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Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / NEW ART SEEN
Mar 8, 2007

The Germans come to play

In most all of the world's larger cities, traditionally the grandest buildings have been religious in orientation. As places of congregation, they were necessarily characterized by large open spaces. As conduits to the spiritual, their design included surging spires, pagodas or minarets. The current...
EDITORIALS
Mar 8, 2007

Lack of transparency spells trouble

China plans to increase its defense budget by 17.8 percent to $44.94 billion in fiscal 2007 from the previous year's actual level. The boost, announced a day before the start of an annual session of the National People's Congress, is the largest since a 19.4 percent jump in fiscal 2002. China's defense...
JAPAN
Mar 7, 2007

Asano enters Tokyo race, hits Ishihara autocracy

Former Miyagi Gov. Shiro Asano officially announced his candidacy Tuesday for the Tokyo gubernatorial election in April, saying the capital's government needs to be cleaned up "before things get out of hand."
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2007

'Kimigayo' snub stings another teacher

The Tokyo metropolitan board of education punished a high school teacher Monday who refused to play the piano accompaniment to the "Kimigayo" national anthem during a school ceremony in November.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Mar 6, 2007

'52 coup plot bid to rearm Japan: CIA

Declassified documents reveal that Japanese ultranationalists with ties to U.S. military intelligence plotted to overthrow the Japanese government and assassinate the prime minister in 1952.
BUSINESS
Mar 6, 2007

Ex-Daiei president named COO of Microsoft in Japan

Yasuyuki Higuchi, former president of Daiei Inc., on Monday took the newly created post of chief operating officer at the Japanese unit of Microsoft Corp., joining hands with its President and CEO Darren Huston.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / ON THE BOOK TRAIL
Mar 6, 2007

"Double or Die," "The Skunk Code"

"Double or Die," Charlie Higson, Puffin Books; 2007; 390 pp.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2007

Michael Jackson arrives in Tokyo

Michael Jackson arrived Sunday in Tokyo, and fans paying more than 400,000 yen a ticket will be able to spend 30 seconds with the pop icon, an organizer said.
COMMENTARY
Mar 3, 2007

America's budget black hole

WASHINGTON -- The Iraq war continues to consume lives, both American and Iraqi. The conflict also is burning mountains of cash.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Mar 3, 2007

Ex-pat on a mission of life-saving dimensions

In 1982, I was successfully treated for cervical cancer. At that time I had little idea that my tumor was linked to sexually transmitted disease. Thanks to American Carol Baird -- who says that as a survivor I am one of the lucky ones -- I now know better.
JAPAN / WHEN A CITY GOES BUST
Mar 2, 2007

Once Tokyo's spa playground, Atami fading fast

ATAMI, Shizuoka Pref. -- Tamae "Meme" Ono remembers fondly the late 1980s when the hot spring resort of Atami was a glamorous place to be.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 2, 2007

'Matsugane Ransha Jiken'

Nobuhiro Yamashita is one of the great comic talents working in Japanese films and also one of the most unusual. Unlike the many directors and actors here who equate "funny" with "over the top," Yamashita is low-key, ironic and very sharp. If he were an American he might have written for "Curb your Enthusiasm,"...
EDITORIALS
Mar 2, 2007

Less than music to the ear

The Supreme Court, in a 4-1 decision, has ruled that it is constitutional for a principal to order a music teacher to play the piano accompaniment to the "Kimigayo" national anthem during a public school ceremony. The top court took the position that the principal's order does not constitute a denial...
JAPAN / Q&A
Mar 1, 2007

Ministry takes charge of bankrupt city

This month, the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry is expected to designate Yubari, Hokkaido, as a "municipality under rehabilitation." Following are questions and answers outlining what that means for the city:
COMMENTARY
Mar 1, 2007

Musharraf moves to stay

NEW DELHI -- The fight against international terrorism is very much tied to the future of Pakistan and the central challenge that country faces: to move away from militarism, extremism and fundamentalism, and toward a stable, moderate state. That's what makes Pakistani military ruler President Pervez...
BUSINESS
Mar 1, 2007

BOJ's rate hike insane, economy expert says

The Bank of Japan was "insane" to raise its key interest rate to 0.5 percent last week because the economy is still fragile, Bill Emmott, author of several books on the Japanese economy, said Wednesday.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 28, 2007

Sunni support key to success in Iraq

PRAGUE -- Doctors use the word "crisis" to describe the point at which a patient either starts to recover or dies. U.S. President George W. Bush's Iraqi patient now seems to have reached that point. Most commentators appear to think that Bush's latest prescription -- a surge of 20,000 additional troops...

Longform

A man offers prayers at Hebikubo Shrine in Tokyo's Shinagawa Ward. The shrine is one of several across the country dedicated to the snake.
Shed your skin and reinvent yourself in the Year of the Snake