Strongly disagree on that last part. Unlike software engineering, where training is nearly non-existent and we expect everyone to show to their first job interview knowing about the big-O complexity of sorting algorithms, traditional manufacturing has a robust tradition of apprenticeship and training on the job.
It also has much better and more predictable hours than, say, the ever-popular gaming industry.
You're right that low pay is an issue, but pay is crap in part because of outsourcing. Any machine shop in the US is competing with China to an extent that, oddly, we don't actually see in the software space. The West is mostly using Western-made software, and outside of that, only India is invited to the club (and even that only as a subcontractor).
But a lot of it is also just culture / parenting. Every parent wants their kid to become a software engineer, a lawyer, or a doctor. There's basically zero pride in being a machinist.
Probably not. Plumbing pays pretty well and it's almost never a parent's dream. It's probably below being an office assistant. We just attached a stigma to everything blue collar (= "uneducated").
Being a plumber pays acceptably, not well. Being a plumbing business owner can pay well, but would have less catchet than a doctor making the same amount, sure, but it's also far less common.
Historically, base model for the US market had more features than base European trim. I guess the same applies for Japan. Also taxes are different, obviously.
The effects of efficiency gains and inflation should eat most of the cost of those new features, I presume. I mean, computerization makes a lot of things easier and cheaper, and computers are very cheap now.
What a hot dump for 25k. The current corolla in all its glory and odd mix of old and new technologies should be a 15k otd car, but instead its seen as a value at 25k and will provide years of boring value for a barely attentive driver.
Imagine if in the best scenario Japan is going to stop borrowing. Reducing the population will drive debt ratio up. Good luck to the next generation, say thank you to your grandparents who borrowed from you.
>It's only for rich, for families who can comfortably live on one salary.
or collectivist societies. We completely forgotten the old adage: "it takes a village to raise a kid". 3rd world countries still increase in population because everyone chips in to care for everyone's kids, not simply staying within their own house raising their own kid by themselves.
>The other thing is time: people who want many kids want to spend time with them, not at work. But without work they cannot afford kids. Catch-22.
This is definitely another piece of the puzzle, one within the levers of government. Shorter work weeks for the same or more pay would alleviate this issue. But that's something the elite will fight tooth and nail to prevent.
In 3rd world countries having children is also a retirement plan because government does not guarantee much for elderly. Not sure if developed countries want to go there though.
I don't think that's a useful comparison. Supersonic military planes have been common for decades. We don't have supersonic passenger planes because the FAA has banned supersonic flight over land since 1973, though the agency is planning on replacing it with a noise standard. Also the original supersonic passenger aircraft were government-sponsored tech demos, not financially sustainable products. With updated laws & modern technology (cameras instead of tilting noses, more efficient engines without afterburners, lighter materials), we could have viable supersonic passenger flight.
People are hating it untill goes abroad to the countries where no such regulations exists.
Like in Switzerland it's okay to charge double for the car insurance simply because you carry "unlucky" citizenship.
Or EU law about mandatory 14-day return policy for internet order. Ordered recently something in Switzerland and turns out it was a special sale where standard rules does not apply and items could not be returned.
Or mandatory USB-C charge socket. God bless EU regulations!
You're right that the EU has much stricter baseline consumer protections than Switzerland, but none of the examples you gave are actually part of the GDPR. Insurance pricing rules come from EU equal treatment directives, the 14-day online return window is the EU Consumer Rights Directive, and the USB-C mandate is the Common Charger Directive (which Switzerland actually adopted into law in 2024 anyway).
The GDPR is strictly about data privacy, and it deserves defense on its real merits: it made data collection illegal by default without an explicit legal basis, banned deceptive tracking patterns, and introduced turnover-based fines large enough that tech companies actually had to re-engineer their systems around privacy by design. EU consumer protection directives are great, but it's worth crediting the right ones.
Usually it means the pay is crap, the schedule is bad and nobody is willing to invest into training. Why should young people select such career?
reply