The future of a countryside fading into oblivion

I have visited Sapporo several times and definitely would consider living there.

maybe in summer, winter is just too much trouble shoveling your driveway everyday, too much snow to navigate during the winter, and way too cold.

How the government addresses these tasks will define Japan's future democracy. With that in mind, I would like to see how the people decide.

with all the credentials stated at the end of this so called "analysis", he will just be sitting around as a spectator watching events ?

countries all around the world need experts that can walk the talk, doing real things in real world for the people. not more "analysts" analysing and making motherhood statements.

Lines which are designed and built from the era of freight are high maintenance, with many unstable timber sleepers, the curves are wrong to upgrade to high speed passenger service, and population corridors have moved away from the tracks, the same is happening here in Australia, there is much debate as to what if anything can be done with them, I would like to see single overhead rail supporting high speed gondolier.

The writer needs to be told that Japan doesn't have "populism" because Japan's ruling parties have long been implementing the kind of policies the populists are calling for -- restricted immigration, uniculturalism and a national industrial policy that limits free trade.

Many regions in the Japanese countryside are under decline and becoming lost in oblivion

True. The costs of maintaining road & rail links to small communities in Japan are enormous. In the last few years I have noticed several mountain roads here in Yamanashi and in Nagano falling into disrepair; they aren't worth the millions needed to reach the few people that live at the end of them. With an ageing & falling population, this is only going to get worse.

On the plus side, hopefully this will lead to the regeneration of the natural landscape of Japan's forests & rivers.