"I agree it's sick, but let's push it a little more. What is it about Japan that's made it such a dynamo the last couple of decades?"
"Hard work, organization, drive."
"Exactly. But where did that come from?"
"They had to have it. Over the centuries most Japanese were dirt poor. They had to hustle just to survive. Matthew, Japan is a collectivist society driven by capitalism, an idea so alien to the West nobody can even see it."
"Perfect description. Only problem is, all this demokurasu is sooner or later going to start cutting away the very thing that's made Japan so successful—a country powered by obedient, collective action and glued together by hierarchy and tradition."
"You're saying Noda wants to turn back the clock?"
"Don't know. But what if these industrialists, these zaibatsu honchos, are fed up with having to deal with all the cumbersome demokurasu machinery. And they're especially fed up with a certain ministry making them jump the hoop. Tam, what if Noda's real agenda is to go to America and buy himself a gun to hold to MITI's head."
"You don't think he's buying America's companies to help MITI?" She looked unconvinced.
"If I had money to bet, I'd almost be willing to put it on the possibility he's buying leverage to use against MITI and through them the whole inefficient government setup. How come MITI's suddenly sending staff over to look in on Noda's play? Could it be somebody there's figured out what he's up to and they want to head him off? They realize Matsuo Noda is the only man on the planet who could conceivably beat MITI at its own game? Bring it to its knees? First he acquired control of half the capital in Japan, then he came to the U.S. and started grabbing up all the R&D that'll be competing with MITI through the end of the century. When he's got it, he'll have a power base to match theirs. He's set to call the new tune."
"Which is?"