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COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Jun 16, 2009
Ozawa's residual influence
Even after being forced to resign as Democratic Party of Japan president because of a scandal involving his secretary, Ichiro Ozawa appears to exert strong influence over his successor, Yukio Hatoyama.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jun 14, 2009
To make an Israeli omelet is it necessary to break so many eggs?
By Roger Pulvers
"Between a high, solid wall and an egg that breaks against it, I will always stand on the side of the egg. . . . Bombers and tanks and rockets and white phosphorus shells are that high, solid wall. The eggs are the unarmed civilians who are crushed and burned and shot by them. . . . Think of it this...
COMMENTARY
Jun 14, 2009
The will to deal imaginatively with a crisis
By Hugh Cortazzi and William A. Masters
LONDON — The report that North Korea had set off a second underground nuclear explosion made headlines here, but European eyes were on issues closer to home, including elections to the European Parliament and the state of the European economy.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 14, 2009
Neither charity nor bulldozers prevent slums
By Caroline Boin
LONDON — After treading the red carpet at the Oscars in Los Angeles in February, the child stars of "Slumdog Millionaire" are on the streets. Mumbai authorities have demolished their flimsy shelters only three months after promising them real houses.
COMMENTARY
Jun 14, 2009
A purge of Parliament is calling
By David Howell and Chang-Tai Hsieh
LONDON — In British politics the familiar scenario is for the opposition to press for an early general election — there being no fixed-term provision in the very flexible British constitution — and for the government of the day to reject all such demands and sit tight.
COMMENTARY
Jun 12, 2009
The deficits of democracy
By Hugh Cortazzi
LONDON — Britain and Japan have prime ministers who have not been endorsed by the electorate in a general election. Both are hanging on to power and argue that it is their right as prime minister to choose the date for the next election. Under our constitutions this is a valid claim, but is it in accordance...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 12, 2009
Losers can live with Lebanon's 'West' vote
By Paul Salem
BEIRUT — Lebanon's voters have handed a clear defeat to the Hezbollah-led March 8 alliance. In a smoothly run and peaceful election, the pro-Western March 14 alliance emerged with a clear majority of 71 seats, compared to 58 seats for its rivals. The results elicited a nearly audible sigh of relief...
COMMENTARY
Jun 11, 2009
Sri Lanka and Tiananmen: Time to accept the truth
By Gregory Clark
It used to be said the first casualty of war is the truth. But today we do not even need wars to see truth destroyed. Even domestic conflicts in distant countries can do the job, with a flood of black information and news distortions produced, some causing enormous harm. The distorted interpretation...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 10, 2009
A turning point in Japan for the right to equality?
By Craig Martin
A year ago this week, the Supreme Court of Japan issued a judgment that struck down a clause in the Nationality Act as being a violation of the Constitution. There are good reasons for everyone in Japan to celebrate that decision. While little noted outside of specialized legal journals at the time,...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 9, 2009
An entrepreneurial ambassador
By Richard B. Dasher
PALO ALTO,, Calif. — The announcement of Silicon Valley attorney and Barack Obama fundraiser John V. Roos as U.S. ambassador- designate to Japan has sparked questions about what this appointment means for the U.S.-Japan relationship. Is the choice of a Washington outsider with no obvious Japan experience...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 9, 2009
Who's who in resetting U.S.-Russia relations
By Andrei Piontkovsky
MOSCOW — Germany's ex-Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is a legend in Russia. He serves Gazprom's interests for a measly couple of million euros a year, sits in on sessions of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and writes books about his staunch friendship with "Genosse Wladimir," who, in the not-so-distant...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 9, 2009
Educating Americans about Muslim voices
By Mustapha Tlili and Vishakha N. Desai, Karen Brooks Hopkins
NEW YORK — President Barack Obama has extended an open hand of friendship in his landmark Cairo speech to the Muslim world — seeking to engage Muslims with a commitment of mutual respect. No one can doubt his sincerity. From his first days in office, he has emphasized the importance of embarking...
The U.S. says Japan has a 700% tariff on American rice. Is that the case?
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt holds up a piece of paper with information about tariff rates at the White House on Tuesday.
Japanese superfans turn dental clinic into Ohtani mini-museum
Japanese dentist Yusuke Kamimura poses for a photograph in front of a private collection dedicated to MLB player Shohei Ohtani, inside his dental clinic in Koshigaya, north of Tokyo, on Feb. 28, 2025.
Bonsai thefts sweep Japan as miniature trees grow more popular
According to the Nippon Bonsai Growers Cooperative, there were about 30 cases of bonsai theft last year.
As pollen season peaks, Japan's allergy struggle emerges from hibernation
Urbanization is amplifying pollen-related allergies as grasslands and soft soil give way to concrete and asphalt.
China deports Japanese tourists over Great Wall buttocks pic, reports state
The Great Wall of China near Beijing. Two Japanese tourists were detained in China for taking photos showing exposed buttocks at the World Heritage site.
Ishiba on shaky ground over budget and gift vouchers
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's reversal over medical co-payments late last week and the revelation he gave gift vouchers to lawmakers have weakened his political standing.
As pollen season peaks, Japan's allergy struggle emerges from hibernation
Urbanization is amplifying pollen-related allergies as grasslands and soft soil give way to concrete and asphalt.
Japan to get tough on businesses not taking heatstroke countermeasures
A construction site in Tokyo in July 2018. Businesses failing to take measures to prevent severe heatstroke among employees will be subjected to criminal punishment from June.
In a sea of Dodger Blue, Japanese superfan ready to cheer on the Cubs
Takuya “Moby” Okamoto after Game 5 of the 2016 World Series, which the Cubs went on to win in seven games to snap a 108-year drought
Drones, budgets and infighting: Taiwan's daunting defense challenges
Officials from Taiwan's Institute for National Defense and Security Research (INDSR), the Ministry of National Defense’s research arm, say the lessons from the Ukraine conflict are clear for the democratic island: drones and other autonomous systems are crucial for its defense.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Wealthier women in the prewar era had been the targets of various media-related health campaigns that mistakenly encouraged them to avoid everything from riding bicycles to reading novels when their monthly cycles came around.
Menstruation in Japan: Breaking the silence, slowly
By Tomoko Otake

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