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EDITORIALS

Nov 30, 2006

LDP's opportunistic move

The Liberal Democratic Party's move to readmit into its fold 11 Lower House members who were kicked out of the party for opposing postal service privatization bills is widely regarded as an act of political expediency. It is designed to use the political resources of these Diet members, who have strong...

EDITORIALS

Nov 29, 2006

Building a global NATO

Leaders of the 26 members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) are meeting in Riga, Latvia, to agree on a strategy for the future. That strategy will focus on two sets of issues: the problems that the organization will tackle in the years ahead and the countries that will join efforts to...

EDITORIALS

Nov 28, 2006

National security council

A special panel last week started discussions on setting up a Japanese version of the National Security Council of the United States. The White House-style organization is a pet idea of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. In his first policy speech before the Diet, Mr. Abe expressed his resolve to "strengthen...

EDITORIALS

Nov 28, 2006

Iraq spirals downward

The Sunni insurgents' car bomb and mortar attack in Baghdad's Sadr City Shiite slum last week killed more than 200 people, worsening Iraq's situation and highlighting the inability of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's six-month-old administration to establish security for the Iraqi people. The attack's...

EDITORIALS

Nov 27, 2006

Economic boom casts a shadow

The current economic expansion has entered its 58th month without interruption to become the longest post-World War II boom, surpassing the 57-month-long Izanagi boom from November 1965 to July 1970. But it is a boom shadowed by weak consumption attributable to stagnation in personal income. It is an...

EDITORIALS

Nov 26, 2006

A line in the sand for Ian Thorpe

When he was 18, Australia's golden giant of swimming, Ian Thorpe, remarked, "I don't know where the line is in the sand, but when I get there, I hope to jump over it and continue improving all of my career."

EDITORIALS

Nov 25, 2006

Progress in fight against warming

The countries that attended the second meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol in Nairobi agreed to review the pact in 2008. The Nov. 17 agreement is a step forward since it was feared that serious conflict between developed and developing countries might torpedo the conference. It is hoped that...

EDITORIALS

Nov 24, 2006

Cyber-crime bucks the trend

Excluding criminal violations involving traffic accidents, about 2.27 million crimes came to the attention of police in 2005, according to the 2006 white paper on crime. The figure was 11.4 percent lower than the year before and around 20 percent (580,000 incidents) lower than the peak year 2002. The...

EDITORIALS

Nov 23, 2006

More of the same from APEC

The annual meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum was held last weekend in Hanoi. The Vietnamese hosts were no doubt pleased with the results. The conclave showcased the country's economic development and provided an exclamation point for Vietnam's accession to the World Trade...

EDITORIALS

Nov 22, 2006

Working for a better society

Japan's population began to shrink in 2005 and society continued to grow older. That year, people aged 60 or older accounted for 21 percent of the population, making Japan one of the grayest countries in the world. Taking these factors into consideration, the 2006 welfare and labor white paper compiled...

EDITORIALS

Nov 21, 2006

Ruling bloc's victory in Okinawa

The victory of a ruling bloc-backed candidate in the Okinawa gubernatorial election over an opposition-backed candidate should come as a relief for the central government, which is pushing a plan to relocate the U.S. Marine Corp's Futenma Air Station in Ginowan to the marines' Camp Schwab area in Nago,...

EDITORIALS

Nov 21, 2006

Earthquake warning service

The Meteorological Agency plans to expand its service of supplying information on the arrival time of major earthquake jolts. It is now supplying such information to about 230 businesses. For example, the information is used to ensure safety in railway operations and construction sites. The general public...

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Japan's growing ranks of centenarians are redefining what it means to live in a super-aging society.

What comes after 100?

By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after

Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after

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