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Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Dec 4, 2008

Alternate visions of island paradise

In our global information age, when all of us are exposed to more data than we can perhaps adequately manage, the appeal of cliches has never been stronger. By a process of reduction and crude characterization, that which is complex, ambiguous, and difficult-to- know becomes simple, and is summed up...
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 3, 2008

Time for Europe to fill a fading NATO's shoes

LONDON — The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, whose foreign ministers will meet later this week, is dying. Death, of course, comes to all living things. And, as NATO approaches its 60th birthday next spring, there seems no immediate urgency about writing its obituary; 60-year-olds may reasonably...
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Dec 3, 2008

Aoki's aptitude at charity stripe benefits Apache

Like a vintage bebop album, a successful basketball team has an innate sense of improvisation that makes it unpredictable.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Dec 3, 2008

Oh, no: It's not a Christmas pud

The Christmas season may be grinding ever closer, and the creation in the photograph below is almost the right color and shape, but it's most certainly not a Christmas pudding.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / IGADGET
Dec 3, 2008

Preholiday offerings speak of sensibility

Ahead to basics: Pentel is not ready to write the eulogy for the humble pen. Rather than killing off the ages-old device, it is intent on bringing it into the digital age. Its latest effort is the airpenMini digital pen.
COMMENTARY
Dec 2, 2008

Tall order in a time of 'peace'

NEW DELHI — The U.S.-sparked global financial meltdown is just the latest sign that the world is at a defining moment in history. Given the global ace of political, economic and technological transformation witnessed the last two decades, the next 20 years are likely to bring equally dramatic change....
JAPAN
Dec 2, 2008

Tamogami says views shared in Diet, SDF

Ousted Air Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Gen. Toshio Tamogami stuck to his revisionist historical views Monday, saying his justification of Japan's wartime acts is shared by many lawmakers and Self-Defense Forces personnel.
EDITORIALS
Dec 2, 2008

Political will on trade

The global financial crisis triggered by the subprime mortgage fiasco in the United States has not only caused the credit crunch but it has also shrunk demand, thus greatly harming the real economy. At a time when major economies face the danger of simultaneous recessions, leaders from the Asia-Pacific...
BASKETBALL
Dec 1, 2008

Apache sweep Golden Kings to send out warning to bj-league rivals

Facing two Western Conference powerhouses in the past two weeks, the Tokyo Apache had an opportunity to make a bold statement in that span: to send a message to the rest of the bj-league that they are a force to be reckoned with this season.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Nov 30, 2008

Splendors for all: the best of Asia

It's all subjective of course, but read on for this traveler's picks of the places to go for (almost) anything you might choose to do in this splendiferous and ever-fascinating part of the world.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Nov 30, 2008

Tsurube and Nakai's travels, Detective Takemura, and a famous cross-dressing spy

It's impossible to turn on the television now without seeing SMAP leader Masahiro Nakai, who is working overtime to promote his new movie, "Watashi wa Kai ni Naritai" ("I Want to Become a Seashell"). And since he was just chosen for the fifth time to cohost NHK's New Year's Eve song contest, "Kohaku...
JAPAN
Nov 29, 2008

SDF mission comes to 'successful' end

Government officials expressed satisfaction Friday over the successful conclusion of the Self-Defense Forces missions in and near Iraq, but some experts complained that the pullout was long overdue.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 29, 2008

Festival takes cryptic turn

I was walking home when I saw, up in the distance, four Buddhist priests dressed in purple and gold robes. "Hey, Amy!" they called to me. "We hope you don't mind that we tied our boat up next to yours in front of your house," one said, pointing to their 30-foot (9-meter) motorboat tied to the dock. No...
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Nov 28, 2008

Kansai's many Christmas highlights

Streets in the Kansai region have already started to sparkle with the cheerful spirit of the season. Yes, the Christmas and New Year's holidays are coming around soon. Here are some ideas on where you can get into a jolly, festive mood.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 28, 2008

Defense of an artist who had lived as a slave

NEW YORK — Next year will mark the 20th anniversary of the collapse of communism in Europe. Liberated from the complexity of knowing too much about the cruel past, the young people of Eastern Europe's postcommunist generation seem uninterested in what their parents and grandparents endured.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 28, 2008

Lisa Loeb

Now that it's almost December, there can be only one thing on the minds of kids around Japan: Um, summer camp?
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Nov 28, 2008

Where to view Christmas lights in and around Tokyo

It's that time of year again when the streets are filled with red and green decorations bathed in colorful illuminations. Department stores and other shops have prepared events for holiday shoppers, and it seems like the city is throbbing with excitement for the Christmas season. Here are some terrific...
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Nov 28, 2008

Loss of DeWitz makes Evessa's task tougher

Nick DeWitz gave the Osaka Evessa his best single-game performance of the season in a one-point loss to the Tokyo Apache on Nov. 20.
JAPAN
Nov 28, 2008

Japanese man among the slain

A Japanese businessman was among the scores of people killed in Mumbai by multiple terrorist attacks on major landmarks in India's financial capital, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday.
Reader Mail
Nov 27, 2008

More immigration is a solution

Regarding the Nov. 22 article "Workers urged to knock off early, make babies": Declining birthrates are a good thing. They have been dropping in other developed countries for many years, but those countries have rising populations that are more balanced by age because those countries encourage immigration....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 27, 2008

Viva la diva — Xtina keeps it feisty fresh

A year in a dog's life is supposed to be equivalent to seven in human terms. On the way to interview Christina Aguilera, it crosses my mind that there might be a similar exponential growth rate at work for diminutive blonde pop starlets. For how else to explain that, at the grand old age of 27, Aguilera...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Nov 26, 2008

Asia's first lady of the environment

If Barak Obama is serious about developing proactive environmental policies that are international is scope, he would do well to work closely with Japan.
JAPAN
Nov 26, 2008

Aso: Extra budget is for next Diet

The government will put off submitting a second supplementary budget designed to stimulate the economy until January, when the ordinary Diet session assembles, rather than float it during the current extraordinary session, Prime Minister Taro Aso revealed Tuesday.
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Nov 26, 2008

Pacific reef egret

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji