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Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Sep 16, 2013

Fukushima and the right to responsible government

A responsibility-shirking government is ultimately the people's problem — and responsibility — just as much as the nuclear disaster and all the nation's other problems are, argues Colin P.A. Jones.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Sep 14, 2013

History of the cat from ancient god to cuddly pal

Outnumbering dogs by roughly three to one worldwide, cats have been the world's most popular pet for a long time, but right now, in particular, they seem to be enjoying a golden era — possibly their most golden since the days of ancient Egypt, 3,000 years ago, when they were worshipped as gods. Even...
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Sep 11, 2013

Balentien ties single-season home run record

Before facing the Hiroshima Carp, Wladimir Balentien and teammate Ryoji Aikawa decided they were going to go with a high-sock look, or as Balentien put it, "old-school, Sadaharu Oh-style."
EDITORIALS
Sep 7, 2013

An anime icon retires

The retirement of anime director Hayao Miyazaki is well-earned, but he will be sorely missed.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Sep 7, 2013

Tracing the path of history in northern Nagasaki

The horn blast from the incoming ferry echoes clearly through the top-floor hall of Hirado Castle. From the donjon's vantage point, my husband and I can clearly see the large passenger ship as it enters the sheltered bay of Hirado's port, marking the end of its route between this small city on Nagasaki...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 4, 2013

Can Alexei Navalny salvage Russian democracy?

Come Sept. 8, can Moscow mayoral candidate Alexei Navalny and his supporters change Russia's political culture of fear
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Aug 25, 2013

NASA's mission improbable: corral an asteroid

NASA is looking for a rock. It has to be out there somewhere — a small asteroid circling the sun and passing close to Earth. It can't be too big or too small. Something 6 to 9 meters in diameter would work. It can't be spinning too rapidly, or tumbling knees over elbows. It can't be a speed demon....
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Aug 25, 2013

The making of 'Kaze Tachinu'; Japanese 'Up Series' continues; CM of the week: Boss

Nippon TV has the sole broadcast rights for the films of Hayao Miyazaki, which means whenever you watch his movies on TV you have to endure commercial breaks.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Aug 21, 2013

'Beauties of Nature: Rimpa, Jakuchu and Japanese Painting'

In Japanese, the term "kacho fugetsu" consists of the kanji for "flower," "bird," "wind" and "moon," and it refers to "the beauties of nature" — that ever-popular subject of nihonga (Japanese-style painting).
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / CHILD'S PLAY
Aug 20, 2013

A big day out at the sumo

They're sweaty, they're chubby and they love pushing each other around. But enough about the folks at my family reunion, let's talk about sumo. This quintessentially Japanese sport is a lot of fun to witness with kids, and the Ryogoku neighborhood surrounding Tokyo's Kokugikan sumo stadium has several...
LIFE / Digital
Aug 20, 2013

Britain's new 'smart meters' not so clever

Those whom the gods wish to destroy, they first make credulous. In the case of technology, especially technology involving computers, that's pretty easy to do. Quite why people are so overawed by computers when they are blasé about, say, truly miraculous technologies such as high-speed trains, is a...
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 17, 2013

China hit by rash of fake officials peddling 'power'

He had the swagger and trappings of a senior party cadre, and a natural authority that made him hard to contradict. The walls of his office in the heart of the Chinese capital were adorned with photographs of him next to retired generals and government officials. He drove a top of the range Audi and...
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Aug 16, 2013

Chelsea, Man City start as favorites

We know the short list from which the Premier League champion will come.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 14, 2013

Hard rock, J-pop rule Summer Sonic

Veteran Japanese rockers Mr. Children attracted so many fans to this year's edition of the Summer Sonic music festival that they made Smashing Pumpkins' frontman Billy Corgan upset.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Aug 10, 2013

'Haiku killings' recall infamous horror story

Mitake, a tiny mountain hamlet located in eastern Yamaguchi Prefecture, is administrated as part of the city of Shunan (pop. 150,000). The area is so remote, cell phones don't always receive signals there.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Jul 29, 2013

Film, music and Moomins: events at Setouchi Triennale 2013

Though Setouchi is often referred to as an 'art festival,' there are plenty of other events taking place across the islands, including lectures, theater performances and concerts.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jul 28, 2013

Weiner wife emerges as husband's chief defender despite repeat of sex scandal

It was his news conference, but it was hard to take your eyes off her. With Huma Abedin's emergence as her husband's chief defender and protector in a second sex scandal, she made a public transformation from being the victim of Anthony Weiner's transgressions to a full partner in his ambition.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society / FOCUS
Jul 22, 2013

Pope Francis starts first trip abroad on wave of hope

On the tiny Italian island of Lampedusa, the Rev. Stefano Nastasi threw the ecclesiastic equivalent of a Hail Mary pass.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Jul 22, 2013

Bizarre merchandising, tabletop Nintendo and new releases for Wii U

Gangsters. Hostesses. And lots and lots of street fighting. No, this isn't a night in Shinjuku's Kabukicho red-light district. It's an evening with 'Yakuza,' Sega's crime opus on the Wii U.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 22, 2013

Greenpeace's Shard stunt may not help its cause

Greenpeace's staged scaling of central London's Shard skyscraper makes one wonder if the environmental organization might be even more effective if it grew up.
JAPAN / History / JAPAN TIMES GONE BY
Jul 20, 2013

Tokyo homeless, Olympics cancelled, medals given for kindness, Mandela's birthday feted

Summer is generally a good season for employment-seekers of the laboring classes. This summer, however, there are twice as many unemployed men as usual. The Free Lodging House of Honjo, Tokyo, for instance, generally takes in about 20 lodgers nightly during the hot months, but this season some 45 are finding shelter there every night.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Jul 19, 2013

That's me in the picture: how 'selfies' became a global craze

It starts with a certain angle: A smartphone tilted at 45 degrees just above your eyeline is generally deemed the most forgiving. Then a light source: the flattering beam of a backlit window or a bursting supernova of flash reflected in a bathroom mirror, as preparations are under way for a night out....
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / A TASTE OF HOME
Jul 18, 2013

A delicious Caribbean vacation for your taste buds

"There are no palm trees. It looks like a typical Caribbean restaurant. Like home, not the beach," says Petra Laptiste, a Canadian of Caribbean descent, describing her favorite Caribbean restaurant in Tokyo, JamRock (1-21-15 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; 03-3478-2364; www.jamrockcafeonline.com).
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jul 14, 2013

Zimmerman acquitted of Martin killing

A Florida jury acquits George Zimmerman of second-degree murder and manslaughter in a case that both fascinated and appalled large segments of a spellbound America.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 11, 2013

Experiments in the wild

Ten years ago, when a new cultural facility opened in the western Japan city of Yamaguchi, its founders sought to fulfill a role quite different from those museums in the countryside.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jul 4, 2013

'New' Royal Ballet spans the frontiers of dance

For the first time in three years, one of the world's most esteemed ballet companies is bringing its talent to one of the world's most appreciative audiences, as part of a tour that explores the parameters of dance.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 3, 2013

The 'floating world' that drifted to the West

The main pleasure of any extensive ukiyo-e (woodblock print) exhibition, like the "Floating World" show now on at the Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum, is the evocation of the unique civilization that underlies this particular slab of global modernity.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jul 3, 2013

Matthew Bourne's 'Dorian Gray' will never grow old, says its lead dancer, Richard Winsor

"Matthew and I are very excited to see how Japanese audiences react — but I think everyone is absolutely going to love this show," English dancer Richard Winsor said at a Tokyo press conference held in May to preview next week's season of Matthew Bourne's "Dorian Gray," in which he plays the title...
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Jul 3, 2013

Gamba, Vissel on course for quick return to top division

The J. League first division returns from its six-week international break this Saturday, but beneath the top flight the race for promotion is in full swing with the second division reaching its halfway point last Saturday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jun 27, 2013

What provoked Japan's contemporary photography?

In 1968, as the world reeled from The Prague Spring, the turbulent union and student strikes in France, and the assassinations of Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Japan, like so many other nations, found itself in the midst of social unrest. Citizens questioned the West's involvement in the Vietnam...

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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