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November 23, 2024
 

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Philip Brasor
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Aug 11, 2010
Summertime, and the dying is expensive
Japan ranks No. 1 in average funeral prices. So just what makes the deceased here so special?
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Aug 8, 2010
A warm embrace for ruff justice
Some years ago, a Belgian woman named An van Dienderen wondered why so many Japanese tourists visited her hometown of Antwerp, and particularly its cathedral. She learned that they wanted to see the place where the boy Nello and his faithful dog Patrasche died in the story "A Dog of Flanders." This thin...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Aug 7, 2010
The strategy behind non-alcoholic beer
Non-alcoholic beers have been a big hit for beer makers in Japan, especially when you factor in the fact that they aren't taxed.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Aug 5, 2010
Two tales of tobacco sales
Tobacco companies face a pair of problems: how to respond to an upcoming tobacco tax hike as well as the best way to prevent minors from smoking.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Aug 1, 2010
TV examines the morals of the story
The new Hollywood spy thriller "Salt" has received good reviews, even if a sizable portion of them admit that the plot is preposterous. What critics appreciate is the protagonist's uncertain nature as a hero. Angelina Jolie is a CIA operative outed by a Russian defector as a sleeper agent. The question...
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jul 30, 2010
The road to digital TV is not paved with enough antennas
The government is desperately urging homeowners to make the switch to digital TV, but will promotion alone do the trick?
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jul 29, 2010
The Diet thinks about cutting some calories
Minna no To threatens to shake up the Diet with legislation that reduces government salaries. Pity the fool that contests it.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jul 26, 2010
Eel economics: Why unagi is so popular (and expensive)
On the 'hot day of the ox' Japanese traditionally eat eel, and often pay a lot of money to do so. Why eel? Glad you asked.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 25, 2010
A bailout by any other name
The gap between rich and poor seems to be widening worldwide, the result of government deregulation and the dominance of market-led economic policies. As businesses are given freer rein to do whatever they want, wages at the lower end of the pay scale drop. Government revenues consequently shrink, thus...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jul 23, 2010
Post office attempts to reverse non-regular employment trend
Japan Post bucks the trend toward non-regular employees by offering its workers a shot at regular employment.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jul 19, 2010
Tale of the tape: shoplifiting solution or just a band-aid?
Shop-lifting is becoming a growing problem in Japan and using a piece of tape as proof of purchase is probably not the most effective way to stop it.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 18, 2010
Japan's media laps up poll parade
One of the funniest images to emerge from last week's Upper House election was the row of Liberal Democratic Party bigwigs pointing their forefingers to the sky in unison and flashing big stupid grins. The big stupid grins were a reaction to the party's supposed comeback, since they had just won more...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jul 14, 2010
The bonus is in the bank
When bonuses aren't spent then the economy stays in the doldroms and, consequently, bonuses shrink.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jul 12, 2010
Wanted: Train driver wannabe with money
Isumi Tetsudo is making train lovers' dreams come true but for how long?
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 11, 2010
SMAP bled for rotten tomatoes
Last week, the Asahi Shimbun published an article about the suicide of actor-singer Park Yong Ha. The pieceanalyzed South Korean show business to ascertain why so many stars have killed themselves in recent years, and concluded that their relationships with management agencies grind them down. Park has...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jul 7, 2010
Annals of Cheap: Kappa Sushi
Kaiten sushi is cheap and Kappa Sushi makes it even cheaper. Until July 16.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jul 5, 2010
Debtors left in the dark after new law goes into effect
Poorly publicized restrictions on personal loans could end up blindsiding a huge number of cash-strapped households.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 4, 2010
Playing spot the political difference
The central dynamic in politics is the tug-of-war between conservatism and liberalism, and while it's always been that way, the conflict is particularly contentious these days owing to a global media culture that sees nothing wrong with taking sides. Differences are starker and less rational. In America,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / A SCORCHING SUMMER SCHEDULE
Jul 2, 2010
JAY-Z: Summer Sonic
Japan's urban rock festival gets more urban every year, at least musically. Headliner Jay-Z, husband of last year's headliner, Beyonce, and the richest rapper in the world, hasn't visited Japan often, especially since he came out of retirement in 2006. He and Stevie Wonder are the perfect cappers to...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jul 1, 2010
Small fry try to make a splash at the fishmonger
Japan may be glutton when it comes to tuna, but if it learns to broaden its palate, there might be a few more fish left in the sea.
Japan approves ¥21.9 trillion stimulus plan
The policy chiefs of the Democratic Party for the People, Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito — Makoto Hamaguchi (left), Itsunori Onodera (center) and Mitsunari Okamoto — shake hands after reaching an agreement on an economic stimulus package on Wednesday.
Tokyo Metro’s overseas efforts begin in earnest with London deal
Tokyo Metro will soon have a role in the running of London's Elizabeth Line, a major train route serving the U.K.’s capital city and environs.
Saitama court bans demonstrations over anti-Kurd hate speech
Kurdish people in Japan in 2015. A court injunction has banned acts that defame the Japan Kurdish Cultural Association and are disrespectful, such as putting up banner flags or handing out fliers with hate speech like “Refugees should go back to their home countries.”
China reinstates visa-free travel for Japanese nationals
Beijing Daxing International Airport
U.S. aircraft carrier returns to Japan carrying navy’s ‘most capable fighter’
U.S. 7th Fleet Commander Vice Adm. Fred Kacher speaks to reporters shortly after the arrival of aircraft carrier USS George Washington at Yokosuka naval base in Kanagawa Prefecture on Friday.
Shohei Ohtani wins National League MVP award
Shohei Ohtani celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the Padres during the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles last month.
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
Around a quarter of Japan married couples in their 20s met through dating apps
A survey released by an organization promoting “Good Couples Day” shows that 24% of couples in their 20s met their marriage partner through a dating app.
'Tokyo Swindlers': Get deep into the minds of real estate con artists
In Ko Shinjo's "Tokyo Swindlers," a group of con artists manipulates real estate giants into falsified deals within the highly competitive, quick market.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.

Podcast

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