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November 29, 2024

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COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK

Feb 24, 2003

When is a war crime not a war crime?

By Hiroaki Sato

NEW YORK -- Gunning down civilians on the ground in war may constitute a war crime, but blasting civilians out of existence from high in the sky does not. Or so the general rule seems to be.

COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW

Feb 24, 2003

Hardest part will be rebuilding

By Constantine Pleshakov

MOSCOW -- A homeowner's golden rule is buy or build -- but never rebuild. The costs of adding a closet to your kitchen almost equals your mortgage; additional insulation ruins your budget; a new bedroom kills your credit.

EDITORIALS

Feb 23, 2003

Singing the karaoke blues

Japan has given much to world culture. Kimono, anime, sushi and ikebana are just some of the words that have become so well-known abroad they don't even need translating. But one pastime has come in the past few decades to represent Japan perhaps more authentically than any other activity -- and that's...

COMMENTARY

Feb 23, 2003

Don't ignore greater threat

By Ralph Cossa

HONOLULU -- The big debate raging in Washington these days is over which country poses the greater threat: North Korea or Iraq (with some throwing Iran into the mix, just to keep the old "axis of evil" intact).

COMMENTARY / World

Feb 23, 2003

Restructuring the U.N. Security Council

By George Sioris

CHIANG MAI, Thailand -- Although we live in an era of sad comparisons between the current status of the United Nations and the demise of the old League of Nations, let us hope and assume that the U.N. will survive its immense test without being relegated to "irrelevancy" and substituted by new formations...

COMMENTARY

Feb 23, 2003

Iraq crisis increases risks for Musharraf

By Farhan Bokhari

ISLAMABAD -- Protesters marching in Pakistani streets during worldwide demonstrations last weekend against United States-led plans to attack Iraq have triggered fresh speculation about the South Asian country's future relations with Washington. Pakistan has been a key U.S. ally in the fight against terror...

COMMENTARY / World

Feb 23, 2003

As U.N. dithers, Australian divide grows

By Alan Goodall

SYDNEY -- A United Nations resolution of the Iraq crisis cannot come too soon for Australia. Each day of delay gnaws at the easygoing tolerance that marks the Australian lifestyle.

EDITORIALS

Feb 22, 2003

'Shunto' has lost steam

Wage bargaining is the stuff of the annual springtime labor offensive known as "shunto." This year's wage round, however, is essentially different from previous ones because wage increases are not the main subject of labor-management negotiations. The Japanese Trade Union Confederation, or Rengo, the...

COMMENTARY / WASHINGTON UPDATE

Feb 22, 2003

Antiwar fever rises as the economy sinks

By Bob Keefe

WASHINGTON -- Two big questions have dominated Washington this week. When will this horrible, cold winter end? And when will the war in Iraq begin? While they are different subjects with different consequences, they are getting about equal time in the capital's conversation content.

COMMENTARY

Feb 22, 2003

Best policy Seoul can buy?

By Brad Glosserman

HONOLULU -- The unmaking of a hero is never pretty, but the fall of South Korean President Kim Dae Jung has been especially ugly. The statesman leaves behind a shredded legacy and he, like many of his predecessors, is but one step ahead of the prosecutor. Even his Nobel Peace Price has been tarnished:...

COMMENTARY / World

Feb 22, 2003

Water issues loom large in the 21st century

By Libor Jansky

The third Water Forum is expected to play a critical role in solving water issues in the 21st century. The world's population is predicted to grow from six billion today to nearly nine billion by 2050, increasing pressure on local authorities and planners to supply water to satisfy growing agricultural...

EDITORIALS

Feb 21, 2003

Clarify refugee policy

The incident in which four North Korean citizens who had fled from their country entered a Japanese school in Beijing and asked for asylum in Japan has posed a sobering question concerning Japan's refugee policy. Acting on lessons from the incident at Japan's consulate general in Shenyang last May, the...

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

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.

Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat

By Greg Dvorak

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’

Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’

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