* * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * *<br>A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd.<br>(<a href="http://www.terrie.com">http://www.terrie.com</a>)<br><br>General Edition Sunday, December 04, 2011, Issue No. 641<br>
<br>+++ INDEX<br><br>- What's New -- Counseling a Generation of Unloved Singles<br>- News -- Mammoth clone experiment being discussed<br>- Candidate Roundup/Vacancies<br>- Upcoming Events<br>- Corrections/Feedback <br>
- News Credits<br><br>SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at:<br><a href="http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie">http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie</a><br><br>BACK ISSUES<br><a href="http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take">http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take</a>, or,<br>
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e-mail us at <a href="mailto:info@pbxl.jp">info@pbxl.jp</a> or call us at 03-4550-2557<br><br>------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS --------------<br><br>+++ WHAT'S NEW<br><br>Two weeks ago a Welfare Ministry think tank released <br>
results of a survey showing that 61.4% of single Japanese <br>men aged 18-34 have no girlfriend and that 49.5% of the <br>same age women are not dating either. As is often the case <br>with government surveys, the real interest was in people's <br>
attitudes to getting married rather than how they spend <br>their lives as singles, since this directly impacts the <br>birth rate and therefore the worker base to support social <br>welfare in the future. The sample was 7,000 people, <br>
representing an overall population of around 18m people.<br><br>60% of those polled said they were still single either <br>because of work and study commitments (40%) or because they<br>hadn't met the right person yet (20%). This certainly <br>
tallies with the common wisdom that with the Japanese <br>domestic economy stuck in a permanent recession (i.e., <br>"domestic" versus exporters who are carrying the country), <br>people are having to work longer and in lower paid jobs in <br>
order to support themselves. If you're broke, exhausted, or<br>depressed, getting married is probably the least of your <br>concerns.<br><br>It's hard to see this situation changing any time soon, if<br>we go by conventional wisdom alone, since the outlook for <br>
the nation itself is pretty bleak. By 2030, there will only<br>be 1.8 workers for every retired person, meaning that <br>either taxes have to go way up or that retirement will <br>become a time of relative poverty for many. This isn't the <br>
kind of future that makes people want to expand their lives<br>with a partner and a family.<br><br>But for us the really interesting segment in this poll was<br>the 40% who said there was "no real need" to get married, <br>
and of these, 45% of the men (as a population group, around<br>1.4m people) who said they have no particular interest in <br>dating the opposite sex. So what's going on there? <br><br>[Continued below...]<br><br>-- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan ---<br>
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Our services help customers improve their operations and <br>bottom line results. <br><br>To find out more about our services and how we can help <br>your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website <br><a href="http://www.nagamine-mishima.com">www.nagamine-mishima.com</a> or reach us directly by telephone<br>
at 03-3581-1975 or by email at <a href="mailto:info@nagamine-mishima.com">info@nagamine-mishima.com</a>.<br><br>---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------<br><br>[...Article continues]<br><br>Partly the answer is to be found in the age group being <br>
questioned. 18-34 year olds are no longer necessarily prime<br>marrying age group even though statistically the average <br>marrying age for men is 30.5. There is a significant number<br>of men (in particular) getting married much later than <br>
this. In our own circle of friends, we know of a number of <br>eligible bachelors in their mid-30's and early 40's who <br>have been having a very satisfying social life, and are <br>only just starting to get down to the idea of getting <br>
hitched.<br><br>So is it selfishness that is causing people to want to <br>enjoy their single lives longer? Possibly. Certainly the <br>idea of having kids is to most people a negative one. Kids <br>slow you down, they are a big drain on income, they need <br>
constant attention, there are long waiting lines for day <br>care, and they force you to stay with one partner for a <br>long period. In fact, apart from the feelings of love, they<br>have very little going for them. <br>
<br>And if you come from a generation (the 80's) when the <br>parents were continually busy, or continually worried and <br>depressed (the 90's) then probably this 18-34 age group <br>didn't get a lot of love and affection as children -- so <br>
why would they equate having children with love and <br>tenderness themselves? Easier to skip between partners <br>without too much emotional entanglement, or to avoid having <br>partners all together.<br><br>What we are saying is that we think there are a lot of <br>
people in this age segment who have emotional issues and <br>given the current declining but still generous social <br>environment, they have the luxury of being able to pander <br>to these feelings rather than repress them as earlier age <br>
groups in Japan's factory worker era had to do. As a <br>result, you have a swathe of singles who are responding to <br>their own childhood feelings by either withdrawing from the<br>dating game or by leading alternative singles-oriented life<br>
styles. If this assumption is true, it means that the <br>government's hand-wringing over child-care centers and how <br>to get people to date more may all be for naught.<br><br>This might sound kind of deep, and indeed, we could be <br>
wrong. Maybe it is all just about the economy. After all, <br>births did increase for several years (2006-2009) after the<br>mini-recovery of 2004-2007. However, marriages did not <br>bounce at the same rate, and currently there are still only<br>
700,000 marriages a year in Japan (2010). Most likely that<br>birth blip was in existing families having an extra child, <br>rather than singles suddenly feeling paternal/maternal <br>again.<br><br>How can Japan address its declining marriage rate? If the<br>
problem is psychological at a personal level, then it may <br>not be possible through the economy alone, to reverse the <br>trend of people not wanting to commit. Yes, there are the<br>fence sitters, and the government could go a long way <br>
towards getting those people to marry, simply by <br>making it easier for couples to have and look after <br>children. We thought the DPJ's now unpopular action of <br>providing generous child welfare checks was a great idea,<br>
although political pressure has since reined in that move. <br>And besides, the fence sitters are just the low-hanging <br>fruit in the search for a solution.<br><br>A larger segment of the perpetually unmarried population <br>
has deeper problems. For them, we believe the only way <br>forward is emotional counseling to help change attitudes <br>towards children and to discover love and tenderness that <br>must have been lacking in their lives. The challenge is in <br>
getting those with such problems to face up to them and to<br>get them to seek out such counseling. Generally emotional <br>distress in Japan (as with anywhere, really) is viewed <br>publicly as a personal weakness, and so people who need <br>
such help repress it. This is nothing new, but whereas in <br>the 60's and 70's factories, dormitories, and extended <br>families ensured that young people got married, now the <br>anonymity of urban living lets them hide away. <br>
<br>There is also the problem of how community counselors are <br>perceived. Generally speaking counseling is not considered<br>a profession in Japan, as evidenced by the fact that <br>testimony from counselors is typically not accepted by <br>
family courts (versus that of clinical psychologists, who <br>are more likely to be taken seriously). As a result, <br>counselors tend to be well-meaning but usually woefully <br>under-qualified and usually non-paid old folks, who <br>
compound the negative image. To get past this <br>negative presentation of counseling, both the image and <br>education needed to become a counselor really needs <br>upgrading. <br><br>Indeed, we think the government should make the increasing <br>
number of unmarrieds a serious national priority. Instead <br>of cute census-style polls, there should be some proper <br>government funded studies into the psychology and social <br>situations of this large group of people, with a commitment<br>
to follow through with professional counseling and social<br>programs to help people get past their aversion to getting <br>married. Unfortunately, since this sort of initiative will <br>involve potentially millions of people, plus modification<br>
of the school system (so as to not perpetuate the problem),<br>it's unlikely to happen in our lifetimes.<br><br>So what's the alternative? How about increasing <br>immigration...? :-)<br><br><br>...The information janitors/<br>
<br>***------------------------****-------------------------***<br><br>------ Delta Air Lines - YOUR CONNECTION TO PARADISE ------<br><br>Introducing our new service from Fukuoka to Honolulu <br>starting from December 28, 2011. Plan your next dream <br>
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register today and travel through April 4, 2012.<br><br>Please Note: All SkyMiles program rules apply to SkyMiles <br>program membership, miles, offers, mile accrual, mile <br>redemption and travel benefits. Offers, rules and benefits <br>
subject to change without notice. To review the rules, <br>please visit Membership Guide & Program Rules.<br>-----------------------------------------------------------<br><br><br>+++ NEWS<br><br>- Almost 90% of manufacturers look to overseas markets<br>
- Mammoth clone experiment being discussed<br>- Mixi/Twitter create alliance<br>- Consumers forget how to use electricity again<br><br><br>-> Almost 90% of manufacturers look to overseas markets<br><br>If there was any doubt that export fever is upon us, the <br>
results of a Ministry of Finance poll should put it to <br>rest. According to the survey, a full 87.2% of <br>manufacturers plan to strengthen or expand foreign <br>operations, while just 25.9% said they will expand <br>domestically. Chemicals and auto companies are the <br>
sectors most interested in foreign expansion, at 92.1% and <br>91.6% respectively. ***Ed: Plenty of global and <br>international services business as this trend picks up.** <br>(Source: TT commentary from <a href="http://e.nikkei.com">e.nikkei.com</a>, Dec 2, 2011)<br>
<br><a href="http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20111202D02SS908.htm">http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20111202D02SS908.htm</a><br><br>-> Mammoth clone experiment being discussed<br><br>Researchers from Kinki University and Sakha Republic <br>
(Russia) are apparently discussing the viability of <br>creating a cloned Mammoth from a 10,000-year old but <br>well preserved bone marrow of an animal found in <br>Siberian permafrost in August this year. The plan calls for<br>
implanting bone marrow cells into the egg cells of an <br>elephant. The resulting embryos would then be implanted <br>inside elephants for gestation. ***Ed: Put the resulting <br>Mammoth on display at Ueno Zoo, and this could be part of <br>
some bold plan to bring tourists back to Japan... ;-)! <br>(Source: TT commentary from afp on Google, Dec 3, 2011)<br><br><a href="http://bit.ly/sauTPO">http://bit.ly/sauTPO</a><br><br>-> Mixi/Twitter create alliance<br>
<br>Data just publicized by Nielsen NetRatings Japan shows that<br>Japanese SNS operator Mixi is falling farther behind its <br>foreign competitors and that the Galapagos effect has no <br>value in web applications. According to Nielsen, Twitter <br>
had 14.5m users, Facebook 11.3m, and Mixi 9.4m. Perhaps <br>not coincidentally, Mixi and Twitter are announcing a <br>strategic alliance, aimed at presenting each firm's <br>complementary services to the users of the other. ***Ed: <br>
This is all supposedly part of a competitive response to <br>Facebook, which is making tremendous gains in Japan over <br>the last 12 months.** (Source: TT commentary from <br><a href="http://washingtonpost.com">washingtonpost.com</a>, Nov 30, 2011)<br>
<br><a href="http://wapo.st/vf5b9g">http://wapo.st/vf5b9g</a><br><br>-> Consumers forget how to use electricity again<br> <br>Perhaps the "setsuden" energy saving message was too good, <br>because it seems that Tohoku and Tokyo residents have <br>
forgotten how to use electricity in the same volumes they <br>did pre-3/11. Overall the demand for power nationwide fell <br>5.4% in November, compared to November last year. However, <br>what is perhaps more surprising is that power consumption <br>
for last month fell an amazing 8.8% and 8.2% for Tohoku <br>and Tokyo respectively. ***Ed: This is now the ninth month <br>of y-o-y declines, and must have the utilities companies <br>worried. After all, what is setsuden for us is lost business<br>
for them.** (Source: TT commentary from <a href="http://reuters.com">reuters.com</a>, Dec 3, <br>2011)<br> <br><a href="http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFL4E7N201820111202">http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFL4E7N201820111202</a><br>
<br><br>NOTE: Broken links<br>Many online news sources remove their articles after just a<br>few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we<br>apologize for the inconvenience.<br><br>***------------------------****-------------------------***<br>
<br>+++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES<br><br>=> BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively<br>marketing the following positions for customers setting up<br>or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of<br>
bilinguals.<br><br>** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION<br><br>BiOS is urgently looking for a Server/Network engineer with<br>experience designing and constructing large-scale systems, <br>at our client’s office in the Tokyo area. The candidate <br>
will be responsible for working inside several data centers<br>located in Kanto; constructing server and network systems <br>used by both domestic and international clients. They will <br>also be responsible for monitoring and configuring systems <br>
constructed according to requests from clients.<br><br>You will also be responsible for acting as a pre- and <br>post-sales engineer when the company's sales executives are<br>introducing its services to clients.<br><br>
Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment,<br>this position is suitable for someone with solid experience<br>as a network or server engineer and with minimal direction <br>from management. In addition, since this role requires <br>
direct communications with clients in both English and <br>Japanese, business-level communication skills in English <br>and native-level Japanese will be required.<br><br>Remuneration is JPY5m – JPY6m depending on your experience <br>
and skill level.<br><br>** POSITIONS VACANT<br><br>- Cabling Engineer, BiOS, JPY3M – JPY4M<br>- Bilingual Desktop Support Engr, IT co., JPY5M – JPY8M<br>- Sales Team Account Manager, BiOS, JPY3.5M – JPY4.5M<br>- Desktop Support Engineer, global law firm, JPY4M – JPY5M<br>
- Network Monitoring Engr, Japanese IT co, JPY3M - JPY3.5M<br><br>Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to:<br><a href="mailto:tomohiro.kimura@biosjp.com">tomohiro.kimura@biosjp.com</a><br><br>** BiOS Job Mail<br><br>
Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its<br>job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition<br>carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date<br>vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job<br>
description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS<br>home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and<br>searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious<br>to know if there is something out there that might suit you<br>
better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and<br>convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like<br>to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more,<br>please email <a href="mailto:kenji.sakota@biosjp.com">kenji.sakota@biosjp.com</a>.<br>
<br>Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to:<br><a href="mailto:tomohiro.kimura@biosjp.com">tomohiro.kimura@biosjp.com</a><br><br>-----------------------------------------------------------<br><br>--------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support ---------<br>
<br>BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service.<br><br>Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support<br>company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive<br>services available to multinationals whether large or<br>
small.<br><br>Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop,<br>and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing<br>hosting and solutions, general software development. <br><br>For more information on these and other SI and IT services,<br>
in English or Japanese:<br><br>Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: <a href="mailto:solutions@biosjp.com">solutions@biosjp.com</a><br>Web: <a href="http://www.biosjp.com">www.biosjp.com</a><br>-----------------------------------------------------------<br>
<br>***------------------------****-------------------------***<br><br>+++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS<br><br>No events for this week.<br><br>***------------------------****-------------------------***<br><br>+++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK<br>
<br>In this section we run comments and corrections submitted<br>by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and<br>amplify our points, by email, to <a href="mailto:editors@terrie.com">editors@terrie.com</a>.<br><br>
*** No comments this week.<br><br>***********************************************************<br>END<br><br>SUBSCRIBERS: 8,310 members as of Dec 4, 2011<br>(We purge our list regularly.)<br><br>+++ ABOUT US<br><br>STAFF<br>
Written by: Terrie Lloyd (<a href="mailto:terrie.lloyd@japaninc.com">terrie.lloyd@japaninc.com</a>)<br><br>HELP: E-mail <a href="mailto:Terrie-request@mailman.japaninc.com">Terrie-request@mailman.japaninc.com</a><br>with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include<br>
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