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JAPAN
Jan 14, 2021

Shadow hangs over Olympics once more with Japan virus surge

Japan is one of several countries where the virus has made a comeback in winter months with Tokyo finding a record 2,447 cases on Jan. 7.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 13, 2021

‘Woman of the Photographs’: An existentialist fable for the Instagram age

Takeshi Kushida's debut feature playfully riffs on Kobo Abe's novel, “The Woman in the Dunes,” in a surrealist fable about the pitfalls of image retouching.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 13, 2021

mRNA vaccines could vanquish COVID-19 today, cancer tomorrow

Therein lies mRNA's bigger promise: It can tell our cells to make whatever protein we want. That includes the antigens of many other diseases besides COVID-19.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 12, 2021

There are only bad options for dealing with North Korea

Kim didn't wait for the inauguration, announcing last week that the United States remained his country's “biggest enemy” and that his government would not give up its nuclear arsenal.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 12, 2021

COVID-19 improved how the world does science

The biggest problem for an open-access regime is how to ensure good refereeing, which if done correctly raises the quality of academic papers.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 12, 2021

Worsening U.S.-China tensions put companies in crosshairs

Both Washington and Beijing took steps over the weekend that threaten to further ratchet up tensions and cloud the outlook for cross-border commerce.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 10, 2021

Five books that explain the world

To comprehend Russia, including the mindset of Vladimir Putin, I've found more illumination in Pushkin, Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy and above all Gogol than in most CIA reports.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 9, 2021

Simon & Schuster cancels plans for Josh Hawley’s book

Simon & Schuster said Thursday that it would cancel the publication of an upcoming book by Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, one of several members of Congress who tried to overturn the results of the presidential election.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 8, 2021

Send the right message: Remove Trump now

The violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, incited by Trump, represents something new and profane in American history.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 8, 2021

Ten hours that shook America

America now finds itself confronting something that hasn't happened since the time of Abraham Lincoln: rejection of the constitutional order by a significant share of the electorate.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 5, 2021

It doesn’t take a dictatorship to defeat COVID-19

We mustn't be seduced by the authoritarian temptation. Defeating COVID-19 will take a collective effort, one that demands leadership and individual responsibility.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 5, 2021

NYSE scraps plan to delist Chinese telecom firms in ‘bizarre’ U-turn

A lack of clarity on why the exchange changed course left investors speculating over whether the move is something with broader geopolitical implications.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Beyond COVID-19
Jan 5, 2021

A new ‘Year Zero’

While COVID-19 delivered the final blow, it has been clear for at least two decades that the postwar model is no longer sustainable, environmentally or socially.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 5, 2021

Ivanka the Inevitable?

Ivanka may be considering a Senate run, especially if her father plans to run for re-election in 2024.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 3, 2021

EU’s ‘climate leader’ explains why 2020 has left him optimistic

The author of one of the most ambitious climate plans in the European Union says 2020 was a turning point that’s left him optimistic about the future of the planet.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jan 3, 2021

Coming of age in Japan during COVID-19

This year's new adults are on the precipice of missing out on their seijinshiki, a time-honored tradition noted for its formality and formalwear.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 2, 2021

Have you ever heard of the ‘three great noodles of Morioka’?

Known collectively as the “Morioka sandaimen,” each dish features a noodle with distinct cultural roots.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 1, 2021

In a world turned upside down, Japan will muddle through

Japan could use this year to prepare for inevitable changes in domestic and foreign affairs and better position itself for that world.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Beyond COVID-19
Dec 31, 2020

Potential for a big bounce-back in 2021?

Engineering a big economic rebound in 2021, and maintaining strong and sustainable growth thereafter, will require much more than a COVID-19 vaccine.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film / 2020 in review
Dec 31, 2020

Virtual and victorious: Anime came out on top in 2020

In a year marred by industry-wide delays and cancellations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, anime still managed to become more popular than ever thanks in part to streaming platforms.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 30, 2020

The lesson of 2020: Security doesn’t mean what you think it does

Science and technology will only take us so far when it comes to future threats, conventional or otherwise.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Beyond COVID-19
Dec 29, 2020

America’s post-Trump reckoning

As the Biden administration re-engages with U.S. partners and allies, it will have to provide assurances that arrangements made in the next four years will survive into the future.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Beyond COVID-19
Dec 29, 2020

Overcoming Trumpism

The underestimation of Trump voters, and complacent belief in a Biden landslide, revealed the widening gulf between urban, educated America and rural, working-class America.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Beyond COVID-19
Dec 28, 2020

Xi Jinping’s strategic overreach in the Himalayas

China's ability to pursue its geopolitical ambitions is diminishing rapidly. Nowhere is this more apparent than in its relations with India.
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Dec 28, 2020

Anne Frank and Sadako Sasaki: Two girls that symbolize the horrors of war

The 75th anniversary of the end of World War II came amid a pandemic. We take a moment to look back to remember two people in particular who died in that global crisis.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Beyond COVID-19
Dec 27, 2020

How might COVID-19 change the world?

No country will be safe from COVID-19 until all are. It's a global problem demanding a global solution.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Beyond COVID-19
Dec 27, 2020

The pandemic of fear

When people are isolated in their homes and haunted by fear, boredom and paranoia, one of the few activities that does not cease is discussion of the coronavirus.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 27, 2020

Hydro-hegemony: Will China turn off Asia’s tap?

As long as the Communist Party of China remains in power, the country will most likely continue to wage stealthy water wars that no one can win.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Dec 26, 2020

‘Love Child’: A labor of love 20 years in the making

Rakuko Rubin's collection of short stories that traverse bicultural themes and universal mileposts in life was translated by her husband, Jay Rubin.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Dec 26, 2020

20 Questions: The best answers of 2020

The 20 Questions format aims to get people in Japan to tell us about their thoughts and beliefs in their words. Here are some of the most interesting answers from 2020.

Longform

A man offers prayers at Hebikubo Shrine in Tokyo's Shinagawa Ward. The shrine is one of several across the country dedicated to the snake.
Shed your skin and reinvent yourself in the Year of the Snake