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February 01, 2025

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EDITORIALS

Mar 15, 2011

Nuclear power in disarray

Damage beyond imagination is unfolding in the wake of the massive earthquake that hit Japan on March 11. More than 5,000 people are confirmed dead or missing, and the death toll is expected to reach into the tens of thousands. In the Miyagi Prefecture town of Minami Sanriku alone, around 10,000 people...

EDITORIALS

Mar 14, 2011

Cheating and the cheated

Perhaps only in Japan could a young man be arrested for the crime of "obstructing university operations by fraudulent means." For weeks, the nation's headlines have been jammed with the story about a student who cheated on the entrance exam for four prestigious universities, Kyoto, Waseda, Doshisha and...

EDITORIALS

Mar 13, 2011

Massive quake hits Japan

With the memory of the Feb. 22 earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, still fresh, Japan was hit Friday afternoon by a massive earthquake centered offshore. It served as a terrifying reminder that big quakes can strike anytime and that the central government, local governments and residents must be...

EDITORIALS

Mar 13, 2011

Centennial for an artist

Japanese artist Taro Okamoto died in 1996 at the age of 84, but his ever-young artworks and attitude toward life are gathering new attention 100 years since his birth in 1911. What would have been his 100th birthday on Feb. 26 was commemorated with a Google-logo homage to Okamoto, original music at an...

EDITORIALS

Mar 12, 2011

Harvesting rare-earth metals

Rare-earth metals are called "vitamins for industry" because the addition of trace amounts to such metals as iron, copper and aluminum boost their quality, making them stronger, more pliable or more viscous. They are used in many products, including cell phones, electric cars, medical treatment devices,...

EDITORIALS

Mar 12, 2011

Encouraging a charitable trend

On Christmas Day someone secretly placed 10 boxes containing new school backpacks in front of a children's welfare facility in Maebashi in the name of Naoto Date, the hero of the "Tiger Mask" manga and anime series. This act of charity has since inspired more than 1,000 people to make donations to such...

EDITORIALS

Mar 11, 2011

China struggles with change

China's legislature, the National People's Congress, commenced its annual 10-day session last weekend. The body is pretty much a rubber stamp, providing a democratic veneer to the decisions of the Chinese Communist Party. The session does shed light on affairs of state, in particular the government's...

EDITORIALS

Mar 10, 2011

Obsession with fault-finding

Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara's resignation over receipt of political donations from a Korean resident underscores a problematic Political Funds Control Law and politicians' obsession with fault-finding to pull others down.

EDITORIALS

Mar 10, 2011

Harmony-breaking words

The assemblies of Okinawa Prefecture and two cities in the prefecture — Naha and Urasoe — on Tuesday unanimously adopted resolutions protesting comments by a U.S. official that allegedly disparaged the Okinawans. Other Okinawan assemblies will follow suit.

EDITORIALS

Mar 9, 2011

Rise in food and oil prices

Political turmoil in North Africa and the Middle East triggered by the change of government in Tunisia is pushing up crude oil prices. Crude oil prices, which were rather stable in the range of $70 to $80 per barrel the past year, are now hovering above $100 per barrel.

EDITORIALS

Mar 9, 2011

Adjusting the bar exam

Seventy-four new law schools have been established since 2004 under a reform policy for the legal profession. A new bar exam was introduced for graduates from these schools while the traditional bar exam, open to anybody, was continued. The latter, which had a history of more than 60 years, came to an...

EDITORIALS

Mar 8, 2011

Treating earthquake survivors

New Zealand authorities on March 3 ended their search for survivors of the Feb. 22 magnitude 6.3 earthquake that devastated Christchurch in the country's South Island. They judged that there was no possibility that any survivors remained under the rubble. The death toll from the quake rose to 166 by...

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

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Ayumi Matsuki, a priestess at Yoshiwara Shrine, shows off some "o-mamori" charms. She says visitors to the shrine have increased since the NHK drama “Unbound” began airing this month.

Tracing Tsutaya Juzaburo, Edo’s media maverick

By Alex K.T. Martin

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SWCC keeps changing with keyword ‘new challenges’

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