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more suspect than personal interest. Personal interest is understandable,
whereas claims to be working for high ideals are not, and they become espe-
cially suspect when imperfect realities intervene. While this highlighted the
hypocrisy of those Komeito politicians who failed to pay, it also illuminated
the greater suspicion that easily erupts when behaviour comes up short of
expectations. Masaya, a supporter of the LDP, lost little faith in her political
representatives with expectations set much lower, despite the situation of non-
payment being considerably more extensive in that party. This was likely not
the case with una
liated voters, who may have become further disillusioned
with politics.
Masaya was one of the people who had been phoned by Komeito suppor-
ters. A woman in her late forties who I had come to know quite well, she lived
close by and sometimes would come around for a co
a
home-cooked meal for me. I also went to her house for dinner with her
mother once. She liked to chat in English, and had been studying that lan-
guage for some time. It was the 22 May (2004), with the political upheavals
about the min - problem still raging, and the then LDP Secretary-General
Fukuda 10 had just resigned to take responsibility for all the LDP lawmakers
who had failed to pay, many of whom refused to reveal their pension con-
tributions or lack thereof. I asked her for whom she was going to vote this
time (knowing that she was an LDP supporter but having just listened to her
complain about the min - problem).
ee or even to drop o
'
'
'
Probably the LDP, because it
s safe,
she
replied. I inquired why the LDP.
Other parties change, the LDP doesn
t trust politicians who
always party-hop [referring to former LDP politicians who are now part
of Minshut - ] and even if power was to change, nothing would change
anyway, because politicians are just interested in holding on to their own
power. Even if Minshut -
'
t. You can
'
should take power, nothing will change as a lot
of Minshut -
politicians came from the LDP anyway. You can
'
t trust
politicians, it
'
s just a power game.
(conversation with Masaya, 22/05/2004)
I asked her why she would still vote for the LDP then, since, even according
to her, they seemed to be the epitome of such power games played to further
stakes.
'
I have known them since childhood
'
.
'
So is that why it
'
is safe?
'
I
inquired.
s right. Moreover, politicians are no good these days. In the
Meiji Era, they had high ideals, this century no politicians have high ideals.
They can
'
That
'
I pointed out that the LDP was probably the
guiltiest of following the USA, but she reminded me of when Murayama, the
head of the Socialist party, was prime minister in a coalition government with
the LDP, he just became a puppet of the LDP and changed all his policies to
stay in power.
'
t say no to America.
'
'
All opposition parties are against sending SDF
'
, she said,
'
but
it
s only to be against the LDP. If they came to power, they would do the
same. Nothing would change with a di
'
'
erent party in power.
 
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