re: #151 mmmirele

I think a lot of Japan’s wariness of cults or new religious movements is a result of the Tokyo subway sarin attack in 1995. Most Japanese, prior to that, figured that Aum Shinrikyo were just a bunch of harmless cranks, never realizing they had a straight-up doomsday cult in their midst until it was too late. Ever since then, the Japanese cast a skeptical eye towards NRMs or sectarian offshoots of already-established religions.

The Aum Shinrikyo attack was a wake-up call. And it seems the assassination of former PM Abe is becoming another one.