"I Am a Patriot" was a song released by "Little Steven" Van Zandt in 1984. In it, he sang that he loved his country because "my country is all I know." It's worth mentioning as the controversy over the use of "patriotism" in the revision of the Fundamental Law of Education continues to make headlines.
The Japanese government says it wants to make patriotism and "public spirit" official goals of education, since it believes that many of Japan's social ills stem from the emphasis on individualism found in the Constitution. The government also wants to revise the Constitution, but that requires a national referendum, and since Japan has never held one before it will take a while to hammer out a method for carrying it out.
The purpose of the education law is to promote the ideals set forth in the Constitution, so it doesn't make sense to revise the law before a new Constitution is passed. The government doesn't need to seek the people's permission to amend the education law, which the ruling coalition would like to do during the current Diet session.
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