Like many this year, I’ve been struggling to make progress and keep my thinking from spiraling out. More recently, I have tried focusing on simple things.

In Japan there are a lot of these small details. Having lived year for as long as I have, it’s akin to any relationship. They change and mature into something that may at first have been a fascination or infatuation. Japan has a lot of those. The pop culture media explosion has been bizarre to view external from the USA’s labeling of Japan as high tech, super modernized and frantically strange.

In truth though, Japan still uses fax machines, still has dvd rental stores, still has cd stores. Those things show no signs currently or being replaced. I assume this is due to older people that refuse to change, but also this “old ways are best” way of thinking that permeates business culture. Businesses say change is risk so it’s better to keep everything the same and safe.

My argument, however is that this latching into outdated mindsets about gender, family, civil rights, development and a whole host of other things, is that the systems and components of the system tend to suffocate slowly over time.

Putting the dvd shop analogy to the side, an easy way to lay this out is in the cyclical nature of outdated thinking. Within the majority of business and politics are older men. Because older men are placed into those positions (or buy into it) it sends this message to many that of course older men should get those jobs. Why else hire them, and why take the risk of hiring someone different gender, status or race-wise?

From this cycle we get modern issues. Japan has been fearing and warning of the declining birthdate for a long time. The aging society will need care and who will do it? But the people that could do anything often do nothing. It would be pretty simple to open new child care facilities within cities, raise the pay of part time workers (a majority of which are women young to old), and reform and incorporate a culture of equality. Doing so would allow many more women to feel comfortable having families.

Yet, silence answers a lot. Old men often do not understand, much less empathize with women. So that inequality continues.

It’s difficult to think this isn’t on purpose. As a foreigner living in Japan, I’ve become more aware of gaps in society and the exclusivity of job availability, pay, housing choices, etc. However this phenomena, the “next in line” phenomena, is an issue that delays and cancels out progress within society.

Next in Line brings the issue of argued priority for gaining rights or betterment. It could be described as follows. Japanese women should have equality as soon as possible within Japan, then perhaps the disabled should be considered, then maybe foreigners, ad infinitum.

This isn’t solely a Japan issue. America does this often as well. I’ve observed both internal and external hatred for people even within the same communities fighting for what should be the same thing but with different beliefs. The trans community is one as it’s slowly progressing toward acknowledgement and fair, equal treatment/ status within society, but because many in the community have different views of “true labeling”, there is a lot of vitriol. However I don’t have much direct interacting with people in the community or their hardships so that’s all I will comment on.

While Japan’s growth is stunted due to this infighting by people all struggling at different levels, the controlling people just sit idle doing what they have always done; be comfortable.

Equality, fairness and respect need to be given to all or they are meaningless to almost everyone and ineffective to almost all.