Results are still coming in, but it now seems certain that Japan’s ruling right-of-centre Liberal Democratic Party has been crushingly defeated by the Democratic Party of Japan.
What’s remarkable about this is that, except for a period of DPJ minority government in 1995-1996, the LDP has governed Japan and been the largest party in the Diet (Parliament) since its formation in 1955. In a sense, the Japanese haven’t really dumped a government since they got a democratic constitution following the Second World War – Japan has been almost a voluntary one-party state.
Japan is the world’s second-largest economy, so if nothing else the result interests me as far as the new government’s approach to the financial crisis goes.
Also interesting to note is the extent to which old families, often of Samurai background, still dominate politics in the country – incoming Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama is the son of a Foreign Minister and the grandson of a Prime Minister.
As it stands, the DPJ-led Coalition is looking at 318 of the 480 seats in the House of Representatives, a phenomenal gain of 194 seats.
Japanese Election
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Túrin Turambar
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Túrin Turambar
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If I’m keeping up with everything, Yukio Hatoyama gets sworn in today. Washington seems to be lukewarm on the news – apparently the new Prime Minister has written an article blaming the U.S. for the failings of the global capitalist economy and the ‘destruction of human dignity’, and promising a more independent foreign policy. We’ll have to wait and see how far he actually gets with any of this, though – the bureaucracy is enormously powerful in Japan and his views may have been overstated.
In less serious news, it seems that Mrs Hatoyama is an interesting character in her own right. She is a regular guest on Japanese talk and lifestyle shows, and claims that she was once taken to Venus in a ‘triangle-shaped UFO’ and that she met Tom Cruise in a previous life when he was Japanese.
In less serious news, it seems that Mrs Hatoyama is an interesting character in her own right. She is a regular guest on Japanese talk and lifestyle shows, and claims that she was once taken to Venus in a ‘triangle-shaped UFO’ and that she met Tom Cruise in a previous life when he was Japanese.
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Voronwë the Faithful
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My understanding is that he has seriously backtracked from those views since he got elected. Running for office is one thing. Governing is another, and insulting the most powerful nation in the world and your main ally is not usually conducive to effective governing. Still, Hatoyama will succeed or fail mainly based on how successful he is at managing the Japanese economy. As always.Lord_Morningstar wrote:If I’m keeping up with everything, Yukio Hatoyama gets sworn in today. Washington seems to be lukewarm on the news – apparently the new Prime Minister has written an article blaming the U.S. for the failings of the global capitalist economy and the ‘destruction of human dignity’, and promising a more independent foreign policy. We’ll have to wait and see how far he actually gets with any of this, though – the bureaucracy is enormously powerful in Japan and his views may have been overstated.
"Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world."
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Túrin Turambar
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It looks like the Hatoyama Government is foundering, and not just because of the Prime Minister’s unusual taste in shirts:
I can’t help but feel sorry for the DPJ’s supporters. After being in opposition for about forty years, they finally see their party in government only to have it go off in the rails in less than a year. Will they end up back in opposition for another forty years after this?
Japanese PM: U.S. military base will stay in Okinawa
By the CNN Wire Staff, May 23, 2010 7:55 a.m. EDT
Tokyo, Japan (CNN) -- Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama went back on a campaign promise and announced Sunday that a U.S. military base would remain in Okinawa.
He called his decision "heartbreaking."
"It is true that I said I wanted to relocate the facility outside of Okinawa," he said. "However, I'd like to apologize that the conclusion is not what the Okinawans wanted."
The U.S. Marine Corps Futenma base will be relocated to the Henoko area of the island, which is less densely populated, Hatoyama said.
Okinawa Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima demanded a better explanation from the government.
"I must say the situation is extremely disappointing and severe," he said.
The issue is an emotional one for Okinawans, who currently give up 10 to 20 percent of the island to the U.S. military.
While campaigning for Japan's top job last year, Hatoyama promised to move the base off of Okinawa altogether.
The island's residents, energized by an anti-U.S. campaign pledge in the last election, voted overwhelmingly for Hatoyama.
But as prime minister, Hatoyama found the promise difficult to keep, prompting residents to demand that he fulfill his pledge. Earlier this month Hatoyama visited the island and said it would be challenging to move a U.S. base off Okinawa.
The Futenma relocation is part of a 2006 agreement between Japan and the United States. Japan's delay in moving the base strained the 50-year alliance between the two nations.
The U.S. has said its military presence in Japan plays an important role in maintaining stability in the region. And the issue of relocating the base was high on U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's agenda during her visit to Japan last week.
Okinawans say the U.S. military has been responsible for a number of blights in Okinawa, from serious crimes like rape and drunken driving, to environmental and noise pollution.
Nearly 100,000 residents held rallies in April to demand that the base be moved off the island.
A recent Nikkei newspaper poll said that 59 percent of Japanese believe the prime minister should resign if he can't resolve the fight over the future of the Futenma military base.
link
I can’t help but feel sorry for the DPJ’s supporters. After being in opposition for about forty years, they finally see their party in government only to have it go off in the rails in less than a year. Will they end up back in opposition for another forty years after this?
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Túrin Turambar
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Well it’s over for Yukio Hatoyama after less than a year – he has resigned over the Okinawa base scandal and been replaced by his finance Minister, Naoto Kan.
I’ve got two observations:
1) Traditionally in the Parliamentary system ministers and prime ministers were expected to resign if they made serious blunders or were unable to implement their policies. This has gone by the board in the west somewhat of late, but the Japanese still seem to take it seriously. It explains why the country has averaged a Prime Minister a year since Junichiro Koizumi resigned five years ago. It could be argued that, in this way, the Japanese actually do Parliamentary democracy better than the people who invented it as the Parliament still holds the Government to account as it’s designed to. Still, it doesn’t exactly lead to stable government. Nevertheless, I can see a cultural basis for it in Japan that doesn’t exist in the west.
2) Naoto Kan is unusual for a Japanese Prime Minister in that he is the son of a businessman. The country is generally still run by the same people who’ve run it since the Middle Ages. The samurai no longer carry swords, but they still hold the same place in society that they always have. Kan’s four immediate predecessors were all either the sons or grandsons of Prime Ministers. Yet Kan came to political power through a grassroots campaign, which is extremely unusual in Japan – generally senior Japanese politicians are groomed for power from childhood.
Apparently Kan is a bit irascible, but a lot of people have high hopes that he will prove to be the firm and steady hand that the DPJ and the country needs right now. The picture of him bowing solemnly to the DPJ caucus upon being elected leader casts him in sharp contrast to the flashy Hatoyama. It will be interesting to see how it turns out.
I’ve got two observations:
1) Traditionally in the Parliamentary system ministers and prime ministers were expected to resign if they made serious blunders or were unable to implement their policies. This has gone by the board in the west somewhat of late, but the Japanese still seem to take it seriously. It explains why the country has averaged a Prime Minister a year since Junichiro Koizumi resigned five years ago. It could be argued that, in this way, the Japanese actually do Parliamentary democracy better than the people who invented it as the Parliament still holds the Government to account as it’s designed to. Still, it doesn’t exactly lead to stable government. Nevertheless, I can see a cultural basis for it in Japan that doesn’t exist in the west.
2) Naoto Kan is unusual for a Japanese Prime Minister in that he is the son of a businessman. The country is generally still run by the same people who’ve run it since the Middle Ages. The samurai no longer carry swords, but they still hold the same place in society that they always have. Kan’s four immediate predecessors were all either the sons or grandsons of Prime Ministers. Yet Kan came to political power through a grassroots campaign, which is extremely unusual in Japan – generally senior Japanese politicians are groomed for power from childhood.
Apparently Kan is a bit irascible, but a lot of people have high hopes that he will prove to be the firm and steady hand that the DPJ and the country needs right now. The picture of him bowing solemnly to the DPJ caucus upon being elected leader casts him in sharp contrast to the flashy Hatoyama. It will be interesting to see how it turns out.
Well, yes. But on the other hand, Japanese culture puts a great emphasis on showing respect for other people with all of that ritual bowing and use of honorifics and such. So, externally, at least....
I don't know if you're referring to hentai in general or lolicon in particular, but either way, I don't think 'popular' should be confused with 'socially acceptable'.
I don't know if you're referring to hentai in general or lolicon in particular, but either way, I don't think 'popular' should be confused with 'socially acceptable'.
