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May 07, 2024
 

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Ben Dooley
For Ben Dooley's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 28, 2021
Japan’s Communists are hardly radical, but make a handy election target
The party, which long ago abandoned Marx and Lenin and never really had time for Stalin or Mao, is about as radical as a beige cardigan.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Oct 24, 2021
Yes, this tiny water cooler capsule toy is 'ridiculous.' Perfect.
Yoshiaki Yamanishi set out to create the most boring toy imaginable.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 30, 2021
How Asia, once a vaccination laggard, is revving up inoculations
Overall, most Asians trusted their governments to do the right thing and put the needs of the community over individual freedoms.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 26, 2021
Few women ascend Japan’s corporate ladder. Is change finally coming?
Only 6% of board seats at Japanese companies are held by women. After years of unfulfilled promises, these businesses are now facing pressure both at home and abroad to diversify.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 11, 2021
Her death shook Japan. But it may not shift its refugee policy.
A report on the death of a Sri Lankan detainee fails to assign blame to any individuals, nor address some of the more systemic issues with Japan's immigration system.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 7, 2021
Tokyo was promised glory and riches. It got an Olympics in a bubble.
The Games failed to live up to their economic promise and cast a harsh light on Japan's political culture. Some feel “a hunger for a new system.”
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
May 19, 2021
Japan left shaken after a detainee, wasting away, dies alone in her cell
Critics of Japan's immigration system say that Wishma Ratnayake was the victim of an opaque, capricious bureaucracy that has nearly unchecked power over those who run afoul of it.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 1, 2021
A grudge match in Japan: One corner, two 7-Elevens
A fight playing out in Osaka will have ramifications for 7-Eleven and the rest of Japan's major franchises.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Apr 13, 2021
Ready or not, Hideki Matsuyama is now a national hero in Japan
With his dramatic win at the Masters, the glare of fame will be inescapable for the 29-year-old, who has preferred to focus on improving his game.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 3, 2021
Japan is finding it harder to stay quiet on China’s abuse of Uyghurs
Public awareness of the issue is growing in the country, spurred in part by the work of Uyghur activists, and that is increasing pressure on the government to take action.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Mar 2, 2021
Anime is booming. So why are animators living in poverty?
The workers who make the Japanese shows the world is binge-watching can earn as little as $200 a month. Many wonder how much longer they can endure it.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 25, 2021
Deaths in Japan fall for the first time in more than a decade
The health ministry reported that the number of deaths across the nation dropped by more than 9,300 in 2020 to around 1.4 million.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Dec 4, 2020
He escaped death as a kamikaze pilot. 70 years later, he told his story.
Kazuo Odachi hid his wartime past from almost everyone, but finally published his memoirs, which were recently released in English.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Nov 28, 2020
A job for life, or not? A class divide deepens in Japan.
Recent court rulings threaten to further entrench the long-standing divide between so-called regular workers and the growing ranks of nonregular workers, many of whom are women.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Sep 27, 2020
Japan is paying firms to make things at home. But China’s pull is still strong.
The pandemic — and Beijing's increasingly combative behavior during it — has driven home the risks of overreliance on China for the production of a broad range of goods.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 3, 2020
Japan's convenience stores are told to stop pushing 24-hour schedules
The firms' business models have been criticized for putting profit ahead of the needs of franchise owners.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 15, 2015
Forget Fukushima: China powering ahead with plans for new reactors
In February, four years after pressing pause on one of the world's most ambitious nuclear energy programs, China quietly green-lighted the construction of two new nuclear reactors.
JAPAN
Mar 19, 2015
China in shock after Japanese girl wins brain battle
China's loss to Japan on a popular game show devoted to mental athletics has left the country's netizens atwitter and provoked some national soul-searching.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 22, 2015
Despite dangerous smog, most Beijingers go mask free
In early January, a toxic cloud of smog settled over Beijing. For nearly a week, it wreathed the city in a choking, yellow haze.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 27, 2015
As Japan frets over hostages, China frets over Abe
The Islamic State's announcement last week of the kidnapping of two Japanese men has raised serious questions about how the crisis will affect Japan's Middle East policy.
As visitors surge, Japan seeks ways to make tourism eco-friendly
Much like other hot spots across Okinawa, Onna has diligently strived to captivate both domestic and international tourists, while at the same time grappling with the environmental strain induced by the influx of visitors.
Japan says Biden's description of nation as xenophobic is 'unfortunate'
The National Diet building in Tokyo
Tokuryū, a new crime menace in Japan, emerges from the shadows
The National Police Agency coined the term "tokuryū" to classify individuals involved in dark part time jobs and quasi-gangsters, using the words "tokumei" (anonymous) and "ryūdo" (fluid) to reflect their characteristics.
Is Modi’s party heading for a stunning election loss?
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's campaign tactics have escalated, including anti-Muslim rhetoric and fearmongering, reflecting his ruling party's desperation.
Kishida talks up bolstered Latin American ties as China cements position
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida holds a news conference in Sao Paulo on Saturday.
Japan’s tween skateboarders get head start on preparations for 2028 Olympics
Ibuki Matsumoto competes at an event in Osaka on April 21.
As visitors surge, Japan seeks ways to make tourism eco-friendly
Much like other hot spots across Okinawa, Onna has diligently strived to captivate both domestic and international tourists, while at the same time grappling with the environmental strain induced by the influx of visitors.
Kishida talks up bolstered Latin American ties as China cements position
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida holds a news conference in Sao Paulo on Saturday.
Debate on constitutional revision at a standstill despite Kishida's pledges
With less than two months left before the conclusion of the current session of parliament, any possibility that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida can deliver constitutional reform before the end of his term as Liberal Democratic Party president in late September, as he has promised, appears remote.
Sapporo court ruling on Ainu fishing rights presents tough questions
A traditional Ainu preserved food called <i>satchep</i> (dried fish) being made at the government-run National Ainu Museum and Park, nicknamed Upopoy, in the town of Shiraoi, Hokkaido, on Dec. 25. The Sapporo District Court ruled last month that the Raporo Ainu Nation's rights as an Indigenous people did not extend to having an inherent right to fish for commercial reasons.

Podcast

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Rows of irises resemble a rice field at the Peter Walker-designed Toyota Municipal Museum of Art.
The 'outsiders' creating some of Japan's greenest spaces
By Stephen Mansfield

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