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EDITORIALS
Jan 8, 2017

Energy policy needs overhaul

Japan's energy policy is at a crossroads. The government's basic energy plan revised in 2014 — after the March 2011 triple meltdowns at Tokyo Electric Power's Fukushima No. 1 plant led to the shutdown of most of the nation's nuclear power reactors — continued the heavy reliance on nuclear power and...
CULTURE / Books
Jan 7, 2017

Defining J-Horror: The erotic, grotesque 'nonsense' of Edogawa Rampo

In Japanese literature, there is a type of horror story that centers on an individual's obsession with a single idea. It arises from the most innocent and everyday circumstances, but gradually this single idea becomes all-consuming, blurring the line between sanity and madness. In some cases, the transformations...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jan 6, 2017

Death of doctor in Fukushima disaster zone hospital throws patients’ futures into question

The only hospital to brave Fukushima's radiation woes loses its only full-time doctor, throwing its patients' fates into doubt.
EDITORIALS
Jan 6, 2017

A crucial year for Koike

Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike's honeymoon period is drawing to a close and she must start producing policy results.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 6, 2017

American bull in a china shop

With Donald Trump's help, the 'Chinese Century' may arrive sooner than anyone expected.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 6, 2017

All that glitters is gold as military risks rise in Asia

Trump's tweet and taunt foreign policy puts the U.S. on a collision course with China and North Korea.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 5, 2017

South Korean court has little precedent and wide latitude in Park impeachment trial

The South Korean court that will rule on the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye has only one precedent and little in the law books to go by, and several legal experts said it will have wide discretion in deciding if she is fit to remain in office.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 5, 2017

Drunken monkeys and the evolution of boozing

If alcohol makes you feel sick rather than drunk, you may have a gene mutation that protects you from alcohol impairment and alcoholism.
JAPAN / GEARING UP FOR THE GAMES
Jan 5, 2017

Advanced tech used by Paralympic athletes could throw perception of disabilities into question

On Dec. 10, some 40 elementary school children showed up for a running workshop at Shin-Toyosu Brillia Running Stadium, a brand new indoor track facility opened the day before in Tokyo's waterfront Toyosu district.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 4, 2017

The silencing of an anti-U.S. base protester in Okinawa

The extended detention of Hiroji Yamashiro is a shocking display of raw government power.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 4, 2017

Israel throws a U.N. tantrum

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had only himself to blame for the U.S. decision to not veto a U.N. resolution criticising Israel's settlements in occupied Palestinian territory.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 4, 2017

Economists see growth on horizon for 2017

Economists say growth is expected on the back of the weak yen and due to government steps to stimulate sluggish consumption.
JAPAN / GEARING UP FOR THE GAMES
Jan 2, 2017

Tokyo 2020 Olympics will come and quickly go, but the legacy is all-important

The eyes of the world will be on Tokyo for more than just the 16 days that it hosts the 2020 Olympics.
EDITORIALS
Jan 2, 2017

Abenomics four years on

With economic growth remaining fragile and uneven, it's time for the Abe administration to pursue structural reforms more vigorously.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 2, 2017

Japanese is affecting the English lexicon in new ways

From 'emoji' to 'KonMari,' the English langauge is getting a pleasant dose of Japanese culture.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Dec 31, 2016

Japan and the world enter a long night of 'post-truth'

In an essay titled "The Future of Mankind," British philosopher Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) laid out three possibilities: "The end of human life," "a reversion to barbarism" or "unification of the world under a single government." He saw the third as the only alternative to either of the first two....
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Dec 31, 2016

Why Abe's Russian gambit is doomed

Say what you will about Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, he is a glutton for punishment. Too bad his bravado is not matched by canny discernment. Case in point is his plan to visit Russian President Vladimir Putin to follow up on the recent fiasco in Japan. In December, Abe came away from his 24 hours with...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Dec 31, 2016

Actors seek posthumous protections after big-screen resurrections

Tuesday's death of actress Carrie Fisher, who played Princess Leia in "Star Wars," set off waves of remembrance among fans — but also speculation over her character's return in yet-to-be-filmed episodes.
EDITORIALS
Dec 30, 2016

Democracy under siege in 2017?

The struggle between democrats and authoritarians will likely be the defining fight of the year to come.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 28, 2016

Mount Meru: for those who like to aim high

If Mount Everest is the iconic goddess of mountains, then Meru in the Indian Himalayas is the unattainable, unknowable bad-ass rock star, beckoning to a chosen few from an impossibly remote place high in the sky. Unlike Everest, Meru isn't famed for its legendary climbs and world records. New Zealand...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 28, 2016

'14 That Night': Not quite abreast of teenage angst

Japanese films about high schoolers are many; junior high schoolers, few. One reason is that producers can cast a film about 17 year olds with 27-year-old actors who have massive fan followings. The result: bigger box office than if they had used newcomers barely into adolescence.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 28, 2016

Crisis of democratic politics

The Abe administration is also riding on the wave of anti-establishment politics that's sweeping the world.
BUSINESS
Dec 28, 2016

U.S. charges Chinese trio of hacking law firms, gaining M&A info for insider trading

Three Chinese citizens have been criminally charged in the United States with trading on confidential corporate information obtained by hacking into networks and servers of law firms working on mergers, U.S. prosecutors said on Tuesday.
Figure Skating / ICE TIME
Dec 27, 2016

Time for Mao to change direction or give it up

There is nothing worse than seeing a great athlete that has hung on too long.

Longform

Japan's growing ranks of centenarians are redefining what it means to live in a super-aging society.
What comes after 100?