cians tend to be in the vein of the recently resigned Fukuda seemingly lacking in the political personality or energy to accomplish change, conservative or otherwise. My first exposure to Taro Aso was last year, when he was on a popular morning news program to campaign in support of the late Fukuda. I immediately noticed that his charisma and spunk differentiated him from the average, geriatric member of the LDP. The blogs I read seemed to paint a more three dimensional portrait of Taro Aso. However, they also highlight his shortcomings, particularly in choosing his current cabinet members. The question facing the Japanese is similar to the one facing American's concerning John McCain: is he a maverick or just one of the "good old boys"?The first blog I read was titled Aso's Beautiful Country, and emphasized the reformist nature of his speech to the Japanese Diet. The blog, Observing Japan, is written by Tobias Harris, a current graduate student at MIT and contributor to various new outlets concerning Japan. The second blog I commented on is called the East Asia Forum, and it is a blog dedicated to East Asian policy issues. I commented on an article titled "The Aso Cabinet Circus" written by Shiro Armstrong who is a phD candidate at Australia National Universty in International and Development Economics. I have posted my comments to their respective blogs. Additionaly, I have included the posts below and easily links to access their blogs for your convenience.
Comment:
Tobias, thank you for your series of posts concerning Taro Aso, Japan's new Prime Minister. I agree with your assertions that Taro Aso is not your average LDP politician, but rather an interesting and dynamic man who seems keen on restoring Japan's position in the world. I particularly enjoyed your comparison of Taro Aso's vision for Japan with that of former Prime Minister Abe. You state that in Abe's vision, Japan's postwar system was, "an extended detour from the path Japan ought to follow." I am curious to in what ways that system does not fit into Abe's vision for Japan, and really what kind of vision did Abe hold for Japan? I agree with your assessment that Taro Aso holds the post-war Japanese system in esteem and essentially see reform as turning Japan back towards the ideals held by that system. Notably in his recent speech to the Diet, Aso was very clear the he believes that the LDP has been systematically failing the Japanese public through its inaction and lax attitude towards their well-being. Do you think that this speech has the opportunity to produce real change in the current political situation in Japan, either by spurring the LDP to take action or serve as starting point for the end of their political dominance in the upcoming election? I believe that Taro Aso seems to have the energy to make a real difference to the current political landscape, either through solving a few of th
e current policy issues or fail to do so and in the process mar the LDP beyond repair. I am more inclined it will be the latter, not because the issues facing Japan seem particularly grave (at least compared to those facing the U.S. at the moment), but rather since Aso seems to be setting himself up for failure. His vision for Japan is regressive and does not take into account the problems facing Japan during this age of globalization. Additionaly, his cabinet appointments seem to be designed to produce the most dysfunctional cabinet possible. Finally, I think his first proposal smacks of typical LDP economic policy: spend until economic recovery comes. I am not quite sure those are quite the right set of policy tools to the table to "repair" Japan's economy or solve future pension issues. I do not believe that a simple return to the LDP of the past will be enough to solve Japan's problems, although I believe many of those value such as egalitarianism and frugality are importance in determining Japan's new direction. Japan's future problems are quite different than those of the past, and it will require new government solutions and real reform to solve them.Comment:
Shiro, I thoroughly enjoyed your post about Taro Aso's new cabinet choices. While Taro Aso seems to have challenged the LDP to do a better job in his speech to the Diet, he choices seem hardly be live up to that rhetoric. Your post further leads me to the conclusion, that despite his energetic profile and his family's political history, that Aso will be incapable of solving the political problems facing Japan. These problems of course include a rapidly aging population, a large government debt, ineffective government monitoring of the food industry, as well as the threat of a recession. His criticism of the LDP for failing to solve these problems was warranted. However, his cabinet appointments seem to make a mockery of his speech and make him appear a hypocrite. Particularly his choice of Hatoyama, known as the "Angel of Death", as Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications seems to be a bad decision giving the current rice scandal. Furthermore, I was shocked to read in The Economist, that Nakagawa Shoichi, when called upon by a reporter form the The Economist, was found, "in erratic form, with his shirt unbuttoned to the waist." Such a choice for Finance Minister during a global financial crisis seems to be asking for public backlash. Given Taro's recent speech, do you think that it is possible that Taro Aso may be trying to force reform on the LDP by basically engineering electoral defeat in the upcoming election? Does he feel that perhaps, like Koizumi, that perhaps the only way to effectively "fix" Japan and its current problems the LDP grip on power must be broken, and the electoral system opened to true competition? Perhaps a multi-party system and the political competition it brings is necessary to produce policy that will be able to move Japan into the future.
1 comment:
This is a strong post about an interesting topic that I think you appropriately tie into American politics to engage the reader. You mention that you explored Japan's place in the world "through the current American financial crisis." This is reflected in your title, which alludes to the current debate in American politics over whether John McCain is a "maverick or just one of the 'good old boys.'" The reference serves as an effective way of drawing readers in (at least American ones), as it immediately gives them something to relate to. There is also a very strong personal element to this post, not only because you tie everything in to American politics but also because you tie it in to your own experience. For instance, you describe your first exposure to Taro Aso last year. Finally, your comments to the external blogs are very well thought out and informed. I especially like that you bring some outside information about Nakagawa Shoichi from the Economist to your second comment. This is a good way to spark the interest of the author of a post. Overall, there are several elements in this post that make for a compelling read.
That said, I only have a few minor critiques. Your transition into mentioning the external blogs at the end of your first paragraph could be more fluid. Perhaps you could explain that you explored the blogosphere to find some sort of commentary on the events you wrote about above, and then segue into which blogs you commented on. I also noticed a few grammatical errors. You might want to clean up the last clause in your first sentence, "...and what kind of model Japan's financial could provide moving forward." Do you mean something like "...and what kind of financial model Japan could provide as they move forward?" Some clarification would provide a much stronger start that would enhance your already excellent post.
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