Black Friday

Water Cooler
#41

I don’t know, people always say Japanese are lack of individuality and conform to the norm, etc… but in Japan there are so many products to customize everything, from phones and gadgets to home decor and cars, it seems like we do like to have our own identity and style??

#42

i agree to a point. It seems Japanese conform to a group and then look for subtle ways to display their individuality without upsetting the norm. The concept of 内 And 外 is very strong as well.

The group mentality and worrying about upsetting the status quo can be both good and bad. Many of Japan’s good points like safety, strong middle class, great work ethic can be attributed to this. Many of its bad points like corruption, organized crime, higher education can also be attributed to this. It’ll be interesting to see how and if Japan can integrate foreigners into society in the future.

#43

They will have no choice to bring in foreigners. How long can you last with deflation and shrinking population? It’s been 2 lost decades now.

#44

.

#45

So did any of you partake in Black Friday? I was driving home from my dinner at about 10-11 pm and the parking lot at the mall was pretty packed. They have a JCP, Target, Best Buy, and a couple other things in there. No thanks, as far as I’m concerned… been there-done that in the past.

#46

Yeah, lined up early at Borders to get a discounted CFA Level 1 Schweser

#47

http://kotaku.com/the-chaos-and-carnage-of-black-friday-2013-1473472104

and so it has begun.

#48

I do agree that Japanese people are very proud and they like to be self-sufficient without relying on “gaijin” to help or importing things from other countries. on the other hand, we also keep the best products within the country, best produce for example, instead of exporting and make money out of it.

i can see the good and bad in that.

#49

But things that have no competition in Japan from the outside tend to be of lesser quality. A perfect example is housing. No insulation, no central heating or air conditioning, houses that rarely last past 30 years. Japanese electronics and cars I find are better in the west. This is probably because of competition and the size of the markets.

#50

I also don’t know how a country that imports nearly all of their energy requirements and carries one of the largest current account deficits can claim they value self-reliance. Maybe for Playstations. Not for food, heat, electricity, raw materials, etc.

#51

There are always natural resources that we don’t have, and i see your point. but for most household items, food, transportation, clothing, etc, we use mostly domestic products.

#52

^ isn’t Japan the largest importer of food in the developed world…and the largest waster (per capita) at the same time?

#53

dont feed the troll hehe

#54

I don’t know it’s the largest importer of food! that i am quite surprised…

#55

Not only do they import of it, but they do at insanely high prices. This is an interesting chart I just found:

http://theenergycollective.com/lindsay-wilson/300911/expensive-average-natural-gas-prices-compared-us-uk-france-germany-and-japan

#56

LOL!

#57

yes. Self sufficiency is below 40%.

#58

i dont understand this black friday thing…the items on sale are shitty brands right?

#59

classic

#60

this seems to have caught on in the UK… ever so slightly ironic…

a couple of clips going viral at the moment showing people fighting over TVs in Tescos and people generally debasing themselves for 40% off Lenovo laptops etc.