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Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jun 7, 2012

Tsunami-spoiled pics given new life

Of all the many and varied recovery and repair efforts now under way following the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami of March 11, 2011, few would be as fiddly as the Rikuzentakata Disaster Document Digitalization Project.
EDITORIALS
Jun 7, 2012

New class of vehicles

The government plans to promote a new category of "microcompact" vehicles, the first new category of vehicle to be established under the Road Transport Vehicle Law since 1963. These new cars will likely appeal to elderly people and others who will use them for shopping or visiting places near their homes....
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Japan Pulse
Jun 6, 2012

Moldy Mos Burger confirms kōji boom

Mmm, mold. How an old spore found new life in Japan's kitchens.
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
Jun 6, 2012

Durant, Green show class of West's best organizations

Kevin Durant cannot possibly be, as commonly portrayed, as great a guy as he is a player, right?
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 6, 2012

LDP's dangerous proposals for amending antiwar article

The Liberal Democratic Party published its new draft constitutional amendment proposal in late April. The draft reflects a number of significant changes above and beyond those advanced in the proposal unveiled by the LDP in 2005. The proposal includes a complete overhaul of Article 9, the war-renouncing...
CULTURE / Japan Pulse
Jun 5, 2012

Today's blip: PS3 'Ni no Kuni' trailer in English

The long-awaited English trailer for 'Ni no Kuni' is out. The English version of the Ghibli-flavored game is set for an early 2013 release.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jun 3, 2012

Portrait of a pickpocket

THE THIEF, by Fuminori Nakamura, translated by Satoko Izumo and Stephen Coates. Soho Crime, 2012, 304 pp., $23.00 (hardcover) In simpler times, in simpler tales, authors pitted heroes against villains, and there was no confusion about who wore the black hat and who the white. We no longer live in those...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Jun 3, 2012

Bashōfu culture weaves its spell in Kijoka

White-caps beat steadily against the northwestern shore of Okinawa's main island. Winds have stirred up the seas, yet the water looks as cerulean and inviting as ever. I should be paying more attention to this enviable vista but I'm preoccupied, indifferent. The circuitous coastal road requires more...
Reader Mail
Jun 3, 2012

The tattoo nonsense must stop

All this tattoo discrimination nonsense is driving me crazy. Why is this being allowed to happen? Discrimination at hot springs was bad enough, but now it's in public offices (Osaka), my public gym and concert halls. A former employee of Nakano Zero Hall told me that they got a letter from the police...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 2, 2012

Raccoon dog evades palace guards

Imperial Palace guards continued efforts Friday to shoo away a "tanuki" raccoon dog that has been hiding in a gap in a stone wall at the palace moat.
COMMENTARY
Jun 1, 2012

Russia needs true family policy

The unprecedented upswing of public interest in Russia's presidential elections opened a window of opportunities — quite unexpected but welcome — to see and discuss many socioeconomic problems in a more realistic manner.
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jun 1, 2012

Lantern spectacle and costume parade commemorate lord's arrival

The three days that comprise the Hyakumangoku Festival are sometimes said to be the most highly anticipated days of the year by Kanazawa residents, but they could be some of the best days for all of Ishikawa Prefecture.
Reader Mail
May 31, 2012

Eternal separation from God

In his May 27 letter, Scott Mintz cites three Gospel verses that appear to cast Jesus as a "dictator" who threatens people with "torture chambers" if they don't "fall in line." Mintz fails to mention that all three verses appear in Jesus' parables, which are metaphorical, not literal, descriptions of...
COMMENTARY / World
May 31, 2012

Why nuclear weapons don't make any sense

Nuclear weapons are terror weapons, and basically unusable.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 31, 2012

"Keisai Eisen"

Ukiyo-e (woodblock print) artist Keisai Eisen (1791-1848) is particularly famous for his bijinga (pictures of beautiful women) for which he often accentuated his subjects' voluptuousness. As his reputation soared, he became a leading expert in the genre and published many popular bijinga nishiki-e (multi-colored...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 31, 2012

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu "Pamyu Pamyu Revolution"

It's fitting that the leadup to Kyary Pamyu Pamyu's debut album has focused heavily on her image. She's a fashion blogger and model now pursuing music, her clothes grabbing as much attention as her songs. Her savviest move was releasing three bonkers music videos over the past year featuring stuff like...
COMMENTARY
May 30, 2012

It's time U.S. dropped the college-for-all crusade

The college-for-all crusade has outlived its usefulness. Time to ditch it. Like the crusade to make all Americans homeowners, it's now doing more harm than good. It looms as the largest mistake in educational policy since World War II, even though higher education's expansion also ranks as one of America's...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
May 29, 2012

Japan's house of the rising sun

What will our lifestyles be like in the future? An international group of students at Chiba University plan to explore the possibilities with their proposal for a next-generation solar house, a futuristic mix of new technology and traditional ways of life in Japan.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
May 29, 2012

Tokyo: What do you think of the move by two hotels at Tokyo Disney Resort to offer same-sex marriage ceremonies?

C. Sakai
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
May 29, 2012

Safe blood requires strict, and detailed, standards

In last week's column, several people living in Japan explained that whether they were able to donate blood was primarily determined by health or safety concerns rather than Japanese language ability, which we originally discussed in our April 3 column, "Less-than-fluent foreigners may have trouble giving...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LIGHT GIST
May 29, 2012

Manjiro, patron saint of eikaiwa, watches over English teachers

It can be tough teaching English in Japan. The chain school grind of late hours, noisy kids and boring middle-aged office workers takes its toll. Uppity teachers at public schools treat ALTs with contempt and all English instructors feel the humiliation of being looked down upon by their foreigner brethren...

Longform

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.
Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat