I always loved Japan. Great food, interesting culture, great achievements in science and technology. They are rather racist and being a foreigner in Japan can be difficult, but you might also argue that they have reason to think that they are better than everyone else.
What held me back from going to Japan is the constant threat of earth quakes and tsunamis. It is such a random way to get killed, you don’t have a single chance to defend yourself. We have gone anyway, and enjoyed it greatly. There are positive sides to active volcanoes, like hot springs (onsen bath). But it is a bit nervous, especially after Fukushima when you start thinking about what happens when a nuclear plant is affected by an earth quake.
Now North Korea enters the stage. Nuclear weapons and hydrogen bombs. They direct most of their ill will towards USA, but it’s not like South Korea and Japan are safe.
Then we have Russia who are in an active conflict with Japan about those islands, and they are invading countries left and right these days. I wouldn’t put it past Russia to invade Japan.
Meanwhile, China is building their armies and economy. Several countries in Asia are starting to recognize China as the world #1 superpower in place of USA. Who knows what they are up to, in the end. China and Japan are not exactly best of friends.
Then we have global warming and rising sea levels. Most of the Japanese live along the coast, and depend on fishing and aquaculture. Even if we ignore rising sea levels, acidification of the oceans and other effects will impact the aquaculture. What happens when the Japanese will have difficulties feeding their population, since the farm lands are not enough to sustain everyone?
I am really starting to feel like a visit to Japan is kind of “now or never”. The longer you wait, the higher the risk will be for going there. It is not looking too good for the Japanese.