Shumpei KUMON (Executive Director GLOCOM)
I am pleased to learn that Professor Dore agrees with my opinion in my article on "Japanese Culture of Trust and Caring."
I now recall that during the period of the oil crises I once proposed the idea of integrating companies with their employees as well as their family members, rather than restructuring pseudo-family-style companies and abandoning the lifetime employment system at a time when there are no places other than family-style companies to which individuals can have a sense of belonging. However, no one would listen to my proposal at that time. In any case, I agree with Professor Dore's appreciation of Japan's traditional socio-economic system based on trust and caring.
Having said this, I am not so sure if I agree with Professor Dore's opinion that Japan does not need reform. I think that carrying out necessary reform is not incompatible with our appreciation of Japan's traditional culture of trust and caring, and certain reforms such as decentralization of the state are urgently needed to revitalize the economy and society, while maintaining traditional cultural values in Japan.
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