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BUSINESS / BALANCING INTERESTS
Jul 22, 2013

Japan may be latecomer but TPP trade party has just begun

Japan only has three days in Malaysia for the TPP negotiations, but experts say it has a solid chance to lead the revamp of trade in the Asia-Pacific region.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society / FOCUS
Jul 22, 2013

Pope Francis starts first trip abroad on wave of hope

On the tiny Italian island of Lampedusa, the Rev. Stefano Nastasi threw the ecclesiastic equivalent of a Hail Mary pass.
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.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jul 22, 2013

Think before you ink if you work with kids

I am very interested in getting an irezumi (traditional tattoo) in Japan. Are there any artists that will tattoo a foreigner? If so, who and where? My interviewer for the teaching position tried to warn me that tattoos are a 'no-no.
EDITORIALS
Jul 21, 2013

Troubling justice in Russia

Sergei Magnitsky's trial and conviction on July 11 has been called 'one of the most shameful moments for Russia since the days of Joseph Stalin.'
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 21, 2013

Is the age of automation taking a toll on jobs?

American colleges aren't worse today, but the skills required for solving unstructured problems and working with new info have become more complex.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WEEK 3
Jul 20, 2013

On the trail of bear hunters' heritage

Takashi Yoshikawa is no easy man to figure out. Trim and well tanned, the 63-year-old owns a small ryokan (traditional inn) nestled in the foothills of the beautiful Shirakami Mountains which straddle 130,000 hectares of Aomori and Akita prefectures, and whose 17,000 hectares of beech forests were listed...
LIFE / Travel
Jul 20, 2013

Theaters of war and peace in Kumamoto

The pamphlet tells me this is a "castle" — but the structure in front of me defies that description. Granted, my frame of reference is greatly informed by the impressive edifices of Kumamoto, Himeji and Matsumoto that date back to the gory Sengoku (Warring States) Period spanning some 150 years from...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Jul 19, 2013

Pioneering Australian's outdoor adventures invigorate Hokkaido

Australian Ross Findlay is a doer. Name any outdoor sport and chances are he's done it, from kayaking to rock climbing to snowcat skiing and snowshoeing.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jul 19, 2013

Panama detains ex-CIA operative convicted by Italy of kidnapping

A former CIA operative who was convicted by an Italian court of kidnapping a Muslim cleric in Milan in 2003 has been detained by authorities in Panama, raising the prospect that he could be extradited, according to Italian news reports.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 18, 2013

Vampire Weekend to go 'Modern' at Fuji Rock

Over the course of three albums, Vampire Weekend has cultivated a unique sound from a wide spectrum of influences, including experimental rock musician Keigo Oyamada (aka Cornelius). Vampire Weekend lead singer and songwriter Ezra Koenig has a fond memory of the musician, often described as Japan's counterpart...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / A TASTE OF HOME
Jul 18, 2013

A delicious Caribbean vacation for your taste buds

"There are no palm trees. It looks like a typical Caribbean restaurant. Like home, not the beach," says Petra Laptiste, a Canadian of Caribbean descent, describing her favorite Caribbean restaurant in Tokyo, JamRock (1-21-15 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; 03-3478-2364; www.jamrockcafeonline.com).
Japan Times
Events / Events In Tokyo
Jul 18, 2013

Take to the sky this summer

In my childhood, I used to dream about floating through the sky like Mary Poppins, but to do that would likely involve a big umbrella in a typhoon, which is not as appealing. It looks like Midtown Loves Summer (MLS), however, offers a good chance to take to the sky.
Events / Events In Tokyo
Jul 18, 2013

Restaurant tour to provide diners with a taste of Shimokitazawa

Imagine eating all you want at a restaurant and then walking out the door without paying — only to simply head to another restaurant for more food. I'm not recommending a dine-and-dash situation, it's an event in Tokyo this weekend.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jul 18, 2013

All of Okinawa is a stage for Kijimuna Festa

Parents who have tried to take their children on museum outings might recognize what a formidable challenge it can be to get them excited about traditional arts. Kijimuna Festa, a theater festival in Okinawa for children and young adults, was founded with this issue in mind.
WORLD / FOCUS
Jul 18, 2013

Germans direct NSA ire at Merkel

German Chancellor Angela Merkel grew up in a society where the government kept a Big Brother eye on its citizens. Now, critics say, she has assented to similar practices — this time coming from the U.S., not East Germany's fearsome secret police.
WORLD / Society
Jul 18, 2013

Review turns up FBI errors in 27 death penalty convictions

An unprecedented federal review of old criminal cases uncovers as many as 27 death penalty convictions in which FBI forensic experts may have mistakenly linked defendants to crimes with exaggerated scientific testimony.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 17, 2013

Silence is a virtue for Tokyo's Flau

Back when he still worked as a speech therapist and audiologist, Yasuhiko Fukuzono used to observe an interesting phenomenon. When deaf patients were fitted out with hearing aids for the first time, they complained that everything was just noise. "Even when they were at home, not doing anything, it was...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 17, 2013

DJ Miso Shiru and MC Gohan raps and roasts on 'Mother's Food'

A gig doesn't double as dinner, but at DJ Miso Shiru and MC Gohan's shows there's a good chance food will be involved. Besides a hip-hop set, the audience can sometimes participate in cooking demonstrations.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 17, 2013

'Art Arch Hiroshima 2013'

Three museums in Hiroshima Prefecture — the Hiroshima Prefectural Art Museum, the Hiroshima Museum of Art and the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art — are joining forces this summer to hold "Art Arch Hiroshima," a set of exhibitions, each based on the theme of "peace and hope."
Reader Mail
Jul 17, 2013

The limits of radioactive waste

According to the July 10 AP article "Tepco safety drive hires foreign advocate," Lady Barbara Judge believes that Tokyo Electric Power Co. has changed enough under a new president to begin restarting its reactors. Has it really? Is she not saying these kinds of things simply to please Tepco, Keidanren,...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / Japan Pulse
Jul 17, 2013

Resting in peace has never been so easy

The array of after-life choices, especially for families with fewer financial means, is growing.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 16, 2013

Of spies and whistleblowers

Edward Snowden, a former contractor to the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, has been trapped in the transit lounge of Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow for the past two weeks, while the United States government strives mightily to get him back in its clutches. Recently it even arranged for the plane flying...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Jul 15, 2013

Trolls or media watchdogs?: Japan's foreign-born defenders

Have the foreign media got it in for Japan? Do they unduly focus on, and sensationalize, Fukushima radiation leaks, alleged racial intolerance and the self-aggrandizing policy pronouncements of the reborn Liberal Democratic Party?
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 15, 2013

The Internet can be a lifesaver for suicidal teens

An anti-bullying team has developed a revolutionary website that offers professional and informal support to 11- to 17-year-olds who are having suicidal thoughts.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 15, 2013

Kochs use Web to slam critical reports

When environmental journalist David Sassoon began reporting about the billionaire Koch brothers' interests in the Canadian oil industry last year, he sought information from their privately held conglomerate, Koch Industries. The brothers, who have gained prominence in recent years as supporters of and...
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.

Longform

An illustration features the Japanese signs for "ganbare" (good luck) and the Deaflympics, which will be held between Nov. 15 and 26.
A century of Deaf sport finds its moment in Tokyo