Search - article

 
 
Reader Mail
Jul 19, 2009

Even 24 missiles are too many

Regarding Gwynne Dyer's July 12 article, "It's up to the five powers to bottle the nuclear genie": The can of worms was opened 64 years ago and the worms are unlikely ever to return to the can. Even if, say, the United States shed its entire nuclear arsenal and kept only one Trident submarine with 24...
Reader Mail
Jul 19, 2009

The overall approach to tourism

Regarding the July 14 article "Aso's 'manga museum' plan cool with Aussies": After all the friction over whaling between Australia and Japan, it's good to read about something that generates positive feelings among comics fans in both countries. Japan needs to attract millions of tourists every year...
Reader Mail
Jul 19, 2009

Costly drag on higher education

Regarding the July 2 article "Single moms fight for kids' futures": This is an important issue and many congratulations for printing it. In my own experience as a professor at Nagasaki University, many students in the evening part-time courses have saved up for 15 to 20 years to finance their university...
Reader Mail
Jul 16, 2009

'Spousal hire' par for 21st century

The May 25 reprinting of the Los Angeles Times' article "Support for women takes care of population" couldn't have been timelier. The Japanese Diet is debating an immigration bill that would end spouse visas for people doing "tanshin funin" (working at a post without one's family). Being forced to live...
Reader Mail
Jul 16, 2009

Adult content of digital publishing

Regarding Kazuaki Nagata's July 10 article, "Market booming in digital publishing": I attended the same digital publishing seminar and was amused that Nagata's comment — that the market drivers were "comics for young people as well as adult content" — was buried at the bottom of the story.
COMMENTARY
Jul 16, 2009

Reflecting on the lessons of Robert McNamara's war

The death of former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara at age 93 has reopened the debate on his role, first as architect for the Vietnam War, and then later in apologizing for it with his 1995 book "In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam." Since a hawk with a conscience is a rare commodity,...
Reader Mail
Jul 16, 2009

Misplaced excitement of the G8

I do not contest the global warming model of climate change. But it needs saying that the current phenomenon of the planet's ambient temperature rise is a feature of the end of the last ice age, which is an ongoing process still far from "finished" so long as polar ice caps and mountain glaciers exist....
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 15, 2009

Japan resident, get set for your date with dentistry

They were four simple words that I never wanted to hear: "Ha wo warimasu, ne (歯を割りますね, I'm going to split your tooth, OK?)."
COMMUNITY / Voices / HAVE YOUR SAY
Jul 14, 2009

'Discontinuous minds' and discrimination: some responses

Following are some readers' views on Dan O'Keeffe's June 16 Zeit Gist article " 'Discontinuous minds' block progress on discrimination":
Reader Mail
Jul 12, 2009

Change technological priorities

Regarding the July 8 article "Aso takes aim at wealthy states' 'land grabs' in developing world": A standing ovation to Prime Minister Taro Aso for addressing "responsible foreign investment" in agriculture to deal with the "food crisis" that may be looming ahead of us.
Reader Mail
Jul 12, 2009

Students lack drive and creativity

Regarding the June 30 article "Older, smaller population to impact Japan's choices": Writers Brad Glosserman and Tomoko Tsunoda say that in the future, due to Japan's declining population, Japan's "economic competitiveness" will be challenged as its "markets shrink."
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 12, 2009

'Campaign' star no longer life of the party

Takafumi Horie, the former CEO of Livedoor Inc., has nothing to do with the documentary "Campaign," which had a special public screening at the Rise X theater in Shibuya the morning of June 30. However, the subject of the movie, politics, is close to his heart, so he agreed to discuss it with the film's...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 10, 2009

F-35's superiority in the Japan-U.S. alliance

CANBERRA — I enjoyed reading the newspaper commentary in mid-May by Weston Konishi and Robert Dujarric on the hurdles to Japan's acquisition of F-22 aircraft, and broadly agreed with the thrust of their argument.
Reader Mail
Jul 9, 2009

Foreigners viewed as nuisance

If there is anything that makes me more determined to improve my Japanese, it is to fight racist claptrap like that (reported in the article "Visa overstayers given too many breaks: rightist"). Instead of being considered a benefit to the country, foreigners are seen as nothing short of a nuisance that...
Reader Mail
Jul 9, 2009

Power against the powerless

Regarding the July 1 article "Visa overstayers given too many breaks: rightist": The views of Daisuke Arikado are disturbing to say the least. They are sardonic, cynical and self-serving. To start with, instead of a highhanded name such as the Movement to Eradicate Crimes by Foreigners, why doesn't he...
COMMENTARY
Jul 8, 2009

Bolstering Japan-U.S. ties

The Obama administration has shown great good will toward Japan. This was evidenced by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's testimony at her Senate confirmation hearing, her choice of Japan as the first country she visited after taking office and the fact that Prime Minister Taro Aso was the first foreign...
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jul 7, 2009

Accommodation advice and visas

It's good to be able to report some positive experiences regarding finding accommodation in Japan. Here are a couple of letters we received.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Jul 7, 2009

Cops crack down with 'I pee' checks

My blog has been getting periodic pings about rumblings in Roppongi: Tokyo cops cleaning out pesky foreign touts before Olympic inspectors see them; the U.S. Embassy warning Americans to stay away from the area after reports of drugged drinks and thefts.
COMMUNITY / Voices / HOTLINE TO NAGATACHO
Jul 7, 2009

Calderon case shows need for new mind-set

Dear Japanese lawmakers,
Reader Mail
Jul 5, 2009

What are lawmakers trying to do?

Regarding the June 30 article "Activist sees holes in bills to snare illegals": It is heartening to read about a Japanese national with a heart that cares about issues of the non-Japanese community. Akira Hatate (director of the nongovernment organization Japan Civil Liberties Union) is absolutely right...
CULTURE / Books
Jul 5, 2009

Why Murakami's best-selling '1Q84' is worth the wait

When Shinchosha decided not to run a pre-marketing campaign for Haruki Murakami's new and highly anticipated two-volume novel, the publishing house must have banked on the book creating its own hype. It worked. The void soon filled with publicity and media speculation about the book's only available...
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Jul 3, 2009

Hatoyama gaffe exposes opposition rifts

When Democratic Party of Japan President Yukio Hatoyama let slip on FM radio on June 15 that a coalition with the Social Democratic Party and Kokumin Shinto (People's New Party) was paramount — but only until the DPJ wins next year's Upper House election and acquires a single-party majority — both...
Reader Mail
Jul 2, 2009

Luring homegrown sumo talent

Regarding the June 24 article "Sumo world's foreigners on rise, roll with punches": Tell me how shoving sand into a wrestler's mouth builds character, strength and stamina. And for a change of pace, we are expected to believe that pushing salt past the lips builds more virtuous qualities.
Reader Mail
Jul 2, 2009

Suicide mirrors others' disinterest

In the June 18 article "The safety nets for would-be suicides," Yasuyuki Shimizu, director of the suicide-prevention organization Lifelink, is quoted as saying that most people have regarded suicide as a personal problem, not society's. In her June 25 letter, "Enjoying what surrounds us," Japan Times...
Reader Mail
Jul 2, 2009

How to deal with a rising China

I respectfully disagree with Brahma Chellaney in his June 25 article, "Dancing with the dragon." As a center-left American, I agree with President Barack Obama's approach to China and would prefer that he go further. If any country is likely to become the next superpower, it is China. It is ahead of...
COMMENTARY
Jul 2, 2009

Don't bait the Russian bear

U.S. President Barack Obama's Moscow visit offers a historic opportunity to avert a new Cold War by establishing a more stable and cooperative relationship between the West and Russia.
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
Jul 1, 2009

Walsh still trying to clean up mess Thomas left

NEW YORK — In 14 months as Knicks president, Donnie Walsh's claim to fame is erasing two bloated salaries belonging to Zach Randolph and Jamal Crawford ($27,413,333) from New York's 2010 payroll, therefore, giving the team roughly $34 million in "additional" cap space to charm a couple collector items...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 30, 2009

Older, smaller population to impact Japan's choices

— The next few months will be crucial for Japan's defense and security policies. The National Defense Program Guidelines (NDPG), which outline the framework for national security policy, are due by yearend. This in turn provides the foundation for the Mid-Term Defense Program, which translates that...

Longform

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