Essay on Japans Suicide Epidemic - 1098 Words

For the last decade, Japan has been facing an epidemic of suicides. The reasons why the Japanese people commit suicide are numerous and the Japanese government is struggling to slow this sweeping trend while having only limited success. Japan’s suicide rate is one of the highest rates among industrialized countries, sitting currently at 51 per 100,000 people per year (WHO). With an average of one suicide every fifteen minutes in Japan, a complete societal change must occur for the epidemic of suicide to be reduced. In the late 1990’s, Japan’s economy went into a recession and the country’s suicide rate jumped from 24,000 to over 30,000 per year, and has stubbornly stayed at that rate since 1998 with no indication of declining†¦show more content†¦These websites even offer printable signs that warn others that the gas is being created. Another factor in the high rates can be attributed to the Japanese religious beliefs and traditions. The two main Japanese religions, Shinto and Buddhism, are more permissive of suicide than the beliefs of Christianity and Judaism religions. During World War II, kamikaze fighter pilots would rig their own airplanes with explosives and dive-bomb the enemy. The samurai tradition views suicide as a noble act and samurai warriors were famous for their willingness to eviscerate themselves. Self-inflicted deaths in Japan are not limited to adults. Japanese people between the ages of fifteen and twenty-four perform suicides because of school-yard bullying and the stresses of living up to the high standard of performance that is required of them. Bruce Feiler, an American English teacher who lived and taught in a Japanese high school for two years wrote a book about his experiences in Japan titled, Learning To Bow: Inside The Heart of Japan. In that book he writes, â€Å"schools generate a high level of stress in the form of pressure to conform and comply with the rules [and] students take out their anxiety on one another in the form of teasing, taunting, or bullying†(246). The victim, as Feiler putsShow MoreRelatedThe Moral Code Of The Middle East928 Words   |  4 Pagesand society in the grand scheme of things; our view points are considered radical by some countries and we are by no means setting a moral standard for the other nations. This essay will work to define morals: America’s definition, Nazi Germany and Japan’s moral code, and moral’s place in the Middle East. The dictionary’s definition of moral reads, â€Å"principles or rules of right conduct or the distinction between right and wrong; ethi cal.† (â€Å"Moral† Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 07-03-2016)Read MoreEmbracing Defeat, By John Dower1418 Words   |  6 Pages Embracing Defeat John Dower’s Embracing Defeat is a thorough analysis of Japan’s aftermath of defeat, encompassing in great detail the culture and history of Japan following the end of World War II. Dower shows great interest in the impact of a critical unconditional surrender and the transformation of culture, economy, and policy that came with America’s military occupation and its unabashed democratizing agenda. Through the book, Dower â€Å"tried to capture a sense of what it meant to start overRead MoreJapan: a Persuasive Research Paper3109 Words   |  13 Pagesextreme cases, which happen relatively often, can lead to suicide. Suicide in Japan has become a significant problem naturally. In 2007, suicides due to losing jobs surged 65.3 % while those attributed to hardships in life rose 34.3 %. Depression remained at the top of the list of causes, rising 7.1 % from the year before. The rapid increase in suicides since the 1990s has raised concerns around the world. Japan h as one of the world’s highest suicide rates, especially amongst industrialized nations, andRead MoreJeanne Harley Guillemin on Biological Weapons3027 Words   |  12 Pagesthe history of anthrax and other microbes were developed and synthesized into weapons over the past 20th century, which could result in possible bioterrorism. She then became interested and involved in the 2001 anthrax letter attacks after the 2008 suicide of the of the prime suspect to the FBI-an anthrax scientist employee at Unites States Army at Fort Detrick, Maryland. Her third book, American Anthrax: Fear, Crime, and the Investigation of the Nation’s Deadliest Bioterror Attack, is about the lettersRead MoreGun Homicides And Mass Shootings Have Taken The Spotlight1780 Words   |  8 Pagesthe New York Times and therefore dampers their reliability. This global epidemic needs a well-structured solution that can only be reached through extensive and honest research. Several countries around the world such as Japan have systematically been able to make gun control an effective life-saving method. In 1958, Japan passed a law that stated, â€Å"No one shall possess a firearm or firearms or a sword or swords.† Japan’s essential zero-tolerance law has kept the amount of deaths due to gun violenceRead MoreThe Greatest Horrors Of Wwii2314 Words   |  10 Pagesdevelop effective biological weapons that would aid Japan in war. Unit 731 conducted research on: anthrax, botulism, brucellosis, carbon monoxide, cholera, dysentery, glanders, meningococcus, mustard gas, plague, plague epidemic, poisoning, salmonella, songo, smallpox, streptococcus, suicide, tetanus, tick encephalitis, tsutsugamushi, tuberculosis, typhoid, typhus, and vaccination. Fearing eventual war with Russia, the Japanese also conducted extensive frostbite research during the winter. The JapaneseRead MoreOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is an Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 Pagesworld and made for major advances in medicine and health care were very often offset by the degradation of the global environment and massive spurts in excessive mortality brought on by warfare, famine, periodic genocidal onslaughts, and worldwide epidemics. In no previous epoch of history was war so vilified and peace so consciously pursued through the establishment of international organizations and diplomatic exchanges. Despite these endeavors, the levels of domestic and international violenceRead MoreInternational Management67196 Words   |  269 Pagesexercises that can be used in class to reinforce both the substantive topic and students’ skills in negotiation, presentation, and analysis. The cases have been extensively updated and several are new to this edition. Cases concerning the global AIDS epidemic, HSBC, Nike, Walmart, Tata, AirAsia, Sony, Danone, Chiquita, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, and others are unique to this book and specifically to this edition. Of course, instructors also have access to Create (www.mcgraw-hillcreate. com), McGraw-Hill’sRead MoreManagement Challenges for the 21st Century.Pdf60639 Words   |  243 Pagesthe year 1999 had fallen to 0.8; in Japan to 1.3. In fact, Japan and all of Southern Europe— Portugal, Spain, Southern France, Italy, Greece—are drifting toward collective national suici de by the end of the 21st century. By then Italy’s population, for instance—now 60 million—might be down to 20 or 22 million; Japan’s population—now 125 million—might be down to 50 or 55 million. But even in Western and Northern Europe the birthrates are down to 1.5 and falling. But in the United States, too, theRead MoreStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 PagesInternal Collaboration Is Bad for Your Company,† Harvard Business Review (April 2009), pp. 82–88; D. Kahneman, D. Lovallo, and O. Sibony, â€Å"Before You Make that Big Decision,† Harvard Business Review (June 2011), pp. 50–60; and E. Klein, â€Å"Washington’s Suicide Pact† Newsweek (March 21, 2011), www.newsweek.com. CASE INCIDENT 2 Herd Behavior and the Housing Bubble (and Collapse) whether the current valuations of social networking sites are following a similar trend of overpricing. Yale Economist Robert