Photo/Illutration The Defense Ministry in Tokyo’s Ichigaya district (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Many over-the-counter products from Kobayashi Pharmaceutical Co. have names that are catchy yet straightforward, so you can’t mistake what they are for.

For sore throats, for instance, there is Nodonuuru, which translates literally as “apply to the throat.”

And the company’s cooling gel sheet for fever relief is called Netsusama Sheet (literally, “fever cooling sheet”).

Chairman Kazumasa Kobayashi once told The Asahi Shimbun that the company goes the extra mile to ensure that the product names will lead consumers to exactly what they are looking for.

An ideal product name is not only true to the product’s function and specific features but also sounds rhythmical and is easy to remember. Any name that doesn’t match the product and is therefore misleading shouldn’t be allowed.

But a deliberate misnomer is about to gain legitimacy, thanks to the government.

“Hangeki noryoku” (counterstrike capability) is the expression the government has chosen to replace with “teki-kichi kogeki noryoku” (capability to strike enemy bases)--a term the government has used for many years, while emphasizing that Japan does not really possess that capability.

The kanji characters for “hangeki” (counterstrike) give a less belligerent impression than those for “teki-kichi kogeki” (striking enemy bases). And with the switch, the government obviously wants to stress that Japan’s strictly defensive security policy will remain intact.

But despite the seeming reactivity implied by “counterstrike,” the hard truth is that the government’s intention is for Japan to be able to launch a missile against the enemy even if the enemy hasn’t fired a single missile against Japan.

Generally speaking, a war starts with both combatants claiming, “We didn’t want to go to war, but the other side started it.”

Come to think of it, the government has often resorted to obfuscation through “creative” language.

When protesters encircled the Diet building to oppose “anpo hosei” (security legislation), the government called the legislation “heiwa anzen hosei” (peace and security laws).

As for “kyobozai,” the anti-conspiracy bill that was killed multiple times, the government renamed it to “tero to soshiki-hanzai junbizai” (bill against conspiracies regarding terrorism, organized crime and others).

The “senryu” cynical haiku section of The Asahi Shimbun recently ran this piece, which goes to the effect, “Rename the Defense Ministry to the Ministry of Enemy Base Strikes.”

The government is guilty of just too many verbal shenanigans.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Dec. 13

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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