It's just so easy

Women seem complicated--it's part of our charm. But apparently it all boils down to this:

"Say thank you without hesitation. Say sorry without fear. Say I love you without being ashamed."

Well, okay, maybe it's not quite that easy. But you have to hand it to the Japanese for trying. They have established a ten-level scale to establish what makes a good husband. (Level one, love your wife and help out with chores. Level ten, say "I love you" without embarrassment.) Men are also encouraged to keep track of how often they make their wives smile to build up goodwill for when they inevitably do something irritating or unwholesome.

Evidently this trend is gaining popularity as the concept of community property is introduced into Japanese law--women in Japan will now be able to claim up to half of their husband's pension if they divorce. Apparently the divorce rate has been declining, and some experts put it down to women waiting for the law to take effect (one imagines Japanese women counting down the minutes to midnight and then gleefully serving their husbands with divorce papers, like some sixties farce). Men are good and terrified. But honestly, the bar is not that high, guys. Do a load of laundry. Try to make her laugh. Say thank you. Say you're sorry. Say you love her. These are not herculean efforts (although I'm willing to spot them points on the "I love you" thing, because evidently this is a mammoth cultural blind spot).

I'll admit, at first it sounds like it's encouraging underperformance, but on the other hand, I'm sure I could hunt up a few American husbands who wouldn't make it to level one, and these guys seem pretty earnest about it. And when you think about it, earnest is the key. Because we know when you're lying. Again, it's part of our charm.