When your manufacturing jobs leave, and your skilled labor jobs leave, the only thing left is luxury items, services, and consumption. If you don't have that, you can't drive an economy that doesn't have enough manufacturing jobs. That leads to deflation, which the Japanese are experiencing right now. Remember the Japanese miracle of the 1980s? It's the nightmare of the 1990s. And savings and lack of debt have not been the answer there. Of course even protectionism isn't really helping them.
Most of Japan's problems were caused by its protectionism, not by its laudible frugal citizenry. The huge amounts of foreign capital thay amassed became utterly worthless as their trade barriers made it impossible to spend. A cab ride in Tokyo got to be $50. A small hotel room $300. They were playing with Monopoly money, having collected vast amounts of foreign currency with no way to spend it. Sooner or later, it had to implode.
Contrary to your thesis, Japan is a perfect illustration of the failures of trade barriers, not the proof of their legitimacy.