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Reader Mail
Jun 11, 2014

Abductions by any other name

The June 9 Kyodo article "Japan sends list of 470 potential abductees to North Korea" made me think. No one can begin to criticize the Japanese authorities for continuing to take a firm stand on this issue in the face of continued stalling on the part of an evil and untrustworthy state such as North...
Reader Mail
Jun 11, 2014

Outsider's remedy for Yasukuni

Occasionally an outsider might help resolve a contentious issue. As an American citizen with great respect for Japan, I would like to offer some thoughts about Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit in December to Yasukuni Shrine, which is dedicated to soldiers who died in service to Japan, and how Japan...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jun 11, 2014

Top young dramatist urges theater toward key role in nation's cultural life

Fifteen months ago, when I interviewed Takahiro Fujita as the most prominent newcomer in Japan's contemporary theater world, the playwright and director declared, "I'm always looking for something new, and I suppose I will always carry on doing that."
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 10, 2014

LDP seeks defense deal by Friday

Unless the ruling coalition strikes a deal this week, Cabinet will be unable to approve the use of collective self-defense during the current Diet session, a senior Liberal Democratic Party minister says.
EDITORIALS
Jun 10, 2014

A slippery slope to combat

The Abe administration's modifications of its proposed new conditions for the Self-Defense Forces to take part in overseas missions would still pave the way for the SDF to operate in combat areas, thus raising the risk of Japan being drawn into armed conflict.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / ADVANCES IN PROGRESS
Jun 9, 2014

Algae underfunded in energy hunt

Could algae power your car? In the search for new energy sources, scientists are turning the green goo into oil.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jun 7, 2014

Kengo Kuma: 'a product of place'

Renowned architect's new book, 'My Place,' reflects an awareness of humanity's close affinity to the world around us.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Jun 7, 2014

Iki Island: the stones and stories that keep paradise from floating away

Legend has it that many years ago the pretty little island of Iki was not connected to the seafloor. Instead, it floated around at the whim of the currents, presumably bobbing back and forth between Japan, China and the Korean Peninsula.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 6, 2014

Students take worldly approach to study abroad

A University of Tokyo student set to spend a year as an exchange student in Illinois this summer doesn't think English skill is the only thing that matters when going to the United States.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 6, 2014

The unspoken disease that can destroy families

Of the 17,500 cases of uterine cancer reported yearly in Japan, nearly half are cervical cancer, usually triggered by a virus spread by sexual intercourse. Because of this, sufferers often conceal the fact from friends and families and continue working at their jobs as if nothing is wrong — until pain...
EDITORIALS
Jun 4, 2014

The NRA doesn't need a 'yes man'

Public trust in the NRA could be lost if its neutrality is in doubt.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 3, 2014

Officials push to scrap limits on SDF missions

The Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner, New Komeito, discuss whether to overhaul limits on the Self-Defense Forces.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EMBASSY AVENUE
Jun 3, 2014

New educational facility funded by Qatar opens in Iwaki

A new educational facility recently opened in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, with the help of a grant from the Qatar Friendship Fund (QFF).
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / A TASTE OF HOME
Jun 3, 2014

Tokyoites needn't be sheepish about New Zealand cuisine

New Zealand is famous for its lamb, pasture-fed on the country's rolling green hills. Lamb being hard to come by in Japan, a New Zealand restaurant is a good bet if you're craving lamb chops. There are two big ones in Tokyo: Wakanui (B1F, 2-23-14 Higashi-Azabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo; 03-3568-3466; www.wakanui.jp)...
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / HIT AND RUN
Jun 2, 2014

Bowker relishing second chance

John Bowker’s second chance presented itself one morning in late April. Bowker was just sitting down for breakfast at his apartment in Campeche, a port city on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, when his telephone rang.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 2, 2014

GPIF's $200 billion push abroad to boost inflation bid

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's inflation drive may get a boost as Nomura Holdings Inc. forecasts as much as $200 billion in foreign asset purchases by Japan's pension funds will weaken the yen.
BUSINESS
Jun 2, 2014

Fall in new auto sales slowed in May

New vehicle sales in Japan fell in May by less than the previous month, as deliveries of minicars such as Honda Motor Co.'s N-Box helped narrow declines prompted by a hike in consumption tax, industry bodies said Monday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 1, 2014

Architect blasts new Tokyo Olympics stadium as ‘a sin, a crime’

A revised plan for Japan's new stadium for the 2020 Olympics is still so wasteful and large for the site that it's a "sin" — one that destroys the power of the original design, a Tokyo architect running a petition drive against the structure said.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 1, 2014

Warming up for the Soccer W-Cup

For real soccer fans, the upcoming World Cup in Brazil will be the highlight of the past four years. On top of that, many lukewarm supporters will surely soon discover that they are, in fact, true sports fans. But even those who consider it entirely pointless to watch 22 people running after a ball for...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / DARK SIDE OF THE RISING SUN
May 31, 2014

Anti-stalking laws 'are a dead end'

On May 8, the National Police Agency gathered police officers from all over the country to declare a war on stalking. This gathering was even held before members of the all-girl pop group AKB48 were attacked by a man with a saw at a handshaking event. (It's still unclear whether the assailant was stalking...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
May 31, 2014

When industry works in step with nature

It was about 15 years ago when an old friend, Yoshito Umezaki, invited me to dinner in Tokyo to meet a friend of his named Masayoshi "Mike" Ushikubo — "a really great guy who loves mountains, travels all over the world and is a company president who has a little problem."

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’