
Abdication, Succession and Japan’s Imperial Future: An Emperor’s Dilemma - signor_bosco
https://apjjf.org/2019/09/Breen.html
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a_t48
> There is, after all, ample precedent for this: women have succeeded to the
> throne on ten previous occasions

> [When this comes to pass,] the emperor system, which depends on an unbroken
> line of male heirs, will collapse.

These two statements seem to be in conflict.

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Lazare
Not exactly; notice the following passage:

> What is striking is that 74% have no objection to the offspring of a woman
> emperor succeeding to the throne. If this were to happen, it would be an
> historical first.

Women have succeeded to the throne, but they have been succeeded in turn by
offspring of an earlier male emperor. Every emperor (in theory) has been able
to trace their ancestry back to the sun goddess through the _paternal_ line.

Tracing ancestry through the maternal line as well would be a significant
change.

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taneq
> sun _goddess_

> _paternal_ line

Hmmm.

I mean, I guess it depends whether you count her sons as the first generation
or not, but still, why would deity-ness (is there a better word for this?
Deism?) pass from her to her sons and thence only to their sons?

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Lazare
I mean, the real answer is probably that the rules were developed in the
context of a patriarchal culture. But they're hardly alone; many countries
have historically practiced agnatic primogeniture which works quite similarly.

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sct202
If they really want a male descendant, there are other branches of descendants
of previous emperors. But after WWII the Japanese royal family was restricted
to the main branch and the cadet branches became commoners.

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raverbashing
I just love the legalese idealization, on "how the emperor is challenging the
law" I mean, 'legal scholars' taking themselves too serious for a change...

The rest of the text just reads like legal sadism against a person who
apparently is all powerful but shouldn't do anything

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option
its 2019 and people in developed countries still care about (and support with
their taxes) kings, queens, emperors and such?!

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hbarka
I wonder, of civilizations that have lasted the longest, which ones had kings,
queens, emperors and such versus the opposite?

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geofft
That's not an argument that something is good. Civilizations willing to
perpetuate genocide tend to survive longer and achieve more economic success
than those unwilling to, for instance (they face fewer external threats).

To be clear I disagree with the person you're responding to - I just think we
should be careful about counterarguments with significant collateral moral
damage.

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hbarka
You’ve taken my response to another degree, but I wholeheartedly do not
disagree with you. In fact I admire it. I think you want to remind us that we
as humans are horrible when given power, irrespective of title.

