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Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 2, 2010

Lights, camera, Sakanaction!

"I hope foreign listeners can persevere with Japanese music," laughs bespectacled musician Ichiro Yamaguchi. "Sure, there's a lot of crap music here, but there's a lot of good stuff, too. Intelligent music is in the minority now, but I believe it will become mainstream in the future."
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Apr 2, 2010

Acrobatic troupe flips in from China

The China National Acrobatic Troupe is flipping and somersaulting across Japan, and they are bringing with them a young magician who has already wowed audiences in his home country.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 2, 2010

Shoko Nakagawa "Shoko-tan Cover 3: Anison wa Jinrui o Tsunagu"

Given her image as the ultimate otaku idol — not only a singer, but also a manga artist and occasional anime voice actress — it's tempting to suggest that "Anison wa Jinrui wo Tsunagu," Shoko Nakagawa's third volume of anime song covers, is a better representation of the pop star she is than her...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Apr 2, 2010

Who will bring home the Bacon this year?

Francis Bacon will be participating in Art Fair Tokyo again this year — in spirit. No, not the renowned 16th-century British philosopher, or the famed Irish-born 20th-century figurative painter. But Francis Bacon, the kosher vegetarian, Budapest-born Irish Wolfhound, whose budding career as Tokyo's...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Apr 2, 2010

Getting round the censors can make art even more creative

There are two main arguments to support censorship. One is that it protects the tender sensibilities of a weak-minded public prone to be led astray into immorality and depravity. The other is that it actually stirs the creative powers of artists to new heights by placing obstacles in their way. While...
BUSINESS
Mar 31, 2010

Toyota takes steps to improve image

TOYOTA, Aichi Pref. — With its reputation severely damaged by safety issues, Toyota Motor Corp. announced several steps Tuesday to improve its image, including the establishment of a panel of regional and local quality-control executives that will call the shots on recalls and other steps.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Mar 31, 2010

Take your taimingu when translating loan words

The English translation of the manga "Death Note" by Tsugumi Ōba has sold millions of copies around the world — with barely a mention anywhere of the glaring translation error in the title and throughout the work: "Death Note" should in fact be "Death Notebook."
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Mar 30, 2010

Capital crimes soon to lose statute

The Democratic Party of Japan-led government recently approved a bill to abolish the statute of limitations on crimes that could be punishable by hanging in a move experts say signals a major shift in the justice system.
COMMENTARY
Mar 30, 2010

Drone dependency trivializing Afghan war

NEW YORK — Captain Ferguson (a fictitious name) gets up early in the morning, and has breakfast with his wife and children. At the office, he sits in front of a computer off and on for almost eight hours. At the end of the day he heads back home. Ferguson's wife is glad to see him as they discuss the...
BUSINESS
Mar 30, 2010

Google Japan outgrows its Shibuya digs, opts for the glitz of Roppongi Hills

Google Inc. will relocate its Japan unit to the Mori Tower in Tokyo's Roppongi Hills complex where Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has its Japan headquarters.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 29, 2010

India's budget boldly exempts toy balloons from excise duty

HONG KONG — Which country is growing at close to 8 percent a year but has the potential for double digit-growth, is already in the world's top 10 industrial powers but should be in the top three or four, has the best demographic profile of almost all developing countries but faces immense social and...
EDITORIALS
Mar 29, 2010

Sound of street enterprise

Once upon a time, Tokyo's streets were filled with pushcart vendors selling every imaginable item. Those fabled days are making a comeback, with small startup companies and hardworking individuals plying Tokyo's streets selling food and small goods in many parts of the city. The resurgence of these vendors...
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 29, 2010

'Chimerica' hits the skids

LONDON — The idea of "Chimerica" was always too good to be true, but the rapidity with which Sino-U.S. ties have unraveled over the past few months has even surprised those who were cynical about Barack Obama's overtures to China to begin with.
EDITORIALS
Mar 28, 2010

Women's pay imbalances

A nother International Women's Day was celebrated March 8, though "celebrate" is perhaps not the right word. Most women around the world were too busy making ends meet to find time to celebrate.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 28, 2010

The Swiss model for helping foreigners fit in

BRUSSELS — As policymakers scratch their heads and wonder how best to absorb different cultures and religions into Europe's very distinct national societies, they could do worse than consider some new ideas being developed in Switzerland.
Reader Mail
Mar 28, 2010

The limits of artistic expression

As a 28-year-old Indian, I take strong exception to the publication of Gautaman Bhaskaran's March 9 article, "Intolerance in India putting artists to flight."
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / BACKSTREET STORIES
Mar 28, 2010

Thatched spring in Setagaya

To slough off winter sluggishness and get into step with spring, I set a course from Seijo Gakuen-mae on the Odakyu Line to Jidayubori Minkaen — a compound of late-Edo Period (1860s) thatched farmhouses in Tokyo's Setagaya Ward — and ending at Futako Tamagawa Station, about 4 km away as the crow...
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 28, 2010

S-Pulse waste opportunity against fatigued Frontale

Shimizu S-Pulse failed to take advantage of Kawasaki Frontale's early-season fatigue in a flat 0-0 draw on Saturday.
Japan Times
LIFE
Mar 28, 2010

Letter from Rapallo

Aug. 12, 1940
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Mar 27, 2010

Before Obamacare: Japan's national healthcare system saves some for private insurers

Even though Japan enjoys the benefits of national health care, private insurers are doing a booming business.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years