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Tobias Harris

@observingjapan

23 Jul

After 2877 days, the Tokyo Olympics have finally arrived.

Former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo may not be in attendance, but one way or another, it's hard to imagine Japan's government going to the lengths it has gone without his personal investment, even after his resignation.

It is useful to look at the potent mix of nostalgia, nationalist mythmaking, and economic boosterism that drove his decision to back the Tokyo bid from the earliest days of his administration in January 2013.

The Tokyo bid been had submitted on 7 January. On 1 February 2013, Hashimoto Seiko, former Olympian and LDP upper house member, suggested to the prime minister that hosting the Olympics could help him achieve his vision of first-tier status for Japan.

kokkai.ndl.go.jp/txt/118315254X…

Read 35 tweets

Tobias Harris

@observingjapan

15 Jun

I was poking around in the archives of the American Legion's magazine and found an absolutely wild travelogue/polemic about Japan in the January 1956 issue: "Japan's New Offensive: Anti-Americanism is growing in Japan as antagonistic groups reach for power" by Victor Riesel.

Quite a lede: "Just 14 years after Pearl Harbor, Japan's intellectual and political leaders appear to have declared war on us again -- a cold war aimed at driving us from our strategic defense positions in the Far East."

Immediately followed by: "If we don't head them off and get to the average Japanese man in the street, we may someday have to shoot it out with them again to maintain our critical defense bases in Asia."

Read 18 tweets

Tobias Harris

@observingjapan

4 Sep 20

Here starts a thread on Suga's 2012 book, 「政治家の覚悟」.

Don't skip the introductory note, which functions as a political credo. Because it was written in 2012, opens by criticizing the DPJ for mishandling the bureaucracy.

But then praises Japan's bureaucracy as the "world's finest think tank," which a politician has to be able to use, overcoming sectionalism and custom. 「官僚を使いこなす」

Read 37 tweets

Tobias Harris

@observingjapan

28 Aug 20

And here begins a thread on Abe's resignation presser....

First to business, laying out the government's plans for combating Covid-19 as flu season approaches.

In classic Abe fashion, he's speaking a bit on the fast side.

Read 19 tweets

Tobias Harris

@observingjapan

24 Aug 20

Without going too far down the speculative rabbit hole, it seems that a) Abe’s definitely ailing, b) the government seemed to think he could recover with a break, hence being less than forthright about what’s been going on and the very public urgings from Suga et all to rest.

But today seems like a breaking point. It seems unlikely after two unexpected hospital visits in as many weeks that this approach will continue to work.

It is not an unreasonable to ask what condition the PM is in during a pandemic and recession.

Read 6 tweets

Tobias Harris

@observingjapan

19 Nov 19

It is Wednesday in Japan, which means that Abe is officially Japan's longest-serving prime minister. Here are some of my favorite viral moments from his tenure.