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BUSINESS
Oct 5, 2012

Jojima mum on South Korea currency swap extension

New Finance Minister Koriki Jojima said the government must "carefully consider" whether to extend the currency swap agreement with South Korea but refused to be drawn out on whether Tokyo will propose an extension.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 5, 2012

'The Samaritan'

One resounding truth about guys in the movies is this: They don't last. Five years ago I was fantasizing about dinner with, oh, Mel Gibson (I know, I know. Terrible taste). Or Jason Statham (even worse). While on-screen, these guys did what they do best, which is offing evil-doers in crowded public venues...
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Oct 5, 2012

Nash hungry to build off Grouses' success last season

Bob Nash has been around the game long enough to know that he doesn't need to go out of his way to complicate things.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Oct 5, 2012

The streets are alive with the sound of jazz

Shunzo Ohno is a man committed to his dream. Even after a motor bike accident and a battle with cancer, he can still play a mean trumpet.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 5, 2012

Cusack delves into the dark with 'The Raven'

"One of the negative things about the Internet," actor John Cusack remarks when asked about rumors surrounding casting in his new film, "The Raven," "is unnecessary information. Stuff that doesn't serve any real purpose and can be detrimental to someone's ego or ... like I say, useless. Hopefully a good...
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Oct 4, 2012

Title-chasing pack slims down after weekend purge

There is still much to sort out before the identity of the 2012 J. League champion becomes known, but for perhaps the first time in a season that has consistently refused to produce a clear front-runner, a definitive shape is beginning to crystallize at the top of the table.
EDITORIALS
Oct 4, 2012

Rethink Osprey deployment

Six of the 12 Osprey tilt-rotor transport aircraft stationed at U.S. Marine Corps' Air Station Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefecture, were deployed at Air Station Futenma in Okinawa Prefecture on Monday, and three more Osprey aircraft flew from Iwakuni to Futenma on Tuesday amid Okinawans' concerns about the...
EDITORIALS
Oct 4, 2012

Review of the lay judge system

As three years have passed since the introduction of the lay judge trial system, the process to review the system has started with a Justice Ministry panel, which includes legal professionals, citizens and mass media people. The review is in accordance with a supplementary provision of the Act on Criminal...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 2, 2012

Olympus deal a slow cure for Sony

In the end, Sony Corp.'s alliance in the medical equipment business with scandal-tainted Olympus Corp. will help the loss-making electronics giant, it's just a matter of giving it enough time, analysts say.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Oct 2, 2012

JBL looking to go out with a bang

With its 2012-13 campaign getting under way this weekend, the Japan Basketball League, which will be rebranded as the National Basketball League next fall, promises to entertain the fans as much as possible in its final season under the old name.
CULTURE / Books
Sep 30, 2012

Born guilty: child of a North Korean gulag

Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey From North Korea to Freedom in the West, by Blaine Harden. Viking, 2012, 224 pp., $26.95 (hardcover) While reading "Escape from Camp 14," be prepared for horrifying passages that plumb the depths of viciousness to which both the jailed and their jailers...
CULTURE / Books
Sep 30, 2012

An undeclared war: the Japanese-Soviet battle that decided the outcome of WWII

Nomonhan 1939: The Red Army's Victory That Shaped World War II, by Stuart D. Goldman. Naval Institute Press, 2012, 288 pp., $31.95 (hardcover) T he battle of Nomonhan between the Japanese Imperial Army and the Soviet Army is a little known confrontation that had a significant impact on both countries...
EDITORIALS
Sep 29, 2012

Mr. Putin's 'pivot' toward Asia

Russia is a huge country that spans eight time zones, stretching from the borders of Europe to the Pacific Ocean. For centuries it has grappled with its "Eurasian" identity, debating whether its national interest are best served by choosing between one half or the other or offering itself as a bridge...
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Sep 28, 2012

Parker not expecting to win fifth straight scoring title

Shimane Susanoo Magic forward Michael Parker, the four-time reigning scoring champion, predicted on Monday he won't win the scoring title this season.
EDITORIALS
Sep 28, 2012

How to just charge it and go

A standardization war over the best way to quick-charge electric cars is developing. The Japanese government and car industry should try to persuade carmakers of other countries to adopt a unified standard. For the time being, to avoid a disadvantage for Japan, they should strive to get such an international...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 27, 2012

"On the Agenda of the Arts 2012: In the Air"

Tokyo Wonder Site aims to foster worldwide cultural exchange from its Tokyo bases in Hongo, Shibuya and Aoyama. One of the institution's longest-running projects is "On the Agenda of the Arts," which invites artists and curators from around the world, hosts exhibitions, and organizes roundtable discussions...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 27, 2012

Roots of Japan-China rivalry

The anti-Japan protests that continue to roil China are just another indication of the rise of a potent Chinese nationalism. After a century slowly fomenting among Chinese intellectuals, national sentiment has captured and redefined the consciousness of the Chinese people during the last two decades...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 26, 2012

Hard truths about global growth

The world's high-income countries are in economic trouble, mostly related to growth and employment, and now their distress is spilling over to developing economies. What factors underlie today's problems, and how appropriate are the likely policy responses?
COMMENTARY
Sep 26, 2012

Why shouldn't pols treat voters like grownups?

In every year divisible by four, the dominant superstition of American politics — faith in the magic of presidential words and deeds — reaches an apogee that feeds national narcissism: Everything that happens anywhere is about us, is a response to something America did or did not do, and can be controlled...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 26, 2012

Transforming how India addresses its problems

Last month, I visited the Jaipur Foot clinic in New Delhi. You may have heard of the Jaipur Foot. It is both an invention — a prosthetic foot made from cheap materials costing about $45 (versus $8,000 for a similar device in the United States) — and an amazing, low-cost network of clinics around...
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / TECH_JAPAN
Sep 26, 2012

Get ready to broadcast video live online

Japan-based Cerevo has carved out an interesting business niche for itself as a provider of live-video-streaming hardware, most notably its Live Shell device released last year. That device enabled aspiring Internet broadcasters to stream live video directly from a camera to the Web without the need...
BUSINESS
Sep 25, 2012

Toyota plans slew of new hybrid models

Toyota Motor Corp. said Monday that it will introduce 21 new gasoline-electric hybrid models by the end of 2015 to meet the growing demand for fuel-efficient cars.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Sep 25, 2012

Gaijin cards valid until 2015 — but not at the post office

Reader AM informed us that Japan Post no longer accepts alien registration cards as valid identification.

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