*This is not just for the Japanese, but for the Chinese and the world; the unwillingness to release the video is a big mistake and an abuse of government authority by Kan and Sengoku*
*"Everyone makes mistakes, but not trying to correct them is the real mistake."* -- Confucius It was a big mistake for the Kan Cabinet to pursue and question the officer in the Japan Coast Guard who released the Senkaku Island boat collision video, arguing that the person violated the national public service law. The cabinet should reflect on its own mistakes first.
The public flow of information is a basic condition for a democracy to thrive. It was a big mistake for the Kan administration to decide to keep the video secret. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku bears the onus of this blunder.
Something has happened to Mr. Sengoku. It's as if this one-time social democrat has got a taste of political power and decided to turn down the path of dictators. I wish he would show some modesty and some introspection. The public flow of information is a basic condition for a democracy to thrive. Dictators stem that flow. Prime Minister Naoto Kan and Chief Cabinet Secretary Sengoku are wrong.ﾊ As Confucius said, "To err and not change one's ways, this is what it is to err."