Question by McDooo: Should the Philippines look at Japan as a role-model in terms of economy?
In Japan:
> free and open national and local elections which are very competitive across several parties, ruling party provides prime minister in the Diet.
> national health care, full coverage at $ 125 per month (upper middle class income level compared to US), no rejections.
> 3%-5% unemployment ongoing, during most recent US-caused recession maximum at 5.6%:
http://www.tradingeconomics.com/Economics/Unemployment-rate.aspx?symbol=JPY
> under 10% personal income taxes (mine are 6%, above-average income level)
> 40% corporate income taxes
> 22,000 licensed lawyers as a cap with little to nothing to do (0.01% of population) (while US 1,200,000 lawyers or 0.4% of population) – people solve their own problems rather than working-class leeching courts.
> public transportation provided at no charge to all workers – paid by employing companies (PLUS – I have never needed nor wanted an automobile, and instead save ALL the plethora associated costs, taxes, and fees)
> oligopolized, inter-cooperative banks operating under missions “to benefit society” rather than “to earn profit” (no working class gouging ATM fees) (no checking accounts to gouge workers) (low interest and generous forbearance)
> setting 10% product price mark-up typically across-the-board by sellers (voluntary based on honor and missions “to benefit society”), heedless of fluctuations in demand – effectively discourages consumer price gouging.
> subsidized staple food products to the end consumer, regulating ongoing fair pricing.
> no abusive sin taxes (cigarettes at ~$ 3 a pack since 1997, exact same brand price at ALL vendors).
> most equitable wage distribution in the world ([a] of course extracts threat of executive thievery/ [b] worst is the US and UK) (executives earn double staff salaries across the board)
> lowest crime rate in the world (due to no rich class oppression) (AND only 1.8 police per 1000 people vs. 2.85 per 1000 in the US)
> even the very, very few homeless in Japan WILL NOT beg – perfectly debunks vacuous accusations that socialism creates dependency, and rather displays that socialism heightens personal honor.
> free to carry a beer into a theater or onto a train (just threw that in to exhibit daily freedom from fascist abuse) (Why can we do this? We can because (1) law books are logical rather than oversize for working class thievery, and (2) competition is not a forced philosophy here.)
> $ 28 trillion in national savings ($ 13 trillion of which held by households):
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8UM6BU00&show_article=1&catnum=0
“As far as government debt is concerned, we should not worry about it for at least another three to four years. Accumulated government debt is very large, close to 190% of GDP, but the financial wealth of the Japanese household is 300% of GDP in gross terms. Even in net terms it is around 240%, so we still have room to finance government debt… The Japanese purchase 94% of Japanese government debt, so this is not an unhealthy situation at all. It is much healthier than the United States situation where close to 70% is being purchased by foreigners. However, the Japanese savings ratio has come down; it is below 5%, and the amount of government debt is increasing much more rapidly than savings, so we cannot have this kind of situation for long. Maybe within the next five to ten years we need to have fiscal consolidation. Within the next five to ten years we should raise the consumption tax.”
– Mr. Eisuke Sakakibara (a.k.a. “Mr. Yen”) / Former Japan Minister of Finance / July 2010 ]
P.S: I’m a Filipino working in Japan and I’m proud to be Pinoy.
@flipperr
You see, Japan is an export country. Everything here in the Philippines are mostly Japanese.
Playstation = Japanese
Toyota = Japanese
7 Eleven = Japanese
Anime = Japanese
The underpass at Makati = Japanese
MRT = Japanese
I wish we Filipinos would do the same thing as the Japanese, rather than hanging out with (foreign) dirty old men.
@ragdefender
True China is the 2nd largest economy in the world behind U.S.A and in front of Japan. But in reality, the workers in China are overworked and underpaid. But in Japan, the people there have a higher standard of living compared to people living in China.
Best answer:
Answer by flipperr
Gee! An Asian economy that actually works. Too bad Filipinos didn’t think of having this type of economy 35-40 years ago like the Japanese did.
Tanga!!!!!
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
ragdefender
December 19, 2010 at 3:07 am
Most of the things you said are expenses. They don’t make you more money, but they’re luxuries that a government is able to give its people if they have the money. Others are really meant to address very specific conditions that would not be the same everywhere. Its interesting that you chose Japan, but its China that is Asia’s number one economy by the way. And while the US is the biggest economy in the world, I think its Benelux that actually has the most benefits to its citizens and has the biggest per capita wealth.
The key to economic prosperity is hard work. Sadly, most Filipinos who work hard emmigrate and contribute to the economies abroad. The Japanese, as you know are hard workers. And they are very concerned with honor. And its that attitude that I would point to when praising Japan.
Rose
December 19, 2010 at 3:17 am
Before looking at Japan as a role-model for the economy and the benefits it has given back to its citizens, perhaps it is better to say that we should follow how they arrived at that economy first.
Japanese targeted markets: technology, vechicles, and rice. They also did it without straying away from their culture. As opposed to China whose main market is labor demand. We cannot identify a product originally from China. Even their architecture during the Beijing Olympics was from a Swiss firm.
Perhaps, if we can adapt that mentality of loving our own works, we can find a niche and export it to the world. Yet we have always wanted the imported ones, and for reason that most of them are made from high quality products.
The Philippines, like I stated before, can invest in processing of raw materials to finished products.
Right now, we have the raw materials, but we don’t have the capacity to process them. What happens is that we sell the raw materials to foreign companies, then they sell the finished product to us.
Take note of Singapore also, which is the same size as Manila, yet more bountiful. They don’t have the natural resources, so they focused Singapore as a shopping center of Asia (along with HK) and as a business district.
We need to find a product and export it to the world, after then it’s up to the government to give back to its citizens.
It’s a give and take relationship. If only we can work together and stop pulling down each other, perhaps we can be a greater economy than today.
Reuie
December 19, 2010 at 3:18 am
We’re already looking at them as role models.
the problem is… there’s no action intended
Anderson Cooper
December 19, 2010 at 4:17 am
You have merely listed the attributes that Japan achieved after successful economic development. What you need to discuss is the process of economic development. How can the Philippines develop technology, brands, marketing, financing, etc to build a modern economy? That’s the real question.
Any fool can say “Wouldn’t it be great to have national health care, great schools, and a high standard of living for everyone”. The question is how to achieve that. The Philippines needs to develop technical expertise, innovation, entrepreneurship, end corruption, and crush the insurgencies (MILF, Abu Sayef, NPA).
Android
December 19, 2010 at 5:13 am
Well, good for them. Whatever they’re doing is not applicable to the Philippines. The two countries have very different backgrounds. Consider this, the country’s leaders have been emulating, or trying to, the USofA for the past half century. Guess what, it’s not happening. You cannot just put something taken from one place to another when it doesn’t belong there and expect it to work. The country doesn’t have enormous oil reserves, nor tech-savvy. The country taught some of its Southeast Asian neighbors to plant rice, but now it’s importing from them. Just take a look around the next time you come home. I guess that may be the reason why you’re over there.
The GRP, particularly the policy makers, must stop being passive, become active, and work with what is available locally. They should stop being copy-cats, feign goodness but only looking after themselves, and trying to be cute. No wonder many of the Philippines’ best and brightest are out of the country. But you already know why is it so.
I guess the root cause is the dismal lack of genuine love of country, everytime and not only during international beauty pageants, basketball tournaments, boxing fights, billiards events, and other contests.