Start thinking globally

With a vivid if somewhat inexact historical analogy, the head of one of Japan's best known postwar corporate successes has captured Japan's mood of deepening uncertainty: "Hoover triggered a worldwide recession," the head of Sony Corp., Norio Ohga, said Thursday. "I just hope remarks by Prime Minister Hashimoto won't trigger a worldwide recession."

Ohga does put his finger on a key problematic element of Japan's place in the world economy today. "Japanese politicians' thinking is very domestic thinking," he said. "We are operating globally and our prime minister should have such global thinking. Japanese politicians' only interest is in what has happened in their constituencies. When we point this out to them they can hardly understand what we are talking about."

However much Japan might tire of or even resent hearing such unsought advice, whether from foreigners or exceptional Japanese like Ohga, it cannot avoid the reality of what is now happening.

The crisis might not be as acute as Ohga suggests. But it is serious and will be harder to overcome because of the attitudes he rightly condemns.

-- The Sydney Morning Herald