Current location:politics >>
VOX POPULI: LDP lawmakers’ remarks about political funds create a paradox
politics7996People have gathered around
IntroductionThere exists a famous paradox involving a Cretan who claims, “Cretans always lie.”If we assume this ...
There exists a famous paradox involving a Cretan who claims, “Cretans always lie.”
If we assume this statement to be true, it implies that the speaker, being a Cretan, must also always lie.
Consequently, the statement “Cretans always lie” cannot be true, creating a contradiction with the initial assumption.
I remember hearing this paradox in junior high school and being utterly confused by it.
Now, let us shift our focus from the Cretan’s statement to the statements of certain lawmakers, who are often called “sensei,” and assume they are true.
Senior members of the Liberal Democratic Party’s faction once led by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe uniformly made a claim at a recent session of the Lower House Deliberative Council on Political Ethics.
They claimed they were not aware that so-called “kanpukin” funds--part of the money raised for the faction through fund-raising parties that exceeded the quota of individual politicians and was returned to them--were not declared in the political fund income and expenditure reports.
The Abe faction members said they believed everything was being properly handled.
In 2022, it seems, they apparently paid no attention to the words of then faction Chairman Shinzo Abe about this matter.
At the time, Abe reportedly decided to stop the practice of refunds, calling it an “opaque" scheme that could “raise doubts.”
It’s hard to imagine that these politicians did not ask Abe what he meant by “opaque” given that the boss’s decision would reduce the political funds they desperately wanted.
Subsequently, the faction’s policy concerning this matter flipped back to continuing the dubious practice.
If these politicians still claim they were unaware that the funds were not being duly reported, that would mean all the blame falls on the faction’s clerical staff responsible for accounting.
If the politicians are telling the truth, it means that despite knowing the practice to be illegal, such staff kept completely silent, informing none of these senior members of the faction.
However, this whole scenario seems implausible.
Instead, it seems likely the initial assumption that the faction leaders told the truth at the council session is incorrect.
The statements of these sensei lawmakers lead to contradictions.
Far from dispelling political distrust, it seems their remarks have only deepened the feeling.
Are Cretans always liars?
We can enjoy such a paradox because it is an intriguing play on logic.
Politicians’ claims, however, are part of the real world.
We cannot afford to be merely bewildered by their words.
--The Asahi Shimbun, March 3
* *
*Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.
Tags:
Reprint:Friends are welcome to share on the Internet, but please indicate the source of the article when reprinting it.“Global Gateway news portal”。http://saintkittsandnevis.downmusic.org/content-4b999988.html
Related articles
What's next for Iran after death of its president in crash?
politicsJERUSALEM (AP) — The death of Iran’s president is unlikely to lead to any immediate changes in Iran’ ...
【politics】
Read moreJiangcun Village in East China's Jiangsu: sample of China's rural development
politicsKaixiangong Village in east China's Jiangsu province serves not only as a symbol of Chinese sociolog ...
【politics】
Read moreChina sees 230 mln domestic tourist trips during May Day holiday
politicsA tourist takes photos of an ice cream in the shape of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest at the Te ...
【politics】
Read more
Popular articles
- Red Lobster seeks bankruptcy protection after closing some restaurants
- Migratory birds seen at Lake Balikun in China's Xinjiang
- Sparkling night at Minyue water town in Fuzhou
- Tourism drives cultural and creative industries in SW China’s Tibet
- Investigators return to Long Island home of Gilgo Beach serial killing suspect
- Chinese President Receives Credentials of 70 Ambassadors
Latest articles
Fresh heartache for cancer
Xi Extends Congratulations to Yunnan University on Centenary Anniversary
Chinese President Calls for Int'l Data Cooperation
Tourism in Tibet expected to witness notable boom
Britain's new bonkers EV: Callum Skye is an £80k electric buggy built in Warwickshire
Chinese President Calls for Int'l Data Cooperation
LINKS
- Hoda Kotb pokes fun at Today co
- Huge shake up to NFL schedule could see the Super Bowl move to Presidents' Day weekend
- King Charles marks return to public duties wearing his famed pink T
- New York Knicks reserve Bojan Bogdanovic will have foot surgery and miss the rest of the playoffs
- Rapper Quavo is mercilessly mocked after only a handful of fans turn up for Connecticut show
- Steve Gleason, 47, reveals his daily 'exorcism' as he battles ALS: Ex
- Minor league infielder Keiner Delgado traded from Yankees to Pittsburgh Pirates
- A missing Utah cat with a fondness for boxes ends up in Amazon returns warehouse, dehydrated but OK
- Armed men storm a hospital in central Mexico, killing a patient
- Chelsea Gray signs extension with 2