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BUSINESS
Mar 13, 2012

AIJ fiasco points to wider abuses

The fiasco at AIJ Investment Advisors Co. is not only threatening the retirement prospects of more than 880,000 people, it is also raising fears that more corporate pension money is being misinvested.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Mar 13, 2012

Fujiwara, Shigetomo head marathon squad

Tokyo Marathon runnerup Arata Fujiwara and Osaka Women's Marathon champion Risa Shigetomo topped the bill as the Japan Association of Athletics Federations announced the national marathon squad for this summer's London Olympics on Monday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Mar 12, 2012

Pointing out good deals

Billions of yen are piling up in unredeemed loyalty points. Use them, lose them or donate them.
COMMENTARY
Mar 12, 2012

Foreign aid: sop to conscience and bad policy

When India selected 126 French Rafale fighter aircraft (£13 billion) over the U.K.-manufactured Typhoon involving a consortium of European countries, some British politicians and commentators demanded that aid to "ungrateful" India, a fast-rising economic power, be stopped.
LIFE / Language
Mar 12, 2012

Japanese men love their men more than their women

Did somebody use the word "bland" in describing the Japanese male temperament? Wrong. Misinformed. Arienāi! (ありえなーい, not possible!) Okay, maybe my countrymen are bland in some areas best not mentioned in polite conversation. But let me set the record straight: the Japanese male is a toritsukareta...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 11, 2012

Your memories of March 11, 2011

On March 11, 2011, the Tohoku region was struck by a severe earthquake, triggering a deadly tsunami that caused extensive damage and a huge loss of lives. The quake was felt through much of Japan, physically and psychologically. On the first anniversary, we asked people to share their memories of that tragic day via social media. Please add yours by using the #311memory hashtag.
Reader Mail
Mar 11, 2012

If you really need a seat, say so

Regarding the March 4 Kyodo article "Elderly force subway to rethink 'all priority seats' policy": The policy of setting aside priority seats on trains is often criticized for reinforcing discriminatory attitudes toward the elderly and pregnant women, as the system literally demarcates and even isolates...
Reader Mail
Mar 11, 2012

A strong and big-hearted people

Despite the Great East Japan Earthquake of one year ago, I am happy to be living here. There are advantages and disadvantages of every place, and I am not always a happy foreigner here. But the 3/11 disasters revealed Japan to the world as the land of the calm, the steadfast, the united; the land the...
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Mar 11, 2012

Tanaka earns victory as Japan routs Taiwan in charity baseball game

On the eve of a day sure to bring back a lot of painful memories, the members of Samurai Japan made it their mission to offer a little bit of relief, if only temporarily.
JAPAN / QUEST FOR RECOVERY
Mar 11, 2012

A year on, Tohoku stuck in limbo

Located roughly 23 km from Fukushima's crippled nuclear plant, Hirono Station today is the northernmost stop on the JR Joban Line for passengers traveling up Tohoku's coast from Tokyo.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Mar 11, 2012

Magic special; traveling chefs; CM of the week: Suntory Premium Malt's

The inter-season TV season is getting longer and longer, with more two- and three-hour specials to tide viewers over until the next batch of hastily assembled drama series start. Presenting something that gets people's attention becomes a challenge.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 10, 2012

Cuts to wasteful public works now said blocking rebound

After years of criticism for public works spending that rewarded political constituents at the cost of adding debt, the government succeeded in cutting the largesse in half. Now, that legacy of success is hampering an economic rebound.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Mar 9, 2012

Drummers hope to support earthquake victims

Many artists that watched the destruction of the Great East Japan Earthquake a year ago have said in media interviews that they've struggled with how to interpret the disaster. The taiko (drum) troupe at the International Christian University is no different.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / SOUTH KOREAN JOURNALIST SYMPOSIUM
Mar 9, 2012

Deeper cooperation urged for key East Asian powers to sustain growth

China, with its increasingly assertive diplomacy and rapid military buildup, is a common security threat for Japan and South Korea, but the two countries also need to work with China as a partner in East Asia's economic growth, veteran journalists from South Korea said in a recent symposium in Tokyo....
Reader Mail
Mar 8, 2012

Distorting the idea of 'majority'

Poor analogies aside, the reasoning in Jennifer Kim's March 4 letter, "Poor analogies to 'gay marriage," borders on the ludicrous. Kim imagines that she and another reader hold the majority opinion on some unclear issue. Readers may wonder, what precisely is this issue on which the majority opinion,...
Japan Times
JAPAN / QUEST FOR RECOVERY
Mar 8, 2012

Tohoku fears nuke crisis evacuees gone for good

Second in a series During a visit in late February to Shidamyo, less than 30 km from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, a few elderly residents could be seen ambling around the tranquil rural district, but there were no signs of any children.
JAPAN
Mar 8, 2012

Lower House dissolution, snap poll baloney: Noda

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda on Wednesday rejected speculation that he intends to cave to the opposition camp and dissolve the Lower House for a snap poll, in exchange for its support in passing legislation to hike the sales tax.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / Japan Pulse
Mar 7, 2012

15th Japan Media Arts Festival

Creators of interactive technology and cutting-edge eye candy get their week in the spotlight.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 7, 2012

Myth-busting Vladimir Putin

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin unnerved many Russians and foreigners alike when he announced in September that he wanted to switch places with his handpicked successor, President Dmitry Medvedev. Although Putin won back the presidency in the election on Sunday, his popularity is sagging, and Russians...
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 7, 2012

An Israeli strike on Iran would backfire

On June 7, 1981, eight Israeli F-16 fighter jets, protected by six F-15 escorts, dropped 16 907-kg bombs on the nearly completed Osirak nuclear reactor at the Tuwaitha complex in Iraq. Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Defense Minister Ariel Sharon saw the reactor as central to Iraqi President...
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 7, 2012

Popovic thinking big in his first season with FC Tokyo

Kashiwa Reysol pulled off the unprecedented feat of winning the J. League only a year after claiming the second-division title last season, but FC Tokyo manager Ranko Popovic is hoping history will repeat itself with his newly promoted team.
EDITORIALS
Mar 7, 2012

Third term for Mr. Putin

He did it again. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin won another presidential election. While the outcome was no surprise, neither was the controversy that greeted his victory. Despite Mr. Putin's claim that he won "an open and honest fight," the opposition has charged that the outcome reflects vote...
COMMENTARY
Mar 6, 2012

Hamas' perilous maneuvers

Despite all of Hamas' assurances to the contrary, a defining struggle is taking place within the Palestinian Islamic movement. The outcome of this struggle — which is still confined to polite political disagreements and occasional intellectual tussle — is likely to change Hamas' outlook, if not fundamentally...
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Mar 6, 2012

Immigration 'informers' call on foreigners in Suginami Ward

C.W., who lives in Tokyo's Suginami Ward, recently received a notice about the upcoming resident law changes and was informed that an "officer" would visit him and other foreign residents in the area. He is concerned about the intent of these changes and wondering why "officers" are only visiting the...
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2012

Government to pay debris disposal costs

The environment minister said Monday that financial support will be given to any local government that accepts and disposes of debris from Iwate and Miyagi prefectures generated by last year's devastating earthquake and tsunami.
EDITORIALS
Mar 6, 2012

Work for the public's well-being

During a debate in the Lower House last week, Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Mr. Sadakazu Tanigaki, chief of the opposition Liberal Democratic Party, appeared to have reached agreements on several issues. The ruling and opposition parties should use that momentum to break the current political stagnation,...

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’