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Monthly Archives: January 2023

Biden Outpaces Trump on Oil and Gas Permits

Although US President Joe Biden vowed on the campaign trail to phase out federal leasing for fossil fuel extraction, his administration approved more permits for oil and gas drilling on public lands in its first two years than the Trump administration did in 2017 and 2018.

UK Conservatives Aim to Crush Labor Unions

The United Kingdom’s Conservative Party government has unveiled an anti-strike bill which has been branded a “full-frontal attack on working people” by the nation’s largest trade union. This legislation arrives amidst a continued campaign of industrial action by workers across the United Kingdom against “real-terms pay cuts.”

Masayoshi Matsukata and Election Violence

From 1891-1892, the financial specialist among the Meiji Genro, Masayoshi Matsukata, served as prime minister of Japan. After weathering a potential crisis with Russia, he called a general election and unleashed violence against the elected representatives of the people.

Establish a US-Japan-Korea Center in Tokyo

The recent efforts to encourage cooperation between Washington, Tokyo, and Seoul in diverse fields, from science and technology to diplomacy and security, comes as welcome news, especially in light of the decline in collaboration during the Trump administration. Even before that time it was never particularly vibrant.

Visible Minorities: Remilitarization is a Bad Idea

Pushing Japan to remilitarize was never, and still is not, a good idea. This is not just because an arms race in Asia is the last thing the region needs. But also because Japan, consistently unable to face up to its own history, is simply not the country to represent the world’s liberal democracies in Asia, especially as a military power.

Greece Slides Back into Police State

Greece’s far-right ruling party New Democracy recently introduced a new police force which will be deployed to all universities. Not only is Greece now ranking first in Europe in terms of the proportion of its budget spent on the police, but it also reverses steps the country had taken to liberalize the nation after the end of the military junta in 1974.

Culture War Erupts Between Westminster and Holyrood

Scotland First Minister Nicola Sturgeon declared that her government will challenge the United Kingdom in court after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservative government acted to veto a recently-passed LGBT rights bill—a move that critics say will harm sexual minorities, imperil national unity, and represents fuel on the fire for a culture war.

Aritomo Yamagata and the First Elected Diet

From 1889-1891, conservative Prime Minister Aritomo Yamagata became prime minister and oversaw Japan’s first parliamentary elections and the first session of the elected Diet, but he soon became tired of battling the elected representatives of the people.