Emperor Akihito of Japan Raises Possibility of Leaving Throne • Hacker News Board

Re: Emperor Akihito of Japan Raises Possibility of Leaving Throne

#191

Post by OtterCoder » Tue, Aug 09, 2016, 9:32 PM UTC

afandian wrote: post #152

OtterCoder wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But, all power is, at its root, symbolic. Stalin only slaughtered as many as he did because people believed in the symbolic power of the state and in him as having some right to lead such an abstract entity with total authority.

Not all power. The Pope, Stalin and the Emperor have the symbolic power to a greater or lesser extent. The soldier aiming a gun at you or healthcare professional denying you access to contraception on the say-so of one of the above does have real power.

Excellent point. I suppose I was speaking to power structures, specifically, rather than power in the sense of personal ability. In the end, however, if you want to have power on the scale of civilizations, some, if not most of that power must be symbolic in nature. There's no way to hold a knife to a nation's throat for the long haul without at least a little loyal help.

Re: Emperor Akihito of Japan Raises Possibility of Leaving Throne

#192

Post by gonvaled » Wed, Aug 10, 2016, 10:40 AM UTC

akiselev wrote: post #166

gonvaled wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I meant potential zealotry: Catholics seem to be quite peaceful nowadays, but my opinion is that this is a temporary state of affairs. Religions are totalitarian, since they are the holders of the One Truth.

I doubt it. The modern Catholic church is fundamentally different from what it was even a century ago. Ever since Pope John XXIII started Vatican II in 1962 and it reached its conclusion in 1965, the church has completely reformed almost every area of its existence including political influence, missionary work, it's relationship with other religions and governments, and even its core liturgy. Ever since then, there…

> The modern Catholic church is fundamentally different from what it was even a century ago

And can change very quickly again. The goal of religions is to achieve total control. The current strategy of the Catholic church is to show a low profile, since the sociological environment does not allow for a more pro-active role. The minute that the Church senses that they are back in control of the political discourse, or whenever the fundamentalist minority get vocal enough, zealotry will get back to the official agenda.

Re: Emperor Akihito of Japan Raises Possibility of Leaving Throne

#193

Post by erikb » Wed, Aug 10, 2016, 12:47 PM UTC

Hitard wrote: post #101

erikb wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Haven't read much about Japan. But I'm quite sure that China is looking for someone to make a war with and they still have some grudges with Japan. If Japan on the other side is also heading in the direction of war there may really something happen. That's worrysome.

Nobody wants war in Asia. The question is how and at what rate the United States withdraws from its ultimately unsustainable position as pacific hegemon. China would like it to happen sooner. Most of the rest of Asia would like it to happen later, and to share more equitably in a post-american security coalition. To make that possible, Japan and South Korea may need to show more strategic solidarity in the short term…

If you only look at the public evidence you are right. If you get to drunken politics discussions with Chinese men at 3am at night, then it looks a little different.