Read on Twitter
Life is too short to amplify bad takes. So below is a thread of threads on Abe's resignation and his legacy that I found insightful for different reasons and are a good place to start for understanding the longest-tenured prime minister in Japan's history:
First is a quick thread from @KristiGovella that describes how Abe adapted from his first term to his second. One good takeaway is that he learned that institutionalization matters, something seen most obviously in the new National Security Council https://twitter.com/KristiGovella/status/1299491432093290501
Next is a longer and more comprehensive thread from @PhillipLipscy describing Abe's political legacy - chiefly, his pivots to Abenomics when things got shaky, his ability to control the party through snap elections, and his tightly-gated media strategy https://twitter.com/PhillipLipscy/status/1299414996288516101
(He says he'll write a thread on Abe's policy achievements later, which I'm sure I'll end up adding to this thread)
I'd compare Abe to Obama in terms of the way they're both obsessed with their legacy, and to that end @ayumi_teraoka has some thoughts on how Abe managed his resignation announcement with eye towards preserving his legacy as prime minister https://twitter.com/ayumi_teraoka/status/1299546183434514432
For those of you with lots of time, I strongly recommend @AdamPLiff's thread on Abe's foreign policy legacy - with lots of free PDFs! - covering the influence of Komeito, the NSC, crisis management with China, grey zone coercion, public opinion, and more https://twitter.com/AdamPLiff/status/1299358030673391618
For most people who think about Japan in the regional or geopolitical context, the big question is what will happen to Japan's PRC policy once Abe's gone. For that, @Nihonpolitics offers a breakdown of the China policies of the possible successors: https://twitter.com/Nihonpolitics/status/1299235807660855297
For a DC perspective, @SchoffJ provides a rundown of Abe's accomplishments - foreign and domestic - and the challenges his successor will face. It's a good reminder that Abe accomplished a lot even if he failed to meet the high bar he set for himself https://twitter.com/SchoffJ/status/1299407113320624130
To understand the political stability that Abe was able to enjoy, @observingjapan - who literally wrote the book on the guy - reminds us that much of it was due to the opposition being unusually weak and voters being exhausted with political experiments: https://twitter.com/observingjapan/status/1299677623216463873
This thread from @JapanIntercult pokes holes in Abenomics. I'm not as critical - I think the attempts were genuine, there massive anchors dragging the economy, and Abe did as much as political space would allow him - but it was meant to be his keystone https://twitter.com/JapanIntercult/status/1300244757575208960
Finally, from @Okumura_Jun on Abe's legacy and why it's hard to separate Abe's achievements from the goals he set for himself - by most measures, it was a fine tenure. But no progress on abductees or N Territories, which were always going to be difficult https://twitter.com/Okumura_Jun/status/1299260167331041281
Obviously I didn't cover everything and since my interests are slanted towards politics and foreign policy, that's how this thread slants. It's not supposed to be complete, but feel free to send something I might have missed for my consideration
My own take is being wrestled with in a Word doc and I still don't know where I'll go with it. Honestly it's hard to build on what's been covered.
But Abe was fine I guess. Some good, some bad. I don't think the final word on him will ever be written (sorry @observingjapan)
But Abe was fine I guess. Some good, some bad. I don't think the final word on him will ever be written (sorry @observingjapan)
Anyway, by all means call out bad actors and bad takes. Just don't dwell on them for too long and focus on making people smarter rather than angrier.
(yes I'm subtweeting myself)
fin.
(yes I'm subtweeting myself)
fin.
