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COMMUNITY / Voices / HAVE YOUR SAY
Jun 8, 2010

Readers weigh in on U.S. military presence

Fear of breaking taboo During my 31 years in Japan I have appreciated The Japan Times' coverage of social issues such as discrimination against ethic and social minorities, which the vernacular papers give only passing mention to.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jun 6, 2010

Pacific League dominating Central in interleague play

There was a rumor going around prior to the beginning of this season's interleague schedule that Pacific League teams were thinking about dropping games against the Central League in the future because of the strength of the CL clubs, especially the Yomiuri Giants.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jun 6, 2010

E-books look set to swamp us just as microwave ovens once did

The "microwave phenomenon" is with us again. I use this term to describe a product that arrives on the market before its time, then disappears for a while before returning with a vengeance to strike at people's hearts and wallets.
JAPAN / Media
Jun 6, 2010

The timing behind yakuza crackdown

The media has been filled with revelations of ties between professional sumo and organized crime. Since late May, the tabloids and gossipy "wide shows" on TV have made a huge flap over Sehei Kimura and one other stable master for allowing senior gang members to obtain box-seat tickets to the Nagoya Grand...
Japan Times
LIFE
Jun 6, 2010

Dancing for joy in Japan

As I sipped my vin rouge last week during an interval in "The Sleeping Beauty," K-Ballet's latest Tokyo production, a woman at the next table said to her companion: "I can't believe that evil fairy was a man! I just naturally thought it was a woman dancing that role."
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jun 6, 2010

Grappling with the gangsters

Some years ago, a Japanese friend suggested we have dinner together at a chanko-nabe restaurant because neither of us had ever been to one. Chanko-nabe is the fortifying stew that sumo wrestlers grow fat on, and they all learn how to make it. Many rikishi (sumo wrestler) who don't become stable masters...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 5, 2010

BP disaster's lesson for government regulators

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — As the damaged BP oil well continues to spew millions of gallons of crude from the depths of the floor of the Gulf of Mexico, the immediate challenge is how to mitigate an ever-magnifying environmental catastrophe. One can only hope that the spill will be contained soon, and that...
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Jun 5, 2010

Walcott a surprise omission from squad

LONDON — The phone calls started before England's World Cup squad was officially announced. The rumor mill told us Theo Walcott was the shock omission from Fabio Capello's selection for South Africa and the country was not happy.
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Jun 5, 2010

No end to JBA's incompetence

Only the names change, but the story remains the same, someone wiser than I once said.
JAPAN
Jun 4, 2010

Quiet end to a vexed tenure

Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama returned to his office Wednesday minutes after announcing his resignation and was greeted by hoards of reporters expecting a comment from the once-popular leader.
JAPAN
Jun 4, 2010

Senate panel cuts outlays for moving marines

WASHINGTON (Kyodo) In a sign of its displeasure over lack of progress on the relocation of a marine base in Okinawa, a U.S. Senate committee has cut outlays for the planned transfer of marines from the prefecture to Guam, a document obtained by Kyodo News on Tuesday showed.
EDITORIALS
Jun 3, 2010

A disappointing departure

Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama resigned Wednesday, nine months after bringing historic change to Japanese politics by ending more than five decades of almost uninterrupted Liberal Democratic Party rule.
JAPAN
Jun 3, 2010

U.S. pressure on base said didn't help matters

OSAKA — Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's sudden resignation Wednesday ended nine months of tense relations with the United States, which was wary of the new government from the beginning for its determination to seek a less U.S.-centric foreign policy.
JAPAN
Jun 3, 2010

Hatoyama quits as prime minister

Ending a turbulent eight months in office, Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said Wednesday he will step down to take the blame for his Cabinet's plunging approval rate, brought on by funds scandals and the row over relocating a U.S. base in Okinawa.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jun 3, 2010

Who's subscribing to Tokyo's new creative Tabloid?

If you want to launch a new cross-discipline creative space, you could do worse than invite pop diva Lady Gaga and flamboyant New York-based artist Terence Koh.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 3, 2010

Porn stars in 3-D lure buyers to new TVs

Porn star Mika Kayama is at the frontier of a push to develop videos and content in Japan that Sony Corp. and Panasonic Corp. need to lure customers for their new 3-D televisions.
BASKETBALL
Jun 2, 2010

Tennichi, Evessa part ways

As expected, Kensaku Tennichi is finished as the head coach of the Osaka Evessa after a five-year stint. The bj-league team made the announcement on Monday, saying it is entering a new era and is going in a different direction. Tennichi's top assistant, Yasushi Higa, also didn't have his contract renewed....
BUSINESS
Jun 2, 2010

Dongguan gives investment pitch

A visiting senior executive from the southern Chinese city of Dongguan is urging Japanese corporations to invest more in the vibrant manufacturing hub noted for its electronics information industry.
EDITORIALS
Jun 2, 2010

Heavy blow to Mr. Hatoyama

The Hatoyama administration has been weakened after the prime minister decided to basically keep intact the 2006 Japan-U.S. pact on the relocation of U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa. Mr. Yukio Hatoyama's dismissal of consumer affairs minister Mizuho Fukushima, who opposed the Futenma decision,...
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jun 1, 2010

Battery makers in heated rivalries

Powerful, long-lasting rechargeable batteries may be key to a future green society — especially if they can become widely used to power electric vehicles.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jun 1, 2010

Gunma city does battle with beards

I would like to draw readers' attention to the outstanding work of the municipal government of Isesaki, Gunma Prefecture. After receiving complaints that citizens find bearded men unpleasant, Isesaki — just as all levels of Japanese government often do — took decisive action to address an important...

Longform

A mushroom cloud from the atomic bombing on Hiroshima taken from a U.S. military aircraft on Aug. 6, 1945. Copying the photo without permission is prohibited.
80 years on, a Japanese American hibakusha recalls the day the bomb dropped