(Mt. Fuji in August 2008, 100Km Far)The Lower House of the Japanese national Diet has been dissolved by Prime Minister Mr. Taro Aso this afternoon for the general election's voting on August 30, 2009.
The U.S. GOP-like LDP of Japan and its ally New Komeito have had more than 330 seats among the total 480 seats. So, if they lose 90 seats or so in the coming election, they can secure a majority to form a new Cabinet after August 30.
That is why incumbent Prime Minister Mr. Taro Aso of the LDP has maintained a strong attitude so that he dissolves the Lower House as prime minister to win the election.
But, the U.S. Democratic Party-like DPJ of Japan is expected to take at least 100 seats from the LDP, gaining 20 or more seats than the LDP's or almost an equal number of seats to that of the LDP and New Komeito combined.
If the LDP should lose 100 seats and the combined seats of the LDP and New Komeito should get equal to that of the DPJ alone, the Japanese people will not welcome another LDP-centric Cabinet if the LDP and New Komeito plus other lawmakers in an alliance secure 241 seats or a relative majority in the sum.
Prime Minister Mr. Taro Aso can lose 90 seats from incumbent 300 LDP seats to continue his regime, but 10 more losses will put an end to it, which recent surveys seem to foretell.
Anyway, it looks like turning into a low-level battle with minus 90 or minus 100 as its threshold, sine the "Obama phenomenon" is yet to truly come into Japan.
SECTION I: Alexander the Great's Revolution
Whenever I see the map showing the empire of Alexander the Great, I am always astonished at how the Israel/Arabs conflicts and the War on Terror in the 21st century have been fought in the same geographical paradigm of the Alexander the Great's days, namely 330 years before the emergence of Jesus Christ.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_the_Great )As evident in the above map, Alexander the Great must have met Israelites, and it is so reported.
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The narrative concerning Alexander's first interaction with the Jews is recorded in both the Talmud (Yoma 69a) and in the Jewish historian Josephus's Book of Antiquities (XI, 321-47).
In both accounts the High Priest of the Temple in Jerusalem, fearing that Alexander would destroy the city, went out to meet him before he arrived at the city. The narrative describes how Alexander, upon seeing the High Priest, dismounted and bowed to him. (Alexander rarely, if ever, bowed to anyone). In Josephus's account, when asked by his general, Parmerio, to explain his actions, Alexander answered, "I did not bow before him, but before that God who has honored him with the high Priesthood; for I saw this very person in a dream, in this very apparel."
http://www.aish.com/jl/h/48929692.html
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Alexander the Great's greeting and bowing to the God of Israelites promised success of his conquest of Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Afghanistan.
Or, the God decided to use Alexander the Great for His divine plan in the history around 330 B.C. since Alexander the Great greeted and bowed down to the God.
Yet, the conquest by Alexander the Great is a kind of revolution introduced into Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Afghanistan.
Since then, no Eastern or Asian Civilizations, except Judaism, have found a chance to prevail in those regions. Even Christianity and Islam were based on Judaism. And, they needed influences of the Greek Civilization in those regions as a kind of a rival or a background to develop and deploy fully as the history has proven, especially, concerning the role of the Roman Empire.
In summary, the most significant result from the Alexander the Great's Revolution is that the grand stage was set for the great deployment of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, though, with preceding dominance by the Roman Empire as the major successor of the Hellenistic Empire.
The secondary significant result is that the stage for Caesar and Cleopatra was set, so that the time of emergence of Jesus Christ was specifically fixed as one-generation after the demise of Cleopatra, the last remnant of the Alexander's Empire.
SECTION II: Buddhism vs. Greek Civilization
Though it was not forbidden to create a statute of the Buddha, followers of the Buddha had not projected an image of their great teacher into any form of art or so.
Yet, after Buddhists encountered Greek/Macedonian troops led by Alexander the Great, they started to create statutes of the Buddha.
This change made easier the penetration of Buddhism into China, Korea, and Japan as well as other East or Southeast Asian nations and tribes.
In this context, Buddhism is also influenced by the Greek Civilization.
Accordingly, the Japanese Buddhism is also influenced by the Greek Civilization and Alexander the Great.
(To be continued...)
Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.