The Political Machinery of Bongbong Marcos
Philippines President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., who assumed office yesterday, declared, “Judge me not by my ancestors, but by my actions” as he won the 2022 national elections.
Philippines President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., who assumed office yesterday, declared, “Judge me not by my ancestors, but by my actions” as he won the 2022 national elections.
Henry Johnstone Morland Scott-Stokes, patrician among Japan’s foreign correspondents since 1964, recently died in Tokyo at the age of 83, but not before he did untold damage by performing as a foreign handmaid to Japan’s fascists.
Former Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara, who died February 1, was an evil man. Any honest obituary would admit as such.
Kurt Campbell, the Biden administration’s National Security Council Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific, is the “brain” behind much of what the Pentagon and US State Department are doing in East Asia today, but his policy approaches do not correspond with the realities of a global US empire now in rapid decline.
The Covid pandemic has gradually unleashed political and social forces in Japan that have lifted its underlying xenophobia to the surface, and thus transformed its culture from one of attraction into one of repulsion for many of its previous admirers.
Since California first legalized medical cannabis in 1996, and Colorado and Washington followed with adult-use cannabis legalization in 2012, there has been an increasing global movement towards medical legalization, relaxing cannabis laws in general, and in some cases full legalization of adult-use cannabis. Even Japan may now be taking notice.
Japan’s decision to exclude most foreigners, including many foreign residents, from entering or reentering the national borders during the Covid pandemic has had a human and reputational cost which the mainstream media has tended to either ignore or to downplay.
Visitors to Japan’s main international hub are still greeted by a sign saying “Down With Narita Airport,” a giant middle finger waved by diehards from a different era.
On the eve of the Tokyo Olympics, let’s talk about the mess, both its impact on our minorities and the International Olympic Committee’s responsibility for scamming Japan.
Even during the Trump administration, when the United States withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions, Japan has maintained cordial relations with the Persian Gulf nation. Should the nuclear agreement be reestablished in the coming weeks or months, Japanese firms are particularly well-positioned for investments and other economic links in the new era.