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January 24, 2025

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EDITORIALS

Nov 14, 2007

The dollar tumbles

There is something weirdly appropriate about the fact that it took a supermodel and not an economist to draw attention to the plight of the U.S. dollar. Reports that Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen allegedly refused to be paid in greenbacks and insisted on euros had markets aflutter and highlighted...

EDITORIALS

Nov 13, 2007

The takeover of Nova

The court-appointed trustees of Nova Corp. have given up trying to rehabilitate the nation's largest language-school chain and have chosen a Nagoya-based company to take over part of Nova's business. Although the trustees' quick decision suggested that a business solution was at hand and the new company...

EDITORIALS

Nov 13, 2007

Joy of learning marked down

A panel of the Central Education Council, which advises the education minister, has compiled an interim report that urges more class hours for core subjects in elementary and junior high schools — the first such move in 30 years. The proposal would be carried out as early as in 2011 as courses of study...

EDITORIALS

Nov 11, 2007

Mr. Musharraf's misrule

In a move reminiscent of the Vietnam-era logic that justified destroying a village to save it from communism, Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf has suspended his country's constitution for the sake of saving its democracy. That decision is only the latest in a series of missteps that have undermined...

EDITORIALS

Nov 10, 2007

Hooked on hired help

Blackwater USA, a private security company, is undergoing unprecedented scrutiny following the shooting deaths of 17 Iraqis earlier this year. The investigation has revealed that this was only the most recent in a string of incidents that demonstrates horrific indifference to the violence perpetrated...

EDITORIALS

Nov 9, 2007

Difficult path for Mr. Ozawa

A fter a few days of fussing in the Democratic Party of Japan, Mr. Ichiro Ozawa on Tuesday withdrew his offer to resign as head of the No. 1 opposition party. Mr. Ozawa had announced his resignation over the weekend to express a sense of responsibility for causing a rift in the party over his handling...

EDITORIALS

Nov 9, 2007

Hope for hepatitis C settlement

The Osaka High Court has recommended that the parties involved in a lawsuit over hepatitis C virus infections caused by the use of tainted blood products compromise and reach a settlement. It is hoped that the state and drug makers will be ready to take responsibility for the medical disaster and apologize...

EDITORIALS

Nov 8, 2007

Mr. Putin's faulty history

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ratcheted up rhetoric against U.S. plans to deploy a missile shield in Europe. He recently paralleled Washington's plans with the Cuban missile crisis in 1962, considered to be the closest the world ever came to nuclear war. Although he quickly dismissed the chances...

EDITORIALS

Nov 8, 2007

Escalation in Sri Lanka

Fighting in Sri Lanka is intensifying. The Tamil Tiger rebels have stepped up attacks on government facilities and the military is responding in kind. The result is an escalation of violence that continues to exact a horrifying toll on civilians. This often forgotten conflict shows no sign of exhausting...

EDITORIALS

Nov 7, 2007

Bizarre offer to quit

Mr. Ichiro Ozawa's announcement of his offer to resign as head of the Democratic Party of Japan, which controls the Upper House together with other opposition forces, was too abrupt and bizarre. His behavior was irresponsible, especially in light of his party's strength in the Upper House. He had the...

EDITORIALS

Nov 6, 2007

Safety assurances not fault-free

The Shizuoka District Court ruled Oct. 26 that reactors at Chubu Electric Power Co.'s Hamaoka nuclear power plant in Shizuoka Prefecture are designed to endure future possible major earthquakes and do not have to be shut down. The ruling signifies a defeat for citizens who had filed the lawsuit against...

EDITORIALS

Nov 5, 2007

New approach to rural revitalization

The government is tackling the urgent tasks of revitalizing local economies and reducing the gap between prosperous urban regions and economically weak rural regions. Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda has established a "rural regions revitalization headquarters," serving as its head; all the Cabinet ministers...

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

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

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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