SEX IN DEPTH
The young ones
In Japan, where the age of sexual consent can be as low as 13, the practice of an older man hiring a teenage schoolgirl for a "date" is about as firmly established as Mt Fuji. The time-honored custom of enjo kosai has for years caused screams of outrage about innocence gone bad, but efforts to regulate the practice are proving difficult. - William Sparrow (May 9, '08)



Wind drifts out of Japan's green vision
Japan's engineering companies are taking full advantage overseas of 30% annual global growth in the use of wind energy. Yet at home, thanks in part to government policies and utility monopolies, there are few opportunities in a country supposedly synonymous with efforts to combat global warming. (May 8, '08)

Fukuda's political troubles deepen
Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda's popularity is sinking fast and the opposition is making his life hellish, with an eye to his ouster. His only escape may be a snap vote, like Junichiro Koizumi pulled off in 2005. But Fukuda has neither the fighting spirit nor the public support that Koizumi enjoyed. - Purnendra Jain
(May 2, '08)

Japan's bank crisis resolved, others remain
Masaaki Shirakawa's appointment as Bank of Japan governor ends a long-running political standoff in time for the world's second-largest economy to be properly represented at this week's Group of Seven meeting of central bank leaders. Now he must show whether he can steer the country away from recession. - Hisane Masaki (Apr 9, '08)

Lost love over Yasukuni Shrine
Neo-nationalists have stopped the showing of a Chinese-directed movie about Japan's controversial war memorial Yasukuni, the latest in a string of incidents threatening freedom of expression in Japan. Director Li Ying, who moved to Tokyo in 1989 and speaks fluent Japanese, rejects accusations of the film being "political propaganda", saying it is his love letter to the Japanese people. (Apr 8, '08)

Japan starts Kyoto climate drive - in reverse
Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda wants to use a July political summit to establish a leading role for Japan in efforts to replace the Kyoto Protocol on climate change. Domestic political fumbling over a gasoline tax and internal government bickering on emissions issues threaten to make a mockery of his hopes. - Hisane Masaki (Apr 4, '08)

Fukuda's losing game of chicken over BOJ
The decision by Japan's Upper House to reject the government nomination of Toshiro Muto as Bank of Japan governor risks creating a vacuum at the central bank of the world's second-largest economy at a time of global financial crisis. It also further weakens the fragile position of Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda. - Hisane Masaki (Mar 12, '08)

US can fast exit from bad times
The prolonged downturn in the Japanese economy that followed its 1990s' real estate boom hangs like a specter over the US in its post-housing bubble mess. Yet there is reason to believe that the US, though as liable as any country to hubris, greed, mistakes and misunderstanding, will more quickly pull out of its present quandary. (Mar 10, '08)

SEX IN DEPTH
When freaky-deaky
equals hara-kiri
The population of Japan is in decline, the birthrate is plummeting, and the consequences look grim. Some studies put the blame on Japanese men whose appetite for masturbation, sex toys and virtual tete-a-tetes are turning them off the real thing. The future, one might say, is in their hands. (Mar 7, '08)
William Sparrow writes a weekly column looking at issues relating to sex in Asia.

SPEAKING FREELY
The 'rape' of Okinawa
Another month, another suspected rape incident involving a US soldier on Okinawa island in Japan. Both US ("regret") and Japanese ("unforgivable") officials make the right noises. But until Tokyo questions why a large standing army of Americans is still garrisoned on Japanese territory, the problem will persist. - Chalmers Johnson (Mar 5, '08)

Japan covets Russian gas, hot air
Japan, keen to be a leader in creating a successor to the Kyoto Protocol and struggling to meet its goals under the existing deal, wants to buy greenhouse gas credits from Russia as a way towards hitting the targets. Natural gas from its northern neighbor will also come in handy. - Hisane Masaki (Feb 13, '08)

Asian arms race gathers speed
In Northeast Asia, the United States, China, Japan, Russia and North and South Korea are investing in war, spending staggering amounts of money in new weapons systems and offensive capabilities. From China's ambitious naval program to South Korea's state-of-the-art fighter aircraft, this buildup on the land, on the seas and in space undercuts all talk of peace and sustains an ever-growing global military-industrial complex. - John Feffer (Feb 13, '08)

Truth, lies and photo captions
 Call it one whale of a perception  
 issue: the authenticity of an 
 Australian newspaper's controversial
 photo of a pair of slain minke whales has been disputed by Japanese ocean experts. The case is a reminder that captions can be used manipulatively, and occasionally they lead viewers to quite unexpected readings. - Hans Durrer (Feb 8, '08)

Poisoned dumplings kill $500m merger
China-made snacks that sickened Japanese consumers, nourished conspiracy theories and gave a queasy turn to Beijing-Tokyo relations also nauseated executives at the world's third-biggest tobacco company as the poisoned dumplings killed off a US$500-million merger plan. (Feb 7, '08)

Celebrity rises to power in Osaka
At 38, the new governor-elect of powerhouse Osaka prefecture will become the youngest of Japan's 47 governors and is one of a few celebrities to rise to political power. The thumping victory for Toru Hashimoto, a lawyer and host of a television show, serves as a political barometer for national-level politics. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party will be pleased. - Purnendra Jain (Jan 30, '08)

Political tension rises in Japan over gas tax
Since taking office in September, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda has backtracked on pledges to cut spending and now wants to extend an unpopular gas tax that's hurting consumers as Japan's economy stalls. The move has set his ruling coalition on a collision course with an opposition firmly determined to drive the Fukuda administration into a corner. - Hisane Masaki (Jan 24, '08)

COMMENT
False choices for Tokyo
With Japan in virtual political paralysis, its unblinking focus on domestic politics has irritated even friends in its alliances, primarily the United States, with whom Tokyo has sided rather than with China. Japan's choice, though, need not be one or the other. (Jan 17, '08)

Japan banks eye return to global stage
Mizuho Bank's US$1.2 billion investment in troubled Merrill Lynch may signal a u-turn in the relationship of Japanese lenders and their overseas counterparts. Taking advantage of the present opportunities will be a test of operational skills and guts. (Jan 16, '08)

INTERVIEW
The samurai returns
Ken Watanabe
Returning from a year of self-imposed hiatus, the acclaimed Japanese actor is back to save the world. As narrator of the new film Planet Earth, he spent a month in the Arctic to inform his plea against environmental destruction. It's all in a day's work for the leukemia survivor, stereotype exploder and reluctant sex symbol who may well be the most respected Asian actor on the planet. (Jan 4, '08)

THE BEAR'S LAIR
Decade of deception
The Japanese have coined a phrase for it but it is the leaders of the US economy who for a decade have proved to be past masters in wilfully deceiving the public about the state of the economy and what is needed to get it back on course. Investors in Japan, at least, appear to understand where reality lies. - Martin Hutchinson (Jan 2, '08)

Japan's Fukuda in a fight for his life
In his own words, the cabinet of Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda "has its back against the wall". After stepping in for Shinzo Abe in September, it was hoped his experience and moderate reputation would bring political stability, but political deadlock and unresolved scandals have stalled his Liberal Democratic Party's reform agenda and further enraged the public. Fukuda's political future is on the line. - Hisane Masaki (Dec 21, '07)

Japan steps up its biofuel drive
Rising oil prices and a struggle to meet Kyoto Protocol greenhouse gas emission targets are prompting Japan to increase research into production of biofuels and encourage motorists to use the products. As it struggles to meet its targets, the government has to contend with the high costs of the alternatives to crude-oil products and a dispute with the petroleum industry. - Hisane Masaki (Dec 12, '07)

The rape and revision of Nanjing
The 70th anniversary of the fall of Nanjing to Japanese imperial troops has inspired a riot of new films from China, Japan, the US and Europe. The Nanjing Massacre was one of the most galvanizing events of post-1949 China and now enters popular culture with more at stake than ticket sales. Tokyo is leery of another bashing for its war legacy, and Beijing, while eager to ensure the event isn't forgotten, must avoid damaging a critical trade relationship. (Dec 10, '07)

BOOK REVIEW
A sad moon rising
Yakuza Moon: Memoirs of a Gangster's Daughter by Shoko Tendo
This is a vivid and shocking tale of the tumultuous and tragic life of a daughter of a yakuza crime boss. While her book does not serve up a detailed guide to the ins and outs of Japan's fabled underworld, it's a candid, deeply personal and often graphic account of life in the country's underbelly. - Bertil Lintner (Dec 7, '07)

Japan firms take up India challenge
Motorbike maker Yamaha and sound-systems giant Pioneer are leading efforts to boost sales in India by Japanese companies after leaders of the two countries recently pledged to speed up work on securing a bilateral free-trade agreement. (Dec 5, '07)

OPINION
US shunts Japan at its own peril
As Washington continues to warm up to Pyongyang over the denuclearization issue, the Japanese government is beginning to quietly fume over the United States' failure to hold North Korea accountable for its abduction of Japanese nationals. It would behoove Washington to make the kidnapping issue a high priority and take measures to divert Tokyo's growing urge to to go nuclear by offering Japan non-nuclear military hardware to counter Pyongyang's threats. Otherwise, Japan risks becoming a wild card. (Dec 4, '07)