One surprise I found during my recent visit to Japan was the frequent discussion of what Nicolas Sarkozy might accomplish in France. The new president was on magazines and TV shows, and I had several conversations with Japanese who were enthusiastic for the tough reforms he seems to represent.
The issue matters for Cascadia because, as Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire likes to put it, in a globalized economy we're more like a small nation than a state. The economy of Cascadia is in better shape than in either Japan or France, which makes it more difficult to generate the leadership needed to fix our fundamental problems.
The weekend I arrived, the former longtime leader of the Socialist Party -- the only true opposition to hold briefly hold power in Japan in the postwar era -- was on the top Sunday TV talk show discussing opposition to changing the no-military clauses in the constitution. Setting aside the specifics, what's remarkable is that the entire political opposition seems to think that saying no is adequate policy. The comments were amazing because she said exactly the same things when I interviewed her six years ago.
The same is true for economic leadership. Though Japan's huge economy continues to grow and there are far more opportunities than ever before thanks to reforms, there hasn't been nearly enough deregulation or revamping of policies. With a sclerotic opposition and lack of strong leadership, cynicism will only spread. Sarkozy came up as an example of the sort of change agent Japan needs.
You could argue that our situation isn't much different. In King County, the passing of Prosecutor Norm Maleng opens up opportunities for younger politicians. Someone needs to spell out a not just that globalization is an opportunity, as Gov. Gregoire has, but a vision for how this region can prosper. Today's properity is all the more reason to develop this leadership now.