Kurikaeshi

I missed seeing the Monday night statement, but I am not even the slightest bit surprised.

Stung by the reaction, [to his New York Times article] Mr. Hatoyama appears to be back-pedaling and engaging in damage control. On Monday night, he said he had not intended for the article to appear abroad, and said it was being misinterpreted. “If you read the entire essay, you will understand that it is definitely not expressing anti-American ideas,” he said. NYT

Anything that a Japanese politician says that causes embarrassment or "confusion" is always due to misinterpretation and misunderstanding overseas. Besides, it was meant to be for internal use only like all such overly honest opinions expressed by a politician, government official, or other person with power or influence in Japan.

But none of that is a shock. The shock is the fact that any of what he wrote would have been news to any person knowledgeable about Japan. Surely folks involved with Japan/US relations are more aware of what is going on in Japan than that. Surely they would not need to rely on a NYT article.

For once, I am not being sarcastic. I find it impossible to believe that anyone paying attention would have been surprised. Impossible.

Oops. Another Japanese word pointlessly used in the title.