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COMMENTARY / World
Jan 23, 2008

An Iranian lesson for Musharraf's critics

PRAGUE — As the future of both Pakistan and its president, Pervez Musharraf, wallow in uncertainty in the wake of Benazir Bhutto's assassination, parallels are being drawn to the 1979 fall of the shah and the Islamic Revolution in Iran. Once again, a "pro-American" autocrat seems to be rapidly losing...
COMMENTARY
Jan 23, 2008

False choices for Tokyo

HONOLULU — A gloom is settling over Tokyo. A recent visit revealed deep and deepening frustration and anxiety as Japanese contemplate strategic options. Decision-makers in Tokyo have framed their choices in overly simple terms that do not reflect the range of possibilities in foreign and security policy....
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 21, 2008

Insurrections push Philippines to the brink

MANILA —The current president of the Philippines, Gloria Arroyo, whose election in 2004 was deeply flawed, but probably not fraudulent, is currently beset by a sea of troubles that threaten to overwhelm her regime.
JAPAN
Jan 17, 2008

Ozawa stakes career on Lower House contest

Opposition leader Ichiro Ozawa said Wednesday the next Lower House election will be the "final battle" of his political career and for the Democratic Party of Japan itself.
EDITORIALS
Jan 6, 2008

Political temblors in Iowa

The United States has just concluded the first stage in the quadrennial spectacular — or is it a spectacle? — that is a presidential campaign. The Iowa caucuses were held Thursday evening and the two winners, Sen. Barack Obama and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, confounded their party establishments...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 4, 2008

Beijing: punk paradise in waiting

As Beijing enters its Olympic year, The Japan Times meets the Japanese mogul who's hoping to put the city on the musical map
JAPAN
Jan 1, 2008

'07 political storm really the calm before '08?

Last year was full of political turmoil — from scandals and arrests to suicide and a divided Diet — but there is no time to rest because 2008 may turn out to be a historical turning point if there is a general election, depending on which side wins, analysts say.
Reader Mail
Dec 20, 2007

Remember the monks of Myanmar

I am disappointedly surprised at the comments of Nyunt Shwe in his Dec. 16 letter, "Monk deserves punishment." His arguments in support of the Tokyo High Court's judgment against a Buddhist monk who had been prosecuted for passing out Japanese Communist Party fliers' in a Tokyo Katsushika Ward condominium...
Reader Mail
Dec 16, 2007

Monk deserves punishment

Regarding the Dec. 12 article "Canvassing monk found guilty of trespassing": I agree with the Tokyo High Court that the Buddhist monk should be punished (for distributing Japanese Communist Party fliers in a Tokyo Katsushika Ward condominium complex in December 2004). Politics and religion must be...
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.
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2007

Osaka governor candidates slow to emerge

OSAKA — Position Wanted: Popular and well-known public figure with an interest in local politics. Must have the ability to skillfully negotiate with central government bureaucrats and have good relations with the local business community.
COMMENTARY
Dec 2, 2007

Stateside view of Australia's landslide

LOS ANGELES — In a parliamentary system of government, there are no guarantees. You can be in one day and out the next.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Nov 25, 2007

Lack of sponsor hurting Nakano

It's amazing how vast the difference between perception and reality can be.
JAPAN
Nov 20, 2007

Hiramatsu's win in Osaka mayoral race boosts DPJ

OSAKA — Kunio Hiramatsu, who beat incumbent Junichi Seki in Sunday's mayoral poll in what is seen as a stunning defeat for the ruling coalition, vowed to reform the city government but offered no specific steps to remedy the city's ballooning debts.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 9, 2007

EU's moment of decision

BRUSSELS — Is amnesia an integral part of politics? When it comes to the treaty to reform the European Union's institutions, which will be finalized this month, recent events suggest that amnesia does play a central role.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 6, 2007

Vladimir Putin, part two

LONDON — Opinions about Vladimir Putin run the gamut. In the West, he is regarded as an "authoritarian," an "autocrat," even as a "dictator," while in Russia a huge majority regard him as the most "democratic" of leaders, on the grounds that he has done more than his predecessors to improve the lot...
EDITORIALS
Oct 25, 2007

Mr. Sarkozy's first real test

A fter a whirlwind start, French President Nicolas Sarkozy is facing his first real head winds. Having taken the initiative since moving into the Elysee Palace in May, Mr. Sarkozy is being buffeted by public worker strikes and a high-profile divorce. Neither should be fatal to his presidency, but both...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Oct 21, 2007

The power of telling tales versus making apologies

In his new book, "The Political Brain," Drew Westen analyzes in detail the election debates of 2000 between Al Gore and George W. Bush. Westen points out that it was Gore's dispassionate approach to issues that hurt him. Bush, then as now, presents himself as someone who knows what is right (and moral)...
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Oct 16, 2007

How long can Fukuda last?

In forming his Cabinet, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda surrounded himself with "heavyweights" of his Liberal Democratic Party — powerful figures who head their respective intraparty factions. Although Fukuda is older than most of them, there is no denying that his lower level of experience makes him look...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 12, 2007

Fukuda could resolve issue over Yasukuni by visiting

I believe it would be good for Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda to visit Yasukuni Shrine during the annual autumn festival. I am very well aware that the prime minister himself is extremely cautious about the visit. But, objectively speaking, the time is getting ripe to resolve the Yasukuni problem.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 12, 2007

'The Kingdom'

It seems impossible to make a movie about 9/11 or the "war on terror" without getting sucked into the political dogfight surrounding the mess America now finds itself in. Whether it's "The Road To Guantanamo," "United 97," or even the latest season of "24," it's hard to portray current events — even...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 8, 2007

No graceful exit for Russia's Grand Putin

VIENNA — For those who still wondered who Vladimir Putin is, the mystery is over. His latest actions show that he is Russia's new autocrat. He is a czar, pure and simple. The seven years since Putin assumed power in the Kremlin have been a time of conflicting signals. On one hand, he appears to be...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Oct 7, 2007

Nahoko Yamazaki: Off-stage woman stars in men's theater world

Just as in the realm of politics, in the arts world — and here, particularly regarding the performing arts — different countries adopt different policies depending on their historical and economic circumstances.
EDITORIALS
Oct 6, 2007

Mr. Fukuda tests the water

After a virtual recess following Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Sept. 12 resignation announcement, Prime new Minister Yasuo Fukuda and the opposition are squaring off against each other in the Diet. The opposition camp says that since the prime minister does not have the people's mandate, his first job...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 4, 2007

Hatoyama rips into Fukuda, wants poll

Yukio Hatoyama, secretary general of the Democratic Party of Japan, officially launched the opposition's battle Wednesday against Yasuo Fukuda in the Diet, pressing the new prime minister to dissolve the Lower House and call a general election.
Japan Times
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Sep 24, 2007

Hawks expected to push Fukuda hard

New Liberal Democratic Party President Yasuo Fukuda is known as an advocate of relatively conciliatory policies, so after a year with the hawkish Shinzo Abe in power the public may be expecting a major shift in various policy areas, including diplomacy and the Yasukuni Shrine issue.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 20, 2007

Faces of the screen queen

The screening of "I'm Not There" at the Toronto Film Festival earlier this month left many in the aisles whispering "Academy Award" in reference to just one member of the ensemble cast — Cate Blanchett.
JAPAN
Sep 20, 2007

Ishihara's new right-hand man settles in

All eyes were on Naoki Inose as his new career as a politician got into full swing Wednesday with the opening of the first session of the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly.

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