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November 22, 2024
 

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David Howell
COMMENTARY
Apr 1, 2010
The single-currency disease
It seems only yesterday that leading Japanese industrialists who had heavy (and very welcome) investments in the United Kingdom were calling for the pound to merge with the euro in one grand continental currency.
COMMENTARY
Mar 19, 2010
Revising the art of defense
LONDON — How much should a nation spend on defense and its armed forces?
COMMENTARY
Feb 25, 2010
Poland's future looks bright
In the 20th century the very name "Poland" conjured up images of suffering, refugees, slaughter, terrible destruction and division. Here was a country that had been invaded, partitioned, endlessly fought over, defeated and conquered.
COMMENTARY
Feb 10, 2010
In search of a big, new idea
Governments everywhere are nowadays being overpowered by the problems and tasks they face.
COMMENTARY
Jan 27, 2010
Surprise! More gas coming
Sometimes a quite simple new discovery or technological breakthrough changes everything, making nonsense of yesterday's apparently safe assumptions and expert projections.
COMMENTARY
Jan 14, 2010
Good intentions, bad results
A cycle in which intended results become reversed has overtaken Britain's political, government and social scene.
COMMENTARY
Dec 30, 2009
Iran the challenge in 2010
Of all the pressure points on the international scene in 2010 the Iran problem looks the most dangerous. Iran could come to an explosive boiling point in the coming months, sending shock waves through the global system.
COMMENTARY
Dec 16, 2009
Saving the U.K. economy
Frequent comparisons are made these days between the plight of the British economy and the state of the Japanese economy. But in reality the two situations are very different.
COMMENTARY
Dec 2, 2009
Commonwealth reaches out
Every two years the heads of government of the 50-plus states of which the Commonwealth consists, embracing almost a third of the planet's entire population and several of its most dynamic economies, meet to discuss issues of common concern.
COMMENTARY
Nov 19, 2009
Wrong way to halt warming
Here's a surprise. The countries with the best stories to tell at the forthcoming U.N. Copenhagen conference on climate change will probably be the ones that have not signed up to carbon-reducing targets at all, or have only signed up very recently. It could be China, the United States, India and Japan...
COMMENTARY
Nov 4, 2009
Still wrestling with Europe
Some things seem to go on forever. For half a century the British have been wrestling with the question of their relations with the rest of continental Europe and the struggle continues unabated and still unsolved.
COMMENTARY
Oct 21, 2009
Fading trust in the political class
LONDON — The world is clearly passing through a crisis of political legitimacy. People in growing numbers do not trust their governments or their governing classes. In many cases they despise them.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 7, 2009
The Middle East and Iran issue
The small country of Lebanon lies at the center of the Middle East jigsaw. Its labyrinthine internal politics reflect and connect with all the complexities of the region and the surrounding countries.
COMMENTARY
Sep 25, 2009
China's two-sided 'miracle' should warn the ebullient
CHANGCHUN/LONDON — Is China the economic locomotive that will lift the world back onto the growth path and help eradicate its vast debts?
COMMENTARY
Sep 10, 2009
Politics and people colliding
The Japanese people have just voted decisively for change. For what kind of change should they now be asking?
COMMENTARY
Aug 27, 2009
Are green shoots sprouting?
Is recovery from the global recession already under way? In Germany, France and the United States, authoritative voices are declaring the recession over and telling us that growth has resumed. And now the same view is heard in Japan. Yes, if you take a magnifying glass you can see tiny little specks...
COMMENTARY
Aug 8, 2009
Disaster in Afghanistan
Thousands of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom and several other nations are struggling on in Afghanistan, with the Americans and British in particular suffering heavy casualties. But why are they there, and what are they trying to achieve?
COMMENTARY
Aug 1, 2009
Tough times for politicians
Democratic governments everywhere are in trouble. In Britain, the Labour government is tottering. In Japan, defeat looms for Prime Minister Taro Aso's Liberal Democratic Party. In Italy, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is clinging on amid a sea of scandal. In France, hyperactive President Nicolas Sarkozy...
COMMENTARY
Jul 22, 2009
Protectionist trend on the rise
In the English language the word "Protection" sounds warm and friendly. Everyone needs protection against the storms of life and it is nice to give protection and be protected. But lift this innocent word into the international sphere and it becomes a sinister and ominous concept, a harbinger of narrow...
COMMENTARY
Jun 24, 2009
Iraq war is a tipping point
The British are to hold an inquiry into the origins and conduct of the Iraq war, and how Britain came to be so closely involved with the Americans in the 2003 Iraq invasion.
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.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
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.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
By Kathryn Wortley

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mission sustainability vol.12 : Kose Corp.Kose takes pride in creating beauty in the world
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