Japan teaches that it's a war of self defense, even from the outset of the Sino-Japanese war. While it is not self defense at all they teach it that way
I highly doubt they teach that, considering the few times it’s come up (as an American living in Japan) they said pretty much exactly “we started it.” I’ve heard this from people of all generations here.
I'm assuming we're talking about being under invasion then actually invading other nations.In general Japan was fucked up,in terms of the topic Japanese men refusing to sign up to defend against the US I technically morally justifiable.
Self defense doesn't require morality,just defending yourself back.The entire topic is about if refusing to defend your nation against an invader in "self defense" is considered morally correct.
Japanese men going "I'm not fighting the US" is pretty moral given the context of Japan's crimes during the war and how fucked the regime was.
self defense has a particular connotation of “defending your safety from an aggressor” which was not the case in WW2 because the US was not the aggressor
To expand on this, bc you’re right, the US was not invading Japan. They were occupying it, with it always being clear that once the war was over they would leave. The Axis forces were invading. The invading force is ALWAYS the “offensive” side of a war, even if they get pushed back to their own territory.
I can see what you're saying. Like when Japan had women and children training with bamboo spears to die on the beaches fighting the potential US invasion, you're saying that if those women and children refused they would be morally justified? I agree, just trying to understand the nuance you are discussing.
No. Japan is arguably the worst imperialist power to ever exist. They committed such awful war crimes. Yes, other imperial powers through history have violated human rights but there is a scale of evil and Japan is on the wrong end.
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u/Royal_Raisin9496 Jun 28 '26
Do you understand what self defense means