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COMMENTARY / World
Apr 10, 2011

Market investors loath to weigh real challenges to U.S. economy

HONG KONG — Sometimes I find it hard to understand "Mr. Market" — if I may presume to call and poke fun at the combined wisdom of investors in stock and other markets. Immediately after announcement of a modest rise in U.S. employment numbers, the Dow Jones Industrial average rose, triggering a general...
COMMENTARY
Apr 10, 2011

Obama, Libya and the commitment to limits

LONDON — Once upon a time, a U.S. president was appalled by the actions of a murderous Arab dictator. He got the United Nations Security Council to pass a resolution authorizing the use of force to stop the dictator, put together a coalition of NATO and Arab countries, and did precisely that. Sound...
EDITORIALS
Apr 10, 2011

Ready for English?

Fifth- and sixth-grade teachers will have one new worry starting this month — teaching English. All elementary schools must introduce compulsory foreign language lessons. Despite the difficulties of implementing this national strategy for English education, it is high time Japan took its English level...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 9, 2011

Toyota to restart all domestic plants

Toyota Motor Corp. said Friday it will resume limited production at all domestic plants from April 18 to 27 after the March 11 catastrophe forced it to halt manufacturing due to parts shortages.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Apr 9, 2011

Evacuation turns into chance to help victims

OXFORD, England — When the offshore Tohoku mega-quake caused tsunami to slam ashore on March 11, crippling the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, Japan was figuratively as well as literally shaken.
BUSINESS
Apr 9, 2011

Sony, Nikon shut plants as aftershock causes outages

Sony Corp. and Nikon Corp. were among several manufacturers that shut plants following Thursday night's 7.1-magnitude earthquake, delaying their recovery from last month's historic temblor.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Apr 8, 2011

Shiga must cope with loss of injured Peppers

When he arrived in the city alongside picturesque Lake Biwa , the well-traveled Josh Peppers gave the Shiga Lakestars an added component that every team covets: a professional scorer.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 8, 2011

'The Killer Inside Me'

If you like your film noir darker than a Texas outhouse on a new moon in June, and if you don't mind being shocked — and I mean really shocked — then here's your film: "The Killer Inside Me," director Michael Winterbottom's adaptation of the cult noir novel from 1952 by that most hard-boiled of authors,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 8, 2011

'Koko Debyu (High School Debut)'

I was on my way to a screening of Tsutomu Hanabusa's teen romcom "Koko Debut (High School Debut)" when the March 11 earthquake struck. Luckily, the Oedo subway train I was riding made it, slowly, to the next station and, instead of catching this adaptation of a hit girls' comic by Kazune Kawahara, I...
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Apr 8, 2011

Tokyo classical music benefit to boost spirits and awareness

Since the March 11 earthquake, it's been difficult for the classical music scene, with many venues having to cancel or postpone performances. Amid this period of readjustment, world-renowned conductor Zubin Mehta is returning to Japan to conduct a Tohoku-Kanto earthquake charity concert to be held in...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Apr 8, 2011

Tohoku brewers: 'Drink without restraint!'

Last weekend, fifth-generation sake brewery owner Kosuke Kuji of Nanbu Bijin delivered an earnest plea to the public on behalf of sake producers in the Tohoku region: "We'd be sincerely grateful if people would continue to have hanami parties (this year)."
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 7, 2011

Fallout of nuclear and financial meltdowns

BRUSSELS — The metaphors used during the financial crisis of 2008-2009 — earthquake, tsunami, meltdown, black swan and fallout — are back with a vengeance, but now they are being recycled literally. In fact, the financial crisis and the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima nuclear-power plant in Japan...
Reader Mail
Apr 7, 2011

Praying for Fukushima's heroes

Regarding Rob Gilhooly's April 3 article, "Crews driven by sense of mission": The noble "Fukushima 50" and others who risk sacrificing themselves for the well-being of others as they quietly do what they can to contain the ruined reactors at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant are true heroes.
EDITORIALS
Apr 6, 2011

End game in Ivory Coast

In most elections, the person who collects the most votes is declared winner and takes the office that was contested. Not in the Ivory Coast. There, incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo has refused to leave office after losing to former Prime Minister Alessane Ouattara.
JAPAN
Apr 6, 2011

Nuclear crisis man-made, not 'an act of god': experts

Despite protestations from the government and Tokyo Electric Power Co. that the tsunami that knocked out the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant was unforeseeable, noted seismologists and nuclear experts say the crisis is largely man-made.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Apr 5, 2011

Foreign volunteers in relief efforts

Ever since the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, the nongovernmental organization Peace Boat has sent teams of volunteers to assist survivors in disaster-stricken areas as far afield as Kashmir, New Orleans and Indonesia. But according to Takashi Yamamoto, current director of Peace Boat's relief efforts...
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Apr 5, 2011

Letting radiation leak, but never information

March 2011 has shaken Japan to the core. The earthquake, tsunami and nuclear incident in Fukushima have given the world cause to pause and reflect on the fragility and hubris of human existence. My condolences to the victims, and their families and friends.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Apr 5, 2011

Shonan: After the bout-fixing scandal and the March 11 quake, do you think the sumo Summer Basho should still be held?

Robert Feeney
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 5, 2011

J-REITs to halt sales, fundraising in short term

Japan's real estate investment trusts may stall property sales and suspend fundraising plans in the short term as the effects of the historic earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis curb investor appetite for assets.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 5, 2011

Portable generators sell out after quake

Portable power generators made by Honda Motor Co., Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. and Yamaha Motor Co. are running out after the March 11 disaster crippled production while simultaneously stoking demand.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 4, 2011

Russian alienation and the cost of freedom

MOSCOW — The Russian government, with its solid hold on power, has invariably gotten away with poor performance, inefficiency, corruption and widespread violation of political rights and civil liberties.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 4, 2011

Kansai region wonders: Could it happen here?

TSURUGA, Fukui Pref. — On a hillside overlooking Tsuruga, about a dozen children and their mothers are enjoying the day at At Home, the Fukui Atomic Energy Science Museum. Inside, kids rush to play free arcade-style games spread across the two-floor facility. Some feature the latest computer graphics...
Reader Mail
Apr 3, 2011

Nuclear benefits outweigh risks

Philip White's argument against nuclear power in his March 30 article ("A silver lining to the Fukushima disaster?") is weak. It's typical of the attacks used by opponents of atomic energy in that it includes no hard data, relying on vague fears of unseen or unknowable impacts as it tries to steer us...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Apr 3, 2011

Every day ought to be Earth Day

I usually avoid large gatherings of people, even though it has become my job to give lectures and to attend seminars and meetings and such. However, you would never see me anywhere near a rock concert or a rugby, soccer or baseball match.
Reader Mail
Apr 3, 2011

Leaders must anticipate disaster

Again, America is witnessing an international crisis, this time the earthquake-tsunami aftermath in Japan. As we have seen so many times in recent years — especially after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans (2005) — our nation's leaders appear to grow wiser by reaction rather than by a proactive approach....

Longform

After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan