从年度汉字看日本民生之困

Group 1: Annual Kanji Selection - The annual kanji for 2025 in Japan is "bear," which received over 23,000 votes out of a total of 189,000, reflecting concerns over bear attacks that resulted in 230 incidents and 13 fatalities from April to November 2023, marking a historical high [1] - The second most voted kanji is "rice," which highlights the ongoing rice price surge that has led to public panic buying and a reported rice shortage, with the average price of 5 kg of rice exceeding 4,000 yen for 13 consecutive weeks [2] - The third kanji, "high," is associated with rising food prices, as 20,609 food items have seen price increases this year, with rice balls and sushi prices rising by 17.3% and 14.5% respectively [3] Group 2: Economic Context and Government Response - The Japanese government has proposed a 400 billion yen special subsidy to address rising food prices, including rice, but local governments are reluctant to distribute rice discount coupons due to their minimal impact [3] - The government is also planning to increase defense spending significantly, with a budget of 11 trillion yen already set for the 2025 fiscal year, aiming to raise this to 2% of GDP by 2025, which may lead to increased personal income taxes [4] - The rising defense budget is seen as a heavy burden on the economy, diverting funds from addressing pressing social issues such as food price inflation and public welfare [4]