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COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 17, 2020

Who benefits from the Henoko delay?

Most people in Okinawa Prefecture in fact do not truly desire a solution to the so-called Okinawa problem.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 17, 2020

Toshiba touts PC algorithm that's faster than a supercomputer

It's a tantalizing prospect for traders whose success often hinges on microseconds: a desktop PC algorithm that crunches market data faster than today's most advanced supercomputers.
JAPAN
Jan 17, 2020

Suicides in Japan fell below 20,000 to record low last year

After a decade of belated effort, reported suicides are hovering below 20,000 for the first time since record-keeping began in 1978, preliminary figures show.u2028
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jan 17, 2020

Japan opposition parties' failing merger bid offers glimpse into divisions

The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and the Democratic Party for the People missed a golden chance ahead of the Diet's opening Monday, and time is running out.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 17, 2020

To kill or not to kill: that is the question in 'Death Note: The Musical'

A new version of 'Death Note: The Musical' takes to the stage in Tokyo, with hopes of challenging people's perceptions of justice.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Tohoku
Jan 17, 2020

India relief team chief brings home lessons from 3/11 Tohoku tsunami

The former head of an Indian government rescue team dispatched for relief operations in Onagawa, Miyagi Prefecture, following the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami in 2011 is sharing the lessons learned from the disaster-stricken town in his home country.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jan 17, 2020

Nagoya tech school students plan to build seaplane for flood rescues

Members of Nagoya City Technical High School's airplane club are planning to develop a seaplane that can be used to rescue people from floods — an idea they came up with after learning about the Ise Bay Typhoon, a 1959 storm that swept through the Chubu region, claiming more than 5,000 lives.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 17, 2020

In Japan, foreign parents lead charge against loss of child custody

A growing number of foreign nationals in Japan are speaking out against what they say is a little-known but entrenched system that allows one parent in a broken relationship to take away children and block the other from visiting them.
Reader Mail
Jan 17, 2020

Achieving goals in the Year of the Rat

After reading the article "New year, new opportunities" in the Dec. 29 edition, I found myself wishing I were a rat with intelligence, agility and quick thinking.
Reader Mail
Jan 17, 2020

Back to Basu's drawing board

Regarding the opinion piece "For the 2020s, it's time to go back to the drawing board" in the Jan. 6 edition, "the start of a new decade" is indeed "an occasion for pause and reflection." The questions that writer Kaushik Basu asks about the increasing inequalities and fractiousness of our democracies...
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / Wide Angle
Jan 17, 2020

NHK's taiga drama hopes to shake off its curse

Amid celebrity scandals and low ratings, NHK launches the latest installment of its long-running Sunday evening drama series.
Jan 17, 2020

SUNTORY GROUP PLEDGES $500,000 TO SUPPORT BUSHFIRE RELIEF AND RECOVERY IN AUSTRALIA

Suntory Holdings Joined by Operating Units Beam Suntory, Frucor Suntory and Suntory Coffee to Give Back to Communities Impacted by Tragic Fires
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 17, 2020

Xi courts an isolated Myanmar in first state visit of the year

In China's carefully choreographed diplomatic calendar, the itinerary of the president's first overseas trip can send signals about his long-term strategic goals.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 17, 2020

Trump denies knowing Lev Parnas despite photos of them together

President Donald Trump insisted he doesn't know Lev Parnas, a Rudy Giuliani associate who says he helped the president's personal lawyer dig up dirt on Joe Biden in Ukraine, despite multiple pictures of Parnas with Trump and his family.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 17, 2020

Sweden suffers surge in bomb attacks as gang violence rises

A surge in drug-linked gang-violence in Sweden led to a 60 percent increase in bomb blasts in 2019, government statistics showed on Thursday, as police work to rid the streets of explosives and guns with more officers on patrol.
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2020

25 years after Kobe quake, SDF respected and volunteerism still strong

As Kobe commemorates the 25th anniversary of the Great Hanshin Earthquake that took the lives of more than 6,400 people, the city and region are working to remind younger generations of the past devastation — and the importance of disaster-preparedness — even as they face tough questions about their...
Japan Times
EDITORIALS
Jan 16, 2020

Have we learned enough from the 1995 Kobe quake?

Disaster response poses an ongoing challenge in this calamity-prone country.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 16, 2020

Japan-China ties, according to Beijing

Beijing's perceptions of the state of Japan-China relations and Japan-U.S. relations reflect an aspiration of what they hope to manifest.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 16, 2020

Volcano tests Philippines' disaster plans

New focus on preparedness instead of hasty recovery could be a model for the region.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 16, 2020

In Hong Kong 'collapse,' government falls months behind on collecting taxes

Hong Kong is behind on its taxes.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Jan 16, 2020

To deter China, refined 'porcupine strategy' may be more crucial to Taiwan than high-profile arms

In her first term, President Tsai Ing-wen secured more than $10 billion in high-profile U.S. weapons to defend Taiwan against China. Over the next four years, it may be more important to acquire less glamorous but nimbler weapons to prevent Beijing from considering an invasion.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 16, 2020

Doubts linger after U.S. and China ink initial trade deal

China will boost spending on U.S. products in exchange for rolling back of some tariffs under an initial trade deal signed by the world's two largest economies Wednesday, defusing an 18-month row but leaving numerous thorny issues unresolved.
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2020

Chief of NPO backing Kobe quake victims passes torch after quarter century

A 69-year-old man who has dedicated his time since the 1995 Kobe earthquake to visiting and listening to people affected by the disaster is ready to hand his mission over to younger generations.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / NBA
Jan 16, 2020

Kendrick Nunn ignites Heat in victory over Spurs

Kendrick Nunn was the last Miami player off the court at halftime, required to hang out for an extra minute or two in order to pick up his second Eastern Conference rookie of the month trophy.
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2020

Social media abuzz over Kagawa's move to limit kids' daily smartphone fix

A draft ordinance designed to curb internet and video game addiction among children and teenagers in Kagawa Prefecture has sparked controversy, as it seeks to restrict daily smartphone usage for those under 18 to 60 minutes on weekdays.
BUSINESS
Jan 16, 2020

Toyota makes new $394 million bet on flying taxis

Toyota Motor Co. is investing $394 million (¥43.3 billion) in Joby Aviation, one of a handful of companies working toward the seemingly implausible goal of making electric air taxis that shuttle people over gridlocked highways and city streets.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 16, 2020

Australian fires turn historic surfboard collection to cinders

White cinders, a few fins and melted board skins are all that remain of Australian surfer David Ford's 260-strong collection of irreplaceable vintage surfboards.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past