But can&#x27;t we agree that the numbers don&#x27;t tell the whole story here? Whether it&#x27;s because of consumer demand or diplomatic pressure, Japan doesn&#x27;t have the freedom to manage its economy solely on the basis of what&#x27;s best for Japan.<p>Also, you&#x27;re entirely correct about weak management. The quality of Japanese society depends heavily on good stewardship due to the willingness to fall in line. It is basically a feudal arrangement played out in the business realm instead of political.<p>Take for example, the area where I live, Nagoya. It is home to Toyota, which is mostly a success story in this respect. Mitsubishi, too. When you read about the emissions scandal this week, remember that Mitsubishi also rolled out the X2 stealth fighter this month, and is gearing up for the MRJ regional jet program. These companies operate on a scale that is similar to nation states.<p>Meanwhile, the local universities are winning the Nobel Prize for little innovations like blue LEDs.<p>Everywhere I look, I see people living a higher quality of life than I see in America. My Japanese friends range from people who work very hard for very little money to people whose family sits on epic fortunes. When I go to the grocery store, the prices are less than half what they would be in any coastal American city, and the products are vastly higher quality. I bought my car (which gets 80PMG) for about US$10K...new, and it came with an in-dash TV&#x2F;GPS, four cameras, autonomous stop radar, and regenerative brakes. US$10K off the lot. I never visited the car dealership...they sent a dealer to my house and I count him as a trusted friend now. He comes and picks up the car from time to time to have the fluids changed. Insurance for the car is a few hundred dollars a month, and fuel is about $26 per month for light city commuting. Most of the time, I ride my bike or ride the subway.<p>I own an apartment in New York City that is worth millions of dollars, but I choose to live here. I understand that there is an article in Bloomberg that shows a picture of a homeless person in Tokyo, but it&#x27;s just simply not consistent with the reality of my life. You can (fairly) tell me that I&#x27;m insulated and willfully ignorant and that I lack data, but I&#x27;m still going to represent my perspective because it is at the end of the day more &quot;real&quot; than whatever Bloomberg is saying.