Using pop lyrics and refugee advocacy as examples, this essay exposes the hollowness of pacifism that avoids action while invoking “love.” It argues that such rhetoric ignores reality and responsibility.

2016-02-02

A close friend of mine, who stopped subscribing to Asahi Shimbun and instead faithfully reads the monthly magazines I have recommended, told me, “This month’s WiLL is good right from the start.”

As I have mentioned before, I am convinced that all young people aged eighteen and over who now have the right to vote should, for example, subscribe to this monthly magazine. It is no exaggeration to say that doing so alone would serve Japan and the Japanese people. Especially the March 2016 issue—despite being packed with truth—costs only 820 yen. You would do well to compare this once with the games that strain your eyes, reduce your time for thought, and even take large sums of money from you, if you wish to become a person who contributes to Japan as a Japanese citizen.

This comes from the opening column titled “Chōsan Bōsan.”

The New Year is already a month behind us.
This old man made his first shrine visit at a small local shrine. After that, with nothing to do and nowhere to go, he spent his time idly watching television.
Such is the life of the elderly.

Every channel was noisy, like a toy box overturned.
Then suddenly, a song by AKB48 appeared.

Naturally, they came out waving hands and feet.
I was astonished when I heard the lyrics.

“We will not fight, because we believe in love.”
A so-called anti-war song.

In other words, they will not fight as an action.
Instead, they claim to believe in love toward the other side, to gently envelop the opponent with love.

It is a foolish notion.
Only God—specifically the omniscient, omnipotent God of monotheism—could accomplish something so lofty.

And they are trying to become that God.
That group of young girls jumping around in short skirts.

There is no greater gag.
A hearty laugh.

Then one could go on saying, one after another:

We will not fight because our lives are precious.
We will not fight because we will give money.
We will not fight because we have a date.
We will not fight because we have a drinking party.
We will not fight because we have exams.

…That is the level of “because we have love.”

Such empty theories are spreading throughout society.

For example, last year, fourteen organizations involved in refugee support—including the NPO Japan Association for Refugees—submitted a request on September 28 urging Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to accept Syrian refugees into Japan (Mainichi Shimbun, September 29, 2015).

This is no joke.

There are many Japanese people for whom daily life is already difficult.

Setting aside the relief of such people, they say we should accept foreign refugees?

This is putting the cart before the horse.

Presumably, the logic goes like this:
Japan is wealthy, so it can accept refugees.
Because “we have love.”

(To be continued.)

Incidentally, the author of this column appears to be Nobuyuki Kaji, a graduate of Kyoto University and Professor Emeritus at Osaka University.