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August 26, 2025
 

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EDITORIALS
Aug 27, 2009
Breathing a little easier
Each year the world's central bankers head for Jackson Hole, Wyoming, to take stock. Last year's meeting was dominated by the brewing economic crisis: Participants spent much of their time in a command center set up to monitor and respond to developments. The center was up and running again at this year's...
EDITORIALS
Aug 26, 2009
A challenge to Mr. al-Maliki
A series of bomb attacks in downtown Baghdad have exposed the weakness of the new Iraqi government. It is not clear who or what is responsible for the bombings, and the list of suspects is long. But a government's first responsibility is to provide for the safety and security of its citizens: By any...
EDITORIALS
Aug 25, 2009
Cracking a case that went awry
About two months have passed since the Tokyo High Court decided to retry Mr. Toshikazu Sugaya, who served 17 years of a life sentence until a new DNA test suggested that he was innocent. But the date of the retrial has not yet been set because the defense counsel, the prosecution and the Utsunomiya District...
EDITORIALS
Aug 25, 2009
Homegrown food production
Japan's food self-sufficiency rate in calorie intake improved by about 1 percentage point to 41 percent in fiscal 2008, for the second straight annual rise. But, as farm minister Shigeru Ishiba said, one cannot hail the rise once various factors are taken into consideration.
EDITORIALS
Aug 24, 2009
Consumer Agency challenge
The government has picked Sept. 1 as the start date of the Consumer Agency — two days after the Lower House election — by moving up the original schedule. Whichever political party comes to power, the new agency will face many difficult problems.
EDITORIALS
Aug 24, 2009
Promoting renewable energy
To combat global warming, the government has a middle-term goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 15 percent by 2020 from 2005 levels. To achieve this goal, it will be important to spread the use of renewable energy. As part of this effort, the government plans to increase solar power generation...
EDITORIALS
Aug 23, 2009
Safety during torrential rain
Recent torrential rains took the lives of 17 people in Yamaguchi Prefecture and 22 others in Hyogo, Okayama and Tokushima prefectures. This highlights the importance of municipal actions in securing the safety of local residents during heavy rain.
EDITORIALS
Aug 23, 2009
Copyright law and online books
The concept of "books" is undergoing transformation as attempts are made to digitize them and make them available online. A new copyright system needs to be created that can accommodate this trend while upholding the rights of authors and publishers.
EDITORIALS
Aug 22, 2009
Only a glimmer of hope
Japan's gross domestic product increased 0.9 percent (or an annualized 3.7 percent) in real terms for the April-June period from the previous quarter, marking the first growth in five quarters. The rise, which follows a 3.5 percent (annualized 13.1 percent) fall in October-December 2008 and a 3.1 percent...
EDITORIALS
Aug 22, 2009
Funding for scientific research
The ¥14 trillion supplementary budget for fiscal 2009 has a problematic feature. It allocates as much as ¥4.36 trillion — about 30 percent of the budget — to 46 funds, 30 of them newly established. Money in the funds can be used "flexibly" for more than a year, raising the possibility that bureaucrats...
EDITORIALS
Aug 21, 2009
New flu claims lives
The first deaths from the new H1N1 influenza have been reported in Japan during the past week. A 57-year-old man of Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture, died Aug. 15; a 77-year-old man of Kobe on Aug. 18; and an 81-year-old woman of Nagoya on Aug. 19. Both of the men had chronic renal insufficiency and were...
EDITORIALS
Aug 21, 2009
Devolution moves forward
In past elections, "devolution" was hardly an issue because political parties thought the subject would not rouse voter interest. Even if local government leaders made demands, political parties did not seriously heed them. Things are different ahead of the Aug. 30 Lower House election.
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.
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.
JICA to designate four Japanese cities as 'hometowns' for African nations
The Japanese flag (left) with the flag of the African Union
Man arrested in Kobe stabbing had been staying at hotel near victim’s home
Masashi Tanimoto arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the fatal stabbing of a woman in Kobe, is sent to prosecutors on Sunday.
Tokyo releases AI-generated video of Mount Fuji erupting
A screenshot from an AI-generated video showing what could happen to Tokyo if Mount Fuji erupted
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

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