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Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Oct 16, 2008

Mitsubishi touts young artists

Recent art-school graduate Yuzo Shimomura was looking as uncomfortable as the collar of his shirt, which had flared up above his jacket lapel. It was clear they both wanted to be somewhere else.
JAPAN
Oct 15, 2008

Keidanren: Immigrant worker influx vital to halt labor shortage

Japan should expedite an increase in immigrant labor to engage in fields ranging from welfare to manufacturing, construction and agriculture to offset the shrinking domestic workforce, the nation's largest business lobby said Tuesday.
COMMENTARY
Oct 13, 2008

Charge up to the fast lane

During a recent visit to China's Zhejiang University, which honored me with the title of visiting professor, I was surprised to learn that faculty members drive their own cars, many of them expensive models by my standard. A professor in his late 40s was driving a ¥10 million Audi; a 30-year-old instructor...
Japan Times
Features
Oct 12, 2008

1,000 years of 'Genji'

"Genji Monogatari," known as "The Tale of Genji" in English, is believed by many scholars to be the first full-length novel in world literature. Marking the 1,000th anniversary since its creation, today's Timeout introduces this masterpiece that draws readers into a beautiful world gone by full of passion,...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 11, 2008

Combating the piracy plague

SINGAPORE — The confrontation between foreign warships and well-armed pirates off the coast of lawless Somalia is a dramatic reminder to Asia of the importance of safeguarding busy channels used by international shipping.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Oct 11, 2008

Offering shelter from life's storms

"It's the single most stressful job I've ever had. It's also the best job," says Briar Simpson of Tokyo's Animal Refuge Kansai.
BUSINESS
Oct 11, 2008

Firms use free beer, pasta to lure housewives into becoming investors

Tokyo Gas Co. and Asahi Breweries Ltd., Japan's biggest gas utility and second-largest brewer, are using free beer and pasta lunches to lure housewives into becoming investors.
COMMENTARY
Oct 10, 2008

Distressed Chinese dairy companies get help

HONG KONG — At a time when the United States — and now Europe — is acting to rescue financial institutions such as Bear Stearns, Merrill Lynch and AIG, it is interesting to note that Chinese authorities are offering a hand to distressed companies caught in the contaminated milk scandal.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Oct 10, 2008

A short trip to 'paradise' at Yokohama's Hakkeijima

Yokohama's close proximity to Tokyo — less than half an hour by express train on the various JR, Tokyu or Keihin Kyuko lines — makes it exceptionally easy to get to, and I'm always looking for an excuse to visit this friendly and cosmopolitan town.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Oct 9, 2008

Great show of Chinese art in Japan, finally

You can safely assume the Beijing Olympic Committee had nothing to do with "Avant-garde China: 20 years of Chinese Contemporary Art," an earnest attempt to present a bite-size overview of contemporary Chinese art. Due to the nature of China's tightly managed "re-opening," most recent Chinese art has...
BUSINESS
Oct 4, 2008

Pension-funding mystery continues

Finance Minister Shoichi Nakagawa said Friday the government has yet to decide how to pay for next year's increase in contributions to the national pension program.
EDITORIALS
Oct 3, 2008

Brighter lure for tourists

The Tourism Agency was inaugurated Oct. 1 with the main aim of making Japan more attractive to tourists from abroad and improving tourism assets in local areas. Establishment of the new agency grew out of the government's June 2007 plan to promote tourism as an important pillar of government policy for...
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Oct 3, 2008

Foundation runs for breast-cancer awareness

Every Oct. 1, Tokyo Tower is illuminated in a warm pink light to commemorate the beginning of National Breast Cancer Awareness month.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Oct 3, 2008

'Genji' retold in passionate tango

An Argentine tango themed on the "Tale of Genji," a Japanese novel written 1,000 years ago, will be performed this month in Tokyo and Nagoya.
COMMENTARY
Oct 2, 2008

Averting Asian water wars

As the most pressing resource, water holds the strategic key to peace, public health and prosperity. The battles of yesterday were fought over land. Those of today are over energy. But the battles of tomorrow will be over water. And nowhere else does that prospect look more real than in Asia.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Oct 2, 2008

Seeking photographic destinies

His figures cut through the sky, crisply suspended, on their way into the water. Sometimes they are immersed, or watching from a shore, but most often they hang in the air, about to split the drink in two. For Lithuanian photographer Vidas Biveinis, water represents a changing emotion, expressive of...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Oct 1, 2008

Helping a healthy river flow

My eldest daughter, Miwako, gave birth to twin girls in March of this year, raising the number of my grandchildren to five. So, when my busy schedule finally permitted, I recently nipped over to Vancouver to see them all and to help out Miwako and her partner, Don McCubbing, by being houseboy and chief...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 30, 2008

Practical fashion for the other end of life

One after the other, the models strutted across the stage to bouncy '80s dance tunes, all showing off designs of the same article of clothing — adult diapers.
JAPAN
Sep 30, 2008

Gagloev says he threw sumo bouts

Former sumo wrestler Soslan Aleksandrovich Gagloev, who was fired by the Japan Sumo Association for possessing marijuana in August, said he was forced to take bribes to throw matches during competition.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 29, 2008

Blank check for Paulson?

NEW YORK — U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson's $700 billion rescue package ran into difficulty on Capitol Hill over the weekend. Rightly so: It is ill-conceived. Congress would be abdicating its responsibility if it gave the Treasury secretary a blank check.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Sep 28, 2008

A step-by-step guide to owning a home in Japan

So you are ready to be king of your own castle in Japan. Adios to the days when you, a mere rent-paying tenant of a grotty apartment, worried about landlords taking you to the cleaners for spilling tea on the carpet or making minuscule holes in the walls to pin up framed pics.
EDITORIALS
Sep 27, 2008

Nuclear carrier at home

The 97,000-ton George Washington, a nuclear-powered carrier of the U.S. Navy, arrived at its new home port, Yokosuka, Thursday. The flattop carrying more than 70 aircraft is the fourth U.S. carrier to be stationed there since 1973 — after the Midway, the Independence and the Kitty Hawk, all oil-powered....

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