Ishihara Shintaro is a Japanese politician and author who, in 2000, told the Ground Self-Defense Forces that, in the event of a major earthquake, they should be prepared to subdue rioting foreigners. In doing so, he used the term “sangokujin,” a pejorative term for foreigners, particularly from neighboring Asian countries. This comment didn’t come to mind immediately after the quakes here but I was reminded of it recently. Ironically, the aftermath of the earthquake in Kumamoto was notable in part for the almost complete absence of the kind of anti-foreign sentiment that Ishihara went out of his way to express. Ishihara is a politician who rose to prominence in part by giving voice to a rather extreme brand of nationalism and bigotry. Now, however, Governor Koike (the first female to break the glass ceiling and become governor of Japan’s largest city) is cleaning up a major mess made under his administration:
– Kirk
