Search - information

 
 
Reader Mail
Jan 29, 2009

Israel showed forbearance

The Jan. 22 front-page photo caption of the Hamas militant (titled "Youth Movement") — about U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon's visit and the sympathy toward fallen Palestinians — has broken new moral ground in the show of unbalanced reporting regarding the situation between Israel and Gaza.
JAPAN
Jan 29, 2009

MSDF told to prep for Somalia mission

Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada on Wednesday ordered the Maritime Self-Defense Force to prepare to deploy a task force off Somalia to patrol for pirates.
COMMUNITY / Voices / HAVE YOUR SAY
Jan 27, 2009

Burakumin, 'musical jobs': readers respond

Koseki at root of problem I wish to thank you for the excellent article "Breaking the silence on burakumin" on Jan. 20. I work for the Buraku Liberation Center in Osaka and was featured in the Aug. 2, 2008, issue (search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fl20080802a1.html). One point I would add is that it is...
JAPAN
Jan 27, 2009

Data on fish market toxin withheld

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government on Monday revealed it learned in June that the concentration of a toxic substance at the proposed site of a new fish market in Toyosu, Koto Ward, was 115 times higher than in a previous inspection but withheld the information for five months from a panel of soil pollution...
EDITORIALS
Jan 26, 2009

Safety lessons for the MSDF

The Yokohama Maritime Accident Tribunal determined Jan. 22 that insufficient surveillance on the part of the Maritime Self-Defense Force's 7,750-ton Aegis destroyer Atago was the main cause of its Feb. 19, 2008, collision with the 7.3-ton trawler Seitoku Maru, which killed the two fishermen aboard the...
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Jan 25, 2009

Soft power beckons as time comes for academia to act sustainably

As I am for the most part an optimist, it seems only right to kick off 2009 with an upbeat column and, as an educator, one area I believe offers great promise is education.
EDITORIALS
Jan 24, 2009

The 'Decider' goes home

Mr. George W. Bush, the 43rd president of the United States, believes history will vindicate him. That thinking is typical of his presidency: It bespeaks an enduring optimism and faith in the future, a relentless refusal to bend to facts, and the certitude that his decisions, no matter how controversial,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jan 23, 2009

Stuck on cellotape

Ryo Sehata is that often- mentioned but seldom- encountered individual, a truly unique artist. His art is so uncommon that his fame has now assumed viral form, spreading through the Internet via blogs, vlogs, Twitters, links, Diggs and other clickable whatchamacallits. The young artist and his unusual...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jan 23, 2009

Crossing borderlines of consciousness

Most of us have experienced waking up in a strange room, perhaps in a hotel or a friend's house, and, for a split second, not knowing where we are — that fuzzy, vague feeling in the twilight zone between waking and dreaming. Imagine having those same feelings when waking up in your own, usually familiar,...
CULTURE / Music
Jan 23, 2009

Vienna's Arming strikes the right note

"During these five years, we have often tackled contemporary works," says Austrian conductor Christian Arming, music director of the New Japan Philharmonic (NJP) since 2003. "I believe that broadened our horizon."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 23, 2009

Vienna's Arming strikes the right note

"During these five years, we have often tackled contemporary works," says Austrian conductor Christian Arming, music director of the New Japan Philharmonic (NJP) since 2003. "I believe that broadened our horizon."
JAPAN
Jan 20, 2009

Temp support groups call for urgent steps

Support groups proposed several steps to the government and opposition on Monday to strengthen the safety net for laid-off temp workers ahead of an expected increase in their number at the end of March.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jan 20, 2009

Lifelines back to the 1900s

With 2009 so far looking bleak, here are some queries from around the world that take us into the past with the hope of finding positive solutions for the present.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 20, 2009

'Exam hell' now not so hot

The annual university entrance examination season kicked off Saturday and Sunday as some 540,000 high school students and graduates nationwide took the standardized National Center Test for University Admissions.
EDITORIALS
Jan 19, 2009

Make way for emergency care

The deterioration of emergency medical services has become a nationwide worry. In October, a pregnant woman transported by ambulance was refused admission to eight hospitals in Tokyo and died after giving birth. In December, an elderly woman seriously injured in a traffic accident died after she was...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Jan 18, 2009

Finding the fabled Snow Country

"The special delights of the hot spring are for the unaccompanied gentleman," states the introduction to Yasunari Kawabata's "Snow Country," instantly seizing the attention.
EDITORIALS
Jan 18, 2009

Househusbands on the rise

A recent survey conducted by the Kaji Kentei Jikko Iinkai (Housework Aptitude Test Association) reveals a great deal about the aspirations inside Japanese homes. Apparently, a surprisingly large number of married Japanese men — nearly 30 percent — would not mind being househusbands. This may not...
CULTURE / Books
Jan 18, 2009

The strength of Japan's 'soft power'

SOFT POWER SUPERPOWERS: Cultural and National Assets of Japan and the U.S., edited by Yasushi Watanabe and David L. McConnell. New York: M.E. Sharpe. Armonk, 2008, 296 pp., $32.95 (paper)
CULTURE / Books
Jan 18, 2009

The strength of Japan's 'soft power'

BEYOND PACIFISM: Why Japan Must Become a "Normal" Nation, by William Middlebrooks. Praeger Security International: Westport, Conn., 2008, 155 pp., $75 (cloth) SOFT POWER SUPERPOWERS: Cultural and National Assets of Japan and the U.S., edited by Yasushi Watanabe and David L. McConnell. New York: M.E....
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jan 16, 2009

Silent cinema to appeal to foreigners

Four Japanese silent movies produced in the 1930s will be shown in Tokyo on Jan. 28.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2009

Palestinian aid worker blogs on Gaza strife

An aid worker living in Gaza has been sending in blog entries to the nongovernmental organization he works for, reporting on the dire situation his family and fellow Gaza residents are experiencing amid an Israeli military drive that has reportedly killed more than 1,000 so far, the international NGO's...

Longform

Atsuyoshi Koike, the president and CEO of Rapidus, says there is a “sense of urgency” when it comes to Japan’s efforts in manufacturing semiconductors. “We have to make sure we are successful,” he says.
Atsuyoshi Koike’s big game: Fourth down and 2 nanometers to go