Some reading for the inauguration

by liberal japonicus

After the 6th, there were several articles talking about the prewar coup in Japan (know as the 2-26 incident), pointing out that the leniency offered set the stage for the road to WWII. I'm not too sure about that, there were several other incidents that preceeded 2-26, though arguably, events like Charlottesville, Michigan and the two in DC (Nov 14 and Dec 11) could fill those slots

But I've been reading about the Kyūjō incident. More below.

A note, events like this are always called jiken, which covers plot, affair, scandal and, in this case attempted coup, and is translated as incident. I believe it came into Japanese around Meiji, and is used to cover a wide range of events, from false flag operations (the Mukden or Manchurian incident), political struggles at universities (the Takigawa incident), to Yukio Mishima's attempted coup (the Mishima incident) as well as the coup that most everyone knows, (the
aforementioned 2-26 coup). It is also used for the cover up of HIV tainted blood and sometimes, when the odd American president tosses their cookies (The Bush incident) but strangely enough, the poisoning of Minamata Bay with methylmercury isn't called an incident. At any rate, onward.

The Kyūjō incident (宮城事件, Kyūjō Jiken) was an attempted military coup d'état in the Empire of Japan at the end of the Second World War. It happened on the night of 14–15 August 1945, just before the announcement of Japan's surrender to the Allies. The coup was attempted by the Staff Office of the Ministry of War of Japan and many from the Imperial Guard to stop the move to surrender.

Needless to say, the parallel is not exact. But interesting things emerge

At the Army Ministry, Anami announced compliance with the Imperial edict. Then a group of senior army officers including Anami gathered in a nearby room. All those present were concerned about the possibility of a coup d'état to prevent the surrender—some of those present may have even been considering launching one. After a silence, General Torashirō Kawabe, Deputy Chief of the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff, proposed that all senior officers present sign an agreement to carry out the emperor's order of surrender—"The Army will act in accordance with the Imperial Decision to the last." It was signed by all the high-ranking officers present, including Anami, Hajime Sugiyama, Yoshijirō Umezu, Kenji Doihara, Torashirō Kawabe, Masakazu Kawabe, and Tadaichi Wakamatsu. "This written accord by the most senior officers in the Army, in addition to Anami's announcement, acted as a formidable firebreak against any attempt to incite a coup d'état in Tokyo." [bold mine]

Don't think that is happening.

Originally, Hatanaka hoped that simply occupying the palace and showing the beginnings of a rebellion would inspire the rest of the Army to rise up against the move to surrender. This notion guided him through much of the last days and hours and gave him the blind optimism to move ahead with the plan, despite having little support from his superiors. Having set all the pieces into position, Hatanaka and his co-conspirators decided that the Guard would take over the palace at 02:00. The hours until then were spent in continued attempts to convince their superiors in the Army to join the coup. At about the same time, General Anami killed himself, leaving a message that read, "I—with my death—humbly apologize to the Emperor for the great crime." Whether the crime involved losing the war, or the coup, remains unclear.

I actually think that the Capitol riot got a lot more support from 'superiors' than this one did. Fortunately or not, we frown on ritual suicide, though I would be willing to accept resignation from office and a promise to never darken our guest towels as a rough equivalent. A group of military tried to prevent the transmission of the Emperor's surrender recording. We jump over the details to the back end of the coup.

Just before 05:00, as his rebels continued their search, Major Hatanaka went to NHK studios, and, brandishing a pistol, tried desperately to get some airtime to explain his actions. A little over an hour later, after receiving a telephone call from the Eastern District Army, Hatanaka finally gave up. He gathered his officers and walked out of the NHK studio.

Another diff, Fox would probably put them on the air. With a panel of Tucker Carlson, Lou Dobbs and the morning crew interviewing them.

At dawn, Tanaka [acting commander of the 1st Imperial Guards Division] learned that the palace had been invaded. He went there and confronted the rebellious officers, berating them for acting contrary to the spirit of the Japanese army. He convinced them to return to their barracks. By 08:00, the rebellion was entirely dismantled, having succeeded in holding the palace grounds for much of the night but failing to find the recordings.

Fun fact, Tanaka had a degree in English Literature from Oxford, where he attended on an Army scholarship. He committed suicide 9 days after this.

Hatanaka, on a motorcycle, and Shiizaki, on horseback, rode through the streets, tossing leaflets that explained their motives and their actions. Within an hour before the emperor's broadcast, sometime around 11:00, August 15, Hatanaka placed his pistol to his forehead, and shot himself. Shiizaki stabbed himself with a dagger, and then shot himself. In Hatanaka's pocket was found his death poem: "I have nothing to regret now that the dark clouds have disappeared from the reign of the Emperor."

I class this as an optimistic post, in that the Kyūjō incident could be taken as the last gasp of militarism for Japan, but I'm still not so sure. But all this reading turned up this, by Tadao Yanaihara, a Japanese economist and Christian pacifist, who wrote this immediately after the 2-26 coup attempt. The 'clarify the kokutai' was demanded because some constitutional scholars argued that the emperor was an organ of the government, and they were therefore guilty of lèse-majesté.

Feb. 29, 1936: Morning—someone told me, “Today’s the day the government will put the revolt down.” The children had set out for school but returned right away—“The trolleys aren’t running.” It will be military force against the band of young army officers who on the 26th led their units to occupy the center of Tokyo after they attacked and killed or wounded important high officials and senior councilors ….

They acted to clarify the kokutai. But they themselves resisted direct orders and showed that they were great kokutai-unclarifiers.

Out of hatred, they killed even Takahashi (Minister of Finance), who pushed for the reconciliation of national defense and finance but whom they considered a leader in estranging military and people. However, their conduct shows that they themselves were the greatest estrangers of military and people.

Hot-blooded daring they have, but not righteousness; faith, but not knowledge; relying on violence, they seek to steer state policy. It must be the responsibility of thinking people to declare firmly in the face of this trend that they go counter to justice. But since the May 15 Incident there have been several incidents of this type, and now the assassination of Chief of Military Education General Nagata: we cannot say it’s enough to proclaim justice, to say that evil acts will inevitably be punished, to point to the right path. There’s no authority above, there’s no order below, and now the situation is close to civil war. They simply cry at the top of their lungs, in a formulaic manner, “Clarify the kokutai!” But at a time when the conscience whereon the state rests has become empty, even the vastest military and state too must collapse from within, of their own weight and corruption. Thus those who chant ‘Clarify the kokutai!’ are in reality destroyers of the kokutai.

When I think of the country’s present and future, my heart breaks in anger. From unfathomable depths the tears well up, and it is as if the flame in my heart dies. As I stand alone in the great drifts of snow piled up in my yard, angry and grieving, the despairing cry “Perish!” that the young prophet among us left behind resounds like the incoming tide.

Comments

[russell]

Perhaps related, an echo of Marty's comment in another thread.

Among the many horrible legacies of the Trump administration is the need for Biden's inauguration to be an event closed to the public, conducted under military guard.

And where the guardsmen themselves need to be vetted, to weed out potential assassins and provocateurs.

[Snarki, child of Loki]

For Putin, Trump is the gift that keeps on giving.

[Hartmut]

From what I heard this morning, someone with a gun, 500 shots of ammo and a forged pass for the inauguration got arrested in DC after entering from Virginia.

[wj]

"This written accord by the most senior officers in the Army, in addition to Anami's announcement, acted as a formidable firebreak against any attempt to incite a coup d'état in Tokyo." [bold mine]

Don't think that is happening.

Actually, something very like that did happen. This unprecedented Message to the Joint Force from the Joint Chiefs of Staff makes the point that

The rights of freedom of speech and assembly do not give anyone the right to resort to violence, sedition and insurrection.

As Service Members, we must embody the values and ideals of the Nation. We support and defend the Constitution. Any act to disrupt the Constitutional process is not only against our traditions, values, and oath; it is against the law.

[wj]

someone with a gun, 500 shots of ammo and a forged pass for the inauguration got arrested in DC after entering from Virginia.

He claims he was lost. And was just going hunting.

500 rounds? Man, that is one badass deer! (Or maybe he's just an appallingly bad shot....)

[nooneithinkisinmytree]

I suspect he had a GPS unit and a cellphone with either Apple or Google maps with him to track that "deer".

[nooneithinkisinmytree]

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/court-doc-fbi-investigating-whether-capitol-rioter-tried-to-sell-pelosi-laptop-to-russia

[Girl from the North Country]

I think that it has emerged that the "forged pass" guy was legit, but lost and in the wrong place. According to Jascha Mounck on the C4 News, it was corrected in the WaPo, but possibly not forcefully enough, so only adding to general confusion and "fake news" etc.

[GftNC]

Hmmm. The jury is still out, it seems to me.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/beeler-arrest-inauguration-checkpoint/2021/01/16/8597db24-5834-11eb-a817-e5e7f8a406d6_story.html

[Snarki, child of Loki]

"500 rounds? Man, that is one badass deer!"

I've been in the Ardennes region, when guys were hunting boar at night in the forest.

Sounded like they were using fully-auto firearms, followed by a single coup-de-grace.

No, you don't go strolling around in the dark, and having seen boar in the area, don't blame that hunter AT ALL for wanting overwhelming firepower.

[Girl from the North Country]

Yes, wild boar are an entirely different kettle of fish from most other game, I believe. Truly dangerous.

[Hartmut]

How much do 500 rounds of hunting ammo weigh?
And I am unaware that it comes in belts these days (the boar is not going to wait for a reload).

[liberal japonicus]

wj, I was imagining Cruz and Hawley writing a similar letter as opposed to the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

[wj]

lj, Oh.
Agreed, there's no sign of those two doing anything like. Can't really picture either one even considering it. They've abandoned their moral compass (if they ever had one), and gone down the rabbit hole. Not really any coming back from there. Certainly not without the kind of long and difficult personal rehab that neither would tolerate.

[russell]

seriously OT, but nonetheless...

Colombian cocaine hippos running amok.

2020 - the year that will not die.

[nooneithinkisinmytree]

Hippos of a different color running amok:

https://www.balloon-juice.com/2021/01/18/ahem-the-national-security-agency-as-well-as-other-us-intelligence-agencies-are-prohibited-from-conducting-electronic-and-signals-collection-inside-the-us-but-not-in-russia/

[wj]

I keep seeing articles saying that McConnell will cease to be Majority Leader at noon Wednesday, as soon as the Inauguration happens. But the Senate is only 50-50 once Kamala Harris' replacement is sworn in. Anybody know when that will actually happen?

[Pro Bono]

Reportedly, all three new senators will be sworn in today.

[cleek]

Marine One, up and away.

cya later, psycho!

[russell]

The Trump governing ethos, captured in one headline:

Trump Revokes Administration Ethics Rules On His Way Out The Door

Whatever. Just go away, and take your entourage with you.

[wj]

Reportedly, all three new senators will be sworn in today.

Thanks for the update.

[cleek]

amazing that Pence simply showing up raises my estimation of him substantially. simple decency being so rare these days.

[wj]

And it's done!

Hail to the Chief!

[Girl from the North Country]

Could hardly have been a greater contrast.

I'm moved. I'm hopeful. I wish him and all of you (and all of us) luck.

[bobbyp]

Amanda Gorman was simply awesome.

[russell]

simple decency being so rare these days.

seconded. perhaps it will help set a new tone.

[Girl from the North Country]

I'm so very sorry to inject a sour note, but although I'm delighted Pence attended, partly for the message it sends, and of course I admit when it came to it he did refuse to send the electors' votes back, I can't help noticing that this "decency" of his in attending comes after four years of licking Trump's arse, after which Trump whipped up a mob against him. So other qualities than decency may just be involved. But feel free to ignore this cynical Brit. As someone said on the Beeb, perhaps "they" (unspecified) went to the very precipice where their democracy was concerned, looked over, and drew back.

[cleek]

i takes what i can gets.

[nooneithinkisinmytree]

ya gets what ya pays for.

Pence's wife doesn't even trust him enough to let him dine with another woman for a deductible no-martini business meal.

Neither should we.

He's merely reeling out more play in his fake Christian line.

He lied on God's behalf, but a fella will do that when the concrete is drying around his feet at the end of the pier.

[wj]

Trump left his farewell stage to board Air Force One for the last time, to the strains of "YMCA". Perhaps a reminder that he may have to stay at the YMCA because nobody wants him as a neighbor.

Mar-a-Lago neighbors are already suing him to keep him from living here -- which he committed to when he got permission to take it over. Seems they think contracts should be honored. What a shock to his system.

[Girl from the North Country]

i takes what i can gets.

It's one of your finest qualities!