Japanese and Israelis could make a killer yin-and-yang combo
Israel and Japan are the yin and yang of countries. And yet, despite — or maybe because of — their differences, they have much to offer each other.
The incoherent, divisive dogma of cultural appropriation outrage
Clueless online crusaders risk doing real harm to the very cultures they claim to represent
Until real change is achieved, LGBTQ people in Japan have no reason to be grateful
When the first same-sex partnership was recognized in Shibuya in 2015, the mayor called it "a first step." So why, nearly three years later, are we still taking first steps?
Fans of Japan and East Asia are reinventing Orientalism with a friendlier face
The Western entertainment industry presents a distorted image of Asia. But it also inspires hordes of fans to learn more.
Can the success of Alex Ferguson's 'kids' and Arsene Wenger's 'Invincibles' be linked to Buddhist philosophy? It's worth a try.
Pick up a secondhand book in Japan and unearth a mystery
Perhaps the greatest pleasure to be derived from shopping at secondhand book stores in Japan comes from never knowing what might turn up between their pages.
The Japanese lessons of a 'plastic Paddy'
A Briton of Irish stock finds the "Irishness" he seeks not on the Emerald Isle itself but in the expat pubs of his adopted land.
A shooting at my school, Florida's Douglas High, viewed from afar in Japan but still so close
The rest of the world cannot understand America's problem with guns. This hit home for me when yet another school shooting occurred at my alma mater in Parkland, Florida.
When it comes to thinking of the role that they themselves should play in Japan, many progressive expats are actually more in line with the Tiki-torch-carrying nationalists back home than against them.
Japan still has much to learn from Martin Luther King's nonviolent struggle
Could Dr. King's nonviolent methods work in Japan, a country with a completely different relationship between government and citizen than in America?
Looking back at 2017's Trump-triggered resurgence in American activism in Japan
The Women of the World March in January that brought hundreds onto the streets of Tokyo was the highlight of a year of action.
In Japan, rarefied manners abound but courtesy is less common
Japanese manners are often remarked upon with awe and wonder by visitors, but you seldom hear a word about Japanese courtesy.
