Abstract
Japan is enigmatic in many different ways. For instance, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)’s long-lasting resilience in free elections intrigues many Western political scientists. Meanwhile, the country’s dramatic transformation from the enemy that attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941 to the closest ally of the United States remains puzzling to others.
Japan’s reliance on nuclear energy has also been difficult for many foreigners to understand. Japan is the only country victimized by atomic bombs in human history. Nonetheless, less than a decade after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan surprisingly ’embraced’ atomic power for its economic growth. Since March 1954 when the Japanese Diet approved Yasuhiro Nakasone’s request for budgeting nuclear energy research and development, which totaled 235 (a number reminiscent of Uranium-235) million Japanese Yen, the Japanese government has vigorously promoted nuclear energy as a reliable energy source for this extremely resource-poor country.
 
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