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JAPAN / Politics
Apr 6, 2015

Takaichi denies Shukan Post story alleging loan scandal

Internal affairs minister Sanae Takaichi flatly denied allegations Monday by a weekly magazine about her brother's involvement in a dubious loan scandal, accusing the publication of fabricating the story.
Reader Mail
Feb 28, 2015

Trying to stop the repetition of stupidities

Bloomberg writer Noah Smith, in his Feb. 24 op-ed article titled "Will Japan become Asia's next autocracy?," warns of the danger in Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's attempt to amend the Constitution with the Liberal Democratic Party's illiberal draft proposals, yet thinks it sensible to repeal Article 9,...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Jan 11, 2015

We need to talk about Japan — in English

What commentators who write about Japan in English are doing is not necessarily criticism and could instead be a genuine attempt to understand.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / COMMUNITY CHEST
Dec 29, 2014

Discussing sex crimes and Japan's 'safety myth'

A selection of responses to Rachel Halle's recent column, 'Foreign student's account of treatment in rape case points to gaps in Japan's safety myth.'
COMMUNITY / Voices / COMMUNITY CHEST
Dec 14, 2014

Readers' letters: Hague abduction pamphlets, East Asia ties, temping teachers and learning English

Some emails received in response to recent Community articles.
EDITORIALS
Dec 8, 2014

Amending the Constitution

The political landscape emerging from the Dec. 14 Lower House election will impact when or whether a revision to Japan's Constitution becomes a major agenda item.
COMMUNITY / Voices / COMMUNITY CHEST
Sep 8, 2014

Letters: the history, challenges and rewards of adoption in Japan

Readers respond to a recent article on foreign residents adopting children in Japan.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Aug 27, 2014

Tipping points: Japan, North America and the limits of performance pay

Many in Japan believe that performance pay equals the American way, full stop. But the U.S. custom of tipping even for mediocre service suggests things are not so clear-cut.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 25, 2014

Ruling hinged on assistance law revamp: summary

The following is a rough translation of the text of Supreme Court's July 18 ruling that found permanent residents ineligible for welfare payments.
COMMUNITY / Voices / COMMUNITY CHEST
Jul 7, 2014

Letters: adoption from Japan, book bores, returnees, workers' rights and fleeing U.S. guns

Some letters in response to recent articles in the Community section about a wide range of subjects.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / DARK SIDE OF THE RISING SUN
May 3, 2014

Telephone fraud: ‘Hello, is it me you’re looking for?’

For young sociopathic entrepreneurs in Japan, the best way to get rich quick is by learning to say the following three lines convincingly:
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Mar 27, 2014

Abe ready for full-on military drive

With the launch next Monday of a special intraparty panel directly under his lead, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his ruling Liberal Democratic Party are ready to kick off their full-fledged drive to reinterpret the Constitution to allow Japan to help defend its allies.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Mar 8, 2014

Rabid right foams at the mouth over Line's Korean connection

Internet entrepreneurism has spawned all kinds of free services and applications. Some — with names such as Yahoo, Google, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter — have emerged as wild successes and earned sizable fortunes for their founders.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 30, 2013

Is being nice to customers really so disgusting?

That women in Japan are oppressed, neglected, or otherwise compelled to speak well above their natural pitch in formal settings has become a tired, cheap refrain among some American journalists.
EDITORIALS
Dec 4, 2013

Ishiba validates secrecy bill fears

In his recent criticism of public demonstrations near the Diet building by those opposed to the secrecy bill, Liberal Democratic Party Secretary General Shigeru Ishiba validated concerns that the bill could be used to silence citizens who express certain political opinions or demands.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices
Nov 4, 2013

No safe country for foreign women: the debate

Holly Lanasolyluna's article published Oct. 23 attracted an unprecedented number of online comments. More than 5,000 people also answered the accompanying poll about safety in Japan. Here are just some of the mails and comments.
EDITORIALS
Oct 7, 2013

Inching toward collective self-defense

By agreeing to revise the terms of Japan-U.S. defense cooperation in view of China's buildup, the Abe administration risks discarding Japan's traditional 'defense-only defense' posture.
COMMUNITY / Voices / COMMUNITY CHEST
Oct 7, 2013

Fukushima, suicide and nihongo fluency: readers' mails

A grab bag of readers' mail in response to recent Community articles.
EDITORIALS
Sep 18, 2013

Mr. Abe's ominous defense moves

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's approach to changing the government's traditional position on the right to collective self-defense undermines the foundation of Japanese democracy.
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Sep 2, 2013

Tin Man's throne: the rise and fall of a Roppongi royal

Gilbert Otaigbe is the current owner of Black Horse bar and nightclub in Roppongi. At the height of his success in the mid-2000s, he owned at least seven bars, clubs and restaurants.
Reader Mail
Aug 21, 2013

Unbelievable front-page choice

The Aug. 18 front-page Kyodo article "Anti-Japan protests mark anniversary" was ridiculous. I would like an explanation, and I'm sure many others would, too. This was not news. It simply reminded people that protests in China occurred one year ago. And, unbelievably, above the article, there was a photo...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Aug 10, 2013

Aso's Nazi gaffe tarnishes Abe's agenda for constitutional revision

The other night at my local sushi bar conversation turned to Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso's comments about constitutional revision — specifically, his suggestion there is something to be learned from the way the Nazis revised the Weimar Constitution in 1933.
JAPAN / Politics
May 3, 2013

Political parties gear up for constitutional showdown

The opposition parties capitalized on Constitution Day Friday to express skepticism about the wisdom of revising the pacifist charter, while the ruling Liberal Democratic Party tried to build momentum to significantly rewrite it.
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Mar 12, 2013

Do dire predictions for Japan factor in a rush for the exits?

Within two hours of the massive earthquake that jolted Japan at 2:46 p.m. on March 11, 2011, the Japanese government received notice that an “Article 15 event” had occurred at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Feb 3, 2013

Constitutional revision may bring less freedom

Article 18 of Japan's Constitution states, "No person shall be held in bondage of any kind. Involuntary servitude, except as punishment for crime, is prohibited."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / STRANGE BOUTIQUE
Jan 31, 2013

Diamond cries 'murder' on the dancefloor

In its Jan. 12 edition, the Japanese business magazine Diamond Weekly decided to ring in the new year with a 10-page feature titled, "Who's Killing Music?" It was the topic of much discussion and reaction in the music business, and the article even made the agenda during a meeting of the Japanese music...
EDITORIALS
Dec 5, 2012

Dangerous moves on supreme law

The campaign for the Dec. 16 Lower House election began Tuesday with candidates running from a dozen parties. The election results will have a great impact not only on people's daily lives but also on the general future direction of Japan. Voters should carefully weigh each party's stance on various...
JAPAN / ELECTION 2012
Dec 2, 2012

Abe's rightism: Campaign ploy or governance plan?

The main election slogan of the Liberal Democratic Party, which polls say will prevail in the Dec. 16 general election, is "Restoring Japan," underlining its determination to reclaim the power it lost three years ago.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past