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JAPAN
Nov 28, 2009

'Politically binding' budget screening over

Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's waste-cutting panel finished its nine-day review of allocations Friday for 447 public works projects in the government's record-high ¥95 trillion budget for fiscal 2010.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 27, 2009

'Black Gaisha ni Tsutometerundaga mo Ore wa Genkai Kamo Shirenai'

Films about Japanese organization men, from bureaucrats to salarymen, have long broadly divided into two categories — the serious ones, that portray work life as a sort of holy war, fought by loyal, self-sacrificing blue-suited soldiers, and the comic, whose characters range from pompous idiots to...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 27, 2009

A revolution off the record

As the clock struck midnight on Dec. 31, 1999, hundreds of thousands worldwide were reveling in clubs and arenas to the sounds of records played by their favorite DJs. Little were they to know that in the space of 10 years the record was to become an endangered species.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Nov 27, 2009

How 'new' kabuki has captivated theater audiences for decades

In 1893, at age 78, the great playwright Kawatake Mokuami died. Since he left no protege, his death also ended the tradition of classical Kabuki writing. Mokuami, who, during the 19th century wrote more than 360 plays over his long career, became the last of the professional writers to work exclusively...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
Nov 27, 2009

Festive offerings at Tokyo hotels

As the Christmas season approaches, hotels warm up the mood with sparkling illuminations and gorgeous tree decorations, and prepare a variety of seasonal events and culinary offerings. Here are some of those special Christmas offerings that Tokyo's premium hotels have this year. Find your best way of...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
Nov 26, 2009

Cable guy Yasushi Sano

Yasushi Sano, 30, is a "cable guy" living and working in Tokyo. By his estimates, over the past six years, he has installed cable TV into about fives homes a day, averaging 25 hook-ups a week, 100 a month and 1,200 a year, bringing quality entertainment into a total of 7,200 households. Sano's passion...
JAPAN / ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE
Nov 26, 2009

CO2 cuts will require nation's transformation

First in a series
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 25, 2009

Moving house needn't leave you speechless

Along with divorce and bereavement, hikkoshi (引っ越し, moving house) is widely considered one of the most stressful experiences a person can go through, and adding an unfamiliar language to the mix can be enough to drive the best of us bonkers. It doesn't help that in Japan fudōsanya (不動産屋,...
COMMENTARY
Nov 24, 2009

An able, nonpolitical civil service

LONDON — In Britain and Japan, civil servants are supposed to be nonpolitical and to give unbiased advice. But their independence is threatened by some politicians who want posts to be filled by what Margaret Thatcher used to call "one of us" — people who share the same aspirations as the governing...
COMMUNITY / Voices / HAVE YOUR SAY
Nov 24, 2009

Parental child abduction and custody: readers respond

The following are a selection of readers' responses to the recent Zeit Gist articles on child custody and parental child abduction by Colin P. A. Jones (Oct. 20, Nov. 17) and "Richard Cory" (Nov. 3):
Japan Times
BUSINESS / ASEAN JOURNALIST SYMPOSIUM
Nov 24, 2009

Southeast Asian economies look to return to growth in 2010

Southeast Asian economies hit hard by the global crisis expect to return to positive growth in 2010 as signs of recovery started to emerge in recent months following massive government stimulus measures, veteran journalists from the region told a recent symposium.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Nov 24, 2009

Emperor — poise under public spotlight

This year marks Emperor Akihito's 20th year on the Chrysanthemum Throne.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Nov 22, 2009

Hot Hibachi League prepares to heat up as season draws to a close

The final game of the 2009 baseball season in Japan takes place on Sunday at Tokyo Dome. Billed as the "U-26" it features a select team of college players against a group of professionals, most of whom are under the age of 26.
ENVIRONMENT
Nov 22, 2009

Top artist draws growing global conclusions

Neal Adams became a cult star as a graphic artist with DC and Marvel comics during the late 1960s and '70s through his work on series such as "The Spectre," "Batman," "Superman" and "Green Lantern" — and also his contributions, at Marvel, to "X-Men" and "Conan the Barbarian."
CULTURE / Books
Nov 22, 2009

How to save the planet, Edo Japan style

JUST ENOUGH: Lessons in Living Green From Traditional Japan, by Azby Brown. Kodansha International, 2009, 232 pp., $24.95 (hardcover) Azby Brown is fascinated by Edo Japan because it once faced dire environmental degradation and yet did not collapse. Through a combination of ingenious technological advances,...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Nov 22, 2009

Exploring cancer research, the classic 'Sakura' and filial piety

Two years ago journalist and critic Takashi Tachibana was operated on for bladder cancer. The experience made him curious about research into cures for the disease, and what he learned is outlined in "Tachibana Takashi Saizensen Hokoku, Gan to Ningen, Hateshinaku Tatakai" (Takashi Tachibana's Front Line...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Nov 22, 2009

Exploring cancer research, the classic 'Sakura' and filial piety

Two years ago journalist and critic Takashi Tachibana was operated on for bladder cancer. The experience made him curious about research into cures for the disease, and what he learned is outlined in "Tachibana Takashi Saizensen Hokoku, Gan to Ningen, Hateshinaku Tatakai" (Takashi Tachibana's Front Line...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Nov 21, 2009

American bar, ski lodge owner puts the emphasis on fun

"The first question people ask when you say you're in the bar business in Japan is whether you have to pay money to the yakuza," says Matt Naiman, owner of several bars around Japan and a ski resort.
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Nov 20, 2009

Hannaryz trying to shake slump

Every expansion team is expected to struggle during its inaugural season. And if Aristotle had focused on athletics instead of classic philosophy, he could've written volumes about this subject.

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