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JAPAN / View from Osaka
Mar 15, 2014

Trade deals trump sex slave issue for Osakans

When Osaka Mayor and Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) co-leader Toru Hashimoto uttered his infamous remarks last May that Japan's wartime sex slave system was necessary at the time, he was roundly — and rightly — condemned at home and abroad.
BUSINESS / Economy / THE VIEW FROM EUROPE
Mar 15, 2014

Economy can do without structural reform

While critics of "Abenomics" begrudgingly agree Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's policy package has been a success so far, they are equally quick to highlight its looming headwinds.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Mar 15, 2014

Historical ifs and weathers or not

To suggest that history is shaped by chance weather events and climatic variation doesn't lend it quite the same gravitas as if it were wrought by great leaders. It certainly isn't as inspirational. But such processes can be just as important — and the weather can sometimes foil even the best-laid...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Mar 15, 2014

Gadget Girl: The Art of Being Invisible

In her new book, " Gadget Girl: The Art of Being Invisible," award-winning author Suzanne Kamata shows her young audience that invisibility is not always a superpower, and becoming a young adult is not always easy.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Mar 15, 2014

'Be the best you can, don't waste a minute'

Be committed, be focused and be the best you can. Don't waste a minute.
EDITORIALS
Mar 15, 2014

Good year to sell to the mega-rich

The number of individuals in the world with $30 million or more in net assets increased between 2012 and 2013 to 167,000 worldwide, according to a report used by high-end specialty services that cater to the mega-rich.
COMMENTARY
Mar 15, 2014

Special Asian wisdom for skating on thin ice

Olympic skater Kim Yuna's classy, gracious performance, on and off the ice, at Sochi — even as her fellow Korean countrymen complained that she had been robbed of the gold medal for women's figure skating — makes her a model in sports and in East Asian politics.
Japan Times
WORLD
Mar 14, 2014

Radar data suggests missing Malaysia plane deliberately flown way off course

Military radar data suggests a Malaysia Airlines jetliner missing for nearly a week was deliberately flown hundreds of kilometers off course, heightening suspicions of foul play.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Mar 14, 2014

'Mummified in Michigan' befriended

The niece of a Michigan woman whose body is believed to have been found years after she died has created a "Mummified in Michigan" Facebook page to commemorate her.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 14, 2014

Fossil of ancient whale sheds light on how cetacean sonar developed

The deadly threat posed by German submarines during World War I helped spur scientists to develop sonar, using underwater sound signals to locate objects like subs.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 14, 2014

Lithuania won't recognize Crimea referendum: envoy

As Sunday's referendum in Ukraine's Crimea approaches, the visiting Lithuanian foreign minister called Russia's de facto occupation of the territory an act of aggression against a sovereign nation and said the Baltic state will not recognize the election results.
EDITORIALS
Mar 14, 2014

Will pay hikes become a trend?

The pay raises offered by leading Japanese firms this week are an encouraging sign that some companies, at least, are translating better corporate earnings posted the past year into higher wages for workers — thanks partly to unusual government pressures put on management.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 14, 2014

How about better health through good choices?

The premise that health is the product of medicine leads the U.S. government to believe it can deliver health by judiciously distributing preventive or therapeutic medicines rather than disseminate cost-effective public health information.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 13, 2014

Air France to start Haneda-Paris run

Air France will launch direct flights between Haneda airport in Tokyo and Paris on March 30, aiming to provide a more convenient alternative with business travelers particularly in mind.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Mar 13, 2014

Top court case highlights U.S. rift over sex science

As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to hear a religious dispute over the "Obamacare" contraception mandate, advocates on both sides are trying to set the court straight on the science.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 13, 2014

Surviving the latest trend in American cinema

Who is this man? The protagonist in "All is Lost" is also its sole character — an older (but astoundingly fit) stranded sailor portrayed by 77-year-old Robert Redford. He's unnamed, and does not speak except for right at the beginning of the film when he's reciting a letter to persons unknown. The...
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 13, 2014

China waging psychological warfare in the East China Sea

Japanese and Western news reports suggest that the U.S. bombers and routine Japanese patrol fighters that flew into China's air-defense identification zone right after the ADIZ was proclaimed did not encounter any Chinese interceptors or radar beams.
EDITORIALS
Mar 13, 2014

State secrets law fatally flawed

Japan should hold off on putting the state secrets law into effect until it addresses the need for an oversight mechanism for how secrets are designated as well as a means to protect whistleblowers.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 13, 2014

Ueno Park to welcome springtime with a song

The cherry trees of Ueno Park are inspirational in full bloom. Come early spring and Tokyoites head to the area early to snag spots beneath the pink blossoms, which inspire romance, revelry and perhaps more than a few visionary ideas.
LIFE / Digital
Mar 13, 2014

Write off bitcoin if you like, but digital currency is here to stay

If I had a bitcoin for every person I've met in the past six months who told me that bitcoin is a scam, I'd be a rich man. Or a poor one, depending in which day of the week we're talking about.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Mar 13, 2014

EU approves framework for asset freezes, travel bans on Russia

European Union member states have agreed on the wording of sanctions on Russia, including travel restrictions and asset freezes against those responsible for violating the sovereignty of Ukraine, according to a draft document.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Mar 12, 2014

Hasekura Tsunenaga's portrait has a tale to tell

History is littered with grand projects and dashed expectations that are no less intriguing than its moments of triumph and heroism. A large portrait in oils of a splendidly attired, mid-ranking samurai posing regally in a Roman palace in the early 1600s bears witness to one such episode.
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Mar 12, 2014

With love and Japan, what you get out depends on what you put in

Moving to Japan makes an infant of us all, regardless of race, sex or creed. A major conflict in Shakespeare's 'The Tempest' comes from the fact that Prospero knew the language and Caliban the land, but when you first get to Japan, you know neither.
EDITORIALS
Mar 12, 2014

Reducing PM2.5 pollutants

Recent spikes in the concentration of so-called PM2.5 air pollutants over wide areas of Japan once again raise alarms over the potential health risks from the small particles.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’