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COMMENTARY
Apr 8, 2010

Reverse Japan's insularity

Nine of the top 10 countries sending students to study at Harvard University, where I attended graduate school, have more students studying at the university now than 10 years ago. The only exception is Japan, where the number of students has declined. A decline in Japanese presence was also pointed...
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Apr 6, 2010

Japan, U.N. share blind spot on 'migrants'

On March 23, I gave a speech to Jorge Bustamante, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants, for NGO FRANCA regarding racial discrimination in Japan. Text follows:
Reader Mail
Apr 4, 2010

Ways to end drone dependency

Everything stated in Cesar Chelala's March 30 article, "Drone dependency trivializing Afghan war," is true. There is too much secrecy surrounding drone strikes that kill or injure innocents. So, what is Japan's solution for helping the Middle East, the Horn of Africa and South Asia?
Reader Mail
Apr 4, 2010

Wrong place for make-believe

Is the April 1 online article "Chinese consortium bids to purchase Tokyo Tower" a joke? The writing is too close to authentic for an April Fool's thing. It is confusing, not funny. I don't think newspapers should be playing April Fool's jokes. Do not play games with your readers! What is The Japan Times...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Apr 4, 2010

Basking in misplaced faith is no way to prepare for any disaster

"Calender journalism" is what it's called. It's when the anniversary of an event, ideally in some round number of years, provides the point of departure for an article commemorating the event and/or considering its ongoing relevance.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Apr 1, 2010

NHK engages its viewers in a 'global' debate

NHK wants to start a global debate about global issues but will people outside Japan join the conversation?
JAPAN
Apr 1, 2010

Chinese consortium bids to purchase Tokyo Tower

When Japan changes from analog to terrestrial digital TV broadcasting from July 24, 2011, the Tokyo Sky Tree, now under construction in Tokyo's Sumida Ward, will be the source of these transmissions for the Greater Kanto area. One big question that has remained unanswered up to now is what will become...
Japan Times
LIFE
Mar 28, 2010

Tri-lingual system proposed for world communications

May 15, 1939
Japan Times
LIFE
Mar 28, 2010

Study of Noh continues in West

Dec. 10, 1939
Japan Times
LIFE
Mar 28, 2010

Letter from Rapallo

Aug. 12, 1940
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 26, 2010

Japanese bands go big in Texas at SXSW festival

AUSTIN, Texas — 'We want to conquer the world," says Okamoto's vocalist Shou Okamoto after their well-received gig at the 24th annual South by Southwest (SXSW) Music and Media Conference.
Reader Mail
Mar 25, 2010

Limits needed on child allowance

The March 18 article "Residency requirement eyed for child allowance" made me realize that something is wrong [with the plan to pay families ¥13,000 per month for each child of junior high school age or younger]. Why should Japan raise its income tax [so that it can pay the allowance to foreign parents...
Reader Mail
Mar 25, 2010

Enough to gag a dolphin-lover

The March 10 article " 'Cove' Oscar won't end Taiji dolphin kill" mentions Japan's outrage over the activist documentary film that describes the town of Taiji, Wakayama, as having a "very big secret" — the annual killing of 20,000 dolphins near its shores.
Reader Mail
Mar 25, 2010

No chance of engaging generals

Regarding the March 13 AP article "U.S. suggests new engagement with Myanmar is failing": Engagement never had the slightest chance of success, as it was nothing more than wishful thinking based on the mistaken belief that if U.S. President Barack Obama opened his mouth and waved his index finger, everything...
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 23, 2010

Political meddling hurts corporate value

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — The U.S. Supreme Court recently struck down limits on the freedom of companies to spend money on political elections. Large, publicly traded companies in other countries also often have a loose rein on their use of corporate resources to influence political outcomes, fueling fears...
EDITORIALS
Mar 23, 2010

New foundations for contract law

A panel of the Justice Ministry's Legislative Council has begun discussing revisions to the law of obligations, which sets down rules related to personal liability for sales and other commercial contracts. The discussions come at the request of Justice Minister Keiko Chiba.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Mar 23, 2010

Higher education: opening up or closing in?

First in a two-part series
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Mar 22, 2010

A haphazard approach to making foreign policy

"I wonder to what extent the Hatoyama administration relies on bureaucrats for its foreign policy," a diplomat from a Middle Eastern country said recently. "It has not expressed its own messages on issues such as Iran's nuclear weapons programs and the Mideast peace process. That makes me wonder who...
JAPAN / History / JAPAN TIMES GONE BY
Mar 21, 2010

The jury system, Japan quits League, Hachiko dies, Sahara radioactive fallout in Japan, Tsukuba Expo opens

100 YEARS AGO
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Mar 19, 2010

Japanese bureaucracy can be incredibly frustrating, but it also makes great entertainment

In the early summer of 2008, Japan's theater world was agog as details emerged of a decision by senior board members of the New National Theatre Tokyo (NNTT) to replace Hitoshi Uyama, its acclaimed artistic director, barely a year into the job, with the mainstream director Keiko Miyata from September...
JAPAN / GOVERNMENT DEBT CRISIS
Mar 19, 2010

Bubble prophet fears new disaster

Prominent economist Yukio Noguchi is one of the few who correctly predicted the collapse of Japan's bubble economy in 1987, warning the preceding euphoria was based on a major distortion in land prices.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Mar 18, 2010

Driving schools cope with an auto-immune generation

Driving schools used to be on easy street but they're struggling these days and trying to get control of the wheel.
Reader Mail
Mar 18, 2010

Double-take on fashion label

Regarding the March 12 article "Prada accused of maltreatment": I am shocked and surprised [that the Italian fashion label has been accused of discriminating against managers in Japan because of their appearance]. I knew things like this happen in the industry, but not to this extent. That loyal, hardworking...
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 17, 2010

A crisis of understanding

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Few economists predicted the current economic crisis, and there is little agreement among them about its ultimate causes. So, not surprisingly, economists are not in a good position to forecast how quickly it will end, either.
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Mar 15, 2010

Running against the wind

In the gubernatorial election of Nagasaki Prefecture on Feb. 21, the candidate backed by the ruling Democratic Party of Japan was roundly defeated by his opponent, who was supported by the No. 1 opposition Liberal Democratic Party. The winner, former Vice Gov. Hodo Nakamura, garnered 44.9 percent of...
Reader Mail
Mar 14, 2010

Conservation worth the trouble

Regarding Eric Johnston's March 4 article, "Battle lines drawn across Nagoya land": Many people may see no reason to save such a small tract of open land shared with local flora and fauna. I may be an Australian who has had all-too-brief contact with Japan, but if I were still teaching in Japan, I would...
EDITORIALS
Mar 13, 2010

Uphold defense principles

A private advisory panel of experts for Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has started discussions on a new defense program outline, which will serve as the basic guidelines for the nation's defense policy. The coming defense program outline will be the fourth, following those adopted in 1976, 1995 and 2004....
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / BY THE GLASS
Mar 12, 2010

Wine importers keep their cool

A few years ago, I enjoyed a chilled glass of wine while sitting on a cobbled street in the medieval French city of Chinon in the heart of Loire Valley; the wine was from the surrounding vineyards of Samur and tasted absolutely divine. When I got the chance to sample a similar wine from the same region...

Longform

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