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Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Jul 11, 2015

The ogres of Oga are not as frightening as they may appear

Although surely one of Japan's most scenic areas, the Oga Peninsula in Akita Prefecture is off the beaten track and retains an unhurried vibe, still relatively untouched by commercial tourism. Here, it is still possible to see small fishing hamlets as you drive round the coast, rewarded with stunning...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 9, 2015

LDP, DPJ take to Internet to mount security bill-related campaigns of persuasion

As Prime Minister Shinzo Abe prepares to ram through legislation that would drastically alter Japan's security stance, both the LDP and DPJ are taking their arguments to the people — via a variety of online media.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jul 9, 2015

U.S. court: citizenship law's gender differences unconstitutional

A U.S. law that treats mothers and fathers differently in determining whether their foreign-born children may claim U.S. citizenship is unconstitutional, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday, four years after the U.S. Supreme Court split 4-4 on the issue.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 8, 2015

Eurozone ultimatum: Greece has until Sunday to come up with debt deal

Eurozone members have given Greece until the end of the week to come up with a proposal for sweeping reforms in return for loans that will keep the country from crashing out of Europe's currency bloc and into economic ruin.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 6, 2015

Losing $1 billion a minute, China blames foreigners, speculators for selloff

Rumor-spreading short sellers and foreign investors with a hidden agenda.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 5, 2015

China lobbies U.N. tribunal on Manila's claims

China's claims to the disputed South China Sea will come under international legal scrutiny for the first time this week, but while Beijing has officially refused to take part in the case, which was filed by the Philippines at a U.N. tribunal, it has made its presence felt.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jul 5, 2015

German Euroskeptic party's founder ousted by rival who plans to focus on immigration

The founder of the Euroskeptic party Alternative for Germany (AfD) lost a leadership vote on Saturday to his main rival, heralding a new focus on immigration for a party that was set up to oppose the euro.
JAPAN / Media / DARK SIDE OF THE RISING SUN
Jul 4, 2015

Could Hamp's detention reinforce prejudice?

The Metropolitan Police Department arrested Julie Hamp, Toyota Motor Corp.'s first female managing officer, on June 18 on suspicion of importing oxycodone, an opioid used to relieve pain. The drug is tightly controlled in Japan but can be imported into the country with a prescription if certain procedures...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Jul 4, 2015

Does Greek vote befit the birthplace of democracy?

When Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras dropped the bombshell of a popular plebiscite on the tough demands of creditors keeping Greece afloat, he cited the country's pedigree as the "birthplace of democracy."
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 3, 2015

Russia's dissidents return

It is high time for Russians to be reminded of the ideals on which perstroika were based.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2015

Tepco seeks foreign seal of approval to restart nuclear plant

The utility's invitation to the world's top nuclear agency to review the safety of its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa facility signals a desire to win support to restart the world's largest nuclear plant.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jul 2, 2015

U.S., Cuba agree to restore diplomatic ties on July 20, ending 54-year freeze

The United States and Cuba formally agreed on Wednesday to restore diplomatic relations on July 20, setting up a trip to Havana by John Kerry, who would become the first U.S. secretary of state to visit the country in 70 years.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Jul 1, 2015

Getting creative when it comes to finding the motivation to study Japanese

I respect people who possess a high-level of Japanese proficiency the same way I respect people who are well-built. I don't respect the results of the effort so much as the discipline required to attain it. I can't deny that focus and perseverance are character traits I lack and thus envy in others because...
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / HIT AND RUN
Jun 29, 2015

Otani on familiar path to elite status

There can't be a discussion about best pitcher in Japan anymore without Shohei Otani's name being mentioned. The young Hokkaido Nippon Ham star has been making that perfectly clear since the season began.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 29, 2015

The reigning 'Queen of subtitles,' in her own words

For the past four decades, after the lights dim and curtains go up at cinemas around Japan, the credits that have flashed on screens at the start of hundreds of foreign films have acknowledged subtitle translator Natsuko Toda.
Japan Times
JAPAN / THE JAPAN TIMES FORUM ON ENGINEERING
Jun 29, 2015

Working to cultivate and grow the next generation of engineers

Moderator: Would you please talk about the successful human resource cultivation that will contribute to the development of science and technology and engineering in Japan?
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Jun 28, 2015

Has striking in Japan become extinct?

"Strike." Dear reader, what do you think when you hear this word? What impression do you get? Do you see the blood, sweat and tears? Do you see an angry, vicious mob disturbing our civil society? I bet a majority of Japanese people under the age of 40 have neither a positive nor negative impression of...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jun 27, 2015

Okinawa's lobbyist-in-chief scores a subtle win in Washington

Chie Mikami's new documentary, "Ikusabanu Todomi" (which loosely translates as "Bring the War to an End"), is about the protests against the new U.S. Marine Corps base in Henoko, Okinawa. Her previous film, "Hyoteki no Mura" ("The Targeted Village"), was about protests against the deployment of the controversial...
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jun 27, 2015

Some Republican presidential hopefuls condemn high court's ruling on gay marriage

Some of the Republican Party's presidential candidates reacted angrily to the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on Friday to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide, despite a shift in public opinion in recent years toward acceptance of it.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Jun 27, 2015

Landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizes gay marriage nationwide

The Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the U.S. Constitution provides same-sex couples the right to marry, handing a historic triumph to the American gay rights movement.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 26, 2015

Deconstructing GOP candidate Donald Trump

Donald Trump's announcement of his candidacy for the U.S. presidency is a testament to the vagaries of the capitalist system and the unpredictable turns of history.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jun 26, 2015

Cameron tells EU new terms needed

British Prime Minister David Cameron told European Union leaders Thursday he needs a new deal to keep Britain as a member, opening a struggle over the bloc's future at a summit preoccupied with keeping Greece from crashing out.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 24, 2015

Newspapers play a critical role in education

Attempting to shield students from the realities of life that newspapers cover on a daily basis is an exercise in futility.
EDITORIALS
Jun 23, 2015

Time to move bilateral ties forward

Japan and South Korea need to tackle their differences in earnest and move bilateral ties forward.
JAPAN / History / ANALYSIS
Jun 23, 2015

In Okinawa, battle continues over the islands' role in national security

It was apparent at Tuesday's ceremony commemorating the 70th anniversary of the end of the Battle of Okinawa that the past has not faded into history, with issues related to the U.S. military causing tension and sharp differences of opinion with Tokyo over the prefecture's role in maintaining regional...
WORLD
Jun 23, 2015

Australian IS militants who displayed severed heads reportedly killed in Iraq

Australia is close to confirming the reported death in Iraq of two home-grown militants who shot to infamy last year after being photographed holding the severed heads of Syrian soldiers, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 22, 2015

Diet session extended through September as Abe aims to pass contentious security bills

Abe and Komeito's leader decide to extend the Diet session by the most days in postwar history in a bid to enact the controversial security bills.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jun 20, 2015

Tabloids revel in South Korea's MERS misery

Schadenfreude, a word of German derivation, is defined in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as "a feeling of enjoyment that comes from seeing or hearing about the troubles of other people." A more succinct definition would be "malicious glee."
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jun 20, 2015

In search of Japanese and American shared values

There is a good deal of blather about the shared values that are ostensibly the foundation of the alliance between Japan and the United States. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Barack Obama invoked this mantra when they met in Washington to finalize new Japan-U.S. defense guidelines that hardly...

Longform

Japan's growing ranks of centenarians are redefining what it means to live in a super-aging society.
What comes after 100?