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COMMENTARY / World
Sep 3, 2014

The West must decide whether Putin is Hitler

The West faces a dilemma now that Russian President Vladimir Putin has demonstrated his willingness to win at any cost in Ukraine: Does it, too, go all in, or does it admit Putin's de-facto sovereignty over Russia's post-Soviet neighbors?
Reader Mail
Sep 3, 2014

Cram schools have their place

The Aug. 31 editorial "Is it twilight for cram schools?"made me think of young people's education and the future of Japan. The editorial points out that at cram schools "students learned how to compete with people rather than cooperate."
Reader Mail
Sep 3, 2014

Import foreign universities

In his Aug. 28 letter, "Why universities can't compete," Alok Singh challenges professor Takamitsu Sawa's assessment (Aug. 25) that Japanese universities have failed to develop because of financial disparities in professors' pay and status.
Reader Mail
Sep 3, 2014

A disaster waiting to happen

Watching the TV news of the Hiroshima landslide disaster (Aug. 20), I felt anger at those responsible for issuing evacuation warnings, sorrow and pity for the poor victims who were incapable of evacuating on their own initiative, and amazement at the lack of emergency planning, etc.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 3, 2014

Tanigaki gets nod as LDP No. 2; hawkish Inada named party policy chief

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appoints Justice Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki as secretary-general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, and removes Shigeru Ishiba, his top political rival, from the party's No. 2 post.
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 3, 2014

Leak clouds Apple's shiny image

Apple Inc. has often displayed uncanny timing with its well-orchestrated end-of-year iPhone releases. But the leak of racy celebrity photos in the past few days put the company in the unusual position of having to mend its image just days before a highly anticipated product launch next Tuesday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 2, 2014

Asia's best friends shape an axis

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's watershed visit to Japan, and the bear-hug welcome from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, have added concrete content to a relationship embodying Asia's emerging democratic axis.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS / SPORTS SCOPE
Sep 2, 2014

Takahashi should light Olympic flame at 2020 Games

We still have more than 2,000 days to go until the 2020 Tokyo Olympics begin, but it is never too early to speculate on a some of the mystery that will surround the Opening Ceremony.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 2, 2014

Amid dengue outbreak, eviction also a threat to Yoyogi Park's homeless

The greatest danger the outbreak of dengue fever traced to Tokyo's Yoyogi Park poses to the homeless there may be the threat of eviction, not infection, advocates said Tuesday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 2, 2014

Startline hopes to tap into Japan's punk love

In the 2000s, Gumx was one of South Korea's top-tier punk acts. With that band on indefinite hiatus, though, Gumx drummer Gun Choi is now looking to achieve similar success with Startline, a punk trio he formed in March of last year.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 2, 2014

Review: Lisa Loeb at Billboard Live

Everyone has probably heard at least one Lisa Loeb song, and most likely it was her debut single "Stay (I Missed You)" — a worldwide hit exactly 20 years ago. Loeb remains thrilled with the song's continued success.
WORLD
Sep 2, 2014

Pro-government Syrian activist arrested over rare public defiance

Syrian authorities have arrested a pro-government activist who launched a social media campaign calling on officials to provide information about hundreds of missing soldiers, residents and activists said Monday.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 2, 2014

Xi's hard line on Hong Kong shows no room for tolerating challenges

President Xi Jinping's uncompromising stance on limiting democratic reforms in Hong Kong marks a public show of strength that signals to the world — and China's own citizens — that the ruling Communist Party won't tolerate any challenges to its authority.
WORLD / Science & Health
Sep 2, 2014

Poor response to Ebola causing needless deaths, World Bank head says

The world's "disastrously inadequate response" to West Africa's Ebola outbreak means many people are dying who could easily be saved, the head of the World Bank said Monday, as Nigeria confirmed another case of the highly contagious virus.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Sep 1, 2014

Veteran Aoki to return next season

Cohey Aoki contemplated retirement this offseason, but has decided to extend his playing career.
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 1, 2014

Top Chinese university warns against criticizing Communist Party

One of China's top universities has urged students and teachers to "fight against" criticism of the ruling Communist Party, an influential party journal said, in the latest curbs on free expression.
JAPAN
Sep 1, 2014

Chiba cities prepare to take back, dispose of their radioactive waste

Three cities in Chiba Prefecture contaminated with radioactive materials have agreed to dispose of the toxic waste on their own if the central government fails to find a final disposal site.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 1, 2014

With bigger issues in the balance, local election kicks off in Nago, Okinawa

A city assembly election expected to influence Okinawa's gubernatorial election in November and the central government's plans to build a replacement for the controversial Futenma base kicked off Sunday in Nago.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Sep 1, 2014

Pragmatism, charm are Tusk's hallmarks

Donald Tusk relied on a mix of charm and pragmatism to rise to the top of Polish politics and stay in power longer than anyone since the Cold War. Being the European Union's president will test the extent of those talents.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Sep 1, 2014

Putin calls for talks on east Ukraine 'statehood'; rebels fire on ship

Russian President Vladimir Putin called on Sunday for immediate talks on the "statehood" of southern and eastern Ukraine, although his spokesman said this did not mean Moscow now endorsed rebel calls for independence for territory they have seized.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 1, 2014

Hong Kong braces for protests as China rules out full democracy

Prodemocracy activists vowed on Sunday to bring Hong Kong's financial hub to a standstill after China's parliament rejected their demands for the right to freely choose the former British colony's next leader in 2017.
Japan Times
WORLD
Sep 1, 2014

Zuma summons Lesotho leaders for emergency talks after army attempts coup

Lesotho's political leaders were summoned by South African President Jacob Zuma for emergency talks after the military in the landlocked kingdom carried out an attempted coup.
JAPAN / INTERPRETATION & TRANSLATION
Aug 31, 2014

Connecting two cities beyond interpretation

Interpreters and translators facilitate communication and understanding between people who speak different languages, which sometimes is instrumental in bridging two distant cities.
Japan Times
JAPAN / GENERATIONAL CHANGE
Aug 31, 2014

Rebel entrepreneur turns job market on its head

Yujun Wakashin seeks to present an alternative lifestyle that he hopes will serve as a wake-up call for dropouts, shut-ins and underutilized hopefuls such as high school girls.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 31, 2014

Fukushima fallout: solidarity turns to resentment in city hosting evacuees

Like many of her neighbors, Satomi Inokoshi worries that her gritty hometown is being spoiled by the newcomers and the money that have rolled into Iwaki since the Fukushima nuclear disaster almost 3½ years ago.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 30, 2014

Macau casino dealers take industrial action for first time

Casino dealers working in one of the most popular casinos in the gambling hub of Macau started industrial action on Saturday for the first time in the Chinese territory as discontent over salaries and working benefits spreads.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Aug 30, 2014

Inside author David Mitchell's metaphysical mind

Outside the vista windows of the Hotel New Otani's Garden Lounge cafe in Tokyo, it's snowing, in March, and it suddenly feels like the spring flowers in the Japanese garden below may have popped too soon. David Mitchell wonders aloud what kind of flowers they are, before returning to our discussion....
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Aug 30, 2014

'I blacked out from drinking. ... I wasn't a good parent'

Yumiko Miyata started drinking when she was 15. She was an inherently shy girl and found that alcohol helped her make friends. When people discovered she could hold her liquor, she then became the center of attention. At first she thought it was harmless fun. Eventually, however, her life started spinning...

Longform

Koichi Tagawa’s diary entry from Aug. 9, 1945, describes the day of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
The horrors of Nagasaki, in first person