29th May

  There is zero support in this country and for the most part, people only care about themselves. If you have any kind of problems or trouble you're branded "okashii" by everyone down the slippery slope you go.

  What a country

• 

  Zen_Builder at 10:04 AM JST - 29th May

  Got to disagree. Both me and my wife suffer from depression, mine work related, hers dude to cancer.

  Walk past ANY station and you will see tons of advertisements for docs caring to mental illnesses, stress, etc.

  My own doc deals mostly with stress related issues vs the other areas he is certified for.

  Plenty of help out there and they would go out of business if they couldn't get the clients.

  Said that, japan splits medical docs to counselors(not certified and thus no real docs). So you will need to visit 2 places one for meds and a referal for guidance. Some places provide both though.

  Just a different system to overseas but it is in place. My doc sez he treats more house-wifes/students than salary-man.

  HTH.

• 

  rranta at 11:29 AM JST - 29th May

  netrek at 11:00 AM JST - 28th May

  rranta how then do you account for the long established tradition of hari-kiri and seppuku in Japan? "Death before dishonor" sort of mentality is not some new, modern invention in the the Japanese psyche.

  I agree. the method is not new, but the reasons maybe. I have seen stories of Men committing suicides to save face over " Credit card payments", money and other things. Isn't there another path a person may take in Japan when they're over their head in debt??

• 

  netrek at 01:43 PM JST - 31st May

  rranta I agree. It is very tragic. I think with sucide cases there are often warning signs. Perhaps employers and friends and family can be better educated to become sensitive to such signs. In the US a person can be involuntarily committed for a time if they are deemed a danger to themselves or others (Section 302 here). Does that exist in Japan?

Register or login to add a comment!