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Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jul 27, 2013

Multiple perspectives in novel on the Russo-Japanese War

I asked a Japanese friend how he would characterize Shiba Ryotaro's famous historical novel, "Clouds Above the Hill." I've known its immense popularity, but Shiba had started its newspaper serialization after I left Japan in 1968, and the size of the finished work — six volumes in book form — had...
Reader Mail
Jul 27, 2013

Letting the younger crowd vote

Regarding the July 22 front-page article "Ruling bloc takes control of Upper House": It is said that the votes this time came primarily from the younger crowd. It is also true that the victorious Liberal Democratic Party's inflationary policies benefit Japan's younger generation especially, paving the...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jul 27, 2013

Yasukuni Shrine: ground zero for unrepentant wartime remembrance

There is considerable speculation about whether Prime Minister Shinzo Abe intends to visit Yasukuni Shrine in mid-August. This is an especially sensitive time of the year as it coincides both with the annual Bon festival, when people honor their ancestors, and the anniversary of Japan's surrender in...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Jul 26, 2013

Brit Scoutmaster jogs for health, charity

Running up a mountain probably wouldn't be most people's idea of a pleasant weekend leisure activity, but Brit Colin Yarker thrives on the physical and mental challenge of trail running.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / FUJI ROCK 2013
Jul 25, 2013

Storify: Fuji Rock Festival 2013

The Fuji Rock Festival's pre-show matsuri kicked off tonight. Over the next three days, we'll be curating the related tweets and images coming from social media.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Jul 25, 2013

Ishizaki planning to continue playing career in Europe

Contrary to some speculative chatter in recent days that guard Takumi Ishizaki is on the verge of retirement, the word out of Germany is that the Fukui Prefecture native has his sights set on extending his overseas career.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 25, 2013

'Emperor'

Emperor," a rare Japan-U.S. joint production, aims squarely for that old-school "Casablanca" vibe, a tragic romance set against a backdrop of wartime intrigue, with mixed results. Based on the book "His Majesty's Salvation" by Shiro Okamoto, the topic is one guaranteed to raise eyebrows: Gen. Douglas...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / BALANCING INTERESTS
Jul 24, 2013

High-end grape grower has no TPP gripe, just sees green

Grapes grown on Takanobu Watanabe's farm in Tomi, Nagano Prefecture, are still chartreuse this time of the year, as the summer heat boosts the berries' sugar content before veraison, the onset of ripening.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 24, 2013

Poor slam anti-poverty law as hollow

For Yoshino Azuma, life changed forever when her husband, Yoshitaro, suddenly died of a brain hemorrhage two years ago.
BUSINESS / BALANCING INTERESTS
Jul 22, 2013

Farmers stealing TPP spotlight from other key issues

While a great deal of political and media attention is focusing on what the Trans-Pacific Partnership might mean for Japan's agricultural sector, less is being devoted to how it could impact investor-state disputes and copyright laws, two controversial areas that present a growing challenge to forging...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHO'S WHO
Jul 22, 2013

Peruvian offers lifeline for Spanish-speaking expats

Sonia Romero de Hara was surprised years ago when she was woken by a phone call late at night from a Peruvian-Japanese friend living in Fussa, western Tokyo.
EDITORIALS
Jul 22, 2013

Short of wholehearted support

The LDP and Komeito parties should not view their Upper House election dominance, amid low voter turnout, as carte blanche to ramrod through pet policy lines.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 22, 2013

One-party rule back but Abe could blow it

The Liberal Democratic Party's sweeping Upper House election victory ends the divided Diet, but Prime Minister Shinzo Abe still faces a battle in tackling vexing issues.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 22, 2013

Tokyo voters mixed but most seem to want LDP in charge

Many voters appear to be putting their faith in the Liberal Democratic Party despite the lack of 'Abenomics' evidence in their lives, The Japan Times finds.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 20, 2013

Nation set for rare political continuity

After cycling through seven prime ministers in seven years, the Upper House election is about to see the nation break free from its most vexing political pattern: instability.
EDITORIALS
Jul 19, 2013

Critical issues at stake in election

Besides 'Abenomics,' voters in Sunday's Upper House polls would be wise to weigh the merits of constitutional revision and nuclear power generation.
EDITORIALS
Jul 18, 2013

Parties must clearly explain TPP

All parties in the Upper House campaign have done a deplorable job of promoting, or criticizing, Japan's participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade deal.
Japan Times
Reference / SO WHAT THE HECK IS THAT
Jul 15, 2013

Mosquito coils

Dear Alice, I have lived in Japan for almost 30 years, and nothing says 'summer in Japan' to me like the sight and smell of those once-ubiquitous green mosquito coils.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jul 13, 2013

Kono Statement: Hit-and-run Abe vandalizes 20th anniversary

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is pursuing dead-end diplomacy in East Asia at precisely a time when Japan most needs to shore up relations with neighbors so as to position itself well for China's ongoing rise. Alas, he doesn't grasp that regional reconciliation over history should be his calling card, not...
EDITORIALS
Jul 13, 2013

More people studying Japanese

The number of students learning Japanese worldwide rose 9 percent inn 2012 from 2009, indicating an underlying interest in a country that some call listless.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 12, 2013

CEO sees Hoshino Resorts REIT as his ticket to worldwide expansion

Hoshino Resort Co., which has been operating luxury hotels for 109 years, wants to be as well known as Toyota Motor Corp. internationally, and President Yoshiharu Hoshino said Friday's real estate investment trust debut is a start.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 12, 2013

'Abenomics' dark side: hinterland pay cuts

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's cuts to local-government subsidies are like trying to "wring water from an old rag that's been squeezed dry," says Kazuya Yoshida, a 27-year municipal employee in Shijonawate, Osaka Prefecture.
EDITORIALS
Jul 12, 2013

China and Russia practicing again

Japan should take China and Russia at their word when they say Tokyo should not be concerned by their joint large-scale naval exercise in the Japan Sea this week.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 11, 2013

Okinawans explore secession option

Okinawans are losing patience with Tokyo's repeated vows to reduce the prefecture's burden of hosting U.S. military installations and other hollow pledges, and some are seriously looking into the possibility of having the territory secede from Japan.

Longform

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