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An Albanian communist hangs a banner with Enver Hoxha's image in a public cemetery in Tirana in April 2012 to mark the anniversary of the hard-line Stalinist dictator's death.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 27, 2023

When freedom does not bring about justice

From communism to capitalism, Lea Ypi's book,"Free: Coming of Age at the End of History" reflects on Albania's transition to freedom.
South African rugby supporters celebrate the team's World Cup triumph, in Johannesburg on Saturday.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Oct 29, 2023

Ecstatic South Africans celebrate Rugby World Cup glory

Supporters of the national rugby team drank beers, waved flags and partied until the early hours in a wave of jubilation that swept the country.
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel speaks during an interview at the ambassador's residence in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 30, 2023

U.S. military begins Japan seafood purchases to counter China ban

China, which had been the biggest buyer of Japanese seafood, says its ban is due to food safety fears.
South Africa's Malcolm Marx scores a try during a Rugby World Cup warmup game against New Zealand in London on Aug. 25.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Oct 30, 2023

Injured Springbok Marx to miss Japanese club season

Marx, 29, was forced to leave the Springboks' World Cup-winning squad after only one game in France following an injury to his knee during training.
A rally in support of Israel is held in Tokyo on Oct. 11 during which participants, including Israelis living in Japan, demanded the immediate release of all hostages captured by Hamas during its Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 30, 2023

A primer on the Israel-Hamas war


Japan's image of Israel is shallow and distorted, as many people fail to understand the existential threat that Hamas' aggression poses.
A woman cleans a portrait displayed on a tree to mark the Day of Victims of Political Repressions, who were buried during the Stalin era in the woods on the outskirts of St. Petersburg on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 31, 2023

Russians struggle to keep alive memory of Stalin's victims

Russian President Vladimir Putin has sought to suppress attempts to evaluate Josef Stalin critically.
More than 75,000 Kaiser Permanente health care workers went on strike from Oct. 4 to 7 across the U.S.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 1, 2023

Unions in the U.S. are winning big for the first time in decades

Recent victories mark a potential turning point for the country’s labor movement, which has seen union ranks and power dwindle for decades.
Texas Rangers starting pitcher Andrew Heaney during the first inning of Game 4 of the World Series on Tuesday in Phoenix.
BASEBALL / MLB
Nov 1, 2023

Offensive explosion moves Rangers to cusp of World Series title

The Rangers rolled to an 11-7 win and are now one victory away from their first World Series championship.
A crowded crossing near Shibuya Station in Tokyo on Tuesday
JAPAN / Society
Nov 1, 2023

Shibuya Halloween passes without fuss following ‘don’t come’ message

Shibuya's mayor has expressed satisfaction with the reduction in crowds and public drinking this year.
Protesters wave Palestinian flags as they walk over Westminster Bridge near the Houses of Parliament in London on Saturday.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 1, 2023

Immigration, politics and the West's foreign policy

On the same day that a 100,000 strong pro-Palestinian march took place in London, the police pressured a pro-Israeli prayer walk to cancel the event.
Kyung An, an associate curator of Asian art at the Guggenheim, curated “Only the Young” with Kang Soojung of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea.
CULTURE / Art
Nov 2, 2023

American museums keep the spotlight on Korean art

There are at least five exhibitions of Korean art at major U.S. museums this fall.
Bobby Knight introduces Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump during a rally in Toledo, Ohio, in 2016. Knight died Wednesday at age 83.
BASKETBALL
Nov 2, 2023

Bobby Knight, basketball coach known for trophies and tantrums, dies at 83

Mercurial and volatile, Knight was a brilliant coach who sought out intelligent players, making his mark at Indiana University.
Texas Rangers players storm the field after defeating the Arizona Diamondbacks to win the World Series in Game 5 on Wednesday in Phoenix.
BASEBALL
Nov 2, 2023

Rangers down Diamondbacks in Game 5 for first World Series title

A 5-0 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 5 on Wednesday clinched the Rangers' first title in three trips to the Fall Classic.
The words of encouragement that star player Shohei Ohtani gave his teammates before their final game against the United States during the World Baseball Classic in March were among those nominated on Thursday to be the buzzwords of the year.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 2, 2023

Japan's 2023 buzzwords reflect light and dark sides of the year

From the year's scandals to its champions, the annual list of buzzword candidates highlights the nation's hope, fears and diversions.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida holds a news conference about a new economic stimulus package in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS
Nov 2, 2023

Kishida unveils ¥17 trillion stimulus package amid pushback

A supplementary budget proposal — worth a total of ¥13.1 trillion — to back the package will be submitted to parliament in the upcoming weeks.
The front page of The Japan Times from Nov. 13, 1948, heralds the verdicts given to Japan's war criminals.
JAPAN / History / Japan Times Gone By
Nov 3, 2023

Japan Times 1948: Tojo and 6 others are sentenced to hang

As sentences are handed down in 1948, two other eras deal with fallout from an earthquake and an oil shock.
Former Prime Minister Naoto Kan celebrates on Oct. 23, 2017, after prevailing in a close race in a single-seat constituency in Tokyo in a general election the previous day, winning on the ticket of the then-newly created Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 3, 2023

With Naoto Kan's exit from the CDP, some see a generational shift

The exit of the former prime minister, a high-profile figure and political veteran from the CDP’s liberal wing, comes at a time of change for the party.
Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya celebrates after finishing in a world record time of 2:00:35 to win the Chicago Marathon on Oct. 8.
MORE SPORTS / Athletics
Nov 3, 2023

Smashed records bring new focus to marathon ahead of New York

The Kenyan former world record-holder Brigid Kosgei will make her Big Apple debut after five previous major wins.
Sometimes just saying that you won't break a promise isn't enough. You may need the power of the pinky finger.
LIFE / Language / Vocabulary Boost
Nov 3, 2023

Breaking a promise comes with sharp penalties in Japan

An interesting element that is present in both Japanese and English rhymes around pinky promises is the idea of needles.
Tigers fans make their presence known at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, on Thursday, as Hanshin played Orix in Game 5 of the Japan Series.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 3, 2023

Could the Tigers' curse be over, once and for all?

A win against the Buffaloes on Saturday would see the Tigers victorious in this year's Japan Series.
With a year left until the 2024 presidential election, Arab and Muslim American support for U.S. President Joe Biden threatens to plummet over his Middle East policy — a factor that could even swing certain states.
WORLD / Politics
Nov 3, 2023

Muslim anguish over Gaza holds electoral risks for Biden

While Muslims account for a small fraction of the U.S. population, the election could swing on votes in a few close races.
A construction crane beyond an apartment building at dusk in the Prenzlauer Berg district in Berlin, in February.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 3, 2023

Europe’s great housing crisis is only getting started

With housing already tight, the situation threatens to weigh on growth and further stoke political tensions as shortages squeeze more and more voters.
Members of the international press gather on a hill in Sderot, Israel, with a view of the Gaza Strip, on Oct. 28.
WORLD
Nov 4, 2023

In Israel-Hamas war, recycled images from past conflicts can undercut true toll

Videos and photos of the conflict are competing with misappropriated depictions of unrelated tragedies.
A woman and her children at the Minnanouen Kitakagaya community garden in Osaka's Suminoe Ward
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Nov 5, 2023

How simple steps can help alleviate climate anxiety

From gardening to flood-proofing your home, experts say there are simple ways you can ease some of your concern.
Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of FTX, exits the federal courthouse in Manhattan in February.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 5, 2023

Sam Bankman-Fried won't be the last crypto mogul behind bars

If Sam Bankman-Fried culpability for the "pyramid of deceit” behind FTX’s collapse seemed so obvious, it’s partly because he was prosecutorial gold.
Former Prime Minister Naoto Kan delivers a speech during an anti-government rally in Tokyo in October 2017.
JAPAN
Nov 5, 2023

Ex-Prime Minister Kan officially announces he will not run in next Lower House election

Kan named Musashino Mayor Reiko Matsushita as his successor in the Tokyo No. 18 constituency of the lower chamber of the Diet, Japan's parliament.
Buffaloes starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitches against the Tigers in Game 6 of the Japan Series at Kyocera Dome Osaka on Saturday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 5, 2023

Buffaloes to allow ace pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto to move to MLB

The move was widely expected before the Buffaloes made it official.
Hanshin Tigers fans celebrate the team's first Japan Series title in 38 years on Sunday.
JAPAN
Nov 6, 2023

Osaka erupts in celebration as Tigers win Japan Series

A heavy police presence made sure that incidents after past Tigers’ successes would not be repeated.
Survivors of a recent earthquake sit in front of a damaged house in Chiuri village at Jajarkot district on Sunday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 6, 2023

Relatives of Nepal quake victims cremate loved ones

Since the quake, thousands of buildings have collapsed or developed cracks making them uninhabitable.
Rapid improvements in image generation have spurred artists to push back on generative AI startups, which ingest vast troves of internet data in order to generate content like pictures or text.
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 6, 2023

Dall-E 3 is so good it’s stoking a revolt against AI scraping

It hasn’t helped much that OpenAI’s new process for artists who want to exclude their data from the system is time-consuming and complex.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?