Search - opinion

 
 
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 29, 2021

COVID-19 has changed socialized medicine in Britain forever

How did the U.K. make it through the past 20 months of COVID-19? The private sector's role in delivering publicly funded care needs to be acknowledged.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Nov 28, 2021

Jair Bolsonaro’s foe on COVID-19 approach to run for Brazil presidency

The governor of Brazil's richest and most populous state was picked by the Brazilian Social Democracy Party as its candidate for next year's election challenging President Jair Bolsonaro.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Nov 27, 2021

United States and China tussle over Honduras as it weighs Taiwan ties

Honduras is one of a shrinking club concentrated in Central America and the Caribbean that maintains relations with Taiwan, which China views as a wayward province.
Japan Times
CARTOONS / ZERO GRAVITY
Nov 27, 2021

Roger Dahl on the use of doughnuts to express an opinion

Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 26, 2021

A digital Singapore dollar may be too much of a good thing

Singapore says no to electronic cash not because it may flop, but because it'll most likely be a hit and could have consequences for the island's financial stability and monetary policy.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 26, 2021

Did AstraZeneca keep Britain safer from COVID-19 than Europe?

It's suggested that Britain's home-grown jab may be the reason the country is faring better with the latest COVID-19 wave than Europe. Still, is there evidence for that?
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 25, 2021

As Shinsei defense collapses, another poison pill works in Japan

Tokyo Kikai Seisakusho Ltd., a small maker of newspaper printing presses, said Thursday that Asia Development Capital Co. had decided not to pursue control of the firm.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 25, 2021

The U.S. must be ready to let the Iran nuclear talks fail

Iran might once have needed a year to produce enough weapons-grade material for a bomb. That breakout time may have shrunk to as little as a month.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 25, 2021

Winter is coming for Europe's pandemic optimists

The urge to abandon caution when COVID-19 cases are low, which is essentially what some European nations did this summer, is part of the problem.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 25, 2021

JPMorgan Chase CEO joins Lithuania and WTA in testing China on free speech

Jamie Dimon knew right away Beijing wouldn't like his joke about the Communist Party's downfall, noting immediately afterward: 'I can't say that in China.”
Japan Times
SPORTS
Nov 25, 2021

Does the sports world still need China?

The rewards for international sports leagues doing business in China are plain: lucrative broadcast deals and millions of new consumers. But the risks are also clear.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 24, 2021

Will a wealth tax affect Singapore’s rivalry with Hong Kong?

Singapore wants to take a different path from Hong Kong and may turn to some kind of tax on capital — perhaps as early as next year's budget.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 24, 2021

The Fed has risen too far above political control

The problem with the Fed is that the need for stability — and for avoiding market shocks — cuts across the desire to exert more democratic control over the central bank.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 24, 2021

Of course stereotypes are holding women back

Workplace discrimination has been a feature of virtually all of world history, so nobody should be shocked by evidence that it continues today.
A researcher holds a plate of nematodes in a lab at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston on Monday. American scientists Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun won the Nobel Prize in Medicine the same day for their discovery of microRNA and its role in how genes are regulated.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 9, 2024

Nobel Prize for medicine recognizes microRNA — and curiosity

Although microRNA's key role in regulating gene expression hasn't yet resulted in groundbreaking treatments, it may still significantly impact our health in the future.
Even with the success of "Crazy Rich Asians" and improvements in on-screen representation, Asian actors still comprise just 18.4% of film roles, which is an improvement compared to 3.4% in 2007.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 9, 2024

To win back audiences, put more Asians behind the camera

The movie industry is losing out at a time when it can ill-afford to do so. Betting on Asian talent would help.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House in Washington on July 25.
WORLD
Oct 10, 2024

Looming Israeli strike on Iran offers fresh test of U.S. sway

With Israeli retaliation against Iran expected at any time, the U.S. is finding it has few assurances against further escalation.
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, awards Brig. Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh (left), the commander of the Aerospace Force, with the Fath badge in Tehran on Sunday for the missile attack on Israel. 
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 10, 2024

Today's Tehran looks a lot like the Tokyo of the 1930s

Current tensions between Iran and Israel have parallels to historical events in 1930s Japan.
The Tomakomai carbon, capture and storage test site in Tomakomai, Hokkaido, in March 2018. The true benefits of carbon removal won’t be realized until we get close to net zero emissions.
COMMENTARY
Oct 10, 2024

Geoengineering can save the planet — if we demystify it

The percentage of Americans who say they trust scientists on the environment has declined to 67% this year from 75% in 2020.
Performers at Stand Up Indonesia Tokyo shows crack plenty of jokes, but the main purpose behind the group, organizers say, is to provide a space where Indonesian expats can express themselves about any struggles they may have about living abroad.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Oct 14, 2024

Tokyo’s Indonesians get through life abroad with a couple of laughs

Stand Up Indonesia Tokyo is a community of comedians, comedy fans and others with connections to Indonesia seeking a reminder of home.
The history of cooking shows that no country can claim exclusive ownership of a dish, as many iconic foods like kabobs, pizzas, or pad thai have international roots shaped by cultural exchanges.
COMMENTARY
Oct 11, 2024

A battle over the kebab’s nationality

National dishes are often recent constructs, with many foods evolving across regions and influenced by various cultures.
Shohei Ohtani's success symbolizes a broader resurgence in Japanese sports, with contributing factors including increased investment in sports, modern coaching techniques and a generational shift in mindset.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 11, 2024

What baseball star Shohei Ohtani’s success says about Japan

The phenom has had what many are calling the greatest season ever. But his success is also a story of change in his home country.
Justice Minister Hideki Makihara speaks during a joint interview with media outlets at his office in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 11, 2024

Justice minister says he has severed all ties with Unification Church

Hideki Makihara has promised to follow the Liberal Democratic Party’s commitment on ceasing ties with the group moving forward.
Scotland's former first minister, Alex Salmond, attends an event in Ellon, Scotland, in April 2021.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 13, 2024

Alex Salmond, champion of Scottish independence, dies at 69

Salmond, who died after falling ill after making a speech in North Macedonia, stepped down as Scotland's first minister after losing the 2014 independence referendum.
Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center in Aurora, Colorado, on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 13, 2024

Trump ratchets up rhetoric, calling for death penalty for migrants who kill Americans

He has already proposed an expansion of the death penalty for other offenders, including people convicted of sex trafficking women and children.
Constitutional Democratic Party (CDP) leader Yoshihiko Noda speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 13, 2024

Amid skepticism, CDP faces once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in Oct. 27 polls

The party can capitalize on dissatisfaction against the ruling Liberal Democratic Party over a recent scandal, but it must battle voters' deep-seated doubts against it.
A man searches through the rubble of a wrecked house in the Turkish town of Cankiri after a strong earthquake hit central Turkey in June 2000.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 13, 2024

Earthquakes, hurricanes and other disasters will shape our future cities

The progress of Antakya’s renewal bears watching. However it proceeds, there will be lessons to learn.
A truck drives through a flooded street in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton in South Daytona, Florida, on Friday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 10, 2024

Hurricane Milton shows there’s no ‘normal’ storm season

It may be hard to believe, but about a month ago, people were calling this year’s hurricane season a bust.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years