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COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 4, 2015

The veiled cause of Abe's legislative predicament

The national debate over the security bills as been limited to constitutional issues but it should also focus on Japan's significantly enhanced responsibilities in the U.S. defense guidelines.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 3, 2015

Escaping the refugee crisis

The best way to help refugees would be for affluent countries to provide much more support for the poorer countries that are sheltering the vast majority of them.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Sep 3, 2015

Fire in his belly, Bush tells Trump to bring it on, is told in return to speak English in U.S.

Republican Jeb Bush's new campaign ad ridiculing Donald Trump as a "germophobe" and Democrat-in-disguise is just the start of what will be a bigger onslaught, signaling a more aggressive stance by the candidate, Bush advisers said on Wednesday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Sep 2, 2015

Olympics logo scandal highlights power of the Internet critic

As news broke Tuesday that the 2020 Tokyo Olympics organizing committee would scrap its official logo after weeks of plagiarism allegations surrounding the designer Kenjiro Sano, users of the popular 2channel gossip website posted a flurry of messages congratulating themselves.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Sep 2, 2015

Views from Yokohama: What would it take to make us all happier?

Tourists and residents in Kanagawa offer advice on how we can all live happier lives.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 1, 2015

Refugee crisis is suddenly Merkel's biggest challenge

In the past two weeks, Germany has been shaken by a perfect storm of headlines that have elevated the refugee issue to the very top of the public and political agenda.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 1, 2015

Norwegian television taps into fear of Russia

Norway's new TV series called 'Occupied' taps into Norwegians' wariness of Russia and their uneasiness about being the EU's gas station.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Aug 31, 2015

Putin pumps iron in bid to lift popularity with Russians

The Kremlin has released pictures of Russian President Vladimir Putin working out at the gym with Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, images apparently aimed at shoring up Putin's rugged, masculine image as his popularity dips.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Aug 29, 2015

Robert Bailey: 'I enjoy the precision of Japanese tailoring'

Huntsman senior cutter on snowboarding, bespoke suits and Gregory Peck
COMMUNITY / Voices / OVERHEARD
Aug 29, 2015

Expert opinion

Why did you come to Japan?
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Aug 29, 2015

SEALDs student group reinvigorates Japan's anti-war protest movement

Wearing shorts and a baggy T-shirt and clutching a microphone, Aki Okuda stands before a crowd, the pyramid-shaped roof of the Diet building lit up against the night sky behind him.
EDITORIALS
Aug 28, 2015

Dearth of competition in the LDP

The dearth of any challenge to Shinzo Abe's leadership from within the LDP is disappointing given that many of his key policies are being questioned by the public.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 27, 2015

Dumbing down: the key to U.S. political success

Stupidity exists everywhere, but what makes it stand out in America is that most Americans don't think it's bad to be dumb.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Aug 26, 2015

Anti-Abe feeling grows in SDF

Sentiment against Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is rising in the SDF over fears that his pending security legislation will increase the risk of going to war.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Aug 26, 2015

A lady's lot at Little League in Japan: lunches, liquids and lavatories

At one top kids' baseball program in Tokyo, gender roles are strictly prescribed and moms exist to serve.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 22, 2015

Messi without peer anywhere in the world

No soccer player in the world can rival Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, not even the great Cristiano Ronaldo.
EDITORIALS
Aug 20, 2015

Tougher penalties for sex crimes

The Justice Ministry is looking at increasing the minimum prison term for rape and making it possible to bring charges against sex crime suspects without a formal victim complaint.
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Aug 20, 2015

Limits of Abe's leadership

Former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori has been and continues to be a thorn in Shinzo Abe's side, as evidenced by the National Stadium brouhaha.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Aug 14, 2015

The shock of the old; boy band melodrama; CM of the Week: Kirin Beverage Co.

The shock of the old and abandoned is the theme of the late night "road movie" documentary series "Haikyo no Kyujitsu" ("Holiday in the Ruins"; TV Tokyo, Fri., 12:52 a.m.). Two teams of TV personalities — one in the United States and the other in Japan — explore man-made facilities that are no longer...
EDITORIALS
Aug 11, 2015

Sendai nuclear power plant restart

The restart of operations at the Sendai plant should serve as an occasion for the government, the power industry and the public to reassess the sustainability of nuclear power generation in this country.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS / THE DOPING EPIDEMIC
Aug 11, 2015

Conte says coverup protected big stars at Seoul Games

Years before he made the decision to 'go down the slippery slope,' and provide performance-enhancing drugs to elite athletes, BALCO founder Victor Conte, a standout triple jumper in high school, made a name for himself as a self-made expert.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Aug 11, 2015

Republicans still back Trump after debate; rivals lag far behind: poll

There is no sign that Donald Trump's raucous first presidential debate is hurting his support among party voters, with the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll showing he still has a big lead over his rivals for the Republican presidential nomination.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Aug 8, 2015

Trump main attraction as Republican debate smashes U.S. television record

The Republican candidates' debate on Fox News Channel attracted 24 million viewers, more than double the prior record for a presidential primary forum, with social media data suggesting combative billionaire Donald Trump was the main attraction.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 7, 2015

Yet again, Tony Abbott shows he’s out of touch

A successful leader most needs sound judgment. Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott singularly lacks this quality.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 6, 2015

MH370 likely glided, not crashed, into sea

How hard did Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 hit the water after it ran out of fuel and plummeted from cruising altitude? Not as hard as you might think, accident experts say.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Aug 5, 2015

Mount Koya sites exemplify 'parallel universe' where war criminals are martyrs

Japanese leaders who continue to condone the country's wartime actions inhabit a 'parallel universe' whose version of WWII history is at odds with the rest of the world's.

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