Japan's young herbivores

Japan's young men are staging the most curious of rebellions, rejecting the life-style that typified office warriors from the bubble generation.

The older generation, the so-called salarymen, wore dark suits, joined rowdy after hours booze fests with colleagues and saw little of their families. Their sons have lost their appetite to do the same as the economy's roar turned into a yawn. Instead, they identify themselves as "herbivores", seeking balanced lives and making time for their families and quaint hobbies.

Yet, as much as they loathe the old model, they haven't found a way to earn a comfortable living without losing a quality of life. The country's dim economic climate has spawned a generation of unsentimental job-seekers who see only a spectrum of flawed options -- only 3.5 percent of men ages 25 to 34 make more than the average workers' household income of about 6 million yen ($74,000) a year.

Solutions? The herbivores choose to spend less. Between 1998 and 2007, the number of driver's licenses in Japan increased by 1 million, but that number dropped by 40,000 for people aged 25. The herbivores value close friendships and memorable experiences.