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Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 24, 2017

Japan's lowriders get a little higher

The scene at Makuhari Messe could be at the Louvre — if the Louvre were to pump hip-hop throughout its galleries and have half-naked women posing beside its exhibits.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / B. League / HOOP SCOOP
Nov 21, 2017

Hasheem Thabeet's massive size proving to be problematic with referees

"When I'm at the helm, I cover the whole realm," legendary rapper Rakim professed in "Remember That."
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 20, 2017

SoftBank's Dennis Sarfate, Hiroshima's Yoshihiro Maru win NPB MVP awards

Dennis Sarfate considers himself a traditionalist, and as such, he might not have cast a ballot for himself, a reliever, in the MVP race.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Nov 18, 2017

Sicilian Mafia unlikely to ever again allow one 'boss of bosses' like Salvatore Riina

The death of Sicilian Mafia boss Salvatore "Toto" Riina on Friday does not mark the end of Cosa Nostra, but the crime group is unlikely to allow one man such power ever again, a top magistrate and former mobster said.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2017

How one Japan firm shifted its focus from steel plates to fancy phone screens

It calls itself a steel maker, but don't be misled by the name.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 10, 2017

Las Vegas massacre may add more than $1 billion to insurer costs

The deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history is adding to soaring costs for insurance companies, which are already taking a beating this year from an onslaught of hurricanes, earthquakes and wildfires.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 9, 2017

'Goodbye, Grandpa!' shows us how funerals are quintessentially Japanese

Want a glimpse into the dynamics of a Japanese family? Head to a funeral. That other big family function, the wedding, is a time for putting on a brave face and meeting the in-laws in a spirit of celebration. But, funerals? Those are like emotional detonating switches: Festering resentments erupt, buried...
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Nov 9, 2017

Trump's tone during visit to Seoul largely reassures South Koreans

By the time U.S. President Donald Trump departed Seoul on Wednesday, the sometimes bellicose leader seemed to have mollified South Koreans, who had been bracing for more confrontational rhetoric over North Korea, trade, and defense spending.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / HIT AND RUN
Nov 5, 2017

Masterful Hawks again soar over baseball rivals

At the end of another NPB season, the Japanese baseball world is again wondering how to beat these Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / JAPAN TIMES GONE BY
Nov 4, 2017

Japan Times 1917: An eye-witness account of Perry's historic visit

'From a far distance, among the wonder-stricken villagers, losing color at the sight of the 'black ships,'' said one farmer, 'I stood aghast, wondering what would happen, staring at the unwanted objects.'
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 3, 2017

Tokyo International Film Festival closes with social issues in the spotlight

The Tokyo International Film Festival has always struggled to distinguish itself from other big film events. It doesn't have the cultural cachet of Venice, Cannes or Toronto, and even within Asia it falls behind Busan and Hong Kong in terms of the caliber of works it sometimes attracts. But it always...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / BACKSTREET STORIES
Nov 3, 2017

Changing times in Setagaya's Shoin Jinjamae

There's something alluring about the suburban stops between Sangenjaya and Shimotakaido stations, which has been serviced by the Tokyu Setagaya tramway for the past 110 years.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / B. League / B. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Nov 2, 2017

Sunrockers coach Geoffrey Katsuhisa counts on team defense

Early in his career, Geoffrey Katsuhisa had the ideal mentor.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 2, 2017

Tokyo International Film Festival closes with an inconvenient message from Al Gore

Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore Jr. still remembers the childhood experiences that inspired his passion for the natural environment.
Japan Times
WORLD
Nov 2, 2017

Suppressed at home, some Uzbeks turn to militant Islam abroad

Pushed by a lack of jobs and strict control of behavior and dissent, millions of Uzbeks have emigrated in recent years. Hundreds of those joined Islamic State in the Middle East, while others turned to religious extremism in their host countries.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 1, 2017

Rookie pitcher Haruhiro Hamaguchi comes up big to keep BayStars alive in Japan Series

Rookie pitcher Haruhiro Hamaguchi took the ball in what might have been the biggest game of his life and delivered the performance of his life.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 1, 2017

'Kokoro': Belgian director Vanja d'Alcantara offers an insightful interpretation of the Japanese mindset

Alice is a woman who has it all: a beautiful house in a Paris suburb, a loving husband and two teenage children who can be difficult at times but would surely panic if their maman were to suddenly make herself unavailable. Still, Alice (Isabelle Carre) suspects something is missing, and her days are...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 1, 2017

Toyota's solid-state battery to power future as automaker readies 'game-changer' for mass market

Toyota Motor Corp. is scrambling to solve outstanding issues as it races to commercialize a battery breakthrough during the first half of the 2020s with the potential to cut the cost of making electric cars.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 29, 2017

Why do Japanese have trouble learning English?

If the government wants to improve students' proficiency in English, it should increase the time they spend studying the language.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Oct 28, 2017

Limit the damage on office battlefields

What a nest of vipers an office is! Tens, hundreds, thousands of people, supposedly united in a common enterprise — yet if looks could kill, how many would make it alive through the day?
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 24, 2017

The Tokyo International Film Festival can be a time of true cinematic discovery (if you know where to look)

Film festivals have multiplied like bamboo shoots in Japan over the past two decades, from Okinawa in the south to Sapporo in the north. But the country's biggest is still the Tokyo International Film Festival, whose 30th edition takes place from Oct. 25 to Nov. 3 at venues centering on Roppongi Hills....
WORLD / Society
Oct 24, 2017

U.K. lobbies for transgender rights but seeks to retain the term 'pregnant women'

Britain is seeking to extend to transgender people protection granted to women in pregnancy by a U.N. treaty but has not asked for the term "pregnant women" be dropped from the text, the government said on Monday after controversy over its wording.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Oct 22, 2017

Japan-born American finds freedom in not playing the part

Young man caught between two cultures finds freedom in disregarding the expectations of others, be they Japanese or American.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 22, 2017

Why admitting girls into the Boy Scouts feels weird

Girls in the Boy Scouts makes almost as much sense as allowing Republicans to vote in a Democratic primary.

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