I don't really know because I get the feeling that the media have given him the stamp of approval for some reason and are holding back from telling the real situation. My strong feeling is that he is a wolf in sheep's clothing and that he had a far right agenda. Many of his friends are testament to that fact, has everyone forgotten Toshio Tamogami? He was thick as thieves with Abe at one time and he is no doubt an extremist.
I think he is doing a great job so far and has the potential to be one of Japan's best prime ministers. His speech in Argentina certainly helped win the vote for Tokyo. He's all over the place, travelwise - last week he was in the Middle East, then St Petersburg and then Argentina, but then he said earlier in the year he saw himself as Japan's No. 1 salesman.
I think Abenomics is having some effect. In my company, we all got a salary increase this year - the first time since the Lehman Shock.
If Abe can get Japan into the TPP pact, then that will be no small achievement.
He gets my vote (if I could vote). I hope he can stay in power for at least four years.
I think Brainiac is correct in some ways. Certainly, Japan feels like it is better off financially than it was before Abe came in. Salaries are higher in many sectors and bonuses are, too.
He's a puppet.
How so? It seems to me that whether you agree with him or not, he is doing what he wants to do. Your comment seems to be an oversimplification.
Not so bad, for now. He appears to be getting decisions made, either through his forceful personality, or more likely via back room negotiations. He's managed to obtain the 2020 Olympics for Japan, though whether it will really benefit the country is another story. He has managed to boost some sectors of the economy, but done little to provide assurances of the management of the National debt. However, he's dropped the ball on Tohoku and the Fukushima NPP by not forcing TEPCO to manage the problem, and his empty assurances that the government have a plan have fooled very few people.
This question is deceptively simple because expectations of Abe were so low coming in, due to his last, disastrous tenure as prime minister. If this question were posed on an ordinal scale rather than being an either/or thing, I'd be closer to answering yes. But again, this is only because Abe's 5 predecessors were a bunch of short-term placeholders who didn't do much of anything.
But there have always been reasons to be wary of Abe. Similar to George W. Bush, he's a middling, 3rd generation politician and child of privilege who harbors a weird grandfather complex (in Bush 43's case, it's Oedipal). Abe achieved true national prominence beginning 11 years ago, when he milked the abductee issue for everything it was worth and was seen nightly on TV standing side by side with Hitomi Soga, Kaoru Hasuike, and others who had been kidnapped by North Korean agents. He parlayed his newfound fame into getting the PM job on the fast track, only to crash and burn after one year.
I just hope the next Japanese PM isn't another one of these hereditary princelings. Those are the types of people who run China and North Korea, after all.
Abe is doing a really good job.........at making it look as if he's doing a good job. And he's doing a good job at fooling people.
Peter Payne:
1) no one in Japan will hate as much as JapanToday commentators, this is known, and 2) I'm in export so DAMN, yes, he's doing a great job.
Yes, yes, yes, we all know you deal with those dirty videos and mangas on your website and you're doing good business, as you keep boasting here. But you know, we're not all in that line of business.
H8ters gonna H8.
That says it all.
Masswipe:
I just hope the next Japanese PM isn't another one of these hereditary princelings. Those are the types of people who run China and North Korea, after all.
Oddly enough, that is NOT the case in China. Can you name one top Chinese politician whose child went on to be the same thing? What ever happened to Mao's, Deng's, Jiang's or Hu's children? Who were Xi's parents? As for hereditary princelings, I'd put Japan in the same group as India, North Korea and the Philippines. Not an impressive bunch.
I agree with Brainiac, Slumdog and Peter Payne, I feel he is turning Japan around with the economy, the yen, and getting the olympics is the crown, but tepco needs to be sorted out (abe says he will) and those in Tohoku need to be re housed and settled.
He is not scared to stand up to China either by the looks by rebuilding Japans military.
In time Abe will written in history certainly as a notable PM but what will be written has yet to be decided.
He seems to be an action man and has done more in these last few months than a whole bunch of PMS did in decades.
Go Abe, write your own obituary but just make sure its a good one.
As much as I don't like Abe, he's doing all of the things he said he would. Are those things good? For some people they are but not for your average Japanese. A lot of his plans are quick fixes that will only benefit a select few in the near future.
He needs to sort out the Tohoku region and get the nuclear crisis under control before my thumb even begins to point north.
I have no idea what he's doing and I don't even think that he actually has any executive power (prime ministers in Japan don't usually have any real authority).
23 Comments
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GW
No.
pizzatime
No.
Wakarimasen
Better than last time and there is definitely an air of optimism, but I think his policies will end in disaster.
Michael Craig
Oh, hell NO!
In fact, Kazuo Shii should be Prime Minister!!
I'd rather that the JCP should be the ruling party! they're care more about the people than the LDP and DPJ do!
pochan
I don't really know because I get the feeling that the media have given him the stamp of approval for some reason and are holding back from telling the real situation. My strong feeling is that he is a wolf in sheep's clothing and that he had a far right agenda. Many of his friends are testament to that fact, has everyone forgotten Toshio Tamogami? He was thick as thieves with Abe at one time and he is no doubt an extremist.
imperfectisperfect
so far so good!
smartacus
I think he is doing a great job so far and has the potential to be one of Japan's best prime ministers. His speech in Argentina certainly helped win the vote for Tokyo. He's all over the place, travelwise - last week he was in the Middle East, then St Petersburg and then Argentina, but then he said earlier in the year he saw himself as Japan's No. 1 salesman.
I think Abenomics is having some effect. In my company, we all got a salary increase this year - the first time since the Lehman Shock.
If Abe can get Japan into the TPP pact, then that will be no small achievement.
He gets my vote (if I could vote). I hope he can stay in power for at least four years.
BertieWooster
He's a puppet.
He says and does what he's programmed to.
I'm sure he does that quite well.
slumdog
I think Brainiac is correct in some ways. Certainly, Japan feels like it is better off financially than it was before Abe came in. Salaries are higher in many sectors and bonuses are, too.
How so? It seems to me that whether you agree with him or not, he is doing what he wants to do. Your comment seems to be an oversimplification.
wanderlust
Not so bad, for now. He appears to be getting decisions made, either through his forceful personality, or more likely via back room negotiations. He's managed to obtain the 2020 Olympics for Japan, though whether it will really benefit the country is another story. He has managed to boost some sectors of the economy, but done little to provide assurances of the management of the National debt. However, he's dropped the ball on Tohoku and the Fukushima NPP by not forcing TEPCO to manage the problem, and his empty assurances that the government have a plan have fooled very few people.
cleo
Since he came to power my income has dropped, so No, absolutely not. The only good thing is the weaker yen means my pound savings are worth more.
Nessie
I wish I were rich enough to measure my money by weight!
Fortunately I saw the writing on the wall and divested myself of yen over the last few months.
regev
I think that any objective observer must acknowledge that Abe is doing great. I guess some comment-writers here are simply prejudice.
nath
1) no one in Japan will hate as much as JapanToday commentators, this is known, and 2) I'm in export so DAMN, yes, he's doing a great job.
H8ters gonna H8.
MASSWIPE
This question is deceptively simple because expectations of Abe were so low coming in, due to his last, disastrous tenure as prime minister. If this question were posed on an ordinal scale rather than being an either/or thing, I'd be closer to answering yes. But again, this is only because Abe's 5 predecessors were a bunch of short-term placeholders who didn't do much of anything.
But there have always been reasons to be wary of Abe. Similar to George W. Bush, he's a middling, 3rd generation politician and child of privilege who harbors a weird grandfather complex (in Bush 43's case, it's Oedipal). Abe achieved true national prominence beginning 11 years ago, when he milked the abductee issue for everything it was worth and was seen nightly on TV standing side by side with Hitomi Soga, Kaoru Hasuike, and others who had been kidnapped by North Korean agents. He parlayed his newfound fame into getting the PM job on the fast track, only to crash and burn after one year.
I just hope the next Japanese PM isn't another one of these hereditary princelings. Those are the types of people who run China and North Korea, after all.
Pukey2
Abe is doing a really good job.........at making it look as if he's doing a good job. And he's doing a good job at fooling people.
Peter Payne:
Yes, yes, yes, we all know you deal with those dirty videos and mangas on your website and you're doing good business, as you keep boasting here. But you know, we're not all in that line of business.
That says it all.
Masswipe:
Oddly enough, that is NOT the case in China. Can you name one top Chinese politician whose child went on to be the same thing? What ever happened to Mao's, Deng's, Jiang's or Hu's children? Who were Xi's parents? As for hereditary princelings, I'd put Japan in the same group as India, North Korea and the Philippines. Not an impressive bunch.
StormR
I agree with Brainiac, Slumdog and Peter Payne, I feel he is turning Japan around with the economy, the yen, and getting the olympics is the crown, but tepco needs to be sorted out (abe says he will) and those in Tohoku need to be re housed and settled.
He is not scared to stand up to China either by the looks by rebuilding Japans military.
In time Abe will written in history certainly as a notable PM but what will be written has yet to be decided.
He seems to be an action man and has done more in these last few months than a whole bunch of PMS did in decades.
Go Abe, write your own obituary but just make sure its a good one.
JoeBigs
Yes, and when he gets rid of Article 9 he will be doing an even better job!
Aizo Yurei
As much as I don't like Abe, he's doing all of the things he said he would. Are those things good? For some people they are but not for your average Japanese. A lot of his plans are quick fixes that will only benefit a select few in the near future.
He needs to sort out the Tohoku region and get the nuclear crisis under control before my thumb even begins to point north.
TheDevilsAssistant
I think he was doing so-so......until he lied to the world during his Olympic Bid presentation speech. "All under control...."
Yeah, whatever..
Seiryuu_Dan
He accomplished moe in his 6 months in power than The DPJ did during their rule.
theResident
Yes.
nath
I have no idea what he's doing and I don't even think that he actually has any executive power (prime ministers in Japan don't usually have any real authority).