4 ms·

This is probably the result of industry lobbying.

eugeniub 9y ago
Doubt it. Lobbying influence varies from industry to industry. Both countries try to take extreme steps from time to time on copyright (see SOPA and PIPA attempts in the US), so I'm not sure if copyright lobbying in Japan is worse. I am sure that military, pharmaceutical, oil, and health insurance industry lobbying for example is worse in the US than in Japan.
- mc32 9y ago
  The economy of Japan wasn't dubbed "Japan inc." for no reason. There was and still is high degree of coordination btwn govt and industry in Japan. See METI.
alphonsegaston 9y ago
Lobbying doesn't even begin to describe the depth of corruption in Japan. Barriers between the state and industry are pretty thin at best. And this doesn't even get into the fact that Abe's party has long standing ties to organized crime itself. The aftermath of Fukushima was a pretty clear demonstration of this, where Tepco and government officials teamed up with the yakuza to send their debtors, as well as rounded-up homeless people, to clean up contaminated sites: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/japan-earthquake-and-tsunami-in/9084151/How-the-Yakuza-went-nuclear.html http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/japan-e...
veidr 9y ago
I don't think so; it's a power grab by the (Abe) government, and yes, but to a much lesser extent, their corporate sponsors. The (bogus and discredited) piracy-terrorism connection has been tried before in the USA and elsewhere; it never really catches on with the public, probably because it's self-evidently something that could only emerge via the anus of a corporate lobbyist. But that's just the fat on the edges this new law, not the significant bit. This meat of it puts the Japanese government in a more American-style power position: surveillance, and prosecution of intent rather than actual deed. A tangentially interesting part of this for me is: I work in Tokyo, and I ride my bike to work past the people pictured in the article. They are there, organized, obviously passionate (or at least engaged) in their political protest... but they are virtually all elderly. The picture in the article really is representative of what I see every day. 95% or more, 60+. Why is that? Sure, retired people might have more free time, but... if only old people participate in your democracy, then your democracy is fucked.
- hkmurakami 9y ago
  Well their democracy really is fucked so your observation is pretty spot on.

Doubt it. Lobbying influence varies from industry to industry. Both countries try to take extreme steps from time to time on copyright (see SOPA and PIPA attempts in the US), so I'm not sure if copyright lobbying in Japan is worse. I am sure that military, pharmaceutical, oil, and health insurance industry lobbying for example is worse in the US than in Japan.

mc32 9y ago
The economy of Japan wasn't dubbed "Japan inc." for no reason. There was and still is high degree of coordination btwn govt and industry in Japan. See METI.

alphonsegaston 9y ago

Lobbying doesn't even begin to describe the depth of corruption in Japan. Barriers between the state and industry are pretty thin at best. And this doesn't even get into the fact that Abe's party has long standing ties to organized crime itself. The aftermath of Fukushima was a pretty clear demonstration of this, where Tepco and government officials teamed up with the yakuza to send their debtors, as well as rounded-up homeless people, to clean up contaminated sites: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/japan-earthquake-and-tsunami-in/9084151/How-the-Yakuza-went-nuclear.html http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/japan-e...

veidr 9y ago

I don't think so; it's a power grab by the (Abe) government, and yes, but to a much lesser extent, their corporate sponsors. The (bogus and discredited) piracy-terrorism connection has been tried before in the USA and elsewhere; it never really catches on with the public, probably because it's self-evidently something that could only emerge via the anus of a corporate lobbyist. But that's just the fat on the edges this new law, not the significant bit. This meat of it puts the Japanese government in a more American-style power position: surveillance, and prosecution of intent rather than actual deed. A tangentially interesting part of this for me is: I work in Tokyo, and I ride my bike to work past the people pictured in the article. They are there, organized, obviously passionate (or at least engaged) in their political protest... but they are virtually all elderly. The picture in the article really is representative of what I see every day. 95% or more, 60+. Why is that? Sure, retired people might have more free time, but... if only old people participate in your democracy, then your democracy is fucked.

hkmurakami 9y ago
Well their democracy really is fucked so your observation is pretty spot on.