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Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 3, 2013

Double the trouble, twice the joy for Japan's hafu

Until about 10 years ago, the standard Japanese image of kids of mixed blood was that they were 1) gorgeous, 2) rich and 3) able to live in Japan with none of the kinks and hang out at Azabu clubs when they were 13. In high school, my girlfriends scorned their own Japanese heritage. The common reply...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Oct 2, 2013

'Kyoto from Inside and Outside: Scenes on Panels and Folding Screens'

Kyoto, the old capital of Japan, has harbored a rich traditional culture that has remained strong for generations. Focusing on large-scale works that present depictions of town life as well as seasonal views of the city, this exhibition reveals a detailed glimpse into the aesthetics of Kyoto culture....
Reader Mail
Oct 2, 2013

The fear of appearing henpecked

As for Mike Wyckoff's Sept. 26 letter, "The men that lack 'life skills,' " from The Japan Times Online, let me tell you about my husband, who used to work for a general trading company. Since our married life began, he has helped me wash dishes after dinner so that we can enjoy the evening hours together...
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 1, 2013

Business partnerships in the fight against poverty

The private sector must be a critical partner if we are to sustainably lift people out of poverty. It is small- and medium-size enterprises that consistently drive job creation and economic growth.
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Sep 29, 2013

Unions mull a 'Labor Party'

The Japanese Trade Union Confederation, feeling somewhat estranged from the Democratic Party of Japan, is mulling the idea of realigning opposition parties into a labor party.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 29, 2013

Sanctions have warmed up Iran for an accord

As Iran's economy reels and President Hassan Rouhani shows interest in rapprochement with the West, it seems high time to reach a nuclear agreement with Iran.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Sep 29, 2013

Tattoos make inroads with 50 and older crowd

Thirty years ago, a good girl didn't walk into an establishment plastered with images of dragons and flames, hike her shirt up over one shoulder and let her body be injected with ink. Especially not if she was, like Darlene Nash, a 57-year-old grandmother.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Sep 29, 2013

Update on the Watazus of 14 children; special 'double Asanos' drama; CM of the week: Kinoko no Yama

The inter-season TV schedule always features specials dedicated to police videos, eating contests and large, impoverished families. In this third category we have "Binbo ni Makeru na" ("We Won't be Beaten by Poverty"; TV Tokyo, Mon., 6:30 p.m.), the 11th semiannual installment in the saga of the Watazus...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / BACKSTREET STORIES
Sep 28, 2013

Solitude is where you find it

Under cartoon-blue skies washed by early-autumn typhoons, I stand at Sendaizaka-ue (summit of Sendaizaka Slope) in Tokyo's Minato Ward. Sendaizaka was named for daimyo lords from Edo Period (1603-1867) Sendai, now in Miyagi Prefecture, who maintained a yashiki (suburban home) on the slope that today...
Reader Mail
Sep 28, 2013

Urban planners miss the plot

The tale of local communities losing energy and activities, told by Amy Chavez in her Sept. 21 article, "The ancient pilgrimage routes and the local community," is disheartening. If I were hyperactive, I'd immediately go to clear pilgrimage paths with Ms. Chavez. But the true solution would be to halt...
WORLD / Science & Health
Sep 27, 2013

Report raises fear about toxic algae fed by pollution

They call it the green slime, a toxic ooze of algae that covered lakes and other bodies of water across the United States this summer, closing beaches and killing scores of dolphins, manatees, birds and fish, a report says.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 26, 2013

Mandatory organ donation

It is estimated that 18 people die in the U.S. every day due to a national shortage of organ donations. This crisis could be solved if organ donation were mandatory.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 24, 2013

Medical heroes who labor in Syria

Good, moderate, responsible people on the ground in Syria should not be forgotten. These doctors and nurses embody an unyielding sense of hope and perseverance.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Sep 22, 2013

Alexis was atypical Buddhist

Aaron Alexis had a gold Buddha in his room, a regular meditation practice and a gun with him "at all times," according to a friend.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Sep 21, 2013

Tsushima: a boundary island of Japan

If you want to get to Tsushima, an island in Nagasaki Prefecture, by ferry, you will have to start in Fukuoka — or a quicker option would be to start your journey in Busan, South Korea. The jet foil from Busan zips passengers across the nearly 50 km separating it from Tsushima in little over an hour....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 19, 2013

'Soshite Chichi ni Naru (Like Father, Like Son)'

The English and Japanese titles of Hirokazu Koreeda's dual-family drama "Soshite Chichi ni Naru (Like Father, Like Son)" are quite different in meaning, but both express something important about this extraordinary film, winner of the Jury Prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 18, 2013

Economic disparities center stage in German poll

Germany has near record-low unemployment and a locomotive-strong economy, which leaves Frieder Beckmann with a question: Why can he only get a job that pays $2 an hour?
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 16, 2013

Successful Olympic bid thrusts Tokyo into spotlight, fencing star says

For Olympic fencer Yuki Ota, Tokyo's successful bid for the 2020 Summer Games and Paralympics was like winning the gold medal he's always wanted.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Sep 15, 2013

'Freddy vs. Jason' maker documents new horror: Fed's role in meltdown

Flashback to Christmas 2002. America was recovering from the twin shocks of the tech bubble crash and the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The stock market was rising, real estate was heating up and optimism was rebounding.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Sep 14, 2013

Japanese media declare 'dark times' are on us

Being good has never been easy. And it's not getting easier — unlike many things in this age of mass technological empowerment. If it were, presumably, there would be more good and less evil — unless evil is more attractive?
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Sep 14, 2013

Making Kobayashi's works sound as if written today

For most readers, Japanese literature may suggest romantic/erotic works by Nagai Kafu, elegantly classical and humorously or sinisterly "kinky" fiction by Tanizaki, or coolly stylish contemporary works by Haruki Murakami. For such readers, this volume will come as a shock — both refreshing and depressing....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 12, 2013

Bill Murray relishes FDR's 'human' side

Biographical movies can be a daunting task. Their subjects often have larger-than-life stories that are focal points for controversy. Actor Bill Murray says that what attracted him to the role of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) in "Hyde Park on Hudson," was less of the former element and a...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 12, 2013

'Tomogui (Backwater)'

In 1971 the Nikkatsu studio, desperate to stave off bankruptcy, switched production to the then-burgeoning genre of softcore pornography. Made mostly by young directors promoted after their elders fled, the films were hardly intended as high art. Instead their main selling point was simulated sex, often...
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 12, 2013

Death-row inmate, 73, sixth executed under Abe Cabinet

A convicted murderer is hanged for robbing and gunning down the owner of a restaurant in Yokohama's Chinatown in May 2004.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 12, 2013

'The Wolverine'

While it never seems to be as high-profile as the "Iron Man" or "Spider-Man" franchises, the "X-Men" series is actually the longest-running Marvel Comics series on the big screen, and it's the one that opened the gates to Marvel's current dominance. For my money, "X-Men" remains the most interesting,...

Longform

An illustration features the Japanese signs for "ganbare" (good luck) and the Deaflympics, which will be held between Nov. 15 and 26.
A century of Deaf sport finds its moment in Tokyo