So as the title of this entry suggests, it is election time in Iwaki. They are voting for a new Mayor and a general government member I believe. The details aren't so important, it's their campagning practices that intrigue me.
Yesterday morning I had the pleasure of being woken up by a loud speaker of sorts. I looked out my window and what did I see? A Japanese size (small) van/truck type thing with speakers attatched staring back at me (cheesy I know...hehe). This was a campaign vehicle for one of the political candidates. They drive around Iwaki all day, everyday, with voices shouting from the speakers. Given that the Japanese work 100 hours a day and might not have the time to fully research political campaigns, these vans would be quite effective if they shared a candidates platform. However, they don't. They only say their name and thank you- over and over and over again and insane volumes. What happened to letting people sleep in on Sundays?
It just seems a 'big brotherish' to me. No matter where I am, these vans seem to follow me. If I ever stayed here long enough to earn the right to vote (currently non-Japanese people can't vote-or so I think) the guys with propaganda vans would immediately be off my potential candidate list!
