When the Democratic Party of Japan, led by Yukio Hatoyama, swept to power a year ago, there were high hopes that they would bring about positive change in Japan. What do you think went wrong?

Nothing went wrong. These guys are still way better than the LDP. It's called the lesser evil.

What went wrong? Japanese politics and its inherent structural problems. Implosion.

I think it was his fashion

Yukio Hatoyama didn't realize the 'actual' weight of U.S. Bases.

NOTHING went wrong. This is Japan, a mediocre country doing its mediocre best. Anything else would be un-Japanese, and we all know how important racial pride and nationalism are to our hosts.

Foot in a mouth disease?

They got elected, and found out it all sounded good, in theory...

Hatoyama, the reluctant prince Hamlet of politics, was not leadership material. Plain and simple.

I blame the media and general public. What were they expecting after decades of LDP abuse of power? Instant results???

The whole Futenma debacle could have/should have been avoided though. Japan has much more serious problems to deal with before worrying about where to put US bases.

Nothing went wrong. A bunch of pompous liars made promises they had no intention of keeping for the sole purpose of getting themselves elected. The people of Japan swallowed the lies hook, line and sinker and now the country has an ineffectual and incompetent government that can't provide the simplest bit of leadership! You asked for it you got it! Now with prospects of Ozawa making a comeback Japan is headed to even darker times, especially in international relations.

What went wrong? Let's see, a few things come to mind:

a) a party with almost no experience of governing elects an aloof, wishy washy rich boy with zero connection to the Japanese public to be Prime Minister.

b) The rich boy Prime Minister is simply a puppet for a corrupt gangster, Ozawa. When Ozawa's ugly doings are exposed, of course rating plunge.

c) Making promises before thinking them through properly / actually checking whether they are doable or not. A malaise afflicting politicians of all stripes worldwide. Futenma falls under this category.

d) A media-bureaucracy apparatus that is so deeply in bed with the LDP that they were the mortal enemies of DPJ right from the start.

e) A political culture in which the Prime Minister is expected to "take responsibility" and step down after the first cock-up, instead of simply sticking to his guns, learning from his mistakes and providing some continuity.

That said, the DPJ has actually done quite a lot to make things better I think, despite all their flaws. If the LDP comes back, we're screwed.

I agree that nothing went wrong. We got exactly what should have been expected. People were really stupid to think the DPJ would bring big change to Japan. Most of the DPJ politicians used to be members of the LDP. Basically, the DPJ and LDP are two butt cheeks of the same butt.

They could not beat the powerful bureaucracy and amakudari.

His wife opened her mouth.

Nothing went wrong. Hopes were set up too high.

"What do you think went wrong?"

Nothing.

Nothing went wrong! They were elected on ridiculous 'pipe-dream' campaign promises that the masses bought and, of course, they failed miserably. What went wrong?

Hatoyama went wrong, that's what went wrong.

The US treated him like they treated Kim Jong Il...he then caved into the US's demands to do what they want with Okinawa, the Japanese paniced and he lost support among the public and other members of the diet.

Too much talk and not enough action on the part of EVERYONE. Hatoyama, his opposition, the media, the people.... EVERYONE. One person cannot save a country.

(1) His downfall was those ugly causal shirts he used to wear. The checkered Rainbow shirt was the clincher !!!!!

(2) Hatoyama & the goofies DPJ made a promise to Japan he would rid all (joyous marines & bad humvee drivers ) US personnel off the Okinawa Island if elected. didn't think about the pact their forefathers made after the treaty/truce/surrender of WW2 about the US Forces in Okinawa.

(3) Underestimating- The people of Japan and the lack of support after Ozawa didn't cover his tracks really well. Exposing the BS factory for who they really are- clowns with pink and purple shoes.

Seems all the posts except one are what they call "avoidance" in psycology. Avoiding the fact that he caved into the US on the base relocation issue, making the Japanese feel shame that they were still an occupied country. It wasn't the economy or anything else, it was him caving in to the United States and not getting a meeting with the US president, making the Japanese feel the partenership with the US wasn't equal. He shamed the Japanese people, and the US had the power to force that to happen.

The manner in which this question is posed assumes that last year's "high hopes for positive change in Japan" no longer exists. Are those hopes really gone? Is there not today still high hopes for positive change in Japan? And even if they are gone, is that wrong? By whose definition?

Japan itself is very resistant to change. I think they like the idea in theory, but Hatoyama was very idealistic and naive despite being rich himself. Most politicians are way too set in their ways of money money money to care about the people.

Hatoyama also underestimated the issue of the Futenma base. Without the bases, Okinawa will sink into an economic black hole, but no one wants the bases there or anywhere. It's a tough situation and Hatoyama had to take the blame for pretending to do anything about it.

Without the bases, Okinawa will sink into an economic black hole, but no one wants the bases there or anywhere

That isn't true, in every case where bases were closed the economy boomed in them areas in Okinawa. Besides bases don't exist for the good of the economy or whatever economy that develops around the bases once they are in position. This has nothing to do with Hatoyama's demise (base related economy).

Let's see:

Politicians who are more interested in themselves rather than their party, and unreliable coalition members who have much more to gain by throwing a spanner in the works than by co-operating to solve a problem.

one word, Ozawa

Have these people ever heard the saying, "United we stand, divided we fall"? DPJ is imploding with this clown Ozawa throwing his so called hat into the ring. Japan needs a PM and Party that has the real guts and fortitude to take this country out of the 20th century. The elite in this country are still acting as if they are still living in the bubble days. The last PM to attempt this was Koizumi. Atleast the man had balls. I really cant say the LDP was the strongest at the turn of the century. All those leeches were riding on Koizumi's back. Now you have Kan. Who is flaky to begin with. The man has not done much since he started as PM. So now he will easily be thwarted because the electorate has the attention span of a 2 year old. And in will come Ozawa. I pig of a man, but smart nonetheless. He is throwing his hat into the ring for selfish reasons. Does the country really need PM like him? There is your answer. The whole political system in this country is what went wrong. There is no military. The "self-defense" force is impotent. It could not even carry out a coup if their lives depended on it. Their is no pride forthcoming. I agree with a post above about the people's setiment that their country is still occupied. All that is left is money and greed.

They talked a lot of stuff without having a clue about how they were going to accomplish it. Still going on to this very day. There are folks that will say that Okinawa did Hatoyama in, Okinawa was just one factor, he resigned because he wasn't able to do anything. Seemed like he enjoyed playing PM after he was elected, went on some trips, and people took him seriously for a while. But when it came time to go to work, he bailed.

It seems like they came in, looked around, found opposition in the bureaucracy to many of their ideas. They they found it in the public for other ideas. They made committees and compromised. Opposition continued.

So they shrugged and said shoganai. They forgot their mandate and their promises and instead AVOIDED confrontation instead of seeking it.

They were distracted, confused, disorganized, and confounded almost immediately. Hatoyama and Kan have apparently lived most of their lives this way, so they were comfortable doing nothing.

If they had a strong leader and had stuck to one issue solidly and had built momentum from small successes, things would be very different today.

Their one success seems to have been the child allowances. They should make a bigger deal of that and try to do SOMETHING to help farmers and small businesses. Build up the mandate again by doing something to win votes for the next election.

The same thing that always happens everywhere, politicians lie! What with the free advertising famalegoods12? Pay for it like anyone else!