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WTF. Japan's sure changed. In the early 80s, my Japanese exchange student girlfriend broke up with me because her parents would not approve of her marrying outside of her race. Our relationship hadn't gone that far yet, but she was so terrified of the potential that she broke it off.

Now you're Japanese if you "identify" as Japanese? If this is so, Japan really has changed. I don't believe it. This sounds too much like a government agency or business trying to score DEI points.

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Andrew, I agree with your conclusion that the crowning was political and intentional, but is pleasing foreign opinion really a likely motive? It seems to me that US military support is and has been unconditional - and correct me if I'm wrong, but has there ever been a hint that Washington would remove or even relax its security guarantees for Japan?

What other than a few bonus points from Western elite opinion do the Japanese elite look to gain from the envisioned demographic transition?

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I don't believe that the US would withhold military support from Japan except in scenarios that are presently unrealistic to imagine, but I do believe that subordinates sometimes try to do what they sincerely think their superiors want. In fact, this is a popular concept in Japan:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sontaku

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That's convincing, but also since the pageant/contest is a business the motive for controversy/publicity may be pecuniary.

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