A man in a suit sits onstage at a Roppongi theater in May and fires a fart-fueled dart at a balloon. Later, another comedian flips through oversize image boards to tell an increasingly absurd narrative about feeding ever-larger pies to an old lady. The audience responds with bewilderment, laughter and applause. This is Yoshimoto Comedy Night Owarai, an English-language comedy show staged every Monday by Yoshimoto Kogyo, the powerhouse talent agency best known for its comedians. The Osaka-based company also stages a similar event called Nandeyanen every Friday at Yoshimoto…
Posts published in “Opinion”
When Sanae Takaichi took office in October, Japan’s first female prime minister entered office under a relentless media spotlight. Eight months in, she has hardly faded from public view. But the method by which she reaches the public might be changing. Rather than relying solely on exchanges with reporters or television appearances that shaped some of her predecessors’ public image, Takaichi and her administration have leaned into a more direct form of communication — social media, official messaging and rapid online rebuttals. To her aides, the shift is not merely…
Aboard USSGerald R. Ford, priced at roughly $13 billion and billed as the most advanced US aircraft carrier in existence, the crew has repeatedly endured some seriously awkward and uncomfortable conditions: dysfunctional toilets, no clean laundry, and no beds. These repeated breakdowns have exposed the profound fatigue now gripping the US Navy, and perhaps the broader structure of American global dominance under sustained high-tempo and long-duration operations. According to a New York Times report published Monday, it took more than 30 hours for sailors to put out the fire aboard…
U.S. and global oil and gas prices surged higher Monday as concerns grew that attacks by Israel and the U.S. on Iran could spiral into a broader war and disrupt global energy supplies. The U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Saturday that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and dozens of other senior government officials while talks between Washington and Tehran over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program were reported to be ongoing. European benchmark Brent crude oil surged by as much as 13% in early trade on Monday,…
Wielding a golden gavel and a playlist featuring the Beach Boys, Donald Trump ushered in a new era of international humiliation at the inaugural meeting of the U.S.-led Board of Peace. The new body, while established by Trump, has been tasked by a UN Security Council resolution to administer Gaza’s reconstruction efforts. But Trump has also suggested his ambitions for the board go far beyond Gaza, saying it would “almost be looking over the United Nations and making sure it runs properly.” Trump has demanded that world leaders pony up…
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and her ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) got a historic landslide victory in last week’s parliamentary elections. This marks the first time since its founding in 1955 that the conservative LDP controls a two-thirds supermajority in the lower house. If necessary, Takaichi’s cabinet could also overrule any opposition in the upper house of the Diet (Japan’s parliament), where her coalition still lacks a majority. Given this, Takaichi now has a massive mandate to push her agenda. This includes boosting defence spending, strengthening the military and…
Japan’s Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, has already made history since taking office in October 2025. Capitalising on her high approval ratings and “fresh new image”, she dissolved the lower house and called an election just four months into her term. Her gamble paid off, winning the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) more seats in the lower house than any party in post-war Japan: 316 of a possible 465. Its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party (JIP), won a further 36 seats. With a strong (and resoundingly consolidated) mandate, Takaichi is now…
Sanae Takaichi led Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party to a historic landslide victory in February 2026, rebranding it as a modern, youth-friendly force and capitalising on her image as Japan’s first female prime minister — even as scandals and coalition ruptures had recently left the party vulnerable. Her mandate rests more on personal appeal and nationalist positioning than on a detailed policy program, with younger voters backing an image of change rather than a coherent reform agenda. Yet significant uncertainty surrounds her fiscal strategy, which risks deepening stagflation, and her hawkish…
Sanae Takaichi led the Liberal Democratic Party to a historic landslide in Japan’s February 2026 lower house election, defying minority government status, coalition fractures and lingering scandals by leveraging her personal popularity, nationalist narrative and a highly effective digital campaign. Her rebranding of the LDP and strong appeal among younger voters delivered the party’s largest postwar majority, but lofty promises of strategic investment and national strength now face the constraints of fiscal reality and intensifying great power competition. apanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) achieved a stunning…
Valentine’s Day: The Politics and Psychology of Hating Love. Each year Hindu nationalist groups carry out violent crackdowns on couples in public spaces during Valentine’s Day in India. These incidents show how moral policing, group identity politics and anxiety about social change combine to justify control over private emotion and public behaviour. On Feb. 14, activists linked to Hindu nationalist organisations entered NMIMS University in Indore and allegedly vandalised property after claiming that an obscene Valentine’s Day related program was being organized on campus, according to The Telegraph. The university…