Was there not an historic election just over two months ago that ushered in a supposedly foreigner-friendly government that has put issues like suffrage for permanent residents in local elections on the table? Does it not have a minister who has talked about building a Japan not just for the Japanese, and does not an American-Japanese "half" represent the people of Okinawa?
One could be forgiven for forgetting this while reading Arudou's article, as it carries just one shoehorned-in line about the Democratic Party of Japan. With a description of elected officials as not "all that developed as human beings," I cannot help but think Arudou has forgotten when he wrote this piece.
ken yasumoto-nicolson