To say that I have been lax about updating my blog would be an insult to people everywhere who are merely lax. I have been downright neglectful; the last post on this journal was made in 2012, just before the election which brought the LDP back into power in Japan. (I predicted that the LDP would win, but would still need Komeito to govern, lacking the super-majority predicted by some commentators; this was correct. I also predicted that Abe Shinzo would be gone within a year as Japanese politics returned to its merry-go-round of disposable prime ministers; this was completely incorrect, with Abe turning out to be incredibly resilient, not least thanks to the lack of any credible alternative either within or without the LDP.)

I need an outlet to talk about politics – both personally and professionally. This blog ought to be that outlet, and thus, the neglect stops here. Obviously, a blog last updated three years ago has no readers, so this post is more a pledge to myself, to be witnessed by any souls who stray across my writing in the coming weeks and months; I’m going to update more often, at least a couple of times a month. If I don’t, please call me rude names.