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Reader Mail
Sep 29, 2011

Word about the weather forecast

As a 30-plus-year subscriber to The Japan Times, I have always had the greatest respect for this newspaper, which I have relied on for good journalism and insightful reports. I would like, however, to mention the weather forecast printed on the last page, which I find quite irritating as the temperatures...
Reader Mail
Sep 29, 2011

Uses of Keynesian economics

Regarding Washington Post writer Nicholas Wapshott's Sept. 24 article, "Keynes was not a 'big Keynesian' ": The appeal of Keynesian economics remains strong to various countries under various states of development. If one were to look at Britain and United States alone in the 1970s, one would be seriously...
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
Sep 29, 2011

Plenty of problems in tax hike plan

The government and the Democratic Party of Japan have finalized their temporary tax hike plan and will ask the public to cough up ¥11.2 trillion to help reconstruct the disaster-hit Tohoku region, but experts Wednesday were quick to point out flaws in the hastily prepared blueprint.
BUSINESS
Sep 28, 2011

Plans to buy rescue bonds eyed: Azumi

The government may purchase additional rescue bonds to be issued by Europe's bailout fund to help cure the volatile situation triggered by the Greek crisis, Finance Minister Jun Azumi said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Sep 28, 2011

CyberAgent may make more apps for iPhone

CyberAgent Inc., maker of Japan's most popular blogging service, plans to step up software development for Apple Inc.'s iPhone should KDDI Corp. or other carriers begin selling the handset here.
COMMENTARY
Sep 27, 2011

Groping for a path to jobs

Market turmoil and the continuing slowdown in growth have led to increased unemployment especially in the developed economies of Western Europe and in the United States.
EDITORIALS
Sep 27, 2011

Health side of tobacco tax

Health and welfare minister Yoko Komiyama on Sept. 9 said that the price of a pack of cigarettes should be raised ¥100 each year to around ¥700 at least and the jurisdiction of tobacco-related administration should be transferred from the Finance Ministry to her ministry.
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Sep 26, 2011

Time favors Tepco rebound

As the crisis at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power station continues, there has been a mounting call in Japan to eliminate or reduce its reliance on nuclear power and to reform the regional monopoly enjoyed by the utilities, notably Tepco.
Reader Mail
Sep 25, 2011

Monitoring of cesium in food

It's good to see The Japan Times covering the issue of radiation in food. Tomoko Otake's Sept. 20 article, "Hold the cesium: ways to reduce radiation in your diet," contained useful information, but I would take issue with one point.
Reader Mail
Sep 25, 2011

Grateful acceptance of spiders

Regarding Marco Gessler's Sept. 18 letter, "Kill the jokes about spiders" (which was a response to Amy Chavez's Sept. 10 Japan Lite column, "The power of spiders in rural Japan"): First of all, I sincerely sympathize with Gessler and his family in Mexico over the the death of his daughter from a spider....
EDITORIALS
Sep 25, 2011

More centenarians than ever

Japan is older than ever before. On this year's Respect for the Aged Day, celebrated Sept. 19, the number of Japanese centenarians topped 47,000, the largest number on record. After the disasters of this year, the large number of centenarians in the country presents a picture of hope for a healthy life...
Reader Mail
Sep 25, 2011

Evacuation revelations shocking

Revelations of tentative plans to evacuate millions of metropolitan Tokyo residents after the March 11 disaster, in the Sept. 19 article "Tokyo faced evacuation scenario: Kan," were absolutely shocking. If it came to that, how could it be done, and where could we go?
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 25, 2011

Welfare system not faring well

Ten years ago, in her book "Nickel and Dimed," Barbara Ehrenreich chronicled her own experience as a subsistence-level American wage-earner during a period of relative economic vigor. She found a whole class of workers who lived — and would always live — from paycheck to paycheck. In the afterword...
Reader Mail
Sep 25, 2011

Perfunctory apologies don't cut it

Regarding the Sept. 19 article "Tokyo faced evacuation scenario: Kan": If a similar "accident" occurred in many other countries, Tokyo Electric Power Co. officials would likely face charges of professional negligence in the nation's courts. There seems to be no doubt that these officials were negligent...
LIFE
Sep 25, 2011

There but for fortune ...

On Sept. 26, 1954, the passenger ferry Toya Maru, 7-year-old pride of the Japanese Railways-owned fleet plying the cold blue waters of the Tsugaru Straits between Hokkaido and northern Honshu, sank in a typhoon with the loss of more than 1,200 lives. Barely 150 passengers and crew survived.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CABINET INTERVIEW
Sep 24, 2011

Society must value overseas study: Nakagawa

Young Japanese shouldn't be blamed for not studying abroad, but society needs to change so they can attend universities overseas without having to worry about their careers after they return, education minister Masaharu Nakagawa said.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 23, 2011

Maehara speaks out for continued export of nuclear reactors

Drawing on its technology and experience, Japan should continue to export nuclear reactors despite the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 power plant, ruling party policy chief Seiji Maehara said Wednesday.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Sep 23, 2011

Mexican drummers play Japanese sounds

The award-winning Tambuco Percussion Ensemble will perform next month at Toppan Hall in Tokyo while in the capital to receive an award from the Japan Foundation.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Sep 23, 2011

McDonald's may close hundreds of restaurants

may shut hundreds of outlets next year to boost profit margin after the power shortages following the March 11 earthquake crimped demand for fast food.
Reader Mail
Sep 22, 2011

Reputation, placement and fees

Whoever wrote the Sept. 18 editorial "Slow transparency of universities" does not know what he or she is talking about. While some colleges in Japan — mostly small-scale family-run operations — provide little detailed information — the real universities in Japan deluge you with information. For...
JAPAN
Sep 22, 2011

Costa Rica envoy makes energy pitch

The new Costa Rican ambassador to Japan, Alvaro Antonio Cedeno Molinari, said his mission here is to raise awareness of investment opportunities in renewable energy.

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight