Japan's Self-Defence Forces (SDF) have long lived a cloistered life. The country that in 1945 developed an allergy to warfare ties itself in knots trying to reassure everybody that the SDF is not a military force, and that its soldiers are actually "special public servants".
So a recent music video showing a khaki-clad AKB48, Japan's doe-eyed pop sensation, clambering in and out of troop carriers, singing things like "Show us your guts", must have seemed a recruiting sergeant's dream. (The Economist)