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EDITORIALS

Sep 1, 2005

A light on senile dementia

In April the Welfare and Labor Ministry began a nationwide one-year campaign to help others better understand senile dementia. The campaign targets the mental disorder as a top-priority issue to tackle as the graying of the nation's population progresses. The core organization established for the campaign...

EDITORIALS

Aug 31, 2005

More than postal reform at stake

As the Lower House election campaign goes into full swing, Japanese voters face an important decision: whether to endorse the reform politics of Liberal Democratic Party leader and Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, or a different kind of reform politics pushed by the opposition Democratic Party of Japan....

EDITORIALS

Aug 30, 2005

A timely warning to Tokyo

It is tempting to overreact to warnings that al-Qaeda is preparing an attack on a large financial center in Asia. That would be a mistake. If accurate a big if the reports should spur officials to better prepare for that awful possibility. But the news is not really new: Japan has already suffered one...

EDITORIALS

Aug 29, 2005

Quenching China's thirst for oil

The prospect of China buying up international petroleum supplies to quench its growing thirst for energy is the newest geopolitical nightmare. Like most bogeymen, though, the fear disappears when exposed to harsh light. China is eager to secure resources to feed its developing economy, but those efforts...

EDITORIALS

Aug 28, 2005

Win-win in a downloading culture

The start of Apple Computer Inc.'s music-downloading service Aug. 4 heralds big changes in the landscape of Japan's music business and culture. Music lovers can now choose their favorite songs from among 1 million songs offered by iTunes Music Store. With Apple's entry into the Japanese market, an increasing...

EDITORIALS

Aug 27, 2005

Fading hopes for a UNSC seat

Japan's long-cherished desire to become a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council remains as strong as ever, but realizing that aspiration in the near future is becoming extremely difficult in the face of stiff objections from certain countries. The government's strategy for expanding...

EDITORIALS

Aug 26, 2005

When a family court knows best

In separate cases recently, family courts in the nation have handed down decisions concerning juvenile crime that appear to contradict each other. While one court committed an offender to a reformatory, two others decided that the offenders should face criminal charges. These decisions should prompt...

EDITORIALS

Aug 25, 2005

China and Russia: brothers in arms?

Last week, China and Russia began their first ever joint military exercises. The drills have some armchair strategists warning of a new entente between Beijing and Moscow that could pose a threat to the existing regional security order. The truth about the exercises is considerably less exciting. For...

EDITORIALS

Aug 24, 2005

Salary reform for public servants

has recommended that the government reduce the annual salary of central government workers for fiscal 2005 by 0.1 percent, or 4,000 yen from the previous fiscal year's level, to bring it into closer alignment with the annual salary level for private-sector workers. More importantly, it has called for...

EDITORIALS

Aug 23, 2005

A blow to peace in Sri Lanka

The recent assassination of Mr. Lakshman Kadirgamar, foreign minister of Sri Lanka, is a blow to the fragile peace process in that country. Hard fought negotiations have yielded a tenuous ceasefire, yet a peace agreement remains beyond reach. Antagonism between ethnic groups has been matched by equally...

EDITORIALS

Aug 22, 2005

For safer travel over 65

The National Police Agency chose "Striving for the World's Safest Road Traffic" as the main theme of its 2005 white paper made public recently. This is the first time in about a quarter-century that traffic safety has been the main feature of the annual report, thus denoting the agency's enthusiasm for...

EDITORIALS

Aug 21, 2005

New party braces for battle

With a snap general election set for Sept. 11, the conflict within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party over postal-service privatization has entered a new stage with the formation of a new party led by antireform old guards. The new group is led by Mr. Tamisuke Watanuki, former Lower House speaker, and...

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

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Dangami House is a 180-year-old former samurai residence of the Kato clan, who ruled over Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, until the Meiji Restoration.

A house, a legacy and the quiet work of restoration in rural Japan

By Hanako Lowry

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Looking ahead to Yokohama’s Green × Expo 2027

Looking ahead to Yokohama’s Green × Expo 2027

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