[tazzy]

Of course Japan's rise is comparable.
Nobody said it was identical, but it is certainly comparable.
And we're certainly not ignoring the rise of China, we're just more sensible and educated than the "omg china is rising and gonna take over!!!" view of the masses.
I don't see how the rise of China necessarily hurts Japan. Denmark has a fraction of the people of Germany yet it does quite alright sitting next door to it. China is acting a dick with the Senkakus but they aren't about to invade Japan. And the US is still much stronger than China and I don't see this ever turning around even if China were to get more aggressive.