Ian Bunn | Political & Popular Culture Arts

Shinzo Abe the 58 year old and youngest post-World War II Prime Minister of Japan and also the President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has been the subject of article by Joseph Stiglitz on the Project Syndicate titled ‘The Promise of Abenomics’. Stiglitz states “…Abe’s program for his country’s economic recovery has led to a surge in domestic confidence. But to what extent can “Abenomics” claim credit? Interestingly, a closer look at Japan’s performance over the past decade suggests little reason for persistent bearish sentiment. Indeed, in terms of growth of output per employed worker, Japan has done quite well since the turn of the century. …as many Japanese rightly sense, Abenomics can only help the country’s recovery. Abe is doing what many economists (including me) have been calling for in the US and Europe: a comprehensive program entailing monetary, fiscal, and structural policies. Abe likens this approach to holding three arrows – taken alone, each can be bent; taken together, none can. …Government efforts to increase productivity in the service sector probably will be particularly important. For example, Japan is in a good position to exploit synergies between an improved health-care sector and its world-class manufacturing capabilities, in the development of medical instrumentation. …There is every reason to believe that Japan’s strategy for rejuvenating its economy will succeed:  the country benefits from strong institutions, has a well-educated labor force with superb technical skills and design sensibilities, and is located in the world’s most (only?) dynamic region. It suffers from less inequality than many advanced industrial countries (though more than Canada and the northern European countries), and it has had a longer-standing commitment to environment preservation. If the comprehensive agenda that Abe has laid out is executed well, today’s growing confidence will be vindicated. Indeed, Japan could become one of the few rays of light in an otherwise gloomy advanced-country landscape.”

Inspired by Joseph Stiglitz, Project Syndicate ow.ly/kuCAs Image source TTTNIS ow.ly/kuCDc

John Malcolm Fraser the 82 year old Australian former Liberal Party politician who was the 22nd Prime Minister of Australia now alienated from his party has published an article in The Age Newspaper titled ‘All the way with the USA?’. Fraser states “There is increasingly aggressive posturing between China and American-backed Japan. If war breaks out Australia must not slavishly follow its superpower friend. The ownership of islands in the East China Sea now represents a highly sensitive and dangerous issue. There has been a significant escalation that could easily lead to conflict between China and Japan. A senior American intelligence officer has strongly sided with Japan and called China a bully on the high seas with ambitions to sink American warships and seize control of waters from its neighbours. He described China as a principal threat. We have the US and Japan lined up in concert against China. …If anyone thinks containment against China and containment against the Soviet Union had any similarities, they should be disabused. The Soviet Union had minimal trade links, no financial and capital market links worth mentioning with the West. China, on the contrary, is heavily entwined in the economies of nearly every Western country, certainly of Australia. It is the largest buyer of US Treasury bills. A war between America and China would have catastrophic results, first for America’s economy, then for the economies of the world. If we had a government with a sense of history and of the future, we would seek to use our influence for peace and moderation. We should make it plain to America that we will not be going to war on that issue. We should oppose provocative action by any party. … When is Australia going to have sufficient courage to act as an independent nation?”

Inspired by John Malcolm Fraser, The Age ow.ly/i137R Image source Twitter ow.ly/i133G

Masataka Shimizu the president of the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) the world’s fourth largest electric power company based in Japan, was heckled by Japanese politicians as he apologized for causing so much trouble for residents near the Fukushima complex resulting from the crippled nuclear plant’s radiation leak. Shimizu was putting forward TEPCO’s plan for dealing with the plant’s radiation, which was not well received by the lawmakers, nor from public polls. Kirsten Anderberg in her Indymedia blog claims Shimizu has “sold out his own people for personal profits and is now hiding like a damned coward under a rock. It is time we held individuals responsible for the corporate nightmares they create. You are a criminal and you should be publically shamed for what you have done via the Fukushima Daiichi Plant.”

Inspired by Kirsten Anderberg ow.ly/4FPhN image source indymedia ow.ly/4FPeo