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Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 12, 2014

Sharon's life shaped Israel, mirrored its turbulent times

The death of former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who had been in a deep coma since suffering a stroke in January 2006, represents an extraordinary moment of rupture in his country's history. Of the generation of Israeli soldiers and politicians who fought in Israel's founding conflicts, only...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jan 12, 2014

French comedian's gesture divides a nation

On Jan 12, 1944, the Gestapo occupying the French city of Bordeaux despatched its Jews, who had been rounded up and imprisoned in their own majestic synagogue, to the death camps.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 12, 2014

Deflation Watch: New Year's scorecard

It seems likely that the consumption tax increase will derail the government's economic boom train.
LIFE
Jan 11, 2014

Everything you ever wanted to know about Godzilla but were afraid to ask

Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 10, 2014

Teachers must nurture critical thinking, confidence in English for a shot at 2020 goals

Until English teachers start developing critical thinking skills in the classroom and emphasizing confidence over competence, students will never be able to converse with native English speakers 'at a viable level of proficiency.'
Japan Times
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Jan 10, 2014

Any Hosokawa presence in Tokyo race bad for Abe

The emergence of Morihiro Hosokawa as a potential candidate could be a game-changer for the Tokyo gubernatorial race and deal a severe blow to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's administration.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 10, 2014

Focusing on the business of Korean reconciliation

Despite its flaws, including an Orwellian feel, the Kaesong Industrial Complex, a joint venture of the North and South Korean government, helps to build an environment of collaboration. Pyongyang's recent announcement that it will open another 14 special economic zones is a positive development.
Events / KANSAI: WHO & WHAT
Jan 10, 2014

Major bonsai exhibition this weekend in Kyoto

A large bonsai exhibition is taking place this weekend in the city of Kyoto.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 10, 2014

Japan urged to embrace U.S.-style think tanks

Right before Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Cabinet approved the nation's new long-term National Security Strategy in mid-December, the independent think tank Rebuild Japan Initiative Foundation, composed of prominent Japanese and American scholars, compiled its own approach.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Jan 8, 2014

Restore the shuttered-up New Year's of yore

First of all, I would like to wish a happy new year to all the readers of Labor Pains. While labor news has generally been a gloomy topic of late, it is my hope that this year will bring brighter things for me to write about.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Jan 8, 2014

Has Abenomics improved things for you or the country over the past year?

I can't really say that things have improved for the country as I don't often have the chance to follow politics. But, based on what I feel about my family, things have improved in the last year. I'm not sure if it's because of Abenomics, but some things have changed for the better.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 8, 2014

New York's Apples make a big impression

In the last three months since I arrived in New York to study American drama with a grant from the Asian Cultural Council, a U.S. nonprofit dedicated to international cultural exchange, I have been to the theater more than 70 times — including at least a dozen visits to somewhere that's been a truly...
JAPAN
Jan 8, 2014

Kobe neighborhood gets spicy with 'kimchi town' moniker

A Kobe neighborhood densely populated with Korean residents is now touting itself as the "town of kimchi," having created brochures that have proved more popular than expected.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 7, 2014

Time to relegate 'moral laws' to history's dustbin

Nothing lasts forever — especially in the U.S. with its 50 percent divorce rate — and it's clear that same-sex marriage will eventually be the law of the land.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 7, 2014

Abandoned homes a growing menace

Shinichi Ueda points to a two-story house standing on 7-meter-tall concrete blocks, flanked by other elevated dwellings. Built on a slope, the wooden structure — part of a 1,000-unit-plus residential area developed in the late 1970s in the suburban city of Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture — has been...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jan 5, 2014

Museum refuses to bat an eyelash with controversial new acquisitions

The Victoria and Albert Museum has tossed a grenade into the debate on the ethics of cheap fashion with two controversial acquisitions. The museum wants to add a pair of Katy Perry false eyelashes to its collection, along with some jeans sold by cut-rate clothing retailer, Primark, and made in the Rana...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST
Jan 3, 2014

It's the Year of the Horse, so bring on the feedbag

2014 is — according to the Chinese zodiac — the Year of the Horse. Born in a distant year of another cordial horse, we thus celebrate the spin of the 12-year cycle. This year is our year!
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jan 2, 2014

Abe's diplomatic overtures are likely to fall on deaf ears

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe saw relatively smooth diplomatic sailing in 2013, but he flushed his year-long effort down the drain with his surprising visit to Yasukuni Shrine.
Japan Times
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Jan 2, 2014

Political power struggle behind South Sudan crisis

U.S. and African officials seeking to mediate an end to South Sudan's bloodshed are, in effect, trying to repair rifts in the very liberation movement that they supported for years.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 31, 2013

Putin plays games to salvage Sochi Olympics

Ahead of the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, President Vladimir Putin is playing his own game of trying to make his autocratic regime more palatable to world leaders wondering whether they should show up at all.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Dec 30, 2013

In Fukushima, abandoned pets are multiplying

'Sterilization is the most practical and humane way to curb the growing population of feral animals, and research backs this up,' says Hiro Yamasaki of the Animal Rescue System in Shirakawa, Fukushima Prefecture. 'Unfortunately, our clinic is the only one providing this kind of service. The local vets and bureaucrats have not responded adequately to the situation. Something had to be done.'
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Dec 30, 2013

Give kids a chance to solve their own problems

A new moniker, "snowplow parents," refers to those who not only hover like helicopter parents but also plow ahead to pre-emptively eliminate any obstacles from their child's path. These are the folks who would like to hand-select their young child's classmates, or who bribe coaches for more playing...
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 30, 2013

Papa Obama laments time slipping by

When they vacationed in Hawaii just before President Barack Obama's first inauguration, Malia and Sasha were little girls doting on their dad — holding his hand on the beach, taking in a dolphin show and nuzzling up to him at the shave-ice shop.

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