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JAPAN / Politics
Nov 10, 2015

Reconstruction minister denies misuse of political funds, underwear theft

Reconstruction minister Tsuyoshi Takagi on Tuesday dismissed any notion he will step down and denied separate allegations that he misused political funds and stole a young woman's underwear.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 10, 2015

Big science now faces big problems in China

Under the government's heavy hand, the Chinese scientific establishment has long suffered from cronyism, corruption and pervasive fraud.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Nov 9, 2015

Physical fitness of elderly is improving

The physical fitness of elderly people in Japan is continuing to improve both for men and women, a survey shows.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Nov 9, 2015

Aichi NPO goes extra mile with language support for non-Japanese kids

Aichi Prefecture, where manufacturing businesses are heavily concentrated, currently has the largest number of young non-Japanese students in the country. There are 6,300 such students in the prefecture and the number of students requiring Japanese language support is increasing every year.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Nov 7, 2015

Heart of darkness: Nostalgic Tokyo disappearing amid construction boom

The Shinagawa neighborhood of Musashi-Koyama — a vibrant maze of tiny alleyways that once housed dozens of small eateries, tapas restaurants and bars — is now a virtual ghost town.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Nov 7, 2015

Aomori's moving castle and other architectural tales

Once every century, Hirosaki in Aomori Prefecture experiences an unusual event — the Hirosaki Moving Castle Project — when the city relocates an entire castle using manpower only.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Nov 7, 2015

TV Asahi gets 'The Scoop' on false convictions

Last week the Tokyo Shimbun ran an article about Keiko Aoki and Tatsuhiro Boku, the couple convicted of murdering Aoki's 11-year-old daughter in 1995 and sentenced to life in prison. The upcoming retrial, which will likely reverse the guilty verdict, may reveal that the Osaka pair were coerced into making...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Nov 7, 2015

Without doubt, company executives will just go with the flow

Asahi Kasei. Toyo Tire & Rubber. Toshiba. What's the connection? Executives lined up before the cameras, bowing their heads in shame.
Reader Mail
Nov 6, 2015

The refugee crisis: What about Japan?

Regarding the article "UNICEF chief urges Japan to open its doors to more refugees" in the Oct. 19 edition, if the Japanese are truly "very good global citizens," as UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake says, surely my fellow countrymen would agree with Lake's appeal? After all, the refugee crisis...
Reader Mail
Nov 6, 2015

Racist drawing of Syrian girl

Regarding the article "Manga artist removes illustration mocking Syrian refugee" in the Oct. 8 edition, as a citizen of Japan I felt disgusted looking at this racist drawing by Toshiko Hasumi that used an innocent child to represent such perverse prejudice.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 4, 2015

Dreams for the 21st century

The 21st century will see many fabulous innovations that we can barely imagine today.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Nov 4, 2015

Different strokes: navigating the Japanese school system with a learning difficulty

Japan's schools can be ill-prepared for dealing with bicultural children with learning problems.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 3, 2015

Beijing found to be covertly operating global public radio network

In August, foreign ministers from 10 nations blasted China for building artificial islands in the disputed South China Sea. As media around the world covered the diplomatic clash, a radio station that serves the most powerful city in America had a distinctive take on the news.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Nov 2, 2015

EU agency declares bugs fine for feasting on

Houseflies, crickets and silkworms can be safe, nutritious and serve as an environmentally friendly alternative to chicken, beef or pork, researchers say.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Nov 2, 2015

University-affiliated startup revolutionizes the electron beam

A Nagoya University-affiliated venture firm has created a next-generation electron beam device, signaling a landmark shift in the way electron microscopes and 3-D printers operate.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / GENERATIONAL CHANGE
Nov 1, 2015

Entrepreneurial lawyer takes legal services into Internet age

Becoming a lawyer used to be the ultimate status symbol in Japan. Bar exams were extremely hard to pass, so hard that once they obtained the license, lawyers were pretty much guaranteed a successful life afterward.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Oct 31, 2015

Sensory overload in Aomori's capital city

I nearly walk by Aomori's Furukawa market on the first pass, expecting something akin to the cacophony of Tokyo's central wholesale fish market (known casually to most as Tsukiji). Sliding open the door to the squat building, however, I am assaulted with the not unwelcome scent of fresh seafood, an encouraging...
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 30, 2015

Japanese pacifism is not the moral choice

Only in Japan is unilateral pacifism considered viable, but in a world of new threats a policy of sympathetic indifference is morally questionable.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 28, 2015

Opposition must work out unified campaign strategy

If Japan is to have a thriving democracy, the opposition camp must come together and offer the Liberal Democratic Party real competition.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 27, 2015

Fix America's broken criminal justice system

If the Republican Party wants to win a bigger share of the African-American vote, it should hone an agenda for reform of the troubled U.S. criminal justice system.
Japan Times
WORLD
Oct 27, 2015

Open sectarianism in Saudi Arabia frightens Shiite adherents

When the gunshots rang out, Ali, a 26-year-old Saudi Arabian Shiite Muslim, thought they were fireworks. But when he saw people running, he knew militant Sunnis were attacking his minority community again.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Oct 26, 2015

Five more sports pushed for Tokyo 2020

Five additional sports have been recommended for inclusion at the 2020 Summer Games.
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Oct 26, 2015

JR Tokai begins landowner negotiations for maglev train line

With construction of a magnetically levitated train line connecting Tokyo to Osaka via Nagoya in the works, Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai) has started negotiating with landowners for property rights around Nagoya Station.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 25, 2015

Yafuoku Dome's shortened fences help Hawks, foes

Shota Takeda might've opened the Japan Series with a three-hit shutout had the game been played in 2014. It wasn't, so instead of a shutout, the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks pitcher gave up a two-out two-run home run to Tokyo Yakult Swallows slugger Kazuhiro Hatakeyama in the ninth inning of a 4-2 victory...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Oct 24, 2015

Water, water everywhere in Japan, but fewer people to pay for it

Water is relatively abundant in Japan, but there are less people around to pay for the infrastructure that processes it and delivers it to homes.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Oct 23, 2015

Kodo-kai still raking in funds despite tougher yakuza laws

The Kodokai is emerging as Japan's strongest yakuza group, thanks to its prodigious money-making skills.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 21, 2015

Russian eagle takes steroids, reads Hegel, seeks recognition

The goal of Vladimir Putin's aggressive foreign policy may be a new contract with the West in which Russia is recognized as a leading power and treated as an equal.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 20, 2015

Japan bears a greater responsibility at the U.N.

No country is better positioned to serve as a 'bridge' between the U.N. Security Council and the general U.N. membership than Japan, given its leading experience as a non-permanent member of the UNSC.

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