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December 11, 2024
 

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COMMENTARY

World

World
Japan
A truck pulls the head of a toppled statue of late Syrian President Hafez Assad, the father of ousted-President Bashar Assad, through the streets of Hama on Friday.
COMMENTARY / World
Assad’s fall shows Russia, Iran and Hamas made a bad bet
That’s not to say the Middle East is entering a bright new era of peace. The collapse of Assad’s regime could cause a revival of the Islamic State.
COMMENTARY / World
DOGE's best idea yet is permanent daylight saving time
Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy’s support for adopting a year-round clock would give the U.S. more sunshine and less confusion.
COMMENTARY / World
Does a savage war of partition await Ukraine?
Donald Trump appears bent on striking a “peace” deal with Russia that involves Ukraine’s dismemberment.
South Korea's Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung (center) takes part in a joint news conference with other opposition parties and activists on Friday in Seoul to urge the passage of an impeachment motion against President Yoon Suk Yeol after his aborted attempt to impose martial law.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 6, 2024
South Korea's impeachment battle is democracy in action
By Aziz Huq
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol faces an impeachment motion filed by the opposition Democratic Party, which accuses him of insurrectionary behavior.
French Prime Minister Michel Barnier reacts after the result of the no-confidence vote on his administration at the National Assembly in Paris on Wednesday. French lawmakers ousted his government after just three months in office.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 6, 2024
This is not France's 'Truss moment'
By Mohamed A. El-Erian
While the political instability and economic challenges are worrying, France is not facing a full-blown financial crisis.
South Korea’s currency recovered while its stocks fell Wednesday as investors braced for prolonged political uncertainties following a brief decree of martial law by President Yoon Suk Yeol.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 5, 2024
Capitalism is the unsung hero of South Korean democracy
By Daniel Moss
Capitalism, with its economic pressures and global integration, has been crucial in fostering democracy in South Korea.
Protesters angry over President Yoon Suk Yeol’s declarations of martial law call on him to step down at a rally at the national assembly in Seoul on Wednesday. REUTERS
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 5, 2024
Where does South Korea's democracy go from here?
By Kuni Miyake
Why did he dig himself such a deep political hole? The answer to that is Yoon is not really a “politician” either.
This threat of H5N1 avian flu has been exacerbated by inadequate testing, delayed genetic data and insufficient containment measures, with powerful agricultural interests influencing the response.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 4, 2024
A bird flu pandemic would be one of the most foreseeable catastrophes in history
By Zeynep Tufekci
The threat of H5N1 avian flu has been exacerbated by inadequate testing, delayed genetic data, and insufficient containment measures.
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the CHIPS act in Syracuse, New York, in October 2022. America is still struggling with chip self-sufficiency despite limiting China’s access to key technology.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 4, 2024
The chip war turns two
By Keun Lee
The U.S. struggles with chip self-sufficiency despite limiting China’s access to technology, while China makes strides in NAND and HBM chips despite significant barriers.
ChatGPT’s advanced voice mode is able to seamlessly go back-and-forth between languages with live, human-sounding responses and minimal errors.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 4, 2024
ChatGPT is now a creepy cultural chameleon
By Catherine Thorbecke
This uncanny tool that can speak 50 languages with human-like candor has the potential to forever change how people around the world interact with AI.

Firms should quit turning foreign workers into Japanese ones
Filipino housekeepers undergo training to work for a Japanese staffing company. By applying the same criteria when hiring overseas and local workers, Japanese firms tend to underutilize the unique skills that foreign nationals can bring.
Hundreds of izakaya going bust as prices rise and customers change
Dining habits have changed since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, with alcohol consumption experiencing a drop.
South Korea's Yoon banned from foreign travel as leadership crisis deepens
Protesters tear signs, depicting the names of ruling People Power Party lawmakers who didn't vote during the impeachment motion against South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol last Saturday, as they attend a rally calling for the impeachment of Yoon, who declared and quickly reversed a martial law order last week, in front of the PPP's headquarters in Seoul on Monday.
Tokyo police arrest four men on suspicion of staging colleague’s suicide
Police officers reinvestigate a Tobu Tojo Line railroad crossing in Tokyo's Itabashi Ward on Dec. 27, 2023, after a man was fatally hit by a train weeks earlier.
DOGE's best idea yet is permanent daylight saving time
Elon Musk, a co-leader of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, carries his son X Æ A-Xii Musk following a meeting with lawmakers on Capitol Hill in Washington on Thursday.
Winter chill, hot baths and the risk of heat shock: How to stay safe
A health ministry survey showed that 5,824 people age 65 and older died in a bathtub in their home or other residential facilities in 2022, more than double the number of people who died in a traffic accident.
45-day negotiation window set to begin as Marines post Roki Sasaki
Roki Sasaki delivers a pitch during the first inning of the World Baseball Classic semifinal against Mexico in Miami in March 2023.
Hundreds of izakaya going bust as prices rise and customers change
Dining habits have changed since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, with alcohol consumption experiencing a drop.
Welcome to Yama, Japan’s first Michelin-starred dessert restaurant
Koichi Katsumata is the first chef to receive a Michelin star in Japan for an 'assiette dessert' (dessert course) restaurant
Futaba pivots to 'hope tourism' to revive its fortunes
The town of Futaba is still dealing with the effects of 3/11, but that isn't stopping some residents from looking forward.

Podcast

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

Longform

People in cities across Japan will pop into their local convenience store for any number of products they believe will help them with a night of drinking.
Hangover cures are everywhere in Japan — but do they work?
By Thu-Huong Ha

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’
Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’

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