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COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Oct 30, 2010

Exploring the back of your mind

It had been in the back of my mind for a while now. I had to call an old Japanese friend to thank her for a gift she sent me recently. The problem was, I couldn't remember her phone number.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Oct 30, 2010

Kyoto-based publication true labor of love for editor

JANE SINGER Special to The Japan Times It wasn't the taste of sushi or the kindness of strangers that hooked American magazine editor John Einarsen on Japan on his first visit in November 1974.
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Oct 29, 2010

Okada has made little impact for Lakestars

Joining his hometown Shiga Lakestars after four strong seasons with the Takamatsu Five Arrows, shooting guard Yu Okada appeared ready to elevate his game to the next level this season.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 29, 2010

Not all white rice tastes the same

In Japan, the freshness and seasonality of ingredients used in cooking is of paramount importance. Even in this age of mass production and imported foods, people still care about the appearance of fresh bamboo shoots in spring, or the first matsutake mushrooms in fall.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 29, 2010

Ryo the Skywalker's new hope

Search the music section on social networking website Twitter and you'll see a long list of known global megastars, including Britney Spears and Kanye West. Directly under Justin Timberlake is Japan's only representative on the list — Ryo the Skywalker, the stage name of Ryo Yamaguchi.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 28, 2010

Demand convention ratification, Harrison Ford urges U.S. voters

Hollywood superstar and conservationist Harrison Ford on Thursday called on the United States to ratify the Convention on Biological Diversity, saying increasing biodiversity loss makes it imperative that Americans understand the importance of the treaty.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 28, 2010

Lawyer putting foreigners first

Masako Suzuki has dedicated her career to giving legal support to foreigners living in Japan. Starting Monday, she will become the first head of the new Section of Legal Assistance for Foreigners at the Tokyo Public Law Office.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
Oct 28, 2010

Ryokan owner Kazushi Sato

Kazushi Sato, 63, is the owner of Tsurunoyu Onsen, a hot-spring ryokan (traditional Japanese inn) in Akita Prefecture. Nestled within beech woods deep in the mountains, Tsurunoyu is surrounded by natural beauty — bears wander freely, feasting on mountain grapes, and edible wild mushrooms grow in enough...
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Oct 27, 2010

Playoff jinx bedevils Fukuoka faithful once again

The team colors are yellow and black, but the adopted color is red and, when the final out was recorded of the Pacific League Climax Series last week, Fukuoka fans were blue-shocking blue. Their team had just completed a stunning collapse after it appeared headed for its first Japan Series appearance...
LIFE / Digital / JAPAN TIMES BLOGROLL
Oct 27, 2010

Surviving in Japan (without much Japanese)

Living in Japan without speaking the native language comes with its challenges. Ashley Thompson is tackling them one at a time, and blogging about her experiences at Surviving in Japan (without much Japanese) . Originally from Seattle, Wash., Thompson moved to Japan as an Assistant Language Teacher...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 26, 2010

Dark side of a Western defense of freedom

BRUSSELS — The price of freedom, it is said, is eternal vigilance. But that price can take the form of morally squalid decisions in which innocent people bear the brunt of the cost of freedom's defense.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Oct 26, 2010

Foreigners victims, perpetrators of sekuhara

When "Tracy," an American then in her late 20s, started her career in Japan as a JET instructor at a high school in Kagoshima nearly 20 years ago, nothing in her training could have prepared her for what she witnessed.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 25, 2010

Eda urges stronger ties with China to handle disputes

Fresh from a four-day trip to China that ended Thursday, Satsuki Eda, former president of the House of Councilors, said the Democratic Party of Japan needs to work harder to create stronger lines of communication with China to avoid future diplomatic spats with the neighboring giant.
Reader Mail
Oct 24, 2010

Opera singer Joan Sutherland dies

The Japan Times has printed nothing on the passing (Oct. 10) of Dame Joan Sutherland (83), one of the great opera sopranos of the 20th century and arguably Australia's greatest singer. I realize that not many readers are opera fans, but isn't it a newspaper's professional obligation to print news irrespective...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 24, 2010

Stabilization of Afghanistan could serve as cornerstone of NATO-Russia foundation

BRUSSELS — When I gave my first public speech as NATO secretary general just over a year ago, I focused on the NATO-Russia relationship, because I believe it is crucial for global, not just European, security. At that time, I thought the relationship to be in urgent need of repair, and that the North...
EDITORIALS
Oct 24, 2010

Hard times for bookstores

Will traditional bookstores be able to survive in an age of e-publishing and book distribution, when young people are increasingly turning away from books in favor of other forms of information and entertainment? The Japanese e-book market is expected to grow dramatically in the next few years. In distribution,...
Japan Times
LIFE
Oct 24, 2010

Some participants' hopes for COP10

The Japan Times asked delegates and other COP10 participants what their top priorities are at the conference. Many mentioned an Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) Protocol that is currently the subject of intense negotiations. This would determine how companies and researchers gain access to and distribute...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Oct 24, 2010

Nibutani, Hokkaido: Travel, hospitality and the Ainu identity

Ainu are the indigenous people of Hokkaido, the Kuril Islands and much of Sakhalin. However, their culture in Hokkaido, dating back to the 13th century, was decimated after Japanese settlers began flocking to the huge northern island in the 1800s.
MORE SPORTS
Oct 24, 2010

Kostner skates to win at NHK Trophy; Murakami third

NAGOYA — Italy's Carolina Kostner skated steady if not spectacular on the way to victory in the ladies singles at the NHK Trophy on Saturday night.
SOCCER / J. League
Oct 24, 2010

Gonda stands tall late as FC Tokyo earns point

Shuichi Gonda saved a last-minute penalty to rescue a 1-1 draw for relegation-threatened FC Tokyo against Albirex Niigata on Saturday.
LIFE
Oct 24, 2010

Striving to stave off marine extinctions

Although oceans cover 73 percent of the surface of the Earth, little is known about marine plant and animal biodiversity.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Oct 24, 2010

Can we fix Japan's moral morass?

As a gauge of where this country is heading and what kind of mood it's in, consider this fact: Last week, almost every mainstream weekly news magazine ran at least one story on old age and/or death.
Japan Times
LIFE
Oct 24, 2010

Key facts and figures

Key data drawn from numerous quoted sources here succinctly suggest the enormous range of problems and issues facing delegates to COP10 — and the world.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Oct 24, 2010

Saving biological diversity: a challenge for survival

Eight years ago in Johannesburg, government delegates from around the world gathered for the World Summit on Sustainable Development — and made a promise "to substantially reduce the rate of loss of biodiversity."
LIFE
Oct 24, 2010

An ABC of CBD acronyms

Don't know your MOP from your COP? You're not alone. United Nations conferences are awash with organizational and procedural monikers containing more letters than a Welsh train station sign.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 23, 2010

Dhaka envoy pushes for trade

Newly appointed Bangladeshi Ambassador to Japan Majibur Rahman Bhuiyan wants to generate greater interest in Japan toward his country, especially its most important export items — ready-made garments.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Oct 23, 2010

Deplorable behavior tarnishes Rooney's reputation forever

LONDON — Thick, greedy, mercenary, unfaithful to his wife, photographed urinating and smoking outside a bar, has brought Manchester United into disrepute by his off-field actions, injured and hopelessly out of form; Wayne Rooney's resume for the second half of 2011 is surely one that even he must look...
LIFE / Style & Design / Japan Pulse
Oct 22, 2010

Snoods a hot item for both women and canines

That's a wrap: Snoods are back with a vengeance, for both women and dogs.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 22, 2010

Senkaku challenge surmountable: departing U.S. Forces commander

Lt. Gen. Edward Rice, before he steps down next week as the commander of U.S. Forces Japan, said Thursday it is natural for any country, including Japan and China, to face bilateral "challenges" and expressed optimism the two countries will be able to move forward in a positive direction.

Longform

A sinkhole in Yashio, which emerged in January, was triggered by a ruptured, aging sewer pipe. Authorities worry that similar sections of infrastructure across the country are also at risk of corrosion.
That sinking feeling: Japan’s aging sewers are an infrastructure time bomb