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JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 17, 2014

Aum cultist Hirata reiterates plea of ignorance

Aum Shinrikyo ex-fugitive Makoto Hirata repeated Monday that he had no prior knowledge about the cult's 1995 plans to kidnap and confine Tokyo notary Kiyoshi Kariya as he testified for the first time in his ongoing trial.
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Feb 15, 2014

Once upon a time, China anointed a 'King of Japan'

In 1401, barely a century after the Mongols' aborted invasions of Japan, and 600-odd years before Japan and China fell out over the Senkaku islets, a Chinese emperor conferred upon a Japanese shogun the title "King of Japan."
JAPAN / View from Osaka
Feb 15, 2014

Leave Article 9 alone: New Komeito's Osaka women

Political alliances often resemble shotgun weddings. But Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, and smaller opposition forces such as Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto's Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) that are pushing to amend the Constitution are now wondering...
Japan Times
CULTURE
Feb 13, 2014

Japan gets in the mood for love this Valentine's Day

Love is all around at this time of year, but on Valentine's Day in Japan it isn't so evenly distributed. The festival of romance has long suffered from a gender imbalance here: Feb. 14 is traditionally a day for women to give presents to men — not just their partners, but also often fellow students,...
LIFE / Lifestyle
Feb 13, 2014

The trouble with books that change over time

A few weeks ago, I bought a copy of "The Second Machine Age" by two MIT researchers, Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee, who are among the most insightful commentators currently writing about the likely impact on employment of advanced robotics, machine learning and big-data analytics. Since I already...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 12, 2014

Regional bank hits on novel way to attract business

Chiba resident wins big on year-end lottery thanks to local bank.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Feb 9, 2014

Getting the colors clear when filing taxes in Japan

Filing a tax return isn't easy at the best of times, but doing it in another country can be particularly challenging. Fortunately, if you work for a company and that's your sole source of income in Japan, they will take care of everything for you. However, those who are self-employed or have multiple...
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 9, 2014

Sex and single-mindedness: The Wendy Deng story

When Rupert Murdoch sat before a British House of Commons select committee in July 2011, Wendi Deng appeared the very picture of a supportive spouse. Dressed in a pink Chanel jacket and black pencil skirt, she poured the then 80-year-old's water for him, lovingly stroked his back and quietly reminded...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Feb 7, 2014

'Cove' to become 'aquatic nook' as Abe takes aim at improper eigo

Some say that Shinzo Abe's latest proposed tax increases, part of the 'fourth arrow' in his popular 'Abenomics' policy, are going a step too far. Dubbed the 'language tax,' the new levy is aimed at word usage.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 6, 2014

New boss to steer Keidanren back to politics?

Sadayuki Sakakibara, the incoming chairman of Keidanren, says his priority in leading the nation's top business lobby is to help get Japan back on a growth track, but observers say he may also try to re-establish the organization's influence in politics.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Feb 5, 2014

Can nature solve humankind's errors?

Masato Kodama's sculptures are concerned with light, gravity and air. For him, light is a symbol of tomorrow and potential futures, gravity represents the present and the past, and air is associated with memory.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 4, 2014

Toyota cash mountain draws calls for plants

Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda, whose company has accumulated a cash pile of almost ¥4 trillion, is facing calls to put that money to better use.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 26, 2014

Religious differences to fuel this century's bloody wars

The last weeks have seen a ghastly roll call of terrorist attacks in the obvious places: Syria, Libya, Iraq and Lebanon, as well as Egypt, Yemen, Tunisia and Pakistan. Also suffering are places where we have only in recent years seen such violence: Nigeria, and in many parts of central Africa, in Russia...
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,...
Reader Mail
Jan 15, 2014

If only neighbors were customers

On a light note — without any reference to Yasukuni Shrine, the Senkaku islands, "Abenomics," school textbooks, history, etc. — I'd like to say that after living and working here for more than 17 years, I am always interested to discover a facet of the Japanese character that had been unknown to...
JAPAN
Jan 13, 2014

Do more to assure region, Singapore tells Japan

Japan must do more to assure neighbors of its intentions as it strengthens its military, Singaporean Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen says.
Japan Times
LIFE
Jan 11, 2014

The return of Godzilla, the king of kaiju

'Godzilla' first appeared in cinemas across the country in November 1954 but its story line was heavily influenced by an incident eight months earlier at Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 7, 2014

China's anti-Kim campaign

The next target of China's autocrats, already waging an undeclared war over territory against multiple neighboring countries, is likely to be fellow communist state North Korea, now an estranged ally.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 7, 2014

Songwriter James Vincent McMorrow stuns on 'Post Tropical'

When James Vincent McMorrow performs, he squashes himself up behind a keyboard, feet apart and knees together, looking a little like a collapsed laundry rack. The 30-year-old's right hand shakes from the beginning of a song to its end. You give up drink, as the Dubliner did two years ago, and "all of...
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 2, 2014

Public's reaction to 'betrayal'

In light of the recent enact of the state secrets protectiion law, it is urgent that Japan improve its handling and disclosure of government information.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Dec 26, 2013

Budget limits trim NASA's plans for big projects

The Cassini spacecraft is in splendid shape as it circles Saturn. Conceived in the 1980s and launched in 1997, Cassini arrived at the gas-giant planet in 2004 and has continued to deliver stunning images of the jewel of the solar system.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 22, 2013

This year's buzzwords show how Japanese is evolving

Last month I shelled out ¥2,980 for my 2014 edition of 現代用語の基礎知識 ("Gendai Yogo no Kiso Chishiki", "Encyclopedia of Contemporary Words"). It's a 1,660-page monster that's well worth the outlay, and this year publisher Jiyu Kokumin-sha, as an extra bonus, included a 74-page booklet that...
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 21, 2013

Dialogue with North Korea is the only way forward

The North Koreans have said repeatedly that they will give up their nuclear weapons programs when they are convinced that the U.S. wants a peaceful relationship. So why not work out a treaty that finally ends the Korean War?
Japan Times
BASEBALL / MLB
Dec 21, 2013

Cromartie hungry to bring baseball back to Montreal

Warren Cromartie's energy can be infectious. When the former Montreal Expos and Yomiuri Giants star gets going on a topic, his voice rises, his words drip with conviction and even over the phone, you can imagine him flashing that familiar, toothy, megawatt smile.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 15, 2013

Time for Bangladesh to heal political wounds of the past

Bangladesh's rapid economic growth is at risk because of demonstrations and widespread anger over death penalties imposed on some Muslim leaders for their part in the 1971 war for independence.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?