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JAPAN / KANSAI PERSPECTIVE
Jul 27, 2014

Self-defense less collective at local level

After the Shiga gubernatorial election earlier this month, in which Taizo Mikazuki, the hand-picked successor to former Gov. Yukiko Kada, defeated the ruling coalition's candidate, certain media agencies and pundits suggested that collective self-defense had no impact on the race.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Jul 27, 2014

Osaka bets big on TOEFL to boost English levels

The Osaka Prefecture Board of Education is pushing through a raft of initiatives to shake up English-language education, chief among them the introduction of TOEFL at top-performing high schools, which will be taught by an elite group of teachers earning approximately ¥8 million a year.
EDITORIALS
Jul 27, 2014

More time for a deal with Iran

The biggest question about the four-month extension of negotiations over Iran's nuclear program is what impact Russian President Vladimir Putin's behavior, Israeli-Palestinian hostilities and the U.S. elections will have on them.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 27, 2014

What economic policies will fit the 'growth strategy'?

The Abe government has decided on its new economic growth strategy — the 'third arrow' of 'Abenomics' — but what of today's production systems, which are quite different from the models depicted in economics textbooks?
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jul 27, 2014

Pakistani boy loses arms after row with landowner over cows: police

Pakistani police have arrested the son of a landowner for an assault on a 10-year-old boy that resulted in his injured arms being amputated, the latest case highlighting harsh treatment of villagers by so-called feudal families.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Jul 27, 2014

Pope Francis renews attack on mafia in Italian region scarred by toxic waste

Pope Francis called for nature to be protected from criminal abuse on Saturday during a visit in the southern Italian town of Caserta, near Naples, in a region long blighted by illegal toxic waste dumps and the pervasive grip of the Camorra mafia.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 26, 2014

Art vs. morals debate plays out in the press

In her semiautobiographical feature film "Who's Afraid of Vagina Wolf?," Anna Margarita Albelo plays a struggling film director who makes ends meet by screening her movies in art galleries where she shows up dressed as a vagina. Though the story is mainly about relationships, the prominence of the female...
COMMENTARY / Japan / COUNTERPOINT
Jul 26, 2014

Japan's brand is floundering under Abe

Attending the Association of Asian Studies conference in Singapore last week, I realized that Japan's global image is not what it might be. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says Japan is back, but doubts are spreading about the version of Japan he is promoting. It appears that Abe's energetic regional diplomacy...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Jul 26, 2014

As species die, what valuable knowledge dies with them?

In mid-June, The New York Times reported that U.S. President Barack Obama intends to use his executive authority to create the world's largest marine protected area in the south-central Pacific.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / ESSENTIAL READING FOR JAPANOPHILES
Jul 26, 2014

Long, Long Autumn Nights: Selected Poems of Oguma Hideo, 1901-1940

Some truths only a poet can utter. "Oh, God! / Give me talent / For insult and profanation / To revile You / and my enemies!"
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 26, 2014

Putin might have just killed Russia's brand

Has the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 put Russia on its way to taking on the Soviet Union's one-time status as an object of fear and hatred?
Events / KANSAI: WHO & WHAT
Jul 25, 2014

Major festival in Shiga due near Lake Biwa

Biwako Hall in Shiga Prefecture will hold its Summer Festa on Aug. 2 and 3, featuring concerts, art workshops, a play, a documentary, an exhibition and dancing. Some are free.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / Q&A
Jul 25, 2014

A closer look at the Supreme Court's welfare benefits ruling

Opinions are divided over how the Supreme Court ruling last week declaring permanent foreign residents of Japan ineligible for welfare payments will affect the foreign communities in Japan.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Jul 25, 2014

Designs on Japan's student potential

Shining a light on Japan's student talent pool is Gakuten, a new event from the group responsible for the Design Festa biannual international art fair. There's only one requirement of Gakuten participants — that they be enrolled in an educational institution.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Jul 25, 2014

New games to keep you occupied in the summer

These warriors rule
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 25, 2014

LVMH profit trails estimates as Japan tax hike hits fashion biz

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA, the world's largest luxury-goods company, reported first-half earnings that trailed estimates as the strength of the euro weighed on growth and the first stage of the Japanese tax hike hurt sales of fashion and leather goods.
Japan Times
Events / Events In Tokyo
Jul 25, 2014

Japan Restaurant Week serves top gourmet

A romantic dinner at a fancy restaurant usually costs so much that people only go on extra special occasions, such as marriage proposals. But even if you're not thinking of a life-changing celebration, now is a good time to take your partner out for an exclusive meal.
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jul 25, 2014

Aichi police switch to carrot over stick to prevent traffic accidents

Aichi Prefecture is taking a unique approach to reducing the number of traffic accidents after having the worst rate in the country 11 years running.
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2014

GSK corruption allegations spread to Syria

GlaxoSmithKline faces new allegations of corruption, this time in Syria, where the drugmaker and its distributor have been accused of paying bribes to secure business, according to a whistleblower's email reviewed by Reuters.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 24, 2014

It's time to wise up to academic art

For too long the fine academic art of the 19th-century has lingered in the shadow of the Impressionist movement. The French Academy, with its rules and standards, has often been cast as the villain in the story of the period, standing in opposition to the 'heroic' Impressionists in their quest for 'artistic freedom.'
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 24, 2014

Balthus' renaissance of Realism

Paris-born Balthus Klossowski de Rola (1908-2001) is considered by some to be comparable to Picasso, though it was Picasso who said that Balthus was the 'last great painter of the 20th century.' From Picasso's Cubism onward, painting no longer needed to mirror the world 'as seen.' Balthus, by contrast, was a classic Realist with an occasional Surrealist twinge.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 24, 2014

Manic Sheep, Wedance represent overseas indie at Fuji Rock Festival

Since 2001, Fuji Rock's Rookie a Go-Go stage has spotlighted indie talents not quite ready for the festival's larger areas. Acts apply to play — this year 1,300 bands vied for 15 slots — and with the exception of Taiwan's Go Chic in 2010, all the past performers have been locals. But this summer...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 24, 2014

'ICC Kids Program 2014: Inspiring Questions — Questioning Inspiration'

The NTT Intercommunication Center's annual kids' program this year aims to inspire children to challenge and question the world during their summer vacation. Presented as a factory-themed modern-art show, the exhibition includes interactive installations with elements of surprise.

Longform

An illustration features the Japanese signs for "ganbare" (good luck) and the Deaflympics, which will be held between Nov. 15 and 26.
A century of Deaf sport finds its moment in Tokyo