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JAPAN
Dec 27, 2013

Base time frame for Futenma relocation uncertain

The decision Friday by Okinawa Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima to allow the start of offshore fill work needed to build a replacement facility for U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma ends a 17-year standoff that pitted entrenched base opponents against Tokyo and Washington.
COMMENTARY
Dec 27, 2013

Putin outflanking the West

In 2013, Russian President Vladimir Putin made U.S. President Barack Obama look like a conman's stooge — a lame duck president so weak that he can barely waddle to the pond.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 26, 2013

Christmas Grinch in China

The extension of Chinese President Xi Jinping's anti-corruption and anti-extravagance campaigns is blamed for creating a Grinch responsible for diminishing Chinese holiday cheer this year.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 26, 2013

Second opinion: Our Top 3 films in cross-review

Regular JT film critics Mark Schilling, Kaori Shoji and Giovanni Fazio got together at the Uplink theater/restaurant in Shibuya to talk about each other's No. 1 films for 2013: "Cloud Atlas" (Fazio), "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" (Shoji) and "Kaguya-hime no Monogatari (The Tale of Princess Kaguya)"...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Dec 25, 2013

Tokyo, the city that's not as crazy as everyone thinks

As a Japanese friend of mine who has lived all over Japan once said, 'People from the Kansai area are like Latin people, but in Tokyo they're more like Germans.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Dec 24, 2013

Why world's newest country is nearing civil war

It was considered one of the world's great successes when South Sudan became an independent nation on July 9, 2011. After many unhappy years as a region of Sudan, the new country declared its independence with crucial support from the outside world, particularly the United States.
WORLD
Dec 24, 2013

Abbas says Jesus was a 'Palestinian'

In a Christmas message Monday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called Jesus a "Palestinian" messenger of hope.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 23, 2013

'Frenemies' in the Mideast

The recent interim nuclear agreement between Iran and the so-called P5-plus-1 countries, led by the U.S., has provoked unprecedented criticism of U.S. policy from two of its strongest Mideast allies: Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Dec 22, 2013

Don't let the holidays leave you homesick this year

Homesickness is a particular concern for foreign residents in December, when the holiday season starts to conjure up images of family dinners and drinking parties with old friends. For new arrivals, it's further complicated by the simultaneous challenge of adjusting to a different culture.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Dec 22, 2013

Danish PM's 'selfie' snapshot of her credibility crisis

When Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt took a "selfie" on her smartphone on Dec. 14 — like millions of people do every day — she doubtless had little idea of the commotion that would ensue. In the photograph, taken at the memorial service for Nelson Mandela, the most admired political...
Reader Mail
Dec 21, 2013

Exactly who do you think he was?

Nelson Mandela was seen and revered not only as a political hero but practically as a living saint. The hagiography surrounding him somewhat disguises his many family tragedies, his policy failures and his political cunning.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 20, 2013

Challenges highlight need for better government

U.S. President Ronald Reagan famously insisted that 'government is not the solution to our problem.' Today we know better: If government is not part of the solution, our problems will only get bigger.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 17, 2013

Is a U.K. breakup in sight?

The white paper that the Scottish government has produced in favor of independence is long on aspirations and short on detailed responses to the problems that an independent Scotland would face.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 17, 2013

Pope misunderstands the power of free markets

Pope Francis, unlike his more diplomatic predecessors, is said to engage the world in the style of after-dinner conversation. As a result, his recent remarks about the power of free markets seemed vague or poorly considered.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Dec 14, 2013

Waiter . . . there's a bug in my soup

The crickets chirp before they are thrown into a pan, sauteed in vegetable oil and turned into crispy, crunchy snacks. They are one of the three toppings offered on crackers as hors d'oeuvres; a jam made from ants and rice grasshoppers boiled in a sweet soy sauce complete the insect triumvirate.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Dec 14, 2013

Tsunami debris scuppers expert ecology opinion

The dock arrived almost like a gift, not quite on the doorstep of Dr. John Chapman, but on a beach 8 km from his office at Oregon State University's Hatfield Marine Science Center, on the western coast of the United States.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 14, 2013

TPP offers early test of how far secrets law will cow Japan's media

Journalist Toshihiro Yamanaka characterizes the TPP talks as 'the most secretive trade negotiations to take place since the end of the 19th century,' an observation supported by classified documents recently released by WikiLeaks showing how the U.S. is pressuring all countries involved in TPP to make sure details of the talks are kept from the public.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Dec 14, 2013

Society struggles to adapt to post-privacy age

Individuals are visible as never before, and democratic governments, reeling from successive exposures of state secrets, are struggling desperately to withdraw into the shadows. No democracy has gone further in that direction than Japan under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 14, 2013

It's not enough to simply add a woman to the board

Twitter, which has garnered worldwide attention for bad corporate governance practices, should do more than add a women to its board. It should fully diversify its management.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Dec 14, 2013

Beyond Newtown: 71 other young children killed by deliberate gunfire in 2012

The man with the gun burst into the apartment and opened fire. The first victim was a young woman, dead at 21. The second victim was her 25-year-old roommate. But it was the third victim who would cause the most anguished screams when the bodies were discovered. Shot in the head, he was a 6-month-old...
EDITORIALS
Dec 12, 2013

Repeal the state secrets law

Repeal of the recently enacted state secrets law appears indispensable for ensuring that Japan remains an open society with democratic principles fully upheld.
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Dec 11, 2013

Tokyo: Where do you get your news fix from?

NHK, The Japan Times, 2channel, Nihon TV . . . Fox? Tokyoites look to a wide range of sources to sate their thirst for news.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 7, 2013

Emperor's apparent liberal leanings jar with Japan's right wing

Whereas liberals tend to be fond of the Emperor because he appeals to their own progressive leanings, genuine right-wingers have no use for the kind of open-mindedness the Emperor occasionally demonstrates.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 6, 2013

U.S. aims to mend fences with Iran, critics notwithstanding

It's not only most Israelis, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and the policy-community hawks in Washington and acolytes of AIPAC in the Congress who hate the interim nuclear agreement signed by Iran in November with the United Nations Security Council "P5-plus-one."
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Dec 6, 2013

United faces improbable climb to defend title

WARNING: The opening paragraph does not make happy reading for Manchester United fans. The champions have won only two points from their last three games, they are in ninth position, their lowest ever at this stage of a Premier League season. They have scored fewer goals at Old Trafford than basement...
EDITORIALS
Dec 5, 2013

Voter inequality under the law

The disparity in vote value between more and less populous Upper House constituencies has grown so wide that it is undermining the principle of equality under the law with regard to the representation of voters's will.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 4, 2013

Judge says Detroit can file for bankruptcy

A federal bankruptcy judge granted Detroit unprecedented powers Tuesday to shed billions of dollars in debt, including the ability to slash city employee pensions despite a state constitutional provision protecting them.

Longform

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