Posted on 07/13/2005 6:56:20 PM PDT by CHARLITE
Pacifism has never been so silly. In an East Asia that features both one of the world's most irrational states and a rising dictatorial power bent on changing the region's strategic balance, it is a crucial ally of the United States that labors under a constitution that could have been written by Quakers.
As part of her tour of Asia this week, Secretary of State Condi Rice visited a Japan that is slowly emerging from its shell. It is one of the diplomatic triumphs of the Bush administration that it has helped accelerate this process. The ideal should be to make Japan as reliable a partner of the U.S. in Asia as Britain is in Europe.
The alliance is a natural. Japan broadly shares our values. The U.S. is the world's No. 1 economy, and Japan is No. 2, a powerful combination. We want to check China, and Japan feels threatened by China. Japan provides the basing the U.S. needs at a time when we have lost our bases in the Philippines and our relationship with South Korea looks shaky.
It is the rough neighborhood that has helped turn Japan away from its old pieties. North Korea is enough to shake anyone's pacifism, and the Chinese have stupidly provoked Japan at every turn. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi took office in April 2001 determined to strengthen the U.S. alliance and loosen the more restrictive postwar constraints.
But it is a new Japanese government, with new norms, in a new time. The traditional restraints on it only serve to hobble what should be one of the world's significant players on the side of decency and civilization. Unleash Japan.
(Excerpt) Read more at jewishworldreview.com ...
the problem is, japan's not pumping out kids the way they were in 1920.
Japan * ping * (kono risuto ni hairitai ka detai wo shirasete kudasai : let me know if you want on or off this list)
Make Japan the 51st state... That will scare the beegeebers out of North Korea and China...
I say offer them statehood...
Or:
...admission into the union as a U.S. Territory with a separate, autonomous governing body via Constitutional Amendment...
Geopolitically we have a lot of shared interests...
True, but their advances in robotics makes up for this and then some.
a japanese guy's essay: USA is NOT the police of the world
USA-UK-Japan-Taiwan and hopefully India. To counter the Axis - aka the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
Welcome to Free Republic.
merci :)
i donnot think it is a good idea, maybe one day japanese will counterattack USA. nothing japanses cannot do.
Also time for AUS to become a regional power player!
Any of the rest of you think we're seeing Chinese postings on some of our China-related articles?
Too sympathetic to Chinese issues, Attacks against those who are perceived to be critical of Chinese expansionism, imperfect English.
I don't know if I'd go so far as statehood, but we should have much tighter trade and military relations.
You are close to the solution, but there are two or three more key players you have left out. Maybe four.
I have several I know who may be, but I haven't seen them for awhile.
If you ever say that in front of the Japanese, they are going to be embarrassed for such an offense. Imagine for US to be under control of Canada, or maybe UN, or any other country. Be careful.
No, but darned if they aren't #1 in the world at pumping out giant robots
Yeah, ideally, there would be additional players. I was being very conservative.
Indeed it is! I would be in favor of trashing the non proliferation treaty and codeveloping some outstanding IRBMs and TELs to carry them - US and Australia. The non proliferation treaty keeps one hand tied behind the West's back meanwhile those who challenge the West flout it. It is a worthless piece of rubbish.
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