These are words that indeed pierced my heart and created a spark of empathy.

The following is from an article by Kanji Nishio that appeared in today's Sankei Shimbun in the "Sound Argument" section.
I was a subscriber to Asahi Shimbun until August 2014, and as I have already mentioned, I had never heard of him before.
He is one of the world's leading scholars.
It is a must-read not only for the Japanese people but for people all over the world.
All those who read this paper this morning must have had an eye-opening experience.
(Emphasis in the text except that the headline is mine.)
Why I support Ms. Sanae Takaichi
Ms. Sanae Takaichi, who is running for the presidency of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), had the following to say.　　
 "I want to make Japan a safe and strong country. I have a considerable sense of crisis that the economy is becoming considerably weaker. Yet, no steps have been taken to prepare for the situation that will undoubtedly occur five or ten years from now. I think there is not a moment to spare, and I am in a great hurry. If we don't start now, we won't make it. So I wanted to run for office no matter what."　
To be a person who can protect Japan amid a national crisis　
These are words that indeed pierced my heart and created a spark of empathy.
At the beginning of the 21st century, Japan was one or two of the most technologically advanced nations, but it slipped during the Heisei era and was overtaken by other countries.
It was supposed to be the kingdom of robots, but now it has fallen behind China in the field of AI (artificial intelligence) robots.
I had heard that the global shortage of semiconductors was a chance for Japan to revive this field, but the U.S. conspiracy to induce a strong yen has shifted the mainstay of the industry to Taiwan and South Korea.
Despite its ability, it is now unlikely to return to Japan.　
The magnitude of the storm and flood damage that hits the archipelago almost every year is a violation of the promise of the Cabinet of Shinzo Abe, who also advocated a national resilience policy, and repeating the same damage every year is not a natural disaster but already a "man-made disaster." 
The situation in Taiwan foreshadows the imminence of war. 
It can no longer hide the signs of the approach of China's invasion around the Senkaku Islands (Ishigaki City, Okinawa Prefecture) from the public eye.
The limit is coming.
The problem of declining birthrates foreshadows the disappearance of Japan as an ethnic nation, but the LDP's countermeasures have always been cavalier and lacking in seriousness.　
In the first place, there is no debate about the life or death of the people in the Diet, and no controversy arises.
Some LDP supporters even called for scolding the LDP in the upcoming elections, saying the lawmakers were too carefree.
The LDP's disastrous defeat in the Yokohama mayoral election was undoubtedly a "scold."
Nevertheless, when it came to the presidential election, the word that flew around was "water on a frog's face."
The only exception was the appearance of Ms. Takaichi.
Take a look at her new book, "Toward a Beautiful, Strong, and Growing Nation. (Wack).
It is a well-prepared book on policy.
It oozes with the anger and impatience of the Japanese people that I mentioned at the beginning of this article.
The book has climbed to No. 1 overall on Amazon.com.　

A Politician's True Colors in a Discreet Effort　
Ms. Takaichi has studied hard and has made it her mission to "protect Japan. Protecting Japan and opening up the future" is her catchphrase.
She repeatedly said that protecting Japan is not an abstract idea but instead protecting "territory, territorial waters, and airspace."
She explained that the way of war in each region of the world has changed. Unless Japan's current legal procedures are discussed and prepared in a bipartisan manner as soon as possible, everything will not be ready in time.
It is not the conventional ideology of single-mindedly revising the Constitution.　
I have had two magazine conversations with Ms. Takaichi.
I have also had her speak at my study group, "Michi no Kai."
The first time was more than ten years ago, and she told us that she was already concerned that land in Hokkaido was being handed over to foreigners and that she was devising legislation to stop this.
In our second conversation the year before last, she told me that a "Security Land Bill" (tentative name) was under preparation.
I was impressed that she has been consistently passionate about the danger of the land being invaded.
A politician's true colors are revealed in her unobtrusive efforts that people overlook.
Regarding wartime conscription, it was Ms. Takaichi who proved from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' documents that only 245 Koreans had come to Japan under the conscription order. Although, the number was said to be more than 600,000 as of 1959, and she wrote the government's reply.
It is a very influential confirmation work, correcting the misconception that it forcibly brought most of them to Japan.　

Fear of bias in Japanese politics　
On April 9, Fumio Kishida, who announced his candidacy for the presidential election, was asked whether he would approve of a female emperor as a measure to ensure a stable succession to the throne. Now is not the time to say that.
Taro Kono, the presumed opponent, said, "I have argued for the consideration of a female emperor in the past, and I made my differences clear (Yomiuri Shimbun, October 10).
On the other hand, Mr. Kono, who announced his candidacy on April 10, changed course in consideration of the hesitancy of the government expert panel to have a female emperor (Sankei Shimbun, April 11).　
Kono's unashamed reversal of his previous statement is problematic. Still, Kishida, who thought he had "made his differences clear," seems to have declared that he will change his attitude depending on the direction of the wind.
The worst thing that can happen to a country is to waver and wobble on the fundamental principle of the "unbroken imperial line of emperors."　
When placed in the context of all party politics in the entire world under parliamentary democratic rule, the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan is by no means conservative. It is almost a leftist party.
The media in Japan is all leftist.　
Ms. Takaichi was angry at being treated as a right-wing in the general media, but not so angry.
Suppose Ms. Takaichi, a center-right conservative, is considered right-wing. In that case, it is no wonder that the Komeito and the Constitutional Democratic Party are considered far-left groups before political parties on the world map.