Search - people

 
 
JAPAN
Nov 1, 2011

Noda takes flak in Diet over extra budget, free trade

Opposition lawmakers lashed out at Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda on Monday over what they said is the administration's unclear stance on whether to join free-trade talks, criticized components of the third extra budget for the Tohoku region reconstruction and called on him to dissolve the Lower House...
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 1, 2011

Wall Street mans the barricades

In spite of the current economic turmoil, some Americans do not have any problems with jobs, money or housing. Indeed, Houston oil executive John Schiller built a new Cape Cod house for just $50,000 a couple of years ago. A bargain, you might think, except that this was a play-house for his four-year-old...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 31, 2011

All too familiar signs of state paralysis in Thai crisis

Like the Japan tsunami, flooding in Thailand will have a global impact on the supply and price of rice, cameras, computers and cars.
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Oct 31, 2011

Deciphering eurozone: financial stability quest a study in surrealism

EFSF stands for European Financial Stability Facility. Or so they say. I can only see it as standing for European Financial Science Fiction. How can it be anything else given the nature of the arrangement?
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 31, 2011

This Halloween watch out for yūrei of all kinds

Urameshiyā! (うらめしやぁ!)
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Oct 30, 2011

Canada's hanging garden of stone in Japan

Nobody appears to object as you step onto the covered elevator that ascends to the fourth floor of the Canadian Embassy in Tokyo's well-heeled Aoyama-Itchome district. Formalities are waived for the occasional visitor coming to see one of Japan's finest and most daring contemporary stone gardens.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / BACKSTREET STORIES
Oct 30, 2011

Yea! As I walk through the valley of Todoroki . . .

Todoroki Valley Park, a protected green swath along Tokyo's only ravine, strikes me as an interesting and possibly quite sheltered destination on a brisk and breezy fall day.
EDITORIALS
Oct 30, 2011

Sleepless in Tokyo

If you ever wonder why Tokyoites are always sleeping on the train, a report at the 6th World Congress of the World Sleep Federation explains why: They're not sleeping enough at home.
Reader Mail
Oct 30, 2011

How Bush got his history wrong

In regard to the Oct. 28 movie review "Fair Game," it might interest some readers to know that the flawed reasoning behind U.S. President George W. Bush's decision to invade Iraq in 2003 was partly influenced by professor John Dower's historical study of Japan's defeat in 1945 and the seven-year U.S....
Japan Times
LIFE
Oct 30, 2011

Fashion Week Tokyo gets back into gear

Fashion Week has come back to Tokyo for its 13th iteration, now under the wing of posh car-maker Mercedes-Benz and with the snazzy new moniker, Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo.
COMMENTARY
Oct 29, 2011

No escaping the noise at Nanny State Airlines

You step onto an airport's moving walkway, a flat metal conveyor belt that conveys travelers down an airport concourse, sparing them the indignity of burning a few calories by walking a bit. And soon a recorded voice says: "The moving sidewalk is coming to an end. Please look down."
EDITORIALS
Oct 29, 2011

Mr. Noda lays out tasks

In his policy speech Friday, Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda listed three big issues Japan now faces — reconstructing the areas devastated by the March 11 quake and tsunami, bringing the Fukushima nuclear crisis under control and accelerating the recovery of the Japanese economy.
BUSINESS
Oct 29, 2011

Sony pulls trigger on Ericsson venture purchase

Sony Corp. has agreed to buy Ericsson AB's 50 percent stake in their 10-year-old mobile phone venture to integrate the smartphone business with its gaming and tablet offerings.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Oct 28, 2011

Shimane's Yamamoto plays a cerebral game

The Shimane Susanoo Magic have begun their second season in terrific fashion, winning four games on the road.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 28, 2011

'Fair Game'

The Japan release of "Fair Game" comes nearly 12 months after the U.S. opening and a week after the death of Libyan despot Muammar Gaddafi. For a story all about U.S. involvement in Iraq and that other infamous depot, Saddam Hussein, the timing could be right on the money. Still, a sense of discomfort...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 28, 2011

Neighbors warily eye a more muscular Turkey

The recent surge in Turkey's military actions against the Kurds in northern Iraq is an indication that, somewhat surprisingly — but not entirely unpredictably — Turkish foreign policy has undergone a 180-degree turn in less than two years. The Turkish offensive is also an indication that these changes...
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Oct 28, 2011

Halloween parades across Japan

It's nearing the end of October, which means one thing — Yes, Halloween! That spooky time of year when both children and adults in the West traditionally celebrate with costumes and fun. In Japan, Halloween festivities have become more popular over the years and many establishments around the country...
Reader Mail
Oct 27, 2011

Why TPP doesn't add up

I was impressed by Donald Wood's compelling argument regarding the Trans-Pacific Partnership ("Reserve judgement on TPP," Oct. 23), but I'd like to point out another factor to be considered: uncertainty, in particular over water. Abuse, depletion, flood and conflict over water disrupts lives and threatens...
Reader Mail
Oct 27, 2011

Power-wielders do Japan no credit

I support and encourage Japan, and hope and pray for its future. I admire and praise those in the devastated north for their patience and endurance. But such feelings for this country are continually eroded by the disgraceful behavior of those Japanese who, in their lofty positions, should know better....
Reader Mail
Oct 27, 2011

More barriers to disabled in Japan

Regarding your Oct. 23 editorial, "Toward a barrier-free Japan," transportation is a critical element in promoting the independence of individuals with disabilities. But this is one component.
COMMENTARY
Oct 27, 2011

Iraq war's lessons lost on U.S.

In a White House Statement on Oct. 21, U.S. President Barack Obama pledged that his country would finally withdraw forces from Iraq. "After nearly nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over," he said.
COMMENTARY
Oct 26, 2011

A call for improved national crisis management policy

More than seven months have already passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake disaster. Industrial production in the affected areas has bounced back to pre-disaster levels, but the recovery of agriculture and fishery is lagging and nearly 70,000 people remain in evacuation facilities. On top of that,...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 25, 2011

A thousand prisoners for one

The celebrations in Israel over the release of the kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit come after the Israeli government concluded that diplomatic rarity, an agreement with Hamas. It is as if the government had brought back an Israeli who had been sent to Mars.
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Oct 25, 2011

Get your virtual freak on this Halloween

Thanks to augmented reality voodoo, you can skip that messy fake blood and itchy costume.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 24, 2011

Asian powers scrambling for regional space

Asia is witnessing a jostling among its major powers — China, Japan and India — for regional strategic space, and a flurry of activity by these countries is focused toward the Southeast Asia region, once a stable region but now a potential area for conflict. China, which is already a permanent member...
COMMENTARY
Oct 24, 2011

Olympus case a black mark for Japan

The recent dismissal of the British chief executive of Olympus has once again drawn the attention of European media to peculiarities in corporate governance in Japan. Accounting practices and lack of transparency have aroused particular concern.

Longform

Eme-Ima Kitchen is one of over 10,000 kodomo shokudō in Japan. A term first used in 2012 to describe makeshift eateries offering free or cheap meals to disadvantaged kids, it now refers to a diverse range of individuals, groups and organizations working to provide not only food but a sense of belonging to both children and adults.
Japan’s ‘children’s cafeterias’ are booming — but is that a good thing?