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May 03, 2024
 

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JUST BE CAUSE

Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Sep 1, 2009
Meet Mr. James, gaijin clown
If you want to sell stuff, it helps to have a recognizable mascot representing your company. Disney has Mickey Mouse, Sanrio Hello Kitty, Studio Ghibli Totoro. These imaginary characters grace many a product and ad campaign.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Aug 4, 2009
Unlike humans, swine flu is indiscriminate
The biggest news a few months ago, now affecting every prefecture in Japan, has blipped off our radar screens. For the time being.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Jul 7, 2009
Cops crack down with 'I pee' checks
My blog has been getting periodic pings about rumblings in Roppongi: Tokyo cops cleaning out pesky foreign touts before Olympic inspectors see them; the U.S. Embassy warning Americans to stay away from the area after reports of drugged drinks and thefts.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Jun 2, 2009
The issue that dares not speak its name
A few columns ago ("Toadies, Vultures, and Zombie Debates," March 3), I discussed how foreign apologists resuscitate dead-end discussions on racial discrimination. Promoting cultural relativity for their own ends, they peddle bigoted and obsolescent ideologies now impossible to justify in their societies of birth.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
May 5, 2009
Fujimori gets his; Japan left shamed
News item: Alberto Fujimori, former president of Peru, was sentenced last month to 25 years in prison by a Peruvian court for connections to death squads.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Apr 7, 2009
'Golden parachutes' mark failure of race-based policy
Japan's employment situation has gotten pretty dire, especially for non-Japanese workers. The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry reports that between last November and January, more than 9,000 foreigners asked the Hello Work unemployment agency for assistance — 11 times the figure for the same period a year earlier.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Mar 3, 2009
Of toadies, vultures and zombie debates
If there's one thing execrable in the marketplace of ideas, it's "zombie debates" — discussions long dead, exhumed by Dr. Frankensteins posing as serious debaters.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Feb 3, 2009
2channel: the bullies' forum
Bullying in Japan is a big problem. The victims have limited recourse. Too often they are told to suck it up and self-reflect. Or if they fight back, they get criticized for lashing out. It's a destructive dynamic, causing much misery and many a suicide.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Jan 6, 2009
Japan makes progress in 2009
As we start 2009, let's recharge the batteries by reviewing last year's good news. Here is my list of top human rights advancements for Japan in 2009, in ascending order:
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Dec 2, 2008
Hailing the tail end of Bush
Regarding Barack Obama's election as U.S. president, I welcome the groundswell of hope. It's about time. The past eight years have been, well, awkward for Americans overseas.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Nov 4, 2008
Truth: a delicate matter of give and take
Every activist and essayist must deal with a singular phenomenon when addressing the public: just how "truthful" one should be.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Oct 7, 2008
'Gaijin' mind-set is killing rural Japan
Allow me to conclude my trilogy of columns regarding the word "gaijin" this month by talking about the damage the concept does to Japanese society. That's right — damage to Japanese society.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Sep 2, 2008
The 'gaijin' debate: Arudou responds
Last month's column (Aug. 5) was on the word "gaijin." I made the case that it is a racist word, one that reinforces an "us-and-them" rubric toward foreigners and their children in Japan. It generated a lot of debate. Good. Thanks for your time.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Aug 5, 2008
Once a 'gaijin,' always a 'gaijin'
Gaijin. It seems we hear the word every day. For some, it's merely harmless shorthand for "gaikokujin" (foreigner). Even Wikipedia (that online wall for intellectual graffiti artists) had a section on "political correctness" that claimed illiterate and oversensitive Westerners had misunderstood the Japanese word.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Jul 1, 2008
July forecast: rough, with ID checks mainly in the north
I have suggested before (Zeit Gist, Dec. 18, 2007) that Japan shouldn't host major international events. Unfettered police power and insufficient media scrutiny create a virtual police state, inconveniencing everyone.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Jun 3, 2008
Good news from grass roots
Reader Rodney in Vancouver recently e-mailed: "I've often found your articles informative and useful, but they tend to take a tone of complaint. Please tell us about some face-to-face, grassroots efforts that have helped make Japanese more considerate and respectful of those who are different."
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
May 6, 2008
Activism vs. academia
Back in January, I was a panelist at Waseda University's Global Institute for Asian Regional Integration, invited to give an "activist's perspective" to an academic crowd.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Apr 1, 2008
Public forums, spinning wheels
A friend sent me a Yomiuri article (Feb. 10) about a neighborhood forum in Kanazawa. Its title: "Citizens consider how to live together with foreigners."
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Mar 4, 2008
Dusting off the A-word
Causes are what activists take up as a matter of course. But in Japan, just doing that is a challenge, given the general aversion towards activism here.
Weak yen fattens tourist wallets in Japan
People visit the Ameya Yokocho market in Tokyo's Ueno district during the Golden Week holiday on Tuesday.
Biden calls ally Japan ‘xenophobic’ along with rivals China and Russia
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks in Syracuse, New York, on April 25.
Number of vacant homes in Japan hits record high of 9 million
A vacant house in Tokyo is seen demolished in January 2020.
Harajuku strives to reclaim its former glory — and surpass it
Laforet Harajuku, which celebrated its 45th anniversary last year, has been a witness to the district's evolution over the years.
Saudi Arabia steps up Gaza-related arrests as Israel ties edge closer
The arrests for Gaza-related posts indicate Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s regime will take a hard line against citizens not toeing the line when it comes to normalizing ties with Israel.
Kishida sets sights on energy and climate in South America trip
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will use a policy speech in Sao Paulo to set out his vision for ties between Japan and South America, almost 10 years after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe advocated for stronger ties between the two in the same city.
Yellow sand allergy: A health issue made worse by climate change
A screenshot of the Meteorological Agency's satellite image of clouds and yellow sand (in pink) on Sunday.
Climate change, chalky grains and the risks for Japan’s rice farmers
A farmer plants seedlings in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan’s self sufficiency rate for rice is nearly 100%, compared with 38% for food overall, on a calorie basis.
Japan wants you to spend more with ‘luxury tourism’
Performers play a traditional drum unique to Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in the prefectural capital of Kanazawa on March 16 to mark the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line to Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture.
Theaster Gates’ ambitious ‘Afro-Mingei’ brings Black Chicago to Tokyo
Theaster Gates' “A Heavenly Chord” lines up church pews before seven speakers and a Hammond B3 organ, a type of electric organ prevalent in Black American churches.

Podcast

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Longform

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By Alex K.T. Martin

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