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Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Dec 27, 2019

Okinawa residents live in fear of stray munitions from U.S. practice range

The proximity of Okinawa Prefecture's Igei Ward in the town of Kin to a U.S. Marine Corps live shooting range puts residents at constant risk of stray bullets and other munitions landing on private property, ripping through roofs or even injuring civilians.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Dec 27, 2019

Tokyo Olympic torchbearers from Fukushima hope event showcases recovery

Applicants across Japan have begun receiving notification that they were selected to run in the Japan leg of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic torch relay that will kick off on March 26 at the J-Village soccer facility in Fukushima Prefecture, where efforts to recover from the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and...
Japan Times
CULTURE / 2019 in Review
Dec 27, 2019

In video games, 2019 was the year of Death Stranding

The year saw an array of original titles hit the shelves, alongside a selection of reboots of existing francihses
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Dec 24, 2019

No Christmas Mass at Notre Dame for the first time since Napoleon

For the first time in more than 200 years, worshippers will not be able to celebrate Christmas Mass at Notre Dame cathedral, still being restored after a devastating fire.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / 2019 in Review
Dec 22, 2019

Japanese trends you couldn't have missed in 2019

Amid the hard news of the past year, there were some trends that lit up Japan's media offered the nation a sense of, if not a little hope, at least some relief.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Dec 21, 2019

Jomon revival: Interest in Japan's indigenous hunter-gathers grows

From his hilltop studio in the suburbs of Tokyo, Taku Oshima is reviving an ancient form of body art tradition he believes was practiced by the indigenous hunter-gatherers that inhabited Japan thousands of years ago.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Dec 21, 2019

Milksha: 'Fresh Milk' bubble tea gets some fresh new flavors

There's a plethora of subpar bubble tea shops out there. Fortunately, Milksha is not one of them.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 18, 2019

Toyota to use advanced self-driving tech in commercial vehicles first

Toyota Motor Corp. plans to first deploy advanced self-driving features in commercial vehicles before adding them to cars meant for personal use, a senior official at the Japanese automaker said Tuesday.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 17, 2019

China's first domestically built aircraft carrier enters service 'at doorstep of South China Sea'

China announced the delivery and commissioning Tuesday of its second aircraft carrier — the first built domestically — while also revealing its name, the Shandong, state-run media reported.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / 2019 in Review
Dec 17, 2019

Creative expression stifled by 'safety concerns' in Japan

As the taboo-busting comic Joan Rivers used to say after pressing her audience's buttons, 'Can we talk?' On the evidence of this year's Aichi Triennale, if it's about World War II atrocities, the answer seems to be 'no.'
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 17, 2019

Honda to release Japan's first domestic 'level three' autonomous car

Honda Motor Co. will be the first automaker in Japan to release a domestically produced car with "level three" autonomy, according to sources.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 16, 2019

Shareholder activism rises in Japan as firms go hostile and investors speak out

Record shareholder activism is combining with rare hostile takeover bids in Japan, in a trend that's seen as good news for investors in the country's ¥675 trillion stock market.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Dec 13, 2019

Aichi city hires non-Japanese assistants to support foreign children at elementary schools

During a recent math class at an elementary school in Aichi Prefecture, Kamila Tamy Tida Miyamoto, 31, a Brazilian school assistant, pointed to the textbooks of Aika and Ayumi, second-grade Brazilian students who enrolled this year, as she explained concepts to them in Portuguese.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Dec 13, 2019

U.S. digital publisher boosts reach of Japanese 'light novels' in English-speaking world

"Isekai Rebuilding Project," a fantasy novel by a Hokkaido-based writer who publishes under the pseudonym Yukika Minamino, has become available to English-reading audiences through a website run by an American digital publisher of Japanese novels aimed at teenagers and young adults.
Japan Times
Rugby
Dec 13, 2019

Rising wheelchair rugby star Katsuya Hashimoto looks to show the world what he's made of

At 17 years old, Katsuya Hashimoto is the youngest wheelchair rugby player on the Japanese national team. With less than 300 days until the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games, he often pictures himself on the court at the 2020 venue, ready for his first competition as a Paralympian.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Dec 13, 2019

Hiroshima's middle school students wear bike helmets, so why not high schoolers?

A 33-year-old housewife in the city of Kure phoned the Chugoku Shimbun one day to convey her concern about her sixth-grade son. He will be attending a junior high school starting next spring and will be traveling there by bicycle, but he does not want to wear a helmet because he does not like its design....
Japan Times
SOCCER
Dec 12, 2019

Japan submits bid for 2023 Women's World Cup to FIFA

Japan is considered a frontrunner in a field that may include a joint Australia-New Zealand bid, a rumored unified Korean bid, Colombia, Argentina and Brazil.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 12, 2019

'Tora-san, Wish You Were Here': A film favorite lovingly remembered

With 48 feature installments from 1969 to 1995, the "Tora-san" series not only set a Guinness World Record, but kept its Shochiku production studio afloat for decades.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 10, 2019

A long-term outlook for decisions here and now

Short-term thinking is detrimental to sound decision-making.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 10, 2019

Idemitsu to unify gas station branding with Showa Shell to take on JXTG

Idemitsu Kosan Co. aims to unify its gas station branding with that of Showa Shell Sekiyu K.K. after the business integration of the two major oil wholesalers in April, according to Idemitsu Kosan President Shunichi Kito.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / BACKSTREET STORIES
Dec 7, 2019

A last triumph of autumn in rain-soaked Kokubunji

A dreary drizzle of rain falls on the November day I've set aside for walking out along the Kokubunji gaisen (cliff line) in western Tokyo. Despite the weather, my hope is to catch some late autumn colors, so I yank on my trusty rubber birdwatching boots and head out west on the Chuo Line.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 6, 2019

Toyota struggles to match demand for hybrid models

Toyota Motor Corp. has a problem with selling its hybrids — its customers can't get enough of them.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 6, 2019

How the artwork from anime classic 'Akira' was given a permanent home in the U.S.

More than 30 years after the anime world was set alight by 'Akira,' the original artwork from the film has found a permanent home in the United States.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 5, 2019

A TikTok craze is minting celebrities and ruining lives in India

Arpita Chaudhary, a newly recruited police constable in India's western Gujarat state, became an overnight celebrity after posting a clip of a 15-second gambol — clad in her civvies — on the hit social video app TikTok.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Dec 2, 2019

Releases to keep the fans happy

The crowdfunded Shenmue III is finally out; Pokemon Sword and Shield top the charts; and Capcom brings its best merch to Shibuya's Parco
CULTURE / Books / RECENTLY PUBLISHED BOOKS ABOUT JAPAN
Nov 30, 2019

'My Almost Flawless Tokyo Dream Life': Well-intentioned diversity misses the mark

Props to Rachel Cohn for attempting to add some much-needed diversity into Japanese literature with 'My Almost Flawless Tokyo Dream Life.' Unfortunately, it falls flat.
EDITORIALS
Nov 30, 2019

Banning (some) free plastic bags

Japan's effort to reduce plastic waste by forcing retailers to charge for shopping bags has too many exemptions.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.