Search - 2014

 
 
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 20, 2015

The verse that launched Kohh's rise into rap stardom

One of the country's fastest rising hip-hop artists just might be on his way to becoming the first internationally recognized rap star Japan has produced.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 20, 2015

A war on terror with Chinese characteristics

With some policy changes, China could play a significant and positive role in contributing to a reduction of terrorist risks worldwide.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 20, 2015

Thailand in 2015: a year of spinning its wheels

Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha's promises to launch a number of projects to put Thailand back on the track toward democracy have proven empty.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 20, 2015

Vietnamese military grows to face China threat

Vietnam's military is steeling itself for conflict with China as it accelerates a decade-long modernization drive, Hanoi's biggest arms buildup since the height of the Vietnam War.
Japan Times
JAPAN / NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT
Dec 20, 2015

Summit preparations to increase security, but for whom?

Last month's terror attacks in Paris and the closely timed suicide bombings in Beirut have raised fears in Japan of a similar attack to unprecedented levels. With Japan hosting next year's Group of Seven leaders' summit in Mie Prefecture, and a host of smaller ministerial conferences elsewhere around...
Japan Times
CULTURE / CULTURE SMASH
Dec 19, 2015

Hatsune Miku: the 'nonexistent' pop star

My 2015 kicked off with a January concert by Hatsune Miku, Japan's digital pop star, in Las Vegas. It is winding down with a visit to Miku's creator, Hiroyuki Itoh, at his company's head office in Sapporo, Hokkaido.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS / OLYMPIC NOTEBOOK
Dec 19, 2015

Shearman details life behind sporting lens

Mark Shearman has achieved extraordinary success as a sports photographer, specializing in track and field. He has a remarkable portfolio — containing images of Olympic legends such as Edwin Moses and Carl Lewis, Usain Bolt and Sebastian Coe — that few can ever hope of compiling. But, he admits without...
EDITORIALS
Dec 19, 2015

No place for Islamophobia

Donald Trump's comment to block all entry for Muslims is so blatantly discriminatory that it marks a new low in the worsening political atmosphere in the United States.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 18, 2015

Japan hangs two prisoners, including first convicted in lay judge trial

The executions cast a spotlight on the moral and emotional burden of nonprofessionals being asked to hand down death sentences.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / ANALYSIS
Dec 18, 2015

Japan hangs prisoners days after lawyers' call for death penalty review

The executions of two death row inmates on Friday was a blow to the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, which only last week reiterated a call for a moratorium on hangings and for a national debate on the matter.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 18, 2015

Turnbull says 'disappointment is real' over Japan's whaling move

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull will use his first visit to Japan since becoming leader to tell counterpart Shinzo Abe of his "strong, very principled opposition" to Tokyo's plan to resume whaling.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 18, 2015

Japanese island defense plan takes shape in bid to turn tables on China

Japan is fortifying its far-flung island chain in the East China Sea under an evolving strategy that aims to turn the tables on China's navy and keep it from ever dominating the Western Pacific Ocean, Japanese military and government sources said.
Reader Mail
Dec 18, 2015

The consumption tax needs fixing

If the government is really interested in fiscal health of Japan, a hike in the consumption tax is not the answer.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 17, 2015

Japan, Indonesia hold first two-plus-two talks, agree to work toward transfer of defense weapons

Japan and Indonesia held their first "two-plus-two" meetings of foreign and defense ministers in Tokyo on Thursday, agreeing to work on a pact that could allow to Japan to export some defense weapons and technologies to Indonesia.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 17, 2015

Yamaha CEO sees room to exceed targets on emerging markets

Yamaha Motor Co. may beat its profit forecasts if emerging markets hold up better than expected, according to Chief Executive Officer Hiroyuki Yanagi, speaking ahead of Wednesday's interest rate hike in the United States.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 17, 2015

Putting politics over economics, Abe may stall sales tax hike, call for double Diet poll next summer

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe may put off a sales tax rise and call a snap Lower House election next summer, in tandem with a poll for the upper chamber, imitating a winning strategy he used a year ago, some advisers and political sources say.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Dec 16, 2015

JAAF names Tanii top athlete of 2015

Race walker Takayuki Tanii, who captured a bronze medal in the men's 50-km competition at this summer's IAAF World Championships in Beijing, was named the athlete of the year at the annual Athletic Awards of the Japan Association of Athletics Federations in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Dec 16, 2015

Airbnb: Will Japan kill the golden goose?

Time will tell whether new legislation kills or culls the golden-egg-laying goose that Airbnb has become for hosts and travelers.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 16, 2015

Shift from Australian to European barley providing relief for struggling wagyu beef farmers

The most expensive meat in the world is getting a little cheaper to produce.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 16, 2015

High tech and today's productivity paradox

Recent trends in productivity growth make it hard to be optimistic about the future, but when radical innovations are first rolled out, their immediate effect isn't always known.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 16, 2015

Kiki Sugino: 'I'm always looking for myself'

Kiki Sugino has a one-of-a-kind resume in the domestic movie business. Many are the young "multi-talents" who act, sing and model, but most are recruited, molded and marketed by an agency. From the start, this 31-year-old actor, director and producer took a more independent route toward multi-dom.

Longform

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.
Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat