Taibo Seikafsu

Opening the Diet last week, frock-coated Emperor Hirohito pleaded for taibo seikatsu--austerity living. Two days later, foxy old Premier Shigeru Yoshida explained what the austerity is for: to check Japan's ominous inflation, and, by stern cuts in government civil spending, to make room in Yoshida's trillion-yen ($2,780,000,000) budget for Japan's burgeoning rearmament.

If all goes as planned, Japan will create during 1954 an air force of 258 planes (including a few U.S. jets), 7,200 men and six pilot-training schools. Land forces will be increased to 139,000 men, the navy to 16,000 men and 93,000 tons of warships. Yoshida's proposals drew angry shouts from Socialist and Progressive opponents, one of whom asserted that the Premier's budget had been "written in the American embassy." Privately, these opponents admit that they are only shadowboxing. They want U.S. troops to leave Japanese soil, but they know the only way to bring that about is for the country to become strong enough to defend itself.

Said Tokuzo lida, 41, bookstore owner: "Yoshida now calls for taibo seikatsu, but most of us are already living on the bare minimum." Then he added, with wistful pride: "Still, it's a long time since we had an air force!"

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