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Reader Mail
Jul 2, 2014

War decisions aren't 'collective'

Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution states that "the Japanese people shall forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes."
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 1, 2014

Abe wins battle to broaden defense policy

The administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe authorizes a reinterpretation of war-renouncing Article 9 of the Constitution, allowing Japan for the first time since World War II to come to the aid of an ally under attack.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 30, 2014

Japan on verge of legalizing war as Komeito bends

Japan is set Tuesday to legalize waging war even when not under direct attack. It is a drastic departure from its postwar position that the war-renouncing Constitution prohibits exercising the right to collective self-defense.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 27, 2014

Collective defense deal near

The ruling coalition closes in on three new standards that would let the Japanese military use force in cases other than when Japan is under attack.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 22, 2014

University is not a business

Members of the Industrial Competitiveness Council and others are headed down a dead-end road trying to remake the governance of Japan's universities after that of business corporations.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jun 21, 2014

Any publicity is good news for beer firms

At a Tokyo news conference on June 4, Sapporo Beer President Masaki Oga announced his company would halt sales of its Goku Zero alcoholic beverage after current inventory was shipped. The parent company, Sapporo Holdings, had been contacted by the National Tax Agency in January regarding the manufacturing...
Japan Times
WORLD
Jun 5, 2014

'Godfather of ecstasy' dies at 88

Alexander "Sasha" Shulgin, a biochemist and former Dow Chemical Co. researcher who introduced psychologists to the drug MDMA and became known as "the godfather of ecstasy," has died. He was 88.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
May 30, 2014

No end to Tottenham's revolving managerial door

When you have appointed eight managers during your 13 years as chairman winning only one League Cup, it is understandable that the fans view you with a certain cynicism.
Reader Mail
May 28, 2014

U.S. patience, vigilance needed

Regarding Doug Bandow's May 24 article "Opportunity for U.S. to extricate itself from Korea": I wonder if this article was written before or after last week's exchange of naval gunfire between the two Koreas.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 27, 2014

Nationalistic sentiment keeps Abe's popularity ratings high

The Abe Cabinet continues to enjoy an approval rating of more than 50 percent, according to a recent survey, because of the knock-on effect of 'Abenomics,' the dearth of other viable leaders and, like it or not, nationalist sentiment.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 27, 2014

Recent events in Asia could be tipping points

Russia's struggle to conclude a long-term gas-supply deal with China seems to suggest that China is happy to see Russian President Vladimir Putin poke his finger into the West's eye but that China is more interested in turning Russia into the sort of vassal state that Putin seeks for Ukraine.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
May 17, 2014

Fix population problem by helping families

For the past 18 months, media outlets in Japan and abroad have looked approvingly upon Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's efforts to improve the country's economic future through proactive measures dubbed "Abenomics." The goal is to spur inflation so that companies can make more money and increase pay, thus...
JAPAN
May 12, 2014

Journalist now stands by Nanjing book

In a reversal, journalist Henry S. Stokes stands by the revisionist conclusion of his Japanese book that the Nanjing Massacre never occurred, after accusing his translator of right-wing sabotage.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
May 10, 2014

Going nuclear: How close has Japan come?

We examine the historical debate on the country's nuclear ambitions
COMMENTARY / World
May 5, 2014

Is it right to describe Israel as an apartheid state?

Although a de facto apartheid already exists in the West Bank, one of reasons to avoid using the term apartheid is that it doesn't start conversations. It ends them.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
May 3, 2014

Pop star gaffes no sweat to Cool Japan

Whatever you want to say about Justin Bieber's lack of common sense, as either a pop star or a mortal, you have to admit he has incredible timing. He managed to capture the attention of the world with his impromptu visit to Yasukuni Shrine by posting photos of it the day after more than 100 Japanese...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Apr 30, 2014

Rough transition raises issues over F/T's future

On Dec. 18, 2013, the Festival/Tokyo website announced that following the implementation of "a new administration system," Program Director Chiaki Soma, 38, would resign from her position and be replaced at the end of March 2014 by Sachio Ichimura, 64, the then chairman of F/T's executive committee....
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Apr 28, 2014

Five activists win court fight but battle against Tokyo university is not over

The Tokyo High Court recently upheld the acquittal of the 'Hosei Five' on charges under the Law for the Punishment of Acts of Violence in a case that became a rallying point for students across Japan.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Apr 24, 2014

College students' savings habits indicate anxiety about the future

In the last 10 years student savings has increased by 80 percent.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 22, 2014

Gabriel Garcia Marquez's 'lost' political legacy

Two pet themes of the late writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez was the abusive relationship between big industrial powers and Latin American and Caribbean countries, and the state of human rights on the continent.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Apr 9, 2014

Foreign workers fear exploitation as Olympic projects gather steam

My first Labor Pains column of the new fiscal year will look at the government's recent proposal for bringing in foreign workers.
Reader Mail
Apr 9, 2014

Kidnapping parent deserves life

In Tomohiro Osaki's April 5 article, "Child abduction agreement too late for many parents," Miho Watanabe, divorced from an allegedly abusive American husband, is portrayed as the kind of Japanese woman whom the government has always protected in these international child custody situations: A victim...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 4, 2014

Japan's image hurt by Abe's militarist facade: Nye

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's nationalistic views on history are hurting Japan's chances in an increasingly public PR battle with China and South Korea, a Harvard professor says.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Apr 2, 2014

Left-behind dad eyes an end to abduction culture

How Richard Cory rescued his daughter and lost his abducted sons.

Longform

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