What does ‘Japan-lite questions’ mean?
It’s a little surprising when we learn our own country is regarded as a bad example for other countries too. I found the word ” Japan-lite problems.” in the article of Time Magazine (August 25 issue) titled ” Six lessons Japan can teach the West “. “We have consistently taken
the view that the Western world was suffering from’Japan-lite’ problems : weak money supply growth, high levels of debt, lots of deleveraging, structurally weak growth and a rapidly deteriorating fiscal position. If the west is what it once was, ‘lite’, should be replaced with “heavy”…The West is now most definitely turning into a bad version of Japan. Which way, like the country of Japan, our politicians are offering few answers. I
understand “-lite” is used as a suffix. How do “japan lite ” really mean?
The COD (10th Ed.) defines “-lite” as “suffix forming names of rocks, minerals and fossils. From this, I hazard to guess “Japan-lite problems” implies petrified economic status of the country i.e. Japan is a modern country. Imposing a market in China. How can the quagmire Japan have been bogged in for a score of years without finding the exit, but I’m not sure?
‘Japan-lite’ Should be replaced with ‘Japan-heavy’. ” ” It could be banter. “But…besides Japan-light (heavy)”, are there such word as “Greece-lite (heavy),” “Italy-lite (heavy)” or even “America-lite (heavy)”, “German-lite (heavy)” and “China-lite (heavy)”?
What is the best way to do something that you like?
The author of this article is expressing an opinion that there are certain (negative) economic traits demonstrated by Japan, and that this is typical of the Japanese economy.
Why can Japan teach the West anything, or what western economies are like Japan lite, means that he/she believes that some of these Western economies are showing the same negative traits! that these economies appear to be suffering lesser (hence ‘lite’), but similar, problems
“Lite” is just a clever way of spelling “light” the way you like to spell it. In this is often used in advertising to promote something as a lighter flavour or a diet variety of a product, e.g. Miller Lite Beer.
In this sense, “Japan lite” means something that is an imitation of Japan, but only “low fat”, or “sugar-free”, in other words, still unhealthy, but
not as bad.
The it suffix is used to modify a Noun without a negative adjectival. Is it a diminutive form of the noun it is modifying?
He has added light; you can view the definition at
dictionary.com. It draws from the word light meaning not heavy of heavy. com: http://dictionary.reference.com. Com/browse/light
light 2 adjective 1. What is a light load?
Why is lite used when eating food and drinks?
If you are using Japan lite, then is like it is in Japan only less so.
So one might say
The University of Hertfordshire produce Japan-lite AI.
So when Time suggest that Japan-lite should be replaced with Japan-heavy they are suggesting that the problems in the West are worse than those in Japan, although still comparable
The word lite here is being used as an antonym to heavy or rather full.
This is a play on the various Android/Mac and iOS applications having either a Lite version (reduced features) or a Full version
As one of many examples http://www.robotask.org/phn/index.html. In
reply
to Jez, light (adj.) meaning not heavy is an alternative spelling, the darling of advertisers, is first recorded 1962.
What does a Japanese Lite stand for? Can you find an older article titled ” The United States Can Become Japan Lite “, so it might not have been invented by the author of this Time piece?
Why should I say that Japan is becoming
a US Lite (non-US at all)?
Further Reading: http://www.grammarist.org. com/usage/lite/text/.sc.com/?com/content/?com/cbsc?user_title=sc_links_records?article_source=Case,?
