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BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 16, 2020

Japan should drop strings on virus aid, economist says

The government is getting its response to the virus wrong by adding strings to its financial assistance for companies and people, and by not engineering a tighter lockdown, according to best-selling author and economist Yukio Noguchi.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Apr 16, 2020

Japan's governors under the spotlight as coronavirus pandemic rages

The coronavirus pandemic has prompted the national government to declare an emergency in seven prefectures. This, in turn, has put the spotlight on the powers and responsibilities of prefectural governors. Though often compared to state governors elsewhere, there are key differences.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 15, 2020

COVID-19 pandemic is no soft power victory for China

There is no doubt that China is assisting the world in taking on the COVID-19 pandemic, but it is not experiencing a global soft power victory by attracting new partners to its side.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 15, 2020

COVID-19 pandemic prompts a digital revolution

Even as the novel coronavirus pandemic throws the global economy into turmoil and as commercial activities are paralyzed in Japan under the state of emergency declared by the government, at least one sector is seeing an expansion in demand — “virtual” business models and online transactions that...
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 15, 2020

The Mekong is the test of China’s leadership

To show real leadership, China must recognize the needs of downstream nations.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 15, 2020

Tears of joy in Japan

A pair of studies offer important guidance for maximizing personal well-being during this stressful time.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 14, 2020

The other contagion: Political and religious fanaticism

The only way to contain the threat from extremists during the pandemic is to discredit their insidious ideologies.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 13, 2020

Amid COVID-19 outbreak, old tensions rear their heads

Amid an all- consuming fight against the coronavirus, the U.S. and Japan must be ready for renewed tensions with China over Taiwan.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 13, 2020

Keep a distance of 1.8 meters to avoid a catastrophe

The future of Japan depends on decisions by leaders and actions taken by every individual.
JAPAN / History
Apr 11, 2020

Looking for solace in Japanese mythology during a pandemic

Amid growing anxiety over an invisible pathogen that has so far claimed tens of thousands of lives worldwide, some Japanese are turning to faith and mythology for solace.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Apr 11, 2020

Counting the cost of postponing the Tokyo Olympics

Nearly a month before the decision was announced to postpone the 2020 Olympics, the media was already speculating over their fate. On Feb. 24, the headline in Nikkan Gendai read, “Relinquishing of the Tokyo Olympics would mean ¥20 trillion in economic losses.”
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Apr 11, 2020

Japanese books to get you through a lockdown

With "staying in" now the new "going out," housebound activities have become officially the cool thing to do. But what if you’re stuck for a good book? Read on to see four of our critics’ top reads for an extended period of self-isolation.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Apr 11, 2020

Two-thirds of severe COVID-19 cases improved with remdesivir drug

Gilead Sciences Inc.’s experimental drug for patients with severe COVID-19 infections showed promise in an early analysis, raising tentative hope that the first treatment for the novel virus may be on the horizon.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Apr 9, 2020

Unchecked spread of coronavirus prompts about-face on masks around the world

Wearing face masks, which health officials in many countries previously discouraged outside hospitals, is gaining converts as the coronavirus spreads across the globe.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Apr 9, 2020

Fewer coronavirus deaths seen in countries that mandate tuberculosis vaccine

Countries with mandatory policies to vaccinate against tuberculosis register fewer coronavirus deaths than countries that don’t have those policies, a new study has found.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 6, 2020

The price of ‘America First’ has become clear

The COVID-19 outbreak has just exposed, with remarkable clarity, the bankruptcy of U.S. President Donald Trump's “America First” agenda.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 6, 2020

The Trump presidency turns deadly

How many people died needlessly as a result of the U.S. president's leadership.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Apr 6, 2020

My life on the run from COVID-19

Right now I am in voluntary self-quarantine after returning from overseas. When I flew into Kansai International Airport from the island of Bali on March 23, Indonesia wasn’t on the list of countries with known coronavirus infections, and local authorities had not yet asked returnees from abroad to...
Japan Times
CULTURE / CULTURE SMASH
Apr 4, 2020

Anime cons ‘will never be the same’ after the coronavirus

The spread of COVID-19 has caused many large-scale events to be cancelled, including a lot of anime fan conventions. The question now is, will these events survive to cosplay another day?
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Apr 4, 2020

C.W. Nicol, a committed environmentalist with deep humanity

Author and environmentalist C.W. Nicol died on Friday after being diagnosed with cancer in 2016. As a long-standing contributor to The Japan Times, we asked his equally long-standing editor, Andrew Kershaw, to write a few words in memory of the award-winning conservationist
Japan Times
LIFE / EVENTS AND INFORMATION
Apr 3, 2020

Bold, vibrant stencil art remains alive today

Gazing upon artworks using kappazuri , an innovative Japanese stencil printing technique, similarities can be seen with Japan’s rich tradition of ukiyo-e woodblock printing. Others might recognize an affinity with stenciling techniques found in contemporary street art.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Apr 3, 2020

Climate disasters seen increasing armed conflict risk in large countries

Countries with large populations and low levels of development are most likely to see a rise in the risk of armed conflict after extreme weather events, according to a new study that researchers said underscored the need to boost their resilience.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 1, 2020

NSC change prepares Japan for new global realities

Japan is moving toward a wiser decision-making process when it comes to key security questions.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 1, 2020

The Battle of Okinawa: Could more civilians have been saved?

The true lesson of the Battle of Okinawa may be that civilian deaths in war can and should be kept to the absolute minimum.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 31, 2020

The 2021 Olympic Games will be the greatest ever

The 2021 Olympic Games should be a celebration of a world that overcomes petty nationalisms, rather than one that reinforces them.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 30, 2020

One battle Boris Johnson is clearly winning

The COVID-19 crisis gives the U.K. prime minister a huge bounce.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 29, 2020

Tax incentives needed to promote recurrent education

There are no countries in the world that do not wish for eternal prosperity. Nothing can ensure such prosperity except education of their people. Many people may take that to mean school education for children and youth. However, what will be far more important going forward will be recurrent education,...
CULTURE / Books / RECENTLY PUBLISHED BOOKS ABOUT JAPAN
Mar 28, 2020

'Grit, Grace, and Gold' review: The Olympics are postponed, but this book's a winner

On the surface, sports and haiku are an incongruous mix but, as Nagamura notes in the introduction, 'Writing good haiku involves the same attention to grace, balance, strength, bravery, restraint and observation that propels athletes to their peak.'
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 27, 2020

Is the pandemic a moment of promise or peril?

We are about to make a historical step — hopefully forward — as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.

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