[Sangetsu]

Interesting, given the fact that Japan's jobless rate is half that of America, an 1/4 that of some European countries.

Japan is a strange place when it comes to issues like employment, education, and suicide, the Japanese seem to be becoming more insular. Safety is the number one priority when it comes to finding work, more so than the type of work or the amount of pay. And graduating students are often reluctant to accept job offers if they are required to move to other parts of the country.

The education system trains you to be an entry-level salaryman, rather than providing a real learning experience, and it provides little guidance for those who wish to take a different path in life. The government regulates how many university subjects may be taught, so many students end up having to study something they don't want to learn in order to qualify for careers that they never wanted to enter.

Japan's ills are symptoms of greater problems, and things are likely to get worse before they get better.