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Reader Mail
Jun 2, 2013

A history of political stupidity

The Japanese have a place in their hearts for politicians who say outrageous and stupid things. There is a long history of it. First, the Japanese seem to confuse constitutional freedom of speech with the freedom to say absolutely anything with impunity. Hence there is a disposition to admire leaders...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 1, 2013

Tokyo urged to aid disease eradication battle

The world may be on the verge of a historic breakthrough in the quest to eradicate infectious diseases once thought incurable, and Japan needs to be a key player, said Mark Dybul, an executive of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
Japan Times
WORLD / TICAD V SPECIAL
Jun 1, 2013

The evolution of TICAD since its inception in 1993

TICAD, or the Tokyo International Conference on African Development, has continuously evolved since the first conference in 1993.
Japan Times
WORLD / TICAD V SPECIAL
Jun 1, 2013

Yokohama continues to foster close African ties

Africa returns to Yokohama in the form of the fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD V), which is being held through June 3.
Japan Times
JAPAN / NURTURING PARTNERSHIPS
Jun 1, 2013

TICAD's to-do list extensive, 20 years on

Looking back on the Tokyo International Conference on African Development and its achievements over the past 20 years, Masaki Inaba touched on the number of flights that now directly connect Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 1, 2013

Obama no friend of free press

Barack Obama's tendency to bypass the press for social media and friendly bloggers amounts to the White House reporting on itself, thus avoiding tough questions.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 1, 2013

Abe offer at TICAD: ¥3.2 trillion in aid

The fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development is set to kick off with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe set to pledge up to ¥3.2 trillion in total aid over the next five years.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jun 1, 2013

Iranian-American gets jail for Tehran-backed plot to kill Saudi envoy

An Iranian-American used car salesman from Texas who was at the center of a bizarre plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States was sentenced Thursday in federal court in Manhattan to 25 years in prison.
EDITORIALS
Jun 1, 2013

Problematic pact with India

A pact allowing Japanese firms to export nuclear power generation equipment to India would be problematic since India has not joined the nonproliferation treaty.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 31, 2013

Director Yukinori Makabe has high hopes for his 'Tokyo Sky Story' at film festival

A staffer of the Robot production house, where he has worked as an assistant director on entries in the hit "Always" and "Odoru Daisosasen (Bayside Shakedown)" series, 29-year-old Yukinori Makabe has also directed award-winning short films, including "The Sun and the Moon," which beat out 250 others...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 31, 2013

Widow in farmer suicide sues Tepco

A Filipino woman whose Japanese husband committed suicide after his dairy farming business was decimated by the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster is suing Tokyo Electric Power Co. for about ¥126 million.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 31, 2013

'Stoker'

Meet the Stoker family: wealthy, well-bred and seemingly isolated from the world. Mom Evie (Nicole Kidman) seems to have nothing more to do than weave elegantly around the house with a drink in her hand, looking fabulous. Dad Richard (Dermot Mulroney) is an architect who got his Ph.D at the age of 24....
BUSINESS / Companies
May 31, 2013

Sony taps Apple alumni for board

Sony Corp. CEO Kazuo Hirai is trying to win back customers from Apple Inc. with new Xperia smartphones. Adding two former executives of the iPhone maker to Sony's board next month may help.
EDITORIALS
May 31, 2013

Ill-prepared for nuclear accidents

The exposure of 33 researchers to radiation on May 23 at a Japan Atomic Energy Agency research facility in Tokai, Ibaraki Prefecture, revealed the JAEA's failure to uphold basic safety standards. Education and science minister Mr. Hakubun Shimomura said May 28 that the ministry will thoroughly reform...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / FOOD MATTERS
May 31, 2013

Gourmet food for cheap, if you can stand for it

Here's a scenario few restaurants would dare to dream of: All tables fully booked a month ahead, all year round; lines outside an hour before opening time; a prompt turnover of satisfied customers, with as many as three rotations per evening. And a bulging bottom line.
COMMENTARY / World
May 31, 2013

Alcohol addiction could doom Putin's dreams

Russians' love for vodka has a long history. Legend holds that vodka arrived in Moscow in the 14th century, brought by Genovese merchants to Prince Dmitry Ivanovich.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
May 30, 2013

What Bachmann meant to politics

Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann's surprise retirement announcement likely brings an end to an Icarus-like political career in which she rapidly rose to national prominence before falling hard.
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
May 30, 2013

Lottery operators still looking for last year's winners

Seven 2012 grand prize Takarakuji winners still haven't picked up their money.
JAPAN / NURTURING PARTNERSHIPS
May 30, 2013

China biggest rival as Japan seeks to tap African resources

When the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami led to three core meltdowns at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, an atomic calamity that effectively put the nation's remaining 50 reactors out of action, Japan was suddenly faced with an energy crisis unseen since the oil shocks of the early 1970s.
EDITORIALS
May 30, 2013

'My number' is dangerous

The Diet enacts the 'My Number' ID card system, which ostensibly will ease payment of taxes and distribution of welfare benefits for citizens. But there's a price.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 30, 2013

Art born from the disingenuous

The most radical force in art is not, as most people assume, genius, inspiration or sheer talent, it is instead a lack of technical ability. Combined with a strong desire to be an artist, this can prove to be a powerful driver of change and innovation, as revealed by "Odilon Redon: The Origins of the...
EDITORIALS
May 30, 2013

Improving the lay judge system

The worst that can be said about Japan's now 4-year-old lay judge system is that 'citizen judges' have not always gotten enough psychological support from courts.
WORLD / Society
May 30, 2013

Nearly 40% of U.S. moms are family breadwinners

In a trend accelerated by the recent recession and an increase in births to single mothers, nearly 4 in 10 families with children under the age of 18 are now headed by women who are the sole or primary breadwinners for their families, according to a report released Wednesday by the Pew Research Center....
WORLD
May 30, 2013

U.S. Army mulls hybrid-engine model for next mainstay tank

Next year, the U.S. Army is expected to choose a larger tank to replace its Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle, which has been in service since 1981. If the army accepts one contractor's proposal, its armored brigades could be relying heavily on a tank with a hybrid engine for several decades.
COMMENTARY / World
May 30, 2013

Tumblr's boy wonder won't like grown-up world

A happy ending to the fairy tale of how David Karp, a 26-year-old autodidact who founded Tumblr, stands to make $250 million from Yahoo is in considerable doubt.

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