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EDITORIALS

Dec 20, 2007

Heavy-handed approach to Europe

Russia's war of nerves with the West intensified last week with Moscow's formal suspension of its participation in the Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) treaty. Russia is using the CFE to remind NATO, and its European members in particular, of Moscow's strategic concerns as it hopes to drive a wedge...

COMMENTARY

Dec 20, 2007

Bali inspired hope in coping

By Gwynne Dyer

LONDON — Do not be downhearted about the outcome of the Bali talks. They did not deliver the binding commitments to cuts in greenhouse gas emissions that are desperately needed, and as a result millions may die who might have lived. But they did show us something remarkable. They showed us the human...

COMMENTARY / World

Dec 20, 2007

The case for compelling people to vote

By Peter Singer

PRINCETON, New Jersey — As an Australian citizen, I voted in the recent federal election there. So did about 95 percent of registered Australian voters. That figure contrasts markedly with elections in the United States, where the turnout in the 2004 presidential election barely exceeded 60 percent....

EDITORIALS

Dec 19, 2007

Shocking attack with a licensed gun

The shooting rampage last week in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture, is shocking. A gunman in camouflage gear entered a sports club and fired a shotgun more than a dozen times, killing two people and injuring six others, including two children. Later, the gunman killed himself with the same gun on the grounds...

EDITORIALS

Dec 19, 2007

Stemming a worsening debacle

The debacle of 50.95 million hard-to-identify pension premium payment records has worsened. The Social Insurance Agency is expected to be able to somehow identify about 11 million records. But it has now been disclosed that it will be extremely difficult to identify some 19.75 million records — about...

EDITORIALS

Dec 18, 2007

Lessons from the OECD tests

Japanese first-year high school students who took part in a 2006 international survey by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development scored lower in every field than the Japanese students who took the tests in 2003. The survey focuses on children's ability to solve problems in adult life...

COMMENTARY / World

Dec 17, 2007

The voter rebellion in Japan

By Yoshi Tsurumi

NEW YORK — On Nov. 25, Australian voters replaced Prime Minister John Howard of the Liberal Party with Kevin Rudd of the Labor Party, who promised to withdraw Australian troops from Iraq. The new prime minister is preparing Australia for post-Bush America.

EDITORIALS

Dec 17, 2007

Galileo regains its wings

The European Union has agreed to proceed with Galileo, a satellite navigation project designed to rival the GPS system of the United States. The project has been fraught with difficulties, primarily squabbles about how to divide the spoils among the consortium of states backing the effort. Those problems...

EDITORIALS

Dec 16, 2007

Stars in their guides

Last month, Tokyo's restaurants received their stars. For the first time, the famed Michelin Guide, the most respected and feared guidebook in Europe, published a volume outside the Western world. Noted for its make-or-break effects on European hotels and restaurants, the publication was greeted in Tokyo...

COMMENTARY / World

Dec 16, 2007

Fascist currents in the EU mainstream

By Glyn Ford

LONDON — On a cold wet November evening the dreamy spires of Oxford University became the unlikely setting for a new front line between the organization Unite Against Fascism and the far-right British National Party (BNP).

COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT

Dec 16, 2007

'Kyoko' shines on as the true star she was

By Roger Pulvers

Tomorrow is the first anniversary of the death of a wonderful friend. Actress and author Kyoko Kishida passed away on Dec. 17, 2006, and Japan lost not only a fantastic stage presence but also an immense creative spirit and inspiration to its young actors.

COMMENTARY / World

Dec 16, 2007

Gored by a political truth

By Kevin Rafferty

HONG KONG — He still has the same patrician manner — friends would say aloof, others might say pompous. He still carries a mountainous chip on his shoulder, believing that he was robbed of the U.S. presidency seven years ago.

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

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.

What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji

By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

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

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

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