Was Abe expected to last long? I don't know much about Japan's politics, but when he came to power, I was concern that he favored military buildup. It is interesting, at that time, my wife (Japanese) told me not to worry about Abe, because he is just temporary there, to fill the gap until election and will not last long. She is not too interested in politics, so that information must have been "known fact".
Re world vision, there is one and it is not pretty... listen to this presentation and some of the recent changes in labor law, security, etc will be seen in the different light...
Naomi Klein - The Shock Doctrine 6 part presentation..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ka3Pb_StJn4