Things really are different in Japan, even in the impoverished parts. From the same Economist article: "The country has long prided itself on ensuring that none of its citizens falls between the social cracks. Japan’s orderly, slum-free neighbourhoods seem to confirm that. Street crime, even in Kotobuki, is minuscule. Unemployment is below 4% ... "

Compare that to the "choice parts" of downtown Los Angeles or the Tenderloin in SF. Despite many decades of fighting poverty, many many people still fall through the holes in the US social safety nets.

Japan also builds better cars.