Voices | VIEWS FROM THE STREET Apr 16, 2013

Tokyo: What have been your best and worst jobs, and why?

by Mark Buckton

My current job is the best I've had. Since 2008 I've worked for a university entrance exam company here. The worst was also here in Japan, when I was working as an assistant language teacher, because I had different bosses, and the job description ...

Voices | HOTLINE TO NAGATACHO Apr 16, 2013

Education: What are we paying all the money for?

Dear Minister of Education Hakubun Shimomura, My son started elementary school this month. Had we decided to place him in an international or private Japanese school, I would have been looking at a potential bill for his first school year that exceeded all the ...

Voices | VIEWS FROM THE STREET Apr 16, 2013

Tokyo: Do you have a message for young North Korean leader Kim Jong Un?

by Mark Buckton

Get a hobby. Play less Battleships. Kim should take up something else, such as darts. He really needs to show his generals who is boss, and needs to be a little more refined in how he demonstrates his power.

Voices | HOTLINE TO NAGATACHO Apr 9, 2013

Rosy Fukushima health report faulted by experts

Dear Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, The February 2013 report by the World Health Organization on the predicted radiation effects of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear disaster provided some welcome news indeed. For example, Richard Wakeford of the University of Manchester wrote: “The additional risk ...

Voices | VIEWS FROM THE STREET Apr 2, 2013

Osaka: If you could live in any city outside Japan, which would it be?

by Ray Franklin

Bianca Scheurer, 25 Office manager (German) Amsterdam comes to mind, but on second thoughts, I would choose to live in Maastricht, the Netherlands, because I love the pastoral atmosphere there. It has many of the same benefits as the more famous capital — canals, ...

Voices | VIEWS FROM THE STREET Mar 19, 2013

Tokyo: Do you have a positive or negative image of the police?

by Mark Buckton

Yoko Hayashi Company employee, 38 (Japanese) I have a pretty negative impression of the police overall, in large part as a result of repeated cases of young women reporting stalkers, the police then failing to act, and the stalkers eventually killing the women. Jason ...

Voices | VIEWS FROM THE STREET Mar 12, 2013

Tokyo: Do you support Japan abandoning nuclear power even if it means increases in electricity prices?

by Mark Buckton

Katsuyoshi Tanaka “Beer sommelier,” 28 (Japanese) Even if it’s true that electricity bills will rise, I don’t agree with using nuclear power due to the simple fact that it is not 100 percent safe. And, whilst I don’t have kids yet, I hope to ...

Voices | VIEWS FROM THE STREET Mar 5, 2013

Wakayama: Do you think lesson fees at English conversation schools are overpriced?

by Lisa Wong

Kana High school student, 18 Yes, I think lesson fees at eikaiwa [private English conversation schools] are overpriced. If it weren’t so expensive to take English lessons, then I’d consider taking a class, and would encourage my friends and family to do so, too. ...

Voices | OUR MAN IN TOKYO Feb 26, 2013

Romania envoy hopes cultural affinity boosts ties

by Mami Maruko

Romanian Ambassador Radu Serban is a veteran diplomat with a mission to promote economic ties with Japan. But the envoy, 61, has another agenda — promoting cultural and educational exchanges, which ties into his personal love of Japanese literature, especially haiku. Serban’s love of ...