Search - 2013

 
 
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 7, 2013

Never mind Obama's hedge on the rule of law

President Barack Obama acts as if he can simply post a 'never mind' notice on the White House website if he finds a law's details politically inconvenient.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jul 6, 2013

Letting opportunity slip away

So why hasn't March 11, 2011, been the game-changer that many anticipated? Richard Samuels' masterful account of Japan's policy responses to its greatest crisis since World War II explains why continuity has trumped change. But maybe, just maybe, it hasn't, as he also reminds us that the consequences are still unfolding.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jul 6, 2013

Challenging our notion of currency

When an American explorer named William Henry Furness III arrived on the remote Pacific island of Yap at the start of the last century, he found a scarcely touched place that made his previous destination of Borneo look almost developed.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jul 6, 2013

Lively analysis of tennis from writer's closeness to the stars

When a crestfallen Andy Murray gave a choked-up television interview immediately after losing last year's Wimbledon final to Roger Federer, few would have predicted that joy would quickly replace disappointment for the shy Scot from Dunblane. Four weeks later he was back defeating the Swiss ace on the...
CULTURE / Books
Jul 6, 2013

Loss of innocence in war for a youth looking for some meaning

Koji Obata, the protagonist of Hiroyuki Agawa's novel, tends not to feel strongly about things. He is, however, convinced that this detachment is an aspect of his character that he'd like to change. Early in the novel he decides that "he [is] looking for something he could confront openly, something...
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jul 5, 2013

Hate pornography, sure, but be wary of banning it

Prosecutions for the possession of the filthiest pornography confirm foreigners' suspicions that the British care more for animals than people. Between 2008 and 2011, the English and Welsh authorities charged 1,922 men for having images of bestiality about their person. By contrast, they brought only...
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jul 5, 2013

Hard-charging foreigners inspire Nagoya University sumo team

With the 2013 July Grand Sumo Tournament in Nagoya set to kick off Sunday, Osunaarashi of Egypt is grabbing the media spotlight as the first pro sumo wrestler from Africa.
CULTURE / Japan Pulse
Jul 5, 2013

Tweet Beat: #音楽の日, #ときレス, #シュール

A live-TV music festival, a bishi videogame boy and some surreal tweets made the top Twitter hashtags in Japan last week.
EDITORIALS
Jul 4, 2013

Shuffling the books on nursing care

The health ministry's idea of having municipalities provide nursing care services to some elderly people could raise the costs of care while reducing its quality.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 4, 2013

Financial engineers restarting the risk generator

The last thing one would expect the U.S. government to do is open the floodgates to severe risks in financial markets again. But that is what's happening.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 4, 2013

Girl-group fans help push Japan music sales past U.S.

Ritsuhiko Tajima has about 100 CDs by his favorite band, girl group AKB48, many of them copies of the same disc.
EDITORIALS
Jul 3, 2013

Business sentiment mixed

Japan's quarterly 'tankan' survey shows mixed business sentiments. Small and medium-size firms so far don't seem to have benefited much from 'Abenomics.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 3, 2013

Preparing for cyberwarfare

Washington expects cyberspace missions to become a dominant factor in military operations. But what will the rules of engagement be in the lawless, digital frontier
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 3, 2013

Beware the Internet and the danger of cyberattacks

Economics columnist Robert J. Samuelson has had it with the Internet. He says its astonishing capability to access information is not worth the dangers from cyberwar.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 3, 2013

Honda seeks to make cars pedestrian-safer

Occupants of a car are protected by seat belts, air bags and dashboards devoid of sharp objects. A pedestrian's only defense generally is to get out of the way.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 3, 2013

Rights activists demand end to exploitative trainee program

Japan has long drawn criticism from global watchdogs for failing to curb human trafficking, perhaps most conspicuously when it comes to foreign women brought in to work in the sex trade.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 3, 2013

How will Tunisia's Islamic wild card be played?

With implications that extend throughout the Arab world, Tunisia is trying to answer the question: Can political Islam help build a truly democratic system
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 3, 2013

Securing nuclear material

World leaders have devoted increasing attention in recent years to the risk of terrorists obtaining nuclear or other radioactive material. That's the good news. But all of us need to act with greater urgency in translating good intentions into concrete action.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design / ON: DESIGN
Jul 2, 2013

Wood, paper, leather and a brolly that branches out into a leafy bough

Hang on to a brolly this summer
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 2, 2013

Can Rudd resurrect Labor?

Even by the standards of a sports-mad country in which politics is a blood-sport, the events leading to the comeback of Kevin Rudd have been extraordinary.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 2, 2013

Understanding China's maritime aspirations

China's declaration that it wants to be a sea power and focus on this interest is not sudden. China has long dreamed of becoming a 'maritime civilization.
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Jul 1, 2013

Xi regime swinging to the left

Disturbing rumors are spreading that, sometime this fall, there will be a large-scale purge of reformist members from the Chinese Communist Party.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 1, 2013

At the Battle of Gettysburg, choices mattered

The Battle of Gettysburg, fought 150 years ago this week, was not the first example of 'total war.' But it did show why choices matter in U.S. history.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Jul 1, 2013

Family priorities factored into decision to stop coaching Osaka Evessa: Cartwright

When Bill Cartwright arrived in Japan to take over as the Osaka Evessa's new coach in January, he embraced the adventure of experiencing the culture and traveling around the country.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jun 30, 2013

Complete translation of 'Kafu's first masterpiece'

The English reader has in this volume a complete translation of works of fiction, interspersed with thinly disguised autobiography and essay-like passages, composed by a young Japanese man who was to go on to become one of the finest Japanese writers of the 20th century, Nagai Kafu (1879-1959).
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jun 30, 2013

Dispositions to crime pose moral questions

Is rape an act of hate? Why are you 100 times more likely to be killed on your birthday? Might a casual Mars Bar prompt you to commit murder? And why should you steer clear of men with long ring-fingers? These and other equally intriguing questions are posed here by Adrian Raine.

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