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JAPAN
Mar 16, 2010

Hatoyama's brother quits 'ousted' LDP

Former internal affairs minister Kunio Hatoyama, whose older brother, Yukio, is the prime minister, served notice Monday that he was exiting the Liberal Democratic Party, saying he was ready to form a new force.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Mar 16, 2010

Guerrilla comics wage war on the humdrum

If you'd gone down to Shimokitazawa that day — the Saturday before Christmas, around 3 p.m. — you'd have been sure of a big surprise. No, not a teddy bears' picnic, though in Shimokita you never know; instead, among the usual bustling crowds of hipsters, a load of people just stopped moving. For...
EDITORIALS
Mar 14, 2010

Back to the fast-breeder path

The Nuclear Safety Commission on Feb. 22 gave the go-ahead to starting the test run of the prototype fast-breeder reactor (FBR) Monju in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture. If the prefectural and municipal governments give their consent, the test run should begin by the end of March at the earliest.
CULTURE / Books
Mar 14, 2010

Dazzling, difficult debut is anything but a throwaway

If you live in Japan for many years, you see a lot of people come and go. The expat crowd is notoriously transitory, and no subset is more ubiquitously "temporary" than English teachers. Wave after wave of JET teachers come for a year or two, have their bite-sized exotic experience, and then return home...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Mar 14, 2010

Empress of ennui beloved in Japan

She was a caged wife with an insatiable thirst for love and freedom. She was a famed beauty and fitness freak. She defied royal protocol and was often at odds with conservatives around her, including her mother-in-law.
JAPAN
Mar 13, 2010

Sea Shepherd activist arrested

The Japan Coast Guard on Friday arrested a member of U.S.-based antiwhaling group Sea Shepherd Conservation Society for trespassing in connection with his boarding of a whaling fleet vessel in the Antarctic Ocean last month.
BUSINESS
Mar 13, 2010

BOJ looks to expand balance sheet

The Bank of Japan may seek next week to counter a contraction of its balance sheet caused by the monthend expiration of an emergency-credit program and persistent deflation.
EDITORIALS
Mar 12, 2010

Exposure to tobacco smoke

Five years have passed since the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control went into effect (Feb. 27, 2005). The FCTC, the first treaty negotiated under the auspices of the World Health Organization, has 168 parties and covers 86 percent of the world population. Nevertheless, tobacco products remain the...
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Mar 12, 2010

Family-friendly exhibit celebrates mammals

From Ueno Zoo's giant panda, Ling Ling, to a 2.5-meter-tall polar bear, around 280 stuffed specimens, fossils and skeletons of mammals will go on display at the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo from March 13. Titled "Mammals: Diversity in Terrestrial Life," the exhibition examines the evolution...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
Mar 12, 2010

Walking tours of old, scenic Tokyo

Hotel New Otani will hold walking tours of historic and scenic areas of Tokyo, formerly known as Edo, with a lunch at the hotel after the tour.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Mar 12, 2010

Luck of the Irish to parade across country

Celebrations for Ireland's most famous holiday are gaining in popularity worldwide, and Japan is no exception.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Mar 12, 2010

Dancer Rizzi brings unique story to Japan

"Why go to a performance instead of renting a DVD and staying at home?" ponders 44-year-old dancer, choreographer, actor and visual artist Antony Rizzi on the Boston Cyberarts Festival Web site. Rizzi feels that this is an exciting time for dance to do battle with the lethargic pull of the home entertainment...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 12, 2010

Regional resonance

In a metropolis the size of Tokyo, it is no surprise that there are several large orchestras and a number of high-quality concert halls. But the number of orchestras performing daily can be hard to keep track of, particularly as some have very similar names: Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Metropolitan...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 12, 2010

Molice channel silver screen on new album

"We're really inspired by Stanley Kubrick and we want to create a sound that reflects Kubrick's visual image," says guitarist Yuzuru Takeda of Molice. The band is due to release a new album titled "Catalystrock" later this month, and we're here in a small coffee shop on the band's home turf in Kokubunji,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 12, 2010

Klaus Schulze

When people talk about the godfathers of techno and ambient music, the names Brian Eno and Kraftwerk come up frequently, but you could also make a strong case for German space-music pioneer Klaus Schulze. A musician with impeccable krautrock credentials, Schulze played drums for Tangerine Dream and Ash...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / ART BRIEF
Mar 12, 2010

'Showa no Joseitachi'

Kiyokawa Taiji Memorial GalleryCloses March 22
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / BY THE GLASS
Mar 12, 2010

Wine importers keep their cool

A few years ago, I enjoyed a chilled glass of wine while sitting on a cobbled street in the medieval French city of Chinon in the heart of Loire Valley; the wine was from the surrounding vineyards of Samur and tasted absolutely divine. When I got the chance to sample a similar wine from the same region...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Mar 12, 2010

Painting the spirit that built great empires

As I write, the British pound is in sharp decline against a wide range of currencies, including even the Zimbabwean dollar! No, there hasn't been an editorial mishap and this is not the financial section of The Japan Times. I just mention these facts of economic decline to add some perspective to the...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / ART BRIEF
Mar 12, 2010

'Story-Telling: Silesia'

Shyadai GalleryCloses March 31
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Mar 12, 2010

The world's most eclectic renter

"When you go out on the street and walk on the sidewalk, someone has decided where the sidewalk is. You take your car and drive the car; someone decided the roadway — you have a red light and a green light. Actually, we are funneled 24-hours around the clock through highly regulated spaces designed...
EDITORIALS
Mar 10, 2010

A blueprint for China

In 2009, China succeeded in tiding over the impact of the worst global financial crisis in decades thanks to the government economic stimulus package, which included a 4 trillion yuan (¥52 trillion) two-year investment. But Premier Wen Jiabao's government work report to China's Parliament shows that...
JAPAN
Mar 10, 2010

Shipment of nuclear waste arrives from U.K.

OSAKA — The first delivery of at least 850 canisters of high-level radioactive vitrified waste arrived Tuesday morning by ship from the U.K. in Rokkasho, Aomori Prefecture, where it will sit in storage for decades before being buried deep underground.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Mar 9, 2010

TV gets fickle fans flocking to fads to shed fat

Many people in Japan, especially young women, are keen to diet.
EDITORIALS
Mar 8, 2010

A 'first step' in South Asia

India and Pakistan have resumed high-level diplomatic talks. The discussions were preliminary — a "first step" in the words of Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao — but relations between the two are so bad and the potential fallout from a crisis so high that any progress between the two is to be...
COMMENTARY
Mar 8, 2010

New device apt to kindle greater interest in reading

The first thing that catches your eye when you open the yousho (imported books) section of Amazon Japan's home page is an advertisement for the Kindle DX Wireless Reading Device. The Kindle DX ad, which first appeared last summer, claims that a reader can perform a wireless download of any of more than...

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’