His foreign affairs speech on Jan. 20 was a declaration of subjugation; if he is going to turn his back on his party's manifesto from the last election, he should step down and hold another vote
Prime Minister Naoto Kan's foreign affairs speech on Jan. 20 in which he pledged loyalty to the US was a declaration of subjugation. There has never been a more disgraceful speech in Japan's history. It's as if Kan is asking the U.S. to save his faltering government. We didn't hear one sliver of a sense of independence or pride from Japan's political leader.
Watching Prime Minister Kan's sad dash to subjugate the country's diplomacy to the US makes former Prime Minister Hatoyama sparkle in comparison. You want to scream, "Go, Hatoyama, Go!"
Isn't the prime minister supposed to make efforts to boost our national spirits? Prime Minister Kan's recent actions seem like an imitation of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. In fact, Kan may even outdo Koizumi in his sycophantic stance toward the U.S.
To the lawmakers in the Democratic Party of Japan, I have this to say: Can you face up to Prime Minister Kan's betrayal?
Friday, January 28, 2011
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
The Mortal Sin of the New Kan Cabinet
The lack of generational change results in a move backward to a cabinet of "me first" types
Why didn't Prime Minister Kan select any of the excellent young politicians this time? His new cabinet is filled with "me first" types. This new group is completely made up of egoists who've been clamoring for a certain position and who think only of themselves.
The Democratic Party of Japan has some Diet members who may not have served very long but have some dynamism to them. While these young people should have been selected and put to work, Kan avoided appointing any of them, with the exception of new Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano. But even Edano ran from responsibility after serving as DPJ secretary general during the party's most recent upper house election defeat.
The DPJ has very capable and diligent representatives in the lower house such as Osamu Fujimura, the acting secretary general, and Megumu Tsuji. The best way to revive Japan politically is to turn over the reins of power to this younger generation. Kan turned his back on that generation while remodeling his cabinet, and, frankly, that stinks.
Why didn't Prime Minister Kan select any of the excellent young politicians this time? His new cabinet is filled with "me first" types. This new group is completely made up of egoists who've been clamoring for a certain position and who think only of themselves.
The Democratic Party of Japan has some Diet members who may not have served very long but have some dynamism to them. While these young people should have been selected and put to work, Kan avoided appointing any of them, with the exception of new Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano. But even Edano ran from responsibility after serving as DPJ secretary general during the party's most recent upper house election defeat.
The DPJ has very capable and diligent representatives in the lower house such as Osamu Fujimura, the acting secretary general, and Megumu Tsuji. The best way to revive Japan politically is to turn over the reins of power to this younger generation. Kan turned his back on that generation while remodeling his cabinet, and, frankly, that stinks.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Morita: Kan's new cabinet could be 'over at any moment'
From the Mainichi Shimbun comes this report on Prime Minister Naoto Kan's new cabinet. Pundits, including Mr. Morita, are underwhelmed.
Kan seems likely to press for a higher consumption tax rate -- something the Japanese voters don't want for obvious reasons but the US government does. It's yet another example of the Japanese government ignoring the voters and doing the bidding of Washington DC.
Kan seems likely to press for a higher consumption tax rate -- something the Japanese voters don't want for obvious reasons but the US government does. It's yet another example of the Japanese government ignoring the voters and doing the bidding of Washington DC.
Premier Kan's 'Heisei Opening' is Nonsense
The Transpacific Partnership is essentially a US-Japan issue that makes permanent a system where the US dominates Japan's economy and sucks away the Japanese people's wealth; to bring more light on this, let's have the people of Japan debate the TPP
Prime Minister Naoto Kan has been pontificating about how the Transpacific Partnership represents the third opening after the Meiji Opening and the Occupation after World War II. Of course, this is ridiculous.
Japan is subservient to the US when it comes to not only diplomacy and the military, but economic matters as well. Japan is a vassal state of the US. It's essentially an American colony. Japan's government leaders, bureaucrats, economists, the mass media and the academia can't face this uncomfortable truth, so they continue to tell lies about how Japan is an independent country.
For Japan, the TPP is a bilateral issue with the US. The Kan government is clearly more willing to serve as lackeys to the US than even the Liberal Democratic Party governments were. The Kan government does whatever the US government asks without conditions. It's a government that can't say no. The TPP presents an international framework to further strengthen the US hold on Japan. Let's debate the TPP. I have been saying this because I want to have a discussion about the true essence of this "partnership." The Kan government is so sycophantic toward the US that it's as if the Koizumi government has been reborn. Kan's politics is just the return of Koizumi politics. Kan's Democratic Party of Japan has transformed into Koizumi's LDP. We can't afford to forget what this government is truly made of.
Prime Minister Naoto Kan has been pontificating about how the Transpacific Partnership represents the third opening after the Meiji Opening and the Occupation after World War II. Of course, this is ridiculous.
Japan is subservient to the US when it comes to not only diplomacy and the military, but economic matters as well. Japan is a vassal state of the US. It's essentially an American colony. Japan's government leaders, bureaucrats, economists, the mass media and the academia can't face this uncomfortable truth, so they continue to tell lies about how Japan is an independent country.
For Japan, the TPP is a bilateral issue with the US. The Kan government is clearly more willing to serve as lackeys to the US than even the Liberal Democratic Party governments were. The Kan government does whatever the US government asks without conditions. It's a government that can't say no. The TPP presents an international framework to further strengthen the US hold on Japan. Let's debate the TPP. I have been saying this because I want to have a discussion about the true essence of this "partnership." The Kan government is so sycophantic toward the US that it's as if the Koizumi government has been reborn. Kan's politics is just the return of Koizumi politics. Kan's Democratic Party of Japan has transformed into Koizumi's LDP. We can't afford to forget what this government is truly made of.
Monday, January 10, 2011
What Should We Do in 2011?
We need to carry out a drastic conversion of economic policy to revive the economy, taking measures to escape the deflationary spiral and realize full employment
What should the Japanese people do in 2011? With humble hearts we must look reality straight in the eye and fix the mistakes of the past.
What's important on the political front? Economic revival. We need to forge a new path, leaving behind the government's mistaken economic policies and adopting new policies that work. The Japanese economy is on the brink of collapse due to those mistaken economic policies. The economy has weakened and shrunk. The economy is not only at a standstill, it is declining. Unemployment is still a serious issue. The people's livelihoods have steadily declined. Corporate bankruptcies continue apace. Large and midsize manufacturers continue their moves overseas. The regional economies remain impoverished. The nation's smallest businesses are still suffering. To escape this situation, we need to revive the economy and put it back on the path of growth by enacting policies that will help us achieve that goal. The most effective step to invigorate the economy is to launch public-works projects with the aim of enlivening the regional economies.
The Kan Cabinet's decision to cut public works is a big mistake. The budget draft on the agenda of the 2011 regular Diet session needs to be altered. If we continue to cut public works, the regional economies will continue to dwell in poverty. We have to fix this. We need to enact economic policies that are centered around a large expansion of public works.
The top priority of the government when it comes to economic policy is to get us out of this deflationary spiral. We have to stop the neoliberal structural reforms that are bringing Japan to its knees. An addiction to fiscal reform is dangerous. Anti-industrial welfare policies are also dangerous. The Kan administration is spellbound by neoliberal reforms and anti-industrial welfare policies. We need to get out of this situation starting now.
What should the Japanese people do in 2011? With humble hearts we must look reality straight in the eye and fix the mistakes of the past.
What's important on the political front? Economic revival. We need to forge a new path, leaving behind the government's mistaken economic policies and adopting new policies that work. The Japanese economy is on the brink of collapse due to those mistaken economic policies. The economy has weakened and shrunk. The economy is not only at a standstill, it is declining. Unemployment is still a serious issue. The people's livelihoods have steadily declined. Corporate bankruptcies continue apace. Large and midsize manufacturers continue their moves overseas. The regional economies remain impoverished. The nation's smallest businesses are still suffering. To escape this situation, we need to revive the economy and put it back on the path of growth by enacting policies that will help us achieve that goal. The most effective step to invigorate the economy is to launch public-works projects with the aim of enlivening the regional economies.
The Kan Cabinet's decision to cut public works is a big mistake. The budget draft on the agenda of the 2011 regular Diet session needs to be altered. If we continue to cut public works, the regional economies will continue to dwell in poverty. We have to fix this. We need to enact economic policies that are centered around a large expansion of public works.
The top priority of the government when it comes to economic policy is to get us out of this deflationary spiral. We have to stop the neoliberal structural reforms that are bringing Japan to its knees. An addiction to fiscal reform is dangerous. Anti-industrial welfare policies are also dangerous. The Kan administration is spellbound by neoliberal reforms and anti-industrial welfare policies. We need to get out of this situation starting now.
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