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November 21, 2024
 

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Kiroku Hanai
COMMENTARY
Mar 23, 2009
Costly transfer to Guam
PARIS — It was welcome news for the struggling government of Prime Minister Taro Aso that the Obama administration has given Japan a high priority in its foreign policy agenda. In mid-February, Hillary Rodham Clinton chose Japan as the first country to visit as U.S. secretary of state, and later that...
COMMENTARY
Feb 23, 2009
Crisis hits the weak spots
The worst crisis in a century is eroding the Japanese economy as a growing number of "nonregular" workers lose their jobs. The unemployment rate in December reached 4.4 percent, up 0.5 percentage point from the previous month — the steepest increase ever. The labor ministry estimates that by the end...
COMMENTARY
Jan 26, 2009
A return to common sense
Attention from all corners of the world is focused on Barack Obama, who was inaugurated as the first African- American president of the United States. As the sole superpower since the Cold War ended in 1989, America has often irritated other countries for choosing to pursue the path of a unilateralist...
COMMENTARY
Dec 22, 2008
Deal with the reparations
This month marks the 67th anniversary of Japan's declaration of war against the United States and Britain. This long span of time is one reason the Japanese people have grown oblivious to the lessons learned from defeat in war.
COMMENTARY
Nov 24, 2008
Tamp down the old ways
Sixty years ago on Nov. 12, 1948, the International Military Tribunal for the Far East (IMT) handed down its verdict branding Japan an aggressor nation and leading to the execution of six military leaders and one politician for instigating the war. As if to substantiate the validity of this verdict,...
COMMENTARY
Oct 27, 2008
Noisy assaults on living
A bitter schism was created in the city of Yokosuka between those supporting and those opposing the stationing of the aircraft carrier USS George Washington at the U.S. naval base there. Calm was restored, however, when the ship actually entered port Sept. 25.
COMMENTARY
Sep 22, 2008
The road to Yasukuni's survival
On Aug. 15, Japanese newspapers carried the obituary of an American citizen by the name of William Kenneth Bunce, who died in Chestertown, Md., at the age of 100.
COMMENTARY
Aug 25, 2008
Nonnuclear high ground
This month, as in previous years, newspapers and television programs in Japan were filled with stories about the Pacific War to commemorate the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and Japan's surrender.
COMMENTARY
Jul 28, 2008
Injustice of labor shortages
One of America's virtues is its willingness to dispense candid advice even to its closest ally in the name of justice and humanitarianism. One good example is in recent comments by Dr. Mark P. Lagon, director of the U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons.
COMMENTARY
Jun 23, 2008
Flattop can forget about a haven from controversy
A dispute over whether to accept a plan to let the U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier George Washington use Yokosuka as its home port seemed to have been settled when the municipal assembly rejected a proposal to hold a referendum on the subject.
COMMENTARY
May 26, 2008
Second wind for cigarette sales
At the initiative of the Finance Ministry, the government has introduced a system to verify the age of anyone using a cigarette vending machine. But the system reportedly is not widely used.
COMMENTARY
Apr 28, 2008
Preserving the Constitution
Signs of shakiness have begun to appear in the alliance between Japan and the United States, which seemed to get increasingly strong under the coalition government of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito, especially after the enactment of two laws that removed some of the obstacles to actions to...
COMMENTARY
Mar 24, 2008
Reliance on aerial bombings
A just-released film and a special program was televised this month on the occasion of the 63rd anniversary of the hellish bombing of Tokyo by the United States, which killed 100,000 residents.
COMMENTARY
Feb 25, 2008
Fuel to the fire in Okinawa
On Feb. 10 a very divisive mayoral election in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefecture, ended in victory for the candidate who supports the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan. The election results delighted the Japanese government.
COMMENTARY
Jan 28, 2008
Haves and have-nots in golf
Two recent scandals reflect the Japanese weakness for golf. In one, former Vice Defense Minister Takemasa Moriya allegedly provided favors to a Japanese trading company involved in defense contracts, after taking more than 100 one-day golf trips at the invitation of the company. In November, Moriya was...
COMMENTARY
Dec 24, 2007
Article 9 fan club quickens
Momentum for constitutional amendments, which grew under the administrations of former Prime Ministers Junichiro Koizumi and Shinzo Abe, has diminished following the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's drubbing in the July 29 Upper House election and pro-amendment Abe's surprise resignation in September....
COMMENTARY
Nov 26, 2007
Koreans who paid for Japan
This summer I visited several monuments in Hiroshima and Okinawa that console the souls of Koreans who died during the Pacific War while living in Japan or serving in the Japanese military. It was a heart-wrenching experience.
COMMENTARY
Oct 22, 2007
Let MSDF refueling law die
Late last month a gathering in Yokohama remembered the victims of a U.S. military jet crash in a residential area 30 years ago. I was stunned to learn that a Japanese Self-Defense Force helicopter that had rushed to the scene of the crash flew away with two slightly injured U.S. servicemen without looking...
COMMENTARY
Sep 24, 2007
Okinawan state of mind
"An island of deep-seated resentment" — that was the first impression I had of Okinawa Prefecture on my visit there in late July. Everywhere in the island prefecture, I found monuments to the war dead. They number 419.
COMMENTARY
Aug 27, 2007
Issues with U.S. hurt LDP
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party has been rocked by its humiliating defeat in the July 29 House of Councilors (Upper House) election. The LDP's loss was generally attributed to the government's long-standing mismanagement of public pension accounts, but in my opinion, two United States-related issues...
Ishiba delays meeting with Trump, citing legal restrictions
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba waves upon arrival for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, in Callao, Peru, on Friday.
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Rising sex tourism exposes loopholes in Japan's anti-prostitution law
While financial misfortunes during the COVID-19 pandemic may have driven some women to work the streets, others simply want more money to spend — or want to pay off their debts — at host clubs.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
Ruling coalition and DPP strike last-minute deal over economic policy
DPP policy chief Makoto Mahaguchi speaks at the party's policy gathering in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.
Japanese expats in Asia find community through rugby
The Taiwan Fivewoods celebrate their victory at the 2023 Asian Japanese Rugby Cup in December of last year.
In Fukushima, a weekend of prose, poetry and translation
Aomori-based writer JJ Carter presented on tabletop gaming as creative inspiration for building characters and narratives.
For Dr. Nakamats, aging is just experience in action
Though he didn't win the recent gubernatorial election in Tokyo, the 96-year-old Dr. Nakamats' run was seen as inspirational in Japan's aging society.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
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Longform

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By Kathryn Wortley

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