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Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Oct 2, 2008

The gritty truths behind the image

A rising full moon against a twilight sky and a shimmer of pink on the surface of the sea. So far, so postcard. But this is no regular Japanese beauty spot. Just visible in the distance is a clutch of white chimneys jutting into the sky, offering a sinister clue to the location of the seemingly serene...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 8, 2008

15 minutes with the Grandmaster

If you are a fan of hip-hop, then you have Grandmaster Flash to thank. He is one of the art form's earliest exponents, and the first hip-hop artist in history to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
COMMENTARY
Dec 30, 2007

Living with war and a warmer planet

LONDON — 2007 was the year in which global warming finally began to be taken seriously. Climate-change deniers were in full retreat, and the realization that we face a long and grave crisis was finally dawning on the general public. However, it remains to be seen whether the world will agree on effective...
Reader Mail
May 6, 2007

Daylight saving, Japan style

As the spring sun continues to rise earlier and earlier, there are likely not a few readers muttering to themselves, "If only Japan would adopt daylight saving time, then some of this early morning light could be put to better use." Few seem to be aware that Japan practiced a form of daylight saving...
Japan Times
LIFE
Apr 29, 2007

Japan's love affairs with sex

Michael Hoffman delves deep into the carnal history of these islands from the Age of the Gods to the lovelands and soaplands of today
BASKETBALL
Nov 4, 2006

Eight teams vie for title in 2nd season

After a historic and successful debut 2005-06 season, the bj-league looks to further progress and provide excitement in its second campaign, which tips off Saturday with a pair of games, including the Osaka Evessa-Tokyo Apache clash at Ariake Colosseum at 6 p.m.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Oct 19, 2006

Shomei Tomatsu retrospective traces post-war experience

At age 15 in 1945, Shomei Tomatsu was working at an aircraft assembly plant in Nagoya. U.S. B-29s were bombing the industrial city so relentlessly that by the end of World War II, nine out of 10 of its buildings were destroyed -- compared with five out of 10 in Tokyo.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jul 8, 2006

On the train, the English teacher is 'out'

I often hear foreigners complain that Japanese people will not sit next to them on the train. The perception is that this is some form of discrimination, or perhaps more simply, that we just plain smell bad. Or maybe foreigners feel this is a form of ostracizing, leaving them feel all alone.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jun 8, 2006

Seikado Bunko Art Museum shows off one-of-a-kind collection

Depictions of swashbuckling fights on Japanese battlefields have often graced the silver screen, bringing international fame to the samurai and his indispensable sword. Admired for their craftsmanship, swords hold a special place in Japan not only as weapons, but as an art form as well.
Japan Times
LIFE
May 28, 2006

Manga by any other name is . . .

With the video-game business now outgrossing Hollywood's box office, and anime being distributed to destinations as diverse as Patagonia and Phuket, the influence of Japan's entertainment industry on young people worldwide has never been as powerful.
Japan Times
Features
Apr 2, 2006

Taking tanka to a new and timeless plane

Machi Tawara made a spectacular debut as a tanka poet at the age of 25 in 1987, and since then the Osaka-born artist has devoted her life to condensing her world into those neat, rhythmic but not rhyming, 31-syllable compositions.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
Sep 14, 2005

Taking it slowly to savor eco-exploring

These days, "eco" has become something like a random, loosely attached, brand name. Not associated with any particular company, nor with any particular product, eco -- which "Webster's" defines as a combining form meaning "environment or habitat" -- is applied seemingly indiscriminately.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 9, 2005

Defeat leaves LDP split as election looms

Monday's rejection by the House of Councilors of the postal privatization bills has left the long-ruling Liberal Democratic Party sharply divided as it faces a general election in the coming weeks and a possible fall from power.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Jun 2, 2005

'Weed' of wonder fresh from the sea

I first consciously ate kelp when I came to Japan in 1962. Slowly stewed, it took the form of those small, almost black bows of a soft and tasty vegetable in the traditional, souplike dish of oden. Later I ate it wrapped around fish, or used it with dried bonito as a base for soup stock. I chose the...
Japan Times
Features
Aug 8, 2004

The art of seeing

Photographer Jun Akiyama is taking ostrich strides down a Tokyo sidewalk, snapping pictures on a flimsy-looking tourist camera. Click! A child's curious glance is frozen in grainy black-and-white. Click! Akiyama catches a moment of anxiety on an old woman's face.
COMMENTARY
Apr 21, 2004

U.S., North Korea await change from a reinvigorated Roh

HONOLULU -- South Korea's political landscape has changed dramatically, and one must assume irreversibly, as a result of the April 15 National Assembly elections. It is clear that the torch has indeed been passed to a new generation. What is less clear is what this means, both in the near and long term,...
LIFE / Food & Drink / VINELAND
Apr 25, 2003

When necrophilia isn't best

One of the perennial debates among wine lovers is whether wine is best drunk straight on release, after five or 10 years, or decades down the road. Even collectors and winemakers can't agree, leading to understandable confusion among the rest of us. And cultural differences also come into play, spawning...
LIFE / Language
Apr 5, 2002

When the lights go out, who'll be waiting?

Modern monsters seem to have a big image problem. If you've seen the new movie "Monsters, Inc.," you know they're in trouble because, well -- they just aren't frightening!
CULTURE / Music / J-POPSICLE
Jul 4, 2001

Ajico gets it all together

The supergroup. What a horribly dated concept that is. It smacks of corporate rock and overinflated, believe-your-own-hype egos, as in, "Hey man, you're the coolest guy in your group, and he's the main man in his band, and without me, my band is nothing, so like, if the three of us get together, man,...
LIFE / Style & Design / BEAUTY EAST AND WEST
Mar 1, 2001

International spa secrets

Some of the best recipes for a do-it-yourself spa come from those cultures known to go in for a bit of sybaritic pampering. Japan is high up on the list: A highly developed sense of aesthetics, a long tradition of bathing and a sublime appreciation of ritual have helped beauty practices here evolve into...
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 16, 2000

Africa's growing thirst for democracy

There is a saying among my people in Ghana: one head alone is not enough to decide. I often think of that when I hear people say that democracy is alien to Africa, or that Africans are "not ready" for democracy.
SUMO
Mar 12, 2000

Osaka to see yokozuna battle

For the first time ever, the four current yokozuna -- Takanohana, Akebono, Musashimaru and Wakanohana -- are expected to compete in the same basho when the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament (Haru Basho) gets under way in Osaka today.
EDITORIALS
Mar 13, 1999

Is shorter always sweeter?

The U.S. publisher Viking recently hit on a bright idea. Biographies, always reliable sellers, were nevertheless getting too long, they thought. Lives of even minor luminaries were routinely checking in at 800 or more pages, sometimes in multiple volumes; there was no such thing as an incident trivial...
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Jun 7, 2023

Is Japan going to legalize same-sex marriage?

A series of court cases is helping to shape the debate over whether or not Japan will act on legalizing same-sex marriage.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Apr 22, 2023

A Japanese island where the wild things are

From badgering nuisances to downright evil forces, yōkai fill some of the most colorful corners of Japanese folklore. These artists are dreaming up even more.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 5, 2023

The China-U.S. relationship must be fixed

The U.S.-China relationship is the world’s most important bilateral relationship, and fixing it to the extent that it can be fixed, should be a key priority.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Mar 23, 2023

The cherry blossoms are here and business is blooming

Kathleen Benoza explains what's at stake during the hanami season, while Thu-Huong Ha and Alyssa I. Smith discuss the science, symbolism and culture of sakura in Japan.
Demonstrators march against the Israeli government's judicial reform plan in Tel Aviv on Monday.
EDITORIALS
Jul 28, 2023

When democracy stumbles, we all will suffer

The erosion of democratic norms and principles in one country undermines the value of those norms in others.
An S-400 surface-to-air missile system outside the town of Gvardeysk, near Kaliningrad, Russia, in March 2019. The S-400 is one of the defense items India has procured from Russia.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Aug 15, 2023

A new tide of weapons imports, production and development

Some countries are beginning to diversify when looking for partners for their arms needs.
PODCAST / deep dive
Aug 10, 2023

Why is modernizing Japan so darn tough?

Reporter Gabriele Ninivaggi joins us to break down how Japan’s digitalization hiccups risk exposing how backward things are.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.