Morearticles

 
Menu
Search
 
August 25, 2025
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

More Commentary stories

COMMENTARY / World
Jul 3, 2008
Soccer nationalism mirrors European society
By Ian Buruma
ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, New York — The late Arthur Koestler, born in Budapest, resident of many countries, and writer in several languages, once said there is nationalism, and there is soccer nationalism. The feelings inspired by the latter are by far the stronger. Koestler himself, a proud and loyal...
COMMENTARY
Jul 3, 2008
Iraq's petroleum dilemmas
By David Howell
An intense debate is going on inside Iraq about the future of its oil industry. That such a debate should be going on at all is encouraging and a sign that at last the security situation may be getting better and the government more established.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 2, 2008
Bill Gates' excellent adventure ends in tears
By John Naughton
LONDON — The scene: a tasteful, wooded corporate retreat north of Seattle. The time: one day last March. A large group — mainly chaps in their mid-40s — stand around. They seem to be in quite a state.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 2, 2008
The hollow heart of the West
By Dominique Moisi
WARSAW — It is tempting to compare NATO and the European Union to the French and Italian football teams in this year's Euro 2008 competition. What unites them, above all, is a process of "competitive decadence." The EU and NATO may see themselves as potential rivals or complementary partners in the...
COMMENTARY
Jul 2, 2008
Puzzle awaits G8 delegates
By Gregory Clark
Spare a thought for the puzzle that will meet foreign delegations to the Group of Eight Summit in Hokkaido on July 7. On the one hand they will find a nation that organizes itself with clockwork perfection. Indeed, the summit organization will almost certainly be over-perfection, with every detail scripted...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 1, 2008
Fukuda's heart for G8 leadership
By Kevin Rafferty
This fragile earth of about 6.5 billion souls faces grave and unprecedented challenges: soaring prices of oil and basic commodities that fuel daily life; price increases that make staple foods like rice and wheat too expensive for millions of poor people; a savage profusion of natural and man-made disasters...
COMMENTARY
Jul 1, 2008
Iraqi refugees desperate for a haven nation
By Cesar Chelala
NEW YORK — Several recent reports on the situation in Iraq draw attention to the desperate plight of nearly 5 million Iraqi refugees. If the situation is not better addressed, hundreds of thousands of lives, including women and children, will be jeopardized. The world cannot continue to turn deaf ears...
COMMENTARY
Jun 30, 2008
Taiwan's way with dignity
By Hisahiko Okazaki
The inaugural address that Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou gave was titled "Taiwan's Renaissance." It was well-composed, reflecting the president's views clearly while not evoking excessive alarm or expectations on complex and sensitive issues. These include the future of Taiwan's democracy, relations...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 30, 2008
Best way to beat the oil barons
By Thomas I. Palley
Over the past 18 months, oil prices have more than doubled, inflicting huge costs on the global economy. Strong global demand, owing to emerging economies like China, has undoubtedly fueled some of the price increase. But the scale of the price spike exceeds normal demand and supply factors, pointing...
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Jun 30, 2008
Justices made right call on habeas corpus
By Hiroaki Sato
Among the commentaries I've read about a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, the one from George F. Will (The Japan Times, June 24) surprised me. The conservative columnist for The Washington Post upbraided Sen. John McCain for condemning Boumediene v. Bush — which upheld the right of habeas corpus...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 30, 2008
Get biotechnology on the agenda for Africa
By Calestous Juma
Leaders at the Group of Eight industrialized nations' summit in Hokkaido next month need to take strong measures to promote cooperation in using biotechnology to address Africa's food challenges. At present there is resistance from Europe, and even Japan is dragging its feet on this vital issue.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 29, 2008
Same ol' world after Bush
By Chris Patten
LONDON — There is a marvelous painting by Brueghel in the Brussels art gallery. British poet W.H. Auden was sufficiently impressed to write a poem about it: Icarus, his wings melted, is plunging to a watery grave. But the world goes on. Peasants continue with their lives, plowing their fields. They...
Japan to revise romanization rules for first time in 70 years
The Agency for Cultural Affairs is recommending replacing the government’s long-standing Kunrei system with more widely used Hepburn-style spellings.
Character-crazed Japan has little appetite for Labubu
A pop-up advertisement for the newly opened Chiikawa Park in Tokyo's Ikebukuro neighborhood demonstrates how the country is chockful of cute characters — to the detriment of trends like Labubu.
Emperor emeritus and empress emerita visit postwar settlement
Emperor Emeritus Akihito and Empress Emerita Michiko strolled through a cabbage field in Ohinata settlement in Karuizawa, Nagano Prefecture, on Saturday.
At meeting rich in symbolism, Ishiba and South Korea's Lee agree to steadily build ties
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba shake hands at joint press announcement after summit talks in Tokyo on Saturday.
Are 'coolcations' the answer for Japan's heat-weary tourists?
Hikers on a trail in Hakuba, Nagano Prefecture. As extreme heat continues to grip Japan, a tectonic shift may be underway in the nation’s summer tourism scene as more people gravitate toward cooler destinations.
Are 'coolcations' the answer for Japan's heat-weary tourists?
Hikers on a trail in Hakuba, Nagano Prefecture. As extreme heat continues to grip Japan, a tectonic shift may be underway in the nation’s summer tourism scene as more people gravitate toward cooler destinations.
Germany's first sakemaker offers a bold brew of ideas
Reigen, Germany's first sake brewery, makes a diverse, nontraditional range of sake that includes fruit-flavored sips and wine barrel-aged renditions.
Alicia Keys closed Summer Sonic, but J-pop owned it
Summer Sonic’s 2025 lineup demonstrated its strength, showcasing the latest in J-pop, including “new kawaii” act Fruits Zipper.
Is the LDP’s catch-all approach to politics still effective?
Former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi visits Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Aug. 15. Political commentator Toru Hashimoto has suggested that Takaichi ought to lead a group of like-minded hawkish politicians out of the Liberal Democratic Party and form their own party.
Fingers sore from too much phone time? You might have ‘sumaho yubi.’
A catch-all term for tendonitis and arthritis caused by excessive smartphone use, 'sumaho yubi' may be difficult to treat for gadget-crazy Japan.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Looking ahead to Yokohama’s Green × Expo 2027
Looking ahead to Yokohama’s Green × Expo 2027

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER