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Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 13, 2017

Failure of economic theories

Are there any answers to the digital Wild West that seems to be taking over?
EDITORIALS
Dec 4, 2016

Diverse views on abdication

The government must reflect the will of the people when it decides how to respond to Emperor Akihito's desire to abdicate.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 10, 2016

President Trump: Japanese-Americans, Japanese in U.S. weigh in

People of Japanese ancestry speak up about their impressions of President-elect Donald Trump.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Nov 6, 2016

Security scare for Trump in frenzied final days of White House campaigning

Republican Donald Trump was rushed off stage by security agents at a rally in Reno, Nevada, on Saturday night after a perceived security threat as he and Democrat Hillary Clinton swept across states that could prove decisive in Tuesday's presidential election.
Japan Times
SPORTS / MAN ABOUT SPORTS
Sep 6, 2016

Kaepernick putting career on line with anthem issue

MAS comes today to neither bury nor praise San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 16, 2016

Fix campaign or step aside, Wall Street Journal tells Trump

Republican Donald Trump should fix his stumbling White House campaign in the next three weeks or step down, The Wall Street Journal said on Monday in a sharply worded warning from a leading conservative voice.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 2, 2016

On the campaign trail for the foreign right to vote

Permanent residents argue their tax contributions entitle them to a degree of representation at the ballot box. With the Upper House election just around the corner, we examine both sides of the debate.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 23, 2016

Why are some politicians impervious to facts?

Many politicians make innaccurate statements, and most people can't be bothered to question them.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
May 4, 2016

Bongbong Marcos leads family's revival in the Philippines

For the son and namesake of late Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos, winning the vice presidency in next week's election is as much about restoring his family's tainted image as it is about making the country a better place.
EDITORIALS
Apr 2, 2016

China's tight control of speech

Chinese President Xi Jinping's stringent control of speech and media outlets could increase public frustration — a potential source of social instability.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 7, 2015

Japan has little to gain by resuming its whale hunt

The government's decision to defy the International Court of Justice and send the whaling fleet to the Antarctic is sure to inflame anti-Japan sentiment worldwide.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Nov 14, 2015

Chinese media crucial in public diplomacy effort

Chinese President Xi Jinping recently had a cameo in the animated adult cartoon "South Park." In the episode, Xi (not the real Xi) revealed that Japan decides "who is gay or not" in Asia. The character also said the Japanese "are dogs who refuse not apologize to the Chinese Republic" and then kissed...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 6, 2015

Republicans aside, NRA may be losing its grip

U.S. public opinion on guns seems to be going in the same direction as it did on same-sex marriage — a compete reversal.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Oct 17, 2015

What's in a name? Japan debates whether to allow spouses to adopt separate surnames

Upper House lawmaker Mizuho Fukushima and her partner, Yuichi Kaido, have been together for about 40 years. They don't celebrate any kind of anniversary, however, because they've never been officially married.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues
Sep 27, 2015

Legal change will make temp purgatory permanent for many Japanese workers

Eight years ago, a TV drama about temporary workers generated a great deal of excitement around Japan. In "Haken no Hinkaku" ("Dignity of a Temp"), model-actress-singer Ryoko Shinohara played Haruko Omae, a "super-temp" who masterfully tackled the myriad troubles that arose in her ¥3,000-an-hour job....
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 9, 2015

The world hates Russia. Russia hates it back

A new report by Pew Research Center show how effectively President Vladimir Putin has managed to isolate Russia and breed a siege mentality in it against the West.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 30, 2015

Nation's political culture stands at major crossroads

Will Japan be dragged down by egocentric anti-intellectualism and suspension of judgment, or will a new civic culture turn the nation into a more mature democracy?
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 14, 2015

An idiot ready to serve on day 900

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and far too many other would-be U.S. presidents lack a solid grasp of critical domestic and foreign policy issues.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 3, 2015

What would Confucius say about gay marriage?

The U.S. ruling on same-sex marriage has sparked a national discussion on gay rights in China, and the tone, surprisingly, has been generally welcoming.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jun 30, 2015

For Europe's anti-establishment ranks, Tsipras an unlikely hero

European anti-establishment parties of all political colours are rallying behind Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in his standoff with creditors, which threatens to force Athens out of the eurozone and undermine the single currency.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Jun 27, 2015

U.S. Supreme Court rules in favor of gay marriage nationwide

The Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the U.S. Constitution provides same-sex couples the right to marry, in a historic triumph for the American gay rights movement.
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
May 11, 2015

Imperial family will pay close attention to Abe's statement

The Abe administration's effort to break away from the postwar regime is a defiant political move to file a formal objection to the postwar Imperial family and to put Japan's best 'knowledgeable and thinking people' into a subordinate position.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
May 4, 2015

18 looms as new age of majority

Japan's youth will finally get a chance to have their voices heard in politics.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 27, 2015

Why Chinese tourists love Japan

Despite the apparent ill will that Beijing, and occasionally the Chinese public, express toward Tokyo, Chinese tourists can't seem to get enough of Japan. In 2014, Chinese visits to Japan increased 83 percent on the previous year.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 13, 2015

Ukraine is worst of Obama's many foreign policy disasters

If U.S. President Barack Obama is to be blamed for errors with Libya, the Mideast and especially Ukraine, it is also true that his foreign policies have reflected a consensus in the U.S. governing class and popular opinion alike that America must always be 'first.'
EDITORIALS
Feb 15, 2015

Questions of self-defense

A legislative package of bills on security — prepared by the ruling coalition with the aim of implementing the Abe Cabinet's decision last July to enable Japan to engage in collective self-defense — will no doubt be the main focus of the current Diet session.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Feb 3, 2015

Greece ruptures 30 years of political consensus in Europe

By catapulting to power an improbable alliance of the hard -left and nationalist far-right, Greece has shaken up Europe's political kaleidoscope and may have signaled the end of an era of centrist consensus.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?