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COMMENTARY
May 29, 2007

World's 'best' health care fatally flawed

NEW YORK — One of the most contentious issues of the U.S. presidential campaign will be how to fix what many agree is a malfunctioning health-care system. Adding fuel to the fire is a recent study detailing the shortcomings of the U.S. health-care system compared with those of Australia, Canada, Germany,...
COMMENTARY
May 28, 2007

Apathetic clouds of smoke

Two years after the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) took effect, many countries are coordinating efforts to curb tobacco use.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
May 26, 2007

Profile: Tomisaku Kawasaki

Dr. Tomisaku Kawasaki bears the distinction of having his name attached to a little-known children's disease. This naming was not something that he, a modest man, sought.
COMMENTARY
May 25, 2007

Fears of new 'Nixon shock'

HONOLULU — The U.S.-Japan relationship is on solid ground and growing stronger by the day. As a result of their recent Camp David summit, U.S. President George W. Bush and Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo have become each other's new best friend — perhaps not as close (yet) as Bush's ties with...
Reader Mail
May 23, 2007

The American failure to speak out

Ted Rall's May 6 article, "George Tenet's worst ever career choice," certainly hits the nail on the head. Why didn't former CIA Director Tenet speak up and admit that the White House was deceiving us? Why didn't so many other politicians and bureaucrats speak up? And why did it take the majority of...
Reader Mail
May 23, 2007

Superficial China-Japan entente

Regarding the May 10 article "And now to trilateralism," by Brad Glosserman and Bonnie Glaser: The supposed entente between China and Japan is superficial and will likely evaporate with the next insult from Japan or aggressive move by China in the East China Sea. The fundamental problem is not China's...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
May 22, 2007

Seeing from the Korean side

In February this year over 300 people attended the performing arts festival at a junior high school in Okayama. It was much the same as any other arts festival at any other junior high school in Japan; the students sang, danced, played music and performed skits for an audience made up of family and friends....
Reader Mail
May 20, 2007

Baby drop rekindles memories

I sobbed Friday morning (May 11) when I read the front-page article "Calls flood Kumamoto hospital as it opens first baby hatch." Sixty-year old memories shocked me like jolts of electricity. After being abandoned in an orphanage, I spent many agonizing years not understanding the subliminal pain and...
Reader Mail
May 20, 2007

Personhood is an achievement

I was excited by the May 5 article "Activists push for chimp to be declared a 'person,' " largely because of the fascinating philosophical issues it raises and the currents in modern culture that it exposes. Personally, I disagree with the notion of animals -- even high-order animals like chimpanzees,...
Reader Mail
May 20, 2007

The toughest job in town

I just read an article in The Japan Times about the nation's record-low birthrate. I am one of the angry people who have four children in this country -- I am German and my husband is Japanese. If anybody would like to know why there are so few children, I would like to show them how hard it is to have...
JAPAN
May 18, 2007

Trail to Obara said overlooked in '92 death

Second of two parts
Reader Mail
May 16, 2007

Abe adviser is cause for concern

Regarding Ambassador Hisahiko Okazaki's April 30 article "Entente to balance China": Perhaps Okizaki's essay makes sense in its original Japanese. But its English translation comes across as muddled, disjointed ramblings. The only clear theme is his anti-China bias, which is consistent with some of...
LIFE / Language
May 15, 2007

Cliches energize conversation in any language

First of two parts
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
May 13, 2007

5,000 victories, throwback uniforms and the oiribukuro

In commemoration of their 5,000th victory in the history of the franchise, the Yomiuri Giants will wear throwback uniforms during some interleague games next month.
Reader Mail
May 13, 2007

More America bashing?

David Howell's April 27 article "America the not so beautiful" was an interesting read, but his argument contained too many holes and became another example of the kind of America bashing that is becoming quite popular in today's British press.
Reader Mail
May 13, 2007

Government's priorities misplaced

Regarding the April 22 article "Japan eyes buying U.S. F-22A, F-15FX fighters," Japan has a budget deficit of 16 percent, a public debt of 176 percent of GDP and an external debt of 150 trillion yen. Despite this, the government -- infatuated with military pomp and kit -- wants to spend a further 1...
JAPAN
May 12, 2007

Constitution referendum bill clears key committee

has been asked to cooperate (in the international community) and we ourselves need to protect the lives and assets of the people, and it is natural that we discuss what is (a suitable) new Constitution." The Constitution stipulates that any changes to the charter must be approved by a two-thirds majority...
Reader Mail
May 9, 2007

Roger Pulvers on target

The April 15 Roger Pulvers article "It was 40 (very different) years ago today . . ." was quite admirable and impressive. The analysis and comparison, all based on the truth, were very intriguing and persuasive. It helped me when I was down in the dumps after the re-election of Shintaro Ishihara. It...
Reader Mail
May 9, 2007

Impressive feature on India

I was very much impressed by the two-page feature in the Time Out section of the April 22 Japan Times about the large Indian diaspora in Japan. The trade between the two countries is now growing, and such articles provide and insight into the Indian mind.
Reader Mail
May 6, 2007

East Timor wasn't a Dutch colony

East Timor was a Portuguese colony, not a Dutch colony as stated in the April 28 Kyodo News article titled "East Timor former sex slaves start speaking out." dan winters
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
May 6, 2007

New clarities set to cloud smoke screens of ambiguity

Last month, on April Fool's Day to be exact, I revealed some terms and expressions appearing in the forthcoming Japanese government publication, "The Dictionary of All-Too-True Japanese Words and Phrases." Actually, there is far more than meets the eye in this groundbreaking, earthy volume.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
May 6, 2007

Karel Van Wolferen: Insights into the new world disorder

When Karel Van Wolferen released his seminal book "The Enigma of Japanese Power" in the dying months of the bubble economy, the normally staid monthly magazine Chuo Koron described its impact as akin to being struck by a bolt of lightning. For once, the hype was merited. Little before had matched the...

Longform

Dangami House is a 180-year-old former samurai residence of the Kato clan, who ruled over Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, until the Meiji Restoration.
A house, a legacy and the quiet work of restoration in rural Japan