In an era of rapid globalization, it is somewhat shocking to note the exclusive nature of the Japanese economy, and to a larger extent, the Japanese society as a whole. The other day I was talking to a local and I asked her if she has a facebook account, she fawned and asked "What is Facebook?" I am trying my best not to sound like a presumptuous American who thinks everyone around the world should adopt to the American standard but FB by now has achieved an almost ubiquitous popularity around the globe. The local is in her 20s, university-educated, and is working for a large Japanese corporation in Tokyo. If anyone in the population knows/uses FB, she should be in that group. I was quite taken aback. This is Japan, not North Korea after all. Take another example - On TV, there are quite a few number of shows on sightseeing and with almost no exception, it is a domestic destination featuring the same formula over and over again: breathtaking scenery in some remote area of Japan, onsen, and exquisite food. It was interesting to watch in the beginning but afterwards, I got bored by the “おいしいいい〜”, “うっまい” exclaimed by the hosts when they send the food to their mouth.
Nitori: the Japanese version of IKEA
On paper, Japan's markets are fairly open. Aside from agricultural goods, the tariff rates are about the same as those of other industrial countries and there are only few import quotas established. However, the truth is also that Japan spends less than half as much as of its income on imports of manufactured goods as any advanced nation. It is no secret that foreign companies find it extremely hard, if not impossible to penetrate to the Japanese market even though they might be able to offer a cheaper, better alternative. For all foreign companies which otherwise do very well in the rest of the world, there is a Japanese shadow version that counteracts this foreign influence. Mixi vs Facebook, MOS burger vs McDonalds, Nitori vs IKEA, Raketen vs Amazon.co... and the list goes on. According to a paper written by Paul Krugman, the limit of Japanese import is severely restricted by the web of implicit business relations guaranteed among firms. Using Krugman's words, "Japan hands point to the interlocking structure of ownership within Japan; to the long-term relationships between suppliers, distributors, and banks; to an economy that resembles an elaborate old boys' network more than the free-wheeling markets of America". My professor further pointed out that foreign companies are reluctant to invest in Japan because rules are not clearly spelled out and they feel that they are not playing by the same rules as their Japanese counterparts.
Rakuten: the Japanese version of Amazon.com
Unlike China, there is no central planning of the economy by the government and yet, the local economy is able to fend off most foreign competitions. In addition to the reasons on the supply side of the equation mentioned above, the demand sidealso paints an unwelcoming picture for the potential foreign investors.
Japanese products are known for their quality and their "優しさ” (customer-oriented) and the Japanese citizens are very well-awared of that. Japanese's pride in their craftsmanship (職人精神) and their utmost focus on details is reflected directly on the design of products and services. The view that the Japanese made products are better and therefore worth more extends beyond manufactured goods to just about everything that is Japanese-managed or owned. People are more comfortable with Japanese made products not because they are tailored to Japanese only, but also because the Japanese interface alone provides comfort to the users, who seem to naturally repel foreign looking goods and deem them subpar. How much of this biased-ness against foreign goods can be corrected by competitive pricing is unknown but foreign companies wishing to enter the Japanese market should probably put in some serious marketing efforts. What Japanese consumers are happy to buy are products that are made 'from heart' and are made to 'touch peoples' heart'.
人は涙見せずに大人になれない
ガラスのような恋だとは
I know 気付いてる Hoo
身も心も愛しい人しか見えない
張り裂けそうな胸の奥で
悲しみに耐えるのはなぜ？
見つめ合うと素直にお喋り出来ない
津波のような侘しさに
I knowï 怯えてる Hoo
めぐり逢えた時から死ぬまで好きと言って
鏡のような夢の中で
微笑みをくれたのは誰？
好きなのに泣いたのはなぜ？
思い出はいつの日も...雨
I am timid, and lost in the wind
The shadow of that day passes me by
The truth is, I have a past of easily crying
More than it would appear
Fresh water, flowing without stopping
A devilish fire that burns without disappearing
There won't be a summer again
Where I'll meet a girl that I love that much
Everyone searches for love, destined to wander in the darkness
So I trust myself to the wind, oh, my destiny
Until my tears dry up
When we gaze at one another, I can't talk to you naturally
Loneliness like a tidal wave
I know...I'm afraid of it, hoo
From the time we met, the magic hasn't gone away
In a dream like a mirror
My memories are rain everyday
When the dream is over, and I wake up
The dawn comes in the thick darkness
The truth is, I'm more tough
Than I would appear
Gazing at the sky that seems about start crying, seagulls float above the waves
This world is certainly pathetic, oh, sweet memory
Journeys in my heart
A person can't grow up without showing his tears
A love like glass
I know...I notice it, hoo
My body and heart can only see the girl that I love
Inside my heart that seems about to break
How do I endure this sadness?
When we gaze at one another, I can't talk to you naturally
Loneliness like a tidal wave
I know...I'm afraid of it, hoo
From the time we meet, until I die, say that you love me
In a dream like a mirror
Who is it that smiled at me?
Why do I cry, even though I love you?
My memories are rain everyday
so the line goes like this in "This is how you will disappear", the first theater play I attended in Japan which coincidentally was on the Culture Day (文化の日）. It was also one of the performing art series in the Tokyo Festival. The line was sang by a young promising athlete who was threatened by her trainer - he would kill her, and he meant it if she was not perfect. When she sang those lines, she was going though the inevitable stage of self-doubts and insecurities while muddling through the road towards stardom. The journey was long and lonely and you could never quite figure out how far you are from the end point, if there is one.
If we were better of what we did, we could be spared from the doubts we cast on ourselves and reassured ourselves the road that we have picked.
If we were worse of what we did, we could make peace with ourselves by just giving up and move on to something else.
The line hits me particularly hard as I am paving my way towards my desired future. (I have refrained from saying that it is my dream) I am not sure if I am talented enough to do what I have aspired for myself, nor am I sure if I can convince others that I am qualified. The paradox here is how to make others believe when are in awe yourself.
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booklet given in the play - just shows how far Tokyo ahead of HK in fostering culture activities
I am an amateur in theater but few comments about the play as a whole: The meaning of the story was hard to grasp but the production was no doubt top-notched. The lighting, the sound and fog effects were at their best even though it was played in a rather small theater with only 3 actors. The artistic quality of the play has exceeded by large margins the plays I have seen in Hong Kong. As a public policy student, the question then always comes back to, why Hong Kong has failed to produced a world-class theater play and attracted renowned international theater companies to play in Hong Kong? Simply emphasizing Hong Kong residents' indifference towards art gets in the way of understanding deeper issues in this society and to say Hong Kong is a pure financial city just does not explain anything.
