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Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
May 27, 2008

Is it easy for foreigners to integrate into Japanese society?

T. Mutoh Dentist, 49 I think it's easy; there's not much prejudice here. When you consider some places, where people of certain backgrounds won't even eat dinner together, Japan is almost like heaven, right?
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
May 27, 2008

Law bends over backward to allow 'fuzoku'

Some desires money can't gratify, but for appetites of the flesh, there are ways in Japan to legally sate one's carnal cravings.
EDITORIALS
May 26, 2008

Jammed door to Myanmar

More than three weeks since Cyclone Nargis devastated Myanmar, the military junta has finally decided to open its door to a larger international relief effort and to allow in aid experts "of all nationalities." More than 130,000 people are believed dead or missing because of the cyclone — compared...
EDITORIALS
May 23, 2008

Shifting the pension burden

A panel of the People's Conference on Social Security, a forum established by Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, has made public its calculation of how much the consumption tax should rise if the tax revenue is used to pay for the basic portion of pensions in full.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 22, 2008

A life on the streets

'I'm not always a stray dog. Sometimes I'm a cat," says Daido Moriyama. "Or an insect."
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 21, 2008

EPAs clearing way for foreign caregivers

Indonesian nurses and care workers are expected to start arriving in Japan this summer under a new bilateral economic partnership agreement, and, under a similar EPA between Tokyo and Manila, such professionals from the Philippines may follow.
EDITORIALS
May 21, 2008

Boosting traffic safety

The revision of the Road Traffic Law that goes into effect from June 1 incorporates a number of new traffic rules. Most of them are designed to help prevent injuries.
Reader Mail
May 18, 2008

Consider election consequences

Last month I read about (U.S. Democratic presidential candidate) Hillary Clinton's win in the Pennsylvania primary. Every Japanese newspaper put Clinton's exciting big face in their articles. She looked so happy, pointing her finger at supporters. Looking at these photos, I thought that Americans seem...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
May 18, 2008

Japan affords translators an elevated status not found elsewhere

Here's a little quiz for you.
Reader Mail
May 18, 2008

Homelessness in both countries

Regarding the May 13 article "Team Japan faces huge hurdles on road to Homeless World Cup": I applaud The Japan Times for covering the topic of homelessness. It is a serious issue affecting many people in Japan as well as the United States. It is tragic that there exists such biased attitudes toward...
COMMENTARY
May 16, 2008

What if Barack Obama were a real Muslim?

LOS ANGELES — A significant number of West Virginians (and some others in America) evidently take the view that U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Hussein Obama is a Muslim. In a surpassingly depressing report from the coal-miner state on the eve of Tuesday's West Virginia primary, The Los...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
May 16, 2008

Colombian flavors at the Westin

Colombian flavors at the Westin As part of commemorative activities to mark 100 years of diplomatic ties between Japan and Colombia, a "Colombia Gourmet" fair is being held at Victor's restaurant at the Westin Hotel Tokyo through May 20.
Reader Mail
May 15, 2008

Risk of executing the innocent

It is hard to argue with Dave Williams' May 4 letter, "Ultimate deterrent to repeat murder" -- except that, at least in the United States for example, it is an indisputable fact that innocent people are jailed, put on death row and executed.
BUSINESS
May 15, 2008

Internet businesses try luck in overseas markets

While Japanese products from cars to TVs are known throughout the world, the country's Internet services have so far been conspicuously absent abroad.
COMMENTARY
May 14, 2008

Protectionism won't solve crisis

LONDON — The devastating cyclone that hit lower Burma (Myanmar) has caused horrific loss of life and largely destroyed what was once the rice bowl of Asia. There is an urgent need for food, clean water and shelter for those affected, but the Burmese authorities would apparently rather maintain their...
EDITORIALS
May 12, 2008

Legal services for everyone

On April 1, 2006, Nihon Shiho Shien Senta (Japan Legal Support Center) or Ho Terasu (Law Terrace) was established to offer people easy access to legal services. It began operation on Oct. 2 that year. Although two years have passed, only 22 percent of those recently polled know of Ho Terrace. More publicity...
Reader Mail
May 11, 2008

The Japanese view of ending life

Regarding David Quintero's May 4 letter, "High Japanese suicide rate mystifies," and the question he poses (Why do so many Japanese people kill themselves?): I don't have a definitive answer, but I have come up with a few theories:
Reader Mail
May 11, 2008

Winners in war remain hidden

The April 30 article about Raymond "Hap" Halloran, "War trauma leads to efforts to reconcile," brought tears to my eyes. Not so much the part about his being displayed as a war prisoner at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo in 1945, but the very end of the article, where Halloran declares that he has no answer as to what...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
May 11, 2008

Home-interaction game show, retail documentary, school-age drama

The last thing we need is yet another quiz show featuring comedians proving how smart or dumb they are, but "The Quiz Man" (TV Asahi, Tuesday, 7 p.m.) promises something quite different. The difference has nothing to do with the content.
COMMENTARY
May 10, 2008

Japan needs a dose of Koizumi's old magic

I wish more people understood Japan better. I wish I understood Japan better.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 10, 2008

Writers funnel book royalties to charity NGO

Helping those suffering from poverty and disasters is as easy as buying a book, say supporters of a new charity program launched Thursday.
COMMENTARY
May 10, 2008

Britain's next government must beat mood of retreat

LONDON — Has the political tide in Britain now turned? And is the Labour Party under Prime Minister Gordon Brown now heading for defeat?
COMMENTARY
May 9, 2008

How to succeed in Burma with a practical approach

NEW DELHI — Such is the tragedy that Burma symbolizes that, in one week, it has been hit by new U.S. sanctions and by a tropical cyclone that left thousands dead.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 9, 2008

On death row and a cause celebre

Iwao Hakamada, the longest serving death-row inmate, has insisted for 40 years he is innocent of the four murders he was convicted of. The evidence was suspect, he says, and his confession was coerced.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’