Man Starves To Death In Urban Japan

[Beowulf]

Man Starves - Keeps Diary (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/12/world/asia/12japan.html?_r=3&hp=&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1192201298-kjsTo2sjK2B/tyiS%207X6tQ&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin)
KITAKYUSHU, Japan — In a thin notebook discovered along with a man’s partly mummified corpse this summer was a detailed account of his last days, recording his hunger pangs, his drop in weight and, above all, his dream of eating a rice ball, a snack sold for about $1 in convenience stores across the country.

“3 a.m. This human being hasn’t eaten in 10 days but is still alive,” he wrote. “I want to eat rice. I want to eat a rice ball.”

These were not the last words of a hiker lost in the wilderness, but those of a 52-year-old urban welfare recipient whose benefits had been cut off. And his case was not the first here.

One man has died in each of the last three years in this city in western Japan, apparently of starvation, after his welfare application was refused or his benefits cut off. Unable to buy food, all three men wasted away for months inside their homes, where their bodies were eventually found.

Only the most recent death drew nationwide attention, however, because of the diary, which has embarrassed city officials who initially defended their handling of the case and even described it as “model.”

In a way that the words of no living person could, the diary has shown the human costs of the economic transformation in Japan. As a widening income gap has pushed up welfare rolls in recent years, struggling cities like Kitakyushu have been under intense pressure to tighten eligibility.

The fallout from the most recent death has shown just how far the authorities in Kitakyushu went to achieve a flat welfare rate.

Japan has traditionally been hard on welfare recipients, and experts say this city’s practices are common to many other local governments. Applicants are expected to turn to their relatives or use up their savings before getting benefits. Welfare is considered less of an entitlement than a shameful handout.

“Local governments tend to believe that using taxpayer money to help people in need is doing a disservice to citizens,” said Hiroshi Sugimura, a professor specializing in welfare at Hosei University in Tokyo. “To them, those in need are not citizens. Only those who pay taxes are citizens.”

Toshihiko Misaki, head of the city’s welfare section, did not refer to the three deaths as from starvation, but called them “solitary.” He defended the system.

“On the one hand, there are people who’ve done their utmost to remain standing on their own feet,” Mr. Misaki said. “On the other hand, there are those who’ve gotten into trouble because they’ve led idle lives and are now receiving welfare. That’s taxpayers’ money. We get criticized by people who are trying their best, so we have to find the right balance.”

With no religious tradition of charity, Japan has few soup kitchens or other places for the indigent. Those that exist — run frequently by Christian missionaries from South Korea or Japan’s tiny Christian population — cater mostly to the homeless.

Like the diarist, the other two men were sickly, and they seemingly starved after their applications for welfare were rejected. One, 68, was found lying face down in his apartment, where the gas and electricity had been cut off half a year earlier.

The man reportedly told neighbors that he had been denied benefits even though he had prostrated himself before a city official. At his death, he had lost about a third of his weight and had only a few dollars.

The application of the third man, 56, was rejected twice even though a city worker trying to collect an unpaid water bill reported seeing him weak and crawling on his apartment floor. Neighbors who last saw him said his legs had withered to the size of bamboo poles. His mummified corpse was discovered four months after his death.

Between 2000 and 2006, as Japan’s welfare rate grew to 1.18 percent from 0.84 percent, Kitakyusha’s rate grew microscopically — to 1.28 percent from 1.26 percent. That ranked it toward the bottom among major cities even though its economy was doing poorly.

To the central government — which bears 75 percent of welfare costs, began cutting benefits in 2003 and plans to rein in more — that made the city a model.

“We were the so-called honor student,” Mr. Misaki said in an interview.

He added: “Other cities came here to learn from us — how we did things. And the Welfare Ministry also showcased Kitakyushu’s methods.”

Applicants first had to undergo an interview with a welfare official who then decided whether to hand them a one-page application form. In 80 percent of the cases here, applicants could not obtain a form.

After becoming ill and unable to work as a day laborer, another man, 56-year-old Hiroki Nishiyama, tried to apply for benefits twice last year but was told by the same city official to turn to his relatives for help.

“He was arrogant, his way of speaking,” Mr. Nishiyama said. “He was like, ‘What do you want? Go home quickly.’”

Desperate, eating only bread for months, Mr. Nishiyama tried to hang himself. He finally qualified for benefits this year after calling a hot line run by Tateyasu Takaki, a human rights lawyer who helps the needy apply. He hopes to resume working.

“This is, after all, shameful for me,” he said of the $930 he receives monthly.

In response to the deaths of the first two men, the city this spring made applications available inside interview rooms, though it is still expected that the interviewer hands out the form. It stopped short of placing them next to other forms by reception desks. But a policy of removing recipients from the rolls as quickly as possible went unchanged. The diarist, a former taxi driver, qualified last December after receiving diagnoses of diabetes, high blood pressure and a bad liver brought on by alcohol abuse. He lived in a dilapidated row house whose walls and roof had partly collapsed. Electricity and gas had been cut off.

According to city documents, the man’s case worker began pressing him to find a job within weeks of his receiving benefits. Tadashi Inagaki, a professor at the University of Kitakyushu who is leading a committee to investigate the three deaths, said the case worker’s goal, in keeping with the welfare office’s practice, was to get the man off welfare within six months.

Three months after he started receiving benefits, the man signed a form saying he no longer needed welfare. The city said it was voluntary, but an entry in his diary belies that. Writing that he was about to start looking for work, he added: “I was just about to give it a try when they cut me off. Are they telling the needy to die as quickly as possible?”

Takaharu Fujiyabu, a former case worker here who is now a lecturer at the University of Kitakyushu, said the city’s 142 case workers, each handling 73 recipients, must remove five a year from welfare. Promotions are tied to the quota, he added.

Mr. Misaki, the head of the welfare section, said that the link to promotions existed about 15 years ago but added they were no longer tied. He said the quotas would be eliminated next year.

In his first year as a case worker, Mr. Fujiyabu recalled, a woman in her 50s, smelling of alcohol, asked for assistance. “I was told by my supervisor, ‘You know, don’t you think someone like that is better off dead?’”

Perhaps out of shame, the man with the diary did not turn to his relatives or neighbors for help, even though he had lived all his life on the block.

“2 a.m. My belly’s empty,” he wrote on May 25, some 45 days after his benefits were cut. “I want to fill my belly with rice balls.”

He added: “Weight is also down from 68 kilograms to 54 kilograms” — from 150 pounds to 119.

In front of the man’s abandoned home, people have left flowers and a can of grapefruit-flavored alcohol.

“Now I’m filled with regret,” said Yoshikazu Okubo, 65, a neighbor who remembered playing with the dead man when they were boys. “If he had just asked me for one drink, I would have said, ‘Sure, drink up, then.’”

But the dead man’s next-door neighbor, Yoshiaki Kita, 72, said the city had handled his case appropriately.

“He may have starved to death, but I believe he reaped what he sowed,” Mr. Kita said. “He was still young, so he could have taken on any job to feed himself.”

Mr. Kita — who had once seen corpses in his job as a general contractor — had guessed from the stench that his neighbor had died. He had watched swallows fly out of the broken house with greenbottle flies in their beaks.

A friend found the dead man’s corpse on July 10, long after his last diary entry on June 5. In his diary, the man dreamed of rice balls to the end. To most Japanese, rice balls, which are now sold in convenience stores, were traditionally a snack that mothers usually made by hand: a ball of rice, wrapped in seaweed with perhaps a red plum buried inside, to be eaten during a hiking trip or some other pleasant activity.

“My belly’s empty,” read the diary’s last entry. “I want to eat a rice ball. I haven’t eaten rice in 25 days.”

[羽之助]

It's the gaijin concept of "welfare" which is at fault, duh.

[Beowulf]

It's the gaijin concept of "welfare" which is at fault, duh.
Clearly. It's hard to imagine stuff like this happening in a first world nation.

[Shuft]

That article sucked. Why didn't he get a job? How ill was he? Was it a mental illness?

[gentlemanandscholar]

Mr.Kita is an asshole.
It says he guessed that the man was dead... but a friend found the body instead? What a dick.

[PopCulturePooka]

Mr.Kita is an asshole.
It says he guessed that the man was dead... but a friend found the body instead? What a dick.
Hey he might have just liked watching the birds.

[mikem]

That article sucked. Why didn't he get a job? How ill was he? Was it a mental illness?

正解です!

It was written by some stupid foreigner who has no clue what they are talking about. Just some person appalled that this would happen. Just because its bad and wrong and evil in their culture doesn't mean they should write a biased news article about it.

Unless they want to sell newspapers! :reading:

[Beowulf]

That article sucked. Why didn't he get a job? How ill was he? Was it a mental illness?
Does it really matter. Don't you think that if he was able to get a job he might have preferred that to starving to death...

Think before you post kids.

[MNJetter]

I think that's what Shuft was referring to. If the man starved to death, rather than getting a job, there must have been something else to it, like a mental illness, and not just lack of welfare checks. I also think there is something more to this story. Not like really deep layers. I just don't think we know enough to make a judgment about whether or not it's the welfare system to blame.

[RandomPasserby]

I just don't think we know enough to make a judgment about whether or not it's the welfare system to blame.
Personally, I kind of see the point of welfare systems being prevention of people starving to death, so I feel that after a person starves to death like this, the welfare system has automatically failed. Not knowing that a person they know to be unemployed and without welfare is starving = fail also.

[MNJetter]

so I feel that after a person starves to death like this, the welfare system has automatically failed.
I would normally agree with you. But judging on this article alone, we don't know precisely the circumstances surrounding "like this." There could have been something else completely out of welfare's control. The guy could have been completely insane. It's possible. Some crazy old guy who tried to bury his house in broken furniture attacked my car a number of months ago. Before I reported it in to the cops, nobody knew that he needed more care than he was getting by living by himself.

What is in the diary, other than "I want to eat rice balls?" Why was the guy unemployed? Did he have family? Money elsewhere? If he didn't, why, precisely, did welfare deny his benefits? Welfare is responsible for providing survival money for people who have none, not making sure that old people are able to take care of themselves. There are a lot of unanswered questions, and I'm not saying that welfare is not at fault. But we don't have enough information yet to say they are, either.

[Roxie]

Hey he might have just liked watching the birds.
So, he's an asshole who likes to bird watch. Still an asshole.

[jindojim]

正解です!

It was written by some stupid foreigner who has no clue what they are talking about. Just some person appalled that this would happen. Just because its bad and wrong and evil in their culture doesn't mean they should write a biased news article about it.

Unless they want to sell newspapers! :reading:

I don't think the writer, Norimitsu Onishi, sounds like the name of a "stupid foreigner"... If you bothered to check the link, you'd find that out easily. It's also VERY apparent that this article really tries to give an unbiased portrayal of the Japanese welfare system for an audience that may not understand very much about Japan (ie. because it's from the New York Times and not some article written by some foreigner from Japan Probe, Mainichi, etc.)

Looks like someone is going through a bit of a self-hating phase.

[Eddie Echoplex]

It's the gaijin concept of "welfare" which is at fault, duh.

And we all know that all gaijin are evil evil men and women bent on the corruption of japanese society at large, with their "human rights" and "british comedy".

[Shuft]

I was just saying the article sucked. It failed at informing. Those were just the three first questions that popped in to my head that should have been answered.

[Vanilla Aoi]

正解です!

It was written by some stupid foreigner who has no clue what they are talking about. Just some person appalled that this would happen. Just because its bad and wrong and evil in their culture doesn't mean they should write a biased news article about it.

Unless they want to sell newspapers! :reading:

:bang:

[Roxie]

b/c being appalled that this would happen, just isn't enough.

[Oosutorariajin]

To be honest, I find most American ideas of welfare to be appalling.

But that is because I come from a welfare state. I received my university education at a lower cost (approximatly 1/4 of the cost) and provided a govt loan for it until I start working. I received a student allowence, which wasnt easy to maintain because they always want to kick you off it but it is still there to be provided

and lastly every australian is provided medicare which rebates the cost of basic medical treatment.

This is changing because the Australian govt idolises the US system I reckon but it is still there and they can never take it away because they would suffer politically.

[mikem]

Looks like someone is going through a bit of a self-hating phase.

Self-hating? I've hated welfare my entire life!

If Japan doesn't want it then they should make that decision for themselves.

The article still sucked. Even if it was written by a tree-hugger Japanese and not a tree-hugger Westerner.

[ミュー]

Disliking the general foreign population in Japan and hating oneself are two different animals. I believe that the Japanese government can be unfair towards foreigners, but there is far too much bitching and moaning among the foreign population. Does this make me a self-hater? Japanese immigration is draconian and in places downright nativist and illogical, but if it means that I have to deal with less people who seem to trek halfway across the world to complain about how unfair everything is, then cool. Same with this nag-tastic article. Three people died over the course of three years. That means that more people have been killed by axe-wielding preteens than starvation, am I correct? Not too bad if you ask me. Welcome to civilization: pick up your tool, learn your trade, and work for a living. I promise that through doing so you'll be to be able to afford not only rice balls, but also onigiri and Yoshinoya 牛丼 as well!

[Oosutorariajin]

onigiri are rice balls, so what is your point?

[羽之助]

This story has made the Hong Kong papers.

I think MNJetter makes a very good point - we don't have his diary to peruse, and we don't know the circumstances as to why he was unemployed. Did he lose a limb in an accident and was denied benefits? Was he a manual labourer with all his savings gone (not too hard in Japan's zero-interest-rate world) or a white-collar worker who had his family run away due to his alcoholism?

Social assistance is there for the least fortunate in their time of need. It wasn't there for this guy.

[Beowulf]

Welcome to civilization: pick up your tool, learn your trade, and work for a living. I promise that through doing so you'll be to be able to afford not only rice balls, but also onigiri and Yoshinoya 牛丼 as well!
They couldn't because they were disabled, you do understand what that term entails right?


Self-hating? I've hated welfare my entire life!

If Japan doesn't want it then they should make that decision for themselves.
lol.

[jindojim]

Self-hating? I've hated welfare my entire life!

Self-hating as in you're a foreigner, and you're stupid.
The article extremely unbiased. It gives what's known about the person, and, more importantly, it gives the facts about the current state of Japanese welfare. And, more importantly, it lets you judge the system for yourself. If you think it's "tree-hugging" crap, that's only because you think you know enough about the system from the article, since, I am sure, you're not an expert in Japanese welfare.

[erbiumfiber]

I am a member of Japan's tiny Christian population. Two of the churches I've attended make rice balls/onigiri to give to the homeless (I've done it on weekends- we use a mold since we're not skilled enough to do it by hand. I've gotten pretty good at it). The government actively discourages us from handing them out in certain locations, such as Shinjuku station, as they are trying to decrease the homeless population there. The SAY they are trying to get them to move into alternative housing but I'm not seeing huge efforts along those lines.

We also have a clothing drive every year for winter clothes (coming up soon...gotta go buy some stuff at Uniqlo).

I'm pretty anti-welfare and "stand on your own two feet" but Japan is not like America. In America, you could probably find a job at a 7-11. Not Japan. Why? Because there is rampant, legal age discrimination. A company can advertise a position that only "under 30" can apply to. You usually have to submit your picture with a resume so it's pretty obvious.

I'll admit that a LARGE portion of the homeless that we serve are alcoholics. Did they lose their jobs BECAUSE they were alcoholics or did that come after living on the streets? I don't know.

I don't know what the answer is. However, I'll continue to donate to the "rice project" as it's known, since there is precious little safety net for these people (who are very organized and polite and queue up nicely for things).

Oh and we don't check that you're homeless. Anyone who shows up at 5:30 AM (ungodly hour, I know) gets rice.

[SlickWilly440]

^
Anyone willing to show up at 5:30 a.m. deserves a Onigiri, homeless or not.

Why 5:30 a.m.? Are they trying to limit the number of people that get served?

[erbiumfiber]

Generally, the homeless hanging around the station get kicked out once the morning trains start. We can't interfere with the morning commute (which starts early). We have PLENTY of customers, not a problem.

And, yes, for some people it's their only certain meal of the day...

[Citizen]

Unable to buy food, all three men wasted away for months inside their homes, where their bodies were eventually found.

Why didn't they just... sell some shit? This sounds like something that should never happen on a personal level, not a governmental one. Anyone who has a home and enough strength to survive for months without eating should be able to get a job, even if it's not a legit job. The average bum can scrounge together a few bucks a day. There's no reason why the guy shouldn't have been able to eat $1 rice balls unless he basically just decided to completely give up and do absolutely nothing, which is his own damn fault.

[Beowulf]

Why didn't they just... sell some shit? This sounds like something that should never happen on a personal level, not a governmental one. Anyone who has a home and enough strength to survive for months without eating should be able to get a job, even if it's not a legit job. The average bum can scrounge together a few bucks a day. There's no reason why the guy shouldn't have been able to eat $1 rice balls unless he basically just decided to completely give up and do absolutely nothing, which is his own damn fault.
The only way this post would be applicable is if you add "in America" at the end.

[Citizen]

Why, exactly?

[mikem]

Self-hating as in you're a foreigner, and you're stupid.

Oh noes! I'm stupid! :clap:

My position is still that all government provided welfare sucks.

[gentlemanandscholar]

Why, exactly?

Because you're applying American standards to Japan.

Unless of course, you're well versed in Japanese welfare and Japanese homeless sociology. My guess is that you don't have a clue about either.

[MNJetter]

What does welfare or homeless sociology have to do with selling stuff? This guy was neither required to sell his stuff through the welfare program, nor was he homeless. All Citizen was saying is that they guy obviously owned stuff. Why not sell some of it to get food. It's a valid point, no matter what country you're in.

[Citizen]

Because you're applying American standards to Japan.

Unless of course, you're well versed in Japanese welfare and Japanese homeless sociology. My guess is that you don't have a clue about either.

Then please, do enlighten me. Though I should warn you, there's no way you'll be able to convince me that something like this shouldn't be preventable, as there's no reason why a home owner in a first world country should just sit on their ass waiting to starve to death, regardless of wether they're in America or Japan and regardless of welfare. Unless the Japanese don't ever throw anything away, there's always scrounging, as well.

[RandomPasserby]

Then please, do enlighten me. Though I should warn you, there's no way you'll be able to convince me that something like this shouldn't be preventable, as there's no reason why a home owner in a first world country should just sit on their ass waiting to starve to death, regardless of wether they're in America or Japan and regardless of welfare. Unless the Japanese don't ever throw anything away, there's always scrounging, as well.

"He lived in a dilapidated row house whose walls and roof had partly collapsed.
Electricity and gas had been cut off."

So he probably couldn't sell the "house" and probably had already sold everything he could.

MJNetter, here in Finland, social security workers also provide the welfare, so I foolishly thought the same to apply to Japan and thus thought the welfare people were required to check on their customers once in while.

Hanenosuke, "The diarist, a former taxi driver, qualified last December after receiving diagnoses of diabetes, high blood pressure and a bad liver brought on by alcohol abuse.". So he wasn't a former white collar worker.

[Your Mom]

I'm agreeing with Citizen.
At the very least, you can pretty much always find a half-eaten something in a trash can.
And if he was in a position that left him unable to dig something out of a trash can, then... well, that sucks.
Natural selection?

[RandomPasserby]

I'm agreeing with Citizen.
At the very least, you can pretty much always find a half-eaten something in a trash can.
And if he was in a position that left him unable to dig something out of a trash can, then... well, that sucks.
Natural selection?
How cold-hearted.

[gentlemanandscholar]

What does welfare or homeless sociology have to do with selling stuff? This guy was neither required to sell his stuff through the welfare program, nor was he homeless. All Citizen was saying is that they guy obviously owned stuff. Why not sell some of it to get food. It's a valid point, no matter what country you're in.

It doesn't say if he sold all his furniture or not. Perhaps he did. So just as you said about the welfare system:
I also think there is something more to this story. Not like really deep layers. I just don't think we know enough to make a judgment about whether or not it's the welfare system to blame.
Let's do the same for this.

I was also more concerned of these statements:
Anyone who has a home and enough strength to survive for months without eating should be able to get a job, even if it's not a legit job. The average bum can scrounge together a few bucks a day.
That's where his post fails. Sure he could sell some stuff. But we don't know if he did already or not.

Then please, do enlighten me. Though I should warn you, there's no way you'll be able to convince me that something like this shouldn't be preventable, as there's no reason why a home owner in a first world country should just sit on their ass waiting to starve to death, regardless of wether they're in America or Japan and regardless of welfare. Unless the Japanese don't ever throw anything away, there's always scrounging, as well.
I'm not going to "enlighten" you, because I don't have the knowledge either. I just felt like calling you out because you're applying American standards to a Japanese situation.
Also you might want to take note that although Japan is a "first world nation", it doesn't act that way in many aspects, an example off the top of my head being rights of the child (http://www.crnjapan.com/en/).

[MNJetter]

How cold-hearted.
What, and you cry into your pillow every time you think of the millions of other people in third-world countries who starve to death? Other than the fact that a newspaper is claiming that welfare is at fault, what makes this case more special than kids in Africa? Or people in your own country? I have invested a couple posts in this thread, but even I have to admit, that's more because I was bored at work than because I actually cared for that guy as opposed to other starving people.

[Oosutorariajin]

quite frankly most people's opinions on this thread are disgusting and cold hearted.

You talk about him selling stuff and scrounging for food!! why the hell should anyone have to do that?

American philosophy of you are the cause of success or failure is utter bullshit!! Some people especially in japan are not afforded opportunities in anyway!! look up the sanya in tokyo! that is a filthy circle or hell that people get stuck in!

Welfare has two purposes, a bridge to help you back into working society which it seems that is what this city provides but also assistance to those that can no longer work! FOR WHATEVER REASONS!

[MNJetter]

Welfare is a bridge to help you back into working society. Pension is for people who can no longer work. At least in Japan, that's how it works.

[Oosutorariajin]

what about training? does their welfare system provide the ability to move into a new area? Maybe that isnt such an issue in their minds because the company is suppose to provide training

however, if they are say 40, the time and money it would take to train them is not as valuable as say a 20 year old that will work for them potentially longer. So why would a company want to train someone that old? they, i imagine, are getting shut out of the job market by this stage. And hell if the bloke couldnt drive a taxi anymore then obviously there was an issue.

[MNJetter]

Or the taxi company might just have a rule like "you can't drive a taxi if you're over 70" or something, and the guy could have been completely fine.

As far as I understand it, welfare in Japan is more strictly a financial program and not so much concerned with social services. That's my guess as to why the guy couldn't have recieved any training through welfare. But I'm not positive on that.

[Citizen]

quite frankly most people's opinions on this thread are disgusting and cold hearted.

You talk about him selling stuff and scrounging for food!! why the hell should anyone have to do that?

I'd just like to point out that I never once said they should have to. I wholeheartedly agree that noone should ever have to. I'm simply trying to make the point that if someone does end up in a situation where they have no other choice, then yeah, they shouldn't just sit around doing nothing. So please, refrain from putting words in my mouth.

American philosophy of you are the cause of success or failure is utter bullshit!

It's been around longer than America, sport.

[Angelyne]

Citizen, you're thinking about the situation too rationally. I used to hold a similar opinion until I started working for the welfare department. Then I realized that the reason many of these people don't look for jobs, sell their shit, or scrounge the garbage for food is because they are too old and/or mentally disabled to think of these things. Many of these people can't even write their own name or address without help, let alone fill out a job application or do the basic math required to sell their possessions.

[Oosutorariajin]

"It's been around longer than America, sport."

It has been indeed but england is a welfare state so it didnt come from there, it is not noticeable in other british colonies so it isnt colonial so my guess is that it comes from independence. If you look at the declaration of independence you can see the beginnings of the ideology there.

[mikem]

American philosophy of you are the cause of success or failure is utter bullshit!!

That's interesting. It seems to have work for millions and millions of years just fine. Darwin even gave it a catchy name.

[Oosutorariajin]

Darwinism is refering to physical survival of people. You cannot honestly tell me that a poor person is there because of some karma. I agree some people are poor because of personal choices however, the opportunities provided to the fortunate could probably be better spent on an intelligent person in central LA.

I bet that Gorge Bush would not be where he is today without being given a little bit extra. How is that Darwinism?

[mikem]

Darwinism is refering to physical survival of people.

No, actually it was based around the survival of a whole species. There are two inter-linked ideas.

1) That a species survivability is based entirely on it being able to adapt to the changing environment around it.
2) Sub-members of a species must also adapt to their changing environment.

In this case:
2) This guy couldn't adapt to his new situation. Whatever it was. (Medical illness? mental illness?)
1) Society deemed him as not being productive to the larger goal of survival. (Relatives? Friends? Government.)

If too many resources are spent saving people who can contribute to society then, at least in theory, it could be disastrous for us all. (Our survival instincts would kick in long before we did something so brain dead though.)

Like MNJetter pointed out, we as a species make these decisions all of the time.

On a very personal and anti-social level I think anyone who is abhorred by this is a hypocritical fool. Where were you while this man was starving? Probably building wealth for yourself and eating food above the quality and quantity necessary for your own survival. So stop acting so indignant.

Japan, American, and Australia are not communist countries. Even as socialist as Australia is, it is still token at best. Plenty of people die from starvation there too.

[Oosutorariajin]

I was probably starving myself. I too make decisions and I have chosen to study, in doing so I sometimes struggle for basic things. Australia is not a model for socialism but that is why i fight for it. Yes people do die, But people like you just make the problem worse by throwing up your hands.

[erbiumfiber]

I think one of the real points of this article is that there is no "secondary" safety net such as soup kitchens, homeless shelters, food pantries, and the like, in Japan.

In America, whether or not a person is eligible for welfare, he/she can often go to a food pantry or soup kitchen run by a local church or community association. In the U.S., people not eligible for welfare frequently qualify for food stamps, a lesser form of aid that at least provides basic food to eat.

There are apparently no comparable programs in Japan.

So, he may or may not have deserved the (approximately) $900 a month in welfare, but he deserved some food. The above programs can provide food at substantially less cost than welfare. See, for example, Second Harvest, that takes food that can't be sold from places like Costco and serves up meals to the homeless (in Tokyo they do it in Ueno- see article in yesterday's Japan Times). Those types of programs are few and far between in Japan because there is no cultural tradition of charity. Instead, you are expected to rely upon family. Well, the extended family system has broken down in modern Japan and that leaves a huge gap in the social safety net.

While food pantries and soup kitchens operate in most cities in the U.S., there are just a few programs in Tokyo and probably Osaka, and they mainly target the homeless.

I think Japan can do better than that.

[mikem]

I think Japan can do better than that.

I think the government should support the creation of such things too. Tax incentives and what-not.


But people like you just make the problem worse by throwing up your hands.


Because successful people always get screwed the most by these sorts of plans. I don't want to pay for people who can't take care of themselves.

[Scott]

Long time no post. I'm in a bad mood, so I'm sufficiently motivated to reply here.

For one thing, I agree that there is probably more to the story than we have at hand -- there almost always is. I'm guessing that no small part of it would involve shame, because alternative ways to survive are, in fact, shaming. It's sad that some people would rather die than be shamed.

As for the people suggesting to sell things or eat garbage -- how easily do you honestly think you would be able to do that? Driven to that point, would you still really be completely rational? It's not like people go through a "what to do if you become homeless and resourceless" school that trains them for the eventuality. Most people grow up and are taught that eating garbage is bad, and I'd imagine that even at that point, you don't even think of it as an option any more than you think of trying to chew on a rock.

As a point against the people saying to 'just get a job'... consider that the guy was on welfare and apparently lived in a slum. No gas, no electricity. If he didn't have food, I can't imagine he looked that great. I can't imagine that he smelled that great either -- how often did he bathe? Probably not often. What are your odds of getting a job with that kind of appearance against, say, a high school or college student? A NEET or graduate? Not very high.

Consider also that those people carry a somewhat stronger stigma than they do in the US. That kind of upward mobility, I've heard, is almost unheard of. Pursuit of Happiness my ass. Once you're homeless here, you're something to be ashamed of, and good luck finding people that'll hire you for normal jobs. Especially if you're older.

Finally... it's pretty easy to be judgmental when you're sitting around in front of a computer reading about "those nutty Japanese". Shitty stuff happens around the world for various reasons. Some of it might look stupid to you, but that doesn't make it any less shitty for the person who's suffering.

[羽之助]

Because successful people always get screwed the most by these sorts of plans. I don't want to pay for people who can't take care of themselves.

I take it you dislike the idea of socialised medicine?

[ZaichikArky]

well, opinions on this matter are very interesting to say the least.

While I don't agree with the social darwinist perspective, I do think that all countries have a duty to provide for their elderly citizens. Anyone over age about 60 should get social security that pays for their necessities so they don't starve to death. they lived hard lives to begin with, being old means that SOMEONE should be taking care of you because it's time to rest and have a good retirement. I guess not all old people have such ideal lives, but I think that's how it *should* be.

[Digital Masta]

Because successful people always get screwed the most by these sorts of plans. I don't want to pay for people who can't take care of themselves.

So you'd rather have them get thrown to side? This is of course this person really needs this aid and isn't milking the system.

It gets taken out of mine but if shit were to happen to me and for some reason or another I ended up needing it, atleast this way I can get it.

[mikem]

I take it you dislike the idea of socialised medicine?

I'm not really smart enough to tackle that idea.

I know that I was better served by the American system than the Japanese one. The shit is fucking expensive and sucky here. At least in America it was only expensive. :meh:

[MEGA SATAN 3000]

I think another thing worth noting is there there's only so much money allocated to any given office/department/ministry. Giving welfare privileges to more people than deemed appropriate could have unintended consequences.

There might not be enough in the budget for other needy people. People might get fired. Budgets might be cut. In other words, that old man's onigiri might have been coming out of someone else's mouth. And who wants ABC rice balls? Gross.