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COMMENTARY / World

Dec 16, 2007

Operating system that stole Christmas

By Aaron Edlin

BERKELEY, Calif. — Before asking for a new Windows PC this holiday season, remember the old adage: "Be careful about what you wish for."

COMMENTARY

Dec 15, 2007

Can Kim do the right thing?

By Frank Ching

HONG KONG — The six-party talks hosted by China on North Korea's nuclear-weapons program have reached a critical stage, and signs are that while the disabling of the nuclear reactor at Yongbyon is going well, the overall denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula may be in jeopardy.

EDITORIALS

Dec 15, 2007

The stakes in Seoul

South Korea elects a new president next week. Mr. Lee Myung Bak, the conservative former mayor of Seoul, is the front-runner and barring a twist, will prevail in the ballot. His victory will move South Korean politics back to the center, but radical shifts in policy are not likely. It could open the...

EDITORIALS

Dec 14, 2007

Sorting out political fliers

Reversing a lower court ruling, the Tokyo High Court has found a Buddhist monk who distributed political fliers at a Tokyo condominium complex guilty of trespassing. Although the ruling only fined him ¥50,000, it carries the danger of actively encouraging police and prosecutors to charge citizens who...

EDITORIALS

Dec 14, 2007

Diet headed for double overtime

The government and ruling parties plan to extend the current extraordinary Diet session for a second time beyond its expiration Saturday. Since a decision on such an extension by the Lower House, which is controlled by the ruling coalition, takes precedence over an Upper House decision, the session is...

COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE

Dec 14, 2007

A tycoon's field of dreams

On Oct. 16 a Japanese media tycoon was awarded the Newspaper Culture Prize by the Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association (JNPEA) at its 60th general meeting in Nagano.

EDITORIALS

Dec 13, 2007

Mr. Putin's move in Kremlin chess

Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced his support for Dmitri Medvedev, a first deputy prime minister, as a candidate in the March 2 presidential election, almost guaranteeing Mr. Medvedev a victory. And Mr. Medvedev announced that, if elected as president, he will appoint Mr. Putin as prime...

COMMENTARY

Dec 13, 2007

Something's not quite right about Hillary

By Tom Plate

LOS ANGELES — Hillary Rodham Clinton may well prove to be a great president of the United States, who knows? But as a presidential candidate she has a lot to be desired, and it's getting worse.

EDITORIALS

Dec 13, 2007

Spotlight on troubled cities

The internal affairs ministry has introduced four indicators to gauge the financial health of local governments based on a law enacted in June to prevent bankruptcy of local governments. In view of financial problems at local governments, like the bankruptcy of the city of Yubari in Hokkaido, the new...

COMMENTARY / World

Dec 13, 2007

Tehran's 'less is more' nuclear policy

By Jonathan Schell

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — The recent United States National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), which reports that Iran once had a "nuclear weapons program" but suspended it in 2003, means that there will probably be no American attack on Iran during the Bush administration. How could America's president explain...

COMMENTARY

Dec 12, 2007

Protection and punishment

By Ramesh Thakur

WATERLOO, Ontario — Dec. 9 and 10 marked the anniversaries of the Genocide Convention and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948). Both were an acknowledgment of the dark side of European history and embodied the determination to ban vices that had been let loose with terrible consequences...

COMMENTARY / World

Dec 12, 2007

Legislating history obscures the truth

By Ian Buruma

NEW YORK — In October, the Spanish Parliament passed a Law on Historical Memory, which bans rallies and memorials celebrating the late dictator Francisco Franco. His Falangist regime will be officially denounced and its victims honored.

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

Muji has been sustainable from the beginning

Muji has been sustainable from the beginning

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