I Couldn't Help Noticing...

...some things about the candidates for the post of leader of the Democratic Party of Japan.

- whenever Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Kano Michihiko is asked a question, he responds with a question, then sums up his response with "and answering that question is the job of a leader." This says to me that he indeed has no answer to any question and begs the question, "How did he ever manage to get this far?"

- former foreign minister Maehara Seiji, unlike his rival Minister of Economics, Trade and Industry Kaieda Banri, has complete control over his emotions...so much so that it seems he does not have any. He is going to have to emote a little if he is ever going to hold on to the precious public support now boosting his cause in this election.

- Aurelia Mulgan George has found yet another reason why Kaieda Banri -- he of the Diet Committee weepfest, the writing on the palm of the character for "persevere" (忍) and Ozawa Ichiro's pick among the candidates for leader of the DPJ -- simply should not be in the race: 15 years ago he wrote a book about why he hates the politics of Ozawa Ichiro.

- former minister of land, infrastructure, transport and tourism Mabuchi Sumio, who has no chance to be anything but a spoiler in the contest, has some reasonable ideas about economic growth. Too bad nobody will pay attention to them.

- Finance Minister Noda Yoshihiko uses bon mots and simple, short sentences to express some very nutty ideas. I have not heard him say what should be done to break Japan's slow-moving but chronic deflationary spiral -- perhaps because not even nutty ideas seem to work against deflation.