Word: japanized
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...Prince Tomohito, the alcoholic.' PRINCE TOMOHITO, a cousin of Japanese Emperor Akihito and sixth in line to the Chrysanthemum Throne, addressing a welfare organization in the city of Sendai. There is a strong stigma attached to alcoholism in Japan and disclosures by public figures are rare. Tomohito has been undergoing treatment at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo...
...Perhaps the most optimistic outcome would see reform-minded young members of both parties join forces to form a new coalition ready to tackle Japan's problems, but the revolution seems unlikely. Less than two years after Koizumi electrified the nation by calling a snap election to defend his reform plans, voters seem resigned to the return of Japanese politics as usual. Back at the Minato welfare office, 71-year-old Asako Hamada sees little reason for hope. "I don't know anything about politics, but I know things are not well at the present moment," she says. "That neither...
...into his tenure-pop into the social-welfare office in Tokyo's central Minato ward. Most days you'll find a gray brigade of angry Japanese voters who want to know where their pensions have gone-and they want to know now. In May the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) revealed that records of up to 50 million pension accounts had been misplaced and couldn't be connected to their owners, due to a monumental bureaucratic error. When Abe appeared more concerned with dodging the blame than solving the problem, his already wobbly approval ratings went into free fall...
...woes are especially galling because when he became Prime Minister last September, it seemed he could do no wrong. Although known as a staunch nationalist, his first act was to visit Beijing and Seoul, patching up strained relations with Japan's key trading partners. But foreign-policy coups were soon overshadowed by a perception that Abe's domestic agenda was lacking. While he spoke of boosting Japan's role abroad and revising the country's pacifist constitution, the public was focused on bread-and-butter economic issues. "When Abe talks about the constitution, people think, 'What about my salary?'" says...
...That's the real trouble: no one has. From its endangered pension system to its emerging young underclass, Japan faces existential challenges, but you wouldn't know that from the tone of the campaigns. Real debates-such as whether to raise the consumption tax to reduce public debt-are postponed until after the election, while the media feeds on the latest political scandal. "It's like the campaign is happening on another planet," says Akihiko Matsutani, a pension expert with GRIPS. "These discussions need to take place...