1) Why is there an "epidemic of suicides" in Japan?
2) Why do we care?
1.
It's a society that traditionally saw suicide as the "honorable" thing to do when shamed/etc. Not so much the reason nowadays. Most suicides are committed by young people who are bullied constantly or people who can't pay off their debts. I don't think the rate of suicides has changed significantly, it's the way it's being done, eg. mixing of household chemicals, etc.
2.
We don't. Which may be part of the problem. Epic serious post