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COMMENTARY
Jan 5, 2012

Why Obama will (won't) win re-election in 2012

Could 2012 turn conventional wisdom on its head? Here's the conventional wisdom: U.S. President Barack Obama's re-election is vulnerable to the weak economy and high joblessness. Here's what might happen: The economy gradually improves, and although unemployment stays high (exceeding 8 percent), what...
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jan 1, 2012

Japan's troubled royals put up a brave front

Bungei Shunju ("literary spring and autumn") is arguably Japan's most prestigious monthly magazine. Emblazoned in celebratory red across the cover of its New Year's edition is the rather ominous headline, "The Day the Heisei (Era) Ends."
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / LIGHT GIST
Dec 27, 2011

2011: a year of disaster in quotes

This year produced more than its share of memorable quotes, many of which were inspired by the March 11 disaster and its aftermath. But figures from other fields, from sports to entertainment, also said things worth repeating. Here is a sampling, in chronological order:
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Dec 27, 2011

Many angles to acquiring Japanese citizenship

Nationality has long been a controversial issue in Japan. For most, it is something they are born with; for others, it is something they had to fight for. For some, nationality may be a source of pride, while for others, it may be the cause of discrimination.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Dec 26, 2011

Strange how isolationist stance can ruin a politician's reputation

Perhaps because it's a round number, the 70th anniversary of Japan's assault on Pearl Harbor has given me the impression that more articles on it saw print than in the past, except for, as I recall, the 50th anniversary of the same.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 23, 2011

'I am Love'

'I am Love" is an ode to Tilda Swinton: Once she appears before the camera, directors such as Italian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino want to keep gazing at her forever. According to the production notes, Guadagnino says the project had been in the works for 16 years, and during that time he had never once...
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Dec 23, 2011

Western Conference squads enjoying success on road

If this season's first 20 games have proven anything, there's no such thing as home sweet home for the Miyazaki Shining Suns. Nor is there a home-court advantage for coach Koto Toyama's team.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Dec 20, 2011

Festive lights prevail, with restraint

Every winter places set themselves aglow with illuminations as part of the festive mood for Christmas and New Year's.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 20, 2011

Family ties spur spending sprees

Hiromi Komatsu is hitting Tokyo department stores in search of Christmas presents this year for the first time in her life, as she prepares for a rare visit by family members for the holiday season.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Dec 18, 2011

The times may change, but the hits keep coming

The 46th year of Showa, 1971, is remembered as the year of the "Nixon Shock," when the U.S. president took unilateral action to raise the Japanese yen's value against the dollar — from ¥360 to $1, to around ¥308 to $1. Nixon sought to reduce the swelling trade deficit by action aimed at forcing up...
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Dec 16, 2011

Losing streak by Five Arrows nearing epic proportions

Considering their recent history, it's no surprise the Takamatsu Five Arrows are piecing together a season that resembles a comedy of errors. But the fact that the team has made zero roster upgrades or additions in recent weeks may come as a shock to even the biggest of cynics.
JAPAN
Dec 16, 2011

Futenma base relocation has little hope left

The political games being played in Washington and Tokyo regarding whether the U.S. will fund the transfer of Okinawa-based U.S. Marines to Guam are of no consequence, experts say, because the 2006 plan to relocate the Futenma airbase to Henoko in northern Okinawa Island, which the Guam transfer depends...
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Dec 13, 2011

Fukushima rice in cesium limbo

Autumn is high season for freshly harvested "shinmai," the new rice marketed as a seasonal favorite in Fukushima Prefecture. But the farmers there fear their fare will go unsold because harvests around three cities have turned up excessive levels of radioactive cesium, prompting shipment bans.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Dec 6, 2011

Tax, pension breaks called favoritism for homemakers

The tax and social security systems have long been seen as favoring full-time homemakers over working women because they are based on single-income households.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Dec 4, 2011

Occupy Wall Street resonates within Japan

While Japan's vernacular media has regularly reported on the Occupy Wall Street movement that has swept the United States over the past several months, coverage regarding the movement and its aims has been somewhat bland.
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Dec 2, 2011

Hannaryz building momentum in Western Conference

In the rugged Western Conference, the Kyoto Hannaryz face a rough road ahead in their quest to reach the Final Four for the first time in franchise history.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Nov 29, 2011

Utilities to cut it close amid winter demand

With winter just around the corner and possible electricity shortages looming from a string of nuclear power plant inspections, utilities and the government are urging people to once again conserve power.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 29, 2011

Euro crisis significantly worse: top French banker

Bank of France Gov. Christian Noyer said the European crisis has worsened "significantly," as deepening investor concern over the region worsens market volatility.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Nov 22, 2011

Last trial brings dark Aum era to end

The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal by condemned killer Seiichi Endo, lowering the curtain on the trials over the cult's heinous crimes, which began in the 1980s and culminated in the 1995 nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway system.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Nov 16, 2011

Smartphones new security battlefield

Smartphones have become a global phenomenon and in Japan in particular people are rapidly replacing their old cellphones with new handsets that are more like small computers with ever-increasing applications.
JAPAN
Nov 11, 2011

Risk-averse Noda shuns hallway interviews

Words are often the strongest weapon in a politician's armory, but the slightest slip of the tongue can turn into a huge liability, as evidenced by the number of occasions prime ministers and Cabinet members have been caught out in the last six years.
JAPAN
Nov 8, 2011

Stunner: JCP skips Osaka mayor race

The Osaka mayoral campaign took an unexpected turn over the weekend as the Japanese Communist Party candidate dropped out and called on voters to support current Mayor Kunio Hiramatsu over former Osaka Gov. Toru Hashimoto.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Nov 8, 2011

Late-night restaurants ripe for robbery

"Gyudon" beef-on-rice restaurants belonging to the Sukiya chain have become a favorite target of robbers.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Nov 6, 2011

Penny-pinching on pensions threatens to raid retirees' nest eggs

Much of the global media's attention this week was turned toward the possibility of Greece's default. Its direct effect on Japan is difficult to foresee. On the one hand, the approximately ¥1 trillion in national bonds Japan holds from the fiscally ailing countries that are referred to collectively...
JAPAN
Nov 1, 2011

Hashimoto bows out amid controversy

Toru Hashimoto finished his term Monday as Osaka governor, resigning three months early to run for mayor of the city of Osaka on Nov. 27.
BUSINESS
Nov 1, 2011

Japan needs a 'fresh start' to resolve lingering issues

Post-March 11 Japan faces the challenge of not just rebuilding from the damage of the massive earthquake and tsunami, but also tackling the nation's structural economic and political problems that have largely been left unresolved over the past two decades.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Oct 30, 2011

Less acclaim, more fun for Japan's Ig Nobel Prize winners

Since Hideki Yukawa in 1949, a total of 16 Japanese nationals have been named recipients of Nobel Prizes. In 2010, when the most recent Japanese winners were announced to receive prizes for chemistry, NHK interrupted its scheduled programming with a nyuusu sokuho (breaking news) announcement.

Longform

Dangami House is a 180-year-old former samurai residence of the Kato clan, who ruled over Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, until the Meiji Restoration.
A house, a legacy and the quiet work of restoration in rural Japan