Search - u_times

 
 
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Sep 20, 2009

Now suicide has become a political issue, how will Japan address it?

Without a doubt the grimmest statistic coming out of Japan today concerns the number of suicides, which have exceeded 30,000 annually for 11 years in a row — engendering indescribable tragedies for so many families.
LIFE / Travel
Sep 20, 2009

Down by the waterside

Rivers, fountains, roses and art; they're all there on Nakanoshima Island in Osaka, just a stone's throw away but a world apart from the flashy neon and garish glitz of the city's bustling Dotonbori dining and entertainment hub.
JAPAN / History / JAPAN TIMES GONE BY
Sep 20, 2009

North Pole discovery, 1923 earthquake, first trans-Pacific flight and Emperor's regret for colonial rule over Korea

100 YEARS AGO Friday, Sept 10, 1909 Discovery of the North Pole Almost any encyclopedia may be consulted for a history of Arctic exploration, and we do not propose here to take up the subject, except to touch on the latest phase of it, namely the discovery of the North Pole itself.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Sep 20, 2009

Chances for Sojourner to play this season look dim

After a decade in Japan, much of it devoted to spreading his love of basketball to the masses, Isaac Sojourner is without a team for the upcoming season.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 19, 2009

JRP grads bridge cultures

A group of young foreigners who visited Japan as part of a study program and mastered the language announced their favorite Japanese words Tuesday to an admiring domestic crowd.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Sep 19, 2009

What is it that makes things 'Japanese'?

The other day I walked along the road to the far side of the island. Kio-chan, who I hardly recognized without his trademark red Hawaiian shirt and red cap on, could be seen in the distance being walked by his dog. When I approached him, he was huffing and puffing. "Kio-chan," I said, "I didn't know...
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Sep 19, 2009

Manchester derby full of intrigue

LONDON — Manchester City has been collecting strikers for fun over the past year yet it goes into Sunday's derby against Manchester United with only one fit front man — Craig Bellamy.
BUSINESS
Sep 19, 2009

DPJ emissions goal needs global help: Naoshima

Although the ruling Democratic Party of Japan vowed to slash 25 percent of greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 from 1990 levels, the U.S., India, China and other global players must also join a worldwide framework for Japan to implement the pledge, according to Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Masayuki...
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Sep 18, 2009

Dominican hurler Obispo continues to make big impact for Giants

Not too long ago, Yomiuri Giants pitcher Wirfin Obispo was what is known in Japanese baseball as a "triple-digit" (developmental) player.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 18, 2009

NPO's used suits give young job seekers hope

A decent suit is one thing you'll definitely need if you intend to find a job, but many people are discovering they can't even afford this basic tool.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / ART BRIEF
Sep 18, 2009

"Showa Boys SF Guide"

Yayoi Museum Closes Sept. 27
CULTURE / Film
Sep 18, 2009

Underground fruit

Peaches Film Festival organizer Atsuko Ohno talks to The Japan Times about a unique event, held every March since 2007, to produce and screen works by recent female graduates of the Film School of Tokyo (Eiga Bigakko).
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 18, 2009

'Homecoming'

A favorite aunt of mine used to try one diet fad after another and upon the failure of each one, pull out her old standby excuse: "Marie Antoinette worried over her weight her whole life. In which case there's just no help for the rest of us!" Never mind the lack of logic, I believed her. Now a similar...
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Sep 17, 2009

Dealing with the disposable

Awn in Higashi Nippori is a 'recycle shop' whose purpose had less to do with recycling or making money than with creating jobs.
EDITORIALS
Sep 17, 2009

New government out of the blocks

Democratic Party of Japan leader Yukio Hatoyama became Japan's new prime minister Wednesday as the Diet voted him in to the post, ending the long rule by the Liberal Democratic Party, which has been in power almost continously since late 1955. In an interesting historical twist, the new prime minister's...
JAPAN
Sep 17, 2009

Politicians to lead but knowhow of mandarins vital: Hatoyama

New Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama vowed Wednesday to create an administration that will break the strong grip of bureaucrats on policymaking and budgets.
Japan Times
Reference / SO WHAT THE HECK IS THAT
Sep 17, 2009

Statue outside Shinjuku Sumitomo Building

Dear Alice,On the premises of the Shinjuku Sumitomo Building in Tokyo there is a statue of St. Francis of Assisi. It's quite big — larger than lifesize. I've known about it for years, since the building was first constructed, but no one has ever been able to tell me what the heck a prominent saint...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Japan Pulse
Sep 16, 2009

Will Japan drink old wine in a new bottle?

A Japanese version of 'Sideways' is yet another example of the symbiotic relationship between Hollywood and Japan.
EDITORIALS
Sep 16, 2009

Hitter for all seasons

Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki made history in Texas on Sunday when he became the first Major League player to hit safely 200 times for nine consecutive seasons. Last season, Mr. Suzuki had tied the 108-year-old record held by Hall of Famer Willie Keeler, who had eight straight 200-hit seasons...
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital
Sep 16, 2009

Apple polishes up its gadget arsenal

Apple's "It's Only Rock and Roll" music-technology event last week was closely watched by Apple fans in Japan, where many consumers have anointed the iPod and iPhone as their music players of choice over the past few years, even over homegrown competitors such as Sony.
COMMENTARY
Sep 16, 2009

Mounting Afghan follies give U.S. a way out

Maybe it's the relatively thin air up on those high plateaus that makes them foolish. First, ballot fraud apparently helped Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who would probably have won the second round in the presidential election in Iran anyway, to win in the first round and avoid a runoff. The incredible voting...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 15, 2009

Wal-Mart's sensible turnabout on health care

LOS ANGELES, LOS ANGELES TIMES — Is Wal-Mart turning blue — blue enough to pull President Barack Obama's health care chestnuts out of the fire?
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Sep 15, 2009

Did technology kill the KTO star?

In 1977, nine years after Tony Elliott started the then-alternative media London Time Out magazine, Kansai Time Out printed its first issue, an eight-pager with local listings and a smattering of Japan-related articles. Dominic Al-Badri, chief editor from 1997 to 2004, recalls that the info-packed pages...

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