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COMMENTARY / World
Aug 14, 2009

Cory Aquino's legacy of enriched freedom

MANILA — The death of former President Corazon Cojuangco Aquino — "Tita Cory" to most of the 92 million people of the Philippines — left behind a precious inheritance: a legacy of freedom that the Philippines came to share with oppressed peoples around the world.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Aug 14, 2009

Breaking all the rules in ceramics

For many people, the term "ceramic art" conjures up the image of functional ware on a dinner table: cups and bowls filled with food and drink, or perhaps ornate European platters or wabi-sabi Japanese teapots. To others, it may mean terra-cotta figurines or simply sculpture that uses clay as its primary...
Reader Mail
Aug 13, 2009

Steps toward human maturation

The Aug. 6 article by the Rev. Eric Freed, "Purpose of remembering," was one of the most appropriate statements yet with regard to the 64th anniversary of the atomic explosions at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. With persuasive and quiet eloquence, Freed appealed for our unavoidable commitment to being creative...
EDITORIALS
Aug 13, 2009

A mockery in Myanmar

To the surprise of very few, a court in Myanmar has found Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi guilty of violating internal security laws and given a three-year prison term. As a theatrical coda to the ruling, the military regime immediately cut the sentence to 18 months of house arrest — to...
COMMENTARY
Aug 12, 2009

Seven global lessons from a teachable event

WATERLOO, Ontario — Apparently Sgt. James Crowley's arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. in Boston on July 17 was "a teachable moment." Here are seven lessons relevant to world affairs.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Aug 11, 2009

TOEIC no turkey at 30

The Test of English for International Communication turns 30 this year. In three decades it has risen from humble beginnings to become one of the best-known tests in Japan. In December 1979, 3,000 people sat the first TOEIC. In 2008, people in Japan took it 1.7 million times. Many were repeat customers;...
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Aug 8, 2009

Goalkeeper Foster set for World Cup audition

LONDON — Carlo Ancelotti takes charge of Chelsea in a senior game for the first time on Sunday when it plays Manchester United in the Community Shield at Wembley.
EDITORIALS
Aug 8, 2009

Reviewing defense policy

An advisory body on security and defense submitted a report to Prime Minister Taro Aso on Aug. 4, calling for a review of Japan's defense-only posture, the traditional stance on the right to collective self-defense, and the weapons export ban. If proposals in the report are implemented, they would undermine...
EDITORIALS
Aug 6, 2009

Strive for nuclear disarmament

As Japan marks the 64th anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the world sees two forces working in opposite directions when it comes to the issue of nuclear weapons.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Aug 6, 2009

Perseverance pays off for Isohata's NBA cheerleading dream

Yoshimi Isohata took a bit of a detour. But she has no regrets and feels blessed to have this Golden opportunity.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Aug 4, 2009

Party offers a third way: happiness

As a historic general election looms on Aug. 30, Japan's long-suffering electorate faces a clear choice: vote for the conservative party that has virtually monopolized power since 1955, or opt for its more liberal but untested rival, which promises long-awaited reform. For those with a taste for the...
COMMUNITY / Voices / HAVE YOUR SAY
Aug 4, 2009

Extracting the urine: no legal grounds for deportation?

Re: Last month's Just Be Cause column, headlined "Cops crack down with 'I pee' checks":
Reader Mail
Aug 2, 2009

Lower-caste benefits squeezed

Regarding Gautaman Bhaskaran's July 7 article, "Battles with racism in India's own backyard": I understand that the Dalits in India have suffered a lot through no fault of their own. Even after the many years since India got its independence and despite the efforts afoot to improve the lot of Dalits...
COMMENTARY
Jul 31, 2009

Next word on intervention

WATERLOO, Ontario — The 1990s was a decade of conscience-shocking atrocities in Rwanda, the Balkans and East Timor. Unilateral actions by India and Vietnam to end atrocities in the 1970s had drawn international opprobrium and condemnation. The crises of the 1990s provoked agonized soul-searching on...
COMMENTARY
Jul 31, 2009

Gay ruling takes Delhi back to where it was

CHENNAI, India — The Delhi High Court's recent ruling that decriminalized sex between two consenting men or women is widely seen in India as a move toward a healthier sexual climate. Though confined to Delhi now, the law could eventually be adopted by the country's other regions.
Japan Times
JAPAN / ELECTION 2009
Jul 29, 2009

Politicians tap Twitter to tweak profiles

At 6:44 p.m. on July 15, Democratic Party of Japan lawmaker Seiji Osaka posed a question on his Twitter profile: "I think bringing the voting age down to 18 years old is OK. What do you think about it?"
COMMENTARY
Jul 29, 2009

Don't waste good intentions

When I read former Vice Foreign Minister Ryohei Murata's remarks in the newspaper, disclosing a secret agreement on port visits by U.S. ships carrying nuclear weapons, I was excited and hopeful that there would be new developments on this issue.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 29, 2009

Old problem festers on China's new frontier

WARSAW — Had the August 1991 putsch against Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev not failed, the riots and death recently seen in Xinjiang could have been taking place in Russia. Instead of hearing about a crackdown in Urumqi, Xinjiang's capital, we might be reading about hundreds killed on the streets...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jul 28, 2009

New law: no dues, no visa

In your wallet or somewhere at home, do you have a blue or pink card showing that you are enrolled in one of Japan's national health and pension programs? If not, and if you are thinking of extending your stay here, you may want to think about a recent revision to visa requirements for foreign residents....
COMMUNITY / Voices / HAVE YOUR SAY
Jul 28, 2009

My nursery nightmares: responses

Following are some readers' views on Jenny Holt's June 23 Zeit Gist article "My nursery nightmares":
COMMUNITY / Voices / HOTLINE TO NAGATACHO
Jul 28, 2009

Pocket knife lands tourist, 74, in lockup

To the Japanese government and law enforcement authorities,
EDITORIALS
Jul 23, 2009

Travel ban on North officials

The United Nations Security Council's sanctions committee has slapped a new set of sanctions on North Korea in accordance with Resolution 1874, which the council adopted June 12 in response to the North's second nuclear test on May 25. After the committee's decision July 16, Mr. Fazil Corman, deputy...
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jul 22, 2009

Wake up, hike out, tune in, move it

It's early on a summer morning and schoolchildren have gathered for some rhythmic exercise timed to music coming from the radio.

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