Apparently, the evacuation rate in Kiryu City hasn’t even reached half, and for Gunma Prefecture as a whole, it seems like everyone just gathered at the school gymnasium. The situation is dire, with less than 1% likely evacuated.
Well, it’s only natural.
Evacuating all 1 million residents of Gunma Prefecture within 72 hours is simply impossible. And Tokyo and Kanagawa, with their much larger populations, are out of the question.
Even among American residents in Japan, there are supposedly 60,000 to 70,000 people. Evacuating them all would be quite a logistical challenge. A jumbo jet can carry just over 500 people, so simply calculated, if 120 jumbo jets were gathered, it might be possible to transport 60,000 people. Perhaps America could manage it, I suppose.
But that’s just a theoretical argument, isn’t it…
Narita Airport alone handles around 360 flights a day. Even if you include small aircraft and short-haul international flights, that’s still under certain conditions. To think you could evacuate all Americans scattered across various locations within three days is a huge mistake.
If an ICBM were to strike Gunma, the damage to the Tokyo metropolitan area would, of course, be catastrophic.
It seems they’ve mostly given up on that and are taking measures like forcibly stopping all transportation 24 hours before the deadline, closing down the Metropolitan Expressway, highways, and major arterial roads. A curfew is to be imposed 12 hours prior. While possible protective measures are being taken, such as reinforcing north-facing windows, in areas like central Tokyo, people are likely to be ordered to evacuate to subway station concourses or underground shopping malls.
This is a terrible last-minute response, and the planning is undeniably flawed. Who, in this day and age, expects a nuclear war to suddenly break out?
Moreover, the idea that America, our ally and the leader of the Western bloc, would launch nuclear missiles at us is something no one could have possibly anticipated.
Although, the possibility of a major earthquake directly beneath the capital is not zero, so we should be prepared for such emergencies. However, those who are prepared are likely a minority…
Perhaps, the international situation was becoming severe enough to warrant such assumptions, but everyone simply closed their eyes and ears, believing that tomorrow would be the same as today… living their lives with that conviction, so it can’t be helped.
In reality, many people seem to be experiencing a strong case of normalcy bias. Even with NHK and commercial broadcasters providing government announcements and instructions 24 hours a day…
With people moving slower and some shopping malls temporarily closed, there hasn’t been any significant panic. Those who are hastily evacuating are a minority. Most people are simply staying home because their workplaces are closed.
While the current situation is already quite serious… regarding evacuations, only Kiryu City has received a clear evacuation order, with the Self-Defense Forces, police, and fire departments rushing in to forcibly evacuate residents. This is within a 10km radius of the Imperial City. Elsewhere, it’s mostly evacuation advisories or preparation recommendations. Trains are still running, albeit with reduced frequency. In central Tokyo, shops and restaurants are operating as usual.
But then again, if you’re running a business, closing for even a single day means a complete loss. So, except for regular days off, I wouldn’t close even if asked.
As long as there are customers, the shop must stay open! That’s the spirit of a merchant, I understand that! I understand it completely!
After all, I’m a merchant too!
Whether it snows or an earthquake hits, if the products arrive at the store, I will open the store and keep operating with sheer determination! That’s the pride of a convenience store owner… Inside, they might be thinking, “Please, stop already,” feeling utterly fed up, but if the products have arrived, and we don’t sell them and make money, we’re the ones who will go under.
Of course, if they said nuclear missiles were coming, I might reconsider for a moment.
Rather than closing the store and fleeing without a destination, I would bet on the possibility that nothing will happen and keep operating as usual… I would definitely do that!
After all, in such a situation, other rival stores would likely close down and flee too. In such times, a proudly shining “OPEN” sign!!
There will surely be plenty of people who won’t run away even in such a situation. When all the closed shops leave people struggling to shop, and everyone rushes in at once… “Sorry, sold out,” “Booming business!” “Huge profits!”
It would be a dream come true! And if, by luck, it all turned out to be a false alarm, it would be an even bigger victory!
Then, with sales several times higher than usual, after settling the accounts, I’d be grinning as I counted the thick stacks of bills left in my hand, thinking about how to spend them.
Ah, this is the mindset of a merchant.
Rather than cowering in fear of a potential threat, I’d rather make as much money as possible!
And if I were to die without even a chance to escape because nuclear missiles actually fell, well, so be it.
Frankly, for those in Kyushu, Shikoku, and the western regions, it’s completely someone else’s problem, and they’re operating as usual… Well, during the Great East Japan Earthquake, those areas also experienced some rather flashy tremors, but they were completely detached, so maybe that’s just how it is. But is that okay?! I can’t help but want to call them out on it.
It seems the Japanese Government’s stance is to fully disclose all the information about what’s happening now, present all possible options, and then leave the decision of what to do entirely up to the people! It’s like a desperate, “whatever happens, happens” kind of response.
While one could call it irresponsible, ultimately, the responsibility for one’s own life can only be borne by oneself…
No matter how much the government and local authorities try, it’s a well-established fact that it’s impossible to save everyone all together.
To ask police and firefighters to risk their lives to save elderly people who are saying they’ll just sit there and wait for death is an unreasonable demand.
There will undoubtedly be those like myself who decide to take a chance and focus on their business until the very end.
In any case, saving everyone in this situation would be impossible unless it was a dictatorship with absolute command authority.
In fact, Prime Minister Kanbehara has issued an order stating, “You all must be prepared and not flee from here, no matter what happens!” And then they physically sealed off the National Diet building, forcing all members of parliament to be confined within. Apparently, it was a desperate measure to prevent a ridiculous situation where members of parliament would flee first in an emergency threatening the nation’s survival.
After all, the old geezers who held leadership positions in various political parties had been won over by America and were actively engaging in sabotage everywhere. It’s a terrible story… the term “gerontocracy” fits perfectly.
Indeed, it’s true that such extreme situations test a politician’s resolve and true worth. And it’s certain that these gerontocrats are on the brink of retirement, and their parliamentary seats will be riddled with holes.
Regardless, this event will likely trigger a major transformation in the political world, leading to a re-evaluation of relations with America, China, Russia, and others. The exposure of the complacent planning in this incident will inevitably force a significant reform of Japanese society itself… that much is certain.
However, as it stands, everything is a mess.
Everyone is utterly confused, and things are spiraling out of control everywhere. The chaos that has inevitably arisen is making it impossible to even evacuate American personnel properly, and the 72-hour deadline has become an impossible task.
This is also due to the Japanese Government’s decision to reveal everything.
In such a situation, it must be said that this was effective.
After all, America seemed to believe that Japan would be unable to make any decisions, publicly disclose anything, or take any concrete action, and would simply let the 72-hour period run out. They probably thought that within 72 hours, they could easily withdraw all their citizens without any major fuss.
That’s what they seemed to think.
Indeed… the old Showa-era geezers, believing they too would be included on an evacuation flight, simply followed the orders of the “great America”…
But when they discovered that no such seats were prepared, they were all stunned into silence.
This is one of the reasons why Prime Minister Kanbehara quickly gained dictatorial powers, even resorting to force. Well, the Liberal Democratic Party itself had been subservient to America for years, holding onto power as the ruling party.
Once they were abandoned by America… it was all over for them.
Yeah, how foolish that was.
Thinking that by blindly following America, they would eventually be saved… that’s no different from religious faith.
In the end, no matter how much you pray to the gods, no one is saved, and nothing changes.
Well, honestly… with the evacuation of their own citizens in doubt, the thought of looking after Japan’s aging politicians is probably beyond them! America, you’re too cruel…
However, thanks to Prime Minister Kanbehara’s decisive action, all information has been made fully public. By revealing America’s reckless actions and everything that is happening now to the entire world, the tide has completely turned.
The ensuing chaos, coupled with the information that America intends to launch nuclear weapons at Japan, has put President Trump under immense pressure, both domestically and internationally, with people shouting, “What the hell are you doing, are you crazy, you idiot!” However, they cannot disclose the underground circumstances of stopping the Slime rampage by using nuclear weapons in America, and apparently, they are struggling.
But that doesn’t mean the operation will be halted.
Now that the situation has been set in motion, unless President Trump, who made the decision, is assassinated or something else happens, the operation will proceed unless President Trump himself overturns the order.
Presidential orders carry that much weight, and the use of nuclear weapons is not a decision to be made lightly.
In any case, it’s a fact that President Trump is in a very difficult position, and it’s highly likely that he will halt the operation once the root cause is eliminated.
However, it is true that Trump is the first in history to issue a launch order for nuclear missiles, albeit with a deadline.
For the past half-century or more, no US president has ever pushed the nuclear button, regardless of how critical the situation was…
Perhaps they agonized with the nuclear launch button in front of them, but in the end, no one could make that decision.
That’s precisely why the world has avoided a nuclear exchange.
Furthermore, official documents and the President’s own voice confirming Trump’s order to launch ICBMs have been thoroughly released.
Although they apparently barked about it being a fabrication or a conspiracy… nothing can surpass the truth. The disarray in Japan, the target of this action, was too realistic, and the world countries have started to act under the assumption that “Trump would do something like that!”
Regardless, it seems they will have no choice but to wait and see until the very last moment, and the possibility of a withdrawal has clearly emerged.
In reality, whoever made the decision, the move to fully disclose the information is a considerable act of courage… or rather, Japan’s information-gathering capabilities are extraordinary.
Official documents for a US President’s nuclear launch order are not the kind of information that should be leaked. Japan, which only received an overview as a top US national secret regarding the location of strategic submarines, is casually disclosing that information as well…
Of course, the exact location is secret, but they’ve basically indicated “they’re around here,” adding a threat to America: “If necessary, sinking them before they can launch is one of our options…” The fact that they’ve spread this information worldwide is a great inconvenience for America. The location of strategic submarines should never be revealed, and it serves as proof of Japan’s extraordinary intelligence gathering capabilities, which managed to locate them with almost no hints. This strategy of raising the bar for nuclear use step by step is intended to psychologically pressure Trump and break his will… it seems like a plan in progress.
Somehow, their use of information is always so skillful.
They extract critical information precisely when needed, and they present seemingly trivial but little-known truths, increasing the credibility of their information sources, before casually weaving in dangerous information. There are undoubtedly pieces of information they are withholding.
Perhaps individuals like Ms. Kashima and others in the shadow industry are working hard, but from a strategic perspective, this full-disclosure strategy is undeniably effective.
Of course, the information that hasn’t been disclosed… is likely our existence.
