It’s got that romantic, larger-than-life vibe about a family ruling an entire prefecture. There are no supernatural elements, but I found this a bit creepy. Here is a copy-paste.
In Shimane Prefecture, there is a super-powerful figure named Chobei Tabe. He has served as the president of TSK (a Fuji TV affiliate), the head of the Matsue Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and various other high-ranking positions. Based on the name, you might think this is a story from the distant past. It’s not. In this day and age of Reiwa, his name is actually Chobei. To preserve their power, that family has passed down the name "Chobei" across 25 generations.
The Tabe family's influence in Shimane is absolute. They completely control local media outlets, including the Sanin Chuo Shimpo (the morning paper with the highest circulation in the Sanin region), the aforementioned TSK, and FM Sanin. A joint venture with Fujitsu is run by the Tabe family, and if I recall correctly, even the KFC franchise there belongs to them. In this way, the Tabe family is involved in an enormous number of businesses in Shimane.
And that extends to politics as well. Until Akiko Kamei, a descendant of the Tsuwano Domain, won the recent by-election, Shimane remained a stronghold of the Liberal Democratic Party. If you ask why, most people would probably answer, "Because Noboru Takeshita was there!" Yet even that Noboru Takeshita couldn't talk back to Chobei Tabe. The Tabe family's chief steward was a Takeshita, and Noboru Takeshita was favored by the current Chobei Tabe's grandfather. That is why the Tabe family continues to hold immense power to this day.
Even in the recent by-election, when Kishida visited Shimane, the very first place he gave a speech was Okuizumo Town, the stronghold of the Tabe family. Not Matsue City, not Izumo City, but Okuizumo Town—a place with a population of only 12,000. Why first? Out of fear that you cannot do politics in Shimane unless you pay proper respects to the Tabe family, making them the absolute top priority. This is long, so to be continued.
To be continued. You're probably wondering why the Tabe family holds so much power, but that family made a fortune generation after generation through tatara ironmaking. There was once an era where every single resident of Yoshida Village (where Yoshida-kun from Eagle Talon gets his name) was essentially a servant of the Tabe family. When you have some free time, I want you to watch an NHK special (produced in 1987) that was reposted on YouTube.
This was happening right as the Showa era was ending. Can you believe it? In Yoshida Village, you simply cannot defy the Tabe family. Even today, though the scale may have changed, it seems to still be like that. Anyway, nobody can stand up to the Tabe family. The Governor of Shimane Prefecture, who talks back to Tokyo, and the Mayor of Izumo are both at the beck and call of the Tabe family. The Mayor of Matsue is manipulated by the Tabe family to such an extent that people sarcastically call him Chobei Tabe's errand boy.
And there have been whispers for a while now about the current head entering national politics. I suspect that a dozen years from now, Chobei Tabe will become the Governor of Shimane Prefecture as the successor to the current governor. That is the lifelong ambition of the current head—his respected grandfather, the 23rd Chobei Tabe, served as Governor of Shimane Prefecture, and he wants to match that legacy. That is why I believe Shimane Prefecture will remain under the thumb of the Tabe family for all eternity. End of story.
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