Get ready for a tsunami of uchiwa!

[wagyl]

...or maybe not.

Abe has announced his decision to dissolve the Diet, and there will be a General Election.
http://www.nippon.com/ja/features/h00086/ Not in English yet.

[legion]

Is there actually an opposition to vote for?

[Wage Slave]

Not that I know of. And that's why election time. So Mr Abe gets another 4 years and a mandate to ditch the increase in sales tax. Debt? Pah! Just print more and more money to cover it.

[matsuki]

Japan's unique political process...beginning to wonder if we should just start calling Abe "glorious leader."

[wagyl]

Japan's unique political process...beginning to wonder if we should just start calling Abe "glorious leader."

It may be outside your experience in your home country, but legislatures without a fixed term are definitely the most common type in Parliamentary systems. This is not unique.

• In some countries like Denmark, Malaysia, Australia and New Zealand, the prime minister has the de facto power to call an election at will. This was also the case in the United Kingdom until the passage of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011.
• In Israel, parliament may vote in order to call an election or pass a vote of no confidence against the government.
• Other countries only permit an election to be called in the event of a vote of no confidence against the government, a supermajority vote in favour of an early election or prolonged deadlock in parliament. These requirements can still be circumvented. For example, in Germany in 2005, Gerhard Schröder deliberately allowed his government to lose a confidence motion, in order to call an early election.
• In Sweden, the government may call a snap election at will, but the newly elected Riksdag is only elected fill out the previous Riksdag's term. The last time this option was used was in 1958.
• Norway is unique among parliamentary systems in that the Storting always serves the whole of its four-year term.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliament ... cteristics

[matsuki]

Japan's unique political process...beginning to wonder if we should just start calling Abe "glorious leader."

It may be outside your experience in your home country, but legislatures without a fixed term are definitely the most common type in Parliamentary systems. This is not unique.

Ok, so the political structure is not unique...but in practice....in modern times....how many other parliamentary countries have played musical chairs as much as Japan?

[wagyl]

Just off the top of my head, Italy comes pretty damn close.
Greece is a good one too: elections in June and November of 1989, and in both May and June in 2012, a total of twelve elections in the last 20 years.

[Wage Slave]

Just off the top of my head, Italy comes pretty damn close.
Greece is a good one too: elections in June and November of 1989, and in both May and June in 2012, a total of twelve elections in the last 20 years.

Italy and Greece. When you think of stable competent government, sound financial management and lack of corruption those are definitely the two European countries that spring to mind.

[wagyl]

The other extreme is Belgium, without any government for 541 days in 2010-2011 while the various parties negotiated forming a coalition. This beat the previous record of 196 days without government from 2007.

To be fair to Italy and Greece, I think few of those elections were scheduled as a result of the Prime Minister making a tactical decision seeking an electorally strategic date, more were as a result of scandals or crises of confidence, including those manufactured by the opposition parties as tactical decisions seeking an electorally strategic date.

[matsuki]

OK....so this type of shit is far from unique to Japan, point taken.

When you think of stable competent government, sound financial management and lack of corruption

...this type of thing has a great track record

[Wage Slave]

OK....so this type of shit is far from unique to Japan, point taken.

When you think of stable competent government, sound financial management and lack of corruption

...this type of thing has a great track record

In relative terms, yes. In absolute terms perhaps great is the wrong word. That said, to quote Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., "I like paying taxes, with them I buy civilization.”

The lazy and casual view that all government is always and has always been bad and we are dependent on the free market for anything of value is extreme in it's folly and misrepresentation. There is no way anyone could operate a decent sized business without the government providing the legal framework, regulatory framework, physical infrastructure and basic inputs like security and education.

[Taro Toporific]

"Abe Raises Diet Morale With Traditional Japanese Dance"

dance-freaks.jpg

via Shogannai (@Shogannai) November 21, 2014

[Russell]

OK....so this type of shit is far from unique to Japan, point taken.

When you think of stable competent government, sound financial management and lack of corruption

...this type of thing has a great track record

In relative terms, yes. In absolute terms perhaps great is the wrong word. That said, to quote Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., "I like paying taxes, with them I buy civilization.”

The lazy and casual view that all government is always and has always been bad and we are dependent on the free market for anything of value is extreme in it's folly and misrepresentation. There is no way anyone could operate a decent sized business without the government providing the legal framework, regulatory framework, physical infrastructure and basic inputs like security and education.

Very good points!

And Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.'s quote is a gem!

[Mike Oxlong]

Japan is said to be relatively not corrupt...

http://www.transparency.org/cpi2014/

[Salty]

Japans election are an exercise in corruption. Witness the vote value discrepancy. Witness the gifts. Witness the quid pro quo of funds disbursed to industries that support the LDP. – fisheries, farming, construction… Anything but not corrupt.

[matsuki]

The lazy and casual view that all government is always and has always been bad and we are dependent on the free market for anything of value is extreme in it's folly and misrepresentation. There is no way anyone could operate a decent sized business without the government providing the legal framework, regulatory framework, physical infrastructure and basic inputs like security and education.

Definitely agree, not saying gov is just bad...more saying that corruption is rampant here..

Japan is said to be relatively not corrupt...

http://www.transparency.org/cpi2014/

Perception is not always a reflection of reality...and the problem with the corruption in this cuntry is it's embedded in the business culture so much that they don't perceive it as wrong:

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=30601&p=350842&hilit=price+fixing#p350842

Land of the cartels, gov. run and otherwise....complacent J-consumers may not ask questions or demand competition but this type of shit doesn't make for good competitive overseas effort though

[Mike Oxlong]

Japan is said to be relatively not corrupt...

http://www.transparency.org/cpi2014/

Perception is not always a reflection of reality...and the problem with the corruption in this cuntry is it's embedded in the business culture so much that they don't perceive it as wrong:

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=30601&p=350842&hilit=price+fixing#p350842

Land of the cartels, gov. run and otherwise....complacent J-consumers may not ask questions or demand competition but this type of shit doesn't make for good competitive overseas effort though

I'm sure there's more corruption here than meets the eye, hence "is said", as in "is supposed to be/is alleged to be". I don't, however, have a lot of time in living in another country besides Kanata, so I don't have any personal knowledge of how Japan stacks up against Russia or Mexico or Italy or any other place said to be corrupt.

[matsuki]

I'm sure there's more corruption here than meets the eye, hence "is said", as in "is supposed to be/is alleged to be". I don't, however, have a lot of time in living in another country besides Kanata, so I don't have any personal knowledge of how Japan stacks up against Russia or Mexico or Italy or any other place said to be corrupt.

To be sure, no place is corruption free...I just think here there are many ways that it happens here that either doesn't get considered corruption "because it's Japanese style" or "how it's always been done." Then there is the tendency to "overlook" things because everyone has their hand in the cookie jar. Kinda like the lack of autopsies and quickness to suggest suicide. How many Japanese think "America is such a racist country" when the issues of race here are simply not addressed or publicized. Of course the stats with this method look great on paper...but reality is quite a different animal.

[Yokohammer]

Privilege for the upper/power class was simply accepted for way too long here and the vestiges still remain. Plenty of people in power still think that is or should be the norm, which is one of the reasons there are so many people who only care about privilege in or trying to get into politics. Sort of a mini Tono-sama mindset. Politics and bureaucracy were just a path to privilege (and immunity), and graft was just a way of doing business not very long ago. To many they still are.


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[Samurai_Jerk]

To be sure, no place is corruption free...I just think here there are many ways that it happens here that [...] doesn't get considered corruption

Sort of like the legal bribery of campaign financing in the US.

[Yokohammer]

I can also tell you (from first hand experience ... as an observer) that it even happens in hospitals here. Some people believe it's a good idea to grease the doctor's palm a bit before a major operation, for example. "Oh doctor, here's a good book I found that I thought you might like." Doctor opens book, sees it contains a 100,000 yen "tip," closes book and accepts it without further comment. I am not making this up.


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[matsuki]

Privilege for the upper/power class was simply accepted for way too long here and the vestiges still remain. Plenty of people in power still think that is or should be the norm, which is one of the reasons there are so many people who only care about privilege in or trying to get into politics. Sort of a mini Tono-sama mindset. Politics and bureaucracy were just a path to privilege (and immunity), and graft was just a way of doing business not very long ago. To many they still are.

Pretty much sums up my theory as well.

To be sure, no place is corruption free...I just think here there are many ways that it happens here that [...] doesn't get considered corruption

Sort of like the legal bribery of campaign financing in the US.

Yeah, that shit is way out of hand as well.

I can also tell you (from first hand experience ... as an observer) that it even happens in hospitals here. Some people believe it's a good idea to grease the doctor's palm a bit before a major operation, for example. "Oh doctor, here's a good book I found that I thought you might like." Doctor opens book, sees it contains a 100,000 yen "tip," closes book and accepts it without further comment. I am not making this up.

That's pretty nutty....especially when some of the doctors I know say shit like "I wouldn't let anyone I work with operate or even diagnose me!"

[Yokohammer]

I can also tell you (from first hand experience ... as an observer) that it even happens in hospitals here. Some people believe it's a good idea to grease the doctor's palm a bit before a major operation, for example. "Oh doctor, here's a good book I found that I thought you might like." Doctor opens book, sees it contains a 100,000 yen "tip," closes book and accepts it without further comment. I am not making this up.

That's pretty nutty....especially when some of the doctors I know say shit like "I wouldn't let anyone I work with operate or even diagnose me!"

Yep, it's really kinda stupid because no amount of palm greasing is magically going to turn a crap doctor into a good one.

[Coligny]

I can also tell you (from first hand experience ... as an observer) that it even happens in hospitals here. Some people believe it's a good idea to grease the doctor's palm a bit before a major operation, for example. "Oh doctor, here's a good book I found that I thought you might like." Doctor opens book, sees it contains a 100,000 yen "tip," closes book and accepts it without further comment. I am not making this up.


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From what I saw at home it work reverse. The envelope comes under chokluts after the operation as a thank you.
And it's also done between doctors. So it might involve more twisted dynamics than simple corruption. Back then, always kept the chokluts... Money usually put in a piggybank to pay for the nurse/team party fees.

Despite all his flaws, it was one of the first thing explicitly forbidden by the new chief of the municipal hospital... Signs everywhere and all...

[Russell]

I can also tell you (from first hand experience ... as an observer) that it even happens in hospitals here. Some people believe it's a good idea to grease the doctor's palm a bit before a major operation, for example. "Oh doctor, here's a good book I found that I thought you might like." Doctor opens book, sees it contains a 100,000 yen "tip," closes book and accepts it without further comment. I am not making this up.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

From what I saw at home it work reverse. The envelope comes under chokluts after the operation as a thank you.
And it's also done between doctors. So it might involve more twisted dynamics than simple corruption. Back then, always kept the chokluts... Money usually put in a piggybank to pay for the nurse/team party fees.

Despite all his flaws, it was one of the first thing explicitly forbidden by the new chief of the municipal hospital... Signs everywhere and all...

Yep, my parents-in-law used to give an envelope to the doctor in hospital as a gratitude at the end of major treatment. They also told me that Catholic hospitals did not accept such things, which to me sounded logical.

[Salty]

... Yep, it's really kinda stupid because no amount of palm greasing is magically going to turn a crap doctor into a good one.

But for a person who thus has a disability (from a stroke, heart attack, etc...) - it will magically increase the degree of the severity of disability and thus increase the benefits that will subsequently be obtained. A wise investment...