Search - opinion

 
 
Reader Mail
Jan 25, 2019

Bad funding decisions ail universities

Regarding the opinion piece "The global decline of Japanese universities" in the Jan. 19 edition, I'm not sure professor Takamitsu Sawa has a real grasp of what ails Japan's universities most. More important than how they are evaluated internationally is how their dwindling resources are misused to begin...
Reader Mail
Jan 25, 2019

If Futenma, why not Yokota too?

To our chagrin and fury, the Abe government has started landfill work at Henoko in Okinawa Prefecture, ruthlessly destroying the pristine natural environment.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 24, 2019

Give the BOJ a break

The central bank is buffeted by the same factors as its global peers — and homegrown challenges that are tougher to tackle.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 24, 2019

The Japanese family, seen through Iranian eyes

Iranian director Ida Panahandeh's fourth feature, "The Nikaidos' Fall," took her way beyond her comfort zone. She didn't speak Japanese nor had she ever visited the country, and yet there she was with a Japanese crew and cast, filming a story about the Japanese family dynamic in the ancient city of Tenri...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 23, 2019

Story of Iwao Hakamada, boxer who spent 48 years on death row, to become manga series

The story of Iwao Hakamada, a former professional boxer and death-row inmate, 82, who continues to battle to clear his name over a 1966 quadruple murder, will be adapted into a manga series, supporters of the convict announced Wednesday.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Jan 23, 2019

Trying out a lesson on traditional notions of gender

I teach a class of 38 at Hamamatsu Higashi Senior High School in Shizuoka Prefecture, and earlier this month I tried out a gender-themed lesson from Alexander Dutson and James Hill's "Thinking Experiments."
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 22, 2019

The world's think tank dilemma

Foreign influence-peddling and populist attacks on truth pose a threat to think tanks and to democracy itself.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 22, 2019

Competitive culture brings out the worst in scientists

A Chinese researcher wanted to be a pioneer so badly that he ignored ethical boundaries; others think a Nobel is a license to rant
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 22, 2019

Where is the European Union's Brexit policy?

The U.K. has set a new standard for political paralysis — but the EU has little to boast about.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 22, 2019

Russians' trust in Vladimir Putin falls to 13-year low of 33.4%, state pollster reports

Public trust in President Vladimir Putin has fallen to its lowest level in 13 years, according to a Russian state pollster, a setback for the Kremlin, which works hard to burnish Putin's image as a wise father-of-the-nation-style leader.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 21, 2019

Why California's crusade against receipts is pointless

A proposal to ban the paper slips, like plastic straws, asks little of citizens and will have just as little impact on the environment.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 21, 2019

China also built a big, beautiful wall, but it failed

Political infighting and xenophobia doomed the Ming Dynasty's attempts to shore up border security. Sound familiar?
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 19, 2019

Hitachi chief's remarks on nuclear industry spark debate

On Jan. 1, Hiroaki Nakanishi, chairman of the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren), held press interviews on the outlook of the business community and, at one point, the discussion turned to nuclear energy.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Jan 19, 2019

Ollan Cassell thinks embattled JOC chief Tsunekazu Takeda should step aside in wake of French probe

With serious allegations of corruption and bribery linked to Japanese Olympic Committee chief Tsunekazu Takeda, a prominent member of the global sports community issued a call for Japanese authorities to sever ties with him.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 19, 2019

The U.S. should go back to the moon

There could be clues to the early days of our solar system, and it could be a proving ground for technologies to send astronauts farther into space.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 18, 2019

Rigging polls 'was at the direction of' Trump, admits his ex-lawyer, Michael Cohen

Michael Cohen, U.S. President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer, said on Thursday he paid a firm to manipulate online polling data "at the direction of and for the sole benefit of" Trump.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 17, 2019

Russia calls on Japan to recognize outcome of World War II

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov denied on Wednesday that Moscow was imposing an ultimatum on Japan in talks to end a decadeslong territorial dispute, but called on Tokyo to recognize the results of World War II.
EDITORIALS
Jan 16, 2019

Another historic vote on Brexit

British Prime Minister Theresa May has struggled to find a consensus that would allow Brexit to proceed. The failure is not hers, but that of the entire British political class.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 16, 2019

May's humbling offers a glimmer of hope

There was not much meaningful about Tuesday's Brexit vote, but at least the prime minister is now finally promising to build consensus.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 16, 2019

Saudi aide fired over Jamal Khashoggi murder still wields influence, say sources

A Saudi royal adviser fired over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi continues to wield influence in Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's inner circle, according to Western, Arab and Saudi sources with links to the royal court.
EDITORIALS
Jan 15, 2019

Hostage diplomacy becomes new normal

While not unprecedented, the recent spate of hostage-taking incidents looks like a new normal in international diplomacy.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 15, 2019

America's cold warriors hold the key to handling China

The West needs a plan for China like it had against the Soviet Union.
Japan Times
Figure Skating / ICE TIME
Jan 15, 2019

Takahiko Kozuka aiming to enrich skating

When a skater's career comes to an end, they are often faced with a difficult choice about how to proceed with their life.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 14, 2019

India risks becoming a Hindu Pakistan

A new law targeting Muslim migrants threatens India's identity as a land for all creeds.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Jan 14, 2019

Using 'kaneru' incorrectly is something we simply cannot do

The verb u304bu306du308b is slightly complicated. It translates as “being unable to” and is often attached to a verb (X) in its masu-stem form (the masu-form with u307eu3059 removed).
Japan Times
WORLD / FOCUS
Jan 14, 2019

World awash in sustainable palm oil, but consumers unwilling to pay premium for environmentally friendly supply

The world's biggest growers of palm oil say they're stepping up efforts to produce the contentious commodity more sustainably, but consumers are unwilling to pay more for environmentally friendly supply.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Jan 12, 2019

Aki Fujita Taguchi on life behind the camera

Rock photographer Aki Fujita Taguchi reveals how to snap the essence of a band in just three songs.

Longform

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