A long editorial devoted to the crisis from Asahi Shimbun is entitled "A Tempestuous Start for 2009." The great Japanese daily newspaper blames the United States, free markets and the policy conducted over the last decade to bring the country out of the rut it has been stuck in for so many years. "Temporary, part-time, and other forms of irregular work now represent 30% of the active workforce, a consequence of labor market deregulation."

    But the country has experienced other crises. "Over the course of the last one hundred and fifty years, Japan successfully overcame two other serious crises that could have ruined the country." The first was the passage from the feudal Shogunate to the Meiji era - which resulted in the country's opening to the rest of the world. The second was the country's defeat in World War II, which "opened the way to the new start as a democratic nation."

    This time, the Archipelago will have to find its own way "instead of giving in to external pressure in favor of the introduction of Western technologies and democracy as during the two preceding crises" and define its own objectives: "The time when economic growth was the first priority is over." Instead, it proposes the environment, education and well-being! The newspaper calls for true political vision, alluding to the incontrovertible referent in the matter today: Barack Obama. However, it doubts the abilities of the Japanese political class. Hence its conclusion, several months from the legislative elections: "Voters must show themselves to be more critical than ever of national policy."

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    Translation: Truthout French language editor Leslie Thatcher.