The Japanese are generally known for being paragons of politeness, but when it comes to dealing with 外国人 (gaikokujin, foreigners), some people tend to forget their manners. ヘイトスピーチ (heito supiichi, hate speech), 差別 (sabetsu, discrimination) and いじめ (ijime, bullying) — one or all these things is likely to have been experienced by many foreign residents, and 排他主義 (haitashugi, exclusionism) continues to be the massive elephant in the six-tatami room of this cramped island nation.

On a positive note, we could be experiencing the birth pains that come with becoming a full-fledged member of the global community. After all, we're newbies to this game. Consider Japan's history: We were out of the global loop for nearly three centuries, then Westernized/militarized ourselves at breakneck speed before screeching to a halt in a crushing defeat in World War II. For the past 70 years, we've been stuck in this rut of work, more work and trying not to die from overwork.

From time immemorial, the Japanese have never been adept at コミュ力 (komyuryoku, communication skills), but they have been able to fall back on the national myth of 以心伝心 (ishindenshin, tacit understanding) to sustain the belief that everyone understood each other without saying anything. Unfortunately, ishindenshin has never applied to non-Japanese, much to the nation's chagrin.