A Japanese Air Self-Defense Force F-35A Lighting II joint strike fighter in 2021.
By Mary Uyematsu Kao
It’s a new year and time for new thoughts. It’s a hard stretch as we started off with an inescapable truth that we are the hapless citizens of a ROGUE nation. While it would be a gloomy task to count the ways that we are the bona fide rogue nation of the world, what new ways can we look forward to in 2026?
I have searched through Google AI for positive thoughts on 2026, and nothing has appealed to me. Am I a diehard pessimist? Maybe. A stony realist? Perhaps. Am I allergic to happy thoughts that keep airheads afloat? For sure. Do I have a right to try and present positive thoughts for 2026? Probably NOT. So what is this exercise in futility?
Japan has been looking more and more inviting as a place to retire — escape from the crumbling empire of the good ole U.S. of A. With housing prices down because of the prolonged downturn of Japan’s economy and demographic shifts, some Sansei boomers are finding second homes in the motherland.
Still, there are questions that hang — will Prime Minister Takaichi’s militaristic turn embroil Japan in a dogfight with China over Taiwan?
In regards to any Chinese self-defense measures on Taiwan, Takaichi remarked that this would be a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan. China criticized her remarks and pushed for a retraction. Takaichi has refused to retract, intensifying tensions between the two largest economic powers in Asia. And this after China had just celebrated the 80th anniversary of its defeat of Japanese fascism with an impressive military parade.
China has made it clear who has the upper hand in this situation, banning dual-use exports to Japan (items for civilian and military production). They are also urging Chinese citizens to not travel to Japan. Chinese tourism to Japan was a key economic driver after the pandemic and its downturn will ensure economic losses.
The Japan Times reports: “China has been Japan’s largest trading partner since 2007, accounting for 20% of Japan’s total trade, and has a near monopoly on extracting and refining rare earth materials — which are on China’s dual-use items list and are critical to a wide range of industries.” Banning the dual-use exports to Japan triggered a response from top Japanese government spokesperson Minoru Kihara as “absolutely unacceptable and deeply regrettable.” (Reuters, 1.7.2026) Prime Minister Takaichi has poised Japan to suffer heavily if it wants to act tough and disrespect China’s sovereignty. This has semblances of a U.S.-instigated proxy war with China via Taiwan, that we have already seen played out in Ukraine.
What are the prospects for major change — or can I even breathe the word revolution — in the U.S. While more and more people are realizing that the American Dream has turned into the American Nightmare, where to go from here looks like a road full of sinkholes and dead ends.
Are we doomed to give in to Trump’s fascism with no clear alternatives on the horizon? Will the truth contained in the Epstein files ever see the light of day? Are we really so depraved that cheaper prices at the gas pump will justify the terroristic takeover of Venezuela’s oil, just so Donald can win more votes in the 2026 elections?
More questions and less answers. But somewhere along this negative road, there is bound to be something that will cause the dam to break. Are we ready for any of this? Have we prepared for new eventualities that we never thought we would have to worry about?
There are too many what-ifs that are coming at us with a $37 trillion national debt — and a $3 trillion annual interest payment due. And more money going to the military. Reuters reported (1.7.2026) that Trump has upped the military budgets from $901 billion for 2026 to $1.5 trillion for 2027.
Some analysts predict the end of Social Security with this militarized budget. There will be no room for social programs for the people of this country, while our tax dollars continue to be spent at the whims of an out-of-control president.
2026 is the time to seriously put our thinking caps on for how we are going to survive.
Mary Uyematsu Kao is the author/photographer of “Rockin’ the Boat: Flashbacks of the 1970s Asian Movement” (second edition is now available) and formerly the publications coordinator of the UCLA Asian American Studies Center (1987-2018). She received her MA from UCLA Asian American Studies in 2007. She welcomes comments, questions, and/or criticisms at uyematsu72@gmail.com. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of The Rafu Shimpo.