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May 17, 2025
 

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EDITORIALS
Jan 23, 2004
Mr. Bush kicks off his campaign
U.S. President George W. Bush signaled the real beginning of the 2004 election campaign with his State of the Union address Tuesday night in Washington. The speech laid out key themes of the Bush re-election strategy, emphasizing the success in the war against terrorism and the brightening economic outlook....
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 23, 2004
Reliving the romance of nation-building
By Alan Goodall
SYDNEY -- So you think your one-hour-plus commute into Tokyo each morning is agony! Pity passengers on Australia's newest train trip -- two days and two nights. And paying $12,000 for the privilege.
EDITORIALS
Jan 22, 2004
Don't politicize the BSE issue
A U.S. government representative is scheduled to visit Japan soon for talks on Tokyo's ban on U.S. beef imports, which was imposed in December following the outbreak of BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy), or mad cow disease, in the United States. Because wide disagreement exists on this issue between...
COMMENTARY
Jan 22, 2004
Keep Indo-Pakistani talks in public eye
By Farhan Bokhari
ISLAMABAD -- The emerging Indo-Pakistani peace process is set to face its first political test in the next two months as India conducts national elections, creating an opportunity for hardliners to question the aims set out at this month's meeting between Indian Prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and...
EDITORIALS
Jan 21, 2004
Reform key to Mr. Koizumi's future
In his policy speech to the Diet on Monday, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi spent a considerable amount of time trying to convince a public that is skeptical about sending Self-Defense Force troops to Iraq to provide humanitarian aid and assist with reconstruction. It is not clear whether he succeeded...
COMMENTARY
Jan 21, 2004
Washington-Seoul: tough times ahead?
By Ralph Cossa
HONOLULU -- Is the U.S.-South Korea relationship in for some tough times? The answer is "yes," but not because of the recent forced resignation of "pro-American" Foreign Minister Yoon Young Kwan (whose wise council and steady, mature leadership will be sorely missed).
EDITORIALS
Jan 20, 2004
A place for 'judicial positivism'
In a representative democracy, the value of one vote is supposed to be more or less equal. In the 2001 Upper House election, however, one vote in rural districts carried much greater weight than it did in urban districts; in an extreme case, one ballot in Tottori Prefecture was worth 5.06 ballots in...
EDITORIALS
Jan 19, 2004
Cracking down on crime groups
The National Police Agency is going all out to crack down on organized crime groups, or yakuza. The latest drive calls for legislative changes to allow victims who have gotten caught up in a yakuza conflict to sue for damages against yakuza leaders rather than the gangsters directly involved.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 19, 2004
Argument without contempt
By George Sioris
CHIANG MAI, Thailand -- Without entering the notorious, unending controversy surrounding Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine, I would like to examine peripheral issues arising from it and to question the inability of some campaigners to respect the views of others. While I fully understand the fury of many observers...
COMMENTARY
Jan 19, 2004
Okinawans await assurance of lighter military presence
By Brad Glosserman
HONOLULU -- During a visit to Okinawa, which has long borne a disproportionate share of the U.S. military presence in Japan, I was peppered with questions about the impact of planned redeployments. Okinawans have high hopes that the moves will lighten their burden. I could not reassure them.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 19, 2004
Foreign affairs top U.S. political debate
By Richard Halloran
HONOLULU -- For the first time since the divisive Vietnam era, foreign policy and national security will most likely dominate the U.S. presidential election campaign this year, especially since the line between issues abroad and politics at home has become more blurred than ever.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 19, 2004
S. Korea's recipe for economic disaster
By Christopher Lingle
COLOMBO -- A gathering of South Korea's leading policymakers and economists have agreed that Seoul should apply fiscal-stimulus measures through the first half of 2004. It is a great tragedy that this conclusion reflects the best judgments of mainstream economic orthodoxy, because the simple fact is,...
Success of Chinese-made fighter jets against India raises alarm in Asia
Chinese J-10 fighter jets from the People's Liberation Army Air Force August 1st Aerobatics Team perform during a media demonstration at the Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base, Nakhon Ratchasima province, Thailand, in November 2015.
Rich Japanese still fear yen crash, wealth manager says
The yen slumped more than 2% on Monday alone, nearing ¥150 to the dollar, after the U.S. and China temporarily lowered tariffs, triggering a reversal of bearish dollar bets.
Japan to recognize Taiwan as place of origin in family registration system
Masataka Yuhara, secretary-general of the Friends of Lee Teng Hui Association in Japan, which has been calling for "Taiwan" to be permitted as a place of origin in family registers.
Irresponsible climbing prompts debate over who should pay for Mount Fuji rescues
Mount Fuji fills the skyline above a bridge connecting stores at a popular outlet shopping center in the city of Gotemba, Shizuoka Prefecture, in November 2024.
Akazawa's dilemma: no tariff deal or a half-baked deal
Chief tariff negotiator Ryosei Akazawa and his delegation in the Oval Office of the White House in April. Since then, Japan's trade negotiations with the U.S. have produced no tangible results.
Nissan hoping to electrify home crowd as Formula E returns to Tokyo
Nissan's Oliver Rowland drives during qualifying for Miami E-Prix at Homestead Motor Speedway in Homestead, Florida, on April 12.
For his first feature film, director Ryuya Suzuki created a masterpiece
"Jinsei," which follows its protagonist over a century, probes themes of identity and societal issues with a dark comic touch. The director, however, says he created the story without knowing where it would lead.
Historian Rob Fitts discovers earliest ever reference to baseball in Japan
Japan's Shohei Ohtani carries the Japanese flag onto the field before the start of the World Baseball Classic final against the United States in Miami on March 21, 2023.
Japanese retailers turn to California rice for cheaper alternative
U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass eats California rice at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo on Tuesday along with Mitsuko Tsuchiya, vice president of retailer Aeon.
Harmfully hot days for pregnant women in Japan nearly doubled over past five years
New research by a U.S. climate scientists’ group reveals that extreme heat has increased the risks of preterm births and other pregnancy complications in Japan, nearly doubling the number of days that are harmfully hot for pregnant women over the past five years.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Japan's growing ranks of centenarians are redefining what it means to live in a super-aging society.
What comes after 100?
By Tomoko Otake

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

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