author

 
Menu
Search
 
July 17, 2024
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

Meta

Twitter

@philipbrasor

Philip Brasor
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 27, 2012
Higher electric bills on horizon to pay for solar
To jumpstart solar energy promotion, power companies have started adding higher surcharges.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 24, 2012
Can financial incentives put a brake on senior driving?
With financial incentives, local governments gently persuade seniors to give up their drivers licenses.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 22, 2012
Can showbiz really sever yakuza ties?
Last August, comedian and TV emcee Shinsuke Shimada retired from show business following allegations that he'd been palling around with an underworld figure. His withdrawal came on the eve of the implementation of a well-publicized police crackdown on organizations that work with antisocial elements,...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 19, 2012
Bottoms up: Discount takeout sushi less than meets the eye
With bargain sushi you usually get what you pay for.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 16, 2012
Whaling may be sunk by commercial reality
Activism aside, is there a market for whale meat large enough to sustain the industry?
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 15, 2012
Rigged online food reviews should come as no surprise
NHK has a regular travel series called "Quiz de Go," which sends TV personalities to far-flung corners of Japan and then asks them questions about the area's local qualities. Several weeks ago, three celebrities were exploring Miyazu, Kyoto Prefecture, and were turned on to a local delicacy called Curry-yaki....
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 10, 2012
Foreign carmakers don't need a strong yen (but they're happy to have it)
Don't think that the weak euro means European cars will be cheaper.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 8, 2012
Oops! Pregnant celebs dancing down the aisle
J-pop diva Kumi Koda recently announced her engagement to Kenji03 of the rock band Back-On, and revealed that the pair had met earlier in the year when they collaborated on a song. She didn't mention that Kenji03 had previously dated Koda's sister, TV baka (silly) personality Misono, but that qualifying...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 5, 2012
Mahjong parlors go deeper underground to stay in business
Police get wise and crack down on some of the mahjong industry's more creative ideas.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Jan 3, 2012
The rise and fall of property taxes
There are many incentives for buying a home. One of them is to simply get out of paying rent — but that isn't to say that once you own your residence there aren't costs that have to be paid on a regular basis.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 2, 2012
Tobacco farmers lost but not forgotten in tax rumble
Despite dwindling numbers, tobacco farmers still have some political clout.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 1, 2012
Media awards: Tokyo powers down as idols power up
Media Figure of the Year: Tepco A fact of modern life that the Occupy Wall Street movement brought home to the average person is that corporations are nominally "persons," meaning they have been granted the same "rights" as individuals, at least in the United States. In Japan, such legal definitions...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 29, 2011
Convenience stores gear up for a brighter future
Convenience store chains plan to open thousands of new outlets next year.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 25, 2011
When will the Japanese media stop avoiding antinuke sentiment?
On Dec. 15, freelance journalist Tomohiko Suzuki held a press conference at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan about his new book, "Yakuza and Nuclear Power," which describes Suzuki's stint as a worker on cleanup detail at the stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear reactor last summer. Though the book...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 23, 2011
Auto-correct: Police getting more serious with parking scofflaws
Police are finding new ways to get traffic violators attention.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 18, 2011
You can't get there from here: Railway tries to bust "orikaeshi" riders
Train lines would like to crack down on commuters who 'double back.'
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 18, 2011
Wrestling with the serious issue of rape
After two-time Olympic champion Masato Uchishiba was arrested Dec. 6 on suspicion of raping a female member of a university judo team, Japanese TV personality and the former first lady of Indonesia, Dewi Sukarno, defended the gold medalist on her blog. She personally called the National Police Agency...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 13, 2011
Politicians' pay: Even more than you think
Each Diet member costs taxpayers more than u00a560 million a year.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 11, 2011
Mr. Momoe Yamaguchi finally decides to speak
Last week a new movie called "Railways" opened in Tokyo. It's about a driver on a small rural electric train line who retires after 40 years and is sort of a sequel to a film with the exact same title released in 2010. That movie centered on a Tokyo executive who loses his job and decides to pursue his...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Dec 6, 2011
If you can't afford the land, why not just buy the house?
The real estate agent picked us up in a company car at Takayanagi Station in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, about an hour and 15 minutes commuting time north of central Tokyo. The car had long scratches on the side, probably incurred during attempts to park in unfamiliar spaces, and we drove to the property...
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

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Festival overcomes a nuclear accident and COVID
Festival overcomes a nuclear accident and COVID

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER