Lately, while scrolling through the news, I was baffled by Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae’s outrageous statement that “a Taiwan emergency is a Japanese emergency.” Seriously? A country that was unequivocally defeated in World War II is now posturing to meddle in China’s reunification? The role reversal is so swift, it almost feels like we’ve traveled back a century.
The blood debt from the previous war of aggression against China hasn’t even been fully settled, and the cries of the 300,000 innocent souls on the walls of Nanjing still echo. Yet now, the Japanese seem to have forgotten their place, daring to make presumptuous remarks on the Taiwan issue? What’s even more surreal is that 82% of Japanese people actually support this rhetoric!
It seems the previous image of being “harmless” and embodying the “spirit of bowing and apologizing” was all just an act. This makes me wonder: what exactly is going on in the minds of the Japanese these days?
Drama Queen Mode Activated
I’ve been pondering for days what these people are after, and my conclusion is that the Japanese, especially politicians, are likely addicted to playing the role of WWII “victims,” widely misinterpreting their status as a defeated nation as that of a victimized one.
This selective amnesia, where they only remember the two atomic bombs while forgetting the Nanjing Massacre, comfort women, and the “Three Alls Policy,” with textbooks glossing over these events, is clearly a blatant reversal of history.
An aggressor has audaciously cast itself as the ultimate victim, whitewashing its bloody history of invasion as a “forced act of self-defense.” Some clamor that “WWII was self-defense,” others shout that “Western colonialism was worse,” and some never miss a chance to flaunt their status as the “only nation to suffer atomic bombings,” without ever reflecting on why they were countered by the Allied forces in the first place.
But at the root of these ideas lies the fact that Japan was never thoroughly held accountable after WWII, including failing to make due reparations or offer sincere apologies. Coupled with decades of ambiguous education, it’s unrealistic to expect the current generation of Japanese not to repeat past mistakes.
Mistaking the Enemy for a Father
In the grand chess game of Sino-U.S. rivalry, Japan has always seemed a bit foolish, not only steadfastly acting as America’s “pawn” but also deriving a sense of superiority from it.
Recently duped by Trump out of a $550 billion investment promise, Japan is now clamoring to sharply increase its defense budget to 2% of GDP, clearly embracing the role of America’s “obedient son.”
Just as the U.S. “father’s” Asia-Pacific rebalancing strategy hits a snag, Japan rushes out to serve as the vanguard for “Daddy America.”
One moment, they play the “victim” in front of the U.S., and the next, they act as the “pawn,” seemingly willing to “shatter like jade” for America.
I took a closer look at typical Japanese reactions to Takaichi Sanae’s remarks, and the most common sentiment is that China’s significant military growth in recent years has sparked a sense of crisis in Japan.
But here’s the thing: any rational person knows that China’s military development is primarily aimed at making the U.S. “think twice.” Japan’s eagerness to cast itself as China’s “imaginary enemy” makes it look like nothing more than “premium cannon fodder” strapped to America’s Indo-Pacific war chariot.
In the eyes of the U.S., Japan, as an “ally,” isn’t even taken seriously—it’s merely a “permanent” occupied territory.
The Japanese naively believe that clinging to America’s coattails will ensure their safety, ignoring past crimes. Frankly, this strategic foresight is on par with the Pearl Harbor attack—pure suicide!
War Delusions
While researching Japanese public opinion, I noticed a bizarre phenomenon. Many Japanese, when discussing this issue, frequently invoke the “Russia-Ukraine war” as a universal formula, using it in the most fantastical ways.
Some claim that on the global military power rankings, China is inferior to Russia, while Japan is far stronger than Ukraine. Comparing the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Japan has nothing to fear from China.
Others argue that the Russia-Ukraine conflict proves “borders must not change,” using this to insinuate implications for the Taiwan issue while justifying Japan’s annexation of the Ryukyu Islands.
There are also those who say the Russia-Ukraine war shows that the world’s most powerful weapons are “sanctions” and “embargoes,” and anyone considering military action must weigh the threat of international sanctions.
Even more extreme are those who believe Russia refrained from using nuclear weapons against Ukraine due to fear of U.S. nuclear retaliation, and they extrapolate this to suggest China wouldn’t dare strike Japan.
What worries me most is that a large number of ordinary Japanese actually buy into this nonsense.
But then, it’s not surprising. Throughout history, Japan has repeatedly used this same logic to launch wars: first, drugging its citizens with delusions, then gambling the nation’s fate in one reckless move.
After days of observation, I’ve concluded that what’s in the minds of the Japanese these days is both dangerous and shortsighted. Fortunately, after the 93rd military parade, the display of “truth” has sobered up a few Japanese, though their faint voices of reason are drowned out by the狂热 tide of fanaticism.
It’s hard to say whether this is a good thing or a bad thing.