Watch out for the Loud Chorus Calling for a DPJ-LDP Coalition

DPJ Chief Cabinet Secretary Okada and his ilk abet the cause by making remarks in support of a coalition assuming that Prime Minister Kan
will step down. It's dishonest, hypocritical politics, and it's dangerous. It is not necessary to dance to the media's tune just because they are agitated about a possible coalition.


"If the paper boat doesn't sink today, it will sink tomorrow." — Indian proverb

A grand coalition, or a politics that doesn't lean one way or the other, is not something we should pursue. Parties should pursue cooperation with opposition parties in the Diet. A grand coalition means that one party (the governing party) and a second party (the main opposition) lean against each other, creating a system where no one takes responsibility. When one party holds political power, the second needs to use the Diet to bear witness, criticize and point out the ruling party's faults.

When a governing party finds it necessary to take on a coalition partner, it should unite with a smaller opposition party. A grand coalition blurs the responsibilities of the government and the governing party. It also absolves the leading opposition, the Liberal Democratic Party, of any responsibility because a vote for the LDP would simply return political power to the ruling Democratic Party of Japan.

To revive the country in the wake of the East Japan disaster, political cooperation should occur in the Diet. A grand coalition between the DPJ and the LDP would leave out smaller parties such as New Komeito. That would be a grave mistake. The politicians of the smaller parties such as Komeito work much harder than the average DPJ politician. And they clearly make greater efforts than LDP politicians. These efforts are what hones a politician. The politicians of the smaller parties have honed themselves much more than DPJ and LDP politicians. Compare them on an individual basis, and the politicians of Komeito and other smaller parties have greater capacities. There are some exceptionally capable politicians in New Komeito and the New People's Party. To exclude the capable while fusing together the incapable and arrogant is a very dangerous proposition. What we need to do right now is end the con job of Kan politics. This is our biggest obstacle. Then the DPJ and New People's Party should get behind the idea of making NPP President Shizuka Kamei a candidate for prime minister. This is where we need to start.

What's the Point of this Failed Premier's String of Meetings?

The only reason for the revival conferences run by the rudderless, irresponsible Kan is to prolong his system of government. The biggest obstacle to rebuilding from the great quake is Kan himself. Getting together a bunch of academics who don't understand this point is not going to produce creative results. Real creativity requires a serious approach. This conference ought to be scrapped.

"The Congress dances, but it does not advance." — Archduke Rainer

Prime Minister Naoto Kan has a thing about making meetings. The latest conference to revive the nation, announced with much fanfare, is his 19th such meeting. There is even talk that he's planning to create a rebuilding headquarters. That would result in his 20th meeting. It is becoming increasingly clear that the objective of these meetings is to preserve Kan's government. There are no bureaucrats or people in positions of responsibility in these meetings. The biggest problem facing the government right now is that the administration doesn't work. Kan doesn't have the intention to get the bureaucrats moving; he just keeps shouting at them. Kan and the Democratic Party of Japan seem to have forgotten that the bureaucrats are people of pride.

The people are waking up to the fact that the biggest problem with the rebuilding effort after the quake is the irresponsible me-first philosophy of Prime Minister Kan. He doesn't have the vision, ideas or sense of responsibility that a political leader should have. Instead, every day he yells at the bureaucrats. Then he forms discussion groups filled with sycophantic academics who tell him what he wants to hear. When information from these discussions gets leaked to the press, he panics and denies that he said anything. And then he repeats the process. Most of the populace has the feeling that he's lying.

The revival conference is nothing more than a study group out to make Prime Minister Kan more popular. Academics of integrity must not join this group.

This is not the time for the premier to get lost in a fog of meeting-making. He needs to be brave enough to stop these useless meetings. The most effective move Kan can make to begin rebuilding from the disaster is to retire.

Excessive Self-Restraint Will Lead to Shrinkages, Dispiritedness

If the whole country contracts, Japan will be ruined. While it is natural to want to put all our efforts into the revival of the quake- and tsunami-damaged areas, for a more long-term revival, we need to improve all of Japan. We need to energize the overall economy.

"Too much of a good thing is good for nothing." — Ieyasu Tokugawa

Too much of this self-imposed control sweeping the country is dangerous. Overdo it, and Japan will shrink. Tokyo is already on the verge of overdoing it. If all of Japan overdoes it, Japan will be led down the road to ruin.

The government needs an aggressive economic policy. But then comes the Pavlovian response: An aggressive economic policy will lead directly to a financial collapse. If the nation's debt rises, so will interest rates. If that happens, there will be a steady procession of small and midsize companies heading for bankruptcy protection. Japan's economy will falter.

They want to push for a tax hike. And it's not just the Finance Ministry and its scholars saying this. The majority of the politicians in the Democratic Party of Japan and the Liberal Democratic Party as well as government officials are in agreement with the Finance Ministry. And the mass media provides the echo chamber. In fact, the media is more than an echo chamber; it's leading the charge.

But the Finance Ministry's austerity measures, fixation on debt repayment and push to hike taxes will shrink Japan's economy in the long run, increasing financial debt. In other words, if we follow the austere policies of the Finance Ministry, Japan will fall apart.

The abnormal level of self-imposed control and shrinkage after the great earthquake presents a new danger. Too much of this control could send Japan to the brink. We need to change policy right away.

I think that without a policy that plays on Japan's strengths, there will be no revival. The government needs to change course to aggressive policies. On March 11, 2011, everything about Japan — its politics, economy, society, international position — changed. We need to acknowledge this and change direction too.

A Bad Prime Minister in a Bad Situation is a Formula for Disaster

We need a political leader who can harness the ability of the country's civil servants to help us overcome this crisis. Prime Minister Naoto Kan is not that man. We should form a new cabinet with People's New Party leader Shizuka Kamei as the premier.

We need the focus and ability of our country's civil servants more than ever.

Japan is facing a national crisis. Political power without crisis-management know-how is worthless. A politician like Kan, who can't motivate the bureaucrats, leaves one hundred problems and no solution.

To overcome the lack of energy caused by the nuclear incident and the East Japan Earthquake, politicians need to do more than pledge unity. We need political leaders who can mobilize the national and local government employees and guide them to make the most of their abilities. Prime Minister Kan isn't up to the task.

No system will get the bureaucrats motivated and moving. We need the leadership of people. If we don't have people in positions of power who are capable of rallying the bureaucrats, we're in trouble. '

But the sad truth is there are very few politicians around these days who are up to the task. Kan has already failed. The only two in the political world who can get the government employees motivated are Shizuka Kamei and Ichiro Ozawa. Both of these men need to have a central role, but Kamei, leader of the People's New Party, is most suited for the top position.

I have a request to make of Prime Minister Kan: quietly bow out of the government and recommend Kamei as your replacement. If you do this, we'll finally have a government that can handle crisis management. A prime minister who can't rally the bureaucracy is worthless right now. I think the Democratic Party of Japan should get behind the idea that Kamei should be entrusted with the leadership role.

A Word to the Government on its Great Quake Policies

Thoughts of a grand coalition without sincerity create a hundred potential pitfalls and no advantages; there are no true friends in a me-first system


All that begins sincerely will end sincerely. Sincerity is the basis for all human action. Without it, nothing is obtainable.

The actions of Prime Minister Naoto Kan and Chief Secretary Katsuya Okada don't seem especially sincere. What creeps out is the same "me first" philosophy we've seen before.

They continue to disregard the policy requests of the opposition but then request that Liberal Democratic Party President Sadakazu Tanigaki join the Cabinet. They use "sincerity" as a political strategy. Propriety is lost in favor of bad faith bargaining. The ways of Kan and Okada lack propriety. I have repeatedly urged the government to "sincerely request cooperation from those who can help," but Kan and Okada have chosen an improper strategy. And thus nothing will move forward. Their approach is poor.

If you're going to solicit the help of the LDP and other opposition parties, then first the Diet's proceedings must be normalized. Rethink the idea of separating the budget from other related bills and bulling through a vote, and instead aim for normalizing Diet proceedings. The ruling party must also consider the demands of the opposition.

In the political world, many are talking about how Kan and Okada deliberately acted in a way that would muzzle the LDP. That show's how bad they have handled things.

If they are really interested in creating a renewed sense of national unity and getting the cooperation of the opposition, they need to first normalize Diet proceedings and then ask properly for help. But to ignore the LDP's proposed bills on tsunami protection and ask for a "grand coalition" of cooperation is an insincere and bull-headed strategy. Insincere politics creates a hundred problems and no solutions. Using this disaster to measure one's political power is nothing short of a crime.

The Diet Has Work to Do

First on the list: take measure of the tsunami prevention bills shelved since last year and supported by lawmakers in the LDP and New Komeito


"Don't hesitate to correct errors." -- Confucius


How many lawmakers who refused to endorse the tsunami prevention bills tabled since last year paused to reflect on their actions once they saw the vast tragedy of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami? Many lawmakers didn't listen to Diet member Toshihiro Nikai's plea that "we should act quickly on these tsunami bills." But if any are feeling embarrassment or remorse for ignoring his plea, these are honorable politicians.

Supporters of the bill were Nikai (the former minister of trade and industry) and other members of the Liberal Democratic Party and the New Komeito Party. Nikai is an expert on crisis management, considered the top authority on the subject in the political world. He is second to none in his knowledge of disasters, earthquakes and crisis management. He has also studied tsunamis. For a long time, he has been preaching the necessity of the tsunami prevention bills.

There is no "if" in politics, but when the bills were introduced last year, if the Democratic Party of Japan had understood the need for them, they most likely would have passed and the laws would have been part of current policy toward the giant tsunami.

But we can't change the past. There's no use worrying about what might have been. It's still not too late for these bills. To bring Nikai's legislation back to life, the ruling and opposition parties need to hold a joint conference right away.

Finally, I have some harsh words for the government and the ruling party. The Kan Cabinet is using this moment to realize its DPJ manifesto, This is no time for foolishness. Put all your energy into crisis management.

Kan DPJ's 'Everyone for Themselves' System Threatens to Further Isolate Japan on Global Stage

As problem is aggravated, Japan may never regain its stature; DPJ members, this is no time to be asleep — we need action!

The "everyone for themselves" ethos of Japanese politics is gnawing away at the country. All sorts of evils spring from this same source.

I am sincerely anxious that most of the legislators on the Democratic Party of Japan have lost that sense of what it means to be a politician. From my vantage point, Prime Minister Naoto Kan seems only concerned with defending his own territory. Chief Secretary Katsuya Okada and Kan are cut from the same cloth, acting only in the interest of preserving their positions. The same goes for former Foreign Minister Maehara, Chief Cabinet Secretary Edano, Economics Minister Yosano and the other Cabinet members. They look as if they only care about protecting their own turf. I can't help but think that their spirits have been worn down by the "everyone for themselves" mentality that permeates the Kan administration.

The DPJ as a whole seems to have no vision for the future and no strategy. They just try to prolong their political lives by dodging the dissolution of the Diet and general elections. It's a serious problem.

Now that the budget bills have passed the lower house, the DPJ lawmakers should rise to the challenge. They should hold a joint plenary meeting of both houses of the Diet and decide whether the Cabinet should resign en masse or a general election should be called. To prolong things with no vision and no strategy is the worst option.

The confusion surrounding the Tokyo gubernatorial election stems from an "everyone for themselves" attitude that begins with current Governor Shintaro Ishihara. The chaos surrounding that election is caused by just about every candidate being consumed by a desire to put themselves ahead of the crowd.