Tokyo on Fire!

Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga and the central Japanese government have come to loggerheads over the decision to relocate the U.S. Marine Corps base in Futenma. The long-standing tension between the two has now reached a tipping point, with the issue escalating to court matters. What will become of this situation?

Japan has long been the subject of heavy criticism for its whaling practices, a cultural tradition condemned by the international community. Despite rulings by the International Court of Justice made in early 2014, the Japanese have begun their season for "whale research", angering conservationists and animal activists alike. Timothy Langley, Michael Cucek and Nancy Snow discuss the implications this holds for Japan’s standing within the international community.

Last weekend's dual Governor/Mayor election in Osaka came out heavily in favor of political firebrand Toru Hashimoto's Ishin no To (or One Osaka), which won both seats. What are the implications of this landslide victory?

The population of rural Japan is dwarfed by the throngs of residents of Japan's larger cities. Though this is the case, the laws dictating the weight of a vote are somewhat dated and in need of revamping. Hear more about how Japan's districts work when it comes to casting a vote on this episode of Tokyo on Fire.

Superstar Prime Minister Jun'ichiro Koizumi's son, Shinjiro, has only been in the Diet for 3 terms, but he's already coming up in talks about who might fill Abe's seat once he's gone. Considering that Shinjiro is a baby-like 34 years old, this is quite the outstanding sentiment. What's the big deal about this young gun?

After all the hub-bub behind Prime Minister Abe's gargantuan economic policy known as Abenomics, Japan has fallen back into a technical recession. There are many factors that figure into this development, explore some of them with Timothy, Michael, and Nancy on this episode of Tokyo on Fire!

Japan has engaged the Australian government in a bid for a contract to boost Australia's submarine fleet. But just like the submarines themselves, this issue has been developing largely under the surface - figure out who the players are in this interesting business development!

The recent attacks on Paris launched by the Islamic State have sparked great debate and an atmosphere of fear worldwide. With the upcoming Tokyo Olympics in 2020 and the recent amendments made to the security bill, this issue is one that holds great relevance in Japan today.

In the past weeks, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has made some notable staff shuffles in the Diet. Perhaps the most surprising of them is the Democratic Party of Japan's Taro Kono. He's been introducing a number of contentious issues, not to mention sticking to his guns which don't necessarily jive with the status quo. Join Timothy, Nancy, and Michael in their discussion of his entrance on the stage of Japanese politics!

The main opposition party of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) is the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ). Despite the uncanny similarities in their names, they butt heads on a number of issues. Unfortunately, they have a history of dropping the ball, and recently they've been doing just that.