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August 26, 2025
 

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EDITORIALS
Oct 3, 2009
Mandate for Chancellor Merkel
In Germany's Sept. 27 national elections voters solidly backed Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has demonstrated leadership in coping with the economic crisis and diplomatic challenges. By winning 33.8 percent of the vote, her Christian Democrats (CDU) and its sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU),...
EDITORIALS
Oct 3, 2009
Justice review too low-key
Overshadowed by the Aug. 30 Lower House election was the national electoral review of Supreme Court justices held the same day. The review deserves a higher profile. The top court should give information about the justices and their opinions in court rulings more frequently and in a manner easily accessible...
EDITORIALS
Oct 2, 2009
Butting into safety probes
It has been found that Mr. Masao Yamazaki, former president of West Japan Railway Co., asked a member of the Aircraft and Railway Accidents Investigation Commission to revise its report on the April 25, 2005, train accident on the JR West Fukuchiyama Line that killed 107 people and injured over 500....
EDITORIALS
Oct 2, 2009
China after 60 years
Sixty years ago on Oct. 1, 1949, the Chinese leader Mao Zedong announced the establishment of the People's Republic of China at Beijing's Tiananmen Square. At the time, China was an impoverished country following years of military aggression by Japan and civil war between the Communist Party and Kuomintang...
EDITORIALS
Oct 1, 2009
Health care for older seniors
Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Akira Nagatsuma has declared that the government will abolish the unpopular health insurance system for the eldery that includes a plan for so-called later-stage seniors, or people aged 75 or over. But it is unclear when the system will be abolished and what shape a...
EDITORIALS
Oct 1, 2009
Postal services in all regions
The Hatoyama administration has made it clear that it will revamp the Japan Post group companies' privatization process, which started Oct. 1, 2007. Privatization was aimed at making postal services efficient and letting the money held by the postal bank and insurance services flow into financial markets,...
EDITORIALS
Sep 30, 2009
No letup on stimulus policies
The Group of 20 leaders from developed and emerging economies held their third summit in Pittsburgh, Pa., last week, about a year since the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. set off the current worldwide financial crisis. While there are signs of economic recovery, the leaders agreed to maintain...
EDITORIALS
Sep 30, 2009
LDP stakes future on new leader
The Liberal Democratic Party has elected former Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki as its new president.
EDITORIALS
Sep 29, 2009
Flu fears drawing closer to reality
The impact of the H1N1 influenza is increasing across the nation. According to the health ministry, in the week ending Sept. 13 an estimated 180,000 people in Japan were diagnosed with influenza — some 30,000 more than in the previous week — with most cases suspected to be the new flu strain. The...
EDITORIALS
Sep 29, 2009
Funding drama yet to play out
When an extraordinary session of the Diet opens in October, the issue of money in politics will be reignited. The Liberal Democratic Party, now in opposition, will surely assail Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and Democratic Party of Japan Secretary General Ichiro Ozawa over dubious political donations....
EDITORIALS
Sep 28, 2009
Grayer population
In its Respect for the Aged Day (Sep. 21) report, the internal affairs ministry made public its information about the population n Japan. As of Sept. 15, Japan's population stood at 127.56 million, down 120,000 from a year before. People aged 65 or over numbered 28.98 million (12.39 million men and 16.59...
EDITORIALS
Sep 28, 2009
Local accounting irregularities
The Chiba prefectural government has detected accounting irregularities totaling ¥29.79 billion from fiscal 2003 through fiscal 2007. The irregularities were found at 383 — about 96 percent — of the prefectural government's sections, including the prefectural police.
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.
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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