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Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jul 22, 2011

Forecast for Yamagata summer festival calls for games and snow

July is a time of sweltering heat, with the sun beating down on you wherever you go. But in Yamagata Prefecture, they're calling for snow.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jul 21, 2011

From the favelas of Brazil come street-style dancers supreme

In a weeklong festival of street-dance performances and competitions being held at Kanagawa Arts Theatre (KAAT) in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, starting from July 30, one dance group perhaps stands out in particular for its emotionally charged performances.
JAPAN
Jul 20, 2011

Tepco plans for cold shutdown by January

The government and Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Tuesday they have successfully achieved consistent and stable cooling of the reactors at the Fukushima No. 1 plant and will by mid-January reduce the amount of radioactive materials being released.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / HIT AND RUN
Jul 19, 2011

Former Carp, Marines pitcher Minchey happy to be involved in game

Nate Minchey hovered near the home dugout at Tokyo Dome as the Yomiuri Giants practiced, but there was no missing him. Being conspicuous isn't exactly a trait of many 203 cm and above.
BUSINESS / THE VIEW FROM EUROPE
Jul 18, 2011

German energy study offers framework for Japanese policy chaos

Pure chaos is reigning over Japanese energy policy and the future of its nuclear power industry.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
Jul 17, 2011

Green is good for you — and the Earth

My work often takes me away from my home in Hokkaido, and with every absence I am irked to be missing out on some part of the inexorable seasonal advance. So, each time I return I make a beeline for my local forest to reacquaint myself with the resident and migrant birds, to trace the tracks and signs...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 16, 2011

Key players got nuclear ball rolling

How did earthquake-prone Japan, where two atomic bombs were dropped at the end of World War II creating a strong antinuclear weapons culture, come to embrace nuclear power just a few decades later?
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 12, 2011

Thai results challenge established regime

The thunderous results of Thailand's general election July 3 will seem familiar to anyone attuned to the political upheaval in the Middle East and North Africa.
EDITORIALS
Jul 12, 2011

Nuclear reactor stress tests

Trade and industry minister Banri Kaieda on July 6 said that all of Japan's nuclear power plants must undergo "stress tests" that comprehensively evaluate their safety. The same day, Prime Minister Naoto Kan told the Diet that he had instructed officials concerned to work out new rules for verifying...
Reader Mail
Jul 10, 2011

Cities, lay down the tree shears

I want to thank Sherilyn Siy for her June 26 letter, "Spare the cut and save the shade." I've long thought about writing this kind of letter, but never got around to it.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 10, 2011

Japan's attention to detail is all in the delivery

While in California recently, I saw a reality program called "Undercover Boss," in which the president of a company disguises himself as a new hire and works beside his frontline employees. The boss thus comes to appreciate how important those people are to the success of his business. At the end of...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 8, 2011

Asia's gay film scene opens Tokyo up to brave new experiences

Now in its fourth year, the Asian Queer Film Festival is an eye-opener for anyone who has thought that "queers" have a bad time in their quest for love and freedom in Asia.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / INSIDE ART
Jul 7, 2011

Public to benefit from art indemnity system

If you've ever thought that the ¥1,500 admission ticket at the average touring exhibition in Tokyo is too expensive, consider this: The cost of insuring artworks for trips to Japan is around 0.2 percent of their appraised value.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 6, 2011

Reconstruction minister quits after week

Ryu Matsumoto resigned Tuesday as reconstruction minister just a week into his stint after he drew flak for insulting two governors in the disaster-hit Tohoku region he was tasked to rebuild, and his exit drove Prime Minister Naoto Kan into a deeper political quagmire.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 4, 2011

The risks of 'disaster nationalism'

A common sight seen throughout Japan these days are signs that read Ganbaro Nippon (translated "Don't give up Japan").
Reader Mail
Jul 3, 2011

Grief not the same as mourning

When tragedy and loss occur, when people vent their sad emotions, we cannot say that we are witnessing their grief. That is what we commonly say, what is written and spoken in the media, and even what professionals loosely say.
EDITORIALS
Jul 3, 2011

The dying oceans

Oceans are at dire risk, a consortium of scientists, the International Program on the State of the Ocean (IPSO), warned in early June. The interdisciplinary group of specialists gathered at the University of Oxford in April examined the synergistic effects of diverse factors on the oceans for the first...
EDITORIALS
Jul 1, 2011

New security statement

The foreign and defense ministers of Japan and the United States held a meeting in Washington on June 21 and issued a joint statement covering a wide range of security-related issues. They agreed that the Japan-U.S. alliance is indispensable for the security of the two countries as well as for the peace,...
Reader Mail
Jun 30, 2011

Better trip for Japanese retirees

Regarding the June 26 Kyodo article "Ogasawara Islands join World Heritage family": Last year I was part of a delegation of foreigners sent by the Japan Tourism Agency to assess the overseas tourist potential of the Ogasawara Islands.
Reader Mail
Jun 30, 2011

Differences in experiencing grief

In his June 12 Counterpoint article, "Barber's cutting comment denies others' humanity — and hers, too," Roger Pulvers lamented his young Korean barber's stereotypical and dehumanizing view of the Japanese and her inability to see other cultures from any viewpoint other than her own.

Longform

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