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Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 31, 2013

Failed predictions: President Romney, Pope Dolores

Humanity's faith in predictions was tested around this time a year ago when the floods, famines and other disasters predicted by the end of the ancient Maya calendar failed to materialize.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 31, 2013

2013 was an amazing year in tech

If you go by the headlines, the iPhone 5S and Google Glass were the big technology stories of 2013, and Twitter's IPO was the event of the year. The coverage of Glass focused mostly on its privacy implications — not its ability to change the world. And iPhone and Twitter were just more of the same....
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 30, 2013

Papa Obama laments time slipping by

When they vacationed in Hawaii just before President Barack Obama's first inauguration, Malia and Sasha were little girls doting on their dad — holding his hand on the beach, taking in a dolphin show and nuzzling up to him at the shave-ice shop.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2013

Conceding it's best avoided, Aso refuses to rule out fresh extra budget

While saying it is best if such a move is not made, Finance Minister Taro Aso refused to rule out the possibility an extra budget will be needed again next year to support the economy.
Japan Times
BASEBALL
Dec 28, 2013

The Batting Stance Guy waxes poetic on Youkilis, NPB

Kevin Youkilis' batting stance is, shall we say, a little different than most.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 26, 2013

Christmas Grinch in China

The extension of Chinese President Xi Jinping's anti-corruption and anti-extravagance campaigns is blamed for creating a Grinch responsible for diminishing Chinese holiday cheer this year.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 26, 2013

Abe visits Yasukuni, angering Beijing and Seoul

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's unannounced visit to the war-linked Yasukuni Shrine triggers immediate censure from China and South Korea.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Dec 24, 2013

VA futsal tournament; Surprise KLM gifts; Jetstar nonstop to Melbourne

VA futsal tournament Virgin Atlantic Airways has announced that it will again co-host the All England Cup Futsal Tournament with international banking group Standard Chartered Bank in March.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Dec 23, 2013

Can social media boast an antidote for bragging?

Social media has conquered the world, racking up more than a billion users and even helping to unseat governments. The one thing it can't topple, though, is human vanity.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Dec 22, 2013

Duty-free goods for foreign travelers

The government has started to consider that the list of duty-free articles, which foreign tourists can buy without paying consumption tax, should be expanded.
Reader Mail
Dec 21, 2013

Exactly who do you think he was?

Nelson Mandela was seen and revered not only as a political hero but practically as a living saint. The hagiography surrounding him somewhat disguises his many family tragedies, his policy failures and his political cunning.
EDITORIALS
Dec 20, 2013

Inose must still come clean

Tokyo Gov. Naoki Inose's announcement of his intention to resign does not relieve him of the public duty to explain why he received a so-called ¥50 million loan from a scandal-tainted hospital operator group without having to put up collateral or pay interest.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 19, 2013

Inose calling it quits over money scandal

Scandal-ridden Tokyo Gov. Naoki Inose announced his resignation Thursday for taking money from a hospital operator mired in allegations of election law violations involving a Diet member.
LIFE / Digital / JAPAN WEB WATCH
Dec 17, 2013

Looking at 2013's Japanese social-media scene

In the Japanese social-networking scene, Facebook still isn't dominating the way it does in the United States and many other countries. There are several other networks in Japan, both old and new, that occupy unique positions, though 2013 was an unusually quiet year, with no big takeovers among social-networking...
Japan Times
BASEBALL
Dec 17, 2013

Tanaka informs Eagles he wants to pitch in majors in 2014

The man at the center of the posting system drama finally broke his silence, and it was music to the ears of MLB fans and executives.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 16, 2013

Turkey playing 'orientalism' card against West

For many years, most Western journalists defended the Turkish government against the the suspicions of secular Turks who worried about radical Islamic or authoritarian agenda. But the liberal reforms stopped several years ago.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Dec 14, 2013

Beyond Newtown: 71 other young children killed by deliberate gunfire in 2012

The man with the gun burst into the apartment and opened fire. The first victim was a young woman, dead at 21. The second victim was her 25-year-old roommate. But it was the third victim who would cause the most anguished screams when the bodies were discovered. Shot in the head, he was a 6-month-old...
EDITORIALS
Dec 12, 2013

Repeal the state secrets law

Repeal of the recently enacted state secrets law appears indispensable for ensuring that Japan remains an open society with democratic principles fully upheld.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Dec 11, 2013

The year in labor: the Top 5 pains of 2013

For Japan's workers, the last 12 months have been a mixed bag. The Top 5 Labor Pains of 2013 will focus on what really shook things up in terms of labor relations and employment law.
LIFE / Digital
Dec 10, 2013

Startups now have it easy thanks to 'incubators.'

One of my favourite books is John Kenneth Galbraith's "The Great Crash, 1929," which, with John Maynard Keynes' "The Economic Consequences of the Peace," is a great example of how an expert can write elegantly about something that is intrinsically complex. Galbraith wrote the (short) book as a diversion...
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 9, 2013

Secrets law bruises Abe's ratings

The Cabinet's sharp drop in the opinion polls shows that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe might have expended too much of his political capital on enacting the state secrets law.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 9, 2013

Yen will return to strength, former BOJ official predicts

The yen will rally to 100 per dollar in the first half of next year because the Bank of Japan won't be able to expand monetary easing by enough to repeat the weakening effect it had this year, a former official of the central bank said.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 4, 2013

Judge says Detroit can file for bankruptcy

A federal bankruptcy judge granted Detroit unprecedented powers Tuesday to shed billions of dollars in debt, including the ability to slash city employee pensions despite a state constitutional provision protecting them.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Dec 4, 2013

Russian deals handcuff U.S. on Ukraine

As Ukraine turns away from closer relations with the European Union and further into the embrace of Russia, the Obama administration is saying little about it or the resulting street protests for fear of provoking a fracture with the Kremlin.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 3, 2013

Bitcoins need to be better than real currency

Bitcoins appeal to people's libertarian side, because they challenge the control of money by governments that too often see inflation and deflation as instruments of policy. This virtual currency suggests the possibility of a future in which networks of individuals can make transactions for their own interests.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 2, 2013

Ishiba softens criticism of bill protesters

Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Shigeru Ishiba remains critical of public demonstrations despite retracting part of an earlier comment likening protesters to terrorists.

Longform

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