Regarding the May 7 Kyodo article from Manila, "DPJ crisis exec found playing golf": I found Democratic Party of Japan Vice President Hajime Ishii's comments, made after he was caught playing golf in the Philippines, to be darkly comic.
Leaving aside the question of whether our tax money is footing the bill for Ishii's "leisure excursion," I'm certainly not surprised that politicians think that their actions are invisible to the general public or that they would blame the media rather than accept responsibility for their own cluelessness.
What stands out is Ishii's utter lack of irony when he is quoted as saying, "I hope you would not do anything (reporting) that would create uncomfortable feelings among earthquake victims." Seeing to the comfort of disaster victims cuts right to the point.
The opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are the writer's own and do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Japan Times.