Tamogami calls Hiroshima peace ceremony meeting of 'leftists'

Wednesday 26th August, 05:59 AM JST

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bakabaka at 10:21 AM JST - 26th August

Ossan you are spewing the version of history that many are comfortable with now, but the fact is the 15 years of war was supported by the vast majority of the population. It was a "total" war and very very popular. Only in the last 2 years did it become unpopular.
cow76 at 10:44 AM JST - 26th August

A group of armed right-wing religious idiots would have been preferable? This guy might have some respect from the uyoku but he's just like Aso when it comes to making stupid comments and undermining what little credibility he has.
Osakadaz at 11:29 AM JST - 26th August

good point GW.Actually reading books is to be encouraged in a land where the PM is in Mangaland.
Statistician at 11:34 AM JST - 26th August

I thought Aso was at the Peace Ceremony. Is he a 'leftist' too?

I guess pretty well everyone is somewhere to the left of Tamogami.
LFRAgain at 11:42 AM JST - 26th August

Wow. Tamogami truly is one can short of a full six-pack. And dangerous. I'm glad this nutbag was forced out of the SDF, considering that asinine "essay" contest he ran (and won) a while back.
NuckinFutz at 02:43 PM JST - 26th August

I'm sure he is one of those lunatics who also believes that the attack on Pearl Harbor was revenge for dropping the atomic bombs!

To say he's one can short of a six pack gives him too much credit. The really scary fact is that he managed to stay in the ASDF for such a long time and achieve such a high position. This implies there are many others still serving who probably share his views (although silently so they don't lose that jobs)
Midnightpromise at 02:45 PM JST - 26th August

What is wrong with Tamogami anyway???!! Does he not realize that rightwing types are not supposed to be able to express their views?!!! Bus loads of peaceniks being used for an anti-war statement under the guise of a "ceremony" is OK, but for this guy to have the gonads to express his views? For shame!
auntplum at 06:27 PM JST - 26th August

Perhaps what is most interesting about his essay is that he makes reference to the Venona Papers that detail the US breaking of the Japanese military code during 1941, suggesting that the US knew that Pearl was to be bombed and not only let it happen, but willed it to happen. Funny thing is, in this country, with the secretive government and police (you don't even have access to your own accident report here, let alone 'Top Secret' intelligence documents) he would never have had access to this information and insight. For that reason, it's all the more odd when he goes on to say that "Americanisation" of Japan's legal and employment system is negative for Japan... 99% conviction rate / guilty until proven innocent / held without charge for weeks - yup, I'd say Japan has Americanised legal principles...

And for those that say it's the youth that support him - think again. He has a strong following of educated 50/60-somethings that love their country but don't know enough about the outside world to realise that he is weaving a clever web of intrigue and BS to make a new-nationalism that is very anti-social and will leave Japan isolated in Asia.

Wasn't it the US closing it's doors to Japanese goods that kicked off the war last time? If Tamogami gets his way - nuclear weapons, no compromise on the China oil issue/Russian issue, revisionism, no settlement for Korean 'Comfort Women' - it is not too long a stretch of the imagination to that the US could close its doors again... with Russia, Korea and China close behind.
thedeath at 06:58 PM JST - 26th August

US knew that Pearl was to be bombed and not only let it happen, but willed it to happen.

i also have seen that argument from history channel long ago. from what i remember, they said the British intelligent warned the american multiple time about the japanese movement in the pacific. it looked like the japanese about to attack... on and on, but the american didn't seem to care. however they didn't say if the american want it to happen or wait for it.

history channel said that it is still unclear untill today why the american didn't care about the British warning and take no appropriate step to protect the PerHarbor.
timorborder at 07:30 PM JST - 26th August

Who is this guy and why are his opinions relevant? He is a retired (if not retarded) senior military officer (well Japan doesn't have a military but I digress) who sees fit break the basic rule that applies to all military officers. Namely, don't get involved in politics. What a prat. One of the cornerstones of democracy (yes, even in Japan) is the idea of people being able to freely associate with others (it is called freedom of speech). This ideal (among others) is one that the military organizations in industrialized democracies are supposed to uphold. Boy didn't this chap get it wrong. This is 2009 buddy, not 1930s Japan. I would like to know which candidate this chap was supporting, and does the candidate in question share these views?
Monoflow at 11:37 PM JST - 26th August

What's wrong being left-winger, as long as there are right-winger? And it has nothing to do with whether you are Pro-Japan or not ... Mr. Tamogami, there are different kind of people in the world, you may like it or not ...
OssanAmerica at 12:11 AM JST - 27th August

Ossan you are spewing the version of history that many are comfortable >with now, but the fact is the 15 years of war was supported by the vast >majority of the population. It was a "total" war and very very popular. >Only in the last 2 years did it become unpopular.

bakaka- I'm not "spewing" anything, merely stating the facts. Do you deny that the Japanese military took effective control over the government? Do you deny that the Army Minister and Navy Minister effectively controlled the cabinet and were able to "bully" any PM, and it continued to the point that the army put Hideki Tojo, a general into the PM seat? Do you deny that Japanese civilians lived under the scrutiny of the Kempeitai, that news and literature were heavily censored to the extent that civilians werenb't even being told of the diastrous military engagements with the United States? Do you deny that anyone remotely suspected of anti-national beliefs or activity including communists were rounded up and held in jail? Do you deby that it was illegal to use English words instead of their Japanese equivalent? If you deny any of the above then you simply have no idea what really went on in Japan during the WWII years. How does a civilian not support the government, which was being run by the military, when the facts aren't being told and not supporting it could land you and your family in jail? That's your so-called "total popular war". Why do you think that the only person who took a shot at Tojo after the war ended was a Japanese? Now why do you think Japan has and still continues to not let go of Article 9 to this date?
bcbrownboy at 09:08 AM JST - 27th August

thepro: This guy is such a nutbar. How on earth was he Air force chief? It's full of 'em. And over the pond, we just had 8 years of the war-mongering Bush, and his henchmen Cheney, et al. Unfortunately, as long as we have petty egos with tiny p@nises, we'll always have war and destruction.
ojbbstance at 12:25 PM JST - 27th August

is this the same military chief who spouted that china and korea were "happy" or invited the japanese military to come ("invade") their countries..? also, left or right wing, the people who attend the hiroshima ceremony and the local media are all hypocritical. the main sufferers of the war and japan's invasion, the chinese and korean and asian victims, includng those of nanking, and comfort women who were butchered, are not respected in any way by japan, and japan primly lectures and expects the world to care about their victims of america's bombings. these young and old people walking around asking people to sign a petition to declare a nuclear free world don't even know why america bombed hiroshima! years ago, there was a student on tv said who said, erroneously, america bombed japan because america wanted to kill innocent people to win the war. the brainwashing and whitewashing by japan's ministry of education has led to this intellectual handicap in this country of its real historical facts.
nipponreddog at 01:59 PM JST - 29th August

General Tamogami, former Japanese Air Self Defense Force Chief, was not a pilot and was not know to ever fly a plane. He came from the anti-aircraft section of the ASDF, which, in itself, should explain a lot about this man's behavior and thinking.