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Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Mar 1, 2015

In lycra and online, foreigners are doing their bit for Tohoku

Four years on from the catastrophic events of March 2011, Lifelines introduces two examples of how foreign nationals are pitching in for Tohoku and having fun in the process.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Feb 28, 2015

Inflammatory articles aren't helping mags' circulation numbers

In a controversial column by 83-year-old author Ayako Sono that appeared in the Feb. 11 issue of the Sankei Shimbun under the headline "Maintain a 'suitable distance,'" Sono suggested that when and if Japan changes its immigration policies to accept more foreign workers, they should live in racially...
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 26, 2015

Belling the nuclear wildcat

The only guarantee of zero nuclear weapons risk — five years after U.S. President Barack Obama's stirring speech outlining his dream of nuclear disarmament — is to move to zero nuclear weapons possession by a carefully managed process.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Feb 22, 2015

More tips for filing your U.S. taxes from Japan

With the help of a tax specialist, Lifelines tackles a number of queries in response to the special on U.S. taxation a few weeks back.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 21, 2015

Apologizing in Japan: Sorry seems to be the hardest word

Dressed in a light-gray suit with her hair pulled back tightly into a bun, McDonald's Holdings Co. (Japan) Chief Executive Officer Sarah Casanova walked stiffly into a news conference on Feb. 5 and addressed a throng of reporters.
OLYMPICS / OLYMPIC NOTEBOOK
Feb 21, 2015

Tokyo Dome a worthy option for basketball

One of the key selling points of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic bid was its compact plan, which called for 85 percent of the venues to be within 8 km of the Olympic Village.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 20, 2015

Blame Obama for Libya's descent into chaos

U.S. President Barack Obama destroyed Libya, just as George W. Bush destroyed Iraq and Afghanistan earlier. Obama doesn't deserve a historical pass.
Japan Times
PRESS / Events
Feb 18, 2015

第6回The Japan Times Bee 3月14日開催

COMMENTARY / World
Feb 15, 2015

Upstart Indian party slows Modi juggernaut

Delhi voters appear ready to give the Aam Aadmi Party another chance after recent state elections. It testifies to the hard work that members of this anti-corruption upstart have done the past few months to reinstate confidence in their ability to deliver on commitments. They managed to cast the party of new Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the 'establishment.'
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Feb 14, 2015

Carp catcher Aizawa expected to have bigger role this season

Keep your eye this coming season in Japanese baseball on catcher Tsubasa Aizawa of the Hiroshima Carp. The 27-year-old, eight-year veteran appears ready to take over as the first-string catcher on a team poised to challenge for the Central League pennant under new manager Koichi Ogata.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 13, 2015

Global economy's Chinese headwinds

Last year, interest rates were supposed to start rising in the U.S. and U.K. and quantitative easing would deliver increased inflation in Japan. Twelve months later, economic headwinds from China are a major reason why normality seems as distant as ever.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Feb 7, 2015

For investors, a new game plan after U.S. jobs report

A blowout jobs report has changed the calculus for investors for what the Federal Reserve might do in coming months, resetting expectations for how markets might behave if the U.S. economy continues to strengthen even as global growth lags.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 6, 2015

ASEAN integration a boon for TPP nations

The proposed ASEAN Economic Community could offer new market opportunities for nations such as Japan that are currently in talks to form the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a Malaysian minister has said.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Feb 6, 2015

Amputee women in Japan proudly step forward

Japan isn't the easiest place to live for people with disabilities. Buildings and transportation aren't always accessible; people are apt to regard disabilities as shameful; and a societal tendency to turn away from anything unpleasant makes it difficult to effect change. Nevertheless change is possible,...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 5, 2015

New threats, new costs as Japanese companies face up to new tactics from cyberattackers

A spate of high-profile cybercrimes and data leaks in recent months has left companies wondering if they will be next. They worry about the safety of their computer networks as hackers devise new ways to penetrate traditional defenses.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 30, 2015

Inflation slows more than forecast in December

Japan's inflation rate slowed more than forecast in December, adding to central bank chief Haruhiko Kuroda's challenges in reflating the world's third-biggest economy.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 27, 2015

An opportunity for East Asia in plunging oil prices

Plunging oil prices present a significant opportunity for most of the region's developing countries to strengthen the competitiveness of their economies and take advantage of the ongoing global recovery.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Jan 27, 2015

Japan's hydrogen energy hype

The clean image of hydrogen-based energy and its economic viability for Japan are much exaggerated.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 26, 2015

Diet session opens with focus on security as hostage crisis continues

The Diet opens with expectations for the Abe administration to focus on security legislation in his quest to get the Japanese military more 'proactively' involved overseas.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 26, 2015

Tokyo's hydrogen mission starts now

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is setting up a ¥40 billion fund to promote the use of hydrogen energy and promote Japan's ecological technologies ahead of the 2020 Olympic Games.
EDITORIALS
Jan 25, 2015

NHK must maintain independence

NHK has announced a three-year budget plan that includes strengthening its overseas services. But has Japan's national broadcaster figured out yet whether it exists as a news organziation or as a propaganda arm of the government?
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Jan 21, 2015

Abe targets Finance Ministry

Angered by its resistance to some of his policy measures, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appears bent on curbing the power of the Finance Ministry.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 21, 2015

Toyota crowned world's biggest automaker for third year

Toyota Motor Corp. warded off Volkswagen AG to remain the world's top-selling automaker for a third consecutive year, driven by record U.S. deliveries of its SUVs, according to the 2014 tally announced by the company Wednesday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 21, 2015

Avignon chief sees culture and politics sharing the stage

"The Avignon Festival is not only about shows and theater, but also about thinking, searching and seeking to understand the world and its politics — and offering an opportunity for three weeks' intellectual life experience every year," Olivier Py, the event's artistic director, declared with passion...
JAPAN
Jan 21, 2015

Government earmarks funds to deal with caregiver shortage

A crisis in nursing care is brewing. The government estimates that the nation will be short of 300,000 professional caregivers by 2025, when postwar baby boomers will be 75 or older and many will need regular care.

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes