Various political forces are talking about establishing a "third pole" that will replace the ruling Democratic Party of Japan and the No. 1 opposition Liberal Democratic Party. Most of these forces call for revising the war-renouncing Constitution or for exercising the right to collective defense, while some are strongly pushing neo-liberal, market-fundamentalist policies that would result in weakening the nation's social and economic fabric.
What is happening is that the number of political choices in the right-leaning camp is increasing. This is an unhealthy development. People need to carefully study the policies those political forces would bring about and how their policies would affect their lives and the political direction of Japan.
The Japan Restoration Party, led by Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto, hopes to run candidates in all the nation's 300 single-seat constituencies in the next Lower House election. Former Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara, who has launched a new party, Taiyo no To (Sunrise Party), is calling on Mr. Hashimoto and Your Party leader Yoshimi Watanabe to form a grand coalition to establish the third pole. He says that the so-called third-pole forces should shed their minor differences and unite on common ground.