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Nov 8, 2009

Manila lacks leverage with Burma

In his Oct. 29 letter, "ASEAN's act is far from together," Manuel J. Laserna Jr. claims that the Philippines has been reluctant to admonish the Myanmar regime (aka Burma) for its human rights abuses. This is not accurate.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Nov 8, 2009

Japan's roundabout road issue

One of the most contentious components of the Democratic Party of Japan's manifesto is the pledge to make all expressways free. In media survey after media survey, the portion of respondents who don't support the proposal has been consistently between 60 and 65 percent. The Liberal Democratic Party has...
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 6, 2009

Recalling a saint's legacy to leprosy victims

In early October, "Father Damien" was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI in Rome. This religious and spiritual ceremony is an opportunity to reflect on Father Damien's life and the lives of those with whom he was most closely associated — people affected by leprosy.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 5, 2009

Dollar dying at the hands of a weak renminbi

WASHINGTON — Over the last several weeks, the dollar's depreciation against the euro and yen has grabbed global attention. In a normal world, the dollar's weakening would be welcome, as it would help the United States come to grips with its unsustainable trade deficit. But, in a world where China links...
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Nov 3, 2009

Demography vs. demagoguery: when politics, science collide

Last June, I attended a symposium sponsored by the German Institute of Japanese Studies. Themed "Imploding Populations: Global and Local Challenges of Demographic Change," I took in presentations about health care, international and domestic migration, and life in a geriatric society.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 3, 2009

Asians to see if Obama was worth the wait

SINGAPORE — Come the middle of this month, almost all the key players of Asia will meet in Singapore at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, which will include other Pacific leaders plus U.S. President Barack Obama.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Nov 3, 2009

Demography vs. demagoguery: when politics, science collide

Last June, I attended a symposium sponsored by the German Institute of Japanese Studies. Themed "Imploding Populations: Global and Local Challenges of Demographic Change," I took in presentations about health care, international and domestic migration, and life in a geriatric society.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Nov 3, 2009

The fatally flawed math of risking it all in Japan

Whenever Richard Cory went down town, We people on the pavement looked at him: He was a gentleman from sole to crown, Clean favored, and imperially slim.
EDITORIALS
Oct 31, 2009

More doubts about Copenhagen

The prospects for success at the United Nations meeting in December in Copenhagen to devise a global accord to fight global warming appear to be receding. Ironically, one reason for the growing pessimism is the bilateral agreement struck by China and India, two of the world's leading producers of greenhouse...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 30, 2009

There's nothing like a local brew

Once upon a time, all sake was made with locally grown rice. Then came the rise of a particularly reliable strain called Yamada Nishiki, and the scene changed dramatically. Yamada Nishiki, which accounts for nearly 30 percent of Japan's sake rice, is resilient and easily shipped between prefectures....
CULTURE / Film
Oct 30, 2009

'Mother'

Korean auteur Joon-ho Bong's latest, "Mother," combines the calculated suspense and sophisticated psychological thrills of his breakthrough work "Memories of Murder" (2003), with observations of East Asian motherhood gone over the edge.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 30, 2009

There's nothing like a local brew

Once upon a time, all sake was made with locally grown rice. Then came the rise of a particularly reliable strain called Yamada Nishiki, and the scene changed dramatically. Yamada Nishiki, which accounts for nearly 30 percent of Japan's sake rice, is resilient and easily shipped between prefectures....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Oct 30, 2009

Bringing SecondLife into the real art world

Born in Guangzhou in 1978 and now based in Beijing, Cao Fei is one of China's most prominent young artists, known for photographs and videos that combine elements of fantasy and documentary to reflect on cultural shifts since the country's economic opening at the start of the 1980s.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 29, 2009

Hiroshima beckons Obama

KYOTO — For the past 64 years the name "Hiroshima" has conjured a nightmare vision for all humanity: the unthinkable specter of instantaneous atomic annihilation. Only by personally visiting Hiroshima or Nagasaki, the two cities that have experienced atomic bombing, can one begin to grasp the threat...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 28, 2009

Free expression under fire

GUATEMALA CITY — Freedom of expression is one of the most important cornerstones of a free and open society. Guarantees of freedom of expression allow citizens to learn about mistakes of the powerful and help reveal corruption at all levels.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Oct 27, 2009

Mystery train

How do you increase commuters when train fares are too high? Ask the land/transportation ministry for a break.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Oct 27, 2009

File-sharing: Handle Winny at your own risk

More than a decade since the heyday of Napster shareware, peer-to-peer file distribution remains a key tool for Internet users exchanging music and movie files online. The leading program in Japan is Winny, an application distributed free of charge since May 2002 by former University of Tokyo researcher...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Oct 27, 2009

Immigration showing signs of ninjo

Last month, I was asked to take part in a public panel discussion on the recently released Harrison Ford blockbuster "Crossing Over." In the film, Ford plays an L.A. Immigration and Customs officer with a conscience, increasingly disturbed by the human consequences of his job.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Oct 27, 2009

Tokyoites foot bill for Metro finger-wagging

If you scoot around Japan's capital on Tokyo Metro, chances are you can call to your mind's eye Bunpei Yorifuji's manner posters. You've probably snickered at Yorifuji's innuendo-laden slogan "Please do it at home" and, like me, look forward to seeing his silly etiquette lessons debut each month in the...
EDITORIALS
Oct 25, 2009

A runoff in Afghanistan

Afghanistan will hold a runoff election after all. After weeks of intense speculation, fueled by allegations of fraud in the first round of the presidential ballot, election monitors have concluded that incumbent President Hamid Karzai did not win an outright majority.
CULTURE / Books
Oct 25, 2009

Ripping yarn of the oddball genius who uncovered China's greatest secrets

BOMB, BOOK & COMPASS: Joseph Needham and the Great Secrets of China, by Simon Winchester. Penguin, 317 pp., ¥2,100 (hardcover) There are certain extraordinary people whose lives are by no means pre-ordained. Joseph Needham was one such person. One of the world's leading biochemists, he would go on to...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Oct 25, 2009

Hard-working kids documentary, tales from teen mothers and housewife-volleyball sitcom

This week, NHK's BS1 channel will present in bilingual format a series of overseas documentaries that show "children working hard" for their families and communities.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / LIQUID CULTURE
Oct 23, 2009

This obscure liqueur may save your soul

This isn't a story about Chartreuse, but let's begin there.
JAPAN
Oct 22, 2009

Guam move depends on Futenma: Gates

The planned relocation of 8,000 U.S. Marines from Okinawa to Guam will suffer a setback if Tokyo does not abide by other agreements on the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said Wednesday.

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