Search - japan

 
 
BASKETBALL
Apr 9, 2011

Player concerns may force Final Four move

Voices of opposition have emerged to the bj-league's possible plans to hold this season's Final Four at Ariake Colosseum, and this could force the league to move the final playoff rounds to another region, possibly Kansai.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 8, 2011

The Monochrome Set

In many ways, The Monochrome Set are the archetypal "Big in Japan" band. Formed in 1978 by a handful of Adam Ant's former backing musicians, the band, featuring guitarist Lester Square's faintly retro playing style and vocalist Ganesh "Bid" Seshadri's dryly humorous lyrics, flew insolently in the face...
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Apr 8, 2011

Tokyo classical music benefit to boost spirits and awareness

Since the March 11 earthquake, it's been difficult for the classical music scene, with many venues having to cancel or postpone performances. Amid this period of readjustment, world-renowned conductor Zubin Mehta is returning to Japan to conduct a Tohoku-Kanto earthquake charity concert to be held in...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 8, 2011

Okinawa comic duo show less is more

On Dec. 26, as the curtain came down on the 10th and final M-1 Grand Prix — an annual comedy competition aired live on TV Asahi — there was a distinct feeling that something special had been witnessed, that the performance of one duo in particular heralded the beginning of something new.
Japan Times
SUMO / SUMO SCRIBBLINGS
Apr 8, 2011

The U.S. role in advancing amateur sumo

In the second of two interviews with globally respected officials involved in the international sumo game, Sumo Scribblings recently threw a few questions over the Pacific to Andrew Freund, the face of the United States Sumo Federation. In many ways far bigger in the sport than his slim physique would...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Apr 8, 2011

Tohoku brewers: 'Drink without restraint!'

Last weekend, fifth-generation sake brewery owner Kosuke Kuji of Nanbu Bijin delivered an earnest plea to the public on behalf of sake producers in the Tohoku region: "We'd be sincerely grateful if people would continue to have hanami parties (this year)."
BUSINESS
Apr 8, 2011

Growth abroad spurs Fast Retailing profit hike

Fast Retailing Co., operator of the Uniqlo chain of casual clothing, raised its profit forecast by 18 percent on overseas growth and lower costs even as other retailers say the March 11 disaster will hurt earnings.
Reader Mail
Apr 7, 2011

Suggestion of subservience to U.S.

I am mystified why on earth the April 2 article "Kan names quake (Great Eastern Japan Earthquake) at pep talk" is followed by a Kyodo short to the effect that the senior U.S. State Department in charge of East Asia has voiced high praise for the way Japan is coping. It's as if some external examiner...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 7, 2011

JET post best, not 'pityfest'

SHICHIGAHAMA, Miyagi Pref. — There is a picture folder in Marti McElreath's Facebook account that chronicles her time in Shichigahama, a town located on a small peninsula in Miyagi Prefecture less than an hour's drive from Sendai and where she has been working since last summer under the Japan Exchange...
BUSINESS
Apr 7, 2011

Toyota to restart more domestic plants

NAGOYA (Kyodo) Toyota Motor Corp. is considering reopening more plants for car assembly on April 18 or later as parts supply, which has been largely held back since the March 11 disaster, is expected to improve, sources said Wednesday.
EDITORIALS
Apr 7, 2011

Overcoming the nuclear crisis

The crisis at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant does not warrant optimism. Nuclear fuel in the cores of the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 reactors is believed to have been severely damaged. In the No. 4 reactor's storage, where spent nuclear fuel is kept, water evaporated at one...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 6, 2011

Relief workers must adjust quickly

Numerous relief organizations, volunteer groups and concerned individuals have offered support by distributing goods and lending a helping hand in the earthquake- and tsunami-hammered Tohoku region.
JAPAN
Apr 6, 2011

Seawater radiation shoots far past limit

Radioactive iodine-131 readings taken from seawater near the water intake of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant's No. 2 reactor reached 7.5 million times the legal limit, Tokyo Electric Power Co. admitted Tuesday.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Apr 6, 2011

Trying to sort out the confusion over this season's NPB schedule

In response to the events of March 11, causing the 2011 season openers to be postponed, Nippon Professional Baseball has come out with a revised schedule for games in April, but there is a lot of confusion about who will be playing where, which games have been moved from the original schedule to a new...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Apr 5, 2011

Foreign volunteers in relief efforts

Ever since the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, the nongovernmental organization Peace Boat has sent teams of volunteers to assist survivors in disaster-stricken areas as far afield as Kashmir, New Orleans and Indonesia. But according to Takashi Yamamoto, current director of Peace Boat's relief efforts...
JAPAN
Apr 5, 2011

Radiation terminology numbs, confuses, varies by need and country

Ever since the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant began spewing radiation on March 11, many have struggled to understand the unfamiliar units used to measure it.
EDITORIALS
Apr 5, 2011

Shinkansen lines 'shrink' nation

The entire super-express Kyushu Shinkansen Line, linking the cities of Fukuoka and Kagoshima, was quietly opened March 12, a day after the massive earthquake and tsunami hit northeastern Japan. This follows the December opening of the completed Tohoku Shinkansen Line linking Tokyo and Shin Aomori. Now...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 5, 2011

J-REITs to halt sales, fundraising in short term

Japan's real estate investment trusts may stall property sales and suspend fundraising plans in the short term as the effects of the historic earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis curb investor appetite for assets.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 5, 2011

Portable generators sell out after quake

Portable power generators made by Honda Motor Co., Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. and Yamaha Motor Co. are running out after the March 11 disaster crippled production while simultaneously stoking demand.
CULTURE / Books
Apr 3, 2011

Sojourner of the mystical realm

THE PASSING SUMMERS, The Japanese Mystique: Charm and Consequence, by Ivy C. Machida. Printed Matter Press, 2010, 280 pp., $20 (paper) The 21st century has seen a proliferation of memoirs entering the book market — from James Frey's memoir-fiction "A Million Little Pieces" to the slew of ghosted celebrity...
Reader Mail
Apr 3, 2011

Condition for an assistance treaty

Robert D. Eldridge's idea in his March 30 article, "" sounds great, but there should be a condition: Neither country should deploy its military in the other's territory on a permanent basis.
EDITORIALS
Apr 3, 2011

Not by bread alone

The axiom "Man does not live by bread alone" is again demonstrated by scenes of quake and tsunami victims in shelters finding solace in recovered photo albums or in broadcasts of the Koshien high school baseball tournament. Those outside the immediate disaster areas as well have found respite from the...
Reader Mail
Apr 3, 2011

Leaders must anticipate disaster

Again, America is witnessing an international crisis, this time the earthquake-tsunami aftermath in Japan. As we have seen so many times in recent years — especially after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans (2005) — our nation's leaders appear to grow wiser by reaction rather than by a proactive approach....
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Apr 2, 2011

International school typifies Sendai's community spirit

Local merchants crowded in with proud parents and teachers, eyes glued to the screen and banners waving. It could have been anywhere in Japan during Koshien season: a community gathered around the television in the school cafeteria, neighbors coming together to cheer the home team at the annual spring...

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight