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May 05, 2024
 

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Leonid Bershidsky
For Leonid Bershidsky's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 17, 2018
Why Germany didn't join the missile strikes on Syria
Chancellor Angela Merkel's line on the latest Syrian crisis is a smart compromise between domestic stability and loyalty to the U.S.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 10, 2018
Europe must learn to work with its autocrats
Hungary's Viktor Orban may have pushed the boundaries of the acceptable, but he's at home in some mainstream European parties
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 26, 2018
Time for a tech revolution
Only business models respecting privacy can save us from our digital predicament.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 22, 2018
Ask voters if they want more driverless cars
The ugly optics of the Uber self-driving car accident in Tempe highlight bigger ethical problems with the technology.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 20, 2018
Putin's hawks got the result they wanted
With Russian strongman's re-election, West must brace itself for an extended period with a tough, hostile opponent.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 19, 2018
Stephen Hawking and the unconstrained mind
The British physicist's work may have been esoteric, but his life helped shape how we see the world.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 10, 2018
Why Germany's anthem won't be gender-neutral
Austria and Canada did it. But Germany has a different set of challenges to deal with.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 6, 2018
Italy's election was actually quite traditional
The nation's voters favor weak central governments for a reason.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 4, 2018
Putin wants modern weapons, not a modern Russia
The Russian president's key speech last week was full of unfunded promises and thinly veiled threats.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 1, 2018
Journalist murders are a major EU problem
Clearly not all European Union members are enforcing the bloc's stated values.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 13, 2018
North Korean charm sure beats the alternative
Engaging with Pyongyang may encourage the regime down the path of liberalization.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 10, 2018
Undead rock stars shouldn't play stadiums
Tech entrepreneurs and deceased musicians' estates should allow rock stars to rest in peace.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 16, 2018
Facebook's new mission may be impossible
Mark Zuckerberg's company is imitating Snap in trying to focus on interactions with 'friends and family.' But can the media genie be bottled up again?
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 15, 2018
Trump finds a new way to squander U.S. soft power
U.S. global leadership depends on winning over immigrants from far and wide.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 9, 2018
Putin is 'un-Wolffable,' and that's no compliment
Americans have it good. Here's a mental exercise: Try to imagine the 'Wolffing' of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 8, 2018
No, Iceland hasn't solved the gender pay gap
Gender stereotypes are the real problem, and there's only one way to start fixing it.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 18, 2017
Why we don't need to fear the net neutrality repeal
After net neutrality ends, ISPs are unlikely to do anything that riles consumers.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 2, 2017
Invest in bitcoin, even if it's a bubble
Uber, Tesla, Snap, bitcoin may have inflated valuations, but their tide lifts many better boats.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 7, 2017
Europe is tiring of Anglo-American lectures
Following Brexit and Trump, the Anglo-Saxon world's intellectual leadership is on the wane in Europe.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 21, 2017
Electric carmakers have an Africa problem
Volkswagen's recent failure to lock in the price of cobalt for five years points to a serious problem with the optimistic projections of an electric vehicle revolution.
Japan says Biden's description of nation as xenophobic is 'unfortunate'
The National Diet building in Tokyo
With eye on China, defense chiefs agree to bolster interoperability
From left: U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Australian defense chief Richard Marles, Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara and Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro hold a joint news conference in Honolulu on Thursday.
The 'outsiders' creating some of Japan's greenest spaces
Rows of irises resemble a rice field at the Peter Walker-designed Toyota Municipal Museum of Art.
Japan drops to 70th in press freedom rankings
A businessman reads a newspaper outside a train station in Tokyo.
Traders spooked by intervention risk trim record yen shorts
Traders edged back from record bets on yen weakness this past week, in a period that included a likely bout of intervention by Japan to prop up the currency.
Kishida sets sights on energy and climate in South America trip
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will use a policy speech in Sao Paulo to set out his vision for ties between Japan and South America, almost 10 years after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe advocated for stronger ties between the two in the same city.
Yellow sand allergy: A health issue made worse by climate change
A screenshot of the Meteorological Agency's satellite image of clouds and yellow sand (in pink) on Sunday.
Climate change, chalky grains and the risks for Japan’s rice farmers
A farmer plants seedlings in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan’s self sufficiency rate for rice is nearly 100%, compared with 38% for food overall, on a calorie basis.
Japan wants you to spend more with ‘luxury tourism’
Performers play a traditional drum unique to Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in the prefectural capital of Kanazawa on March 16 to mark the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line to Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture.
Theaster Gates’ ambitious ‘Afro-Mingei’ brings Black Chicago to Tokyo
Theaster Gates' “A Heavenly Chord” lines up church pews before seven speakers and a Hammond B3 organ, a type of electric organ prevalent in Black American churches.

Podcast

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Rows of irises resemble a rice field at the Peter Walker-designed Toyota Municipal Museum of Art.
The 'outsiders' creating some of Japan's greenest spaces
By Stephen Mansfield

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