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JAPAN
Mar 10, 2014

Defense talks with U.S. look at 'gray zone' clash scenarios

As Japan and the United States start talks on how to respond to armed incidents that fall short of a full-scale attack on Japan, officials in Tokyo worry that their ally is reluctant to send China a strong message of deterrence.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 9, 2014

Abe's right wing threatens to cause a flap for business

One danger from Japan's nationalist rhetoric of late is that it may incite extreme nationalist reactions in China and South Korea that further damage Japanese business interests.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 7, 2014

What U.S. media won't say about Russia's actions

If America's foreign correspondents only knew that millions of ethnic Russians in former Soviet Republics have suffered widespread discrimination and harassment since the 1991 Soviet collapse — beginning with laws eliminating Russian as an official language — maybe they wouldn't be falling down on the job in Ukraine.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 7, 2014

Modi to take on Congress in polls

Street clashes erupted in India after this week's announcement that parliamentary elections will start April 7 in a race that pits Hindu nationalist Narendra Modi against the unpopular Nehru-Gandhi family's ruling party.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Mar 7, 2014

Hodgson facing tough decisions ahead of naming World Cup squad

Over the next two months each display by England's World Cup hopefuls will be scrutinized by the media. Marks out of 10 will be given along with updated World Cup chances (on the plane, in contention, etc).
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2014

University of Tokyo still Asia's top-ranked institution of learning: survey

The University of Tokyo remained the most prestigious Asian institution of higher education in an annual university reputation survey released Wednesday.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Mar 4, 2014

Amid Ukraine turmoil, ghosts of Cold War return to haunt Eastern Europe

Alzbeta Ehrnhofer was a 13-year-old Slovak schoolgirl when the Soviet Army poured into Czechoslovakia to "restore order" after the 1968 Prague Spring promised some freedoms to the Warsaw Pact nation.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 3, 2014

Why does the LDP prefer the GOP?

What is the justification for the Liberal Democratic Party's strange preference for America's Republican Party over the years? The two parties have little in common.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 3, 2014

Repairing the tripartite ties

Japan's relations with China and South Korea are at their lowest ebb since Japan normalized its diplomatic relations with them. One way to break the jogjam could be a tripartite free trade agreement.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Mar 3, 2014

Putin takes on West over Ukraine: Who blinks first?

Russian President Vladimir Putin has taken a gamble on Ukraine and is betting that U.S. leader Barack Obama will blink first.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Mar 1, 2014

Japan's reactionaries waging culture war

The contemporary culture wars that have erupted over Japanese identity and history are undermining the country's national interests and damaging its reputation.
COMMENTARY
Feb 28, 2014

China uses Ukraine unrest as argument for stability

China's Communist Party-controlled media appear to be using the unrest in Ukraine as a teaching moment to point out the pitfalls of clamoring for more rapid reforms in a large, multi-ethnic society — one like China's.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Feb 28, 2014

Alienated Crimea defies Ukraine's new order

Waving the Russian flag and chanting "Russia! Russia!" protesters in Crimea have become the last major bastion of resistance to Ukraine's new rulers.
SUMO / SUMO SCRIBBLINGS
Feb 28, 2014

Another nail in the coffin of amateur sumo

Sumo currently exists in two forms around the world. Most famous, of course, is the Tokyo-based professional sport led by yokozuna Hakuho, et al. However, the amateur version, often termed “amasumo” in abbreviated form, is of interest to many in nations that lack direct access to Japanese broadcasts....
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Feb 26, 2014

It's their plan for your money, so assume deception

An expat approaching a financial adviser with money to invest could be considered akin to the proverbial duck innocently waddling up to a nabe party with a bundle of leeks slung over his shoulder.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 26, 2014

Defacing of Anne Frank diaries stirs public

The news that hundreds of copies of Anne Frank's “A Diary of a Young Girl” and books about her had been vandalized in libraries across Tokyo still spur swidespread concern, with people scrambling to help with generous donations.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / EVERYMAN EATS
Feb 25, 2014

Prize-winning local dishes are the real taste of Japan

With memories of the Winter Olympics still fresh and with the Academy Awards just around the corner, Japanese food lovers are saluting some medalists of their own — prize-winning dishes from cooking competitions, public opinion polls and government surveys around the country. Here's a guide to some...
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 25, 2014

How we lose our marbles — and get them back

A remark by American actor George Clooney has reignited the debate over whether removing the Parthenon Marbles (aka Elgin Marbles) from the British Museum and returning them to their ancient home in Athens would be the right thing to do.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 24, 2014

Good reasons to loathe Big Tech

Not only have Americans been reamed by Big Tech — they know they've been reamed. Which has set the stage for big-time resentment.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Feb 22, 2014

Abe's culture wars boomerang against Japan

Japan's culture wars are heating up to the detriment of the nation. The Financial Times is right to warn that the jingoism of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and attempts to stifle public debate, are grave threats to Japan's open society. Most Japanese don't want to go where Abe is trying to drag them, but...
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 19, 2014

Crazy honey badgers don't care what you think, period

Somewhere in South Africa's Kruger National Park, Brian Jones and Stoffel continue their battle for supremacy.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Feb 19, 2014

Singh seeks India votes with 29th state as opponents vow fight

India's lower house moved to create a new state in the south to resolve a 50-year dispute, risking unrest where Google Inc. and Microsoft Corp. have their offices as the ruling Congress party seeks votes before elections.
EDITORIALS
Feb 17, 2014

Long flawed march to 'stability'

Chinese leaders seem to be operating under the strange notion that tightening their clampdown on activists, dissidents, journalists and Internet bloggers will help to stabilize Chinese society even as people increasingly express their dissatisfaction with corruption, the economic gap, air pollution and food contamination.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Feb 16, 2014

Prepping for university straight from the crib

Aiko has just finished bouncing like a rabbit toward a white line. She has already identified photographs of fruit and will soon be told a story about a panda, after which she'll have to draw a picture and offer an ending. How she does with these activities could determine where she attends university,...
EDITORIALS
Feb 14, 2014

A bridge across the Taiwan Strait

For the first time since the end of China's civil war in 1949, official representatives from Beijing and Taipei sat down at the same table to discuss a shared future.

Longform

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