Hacker News Reader

You’ve obviously never raised a child. The problem isn’t a lack of wombs or the first 9 months of childbearing.

As Japanese, I can say they are a few of the problems too. You can't take maternity leave most companies (when you're pregnant, it usually is time to quit), or you're not allowed to be pregnant until none of your coworker is pregnant.

> Case of child care worker chided for getting pregnant before her 'turn' not uncommon https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20180402/p2a/00m/0na/00...

Reading this makes me sad and a little bit angry. It is ridiculous that a company/employer might suggest your right of getting children. In a different context this would be considered a joke or something you would read about in a dystopian book, but instead it's happening in one of the most developed countries in the would.

You are conflating economic development and social development. Go check out some youtube channels from westerners living in Japan and you'll see that the economic development has had a cost. I don't really know how to define it because it's their society and I can't put my American values on it, but the salaryman thing has a cost. This birthrate issue is probably it. Will Japan eventually collapse because of it?

Reply on news.ycombinator.com