Westerners hearing of Japan's declining population often comment, "Gee, that must be nice."
Let's just stop immigration for a bit, they say, until infrastructure, housing, and services catch up. If immigration is inseperable from progress, so be it. If Japan's being stuck in the year 2000 since 1980 hasn't been disastrous, then stopping time in 2025 should provide ample comfort.
As much as that sentiment comes from a place of contentment with the way things are (if not discontent with the way they are heading), it misses something important.
Let's back-track. Declining populations and lower immigration provide no incentive to expand, and no fresh ideas with which to scale that expansion.
Delorean abandoned. Stranded time travellers.
So what? Japan and old-world Europe do OK despite missing out on the present.
That's not the point.
The point is that those who halt change also miss out on the future.
You may think that cashless payment is peak convenience. At least you're not fumbling with coins like Japanese and Germans. But will there be 'money' or even 'payment' twenty years from now? Tourists will look at you tapping your card or waving your clunky phone and snigger.
It's tempting to say that 'now' is "Good enough", and "Let's press 'pause' here."
But you cannot imagine the improvements and conveniences to come.
Sure, 2025 is livable, but do you really want to miss out on 2050?
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