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Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 2, 2016

The tyranny of the majority

Only a small proportion of the British population voted to leave the European Union, but the whole nation will face the consequences.
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Sep 26, 2016

The deeper meaning of the Emperor's video message

The main theme of Emperor Akihito's August message to the nation was not about abdication but succession of the postwar regime — which is synonymous with the continued existence of the Imperial family.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 26, 2016

Abe opens extra Diet session, urging action on Constitution and TPP

Abe gets a 66-day extraordinary Diet session underway with a speech vowing additional fiscal measures for the economy.
LIFE / Language / MORNING ENGLISH
Sep 19, 2016

Let's discuss young recluses in Japan

An estimated 541,000 people aged between 15 and 39 in Japan avoid social contact and shut themselves in their homes, according to a government survey.
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Aug 24, 2016

The LDP's draft constitution

The 2012 draft constitution remains a heavy burden on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's pursuit of revising the nation's supreme law while he's in office.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 18, 2016

The thrill of victory, the agony of another snub

The refusal of an Egyptian athlete to shake his Israeli counterpart's hand is symbolic of the Arab street's continuing rejection of the legitimacy of the Jewish state.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Aug 2, 2016

China puts Japan in cross hairs with blistering, sustained attack over alleged role in sea ruling

China has claimed to have unmasked Japanese malfeasance and "manipulation" amid a campaign to discredit an international tribunal ruling two weeks ago that largely invalidated Beijing's claims to most of the South China Sea.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Jul 24, 2016

A week’s worth of questions about paid leave

This month, a week of questions about paid leave. Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about the issue, and their answers.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 23, 2016

Constitutional change may target Japan's elderly

In the week prior to the recent Upper House poll, the Kochi Shimbun asked 100 people at random what the significance of "two-thirds" was in relation to the election. Only 17 answered correctly that it was the minimum portion of Diet lawmakers needed to amend the Constitution. One of the main reasons...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Jul 20, 2016

Eiken broadens language tests to address criticisms

As the Eiken Foundation tries to meet the demands of a growing number of test-takers, what do students, parents and teachers make of the tests?
COMMUNITY / Voices / COMMUNITY CHEST
Jul 20, 2016

Readers' letters: Rote learning, vocab and Eiken's aims

Some readers' responses to last month's article by Hans Karlsson, 'Is the Eiken doing Japan's English learners more harm than good?'
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 11, 2016

LDP-led ruling bloc, allies clear two-thirds majority hurdle in Upper House poll

The Liberal Democratic Party-led ruling coalition scored a sweeping victory in the Upper House election Sunday that gave the Diet's pro-revision forces the two-thirds majority needed to initiate Japan's first constitutional referendum, final results showed Monday morning.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / DECISION 2016
Jul 6, 2016

A ruling bloc win in Sunday's poll puts Constitution in crosshairs

Keiko Hirai was surprised to see a letter addressed to her and her husband from the Self-Defense Forces, urging their 15-year-old son to enroll in a special high school run by the Ground Self-Defense Force after graduating from junior high.
JAPAN / Politics / DECISION 2016
Jul 6, 2016

Osaka Ishin struggling ahead of Sunday's Upper House poll

Just before the Upper House election campaign kicked off on June 22, Osaka Ishin no Kai leaders were plotting their schedules for the days leading up to Sunday's poll.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 2, 2016

On the campaign trail for the foreign right to vote

Permanent residents argue their tax contributions entitle them to a degree of representation at the ballot box. With the Upper House election just around the corner, we examine both sides of the debate.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jul 2, 2016

What are Shinzo Abe's real three arrows?

In his campaign for the upcoming Upper House elections, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is pussyfooting around his plans to revise the Constitution. He is keeping his cards close to his chest because polls have shown that voters oppose constitutional change. Instead, Abe is calling on voters to keep the faith...
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Jun 26, 2016

'Same work, same pay' goal may spark a race to the bottom

Without details on how to bridge the chasm that divides irregular and regular workers, PM Abe's target is hot air.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 7, 2016

If formed, a Tokyo assembly committee could pry Masuzoe from governorship

Public calls for Tokyo Gov. Yoichi Masuzoe to step down grow despite his apology a day earlier and a pledge to refund some of the ¥4.4 million he misspent.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 29, 2016

A-bombs taught U.S. how to justify attacks abroad

The nuclear attack on Hiroshima set in motion a sweeping, national generalization that if Americans do it, it is right.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
May 21, 2016

Wrath awaits Japanese women who shun their childbearing 'destiny'

Back in the 1990s, actor Tomoko Yamaguchi often appeared in trendy dramas — TV shows that portrayed the lives of middle-class people who, whether married or not, only worried about what to buy and who to love. Once she turned 35, Yamaguchi was no longer considered suitable for such roles, but trendy...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Apr 30, 2016

Japan's meek media kowtows to the government

Last week I compared the Catholic Church in Boston and Japan's "nuclear village" of atomic-power advocates — two powerful institutions that stifled embarrassing revelations for some time. The Oscar-winning film "Spotlight" depicts the comeuppance of the church hierarchy after investigative reporters...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Apr 2, 2016

Shincho gets back in tabloid battle with scoop on Ototake

When the weeklies go to war, nobody's safe.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Mar 23, 2016

Sincerely, Little Nigeria: A reporter signs off

After five years of covering Japan's African community, a writer reflects on progress since 3/11 and speculates about the future.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 16, 2016

Osaka Ishin to campaign on local autonomy, free education in Upper House poll

Expanded local autonomy and free education until college are part of a series of proposals for constitutional revision that Osaka Ishin no Kai is finalizing in advance of this summer's Upper House election.
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Feb 29, 2016

'Landmark' ruling sent Japan's foreign residents back to welfare limbo

Widely misunderstood 2014 case reaffirmed the decades-old stopgap that means noncitizens can receive support but can't appeal if their application is rejected.
EDITORIALS
Jan 18, 2016

Public access to government records

The principle of sovereignty resting with the people must be reinforced by improving public access to official documents.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jan 16, 2016

From sexual liberation to liberation from sex

Young people are forever shocking their elders, and elders, however shocking they themselves may have been to their own elders once upon a time, never fail to play their generation's perennial role of shocked onlookers to shocking youthful behavior of one sort or another.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Dec 2, 2015

Life after work in Japan: tackling readers' pension questions

Among the questions that Japan Times readers send to the Lifelines column, a perennial topic is navigating the Japanese pension system. Here are some answers.
EDITORIALS
Nov 15, 2015

Protecting broadcasters' freedom

Freedom of the press is a pillar of democracy. The administration and the LDP should refrain from trying to control the media.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji