author

 
 

Meta

Robert Samuelson
For Robert Samuelson's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 18, 2018
Legacies of the financial crisis
We can no longer rule out the possibility of another great depression.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 10, 2018
Times are good but don't sleep at the wheel
There are pluses and minuses, but on balance the pluses seem to prevail, according to the McKinsey Global Institute.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 31, 2018
NAFTA is dead — long live NAFTA
The one area where the new agreement is starkly more protectionist involves cars and trucks.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 27, 2018
Still arguing over the Lehman collapse
Paulson et al. still claim they did all that could be done to save the troubled firm.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 21, 2018
Will what happens in Turkey stay in Turkey?
Some economists foresee contagion: Turkey's problems will spread. Others envision a one-country economic blip.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 20, 2018
Will inflation kill the U.S. economy?
Inflation is back. What do we do about it? For starters: Don't ignore it.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 13, 2018
America's no-win trade war
The dollar's role as the global currency limits what the U.S. can change.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 10, 2018
In the Age of Malware we're flirting with national disaster
The things we like about the Internet are the same things that make us vulnerable to its dangers.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 7, 2018
The triumph of American downward mobility
A point has been reached where many in the present and next generations of younger Americans won't live as well as their predecessors.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 23, 2018
Three advantages that ensured U.S. prosperity are now gone
There's a big difference between economic nostalgia and economic policy.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 17, 2018
The $247 trillion global debt bomb
To service these debts requires rising incomes, while an expanding trade war threatens to squeeze incomes.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 16, 2018
Wages aren't rising; these theories could explain why
Why isn't the strong demand for labor pushing up wages?
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 9, 2018
Trump's neo-isolationism won't work
Trump can't deconstruct globalization. It's too big and well-entrenched.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 25, 2018
U.S. losing the trade war
The Trump administration is hurting its chances in a dispute with China by angering America's traditional trading allies.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 18, 2018
Who'll fill the global power vacuum Trumpism is creating?
China? Russia? No one?
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 28, 2018
China is taking Trump to school on trade
The saga of Chinese tariffs and ZTE makes clear that the Trump administration hasn't thought through difficult issues.
COMMENTARY / World
May 21, 2018
The return of the old capitalism?
Compared with those of the 19th century, many of today's economic advances and upheavals seem mild.
COMMENTARY / World
May 7, 2018
Think innovation will save the economy? That's probably an illusion
Why has U.S. economic growth slowed when innovation seems to be accelerating?
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 12, 2018
Is the U.S. getting Sputnik Syndrome all over again?
In the 1950s, Americans were afraid of the Soviet Union overtaking their economy. Now it's China's turn.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 2, 2018
The real cyberthreat facing us
Steps must be taken to secure electric grids, payment networks and water systems.

Longform

When trying to trace your lineage in Japan, the "koseki" is the most important form of document you'll encounter.
Climbing the branches of a Japanese family tree