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August 26, 2025
 

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EDITORIALS
Jan 7, 2010
China fights the tide of history
The sentencing of a dissident to 11 years in jail on Christmas Day is the latest brick in the wall that the Chinese government is erecting in an effort to insulate that nation from the tide of history. Mr. Liu Xiaobo's crime? Being one of more than 300 people who signed Charter 08, a direct appeal for...
EDITORIALS
Jan 6, 2010
New challenges for Mr. Matsui
World Series MVP Hideki Matsui's move from the New York Yankees to the Los Angeles Angels sheds light on the harsh realities Major League Baseball players face as they pursue their career. Competition is tough and team front offices coolly calculate what kinds of players they need and how much money...
EDITORIALS
Jan 6, 2010
Prime minister's top priorities
In his New Year news conference Monday, Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama mentioned "protecting (people's) lives" several times. This represents his attempt not only to stress that his administration cares about people's lives but also to show his recognition that people's lives have been made difficult...
EDITORIALS
Jan 5, 2010
Pipeline politics in Central Asia
The opening early last month of a new Central Asia-China gas pipeline is the latest demonstration of Beijing's growing influence over the natural resources of the region. China's voracious appetite for energy resources has led to intriguing developments in its relationship with Russia and its Central...
EDITORIALS
Jan 4, 2010
Deeper Japan-India ties
Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's Dec. 29 summit with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi testifies to his desire to deepen Japan's relations with India, which is emerging as an important player in the international community as its economy grows.
EDITORIALS
Jan 4, 2010
Policy for economic growth
The government on Wednesday announced a basic policy for its economic growth strategy through fiscal 2020. Envisioned is average economic growth of 3 percent in nominal terms and 2 percent in real terms in the coming decade, plus a reduction in the unemployment rate from the current 5 percent level to...
EDITORIALS
Jan 3, 2010
Looking ahead with hope
We did not see the back of 2009 soon enough. In fact, it will be good to be done with the entire first decade of this century. "Double Aught" is more revealing than it might seem. Nobel Prize-winning economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman opines that the last 10 years should be called "the...
EDITORIALS
Jan 1, 2010
Mr. Hatoyama and the DPJ in '10
The year 2010 will be a watershed year for the administration of Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, which came into power last September, ending the Liberal Democratic Party's almost unbroken rule since November 1955. If the administration fails to produce results that meet people's expectations this year,...
EDITORIALS
Dec 31, 2009
Something in the air
There was something ineffable in the air throughout 2009. At first, it was the prospect of change, a fuzzy promise that propelled candidate Barack Obama to victory in the November 2008 U.S. presidential campaign. His "yes we can!" slogan captured the imagination of U.S. voters and millions more around...
EDITORIALS
Dec 30, 2009
Lay judge system takes root
The Tokyo High Court on Dec. 17 upheld what was the first ruling under the newly introduced lay judge system. The high court's decision will set a trend for high courts respecting rulings made in district courts, where, in most cases, six ordinary citizens serve as judges along with three professional...
EDITORIALS
Dec 30, 2009
New slogans won't help the LDP
The Liberal Democratic Party, which fell from power in the Aug. 30 general election after ruling Japan for more than five decades, plans to adopt a new platform in late January. The party's study group in charge of figuring out how the LDP can regain power submitted a report containing basic ideas for...
EDITORIALS
Dec 29, 2009
The past year of newness
The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation's annual kanji of the year for 2009 is, appropriately, " " (shin), meaning "new." This kanji, chosen by national ballot and announced in December at Kyoto's Kiyomizu temple, reflects the win of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), which ended a half-century...
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.
Japanese prefectures break with labor ministry on minimum wage
The ministry of labor has suggested a 6% minimum wage increase, but most prefectures reporting so far are opting to go slightly higher.
Japanese prefectures break with labor ministry on minimum wage
The ministry of labor has suggested a 6% minimum wage increase, but most prefectures reporting so far are opting to go slightly higher.
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.

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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