Yet another does-Japan-still-matter story

A recent article in Washington Post is actually entitled, does Japan Still Matter?

The author notes:

At a seminar here this week organized by the German Marshall Fund and the Tokyo Foundation, and in separate interviews, one Japanese after another delivered variations on gloom, doom and pessimism. Polls confirm that this is no anomaly; in one taken by the Asahi Shimbun newspaper last spring, the three words offered most often to describe the current era were "unrest," "stagnation" and "bleak," ...

Hm. Okay. Presuming this is even true, then what are these same "Japanese" saying about America? That things are good? But I digress. Now according to the author there are several reasons not to worry about Japan:

Yet the negativity seems overblown. Japan retains the world's second-largest national economy and will be third or fourth biggest for decades to come. It is the world's second-largest aid donor, the fifth-biggest military spender (despite a constitution that bars the waging of war) and a technological powerhouse. It is a crucial player, and frequently America's closest ally, in international organizations such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. And as the longest-standing and most successful democracy in the non-Western world, it is a hugely important role model, and potentially a leader, in supporting freedom and the rule of law.

Okay, size is  not important, so strike that. Donations might come down, so strike that. It's a big military spender, so? Unless there's a war that stuff just sits around the place taking up space (unless the author is implying Japan exports a lot of its weapons). Military expenditures unused are like paying someone to dig a hole and fill it back up. To use them to make money you have to take over another well endowed country. I don't see that happening. Oh, and Japan is a successful democracy? I suppose that depends on how one defines success.

Anyway, the author also notes:

That potential was sharply enhanced by the landslide victory of the Democratic Party of Japan in August, ending what one speaker at the seminar called the Liberal Democratic "shogunate." The Democrats have promised to disrupt the cozy relationship among bureaucrats, the ruling party and industry, and to govern with more public input and accountability.

I'm not impressed with the DPJ at all, in fact, their performance so far is down right depressing. First, Japan has more debt as percentage of GDP than almost any other country in the world. Wikipedia lists only Zimbabwe as having more debt. As best I can tell, DPJ leader Kamei Shizuka ... ahem ... I mean Hatoyama appears ready to allow Japan's debt to spiral even further out of control, and this is despite a campaign pledge not to do so, and years of failure at attempting to stimulate the economy via Keynesian economics. As far as the post office, that money also seems to be going back into the hands of the government. No doubt Ozawa will know how to manage it best to support his future cronies. Yes, the DPJ have cut a little bit of waste here and there, stopped a damn or two, but if they are successful they will increase entitlements which will cost even more money (in perpetuity!) than temporary wasteful spending ever cost. So far things seem really bad to me.

Is it just me?

What are some positive things the DPJ have done so far?