President Barack Obama takes the most specific steps of his administration in an attempt to ensure the election of a Democratic-controlled Congress in two years.
It's a dangerous, unpredictable world. Twice in January Chinese warships in the East China Sea challenged Japan's Maritime Self Defense Forces patrols in a manner deemed threatening. And on Feb. 12 came North Korea's nuclear test.
Here's an open secret: Japanese men have a bad international reputation on the romance front.
SELLING WOMEN: Prostitution, Markets and the Household in Early Modern Japan, by Amy Stanley. University of California Press, 2012, 282 pp., $49.95 (hardcover) In the vast cultural landscape, Japan fascinates the mainstream with manga and anime, the martial arts, Zen and kimono. Of course, ...
Kenta Maeda shook off worries about his form with five shutout innings as Japan beat China 5-2 in first-round Pool A of the World Baseball Classic on Sunday at Fukuoka Dome. Japan improved to 2-0 following a tough win over Brazil in Saturday evening’s ...
Readers offer some advice to the new prime minister on the contentious issue of nuclear power in post-3/11 Japan. Gambling with future generations Dear Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Although I have taught classes related to Japan at the university level for years, I am ...
Dear Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, As I look to your future as prime minister, I cannot help but be reminded of a famous scene from the silent film era, namely, two steam locomotives rushing toward each other at full speed. We all know the ...
Dear people of Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, I hope this letter will be accepted in the spirit it was written, with a deep respect for the Japanese people. I do not wish to attack Taiji, nor its people. I write this in the hope that ...
Dear Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, Around the time of the recent anniversaries in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, I began reading writers’ accounts and treatments of the atomic bombings. I came across Hisashi Inoue’s play “The Face of Jizo.” Inoue was born in Yamagata Prefecture. In ...
To the mayor and people of Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, I implore you to read all of this very important message. Japan has recently undergone horrific natural disasters and the rest of the world has rallied to help you. Please don’t let their trust in ...
Dear Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, Recently, I was reading an article on your blog titled “Children First.” I was especially impressed by your following four quotes: • “We must stand by the principle of ‘children first’ and strengthen our support for the child-raising generation ...
Dear Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Yoko Komiyama, I recently visited Japan to learn about traditional midwifery and Asian medicine. I was fortunate to be able to spend two days at a traditional birth house in the Tokyo area. As president and founder of ...
Dear Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yukio Edano and Environment Minister Goshi Hosono, The rise of the Internet has allowed more and more people to turn to nontraditional media, such as blogs, feeds or wiki forums, for information. While there ...
Dear Parents of Japan, You do not know me personally, but perhaps you have seen me or a person like me at a local restaurant. I am not of Asian descent. I am Anglo-Saxon. If you have noticed me, you might have been curious ...
Dear Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Hirofumi Hirano, My three beautiful children were all born in Japan and went to Japanese public schools. Their mother is a native Japanese of Japanese ethnic background, and I am a Canadian citizen of African ...
Dear Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, With all the challenges facing your government in reforming the economy and rebuilding Tohoku, I imagine you don’t have much time for poetry. But there is a poem I’d like to share with you, and I think you’ll agree ...
For the attention of the Japanese government: Like many other court hearings that follow a divorce, a court transcript out of Tennessee reflects testimony concerning a couple’s two children: Attorney: Ms. Savoie. … You have known all along that Dr. Savoie’s biggest fear is ...
