Search - special

 
 
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 23, 2020

Quotas for Abe and others led to bumper guest lists for blossom parties, papers show

The number of guests at state-funded cherry blossom-viewing parties ballooned due to special quotas allocated to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and other politicians, according to newly discovered Cabinet Office materials.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / BLACK EYE
Jan 23, 2020

Hoping for a Japanese society in which all of its members can shine

Black Eye columnist Baye McNeil opens the new year with an email from a reader that illustrates the importance of language in dealing with multiracial individuals.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 22, 2020

Japan should draft imperial succession measures, says Diet chief Tadamori Oshima

Tadamori Oshima, speaker of the House of Representatives, has said that the government should draft measures to ensure stable imperial succession as a basis for in-depth discussions by the Diet on the matter.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / MORNING ENGLISH
Jan 21, 2020

Let's discuss the casino controversy

A scandal concerning casinos has everyone placing bets on how much trouble the initiative may cause.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 20, 2020

Toshiba Machine shares surge 19% on Murakami's surprise bid

Toshiba Machine Co.'s share price soared Monday after the company said Japan's best-known activist investor, Yoshiaki Murakami, plans a tender offer.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 20, 2020

Chocolate is getting weirder by the day

Infusing chocolate with unusual ingredients keeps the old-school confection on the rise while others are dying out.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design / ON: DESIGN
Jan 20, 2020

Handmade in Japan with love

From horizontal vases to panty-clad glasses, Japan's handmade market can offer some extraordinary gift ideas for Valentine's Day.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 18, 2020

Fleeing in Japan may be more common than many think

Having fled Japan while awaiting trial for alleged financial wrongdoing, former Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn has probably become the most famous foreign national ever arrested in the country. For a while after his initial detention in November 2018, the media discussed Japan's so-called hostage justice system,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / Children's Literature in Japan
Jan 18, 2020

Rieko Nakagawa: From 'Guri and Gura' to Studio Ghibli

Rieko Nakagawa, born in 1935 in Sapporo, was working as a teacher in a small nursery school near Komazawa Park when she wrote her first children's book.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 18, 2020

Once-in-a-decade U.S. Census to kick off in remote Alaska Native village

This year's once-a-decade official U.S. national population count will start in a small Alaska Native village perched on the tundra overlooking the Bering Sea. Daytime temperatures will be well below freezing.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 18, 2020

Myanmar and China agree to speed projects but ink no new deals

China and Myanmar inked dozens of deals on Saturday to speed up infrastructure projects as Beijing seeks to cement its hold over a neighbor increasingly isolated by the West.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 18, 2020

Iran's Khamenei stands by Guard after unrest over downed plane

Iran's supreme leader threw his support behind the elite Revolutionary Guard in a rare sermon on Friday after their belated admission that they had accidentally downed an airliner triggered days of street protests.
SUMO / Rikishi Files
Jan 17, 2020

Former yokozuna Kitanoumi was imposing figure in sumo

Intimidation factor is something that cannot be discounted when it comes to finding reasons for success in sumo.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 17, 2020

Tsai's challenges will intensify in her second term

The DPP victory in Taiwan's presidential election was just just a defeat for the opposition Kuomintang, but also for Beijing.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 17, 2020

Who benefits from the Henoko delay?

Most people in Okinawa Prefecture in fact do not truly desire a solution to the so-called Okinawa problem.
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2020

25 years after Kobe quake, SDF respected and volunteerism still strong

As Kobe commemorates the 25th anniversary of the Great Hanshin Earthquake that took the lives of more than 6,400 people, the city and region are working to remind younger generations of the past devastation — and the importance of disaster-preparedness — even as they face tough questions about their...
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2020

'Fun disaster' drills catching on across Japan, 25 years after Kobe quake

Disaster prevention initiatives with entertaining twists are becoming popular as the nation marks a quarter century since the Great Hanshin Earthquake on Friday.
BUSINESS
Jan 16, 2020

Toyota makes new $394 million bet on flying taxis

Toyota Motor Co. is investing $394 million (¥43.3 billion) in Joby Aviation, one of a handful of companies working toward the seemingly implausible goal of making electric air taxis that shuttle people over gridlocked highways and city streets.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 16, 2020

Clocking up the years with Charlie Nagatani, Japan's country king

After more than 60 years of playing country music, and having staged numerous festivals in his native Kumamoto Prefecture, Charlie Nagatani shows no signs of stopping.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 15, 2020

What's next for Ghosn following his flight to Lebanon?

The incident leaves lingering questions and contending perceptions that have yet to be addressed.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / Sac Bunts
Jan 15, 2020

Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame voters strike out on Tuffy Rhodes again

Tuffy Rhodes could be tough to figure out.
SUMO / Rikishi Files
Jan 15, 2020

Tochiazuma's bloody rivalry with Asashoryu a spectacle

In terms of sumo's vintage years, 1976 was one of the best.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 15, 2020

U.S. Democratic debate: Warren points to women as winners; candidates tangle on Middle East wars

Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren on Tuesday dove into their dispute over whether a woman can win the 2020 presidential election, with Sanders denying he ever said it was impossible. Warren was having none of it.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 13, 2020

Japan's coming-of-age ceremonies under cloud as 2022 revision to age law looms

Many local governments remain undecided on whether coming-of-age ceremonies should continue to be held for people aged 20 after the age of adulthood defined under the country's Civil Code is lowered to 18 from 20 in April 2022 following the planned revision of the law.
SUMO / Rikishi Files
Jan 13, 2020

Technical acumen couldn't get Kotomitsuki over hump

The three pillars of sumo are shin-gi-tai, which translate as heart-technique-physique.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 13, 2020

Putin's latest obsession: Rewriting World War II

Russia's leader believes the narrative is shifting in ways that make the Soviet Union a villain.

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