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Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Aug 23, 2013

Californian eyes making English studies easier

Visitors to Katie Adler's interactive website, English with Katie, are greeted with Adler's sunny smile, her mellow California accent and a wealth of hints to make using the language both easier and more enjoyable. She aims to help language learners in Japan take charge of their English, building confidence...
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / CHUBU CONNECTION
Aug 23, 2013

Was Fellers friend of Japan or master manipulator?

A Nagoya University professor is working on a book about the life of the late U.S. Brig. Gen. Bonner Fellers, who played a major role in absolving Emperor Hirohito (known posthumously as Emperor Showa) of responsibility for Japan’s wartime aggression across Asia.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 23, 2013

As promoters follow users, not sites, ads can pop up in distressing ways

Ads for knockoff Louis Vuitton bags pop up on the luxury retailer's official Facebook page. A Toyota advertisement shows up on a news article about a car crash. Or an ad for Dove promoting women's "real beauty" shows up on a Facebook page glorifying domestic violence.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Aug 16, 2013

War anniversary may irk China; why doesn't it honor fallen?

At 9:35 a.m. Thursday, Shanghai's state-owned Xinmin Evening News newspaper tweeted a reminder to its 1.8 million followers on the Sina Weibo microblogging service: "The Japanese surrendered 68 years ago today!"
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Aug 16, 2013

Deadly postwar bomb blast almost forgotten

On Sept. 5, 1945, weeks after World War II had ended, an unexploded bomb went off on the coast of the Otani district in Tokoname, Aichi Prefecture, killing seven children.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Aug 9, 2013

Nagoya landlord-envoy keeps Pacific island state in public eye

Passengers on the Tokaido Shinkansen can see the office sign for the state of Ngeremlengui in the Republic of Palau as the train rolls through Nagoya.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 7, 2013

Norwegian, Japanese musicians team up for show inspired by A-bomb anime

Norway is exporting more than just salmon this summer. A group of some 60 musicians, led by composer Magnar Am, have arrived in Japan.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Aug 7, 2013

Can Amazon's Bezos save the newspaper business?

Amazon.com founder Jeffrey Bezos' purchase of The Washington Post promises not just an ownership change for the 135-year-old institution but a potential transformation of the fusty mechanics of the newspaper business.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Aug 2, 2013

Salesman sets out to prevent inheritance fights

As an insurance salesman in Tsushima, Aichi Prefecture, Hisao Ito, 55, has seen times when family members and relatives fight over inheritances.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 31, 2013

Obama offers deal over taxes, jobs

President Barack Obama on Tuesday proposed spending more on creating jobs in exchange for an overhaul of business taxes. But the idea quickly devolved into the type of partisan finger-pointing that shows why any agreement will be so difficult.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Jul 30, 2013

Pope's accepting comments on gays mark change in tone

In another act of the kind of humble outreach that has marked the early months of his papacy, Pope Francis called on Monday for the integration of gays into society, remarking that even as leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics, he has no right to "judge" gay people.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jul 26, 2013

Nagoya commuters get their cycle on

Nagoya is seeing a growing number of "tsukinists," a term coined for those who commute to work by bicycle, pointing to the public's higher awareness of environmental and personal health issues.
Reader Mail
Jul 24, 2013

Myth of the 'virtuous' worker

Professor Dipak Basu is a shining example of someone who expresses his views on a variety of topics seemingly from his soul, and I respect him for that. He brings his faith into his arguments while casting the odd aspersion on "Western Christianity." He does so again in his July 18 letter, "Western work...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WEEK 3
Jul 20, 2013

Fuji meet wrestles with issues common to commons worldwide

Last month, just before the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization announced Mount Fuji's designation as a World Cultural Heritage Site for its religious and artistic significance, 430 learned visitors descended on its lower northern slopes.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 19, 2013

Summer becomes mother of cool invention

Many people are desperately seeking ways to escape the summer heat, and businesses are cashing in with new services to help them cool down.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 15, 2013

China's media block violates trade commitments

From the moment they land in China, Americans must adjust to an aggressively censored version of the Internet, sanitized of Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 10, 2013

Politicians silent on curbing hate speech

Calls in the Diet for legislation to curb hate speech targeting foreign residents of Japan are being made even as the issue barely registers on the campaign trail for the July 21 Upper House poll.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jul 5, 2013

Hard-charging foreigners inspire Nagoya University sumo team

With the 2013 July Grand Sumo Tournament in Nagoya set to kick off Sunday, Osunaarashi of Egypt is grabbing the media spotlight as the first pro sumo wrestler from Africa.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 1, 2013

Hezbollah leader nears sundown

Recent victories by Hezbollah militiamen in Syria will not save the regime of Bashar Assad. They could presage the political sunset for Hezbollah's leader.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jun 29, 2013

Ichinomiya uses manga to promote textile brand

A project to create costumes from the popular manga series "Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne" is under way in the textile hub of Ichinomiya, Aichi Prefecture, which recently came up with the "Costume Town" concept to promote itself.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2013

Deepening, revising ties with Southeast Asia

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Japan mark the 40th anniversary of their cooperative relations this year. ASEAN and Japan's partnership, which began with the establishment of the ASEAN-Japan forum on synthetic rubber, has evolved over the 40 years. The two parties have formed close cooperation...
JAPAN
Jun 28, 2013

Tokyo panel mulls ways to enhance high school English education

A panel of experts kicked off discussions Thursday on measures to enhance English education at Tokyo's public high schools, aiming to enable students to acquire practical communications skills and become more global-oriented.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 28, 2013

Cerberus impasse with Seibu appears set to drag on

How the public battle between U.S. private equity fund Cerberus Capital Management L.P. and Seibu Holdings Inc. over management of the struggling railway and hotel operator remains unclear even after the Seibu shareholders' meeting Tuesday.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Jun 25, 2013

Authors take polar-opposite tacks as they try to decipher Japanese women

It's an all-too-familiar story: On the romantic front, foreign ladies living in Japan have it bad while the guys do unbelievably well. For every woman who complains about Japanese men's aloofness and lack of communication skills, there is a man who boasts about all the local chicks he's had.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 24, 2013

Rowhani victory buys time for Iran

Hassan Rowhani's presidential election win has exposed a rift among Iran's democratic forces, yet has bought Tehran time on the nuclear issue.

Longform

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