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COMMENTARY
Nov 22, 2011

Syrian uprising victimized

Syrians continue to be victimized, not only in violent clashes with the Syrian military, but also by regional and international players with various agendas.
COMMENTARY
Nov 22, 2011

Guess who's suddenly inviting Uncle Sam to dinner?

Real-life diplomacy reveals, as Lord Palmerston, twice British prime minister (1855-8, 1859-65), famously put it: "We have no eternal allies, and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and those interests it is our duty to follow." Over the decades the Palmerston Principle...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Nov 22, 2011

Sapporo: What's so great about winter in Hokkaido?

Charles HarrisonCompany director, 28 (Australian)Aside from the amazing snow, the variety of people in Hokkaido is great. I've been in and out of Hokkaido now for four years but I love it so much I'd like to base myself here.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 21, 2011

You think you're funny, but really you're not

In this age of shūshoku hyōgaki (就職氷河期, the employment ice age) the one industry that's filling young people with hope and plans for the future is this: the world of owarai (お笑い, comedy).
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Nov 20, 2011

Is Aum's guru finally headed for the gallows?

Tomorrow, Nov. 21, the Supreme Court is expected to hand down its ruling on the appeal filed by Seiichi Endo, a former member of the Aum Shinrikyo (Supreme Truth) cult. Endo, now 51, was sentenced to death in 2002 (upheld in 2007) for his role in the nerve gas attacks in Matsumoto City in June 1994 and...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
Nov 20, 2011

Sarobetsu's a stopover to count on for wonders

Gray predawn light suffuses the eastern horizon before crawling slowly across the landscape — but not before a rich clamoring reaches my ears.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Nov 20, 2011

Memories of Mount Takao

Sometimes in the Japanese autumn, when the days are still warm and the air is beginning to smell of persimmons and fallen leaves, my mind stumbles across a day nearly 20 years ago now, and I turn the memory over and over as I try to make sense of how the time since then has passed.
COMMENTARY
Nov 19, 2011

Fear drives Arab League to act

For most of its 66-year history, the Arab League was a powerless organization, dominated by autocratic regimes that made sure it never criticized their lies and crimes. But suddenly, this year, it woke up and changed sides.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST
Nov 19, 2011

The poetry of pet peeves

First, let's clarify the term, "pet peeve."
BUSINESS
Nov 19, 2011

Resona to up female chiefs

Resona Holdings Inc. aims to help narrow the country's gender gap by adding female managers and appointing a woman as an executive for the first time.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Nov 18, 2011

"Yoshiyuki Chosa: The Beauty of Metalworking"

This exhibition celebrates the Nov. 10 presentation ceremony of the Kyoto Prize, which was established by the electronics company Kyocera's founder, Kazuo Inamori, and given in recognition of outstanding work in the fields of art, philosophy, science and technology.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 18, 2011

'Koi no Tsumi (Guilty of Romance)'

How can a film shock today's jaded audiences, for whom blood spurts and flying body parts prompt laughter instead of gasps? How can a filmmaker transgress when nearly everything is allowed? Taken far enough, this line of inquiry can lead to the attention of the police. It can also be the starting point...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 18, 2011

'Henry's Crime'

There's such a thing in this world as aging gracefully (see Brad Pitt), and then there's Keanu Reeves, which is another thing altogether. The average cinephile may not describe Reeves as a "thing," but take it from one who knows: At this point in time he may be the only one in his weight class who could...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 17, 2011

Thai floods may divert Japanese investment

Japanese companies, Thailand's biggest foreign investors, may spend more to build factories in neighboring Indonesia and Vietnam after the worst flooding in 70 years disrupted global production.
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2011

Low-level radiation questions spur anxiety

For residents of Fukushima Prefecture, anxiety over their exposure to low levels of radiation has been palpable since the March 11 twin disasters crippled the Fukushima No. 1 power plant.
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.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 16, 2011

Hawks show mettle with Game 3 win

After losses in the first two games of the Japan Series, Fukuoka Softbank Hawks captain Hiroki Kokubo told reporters, "we're not dead yet."
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Nov 15, 2011

Tokyo ordinance a potential contract-killer

A prediction: if Japan ever becomes a police state, it will come about not by national law but municipal ordinances. And the war on organized crime could be the engine that drives the process.
EDITORIALS
Nov 15, 2011

Recognizing Japanese food culture

The word 'sushi' might just be the most traveled word in Japanese. All around the world, Japanese cuisine is appreciated, respected and most of all, enjoyed. Because of its uniqueness, a panel of experts under the agriculture ministry is calling for Japan's culinary culture to be included on UNESCO's...
COMMENTARY / World / ABE'S PROMISES
Nov 15, 2011

Investing in legal power for people

Inspired by Anna Hazare's hunger strike, thousands of people recently gathered at Ramlila Grounds in New Delhi to protest governmental corruption. Protesters from here and around the country pressed for specific political change — a new institution to combat corruption. In principle, they won. Parliament...
Reader Mail
Nov 13, 2011

Enough of the Asahara case

Regarding the Nov. 10 Kyodo brief "Asahara second retrial plea fails": How long is the justice minister going to let this filthy case drag out? I don't see any reason for doing so other than to allow one of the world's worst demons to enjoy life for so long.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 13, 2011

One mistake proves costly for Softbank's Wada

If circumstances conspire to make this Tsuyoshi Wada's last start in a Fukuoka Softbank Hawks uniform, he'll leave with mixed feelings.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Nov 13, 2011

PL champion Hawks are vital part of vibrant Fukuoka

While I was flying from Tokyo's Haneda Airport to Fukuoka for the Pacific League Climax Series final stage last week, a thought occurred to me. What if the Wright Brothers could come back and take a similar flight today? What would they think of the advances made in aviation since they made that...

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear