I wonder what the ramifications of this will be considering Japan is/was having elections in 2 days.<p>RIP Abe, you weren't the greatest but nobody deserves to go that way.
The first thing that pops into my mind is "Abenomics":<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abenomics" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abenomics</a><p>> IMF affirmed that Japan's nominal GDP contracted by $1.8 trillion during 2012–2015 while real GDP contracted at an annual rate of 6.8 percent[58] in the second quarter of 2014, after the Consumption Tax hike came into effect in April. This fall is the worst since the devastating earthquake and tsunami disaster[59][60] hit Japan in the first quarter of 2011 when the GDP shrank by an annualised 6.9 percent.<p>So, his economic policy might have been as bad as an earthquake + tsunami.<p>That said, he was not the only one supporting this policy, and nobody deserves to die for a mistake.
This video has the cleanest angle if anyone curious<p><a href="https://nitter.cz/yamaneko2011/status/1545297780562096128" rel="nofollow">https://nitter.cz/yamaneko2011/status/1545297780562096128</a><p>The guy straight up walks behind him but misses the first shot. Keeps walking but Abe turns around and then the 2nd shot hits him point blank
What motivation is there to kill an <i>ex</i> prime minister?<p>He doesn't have any power anymore right? Just a pure revenge thing? A powerful group sending a warning message to the current PM?
RIP Abe. This is pure shock to me.<p>Reading through history books I had thought, wow what crazy times - A Global pandemic (Spanish Flu), revolutionary technology (Aeroplane, etc.), Killing of influential people and then war.<p>We are halfway there and signs don't look good. Am I being too pessimistic?
Interestingly, some sources are reporting he was shot with a improvised shotgun. These are very easy to make if you can acquire bullets -- a strong pipe, a nail and a cap are all you need. Where did he procure bullets from though, I wonder?
Much more information here:<p><a href="https://japantoday.com/category/crime/Ex-PM-Abe-shot-from-behind-by-person-with-shotgun-while-campaigning-in-Nara" rel="nofollow">https://japantoday.com/category/crime/Ex-PM-Abe-shot-from-be...</a>
It's worth mentionning that the shooter targeted Abe because he was "dissatisfied" with him.<p>Japan is a country with an abysmally low voter turnout.<p>So, it may be a consequence of this (cultural?) issue that dissatisfied people don't think of using their vote to change the system, and feel they are only left with violent means.<p>PS: I'm not trying to justify this murder, of course I'm horrified of it. But I'm saying that the actions to take in order to lower the probability of recurrence of this kind of tragedy includes pushing more people to go participate to ballots.
Main thread.<p><a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32022506" rel="nofollow">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32022506</a>
This represents a complete failure by Abe's "SP" protection team. Even after shots fired, nobody has a gun in their hand (note the holsters visible in some photographs). Everyone is in day-dream mode not paying attention. The guy just walks up and fires two shots with nearly a two second spacing. Two. Whole. Seconds.<p>Even after this happen - they decide to tackle him! They don't know he's not wearing a suicide belt or has more shots to fire. The whole thing is just stupid. Head will roll.
I will wait to know more about the assassin motivations, but i am afraid the the situation right now might become worse worse than the situation during "Les années de plomb" (Leaden times? I don't know if this translate well in English, from a German movie i think).
I'm frankly shocked looking at the top level comments I've read so far.<p>We're talking about a long-time head of state whose entire chest cavity was blown to pieces.
Eviscerated.<p>By an assassin, no less, and with a homemade shotgun in one of the worlds strictest countries w.r.t. to guns.<p>Is this not worth mourning?<p>I ask my fellow Americans in near disbelief: have you become so desensitized that this news does not move you?<p>RIP Shinzo Abe
The sad thing is that some Japanese starts blaming 'the others' for this [0]<p>0: <a href="https://twitter.com/kumashirokeishi/status/1545254283850829824" rel="nofollow">https://twitter.com/kumashirokeishi/status/15452542838508298...</a>