Search - reference

 
 
WORLD / Society
Oct 7, 2014

Pope ditches Latin as official language of key Vatican gathering

In a break with the past, Pope Francis has decided that Latin will not be the official language of a worldwide gathering of bishops at the Vatican.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Oct 2, 2014

In Hong Kong protests, China confronts limits of its power

In the heart of Mong Kok, one of the most densely populated districts on earth, an abandoned Hong Kong police van is enveloped in the student-led demonstrations paralyzing swaths of the city. Along with yellow ribbons and flowers, symbols of the city's pro-democracy movement, protesters have taped a...
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 30, 2014

Chinese receive limited coverage of 'illegal' Hong Kong protests

On a day when front pages of newspapers in Hong Kong and around the world carried stories on prodemocracy protesters confronting riot police in the city, the lead article in China's official People's Daily focused on a new book of President's Xi Jinping's speeches.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 29, 2014

Labor's battle against exploitation by capital, 150 years ago and today

The first international labor organization was founded 150 years ago in London. Although capitalist globalization has weakened the labor movement today, it has also opened new avenues of communication that may yet facilitate workers' international cooperation.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Sep 27, 2014

Chicago-area air traffic control center fire affects 1,750 flights

A fire apparently set by an employee at a Chicago-area air traffic control center led to the cancelation of more than 1,700 flights at the city's two major airports, snarling air traffic across the United States, officials said.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 26, 2014

Iran blames 'errors' of outsiders for rise of Islamic State

Iran President Hassan Rouhani on Thursday blamed the rise of the Islamic State group and other militants on the mistakes of the West and said the solution to stopping them must come from the Middle East.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 24, 2014

Hong Kong student activists rally ahead of threatened blockade

Hong Kong students gathered in the heart of the city for a second day on Wednesday ahead of a planned blockade of government buildings if the city's leader fails to discuss their demands for free elections.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 23, 2014

Choosing death when loss of self is imminent

For people who do not want to live on when their mind has gone, deciding whether and when to die is difficult, and likely to meet resistance from loved ones.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 21, 2014

With crash probe, China turns up heat on ex-security chief Zhou

Little is known about the exact circumstances in which Wang Shuhua was killed. What has been reported, in the Chinese media, is that she died in a road accident sometime in 2000, shortly after she was divorced from her husband. And that at least one vehicle with a military license plate may have been...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Sep 20, 2014

Glimpses of Lafcadio Hearn's Matsue

The Matsue-bound train I boarded at Okayama Station was pointedly named Yakumo, a reference to its destination's best-known former resident: Greek-Irish writer Lafcadio Hearn (1850-1904), whose adopted Japanese name was Yakumo Koizumi.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies / EXECUTIVE DECISIONS
Sep 18, 2014

MetLife banks on trust to succeed in Japan

As Japan's life insurance market matures, many companies are looking overseas for opportunities to expand.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 18, 2014

Taking a pictorial trip to Normandy

"Normandie — L'Estuaire de la Seine: L'Invention d'Un Paysage" ("Normandy — The Seine Estuary: The invention of a Landscape" is an exhibition at the Sompo Japan Museum of Art that recently changed its name to Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Museum of Art. Just as the museum's name is rather too long — something...
BUSINESS / Markets
Sep 18, 2014

Fed renews zero rate pledge but hints at steeper hike path later

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday renewed its pledge to keep interest rates near zero for a "considerable time," but also indicated it could raise borrowing costs faster than expected when it starts moving.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media
Sep 17, 2014

Der Spiegel magazine finds print and digital mix that works

With newspaper readership on the decline worldwide as the industry faces the print-to-digital transition, a German approach may serve as a reference for Japanese media seeking new tactics to attract customers.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 16, 2014

Obama is getting 'trolled' by the Islamic State

U.S. President Barack Obama's over-reaction to the videos of two American journalists getting beheaded gives one the uncomfortable feeling that the war-weary American people are again getting the bum's rush into playing the bad guy in the Mideast.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 16, 2014

Diverse compilation delivers a serious message about nuclear power

Various artists "Atomic Bomb Compilation Vol. 2" (Self-released)
WORLD / Politics
Sep 16, 2014

Gordon Brown wrestles with Scotland's fate ahead of referendum

Once mocked for claiming to have saved the world after the 2008 financial crisis, former Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown may now have the fate of Scotland in his hands.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 11, 2014

Tomoo Gokita's painterly coup

In a 2000, Gokita likened the relationship between fine artists and illustrators to that of martial artists and professional wrestlers. 'These days, though, wrestlers beat martial artists in MMA matches,' he noted. 'If I could do that in art, then I'm fine being an illustrator.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 10, 2014

Dawn of the motion-capture renaissance

If "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes," the second chapter in the reboot of the much-loved sci-fi franchise, feels like a different sort of blockbuster sequel — deeper, richer, more involving — that may be because director Matt Reeves is not your typical blockbuster director.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Sep 6, 2014

Yoshio Taniguchi: thriving in the shadow of greatness

Architect Yoshio Taniguchi generally doesn't like having his photograph taken for use in the media. In a way, it's a logical extension of his approach to his work, which could be described as architecture by subtraction. Having painstakingly removed everything extraneous from a design, and having overseen...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Sep 6, 2014

So Happy to See Cherry Blossoms

From great disaster flows great poetry, and this collection of haiku, collated by Madoka Mayuzumi on her visits to the areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami of March 2011 and translated into English, offers insight from those who lost so much.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 4, 2014

Between darkness and light

In the days just after the Great East Japan Earthquake, photographers, videographers and the mass media were, quite understandably, not that welcome inside the disaster zone. As time went on and survivors faced the task of dealing with the aftermath, contact with the outside world became increasingly...
JAPAN / History
Sep 4, 2014

Putin hails Soviet victory over Japan in courting Mongolia

Russian President Vladimir Putin cited a 1939 Soviet victory over the Imperial Japanese Army as a foundation of relations with Mongolia during a visit to Ulan Bator on Wednesday, despite a risk of upsetting Tokyo.
EDITORIALS
Sep 3, 2014

Japan and India's China challenge

Japan and India may find themselves talking at cross purposes if Tokyo is seeking closer ties with New Delhi as a means to counterbalance China's growing influence and assertiveness in the region.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 2, 2014

Joint resource development in South China Sea

Shared development of oil, gas and possibly other natural resources is the most promising option for reducing tensions in the South China Sea and should be the focus of efforts to improve diplomatic relations between China and its coastal neighbors.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 1, 2014

Abe, India's Modi agree to boost security, economic ties amid China's increasing territorial ambitions

The leaders of Japan and India agree to boost security and economic ties amid China's increasing territorial ambitions and military strength.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 29, 2014

Three timelines shaping Mideast developments

To shape an effective strategy in the Middle East, it is essential to understand three distinct timelines that are shaping developments: the short-term timeline of daily struggles, the medium-term timeline of geopolitical shifts, and the long-term timeline of sociocultural transformation.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji