My history classes spent a lot of time on what led to Hitler and Mussolini but absolutely nothing on what led to the Japanese membership in the Axis.
Here's the first part:
https://www.dancarlin.com/product/hardcore-history-62-Supern...
https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674021297
The primary problem with why the country devolved into fascism is that democracy was never really expanded, allowing wealthy, right wing cadres to capture exclusive control of state power and outlaw political inclusion of their opponents (several left wing parties were made illegal following universal male enfranchisement in the late 1920s). But there was actually widespread internal opposition to the Japanese imperial project, well into the 1930s, until fascists used violence, imprisonment, and intimidation of its leadership to stop it.
Obviously vote, but I think it's a pretty sure win for the left in the Executive here in a few months. Outlook is pretty good for the left in congress. I find it hard to foresee right-wing fascism taking control and illegalizing the left in the near future.
Of course we should always be concerned about fascism because it has devastating and existential consequences. But I don't see cause for alarmism now, and every false alarm weakens the call to action when it is needed. For now it seems like voting works.
Trump always had a tough uphill battle to ever be re-elected (worse poll numbers in modern history) but the Coronavirus has made reelection nearly impossible.
And, fair enough!
But there doesn't to be much education on any side of the aisle about the 1000-or-so years leading up to their mutual antagonism.
I don't think that anyone is served by having sections of their history books snipped out - and the Japanese are no saints in this regard either. (Of course, I say this in the US, now, when some people are trying to have literature and history books snipped out)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sakoku
The Qing dynasty was on its last legs, following the disruption of the Opium wars, the chaos of the Taiping and Boxer rebellions, and the nascent, internal modernization movements. The independence of Korea's Joeson dynasty was put to an end when Yi Un was put under Japanese control by Ito Hirobumi in 1907. Taiwan quickly transitioned from being a Chinese Vassal state to a Japanese one. The Philippines had been colonized by the Spanish for a few hundred years, then the Americans in the period leading up to the war. They were able to so quickly build an empire because the countries around them were in a poor position to resist their sudden outburst of aggression.
The “Supernova in the East” podcasts might be a good start.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mh5LY4Mz15oIt's eerie reading about a populist/fascist minority gradually radicalizing others under a promise to "return the country to its roots", militant groups inciting chaos to justify martial law, etc. A little bit too familiar.
If you want better answers than "Japan jumped on board too", you must ask yourself those questions as well.