Go on Mr Abe, surprise us

摘要

The general election on December 16th witnessed one of the biggest landslides in the history of modern Japan. The Liberal Democratic Party (ldp), with its New Komeito ally, has swept to power with control of 325 of the 480 seats in the lower house of the Diet. After years of gridlock and drift, during which Japan has stumbled from one recession to the next, a government now suddenly has the chance to lead. That ought to come as a relief. Instead, there are groans, and a sense of foreboding.