Japonic Economics

I can't remember how a Napoléonic History class managed to go on a tangent about Japan, but it got me in a mood to write an essay... or be lazy and blog the main points *cough*... The premise was that Japan used to be a backwards feudal society completely isolated from the world except for a small artificial island open only to some European traders. Today it is the second most important economy in the world. What some economists are wondering is whether the same magic that turned Japan around can improve Africa's economic state.

Now, if you remember, the European powers got rich standing on the skulls of Africans and Asians (in the Belgian Congo these skulls were literal). Likewise, Japan, although starting late and ending prematurely, conquered swathes of Eastern Asia. So we cannot advocate that African states go round subjugating other nations.

The other important feature of Japan during the first half of the 20th Century was its government. The lazy categorise 30s and early 40s Japan as being totalitarian or fascist or a military junta. Those are all Western terms which fail to recognise the deep complexity of Japanese politics during this time.

I'm still reading, what little I can find, on the nature of the Japanese Empire, so I could be incorrect here:
Nationally, all organisation were incorporated into a political body which dispensed with the multi-party system - this super-party stood solely for the improvement of Japan. Economically, key industries were nationalised and under the control of the government (state socialism - much like all the economies during WWII) and a small core of companies did the rest (corporatism) - unemployment was dispensed the usual way, by indulging in an large-scale arms production. The armed forces were highly involved in government and society, with respect to Emperor worship, resembled the Facsist Duce principle and Nazi Fuhrerprinzip.

Japan's dire lack of resources, right-wing militarism and the above created Militarism-Socialism. Or it might be American occupation, as with Germany, that modernised Japan.

America doesn't wish to administrate states since it looks too much like imperialism, Africa certainly doesn't want to hand everything over to Western accountants, and the rest of the world really doesn't want another big war thanks to territorial ambition (although, how many times have the people said 'no' and it still happened?).

In other words. Africa cannot learn from Japan unless it wants to do it the hard and tragic way.

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