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Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 1, 2021

Facebook and Apple will miss 2020, unlike everyone else

For the third quarter in a row, Facebook Inc. and Apple Inc. generated billions upon billions in profits and flexed the power of their dominant businesses.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 29, 2021

Will Biden’s emphasis on alliances go anywhere?

Even if allies strike a deal with the current U.S. administration, there is always the fear that it may be overturned in four years.
JAPAN
Jan 25, 2021

Suga faces mounting pressure over slow pandemic response

Support for the prime minister's Cabinet has dropped from 39% last month to 33%, with disapproval rising 10 percentage points to 45%, according to a poll by the Asahi newspaper.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 24, 2021

Mass rallies sweep Russia in protests over Alexei Navalny’s arrest

The remarkable defiance displayed by many of the protesters signaled widespread fatigue with the stagnant, corruption-plagued political order under Vladimir Putin.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 20, 2021

Can ex-presidents be impeached? No. Convicted? Yes.

Under the Constitution, the House of Representatives is authorized to impeach a president, and then the Senate is authorized to convict him.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 20, 2021

How could the storming of the U.S Capitol have even occurred?

The motto of the worldwide Boy Scouts and Girl Guides movement is, “Be Prepared.” It is clear that there were not many Boy Scouts around on Capitol Hill in Washington on the fateful day of Jan. 6.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 12, 2021

COVID-19 improved how the world does science

The biggest problem for an open-access regime is how to ensure good refereeing, which if done correctly raises the quality of academic papers.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 7, 2021

Who's on the hook if vaccines go wrong?

Policy makers in developing nations may not have a choice but to take what they can get — cheaply and quickly. But in so doing, they might just be storing up legal troubles for later.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 6, 2021

What sovereignty means today?

The U.K.'s sovereignty has been regained. What exactly is this sovereignty? And precisely who has taken back control?
Japan Times
WORLD / FOCUS
Jan 6, 2021

Climate action is embedding into how the world works

Positive developments in 2020 are perhaps a strong sign that climate action is starting to be 'institutionalized.”
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 4, 2021

The Kremlin’s new man will keep us guessing

Just as Vladimir Putin was helped by academic-turned-St. Petersburg mayor, Anatoly Sobchak, Mikhail Mishustin was a protege of former finance minister and reformer Boris Fyodorov.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 23, 2020

Japan's bitter vaccine history creates hurdle in COVID-19 fight

Japan has one of the lowest rates of vaccine confidence in the world, according to a Lancet study, which found that fewer than 30% of people strongly agreed that vaccines were safe.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 19, 2020

The public and private concerns of a princess in Japan

News outlets exploit the imperial family for their own ends without ever discussing the real meaning of the imperial system.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Dec 18, 2020

Paris 2024 chief says breakdancing included to reach out to youth

The inclusion of breakdancing at the 2024 Olympics may been surprising but organizers were drawn to the sport's potential to attract a younger fan base and grow the Olympic audience in the internet age, Paris Games chief Tony Estanguet said.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 17, 2020

All aboard the billionaires’ Bitcoin bandwagon?

A surge of 1,000% in 2017 took Bitcoin's value to $19,000. A year later, it had dropped to less than $3,500.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Dec 15, 2020

Certainly, 'tashika ni' is a Japanese term you'll want to know

While 'tashika' on its own in a sentence conveys the idea that something is most likely true, adding the particle 'ni' to it will make it more definite.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 8, 2020

Has Bacardi solved the world’s plastic problem?

Various types of plastic react differently during the recycling process. If two different types are mixed together, the output will be a mishmash of limited economic value.
Akio Toyoda’s involvement in the $33 billion buyout of Toyota Industries signals a potential corporate comeback, and that’s a good thing despite criticism.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 4, 2025

For Toyota, more Akio Toyoda would be a good thing

This opposition is nonsensical. Akio turned Toyota into the biggest automaker in the world during a period of intense industry change.
The Trump administration's decision to ban The Associated Press from the White House press pool over a style guide dispute is part of a long and troubling history of presidents retaliating against journalists who displease them.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 13, 2025

Presidents have been treating journalists badly since Lincoln

Indeed, long before there existed a White House press corps, presidential peevishness led to the punishment of newspapers.
Guillaume Ollagnier, director general of strategic, security and disarmament affairs at the French Foreign Ministry, says that the global nonproliferation architecture should be further strengthened — lest a nuclear arms race erupt.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 15, 2025

France doubles down on opposition to new nuclear states, top official says

With Pyongyang and Beijing ramping up their nuclear capabilities, calls are growing louder in Seoul and elsewhere to develop their own nukes.
Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and their daughter Princess Aiko visit the Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum in Itoman on June 4.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 19, 2025

Parties are still arguing about the rules on imperial succession

Allowing female members to remain royalty after marriage, starting a maternal lineage, adoptions — there are a slew of ideas but a shortage of answers.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s support for Israel’s attack on Iran has sparked outrage among MAGA loyalists who see it as a betrayal of his anti-war promises.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 19, 2025

Trump's MAGA coalition won't survive a bunker-buster in Iran

As the U.S. president weighs whether to join Israel’s war against Iran, a rift cleaves his own base, not to mention the world.
Plaintiffs of lawsuits on welfare benefit reductions hold up signs celebrating their victory in Tokyo on Friday following the Supreme Court's ruling in favor of them.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 27, 2025

Japan's Supreme Court finds welfare benefit cuts unlawful

The top court revoked the welfare cuts but dismissed plaintiffs' damages claims.
The U.S. Supreme Court in Washington. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has made it a priority to contest court orders that block policies on a nationwide, or universal, basis.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 28, 2025

Trump’s court win opens a path to clear hurdles to his agenda

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has made it a priority to contest court orders that block policies on a nationwide, or universal, basis.
Sanseito leader Sohei Kamiya explains his campaign promises in Tokyo on June 30 for the Upper House election.
COMMENTARY / Japan / From Party Leaders
Jul 4, 2025

Japan’s Do It Yourself Party: Who we are and where we are headed

Our core philosophy is “to protect Japan’s national interests and bring about harmony in the world.”
Former U.S. first lady Michelle Obama says she is stepping back from traditional politics to focus on cultural influence through her podcast, reflecting a broader trend of Black women redefining political engagement.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 9, 2025

Michelle Obama is quitting politics. Or is she?

Her misgivings about politics and the spotlight that she and her husband commanded in the White House as historic figures have only grown in recent years.
The new administrative body would serve as a cross-agency "control tower" to respond to issues such as crime and overtourism involving foreign nationals, according to the government.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 15, 2025

Japan launches government body to address concerns over foreign nationals

The body will serve as a cross-agency "control tower" to respond to issues such as crime and overtourism involving foreign nationals, the government said.
The Sanseito party, led by Sohei Kamiya, is surging in the polls with anti-immigration talk, but its rise is likely just a short-lived protest vote rather than the start of lasting right-wing populism.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 15, 2025

Japan’s right-wing fringe is no MAGA or reform movement

The Sanseito party is surging in polls with anti-immigration talk, but its rise is likely just a short-lived protest vote rather than the start of lasting right-wing populism.

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear