Covid-19 is exposing Japan’s weaknesses, or in other words, areas of Japan that don’t exist in NZ for good reason. I came into work (University) for the first time in a while today for something special and of course I checked my mailbox.

The problem? Japan has a system called Kairanban in which important news is passed around on a clipboard, and you stamp it with your stamp before putting it in the mailbox of someone who hasn’t stamped it yet.

I had two such Kairanban both from a month ago. I obviously should have come in more, but my classes don’t require me to do so at the moment, so I didn’t.

My hope is that Covid-19 highlights these inefficiencies, which it seems to be doing in some areas, so that Japan can enter the modern world. That’s the problem when you’re afraid of change!