Text-based, grounded thinking is so important, don't you agree?

Here is the quote:

"...in Japan, a new party must appeal to a very wide range of voters. We must attract people from all points of the political spectrum. For example, we really understand why the United States must bomb North Vietnam. But we must oppose it because of public sentiment." - Soka Gakkai huge cheese Hiroshi Hojo

I managed to secure a copy of the newspaper that originally ran the interview - want to see it in its original form?

The whole article

The comment - and context:

"The Komeito really leans a little toward conservatism," Mr. Hojo confided during the interview. "But in Japan, a new party must appeal to a very wide range of voters. We must attract people from all points of the spectrum."

"Leans a little"??

"For example, we really understand why the United States must bomb North Vietnam. But we must oppose it because of public sentiment."

"As for the security treaty with the United States, we realize that if Japan abolishes it immediately, we will be in danger of immediate invasion by Communist China and the Soviet Union. So we want to abolish it gradually."

Clearly, Komeito was only opposing the bombing of North Vietnamese civilians because it was politically expedient. Remember "“Nothing is more barbarous than war. Nothing is more cruel.”"?? Nobody even knows what Gakkai fool came up with THAT whopper! What a bleeding heart liberal that "Shin'ichi Yamamoto" was, the complete OPPOSITE of self-centered, cruel Ikeda Sensei. That quote was published less than a year and a half before these "Bomb the HELL outta North Vietnam!" comments.

Now, Hojo is a giant within Ikeda's Soka Gakkai reign. He accompanied Ikeda on his first trip outside of Japan (to Brazil and the USA), for example, and he's often seen in Ikeda photos. At the time of the above interview, Hojo was head of the Komeito political party. Hojo is the one who replaced Ikeda as President of the Soka Gakkai when the Nichiren Shoshu High Priest demanded Ikeda resign as part of his punishment for being a big ol' buttface. Another aspect to Ikeda's punishment was a gag order - Ikeda was not allowed to speak in public OR publish anything for two years!

Of course Ikeda submitted like a good little bottom bitch.

As soon as the end of Ikeda's 2-year gag order expired, though, President Hojo died unexpectedly 🤨

Ikeda never returned to the position of President of the Soka Gakkai, though. The Nichiren Shoshu High Priest forbade it:

It will never be the case that Ikeda will take the presidency of the Soka Gakkai again in the future. - Nichiren Shoshu High Priest Nittatsu Shonin

But there you have it: Ikeda's cult of personality Soka Gakkai IN FAVOR OF DROPPING BOMBS AS AN ACT OF WAR. Has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? Hojo was absolutely Ikeda's right hand man in Japan - he never ever deviated in the slightest from Ikeda's direction. Hojo never put so much as a toe out of line.

You can see how the Hojo interview confirms then-US Ambassador to Japan Reischauer's diary entry on Ikeda from just 3 months previously:

Ikeda ... strongly supported America's Vietnam policy and passionately advocated the re-militarization of Japan. - Ambassador Reischauer's Diary

SGI members create their own fantasy "Ikeda Sensei" that bears no resemblance to the real deal. The REAL Ikeda's a monster.