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May 17, 2025
 

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EDITORIALS
Dec 19, 2011
Hiding behind a shield
For many, the dream of a shield that would protect a country from ballistic missiles is just that — a dream or fantasy. Any state possessing more than a rudimentary arsenal would be able to defeat a missile defense program, either by overwhelming it with the sheer number of missiles or by confusing...
EDITORIALS
Dec 18, 2011
Declining business sentiment
The Japanese economic outlook is opaque. A Bank of Japan survey reports deteriorating business sentiment among major manufacturers in December. Clearly Europe's sovereign debt crisis, the historic rise of the yen's value and flood damage in Thailand are a cause of concern.
EDITORIALS
Dec 18, 2011
Hollow excuses from Tepco
Tokyo Electric Power Co. in early December made public an interim report by a study panel that it had appointed itself on the disaster that occurred at its Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. The report details the unfolding of the disaster from the loss...
EDITORIALS
Dec 17, 2011
Nursing home dilemma
The health and welfare ministry is pushing a plan to increase the number of "single-unit rooms" in nursing home facilities for the elderly. Such rooms are placed around a common space so that elderly people can maintain relationships with others while enjoying privacy in their rooms. The ministry also...
EDITORIALS
Dec 17, 2011
Cruel treatment of the elderly
The health and welfare ministry announced Dec. 6 that fiscal 2010 saw a record 16,668 cases of cruel treatment of elderly people by family members or other relatives, a rise of 6.7 percent from the previous year. The cruelty by nursing home workers resulted in 21 deaths, 11 fewer than in the previous...
EDITORIALS
Dec 16, 2011
Foundation for reconstruction
As late as nine months after the March 11 quake and tsunami, the foundation for pushing reconstruction has firmed up after the Diet finally enacted the fiscal 2011 third supplementary budget and laws to secure reconstruction funds, establish the Reconstruction Agency and set up "reconstruction special...
EDITORIALS
Dec 16, 2011
Unprincipled nuclear power policy
The Diet on Dec. 9 approved bilateral civilian nuclear cooperation agreements signed with Jordan, Vietnam, Russia and South Korea before the Fukushima nuclear crisis. They will go into effect in January at the earliest, paving the way for exports of nuclear technology, including reactors, by Japanese...
EDITORIALS
Dec 15, 2011
Government's fiscal 2012 tax plan
The Noda Cabinet on Dec. 10 endorsed a fiscal 2012 tax outline. Except for reductions in the automobile weight tax, the plan does not include major changes, since a separate plan to raise the consumption tax in the mid-2010s is scheduled to be adopted later.
EDITORIALS
Dec 15, 2011
Bills passed, and passed over
During a 51-day extraordinary session, which ended Dec. 9, the Diet passed the third fiscal 2011 supplementary budget and a bill for raising the income tax for 25 years, both aimed at funding reconstruction from the March 11 disasters and the Fukushima nuclear fiasco. The Liberal Democratic Party and...
EDITORIALS
Dec 14, 2011
Glimpse of hope from Durban
The 17th Conference of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP17) held in Durban, South Africa, since Nov. 28 agreed Sunday to start work in 2012 to write a comprehensive treaty that will require both developed and developing countries to cut their greenhouse gas emissions. According...
EDITORIALS
Dec 13, 2011
Sport and sexual harassment
The arrest of two-time Olympic judo champion Masato Uchishiba on suspicion of raping a female member of a judo team for which he served as a coach has come as a shock to judo fans and the sports world in general. But sport as a whole needs to examine whether it does not have a culture susceptible to...
EDITORIALS
Dec 13, 2011
Power industry buying influence
Reports on political donations for 2010 made public Nov. 30 by the internal affairs ministry show that both management and labor unions of the power industry provided a large amount of money to both the Democratic Party of Japan and the Liberal Democratic Party. It is logical to suspect that the power...
Success of Chinese-made fighter jets against India raises alarm in Asia
Chinese J-10 fighter jets from the People's Liberation Army Air Force August 1st Aerobatics Team perform during a media demonstration at the Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base, Nakhon Ratchasima province, Thailand, in November 2015.
Rich Japanese still fear yen crash, wealth manager says
The yen slumped more than 2% on Monday alone, nearing ¥150 to the dollar, after the U.S. and China temporarily lowered tariffs, triggering a reversal of bearish dollar bets.
Japan to recognize Taiwan as place of origin in family registration system
Masataka Yuhara, secretary-general of the Friends of Lee Teng Hui Association in Japan, which has been calling for "Taiwan" to be permitted as a place of origin in family registers.
Irresponsible climbing prompts debate over who should pay for Mount Fuji rescues
Mount Fuji fills the skyline above a bridge connecting stores at a popular outlet shopping center in the city of Gotemba, Shizuoka Prefecture, in November 2024.
Akazawa's dilemma: no tariff deal or a half-baked deal
Chief tariff negotiator Ryosei Akazawa and his delegation in the Oval Office of the White House in April. Since then, Japan's trade negotiations with the U.S. have produced no tangible results.
Nissan hoping to electrify home crowd as Formula E returns to Tokyo
Nissan's Oliver Rowland drives during qualifying for Miami E-Prix at Homestead Motor Speedway in Homestead, Florida, on April 12.
For his first feature film, director Ryuya Suzuki created a masterpiece
"Jinsei," which follows its protagonist over a century, probes themes of identity and societal issues with a dark comic touch. The director, however, says he created the story without knowing where it would lead.
Historian Rob Fitts discovers earliest ever reference to baseball in Japan
Japan's Shohei Ohtani carries the Japanese flag onto the field before the start of the World Baseball Classic final against the United States in Miami on March 21, 2023.
Japanese retailers turn to California rice for cheaper alternative
U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass eats California rice at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo on Tuesday along with Mitsuko Tsuchiya, vice president of retailer Aeon.
Harmfully hot days for pregnant women in Japan nearly doubled over past five years
New research by a U.S. climate scientists’ group reveals that extreme heat has increased the risks of preterm births and other pregnancy complications in Japan, nearly doubling the number of days that are harmfully hot for pregnant women over the past five years.

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