Search - special-issue

 
 
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Feb 6, 2006

To improve Japan's finances, reform drive must stay alive

In fiscal 2006, the government will issue under 30 trillion yen in bonds for the first time in eight years, leaving the nation 11.2 trillion yen short of achieving a primary balance -- the condition where expenditures, excluding interest payments and debt redemptions, are covered by revenues excluding...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Feb 5, 2006

Solve your neighborhood problem with NHK's "Nanmon Kaiketsu" and more

As everyone knows, Japan is no longer a haven of safety. No statistic supports this sad development better than the fact that more than 440,000 bicycles are stolen every year, so don't get angry when a policeman stops you on the street to check your registration. He's only doing his job.
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2006

Family delighted film on abductee wins prize

The relatives of victims of North Korea's abductions expressed their joy Monday after a U.S. film on Megumi Yokota has won the best documentary award at the U.S. Slamdance Film Festival in Utah.
JAPAN
Jan 30, 2006

U.S. backtracking on new home for aerial tankers

The U.S. wants to move its fleet of KC-130 aerial refueling tankers based in Okinawa Prefecture to the Marine Corps' base in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefecture, instead of the Maritime Self-Defense Force base in Kanoya, Kagoshima Prefecture, as currently planned, it was learned Sunday.
JAPAN
Jan 24, 2006

LDP to study boosting defense role in space quest, spy satellite abilities

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party will study whether to relax restrictions on using spinoffs from space development efforts for purposes of defense.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 15, 2006

NHK has a public duty so how about free streaming from its library?

Since last August the National Association of Commercial Broadcasters in Japan (NAB) has been running a nationwide TV ad campaign to promote television commercials.
JAPAN
Dec 30, 2005

Rare-disease sufferers want drugs fast-tracked

, a rare, life-threatening disease caused by a deficiency in a lysosomal enzyme. The hereditary, progressive illness causes mental retardation, poor vision and stiffness in the joints. Tomoki's only chance of getting better is to have a bone marrow or blood transplant from an umbilical cord, but his...
JAPAN
Dec 22, 2005

LDP, DPJ to push vote on Constitution

The ruling bloc and the Democratic Party of Japan have agreed in principle to submit a bill to a regular session of the Diet next year authorizing a referendum on revising the Constitution, party members said.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Dec 22, 2005

Looking back on 10 years of yakimono

In the 10 years since this column started, much has changed in the worldwide perception of yakimono, Japanese ceramic art. I'm talking about in the contemporary realm, not antiques. The deep and wide world of contemporary Japanese ceramic art is as varied as there are stars in a brilliant winter night...
COMMENTARY
Dec 20, 2005

A job dogged by historical comparisons

HONG KONG -- Not all modern Chinese leaders are alike. First there was Mao Zedong. History's judgment suggests he could and should have done a lot better as boss man of the Middle Kingdom after the World War II, to say the least.
EDITORIALS
Dec 16, 2005

Advocate for the elderly

Next year Japan will take another step forward toward strengthening the protection of the weaker members of society. The Diet has passed a law to prevent cruel treatment of the aged and to assist those taking care of them. Preparations are being made for implementing the law in April. Enactment of the...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Dec 4, 2005

Shogo Kariyazaki: Flower power at his fingertips

Shogo Kariyazaki is one of Japan's most flamboyant and outspoken authorities on beauty.
EDITORIALS
Dec 3, 2005

Cut spending before raising taxes

With Japan's economic recovery gaining momentum, the government appears set to increase taxes across a broad spectrum. The Tax Commission last week proposed a series of tax-code changes for fiscal 2006, including an abolition in 2007 of the flat-rate tax cuts for individual income taxes that had been...
JAPAN
Nov 30, 2005

Asbestos-relief bill may hit 27 billion yen

The government revealed Tuesday that thousands of buildings nationwide, including public facilities, pose asbestos exposure risks while unveiling a draft bill to pay 27 billion yen in compensation to the people affected.
COMMENTARY
Nov 23, 2005

Neocons absconded with round five

BRUSSELS -- The six-party talks, which initially began in August 2003 to resolve the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula, reconvened in Beijing on Nov. 9, then adjourned three days later inconclusively. Defeat was snatched from the jaws of victory.
JAPAN
Nov 8, 2005

Governors oppose base relocation plans

is greeted by Fukushiro Nukaga, director general of the Defense Agency, prior to a meeting Monday at the agency.
JAPAN / CABINET INTERVIEW
Nov 3, 2005

Aso planning to run for LDP president

Foreign Minister Taro Aso, a potential successor to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, said he will run for president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party next September if he can get the required 20 party members to nominate him.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Oct 31, 2005

Is the American dream now a mirage?

NEW YORK -- Is the American dream just a mirage now? Earlier this year the Wall Street Journal ran a series called "Challenges to the American Dream," casting into doubt the "staple of America's self-portrait" that "a child born in poverty isn't trapped there." If that was putting the matter delicately,...
COMMENTARY
Oct 31, 2005

EU must win grassroots trust

LONDON, PARIS and ROME-- European leaders have been holding a special meeting at the invitation of British Prime Minister Tony Blair to discuss what he calls "the strategic issues facing Europe in the years ahead."
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 28, 2005

TBS scrambling for 'stable' investors

About 55 percent of Tokyo Broadcasting System Inc.'s outstanding shares will likely fall into the hands of long-term shareholders, sources close to the television broadcaster claimed Thursday.
JAPAN
Oct 26, 2005

Court splits on Hansen's compensation

Judges were split Tuesday on two lawsuits filed by former Hansen's disease patients from South Korea and Taiwan -- the South Korean patients were denied compensation while the Taiwanese were awarded it.
JAPAN
Oct 25, 2005

Issues involved in U.S.-Japan base talks

The following questions and answers deal with the deadlock between Japan and the United States over the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture -- the main topic of bilateral working-level talks that began Monday in Tokyo.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 24, 2005

Germany must be determined on reform: expert

Unless the forthcoming German government of conservative leader Angela Merkel bites the bullet and carries out painful reforms in a determined way, there will be no real domestic demand-led growth in the country, and its leadership in Europe will be limited, a German expert told a recent symposium in...
JAPAN
Oct 21, 2005

James Bond goes Japanese? Tokyo eyes MI6-style spy agency

The idea of a Japanese James Bond may sound hilarious, but serious discussions are under way in Japan on whether to create a secret intelligence service along the lines of Britain's MI6 to conduct overseas espionage.
JAPAN
Oct 18, 2005

Osaka's scandal-hit mayor to resign, run again in snap poll

OSAKA -- Osaka Mayor Junichi Seki announced Monday he will resign his post and then run again in a snap election that he said will determine voter faith in his proposed reforms.
EDITORIALS
Oct 15, 2005

Reining in medical expenditures

The Japanese spent 31.4 trillion yen for medical services in fiscal 2004, or about 246,000 yen per person, an increase of 2 percent from the previous year. The figure of 2 percent may be a small and acceptable growth, requiring no stricter lid on the rise of the nation's medical spending. But Japan's...

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami