In his Sept. 20 article, "Decline of the Liberal Democratic Party," Gwynne Dyer blames the downfall of Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's administration on its continuation of Japan's post-World War II subservience to the United States in matters of foreign policy. He boldly proclaims that the "deeply conflicted views of the Japanese about this foreign policy" brought down Prime Minister Shinzo Abe after less than a year in office.
No, the terminal decline of the Abe administration started early in his abbreviated run as Japan's leader. It was due to Abe's misguided insistence on a vaguely ideological platform that represented a step back to most Japanese, and did not address their myriad concerns about economic and social issues for the present and future.
Foreign policy issues between the U.S. and Japan are secondary to most Japanese right now. They are more concerned about domestic ones, like health care and pensions.
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