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April 19, 2024
 

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Stephen Mihm
For Stephen Mihm's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, a pilgrimage site for Christians since the fourth century 
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 3, 2023
Many evangelicals see Israel-Hamas war as part of a prophecy
The bloodshed in Israel is seen by some as a sign of Second Coming of Christ, a worldview held by significant number of evangelical Christians.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 26, 2023
A fulfilling job is a luxury of modern times
The idea that your work should pay emotional dividends — and not just the bills — would have seemed strange to most people before the 20th century.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 23, 2023
Magnets will be minting tomorrow’s billionaires
“Lodestones” started out as lightning-infused magical rocks that could cure baldness. Now they’re an essential part of our machine-driven world.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 26, 2023
U.S. government has been dancing around UFOs for 75 years
A legacy of UFO hype, hysteria and fraud is undermining legitimate inquiry into those strange objects in the sky.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 1, 2023
ChatGPT sounds exactly like us. How is that a good thing?
For 70 years, programmers have tried to make computers more like people. Now they’ve succeeded — sort of.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 27, 2022
How Christmas has turned into an orgy of consumption
The Christmas holiday rooted in pagan rituals was transformed into a celebration of commerce by writers, artists, retailers and Madison Avenue.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 26, 2022
Fusion skepticism follows a century of genius, fraud and hype
Before we shrug off the latest fusion achievement as just another small step on a long road, consider the miles we've come since the idea of tapping the power of the sun was first conceived.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 30, 2022
American book-banning tradition is as old as the Mayflower
One activist said, 'Why is everyone so upset? Controlling what children read is entirely different from controlling what adults read.”
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 23, 2021
Is air rage caused by class warfare?
In a typical year, the Federal Aviation Administration logs between 100 and 200 incidents. In the first three months of 2021, it reported a whopping 1300 despite few fliers.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 14, 2021
How pandemics change the course of history
When COVID-19 first arrived last year, everyone’s go-to historical parallel was the 1918 influenza pandemic. Precisely because it was so fleeting, it’s hard to find evidence that it caused a sweeping reorientation of everyday life. In its wake, most people simply forgot what happened. Other global pathogens stayed longer and had much bigger impacts on society.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 5, 2020
How to fight disease in the 1880s: Fresh air
People learned the health advantages of open windows — and then closed them for air conditioners.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 23, 2020
The Great Depression paradox: children survived, then thrived
National crises can actually have positive effects on the young, building character as much as destroying it.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 25, 2020
Dangers of age segregation exposed
For most of America’s history, the idea that people over the age of 65 would voluntarily herd themselves into special communities built around their needs would have seemed absurd, even dystopian. Yet a largely voluntary movement toward segregating people by age has reached extreme levels in recent years — and without receiving much attention at all. The coronavirus outbreak could put an end to it.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 24, 2020
Coronavirus exposes dangers of age segregation
America's embrace of retirement communities and nursing homes has led to a unique vulnerability.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society / Commentary
Feb 20, 2020
The ugly history of blaming ethnic groups for disease outbreaks
As the coronavirus outbreak grows in scale and scope, a nasty side effect spreads: discrimination. Inside China, people from Wuhan have been treated like lepers. Outside, we're seeing numerous reports of verbal and physical abuse aimed at ethnic Chinese, and an aversion to Chinese restaurants and other places associated with the country.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 18, 2019
Sleazy journalism can serve the public good
Long before Bezos's battle with the National Enquirer, a fight involving a scabrous newspaper led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision expanding freedom of the press.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 2, 2018
Does corruption matter to voters? It depends
Democrats' main target should be the Republican Party, not the president.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 9, 2018
FDR's gun-control strategy was based on taxes
His administration gave gangsters 3,700 reasons to stop buying machine guns.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 26, 2018
Amazon's labor-tracking wristband has a history
Jeff Bezos is stealing from a 19th-century playbook.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 18, 2017
Overbooking is a problem as old as the airline industry
Overbooking was the solution to the costly problem of 'no-shows' — people who reserved a seat but failed to board — that emerged in the late 1940s.
No link to Nankai Trough quake seen after temblor in Shikoku
Satoshi Harada from the Meteorological Agency explains about the magnitude 6.6 earthquake during a news conference early Thursday.
Thousands evacuated as Indonesia volcano erupts
Indonesia's Mount Ruang spews hot lava and smoke as seen from Sitaro, North Sulawesi, on Wednesday.
Why hasn't Japan moved to prop up the weak yen?
Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Snake on a train: Discovery of serpent delays Tokyo-Nagoya shinkansen
A Tokaido shinkansen. It is unclear whether the snake was venomous or how it ended up on the train, and there was no injury or panic among passengers.
Sex differences could be key to the successful treatment of long COVID
A new study has found that women with long COVID had significantly lower levels of testosterone compared to those who had recovered from their infection.
'House of the Owl' brings Hollywood values to Japanese TV
In the new Disney+ series “House of the Owl,” Min Tanaka (left) plays a powerful political fixer, or “kuromaku,” who has a troubled relationship with his adult children, particularly his idealistic son, played by Mackenyu.
Benefits and risks: AUKUS looks to take gamble on Japan
U.S. President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and British leader Rishi Sunak deliver remarks on the AUKUS partnership, after a trilateral meeting, at Naval Base Point Loma in San Diego in March last year.
Kyoto’s demon night parade lives to haunt another day
In a Kyoto long past, the "hyakki yagyō" (100 demon night parade) haunted a sleepy corner of Kyoto. Now, one enterprising monster enthusiast has won a small batttle to keep the march alive.
U.S. deploys midrange missile system in Indo-Pacific for first time
A U.S. Army Mid-Range Capability (MRC) Launcher arrives as part of the capability’s first deployment into theater on Northern Luzon, Philippines, April 8.
Unpacking the chaotic by-election in a scandal-hit Tokyo district
People listen to a campaign speech in Tokyo's Koto Ward on Tuesday.

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

Historically, kabuki was considered the entertainment of the merchant and peasant classes, a far cry from how it is regarded today.
For Japan's oldest kabuki theater, the show must go on
By Lance Henderstein

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Students ‘study abroad’ on island of Suo Oshima
Students ‘study abroad’ on island of Suo Oshima

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