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One of the unsurprising but disturbing results of my enquiry into neoliberalism in Japan is the way the so-called ‘progressive’ side of politics has embraced the main tenets of neoliberalism. For a Westerner, Japanese politics is somewhat confounding and to understand what is going on, one must abandon the typical Left=Progressive/Right=Conservative dichotomy. In Japan, the…

On Thursday, November 29, 2026, I will be giving a presentation in Tokyo. The title of the seminar is: “The Need for and Feasibility of a ‘High-Pressure Economy: Determining Appropriate Levels of Investment in Light of Construction Sector Capacity'”. Read on for the details of how you can join via the live stream. The seminar…

This weekly report will provide some insights into life for a westerner (me) who is working for an extended period at Kyoto University in Japan but who over the years of working here has increasingly began to understand the language and local cultural traditions. A seeming tyranny This bit is to be interpreted as a…

Neoliberalism has scammed everyone. It told citizens that if we were liberated from government regulations and government control of enterprises that delivered essential services then we would attain the best possible outcomes that were available. A barrage of messaging from media companies blatantly serving the interests of capital and think tanks masquerading as independent research…

In the West, particularly the English-speaking world, neoliberalism seemed to easily replace the collectivist values of the full employment era that followed the Second World War. It constructed a world where individualism was prioritised over society, even though it claimed that society (all of us) would be better off by pursuing our own greedy interests.…