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EDITORIALS
Jan 15, 2019

Hostage diplomacy becomes new normal

While not unprecedented, the recent spate of hostage-taking incidents looks like a new normal in international diplomacy.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Jan 15, 2019

People in flood-hit western Japan area frustrated by sluggish recovery and population loss

With Jan. 6 marking six months since deadly floods devastated parts of western Japan, many residents in the area are still living in temporary housing, towns with declining populations are seeing more people leave and some farmers with destroyed fields have decided to quit farming.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 14, 2019

Tokyo set 30-day deadline for Seoul over talks on forced labor rulings, South Korean media reports

Tokyo and Seoul have been engaged in the intensifying dispute since October.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / NEWS IN NIHONGO
Jan 14, 2019

Tokyo prepares to host esports tournament

Tokyo is gearing up to host an esports tournament, read about what Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike said about it in Japanese.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jan 14, 2019

Torn between airplanes and Japanese arts, former Air Self-Defense Force officer debuts as geisha in Gifu

A 32-year-old woman who used to serve in the Air Self-Defense Force debuted last month as a geiko — another term used to refer to geisha — in Gifu, a city known for having a unique tradition of entertaining guests on riverboats with geisha performances and ukai cormorant fishing.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 14, 2019

Key Republican to ask FBI about report of Trump counterintelligence probe

The Republican head of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee said on Sunday he plans to ask the FBI about a report it launched a probe into whether President Donald Trump has been working on Russia's behalf, suggesting the agency may have gone too far.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 13, 2019

New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger: 'Following the truth, wherever it leads'

In the spring of 2014, a low rumble could be felt deep in the media landscape. An in-house report about the need for digital innovation at The New York Times was leaked by competitors, and what it revealed was a major news organization clearly struggling to overcome internal stasis and catch up with...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Jan 13, 2019

Students tasked with developing dishes using Fukushima produce to promote prefecture's recovery

A group of elementary, junior high and high school students in the city of Fukushima are taking part in an initiative to develop original recipes using local agricultural products as part of a broader project to highlight the city's recovery from the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jan 12, 2019

Perceived dearth of freedom in Japan's schools reflects wider woes

What a strange place a school is — a world within a world, a society within a society. Kids grow up in it asking themselves, "Is the real world like this?"
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 11, 2019

In 2019, how hungry is Japan for whale meat?

Japan is currently the object of criticism for its decision to leave the International Whaling Commission, and resume commercial whaling in territorial waters and its own exclusive economic zone. People who support the move cite either cultural reasons — Japan traditionally, they assert, is a whale-eating...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 11, 2019

Japan an underdeveloped country for women

Despite its rich, industrialized economy, Japan has yet to achieve much progress in equality between men and women.
Reader Mail
Jan 11, 2019

Suspects' rights must be protected

Regarding the Dark Side of the Rising Sun column headlined "Is global scrutiny of Japan's justice system fair?" in the Jan. 6 edition, compared with the United States, Japanese authorities are more careful about issuing arrest warrants, which has brought about peculiar investigation methods. As this...
JAPAN
Jan 10, 2019

Taro Aso's blaming of sexual harassment victim is voted 2018's most sexist remark by a Japanese politician

Finance Minister Taro Aso's apparent justification of sexual harassment committed by a former prominent bureaucrat topped a list of the most egregious sexist and discriminatory remarks made by Japanese politicians in 2018, according to a recent online survey.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 8, 2019

The toxic influence of Japan's rural political interest groups

It's time to reduce the political power of Japan's dwindling rural, primary-sector interests.
LIFE / Language / NEWS IN NIHONGO
Jan 7, 2019

'Tattoos OK' hot spring map released for Rugby World Cup

A hot spring map proves to be a hot topic in the news. Read about how the city of Beppu is making efforts to welcome tourists with tattoos.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jan 7, 2019

Traffic safety-conscious group of bald men in Mie Prefecture breaks up due to aging

In 1985, about 30 bald men in their 30s who were running businesses in Matsusaka, Mie Prefecture, created a group called Hagetemo Katsura wo Kaburan Kai, which roughly translates to a group of men who won't wear wigs even if they go bald.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 6, 2019

Nuclear arms: A year of living dangerously

U.S. President Donald Trump's disdain for international institutions and rules established him as the disrupter in chief of the global nuclear order.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 6, 2019

German cyberdefense agency defends handling of data breach

Germany's BSI cyberdefense agency on Saturday defended its role in responding to a far-reaching data breach, saying it could not have connected individual cases it was aware of last year until the entire data release became public.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 5, 2019

Internet rightists' strategy of provocation gaining traction in Japan

Popular TV personality and model Rola recently tweeted her opposition to new U.S. base construction in Okinawa. The comment was immediately derided by people who said celebrities like her had no business in political debates. Although these critics may support base construction, they didn't engage Rola...
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jan 5, 2019

Examining the strange synergy of Heisei Era crimes in Japan

There's a tendency in some societies to associate a period of history with the crimes that occurred therein. This is why we use expressions such as "crime of the century."
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Jan 5, 2019

Survey on commuting gripes in Japan spurs wider societal complaints

Nothing unites Tokyoites together quite like complaining about daily commuting by train. And it’s a worthy gripe — morning and evening rides practically dispose of the idea of personal space altogether. Being packed tightly with other people also exposes us to all sorts of oddball and annoying behavior,...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 5, 2019

Why people fall for fake news isn't simple

Scientists are weirdly divided over what seems like common sense.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 4, 2019

What will not happen in 2019

The international situation may provide Japan with a golden opportunity to maximize its national interests on the global stage.
Reader Mail
Jan 4, 2019

The significance of a farm stay

The article "Away from it all: More tourists shun hot spots for taste of the country life" in the Dec. 27 edition prompted me to ponder the unique meaning of a farm stay.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 4, 2019

Buddhist monk ticketed for driving while wearing a robe sparks Twitter storm

Skateboarding, jumping rope and wielding lightsabers aren't things we typically expect monks to do.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jan 3, 2019

Japanese kamikiri performer's elaborate pieces draw interest from readers of Nagoya newspaper

Hayashiya Niraku is a 51-year-old practitioner of kamikiri, a Japanese performance art that involves cutting silhouette images out of a plain piece of paper based on requests from the audience. Adding to the challenge, artists create their pieces without drawing an outline beforehand.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LAW OF THE LAND
Jan 2, 2019

How the last czar shaped Japan's courts

A botched assassination attempt in 1891 presents Japan's fledgling penal code with an existential dilemma.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / NEWS IN NIHONGO
Dec 31, 2018

Hayao Miyazaki anime to get kabuki remake

Director Hayao Miyazaki's animated film “Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind” will be adapted for the kabuki stage, it was revealed on the 12th. Kabuki actors Onoe Kikunosuke and Nakamura Shichinosuke are among those set to appear on stage for the performance at Shimbashi Enbujo Theater in Tokyo in December. It will be the first of Miyazaki's works to be turned into kabuki.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / The Big Questions
Dec 30, 2018

Hard work, nonstop play in the world of Japanese TV

It is hard to imagine Dave Spector doing anything else. Although tempting to call the fun- and pun-loving force of energy that is Spector a workaholic, he enjoys what he does so much that his palpable passion makes 'playholic' more accurate.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji