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Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 27, 2012

'The Dark Knight Rises'

Jean-Jacques Beineix, the director of "Diva" and "Betty Blue," once told me that "when fiction and reality collide, you have a problem." Beineix was talking about his 1992 film "IP5," in which beloved French actor Yves Montand dies from a heart attack in the film, and actually died from one just after...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 26, 2012

Japan's one-time rebellious artistic vanguard

The term "art group" barely does justice to the collective of artists in postwar Japan known as Gutai. Founded in 1954 by Jiro Yoshihara, the group renegotiated the borders of art, incorporating performance, installation and even the natural environment into their creations.
CULTURE / Music / STRANGE BOUTIQUE
Jul 26, 2012

Fuji's Rookie A Go-Go stage holds an antidote for the same-old rockers

The Fuji Rock Festival kicks off tomorrow with its dependable mixture of ageing rockers from abroad, a handful of predictably chosen Japanese acts, and just a smattering of blogged-about buzz bands. This year in particular, the joy I felt upon the demise of Oasis has been replaced with the dread of the...
EDITORIALS
Jul 26, 2012

Obsession with a safety myth

The government-commissioned panel charged with investigating the nuclear crisis at Tokyo Electric Power Co's Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant submitted its final report to Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda on Monday. The report made clear that obsessed with the myth of nuclear safety, both Tepco and the...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Jul 24, 2012

Osaka: Which sports or athletes will you be following during the London 2012 Olympics?

Shoki Kanemoto
COMMENTARY
Jul 24, 2012

Place names defy tradition, distressing the Russian spirit

In the early 1990s, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, a countrywide campaign of toponymic change brought back many historic names — first of all in Moscow and in Leningrad (which in due course was returned to its proper name St. Petersburg). Soon after, however, these spontaneous activities abruptly...
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jul 22, 2012

Spies and their watchers in a tense war of nerves

What in the world is China going to do with 5,000 tsubo — about four acres — of land in Niigata City? Build a new consulate general, it says. But that seems like an awful lot for a consulate in a regional city whose main activity since it initially opened has been issuance of commercial visas.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / JAPAN TIMES BLOGROLL
Jul 22, 2012

Shisaku

Shisaku is a homophone meaning essay, a meditation upon a subject, a policy or measures a government takes. A fitting title for analyst Michael Cucek's blog which provides insight and opinion on Japanese politics, with a distinct hint of satire. In the eight years he's been writing the blog, Shisaku...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Jul 22, 2012

Is Rio+20 the way the world ends — with a whimper?

Last month, more than 45,000 people descended on Rio de Janeiro for the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development.
BASEBALL
Jul 21, 2012

JPBPA unanimously votes to boycott WBC

The Japan Professional Baseball Players Association decided against participating in the next edition of the World Baseball Classic during a meeting on Friday in Osaka.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 19, 2012

Fuji Rock embraces Kilimanjaro blend

It may be tough to tell from both acts' music and sense of style, but without the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Saitama funk sextet Mountain Mocha Kilimanjaro would be a very different band.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jul 19, 2012

China and Japan: A 40-year friendship worth singing about

Forget allegations of spies and economic intrigue. Put aside the controversial Senkaku Islands and celebrate as the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing unites with the New National Theatre in Tokyo to commemorate the 40th anniversary of normalized relations between Japan and China. Two...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 18, 2012

'Picking' a winner in Afghanistan

American debates over the war in Afghanistan tend to focus on how fast we can get our troops home and whether we can work with President Hamid Karzai's government to negotiate a peace deal with the Taliban. But at least as important to whether the country will hold together, and whether a return of the...
Japan Times
BASEBALL / HIT AND RUN
Jul 17, 2012

Nakahata's BayStars need results to go with new attitude

After batting practice prior to a game against the Hiroshima Carp, Yokohama BayStars manager Kiyoshi Nakahata walked past a throng of fan club members on his way to the clubhouse.
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Jul 16, 2012

Nuclear engineers ditching Japan for a bigger paycheck

Although Japan is reputed to be one of the most technologically advanced nations in nuclear power generation, it now faces a serious "brain drain" as some of its highly experienced nuclear engineers are lured to work in other countries for much better remuneration than they could hope to receive at home....
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jul 15, 2012

Catchers lacking offensive punch a concern

Why don't we have more catchers in Japan with better offensive skills?
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Jul 15, 2012

Better late than never for Japan's first, "slowest" Olympian

Have you heard the one about the Japanese runner who took 54 years to finish the Olympic marathon?
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Jul 15, 2012

Life up in the treetops

Imagine strolling through a forest and coming across a hut supported by four trees 8 meters off the ground. With its triangular roof, stained-glass door panels and timber decking, at first sight it's like something in a fairyland.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
Jul 13, 2012

New Otani Osaka's outdoor pool open

The Hotel New Otani Osaka has opened its outdoor pool on the fourth floor, through Sept. 17.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS / ICE TIME
Jul 11, 2012

Will Kim's return provide new motivation for Mao?

Great news descended upon the skating world last week when Kim Yu-na announced she was returning to competition with the goal of taking part in the 2014 Sochi Games.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Jul 8, 2012

How astrology and superstition drove an increase in abortions in Japan

I like to think of myself as a rational human being most of the time, but I have to suppress a shudder if someone opens an umbrella indoors, and I'd probably comment if a black cat crossed my path.
OLYMPICS
Jul 5, 2012

Olympics just keep getting bigger

In the 64 years since London hosted the 1948 Summer Olympics, the ways in which global athletics are promoted and produced have gone through dramatic changes. The challenge to produce a bigger, flashier Olympics is ever-present.
LIFE / Digital / TECH_JAPAN
Jul 4, 2012

By skipping Tokyo Game Show, Microsoft is not doing anything to win over Japanese gamers

The United States was easy. Europe was slightly harder. But Japan has always seemed nearly impenetrable for Microsoft's Xbox gaming platform.

Longform

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