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Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 26, 2014

Yokudo: Lingering but confused gaze of indie director

Major film festivals, with their hurry-hurry schedules, are places to polish your sound bites, not launch into nuanced disquisitions. People want your opinion in 25 words or less. When someone asked me what I thought of Kiki Sugino's "Yokudo (Taksu)" after a screening at last month's Busan International...
Japan Times
WORLD
Nov 26, 2014

Missouri governor orders more National Guard troops after Ferguson erupts

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon ordered more National Guard troops to Ferguson after chaos erupted when a grand jury declined to indict a white police officer for killing an unarmed black teenager.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 25, 2014

Abe not laughing after online stunt pokes fun at snap election call

An online stunt by a student activist who made light of the Abe administration's surprise decision to call an election has drawn sharp criticism from the prime minister.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 25, 2014

What global warming? Pass me a blanket

Unfortunately for proponents of climate change, people subconsciously use the current local temperature as a clue to whether global temperatures are increasing.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 24, 2014

Like Japan, South Korea embroiled in textbook battle

A 17-year-old Korean girl tortured to death for opposing Japanese colonial rulers nearly a century ago has become the latest touchstone of the nationalism that is shadowing Asia's economic rise.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Nov 23, 2014

UKIP victory sets stage for EU upheaval

Some 16,867 voters in southeast England ushered in a season of European political tumult that in an extreme scenario could lead to Britain exiting the European Union, Greece quitting the euro or Catalonia seceding from Spain.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital
Nov 22, 2014

Konami's winning take on 'the beautiful game'

Soccer, more than any other sport, is the world's game. Played by millions, it is unquestionably the most popular sport on the planet.
Japan Times
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Nov 21, 2014

Welbeck move benefited both Arsenal, Man United

It is almost three months since Manchester United sold Danny Welbeck to Arsenal for £16 million because Louis van Gaal did not think the striker was good enough to play for the Reds.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 21, 2014

How economist Krugman's meeting with Abe may have swung decision to postpone tax hike

When economist Etsuro Honda heard that Paul Krugman was planning a visit to Tokyo, he saw an opportunity to seize the advantage in Japan's sales-tax debate.
WORLD / Science & Health
Nov 21, 2014

Most heavy drinkers are not alcoholics, U.S. study finds

Contrary to popular opinion, only 10 percent of U.S. adults who drink too much are alcoholics, according to a federal study released on Thursday, a finding that could have implications for reducing consumption of beer, wine and liquor.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Nov 18, 2014

Japanese women still at a disadvantage, first lady says

Career women continue to face significant hurdles in Japan's male-dominated business culture, according to first lady Akie Abe.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 18, 2014

Putin-bashing at G-20 meeting was juvenile

What were Western leaders trying to achieve by humiliating Russia President Vladimir Putin at the G-20 summit?
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 18, 2014

Little bang for the G-20 buck

The G-20 is not a meeting for learning or dialogue but for posturing and selfies.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Nov 18, 2014

Bird flu discovered in U.K. and Netherlands, but authorities play down risk to humans

Bird flu was found on a duck farm in England on Monday days after it was discovered in Dutch chickens, forcing authorities to destroy poultry and restrict exports, although it was not a strain known to be deadly to humans.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / HIT AND RUN
Nov 17, 2014

Impressive Otani to get another shot at MLB hitters

When it comes to Shohei Otani, the idea of him one day playing in the major leagues is often discussed with an assuredness that implies most believe a move to the majors is a matter of when, not if. Otani got that ball rolling himself by boldly declaring he was going to MLB straight out of high school,...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 17, 2014

Xi shows U.S. his no-nonsense approach to bilateral relations

Last week, President Xi Jinping showed the world a newly assertive China that's less worried about impressing others than in pursuing its own goals.
BUSINESS
Nov 17, 2014

Ex-Murakami Fund executive seeks to raise ¥10 billion overseas for activist fund

Strategic Capital Inc., run by a former executive of the Murakami Fund, is seeking to raise more than ¥10 billion from overseas investors within a year for an activist fund that will invest in Japanese companies with excess cash and pressure them to increase shareholder returns.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Nov 14, 2014

Abe likely to delay tax hike; economists warn of future ramifications

Delaying a key measure to address Japan's enormous public debt would only lead to a larger fiscal problem down the road, economists warn.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 14, 2014

America's money politics

The success of big money was even greater than widely expected in America's mid-term election.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Nov 13, 2014

Singing to quite a different tune

In the sense that "The Sound of Music" is not considered a reliable source for lessons about Nazism or that "My Fair Lady" is a profound analysis of class struggle, musicals do not generally spring to mind when considering the great achievements of French cinema. However, the National Film Center exhibition...
COMMUNITY / Voices / HOTLINE TO NAGATACHO
Nov 12, 2014

Proper environmental survey must be conducted at proposed Okinawa U.S. base site

The U.S. Congress should get more involved in ensuring the U.S. government does not shirk its environmental responsibilities in Henoko.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 12, 2014

Kuroda ally warns Abe against delaying consumption tax increase

An adviser to the Bank of Japan and longtime colleague of Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda is warning that a delay by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to raise the consumption tax would have profound implications for monetary policy.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 11, 2014

China flouts efforts to protect world's wildlife

It would be nice to believe China's rhetoric that it cooperates with other countries in protecting wildlife. Yet, for two decades at least, Chinese consumer demand has been directly linked to the precipitous decline of wildlife populations around the globe.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Nov 10, 2014

Catalans in Tokyo: How did you vote in the Catalonia referendum and why?

Independence-minded Catalans at a polling station in Tokyo explain why they voted in defiance of Madrid in a referendum that had already been ruled invalid.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Nov 7, 2014

U.S. appeals court upholds gay marriage bans, reversing trend

A federal appeals court on Thursday bucked a recent trend of pro-gay marriage decisions by upholding state bans or restrictions in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee, pressuring the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the issue.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 6, 2014

Chinese coral poachers encroaching on Japanese fishermen

Takashi Shibazaki, 31, a fisherman based on Chichijima about 1,000 km south of Tokyo, saw a suspicious foreign boat in mid-March near the island.

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