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EDITORIALS
Oct 26, 2007

A ceiling on extended power

The Kanagawa Prefectural Assembly has enacted a bylaw limiting a governor to three consecutive terms in office, or 12 years. It will not take effect, though, until the central government places a limit on the number of times a person can be elected as governor or mayor, by revising the Local Autonomy...
Reader Mail
Oct 25, 2007

Teaching staff needs diversity

Regarding the Oct. 13 article "Aussie Nova teachers to be helped by consulates": It's interesting to hear of (English-conversation school) Nova's problems due to management. I taught in Japan from 1999 to 2004 for various companies and as an independent teacher. I applied twice to Nova (once in Japan...
JAPAN
Oct 24, 2007

Wrestler's death leads sumo to probe training

may face criminal charges of manslaughter.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Oct 23, 2007

Human rights survey stinks

On Aug. 25, the Japanese government released findings from a Cabinet poll conducted every four years. Called the "Public Survey on the Defense of Human Rights" ( www8.cao.go.jp/survey/h19/h19-jinken ), it sparked media attention with some apparently good news.
COMMENTARY
Oct 22, 2007

Let MSDF refueling law die

Late last month a gathering in Yokohama remembered the victims of a U.S. military jet crash in a residential area 30 years ago. I was stunned to learn that a Japanese Self-Defense Force helicopter that had rushed to the scene of the crash flew away with two slightly injured U.S. servicemen without looking...
SUMO / SUMO SCRIBBLINGS
Oct 18, 2007

Who killed Takashi Saito?

That any life should be lost during sport is tragic, and sumo is no exception.
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...
EDITORIALS
Oct 13, 2007

Empty gestures on climate change

U.S. President George W. Bush has been hailed for a decisive change in his thinking about climate change. After rejecting the Kyoto treaty early in his presidency, he no longer questions the fact of "climate change" and has attempted to claim a leading role in the international fight to combat this problem....
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 10, 2007

Ozawa's Afghan gambit rejected

Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura on Tuesday rejected Democratic Party of Japan President Ichiro Ozawa's suggestion that Japan participate in NATO's International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.
COMMENTARY
Oct 8, 2007

Save cramming for college

On Aug. 30, the elementary-school group of the Central Education Council published a draft report to the education minister that included these points:
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Oct 7, 2007

Disparate values may still a democracy make

US President Lyndon B. Johnson used to say of people, "Once you've got 'em by the balls, their hearts and minds will follow."
JAPAN / CABINET INTERVIEW
Oct 6, 2007

Permanent SDF law should set dispatch principles: Ishiba

Japan needs a permanent law that lays out the basic rules for dispatching the Self-Defense Forces overseas, instead of enacting short-term special laws for each mission, newly appointed Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba said in a recent interview.
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2007

Ruling bloc, in rare twist, hands MSDF bill to opposition

The ruling coalition Friday submitted to the opposition camp the draft of a new bill to continue the Maritime Self-Defense Force's refueling mission in the Indian Ocean in support of antiterrorism operations in and around Afghanistan — a key goal of Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda in the current Diet session....
JAPAN
Oct 5, 2007

Opposition takes fight to Upper House

Azuma Koshiishi, chairman of the Democratic Party of Japan's caucus in the Upper House, threatened Thursday to submit a censure motion against Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and warned him against fighting the opposition camp in the chamber out of spite.
Reader Mail
Oct 4, 2007

Making things right in Myanmar

I have one opinion that I would like to share when it comes to the Burmese struggle. I truly appreciate what Japan has done for us, but the people of Japan should know this:
JAPAN / CABINET INTERVIEW
Oct 4, 2007

Machimura mulling bill-consultation bodies with opposition

The Liberal Democratic Party-New Komeito ruling coalition should create consultation bodies with the opposition camp, which now has a majority in the House of Councilors, to seek its opinion on important bills before any final decisions are reached, Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Sep 30, 2007

Asashoryu fiasco illustrates incompetence of sumo's leaders

Enough already.
Reader Mail
Sep 30, 2007

Blame game is no remedy

Japan has been my home for almost 10 years. It has many good points and I would not have stayed this long if it didn't. However, more and more, I am hearing the same complaint about the negative influence of American culture on Japanese people. It is their opinion that the reason for this breakdown...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 30, 2007

Cancer may kill, but it can also revitalize a flagging media career

Right now there's a commercial on TV for the American insurance company AFLAC featuring veteran journalist Shuntaro Torigoe, who was diagnosed with cancer two years ago. It shows the 67-year-old reporter in what looks like home videos undergoing tests, or about to be operated on, or clowning around with...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Sep 30, 2007

Sophistication from improvisation

Kitano Takeshi. London: British Film Institute, 2007, 272 pp., with photos. £16.99 (paper) This is a brilliant book on a mercurial subject. Takeshi Kitano is an actor and film director, ubiquitous on television as well, who has become a media event. His persona has splintered and he stands Janus-faced...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 29, 2007

Scholars split over sanctions

Despite their long-standing good relations, the violence recently used to quell demonstrations in Myanmar that caused the death of Japanese video journalist Kenji Nagai has upped the pressure on Tokyo to impose sanctions on the military junta, experts say.
COMMENTARY
Sep 27, 2007

Crunch: a question of trust

LONDON — Financial markets all round the world, from New York to London to Tokyo, have been rattled by the recent squeeze on credit and lending, which originated in the United States. All kinds of lessons have been drawn from the experience, many of which boil down to the simple adage that dubious...
Reader Mail
Sep 26, 2007

Losses from forced retirement

The Sept. 13 Opinion page headline "Here's to the rise of the alpha geezer" caught my eye because I now occupy that age bracket. I don't mind the term "senior" because it allows me to see movies for ¥1,000 yen instead of ¥1,800. Geezers in rocking chairs are as out of date as rotary phones.
JAPAN
Sep 26, 2007

Fukuda elected prime minister in Diet faceoff

New Liberal Democratic Party President Yasuo Fukuda was elected prime minister by a divided Diet on Tuesday afternoon amid the political turmoil stemming from Shinzo Abe's sudden resignation announcement two weeks ago.
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.

Longform

Japan's growing ranks of centenarians are redefining what it means to live in a super-aging society.
What comes after 100?