Ozawa is back!

[Curt 1]

Hurray!

 

He doesn't stay down for long does he?

 

He's like one of those games in game centers where you hammer the beavers popping up. Then they popup somewhere else.

 

[Thundercat 60]

You're talking about whack-a-mole Curt... I think in Ozawa's case it should be referred to as whack-a-weasel!

[gerard 6]

This one really bugs me. So much for 'cautious optimism'.

[RobBright 35]

Bye-bye DPJ.

 

Hello LDP.

[Ezorisu 0]

It was so nice NOT hearing about him. Now that's over.

 

I really hope whoever was glad that the LDP was out has realized that the replacement DPJ is not a move in the right direction. The old guard in the LPD may have been dusty old conservatives, but they weren't weird.

[rider69 18]

weird DPJ or corrupt LDP ? Ill still take the weird DPJ

[Ezorisu 0]

When all is said and done and a different party is in charge, I would probably not be wrong in predicting that the DPJ will have accomplished nothing significant during their tenure, and will be relegated to one or two paragraphs in history books a decade from now.

[Tubby Beaver 209]

does ANYTHING actually change for the better when any Government changes?

[Metabo Oyaji 71]

Ugh. Ozawa has a face that says, "I am lying to you right now."

 

I can only take heart that he is reported to want to bring up Futenma as an election issue. The very issue that brought down his buddy Hatoyama. Dear Mr. Ozawa: please, pursue this brilliant strategy. It's a winner!

[SKI 15]

It's the way he delivers his lines too isn't it.

With that ott fake sincerity.

[bobby12 0]

They are all just a bunch of corrupt old guys with little to no loyalty to each other in order to get ahead. If you have read James Clavells Shogun, I think of them like all the infighting daimyos in that book.

 

At the end of the day, taxpayers money is getting siphoned out, its just a matter of how the cake gets sliced up. I dont understand why the JPs stand for it year after year of scandal and clearly incompetent leaders.

[NoFakie 45]

Originally Posted By: Tubby Beaver

does ANYTHING actually change for the better when any Government changes?

Nagano's did when Tanaka came in. He pushed his own image too much though, and ultimately wound up too many people. Without him, I think the highway or widened, upgraded road thingy through the Hakuba valley would have started by now. Tanaka pushed it back a good ten years. Now the money is drying up, I guess they won't get away with anything as big as the original (secret) plans.

Ozawa says he wants to take the DPJ back to the manifesto. It was the party and its manifesto that folk elected. That's unless they mistakenly thought they were voting for President Hatoyama, but you can blame that on the media.

[bobby12 0]

Tanaka was too clean (politically, not personally!), and I imagine he was forced out for that reason (blocking all the corrupt muda-dams and other construction projects).

 

I wasnt in Nagano the year he lost, but I believe it was to that old guy Murai who I think was in power before tanaka. I was surprised by that. I really wonder on what basis people cast their votes here, what with the stupid senkyou vans and so on, does anyone know anything about policies? I have read a lot of votes come from companies, where the employees of big firms are strongly encouraged to vote for MrX. My firm only has 350 people but we always get visited by one candidate around election time and he is backed up by the union guys.

[grungy-gonads 54]

Originally Posted By: bobby12

I really wonder on what basis people cast their votes here, what with the stupid senkyou vans and so on, does anyone know anything about policies?

You obviously don't pay attention to those wonderfully informative messages that the vans send out in their journeys.
It's a fab way to find out what the candidates really feel about local and national policies and more than enough to make an informed decision.
It's also a great way to measure just how much each person will ganbaru. For example, will it be 一生懸命　or 最後ã®æœ€å¾Œã¾ã§ã€€or some other promise. Very important.

[bobby12 0]

In the little town of my company, they all senkyou around the train station every morning like flies around shxt.

 

On the election day, they were all there with little armies of followers trying to bow to everyone as they came out of the station. You couldnt get out of the station because of these 50 or so electioneers outside. And they seemed to be having competitions among themselves to see who could bow deepest and shout loudest.

 

It wsa truly the most ridiculous thing I have seen in Japan in my 7 years.

 

I was saying to my fellow gaijin colleagues we should join in the party. Put on a ribbon and line up along with the others and start bowing and shouting about ganbaru. it would be so easy to do a parody tv show about it, its amazing there is nt one already. Theres no Harry Enfield / Fast Show type parody comedy in Japan hey?

[muikabochi 208]

Originally Posted By: bobby12

Theres no Harry Enfield / Fast Show type parody comedy in Japan hey?

Strange that isn't it. There's tons of "funny" stuff on, but I can't remember seeing any kind of parody of this kind of thing.

I always laugh when you see them driving along a road where there are no houses, no people walking --- but the dudes in the van are STILL waving out the window.

[grungy-gonads 54]

Basically, he needs a good slap.

 

Or a hammer that is more powerful than the ones they use on "whack-a-weasel"? (Are you sure that's what it is called? Any other names for it?)

[Thundercat 60]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whac-A-Mole

[Metabo Oyaji 71]

And now it turns out that Yawara-chan is an Ozawa supporter!

 

How deeply disappointing.

[Curt 1]

I never quite saw her appeal.

 

Quote:

Japanese lawmaker Ichiro Ozawa has confirmed he will challenge Prime Minister Naoto Kan for the ruling party leadership, despite talks aimed at avoiding a potentially damaging split.

 

The two men will compete in a party presidential election to be held on 14 September.

 

Mr Kan, who leads the Democratic Party of Japan, only took office in June.

 

If he is ousted, Mr Ozawa will become Japan's sixth prime minister in four years.

 

According to opinion polls, most voters would prefer Mr Kan to remain as prime minister.

 

But Mr Ozawa - a former DPJ leader who stepped down due to a funding scandal - leads a large faction of lawmakers and is widely regarded as a key power-broker.

 

Under the Japanese system, whoever heads the ruling party will become the prime minister.

 

Has he ever hidden his wish to be PM?

 

Nutters, the lot of 'em

[gerard 6]

The original plan was solid though -- Get elected on a bunch of crazy unrealistic promises -- let the goofy guy (Hatoyama) take the fall -- Then put in the real deal - Kan. I guess Ozawa didn't get the memo.

[Curt 1]

Kan was the real deal?! (!?)

[gerard 6]

Well, maybe I shouldn't go that far but among that cast of idiots...

[thursday 1]

it must be real hard to live your life as a failed man for the rest of your life.

[brit-gob 9]

If he wins this battle with Kan, does he automatically get to be PM?