It's very useful to hear about perceptions of Japan from people living outside the country.
But these perceptions are most helpful when they're presented as reporting, or within an opinion piece describing how, say, Americans, Germans or Indians think about Japanese politics, society or culture.
Analyses of Japan by "experts" living abroad such as Noah Smith's "Japan's status quo crumbles with an apology to a woman" (appearing on the July 2 Opinion page) are in another category altogether.
It would be helpful if The Japan Times would mark these articles with a distinctive header such as "People who don't live here explain Japan to us."
The opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are the writer's own and do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Japan Times.