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July 17, 2024
 

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Philip Brasor
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 20, 2014
Use it or lose it: Workers want companies to pay for paid vacations
Getting workers in Japan to take paid holidays is difficult, but that doesn't mean they don't want them.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 18, 2014
Akie Abe opines but knows her place in his story
It's no secret that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's most valuable public relations resource at the moment is his wife, Akie, whose candor contrasts vividly with the demure demeanor of most Japanese leaders' wives. The weekly magazine Aera has suggested that Akie's press ubiquity has been strategic in nature,...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 12, 2014
Deflation Watch: New Year's scorecard
It seems likely that the consumption tax increase will derail the government's economic boom train.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 11, 2014
Dire quake forecasts fail to stir a numb public
Is there a level of fear above which the mind reflexively retreats from imagining the worst? The Great East Japan Earthquake was often described as being 'beyond imagination,' and the art and science of projecting future catastrophes has had to adjust accordingly.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Jan 6, 2014
Retirement homes come of age in booming market
In order to address its rapidly aging society, the Japanese government has enacted a variety of measures since the start of the millennium, mostly related to the health care system. A more pressing matter is housing, since so many elderly people will be living on their own compared to the past when extended...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 4, 2014
Slippery slope to Yasukuni, Nago oiled by lucre
As with the Yasukuni story, most of the commentary on Okinawa base relocation deal focused on its contentious nature, but also like the Yasukuni story, the main impetus behind the actions reported was economic.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 2, 2014
Part-timers skewing employment statistics
More restaurants and retailers are hiring short-hour employees to save money.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 28, 2013
Names of 2013 we're unlikely to forget
Social media continues to undermine the influence of the more traditional kind exemplified by television and print publications, so my choices of most notable public phenomena of 2013 are qualified by the notion that maybe people aren't paying as much attention to them as I might think.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 27, 2013
McDonald's smells the coffee: Limited expectations are here to stay
Some think that McDonald's is finished in Japan
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 22, 2013
Rental video stores ponder their reason for existing
DVDs still may be the cheapest, and easiest, way to watch videos at home.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 21, 2013
A confused future for our baby boomers
No generation in the history of mankind is more reviled than that of the baby boomers, who grew up during the age of mass media. Raised on TV and glossy magazines, they connected to a world their parents knew almost nothing about, and with that experience turned from youthful explorers of expanded possibilities...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 16, 2013
Don't throw those boring New Years cards away!
Starting this year Japan Post is offering cash prizes for its New Years lottery.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 14, 2013
TPP offers early test of how far secrets law will cow Japan's media
Journalist Toshihiro Yamanaka characterizes the TPP talks as 'the most secretive trade negotiations to take place since the end of the 19th century,' an observation supported by classified documents recently released by WikiLeaks showing how the U.S. is pressuring all countries involved in TPP to make sure details of the talks are kept from the public.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 10, 2013
For customers of Japan's biggest bank, it's about to become harder to avoid fees
Banking at convenience stores will soon be more expensive.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 7, 2013
Emperor's apparent liberal leanings jar with Japan's right wing
Whereas liberals tend to be fond of the Emperor because he appeals to their own progressive leanings, genuine right-wingers have no use for the kind of open-mindedness the Emperor occasionally demonstrates.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 5, 2013
Postal employees carry extra burden during the holiday season
Sales quotas make postal employees' lives miserable at the end of the year.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Dec 2, 2013
Water, water, it's not everywhere
There are aspects of everyday life that renters take for granted, such as access to utilities. Of course, renters pay for their own electricity and gas, and, depending on where they live, they may be billed for water and sewerage. Homeowners pay for these services, too, but there are extra financial...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Nov 30, 2013
Philippines typhoon coverage skirts over tales of 'the men who abandoned Japan'
The majority of Japanese expats in the Philippines are men over 50. Some are fugitives from justice or debt in Japan, but many came to the country for reasons having to do more or less with sex.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Nov 27, 2013
Government tries to jolt EV sales with charging station subsidies
Sluggish electric car sales blamed on lack of recharging infrastructure.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Nov 23, 2013
Nuclear whistle-blower spills secrets the way the media should
Genpatsu Whiteout' continues to climb the best-seller list, propelled by a guessing game over the identity of its author, who seems to know a lot about the nuclear energy business.
Who needs AI when you have Hatsune Miku?
Over the first six months of 2024, a handful of songs using Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku’s voice have enjoyed widespread attention, underlining a global interest in the character and the technology she represents.
Yen’s woes seem too big for even a BOJ hike this month to solve
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
China’s economic growth comes in worse than expected
Pedestrians in the Wangfujing shopping area in Beijing on July 11, 2024. China's economic growth in the second quarter was lower than forecast, adding pressure on Chinese leaders to lift confidence at the Chinese Communist Party's third plenum this week.
Kansai airports to increase takeoff and landing slots ahead of Osaka Expo
Kansai International Airport in Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture. The upper limit on the number of takeoff and landing slots at the airport as well as Kobe Airport in Hyogo Prefecture will be raised in spring next year ahead of the 2025 World Exposition in Osaka.
Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

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