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COMMENTARY
Jul 23, 2008

Omar al-Bashir versus the ICC

All the opposition groups in Darfur celebrated when the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court announced on July 14 that he was seeking the indictment of Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir on the charge of genocide, but almost everybody else had a problem with it. They don't doubt that al-Bashir...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 22, 2008

Progress in making criminal leaders pay

PRAGUE — It has been only a little more than 15 years since the first of the contemporary international courts was created to prosecute those who commit war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Yet there is already a persistent theme in criticism of such tribunals: In their effort to do justice,...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Jul 22, 2008

Do you eat whale?

Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / ON THE ROAD
Jul 20, 2008

Rethinking the tiniest class of car

They are Japanese cultural icons, easily recognizable by their diminutive size and yellow license plates. But unlike their even smaller anime cousins, such as Pokemon, kei-jidosha (subcompact cars) have remained a completely domestic phenomenon.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jul 19, 2008

A well-armed goddess

On July 2, at the lowest tide of the year, my neighbors and I prayed to the goddess of the sea. The islanders call her Benten (also known as Benzaiten), and she lives on her own special island, just off the coast of Shiraishi Island. Here she convenes with the sea and brings us luck, prosperity (well,...
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Jul 18, 2008

Tomita revels in veteran status ahead of second Olympics

Editor's note: As the countdown to the Summer Olympics draws closer, The Japan Times will provide more coverage of Japan's top medal hopefuls, as well as expanded coverage of international Olympians in the print and online editions.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / BACKSTREET STORIES
Jul 18, 2008

I ain't afraid of those ghosts

There are lots of yureizaka (phantom slopes) in Tokyo, and at least seven of them have been spooking lily-livered pedestrians since the Edo Period (1603-1867). The slope I head for, in broad daylight, slants through the somnolent graveyards of old temples from the early 1600s. It's a beastly summer day,...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 18, 2008

Can iPhone infiltrate Japan's mobile tribes?

Kentaro Tohyama is proud of his new iPhone. He stood overnight in line to get it when the device became available in Japan for the first time. But the 29-year-old computer engineer isn't about to part with his made-in-Japan cell phone either.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / IGADGET
Jul 16, 2008

Glasses make movies a personal experience

Eyes front: Video may have killed the radio star, as the song says, but television has only bruised the movie screen, despite 70 years of trying to offer an experience to rival the cinema experience. Now cell phones and other mobile devices are competing with television.
EDITORIALS
Jul 13, 2008

The price of ramen

When the price of a bowl of ramen goes up in Japan, people take notice. Rising costs for the wheat that makes the noodles, and the energy that keeps the soup bubbling, have started to appear at the register. When even this most Japanese of meals comes under pressure from larger economic forces, the world...
Japan Times
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Jul 12, 2008

Aoki makes big impact

For the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, who have made substantial changes to their roster over the past year or two, Norichika Aoki serves as a stabilizer on and off the field.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jul 11, 2008

From 'Speed' to outer space

Zooming up behind the "Speed Racer" film, which opened last week, is an exhibition starting July 18 at Hachioji Yume Art Museum that reveals where all the fast cars, snazzy gadgets and dastardly racer tactics began: on the desks of the animators at Tatsunoko Production Co., Ltd.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 11, 2008

'Horton Hears A Who'

I'm sorry, but when it comes to Dr. Seuss, I'm definitely a purist. It couldn't be any other way having grown up with so many great childhood memories of reading his books — or having them read to me — over and over.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
Jul 11, 2008

Sake in Osaka, cruising in Yokohama

Seafaring adventure in Yokohama The Pan Pacific Yokohama Bay Hotel Tokyu has prepared a special accommodation plan for families for summer vacation, providing children the rare opportunity to explore the bridge of a cruise boat.
EDITORIALS
Jul 9, 2008

Mr. Obama's image

U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, has turned down public financing for the general election and chosen to carry out his campaign relying on money he raises. Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, will accept public funds. Last year Mr....
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Jul 9, 2008

Ice goby

Japanese name: Shiro-uo
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 8, 2008

Cardboard coffins boast eco-merit

As more consumers pursue environmentally friendly lives, businesses are introducing products and services catering to those quests.
Reader Mail
Jul 6, 2008

Asking for trouble from police

Regarding Debito Arudou's July 1 Just Be Cause column, "July forecast: rough with ID checks mainly in the north": Arudou claims he was stopped at Chitose Airport (Sapporo) last month merely for being "Caucasian." Yet, on his own Web site, Arudou admitted that he had "hung around" and had a tape recorder...

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