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COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 24, 2014

Japan should be more German

Why has the 'Made in Germany' brand thrived over the last 15 or so years, even as 'Made in japan' grinds toward irrelevance?
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Nov 23, 2014

Once-stopgap market is much-loved symbol of recovery for Tohoku town

Initially a stopgap measure in the absence of local shops, the monthly morning market in Minamisanriku has become a cherished institution.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 23, 2014

Putin has plenty of non-crazy friends in Europe

Whether the current Western leaders like it or not, pragmatism in relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin is part of the political mainstream in Europe, not the domain of fringe crazies.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital
Nov 22, 2014

Konami's winning take on 'the beautiful game'

Soccer, more than any other sport, is the world's game. Played by millions, it is unquestionably the most popular sport on the planet.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 19, 2014

Filmex brings art and brutality to Tokyo cinemas

Now in its 15th edition, Tokyo Filmex is Japan's leading art-over-commerce festival, offering a lineup packed with films screened earlier this year at major festivals around the world, while disdaining the glitz and glamour of the recently ended Tokyo International Film Festival. The Filmex guest list,...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Nov 19, 2014

San Francisco's huff with Hashimoto over 'comfort women' reveals double standards

San Francisco's reaction to Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto's comments about 'comfort women' says much about equality between nations, about how we judge each other through cultural lenses and blinders, and how we have to keep finding ways to address grievances from our past.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Nov 18, 2014

Toyoken: Narisawa's take on 'yoshoku' cuisine

Curry-rice, menchi-katsu cutlet, kani (crab) cream croquette, and kaki (oyster) fry... Dinner at Toyoken reads like a roll call of retro comfort food from a long-passed era — but with one big difference.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 17, 2014

American politics are paralyzed on principle

Americans are avoiding unpopular choices by hiding behind ideological platitudes.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Nov 15, 2014

Tokyo continues to pull people in, which pulls the rest of Japan down

Earlier this month, the government pledged for the zillionth time to "revive" Japan's "regions." Local governments are in danger of vanishing in coming decades due to depopulation, and former Liberal Democratic Party No. 2 Shigeru Ishiba was put in charge of the regional revitalization ministry, which,...
Japan Times
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Nov 14, 2014

Rooney will never reach pantheon of England greats

In most countries the leading international goal scorer and the player who has won most caps would be revered. Both would be held in the highest esteem, national legends admired by all.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Nov 13, 2014

Uffizi highs of the Renaissance

There's something quaint about the main painting at the "Galleria Degli Uffizi: Arte a Firenze da Botticelli a Bronzino — verso una 'Maniera Moderna' " exhibition now showing at the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Art. The work, "Pallas and the Centaur" (c. 1480-85), a large canvas by the Italian Renaissance...
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 13, 2014

Osaka mayor mulls options in event of snap Lower House election

If a snap Lower House election is held next month, one of the candidates may be Osaka Mayor and Japan Restoration Party co-leader Toru Hashimoto.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 13, 2014

North Korean schools in Japan soldiering on despite tough times

Like many students in Japan, Kim Yang Sun cycles to school each morning. Unlike most, she then changes into a traditional Korean outfit and studies under portraits of the late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il.
COMMENTARY / Japan / COUNTERPOINT
Nov 8, 2014

Right-wing witch hunt signals dark days in Japan

Many Japanese and long-time Japan observers have expressed dismay about the recrudescence of self-righteous nationalism under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who has emboldened right-wing extremists now threatening democratic institutions and civil liberties.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 8, 2014

Uranium mining stocks jump as Japan clears way to reactors restart

Uranium prices and producers' shares soared after Japan cleared the way for restart of the first of the nuclear reactors shut after the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Nov 7, 2014

Shrewd moves benefiting Southampton, West Ham

By the end of this weekend's Premier League fixtures, Southampton and West Ham could both be in the top four. Such a prediction in August would have brought ridicule because both clubs were "in crisis" with West Ham manager Sam Allardyce apparently hanging on to his job by his fingernails.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 5, 2014

Parasyte: Gory invasion of the cannibal body snatchers

The closing film of this year's Tokyo International Film Festival, Takashi Yamazaki's "Kiseiju: Part 1 (Parasyte: Part 1)," arrives in theaters with a lot of hype. Based on Hitoshi Iwaaki's best-selling manga about the stealth invasion of Earth by alien parasites, the film is the first of a two-part...
Figure Skating / ICE TIME
Nov 4, 2014

Hanyu looks to continue strong start by Japan men

Often the campaign following an Olympic season can be a letdown.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / IEC GENERAL MEETING IN TOKYO
Nov 4, 2014

IEC evolves in line with technological advancement

The International Eletctrotechnical Commission has a long history going back more than a century. The IEC was officially founded in June 1906, in London, where its central office was set up. Since then, the IEC has continuously evolved, with its role changing as technology advanced.
COMMENTARY
Nov 3, 2014

Avoiding Western networks

All five BRICS countries — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — have vested interests in developing long-term alternative financial institutions for parking their money and moving it internationally, independent of the West's bullying instincts and addiction to sanctions.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 31, 2014

Ukraine starves as its leaders play Monopoly

With a new parliament elected last weekend, the Ukrainian political establishment has no more excuses for failing to make vital changes in economic regulation and the way the country is governed. Unfortunately the winners have resorted to their tired political circus.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 31, 2014

Why Russian jets are testing NATO's airspace

The danger of the new Cold War is that there is complete disagreement between Russia on one side and the U.S. and EU on the other as to the dividing lines. For most Russians, the borders created by the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991 aren't a given.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 30, 2014

To err on the side of caution

It is not fair to underestimate compensation for disaster damage in the name of general interest. This is an area where ordinary cost calculations should be discarded.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 28, 2014

Idol-pop act Necronomidol is taken to the dark side

It's a week until Necronomidol's big show and, practicing at a dance studio in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward, the four members make a decision to change one line from "We've come to bring about the Apocalypse" to "We've come to enact Armageddon." Manager Ricky Wilson agrees; another problem solved.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 27, 2014

Egypt rebuilding, backstage

Egypt is marching, slowly but surely, away from the omnipresent and omnipotent state that has dominated Egyptian economic life for many decades.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 27, 2014

Air bag maker in crisis used unique chemical explosive

The emerging crisis over air bags traces back to a little-known Tokyo company that for over 20 years has supplied the safety devices to automakers including Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. and General Motors Co.
Japan Times
CULTURE / CULTURE SMASH
Oct 24, 2014

Disney's 'Big Hero 6' animates a bridging of cultures

This week's Tokyo International Film Festival is hot on animation, featuring screenings of the collected works of Hideaki Anno, creator of the epic franchise, "Neon Genesis Evangelion," and 3-D shorts directed by Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto, producer of "Donkey Kong" and "Super Mario Bros." But the festival's...

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami