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Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 1, 2015

TPP giving sheltered farmers greater incentive to export pricey produce

Japan's high-cost farmers, sheltered by prohibitive import tariffs, might appear to be most at risk from the giant trans-Pacific trade deal agreed upon last month, but they are instead making an unlikely push to export more of their pricey produce.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 1, 2015

James Bond is the U.K.'s greatest intelligence asset

James Bond and his fellow fictional British operatives allow U.K. intelligence to project an image that goes well beyond the niggling issues of reality.
EDITORIALS
Nov 1, 2015

Tensions rising in South China Sea

Japan should launch diplomatic efforts to help China move toward peace and cooperation, rather than hegemony, in the South China Sea.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 1, 2015

With vast number of ships, Beijing takes quantity over quality approach in South China Sea

When a U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer sailed near one of Beijing's artificial islands in the disputed South China Sea last week, it was operating in a maritime domain bristling with Chinese ships.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Oct 31, 2015

U.S. sea patrols fuel war of words in print

As this column went to press, the Japanese media had their collective attention focused on a potential hot-spot in the disputed South China Sea, where the destroyer USS Lassen, in a modern-day show of "gunboat diplomacy," took an in-your-face drive-by (or sail-by if you prefer) past Chinese encamped...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Oct 31, 2015

'Japan Lobby' takes the gloves off in PR battle

The Sankei Shimbun advocates a more aggressive diplomatic stance on history issues and this dovetails with the mission of Japan Conference, a reactionary organization that includes numerous lawmakers. From their perspective, Japan has been too reticent and polite on the world stage and the gloves need...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Oct 31, 2015

Not-so-friendly neighborhood associations

When the U.S. military took charge following Japan's surrender in 1945, one of the first things it did was ban jichikai, or community associations. The thinking was that these organizations had carried out the work of the military government at the neighborhood level and their continued existence might...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Oct 31, 2015

Deer and boar: from pests to the plate

For many years now I have been hammering on about Japan's runaway population of deer and wild boar, and about the huge damage they cause — especially to agriculture, silviculture, forestry and endangered wild plants in national parks.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 31, 2015

Swallows made great strides during 2015 season

The Tokyo Yakult Swallows were disappointed to fall short in the Japan Series against the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks, but weren't crushed by the defeat.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 31, 2015

China's two-child policy is too little, too late

Rather than worrying about the birthrate to meet its future labor needs, China should be focusing on bringing in migrant workers, especially from South Asia.
WORLD / Science & Health
Oct 31, 2015

Beverly Hills fined for not conserving enough water in drought

Upscale Beverly Hills is among four California cities where water utilities have been fined for not forcing residents to conserve enough water during California's unrelenting four-year drought, officials said on Friday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 31, 2015

Bacon fans brush off WHO cancer warning

Standing at the meat counter at a Mariano's grocery store in Chicago, a half-dozen customers bantered with the butchers about the recent World Health Organization (WHO) report linking processed meat to colorectal cancer.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Oct 31, 2015

Young Chinese mostly lukewarm to one-child policy change

China has unwound its one-child policy, for decades a symbol of invasive and coercive government planning, but the shift has been met with a disinterested shrug from many younger couples.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 30, 2015

Gauging Abe's 'proactive contributions to peace'

While Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has talked a good game about Japan playing a bigger international role, his track record so far shows little has changed.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 30, 2015

China's graying migrants have stash of money ready to spend

Migrant worker Guo Huailiang is planning to live it up a bit in his retirement.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Oct 30, 2015

Xi's baby steps on child policies seen as weakness, not strength, of party

While Chinese President Xi Jinping's decision to end a one-child policy in place for more than three decades may appear bold, the move says more about the Communist Party's insecurity than its resolve to tackle economic problems.
ASIA PACIFIC
Oct 30, 2015

China's naval chief warns U.S. 'minor incident' may spark war in S. China Sea

China's naval commander told his U.S. counterpart that a minor incident could spark war in the South China Sea if the United States did not stop its "provocative acts" in the disputed waterway, the Chinese navy said on Friday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 30, 2015

Abe treads in China's footprints in Central Asia, picks up human rights baggage

Prime Minster Shinzo Abe's trip to Mongolia and Central Asia — in which he became the first Japanese leader ever to visit Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan — looks to bring in a raft of investment deals for Tokyo. But the whirlwind tour likely had other motivations, too, and raises questions...
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Oct 30, 2015

Experts say China's move to abandon one-child policy is 'too little, too late'

For all the historical significance of China's decision to abandon its one-child policy, the move risks falling well short of reversing a trend that threatens to throttle economic growth.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Oct 29, 2015

Oketani learning from former Chicago Bulls coach Cartwright

The Osaka Evessa made a big hire during the offseason, luring Dai Oketani, the winningest coach in bj-league history, to return to his Kansai roots.
Japan Times
WORLD
Oct 29, 2015

U.S. Navy's foray into China-claimed seas reportedly followed foot-dragging by White House

The U.S. naval challenge to China's territorial assertiveness in the South China Sea this week came after months of frustration within the Pentagon at what some defense officials saw as unnecessary delays by the White House and State Department in approving the mission.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 28, 2015

Opposition must work out unified campaign strategy

If Japan is to have a thriving democracy, the opposition camp must come together and offer the Liberal Democratic Party real competition.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 28, 2015

Killing time at the Tokyo International Film Festival

Covering a film festival can turn anyone into a stickler for scheduling. Key screenings and Q&A sessions always seem to overlap and priorities collide. Do you stick with the stodgy Japanese biopic that you're supposed to be writing about, or sneak out halfway through to go watch something more entertaining?...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 28, 2015

Agnes b. moves from fashion to film in 'Je m'appelle Hmmm...'

There is a sizable genre of films about fashion designers — Coco Chanel alone has spawned over a dozen movies, TV episodes and mini-series. But designers who make their own movies are a rarity.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 28, 2015

Companies vie for share of ¥8 trillion retail electricity market

Spend a few minutes to fill in a single-page form from a government website, and mail it in — that is all you need to register as a power producer in Japan as it opens its ¥8.1 trillion ($67 billion) retail electricity market.

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