The ten commandments - I'd rather not use them this way

[ken_sylvania]

Every nation on earth has prohibitions on murder. Why are non-Christian nations like Japan and Korea so much better at following it than majority Christian nations like the US?

Maybe Japanese and Korean people commit fewer murders than American people do. If you like we could "drill down" into specific American states. For example, PA's murder rate is 1/7th that of Louisiana's.

Of course the Japanese commit less murders. The question is why are majority Christian nations like the US more murderous than non Christian nations like Japan? Are Christians themselves more murderous? Or are they just way worse at building moral and nonviolent societies?

Might it have anything to do with how the Japanese "justice" system operates?

[Josh]

Japan has a rather strict death penalty for murder. But murders there are so rare, there aren't very many executions - about 4 per year. There are around 800 murders a year in Japan.

Chicago had that many in 2021.

[Ken]

Maybe Japanese and Korean people commit fewer murders than American people do. If you like we could "drill down" into specific American states. For example, PA's murder rate is 1/7th that of Louisiana's.

Of course the Japanese commit less murders. The question is why are majority Christian nations like the US more murderous than non Christian nations like Japan? Are Christians themselves more murderous? Or are they just way worse at building moral and nonviolent societies?

Might it have anything to do with how the Japanese "justice" system operates?

More likely they teach social responsibility at every level of school from pre-K onwards and they don't let knuckleheads acquire massive arsenals. You have to actually be part of a well-regulated militia to possess a firearm in Japan.

[ken_sylvania]

Of course the Japanese commit less murders. The question is why are majority Christian nations like the US more murderous than non Christian nations like Japan? Are Christians themselves more murderous? Or are they just way worse at building moral and nonviolent societies?

Might it have anything to do with how the Japanese "justice" system operates?

More likely they teach social responsibility at every level of school from pre-K onwards and they don't let knuckleheads acquire massive arsenals. You have to actually be part of a well-regulated militia to possess a firearm in Japan.

So - US murder rate involving knives, feet, hands (no firearms) is at least 3-4 times the total murder rate in Japan and you think it's because US has firearms? Is that why the violent rape rate is so much higher in US as well?
I suspect the racial and cultural homogeneity of the population is a factor.

[Ken]

Might it have anything to do with how the Japanese "justice" system operates?

More likely they teach social responsibility at every level of school from pre-K onwards and they don't let knuckleheads acquire massive arsenals. You have to actually be part of a well-regulated militia to possess a firearm in Japan.

So - US murder rate involving knives, feet, hands (no firearms) is at least 3-4 times the total murder rate in Japan and you think it's because US has firearms? Is that why the violent rape rate is so much higher in US as well?
I suspect the racial and cultural homogeneity of the population is a factor.

I think the biggest factor is that the Japanese do a far superior job of teaching social responsibility. That is why you see things like Japanese fans picking up every speck of litter from their sections at World Cup games, and why Japanese cities tend to be spotless. It isn't just cultural homogeneity, it it culture. Having less firearms also helps, but it isn't the only factor.

Since this thread is about the 10 Commandments, I would also suggest that the Japanese do a far better job of following the 5th Commandment too (Honor thy father and mother). Even though they derive that principle from a completely different religious teaching that has nothing to do with Mosaic Law. Reverence for family is an integral part of ancient Shintoism as well as Buddhism, both of which governed Japan for millennia before Christianity and teachings about Mosaic Law ever arrived.

[Josh]

Reverence for family is an integral part of ancient Shintoism as well as Buddhism, both of which governed Japan for millennia before Christianity and teachings about Mosaic Law ever arrived.

Interesting. So you're saying Shintoism and Buddhism are "better" than Christianity?

[Ken]

Reverence for family is an integral part of ancient Shintoism as well as Buddhism, both of which governed Japan for millennia before Christianity and teachings about Mosaic Law ever arrived.

Interesting. So you're saying Shintoism and Buddhism are "better" than Christianity?

No, I said Japanese society does a better job of honoring they mother and father than American society. One could also say the same thing about the Navajo.

[Josh]

Reverence for family is an integral part of ancient Shintoism as well as Buddhism, both of which governed Japan for millennia before Christianity and teachings about Mosaic Law ever arrived.

Interesting. So you're saying Shintoism and Buddhism are "better" than Christianity?

No, I said Japanese society does a better job of honoring they mother and father than American society. One could also say the same thing about the Navajo.

Do Navajos also have low crime rates like in Japan?