Any long-term resident of Japan will know that ‘reading the air’, as the locals put it, is an essential skill for understanding what is really being communicated behind the glossy lacquer box patina of courtesy and understatement of Japanese discourse. Bad news is never expressed directly and you need to decode the subtle hints embedded in seemingly anodyne comments to get to the truth. For example, if a Japanese doctor ever tells you ‘it’s hard to say’ when you ask about your test results, it might be time to start getting your affairs in order.
As for the Tokyo Olympics 2020/21 (a saga approaching the length and complexity of the Tales of Genji), while the surface message is still superficially one of confidence and resolve, for those attuned to the subtext of official statements a happy ending to the story is looking increasingly unlikely. With a state of emergency declared for much of the country amid reports of surging coronavirus cases, many are starting to believe that it may soon be game(s) over
The latest snippet of news comes from an unnamed senior source within the ruling coalition who reportedly stated that the games were ‘doomed’
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