Living in Japan for a year, I saw reasons for its 'demographic time bomb' everywhere -- and now I'm seeing the same troubling signs at home

Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty Images Economists agree Japan is a "demographic time bomb."The population is getting older, but fewer children are being born. Living in Japan for a year, the author saw why: The culture seems to emphasize hard work, and de-emphasize sex and relationships. Now, back home in Germany years later, she's starting to see patterns among Europeans that she saw in Japan, like people working to the detriment of their relationships and being absorbed in their phones. "Kabukicho,...