Thank you for your succinct summary of these recent events, which have been difficult to follow in real time. I am particularly curious to hear your take on how this latest incident affects the locus of centralized control and localized power. Your comments reminded me of one of the themes of Karel van Wolferen's The Enigma of Japanese Power, in terms of how decentralized decision-making can be in Japanese politics (and many aspects of life in Japan). Now that I live in the countryside rather than in the middle of Tokyo, this dynamic seems all the more tangible.
Also, I sincerely hope you will stay on Substack. It just makes it easier to navigate to your work.
Great analysis as always and hope you’ll let us know if you change platforms.
One colorful anecdote in this saga is how the office of Ikeda Yoshitaka, a Lower House member of the LDP, was caught trying to destroy hard drives with a screwdriver, of all things. Assuming the drives were those bulky 3.5’ bricks, I can imagine Ikeda’s aides kvetching, “Yabai! I can’t even dent these things! Let’s use scissors!” This seems to be analogous to the situation PM Kishida finds himself in. He’s attempting to dismantle an age-old, deeply entrenched, highly complex system of party management with so much as a pair of tweezers. I humbly believe Kishida is a decent man with a moral compass, but let’s face it, it’s highly unlikely he’s up to the job. At this point, he’s the Charlie Brown of Japanese premiers. He’s running into mishap after mishap and all he can really do is moan, “Good grief.” I’m personally looking forward to the debut of the musical “You’re a Good Man, Fumio Kishida.” On the one hand, Taro Aso Capone is whispering into his ear, “Nice Prime Minister’s chair you got there. Shame if anything happened to it. Capiche?” On the other hand, you’ve got the Beastie Girls and Boys of the former Abe faction itching to Fight for Their Right to Party, because how else are these poor children of Papa Iconoclast (subtle plug) going to eke out a living without their fanfests?
But, as you mentioned, there are no signs the LDP is in any imminent danger. Which is not altogether a bad thing. Stepping back and looking at the bigger picture, Japan is fortunate in the sense that there isn’t anyone like Marine Le Pen, Geert Wilders, Boris Johnson or Donald Trump on the horizon. The Japanese opposition has yet to see something like the Alternative für Deutschland or the Swedish Democrats. At least for now, fingers crossed.
Thank you for your succinct summary of these recent events, which have been difficult to follow in real time. I am particularly curious to hear your take on how this latest incident affects the locus of centralized control and localized power. Your comments reminded me of one of the themes of Karel van Wolferen's The Enigma of Japanese Power, in terms of how decentralized decision-making can be in Japanese politics (and many aspects of life in Japan). Now that I live in the countryside rather than in the middle of Tokyo, this dynamic seems all the more tangible.
Also, I sincerely hope you will stay on Substack. It just makes it easier to navigate to your work.
Great analysis as always and hope you’ll let us know if you change platforms.
One colorful anecdote in this saga is how the office of Ikeda Yoshitaka, a Lower House member of the LDP, was caught trying to destroy hard drives with a screwdriver, of all things. Assuming the drives were those bulky 3.5’ bricks, I can imagine Ikeda’s aides kvetching, “Yabai! I can’t even dent these things! Let’s use scissors!” This seems to be analogous to the situation PM Kishida finds himself in. He’s attempting to dismantle an age-old, deeply entrenched, highly complex system of party management with so much as a pair of tweezers. I humbly believe Kishida is a decent man with a moral compass, but let’s face it, it’s highly unlikely he’s up to the job. At this point, he’s the Charlie Brown of Japanese premiers. He’s running into mishap after mishap and all he can really do is moan, “Good grief.” I’m personally looking forward to the debut of the musical “You’re a Good Man, Fumio Kishida.” On the one hand, Taro Aso Capone is whispering into his ear, “Nice Prime Minister’s chair you got there. Shame if anything happened to it. Capiche?” On the other hand, you’ve got the Beastie Girls and Boys of the former Abe faction itching to Fight for Their Right to Party, because how else are these poor children of Papa Iconoclast (subtle plug) going to eke out a living without their fanfests?
But, as you mentioned, there are no signs the LDP is in any imminent danger. Which is not altogether a bad thing. Stepping back and looking at the bigger picture, Japan is fortunate in the sense that there isn’t anyone like Marine Le Pen, Geert Wilders, Boris Johnson or Donald Trump on the horizon. The Japanese opposition has yet to see something like the Alternative für Deutschland or the Swedish Democrats. At least for now, fingers crossed.