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January 25, 2025
 

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COMMENTARY
Jun 12, 2005
Harmful to Japan's interest
By Keizo Nabeshima
Should he continue his custom of making annual visits to Yasukuni Shrine, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi could seriously harm Japan's national interest. His persistence in visiting the Tokyo memorial to the nation's war dead has intensified the firestorm of anti-Japanese criticism in China and South...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jun 12, 2005
'Woe is me' nation awaits return of its sadsack heroes
By Roger Pulvers
In the last days of May, news reached Japan that two former soldiers in the Imperial Army had been found in the Philippines. Apparently the two men, who had been hiding during the entire postwar period in an area around the town of General Santos close to the southern tip of the island of Mindanao, now...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 12, 2005
Checking the threat that could be China
By Richard Halloran
HONOLULU -- When U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld addressed the Shangri-la Security Dialogue in Singapore last weekend, most of the attention in the meeting and later in the press focused on his candid comments about China's military strategy, spending and modernization.
COMMENTARY
Jun 11, 2005
Slots, cops, and deception
By Ronald Morse
LAS VEGAS -- The Japanese have been kicking around the idea of building American-style casinos in Japan for four years now. The Parliament Committee on Casinos with 100 Diet members has been gathering information on casinos, and Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara has been a major proponent of the idea. In...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 11, 2005
Indian growth must co-opt the bypassed
By Ifzal Ali
MANILA -- India is a paradox. The successes of a select group of sectors -- from information technology to industr and services -- are creating an urban elite showcased as the builders of a modern and vibrant country on the cusp of joining the major economic powers of the world.
COMMENTARY
Jun 11, 2005
Poor losers fan Filipino disenchantment
By Ronald Meinardus
MANILA -- To characterize the public mood in the Philippines as depressed is no exaggeration. According to recent surveys, pessimism about economic prospects is on the rise, and a majority of Filipinos believe their quality of life has deteriorated in the past year. A recent Asian Development Bank survey...
COMMENTARY
Jun 11, 2005
Hilariously ineffective charm offensive
By Tom Plate
LOS ANGELES -- Watch out, the Chinese oil-saboteurs may be coming. Hold on to your derricks! Western newspapers are reporting that the giant China National Offshore Oil Corp. may make a bid to acquire the U.S. oil group Unocal. If the effort is successful (note: the U.S. oil giant Chevron may have a...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 9, 2005
Hardest steps to harmony
By George Sioris
CHIANG MAI, Thailand -- The recent turmoil in Sino-Japanese relations has caused anxiety in Thailand. People here would clearly prefer a calmer atmosphere between the two giant powers of East Asia, as their future is linked to both and they stand to lose if there is a collision. Many believe that the...
COMMENTARY
Jun 8, 2005
EU muddles forth with market intact
By Hugh Cortazzi
LONDON -- The proposed European Constitution was decisively rejected by French voters on May 29 and by the Dutch on June 1. The constitution has been ratified by other European states including Germany, which did not hold a referendum, and by Spain, which did. In theory, the referendums in France and...
COMMENTARY
Jun 7, 2005
Kudos here, detention there
By Tom Plate
LOS ANGELES -- Journalism free from government constraint just isn't for everybody. It certainly wasn't for Richard M. Nixon while he was president. Unrestrained investigative journalism of the Watergate variety ultimately pushed Congress in the direction of potential impeachment and shoved Nixon onto...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 6, 2005
Catalyst for global stability
By Kazuo Ogoura
Asia's rapid economic growth, vast population and strategic geographical location are among the factors suggesting that the region should play a more prominent role in the international community. To cite but one example of Asia's influence on global issues, it is predicted that the rapid growth of energy...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 6, 2005
China showing a knack for taking risks
By Eric Teo Chu Cheow
SINGAPORE -- A China that is willing to take ideological and political risks is emerging not only in affairs involving Hong Kong and Taiwan but also in the increasingly troubled relations with Tokyo and Washington.
BOJ takes rates to 0.5% amid calm markets after Trump inauguration
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda had sounded dovish after the central bank's December policy meeting, which led some analysts to say that rate hikes might only emerge in March.
Ishiba stresses regional revitalization in policy speech
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delivers his policy speech at the Lower House of parliament in Tokyo on Friday.
Japan's foreign minister vows to take ties with U.S. to new heights
Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the State Department in Washington on Tuesday
U.S. Marine not indicted in sexual assault case in Okinawa
A building in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, that houses the Naha District Public Prosecutor's Office
Global tourism is back to pre-COVID highs
While Japan deals with so-called overtourism, the rest of the world is just getting back to pre-pandemic levels of visits from international travelers.
The cartoon chaos of ‘Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi’ was ahead of its time
Animated series “Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi” premiered on Cartoon Network on Nov. 29, 2004, and ran for three seasons. The show is based on real-life J-pop band Puffy.
How 'Twin Peaks' turned David Lynch into Japan's favorite weirdo
“The Elephant Man” and “Twin Peaks” director David Lynch became a favorite among Japanese moviegoers who flocked to new arthouse cinemas (known as “mini theaters”) popping up around the country in the 1980s and ’90s.
As parliament opens, ruling coalition enters uncharted territory
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delivers a policy speech at the Lower House of the parliament in Tokyo last November.
Dodgers introduce Japanese pitching phenom Roki Sasaki
Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki speaks during his introductory news conference with the team in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
Japan-made games part of a rising tide of indie greatness
One of the brighest spots of Japan's indie gaming landscape in 2024 was Sonokuni, and with more incubators and other avenues of support springing up, there may be more games like it in the future.

Podcast

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

Longform

Atsuyoshi Koike, the president and CEO of Rapidus, says there is a “sense of urgency” when it comes to Japan’s efforts in manufacturing semiconductors. “We have to make sure we are successful,” he says.
Atsuyoshi Koike’s big game: Fourth down and 2 nanometers to go
By Kazuaki Nagata and Richard Meyer

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