Taro Aso, the Prime Minister of Japan, is getting flak once again for his gaffes. This time, he said that he had done his duty by having two kids. And of course, people got all in a huff because now the Japanese government is implying that it's the duty of the adults of Japan to have kids. When your population is suffering because of it, a little nudge from the government isn't such a bad idea. It worked for Russia.

Of course, he withdrew his comment and the whole PR apology that ensues. But it seems that having kids has become something fashionable recently. Neojaponisme has a nice article on the "yanmama" boom in the media -- a phrase that formerly meant "yankii mom," or a young, delinquent mother, which now means simply "young mom."

Young mothers are certainly nothing new in Japan, much less anywhere else. It's just that now there's been a shift from treating them as total delinquents or pushing them off to the fringe so that no one notices them, they are now celebrated. Interestingly, it's not simply a fashionable thing, like the rampant child adoption by celebrities here in the US -- instead, the idols there identify themselves as mothers first.

Certainly this isn't the attitude of everyone in Japan -- but I'm glad to see the ones in the media being responsible. The article also goes a bit into the absence of young fathers, and how they remain on the sidelines. Be sure to read the piece, it's well worth your time.