Reading For A Monday Morning - LDP As Institution

For those who have neither the time to read nor the inclination to buy Richard Krauss and Robert Pekkanen's book The Rise and Fall of the LDP, Professor Krauss has provided the pdf of the synopsis article the pair produced for The Journal of Asian Studies. It can be accessed here.

Despite the article's only leading up to the 2009 election, it is nevertheless a good review of the structural and intellectual flaws of the post-single member district reform LDP. Reading it, and remembering that the Diet membership overrode the choice of the local chapters in selecting Abe Shinzo as the party's president, leaves the impression that whatever the outlook for the final vote tallies, the LDP is Still Not Ready For Prime Time.