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The United States has been welcoming, even encouraging nationalist politicians as long as they are keen on reform and that Japan should share more burden in the security arrangement. But maybe they ar

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Sophia University Prof Koichi Nakano (Reuters)

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In other words, the U.S. was happy to promote conflict in Asia so long as it damaged China's economy and didn't cost the U.S. anything (and they really didn't care about the impact on the economies of their so-called allies). Now that it might cost them something they're reconsidering their position.

This is just like those insurance companies that are happy to take your premium every month, but then find a million loopholes the moment that something happens.

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In other words, the U.S. was happy to promote conflict in Asia so long as it damaged China's economy and didn't cost the U.S. anything (and they really didn't care about the impact on the economies of their so-called allies). Now that it might cost them something they're reconsidering their position.

A perfect example of taking your agenda and attributing it to someone else by prepending the phrase, "In other words, ". The professor wasn't saying that, nor was he even implying that.

The U.S. WOULD be happy if Japan would take on more of the job of defending their own country. Part of doing that is going to require Japan to change their constitution - specifically Article 8.

What the U.S. is NOT happy about is that the Conservative Right is already "rattling their sabres" at China before they even have actual sabres to rattle! The U.S. is fine with Japan defending its borders, but this overly aggressive stance is disturbing - and not just to the U.S.

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The US wants Japan to change Article 9 to help America fight wars all over the place. But it isn't so interested in Japan actually defending itself as that would mean there would be no reason for American troops to continue to camp out on Japanese soil in such large numbers (if at all).

As for the current situation, the US is only concerned that it will escalate to the point that the US has to act since its conflicts of interest with China would make any action by the US a lose-lose situation (doesn't want to piss off China by backing Japan but doesn't want to piss off the Japanese by doing nothing). The US depends on the threat of something happening to justify its presence in Asia. Anything that goes beyond the threat level is problematic for the Americans.

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