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JAPAN
Apr 10, 2009

DPJ would ban corporate funds in political arena

A key political reform committee of the Democratic Party of Japan, whose leader, Ichiro Ozawa, is mired in an illicit funds scandal, unveiled a draft report on political funds Thursday that seeks a complete ban on corporate donations.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / IGADGET
Mar 25, 2009

A revolution in lighting, Japan's Kindle and an on-the-go theater

Light fantastic: The traditional light bulb in this period of global warming is seen as wasteful: It uses too much electricity and has too short a life span. Bulbs that use light-emitting diodes (LED) are seen as leading candidates to replace the incandescent bulb. Toshiba is promoting this technology...
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2009

Ozawa says aide's arrest was an abuse

Democratic Party of Japan President Ichiro Ozawa on Wednesday flatly denied that his chief secretary knowingly accepted illicit donations from scandal-tainted Nishimatsu Construction Co. and accused prosecutors of "wrongful exercise of authority" in arresting the aide.
COMMENTARY
Feb 27, 2009

Econ lessons from Japan

Searching the reasons for Japan's "lost decade" — the deflation and stunted growth said to have plagued Japan ever since the collapse of the "bubble economy" in the early 1990s — has long been popular among U.S. and British commentators seeking an answer to the West's current economic problems.
Japan Times
SUMO / SUMO SCRIBBLINGS
Feb 20, 2009

Sumo, a sport of humble respect and grand entrances

Sumo is a physical sport to many, but it is very much a spiritual rite to others. The bouts commence and end with a bow, in much the same way as judo or kendo bouts start with a similar acknowledgment of the opponent. Mutual respect is forever the name of the de facto national game.
JAPAN
Dec 25, 2008

State to aid foreigners in dire financial straits

A government plan to support foreigners living permanently in Japan who have lost their jobs and are in financial distress amid the severe recession was revealed Wednesday by Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Dec 9, 2008

'Tokyo Two' fight to clear names

Six months ago Junichi Sato and Toru Suzuki were ordinary men looking after young families. But in June they were arrested by a large group of uniformed police, taken to a detention center in Aomori Prefecture, northern Japan, and held for 26 days.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 20, 2008

Tamogami views no secret

Unsworn testimony before an Upper House committee last week shed light on axed Air Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Gen. Toshio Tamogami's nationalist views, but questions persist over how such a vocal revisionist was appointed ASDF chief to begin with.
EDITORIALS
Nov 12, 2008

Keeping sex offenders close

In late September, South Korea joined a group of nations where the movements of released sex-crime offenders are electronically monitored. Such offenders have to wear electronic anklets and additional communication devices all the time. Fifty-three convicted offenders have become the first group to wear...
EDITORIALS
Oct 5, 2008

Health concerns of the elderly

Government leaders appear to be flip-flopping on their views of the unpopular health insurance system for people aged 75 or over. People have difficulty discerning leaders' true intentions. Unless clear explanations follow soon, the views may be taken as a ruse to soothe voters ahead of a Lower House...
COMMENTARY
Aug 25, 2008

Chinese 'oldies' who raised the bar for caring

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — In the obsessive media heat of these youth-oriented Beijing Olympics, a once-famous Chinese political figure has died at the ripe young age of 87, and goes to the grave almost internationally unnoticed.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Aug 10, 2008

Celebrity rules as the Olympics strays far from its ideal

The big story this year in competitive swimming is the LZR Racer swimsuit, which was developed by the British sportswear manufacturer Speedo. At least six world records have been set by swimmers wearing the suit. Studies have shown that its drag-diminishing properties lower racing times by 1.9 to 2.2...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Aug 10, 2008

Engineering a historical oblivion for soldiers of the wrong wars

My dad was a lucky man. Born in 1903, he was just too young for service in World War I and a bit too old for the same in World War II. Not that he couldn't have volunteered for the latter. He certainly could have, but decided not to.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CABINET INTERVIEW
Aug 8, 2008

Machimura steels himself for another Diet session

The key to getting bills and personnel appointments through the divided Diet is "patience," says Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Aug 5, 2008

Yasukuni in spotlight as Aug. 15 nears

Aug. 15 marks the 63rd anniversary of the end of World War II. For the people of Japan, including relatives of the war dead, it is a day of remembrance and of peace.
EDITORIALS
Jun 19, 2008

Big boost for cross-strait ties

The Taiwan Strait continues to shrink. Last week, China and Taiwan agreed on regular nonstop charter flights between the two sides of the strait, a move that would boost tourism, help the sputtering Taiwanese economy, and provide the impetus for even more ambitious links between them. This progress is...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 7, 2008

Hot air over global warming

HONG KONG — Fresh reports every day tell of glaciers melting, thinning polar ice triggering prospects of a scramble for the riches under the Arctic ice cap, worries about rising water levels inundating low-lying countries, and soaring oil prices.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Apr 22, 2008

Do you expect the Nagano leg of the Olympic torch relay to go smoothly?

EDITORIALS
Apr 8, 2008

The man who came to dinner

Russia is not a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Mr. Vladimir Putin is a lame duck president, but he and his country threw a long shadow over the just-completed NATO summit that convened last week in Bucharest, Romania. Not only did Mr. Putin show up uninvited at the NATO heads dinner...
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Apr 1, 2008

BOJ finds itself in 'unpresidented' state

The divided Diet has left the Bank of Japan with a vacant seat at the top for the first time since the war. This came about after Toshihiko Fukui's five-year term ended in mid-March and the government's nominees to succeed him were vetoed.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Mar 18, 2008

Figuring out 'cleaning fees'

Years ago, when a friend of mine was preparing to move back home to Los Angeles, I helped her clean her rented studio apartment in Tokyo. Shoving aside a pile of books, clothes and various other kinds of clutter, we wiped the wood floor, scrubbed the bathtub and polished the kitchen sink. We spent almost...
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 18, 2008

Australia's historic apology

SYDNEY — "Sorry," the hardest word in the English language to say, has been said by Australia to its Aborigines — officially, by Parliament in Canberra, in a ceremony screened in every city and set on the record to right the wrongs inflicted on them since white settlement began in 1788.
EDITORIALS
Jan 14, 2008

Refueling law enacted with regrets

By using a special provision in the Constitution, the ruling parties have voted into law a bill that enables the resumption of the Maritime Self-Defense Force's refueling mission in the Indian Ocean for antiterrorism operations in and around Afghanistan. The mission is expected to resume in mid-February....

Longform

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