Why did I choose this title for my article? Because it is the naked truth. What happened in Japan after WW II is really a miracle. The country developed very quickly, becoming a world economical power in just a decade. Let's see now how could they have such a quick development and where they started from.
Before World War II, Japan was a poor country. The basis of the economy was the exploitation of their fish resources. The vast majority of its inhabitants were fishermen. They are the ones who ate (and continue to eat) sushi (raw fish meat). They don't have too many natural resources (oil, gold, e.g.) They used to live in wooden houses, fragile and with no defense in front of the strong winds. The cities used to have old buildings, with a severe lack of modernism. They, too, were unsecure in front of the forces of Nature (tsunami, earthquakes - very usual on that part of the planet). The country isolated itself from the rest of the world from the beginning of its long history. But this policy didn't bring any good, because the couldn't keep up with the modern world, with its changes. During WW II , Japan was a part of Berlin - Rome - Tokyo Axis, having a similar regime to the German Nazism and the Italian Fascism.
After the war, Japan had an American administration, led by General McArthur, who had an important role in Japan's development. Of course, the work of Japanese people contributed decisively. This administration lasted until McArthur's death, in the sixties. During the administration, the Japanese people adopted some American habits, including the passion for baseball.
How does Japan look like in our days? It is a country with a very powerful economy. It is an industrialized country. The place of the old buildings and wooden houses was taken by modern and secure houses and by sky-scrapers. Instead of dusty roads, the built modern roads, modern highways and modern sidewalks. They revolutionized the computer industry by inventing the microchip, a very ingenious product...with low consume of materials. They invented the robots and they were among the first nations of the world who applied the invention to their industry. Thay invented the walkman, which was used on a large scale in the 80s and 90s, until mp3s and modern cell-phones appeared (they invented some of those, too...).
My question is: How could they invent so much? How could the develop so quickly without resources? The answer is: They work hard, without expecting someonelse's help. The countries who thought that having natural resources is enough, failed...But Japan proved that having resources is not even a condition for economic development. This miracle called Japan.
