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COMMENTARY / World
Jun 19, 2008

The EU must go on, with or without Ireland

Ireland should do the rest of Europe a favor and withdraw from the European Union. That seems to be the only tenable solution to the situation created by the Irish "no" to the Lisbon Treaty. The Irish have created a problem for themselves. They should not let it be a problem for others.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 18, 2008

Neither blatant benevolence nor silent giving

PRINCETON, New Jersey — Jesus said that we should give alms in private rather than when others are watching. That fits with the common-sense idea that if people only do good in public, they may be motivated by a desire to gain a reputation for generosity. Perhaps when no one is looking, they are not...
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
Jun 18, 2008

Lakers in tough as Finals return to Boston

LOS ANGELES — Funny, how minor imperfections (and subtle specialties) became pronounced once the Boston Stranglers got their barely breathing opponents in a 3-2 chokehold.
EDITORIALS
Jun 17, 2008

Media can't bow to expectations

The Supreme Court last week ruled that even if people who have become the subject of coverage by a broadcaster come to have expectations concerning a broadcast program, such expectations, in principle, are not subject to legal protection.
Japan Times
JAPAN / RETRACING ROUTES
Jun 17, 2008

Latin love: Blame it on bossa nova

This is the first of a four-part series featuring Japanese emigration to Brazil. Wednesday marks the 100th anniversary of the first group to venture to the South American country. Lisa Ono, an early Japanese devotee of bossa nova, hopes her songs make people here aware of the wonders of the country of...
EDITORIALS
Jun 15, 2008

Australia-Japan partnership

In their first meeting last week, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd sidestepped a sensitive issue that could harm bilateral relations. Instead, in their joint statement, they confirmed the two countries' "commitment to strengthening further the comprehensive strategic,...
EDITORIALS
Jun 15, 2008

From fantasy to nightmare

The nightmare in Akihabara last week, when a knife-wielding man drove a truck into a Sunday crowd, leaped out and started stabbing people at random, has continued to shock the country. As the victims' families grieve, the injured recuperate and witnesses struggle to recover, the attack has become even...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Jun 15, 2008

Medical variety show, 'surprising' news stories, women's boxing

There's no cure for growing old, but you can slow down the aging process in a fairly painless manner. On this week's edition of the medical variety show "Shujii ga Mitsukaru Shinyojo (The Clinic Where You Can Find a Family Doctor) (TV Tokyo, Monday, 7 p.m.), guest physicians explain how rejuvenation...
JAPAN
Jun 13, 2008

Fukuda, Rudd affirm economic, security ties but avoid whaling

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda agreed Thursday to cooperate on a wide range of issues but left the sensitive subject of whaling effectively untouched to avoid diplomatic friction.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jun 13, 2008

Koshu stands out as sip of summer

Last month, Tokyo's wine community was given a rare treat: Two of the most famous names in the wine world descended to hold forth on subjects including the bright future of Japan's Koshu grape and Bordeaux's stellar 2005 vintage.
COMMENTARY
Jun 11, 2008

Washington and Baghdad: the treaty that isn't

In the Sherlock Holmes story "Silver Blaze," the world's most famous private detective refers to "the curious incident of the dog in the night." "But the dog did nothing in the night," replies his interlocutor. "That was the curious incident," says Holmes. The dogs aren't barking over the U.S.-Iraq treaty,...
COMMENTARY
Jun 10, 2008

A shift in priority to 'happiness'

Per capita gross domestic product is a highly valued as yardstick for measuring the degree of "affluence" enjoyed by the citizens of each nation. The figures of various countries are usually converted into U.S. dollars to determine how countries rank internationally.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 7, 2008

Hot air over global warming

HONG KONG — Fresh reports every day tell of glaciers melting, thinning polar ice triggering prospects of a scramble for the riches under the Arctic ice cap, worries about rising water levels inundating low-lying countries, and soaring oil prices.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 5, 2008

Quake warms Japan-China ties

The Sichuan earthquake disaster has highlighted many changes in China, such as its willingness to accept outside aid in contrast to the 1976 Tangshan earthquake, when Beijing insisted on self-reliance and refused all offers of assistance.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jun 5, 2008

Japan's stylish display against Oman leaves critics little ammunition

If there was a question mark hanging over national team manager Takeshi Okada before Monday's World Cup qualifying match against Oman, his side's comprehensive 3-0 win went a long way toward providing the answers.
Reader Mail
Jun 5, 2008

Where East could meet West

Concerning the ongoing discussion about the existence of God, I agree with William Johnston's May 25 letter, "The reconciliation of opposites," for the simple reason that in the Zen Buddhism tradition, Peter Singer (with his doubts expressed in his May 19 article, "If there is a god, then why is there...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 5, 2008

Humble Harrison bucks his years

COMMENTARY / World
Jun 3, 2008

Shaking Japan to the very core

Singapore — As aftershocks from China's devastating earthquake continue to cause havoc, atomic safety experts from around the world are preparing to meet in Japan this month to scrutinize seismic standards at nuclear plants. Because they contain lethal sources of radiation, the plants are designed...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jun 3, 2008

Hard work begins once Japan signs child-abduction treaty

If my own mailbox is any indicator, the Internet is buzzing as international family lawyers, family rights activists and others share an exciting piece of news: Japan is reportedly planning to join the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction! Perhaps Japan's days as a haven...
COMMENTARY
Jun 2, 2008

Macho move would make Burma's plight even worse

Their paranoia and mistrust of the outside world are such that Burma's generals have been criminally tardy in permitting emergency humanitarian supplies and personnel to come into the country. More than 100,000 may have been killed and over 2 million displaced and made homeless by the cyclone.
BUSINESS / THE VIEW FROM EUROPE
Jun 2, 2008

Europe poised to take chance on reducing farm subsidies

I f If there is one topic that has been catching a lot of attention lately, it is the global rise in prices for resources, especially the most precious resource of all: food.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 30, 2008

'Bakemono Moyo'/'Mukidashi Nippon'

Still only 24, Yuya Ishii has not only made four feature films in a blazingly short time, but had them screened in his own section (hard to call it a retrospective) at the 2008 Rotterdam Film Festival. Also, at this year's Hong Kong International Film Festival, he received the first Edward Yang New Talent...
Reader Mail
May 29, 2008

Defensive overkill mystifies

I read the May 23 front-page article "Anime stokes ire of Muslims" with some concern, as it reminded me yet again how insignificant events get blown out of proportion when it comes to the Muslim world. The chairman of the fatwa committee of Cairo said the scene "depicts Muslims as terrorists, which is...
COMMENTARY / Japan / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
May 28, 2008

Behind the failure of the Japanese economy

Takafusa Shioya has sent me his book published last year, "Keizai Saisei no Joken" (Conditions for Economic Recovery). Nearly three decades ago, during a period of a few years when Jimmy Carter's presidency morphed into Ronald Reagan's, he was stationed in the New York outpost of a Japanese trade office...

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