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Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 31, 2012

Cherry blossoms set to lift national mood

The nation was too stunned last year to partake in the national ritual of "hanami" cherry blossom viewing after the March 11 disasters left more than 18,000 dead or missing, but now people are in the mood.
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Mar 31, 2012

Takamatsu's plight reflects poorly on league

The Takamatsu Five Arrows are awful, so bad that they don't even pretend to be a cheap imitation of a mediocre franchise.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Mar 31, 2012

Singer finds fusion in Japan's cultural dichotomy

Japan's fusion of the traditional and modern fascinated musician Yara Eddine as a young child when she learned about the country at a school in Canada. Fifteen years later, Eddine witnessed this integration firsthand.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Mar 30, 2012

Streamlined offerings from new adult anime titles

The packages get a little smaller for adult anime.
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Mar 30, 2012

Marshall injury deals fresh blow to beleaguered Evessa

Already without two-time MVP Lynn Washington, the face of the franchise and the most famous player in league history after his March 13 arrest on suspicion of smuggling marijuana into Japan, the Osaka Evessa now are coping with the loss of center Wayne Marshall for an estimated four weeks.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Mar 30, 2012

Helping Tokyo menus to get found in translation

One of the longtime complaints of English-speaking foreigners visiting restaurants in Japan is that few of them offer menus in English. Well, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government is doing what it can to help eateries translate their menus into English and other languages, to help them become more hospitable...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 30, 2012

Oil consumption hits four-year high as LNG use peaks to cover reactors

Japan is consuming the most oil in four years as it runs out of capacity to use liquefied natural gas as a stopgap for idled nuclear power plants.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 30, 2012

'The Help'

The Help" could be a lot more thorny than it is, but as a tale of bigotry and racial prejudice set in Jackson, Mississippi, in the early 1960s, its contours are surprisingly smooth. It doesn't have the high rage factor of, say, 1988's "Mississippi Burning," nor the intense, provocative drama of 1990's...
Reader Mail
Mar 29, 2012

'Overstayers' a boon to society

Regarding the March 27 article "Visa overstayers rally to maintain privileges after immigration revision": At a time when we need people in Japan who are contributing to society, why would we want these people to leave?
JAPAN
Mar 29, 2012

Firms furious over Tepco rate hike

Businesses are displeased to say the least with Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s rate hike taking effect April 1, as it will put an extra burden on their operating costs, especially in those industries that use a large amount of power.
Reader Mail
Mar 29, 2012

Imbalance in Japan's economy

Regarding the March 4 Kyodo article "Food must be cleansed, Chernobyl expert warns": Many Japanese citizens are skeptical about the safety of products suspected of having been [irradiated by substances] released from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant. Many are losing their jobs as demand for these products...
Reader Mail
Mar 29, 2012

Tap the ocean for energy

I was very interested in the March 26 article reprinted from Sentaku magazine titled "Tapping into oceanic energy." Since the 3/11 accidents at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, several alternative-energy substitutions have been proposed:
Reader Mail
Mar 29, 2012

Infantile use of 'racism' label

In two AP articles published March 21, "Police see racist motive behind French shootings" and "British teacher used Nazi antics to rile neighbors," we see once more the common misuse of words.
Reader Mail
Mar 29, 2012

Painful to see payoffs to U.S.

Regarding the March 25 Kyodo article "Japan asked to shell out extra $1 billion over [U.S. Marines'] transfer to Guam": As a long-term resident of Japan, it is painful to see Japan taken to the cleaners. Japan signed a peace treaty a long time ago, meaning that Japan has full sovereignty over its own...
Reader Mail
Mar 29, 2012

Hope for 3/11 survivors

The March 11 article "Time has stopped for parents of dead and missing children" caught my eye. Many parents and guardians who lost children are still digging their way through the mess in Miyagi Prefecture, searching for the bodies of their sons and daughters. They say the task keeps them going, that...
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Mar 29, 2012

Fighters keen to emerge from Darvish's shadow

An enterprising bookie could probably make a killing taking wagers on what will be bigger this year: the number of reporters covering Yu Darvish or the number assigned to his former team, the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Mar 29, 2012

Japan's tall stories of great towers in the city

Perhaps because we are upright, vertical animals, towers have always held a special fascination for us. The artist Taro Okamoto expressed this attraction in anthropomorphic terms when he designed the centerpiece of the 1970 Osaka Expo, the 70-meter-tall "Tower of the Sun" with its three faces, including...
CULTURE / Art
Mar 29, 2012

Japan's tall stories of great towers in the city

Perhaps because we are upright, vertical animals, towers have always held a special fascination for us. The artist Taro Okamoto expressed this attraction in anthropomorphic terms when he designed the centerpiece of the 1970 Osaka Expo, the 70-meter-tall "Tower of the Sun" with its three faces, including...
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 28, 2012

Brace for the mass customization revolution

The last two decades were the era of hypermarkets — massive superstores that could dazzle customers with an astonishing array of standardized products. But there are signs that the superstore's age of dominance may be over.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2012

Japanese-Americans continue to grapple with mixed legacy

For a long, quiet moment, a white-haired gentleman stood and gazed at the words engraved in a low granite wall. Few passersby noticed the memorial, tucked on a tiny patch of federal parkland near Union Station in Washington. But every time Grant Ichikawa returns to the spot and stands before the statue...
EDITORIALS
Mar 28, 2012

Challenges for electronics makers

Electronics makers, which served as a crucial engine of the Japanese economy during the period of high growth, are now experiencing difficult times. Certainly they suffered greatly from external factors such as the 3/11 disasters, the floods in Thailand and the strong yen. But leaders of these companies...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
Mar 27, 2012

Yasuo Sasano, manager of Kurumi Mansion

Yasuo Sasano, 62, is the manager of Kurumi Mansion, an extended-stay hotel in Tokyo's Koto Ward. Located on the Sumida riverside, across from Tokyo City Air Terminal, Kurumi Mansion's convenient position and reasonable prices have made it a magnet for savvy travelers. An added attraction is Sasano himself,...
Japan Times
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Mar 27, 2012

Iwakuma shaky as Giants beat Mariners

This probably wasn't quite the homecoming Hisashi Iwakuma envisioned when he returned to Japan as a member of the Seattle Mariners.
BUSINESS
Mar 27, 2012

Sharp plans to open new color printer plant in China

Sharp Corp. said Monday it plans to strengthen its multifunction-printer business in China by opening a new plant and boosting output of color versions mainly for office use to meet growing demand.
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Mar 26, 2012

Tapping into oceanic energy

The serious physical damage caused by the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant disaster, following the 3/11 earthquake and tsunami, has reminded Japan all the more of its acute shortage of natural energy sources and the need for developing alternative sources. This has led scientists and private corporations...

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’