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COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Feb 6, 2011

Ailing Japan Inc. must combine tradition with a new world view

One of the clearest memories I have of my Los Angeles childhood revolves around a car. By the early 1950s, my parents had managed to eke their way into the middle class; and for Los Angelenos, nothing signified that social status more than the automobile. For my dad, the symbol of this par excellence...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 5, 2011

Less is more for Japan travel buff

Harry Cheng, a globe-trotter who travels about 320,000 km a year, believes a simple list of names is enough to stir people's interest in scenes they haven't seen before. With this belief, he will soon launch a unique travel guide dedicated to recording travel experiences in Japan.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Feb 5, 2011

The comic life of expats in Japan

Tales of expat life in Japan all too often get blown out of proportion and quickly become picaresque adventures that little resemble real life.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Feb 5, 2011

Nagoya condos rising high

Condo towers 20 stories or higher are going up or will in central Nagoya this year as dwindling land prices driven by the 2008 financial collapse revitalize the depressed market.
COMMENTARY
Feb 5, 2011

The Arab world's '1989'?

LONDON — It was the Egyptian Army's statement that brought it all back: "To the great people of Egypt, your armed forces, acknowledging the legitimate rights of the people . . . have not and will not use force against the Egyptian people." In other words, go ahead and overthrow President Hosni Mubarak....
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Feb 5, 2011

Lotus — showing the way to enlightenment

We all know that the lotus flower is a symbol of Buddhism, but is that all there is to it?
JAPAN
Feb 5, 2011

Recent tension, pro-North schools' history spin hurt tuition waiver bid

Flipping through a copy of a recently obtained Korean history textbook used in pro-Pyongyang junior high schools in Japan, journalist Ryo Hagiwara points his finger to a section describing how North Korea's founding father, Kim Il Sung, and his Korean People's Revolutionary Army defeated the Japanese...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Feb 4, 2011

A tricky postscript on the art of abstraction

Gauging Torawo Nakagawa's art in "postscript" at Kyoto's Kodama Gallery is no easy undertaking. His paintings resist narrative cohesion and cultivate a certain hermeticism, all the while preserving an attractive visual dimension. Concerned as he is with a distinctive process of painting — a style founded...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Feb 4, 2011

Tadasu Takamine shocks us, yet again

In their endless efforts to make us see things in new ways and generally mess with our minds, contemporary conceptual artists such as Tadasu Takamine may often do more to distort their own view of the world than change the way the wider public sees it. This would explain why, in 2004, Takamine attempted...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Feb 4, 2011

Bashamichi Taproom: Where there's smoke, there's BBQ and beer

The Celebration Ale was flowing and foaming down in Yokohama last month, and for a very good reason. Baird Brewing, one of our favorite small-scale craft-beer producers in all of Japan, has been marking its 10th year in business. And it's done it in style, by opening its newest and best pub to date....
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Feb 3, 2011

Running fever kicks in as Tokyo prepares for its annual marathon

The first Tokyo Marathon took place in February 2007 and attracted 30,870 participants, despite the dismal weather. Though it has only a short history, the event has been snowballing in popularity every year to become one of the most oversubscribed marathons in the world.
COMMENTARY
Feb 2, 2011

Beijing should take a leaf out of Li Na's book

LOS ANGELES — A metaphor for our dramatic world geopolitical change occurred in Melbourne at the prestigious Australian Open. There, even as time-honored warriors Roger Federer and Raphael Nadal were eliminated, a Chinese woman slammed her way into history. The relentless Li Na became the first Asian...
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
Feb 2, 2011

The real story behind Kareem's trade to the Lakers

Begging Bob Seger's forgiveness for slanting unbeatable lyrics, but I wish I knew then what I'm only finding about now.
COMMENTARY
Feb 1, 2011

A contrarian view of how 'austerity' bleeds Japan

With the Standard and Poor's downgrading of Japan's long-term credit rating from AA to AA minus, the focus even more is on how the economy can get out of its current deflationary quagmire.
Reader Mail
Jan 30, 2011

'Gender equality' not universal

James Hicks' Jan. 20 letter, "Speak out for 'universal' standards," implies that gender equality is a universal, fundamental and ethical standard, and that it is the duty of everyone to speak out about it in Japan.
COMMENTARY
Jan 30, 2011

Vietnam delusion endures

LONDON — Communist party congresses are generally tedious events, and the 11th Congress of the Vietnamese Communist Party (Jan. 12-17) was no exception. The changes in personnel at the top were decided by the elite inner circle of the party long before the congress opened, and the rhetoric was in the...
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Jan 30, 2011

'Simple and severe' in World Nailist finals

Among the many exciting attractions of Tokyo Nail Expo, held on Nov. 28 and 29 last year, were more than 10 competitions in which nail-school students and professional manicurists showed off their skills.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 29, 2011

O-soji in the year of the dust bunnies

Why is it that we always clean our houses before guests come to visit? If you're like me, it takes guests to prompt me to give things a shine. It just goes to show how low our standards for ourselves really are.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Jan 29, 2011

Gray-Keys scandal filled with irony on many fronts

LONDON — Hypocrisy is not as offensive as sexism and fortunately for those guilty of failing to practice what they preach it is not as obvious to the public.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CAREER-SEARCH CRISIS
Jan 28, 2011

Window of opportunity peephole?

The job-recruiting process requires an overhaul if the government seriously hopes to ease the pressure on struggling students seeking work after they graduate, according to University of Tokyo professor Yuki Honda.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 28, 2011

'Copie Conforme (Japan title: Tosukaana no Gansaku)'

"Copie Conforme" is intimate without being intrusive, blending insight and cynicism to portray the dynamics of a marriage that never was.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 28, 2011

Local, foreign songwriters camp it up

Early in the band's career, Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham is reputed to have locked Mick Jagger and Keith Richards in a room and told them not to come out until they'd written their first song.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jan 28, 2011

Hirayama: Paying simple tribute to the Silk Road

Recently Stephen Fry's BBC comedy quiz show "QI," was in trouble over panelist's comments regarding Tsutomu Yamaguchi, a survivor of both atomic bombs dropped on Japan. Amid generally admiring chit chat about Yamaguchi, panelists treated the bombings with a degree of levity typical of the show, prompting...
CULTURE / Music / STRANGE BOUTIQUE
Jan 28, 2011

Japan's indie acts need to break domestic scene's 'glass ceiling'

There's a feeling in the air these days, not least on these pages, that Japan is becoming more culturally insular. Japanese video games are losing out to South Korea and the West in the race to explore the online frontier; animation, once the standard-bearer of "cool Japan," has retreated into a self-congratulatory...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jan 28, 2011

There's always art behind design

For some, life-changing moments involve a traumatic experience or a piercing epiphany. For others, something as simple as a teapot can elicit transformation.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jan 28, 2011

Saving the individual in times of conflict

The Japanese Western-style painter Saburo Aso (1913-2000) came of age as an artist during Japan's crescendo of militarism that began with the Manchurian Incident of 1931 and came to an ignominious end in 1945. But he refused to be drawn into the officially promoted propaganda painting of the time. The...
BASKETBALL
Jan 27, 2011

Clutch Fukuoka rises above Apache in fourth quarter for road win

The center is expected to be the tone-setter on defense, filling up space in the lane and dissuading foes from having a free pass to the hoop. On offense, he is expected to open things up for the team's smaller players and use his size to generate high-percentage shots.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 27, 2011

Watershed moment for U.S. space exploration

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — More than 50 years ago (1957), the Soviets launched the world's first orbiting satellite, beating the United States into space. For Americans, the "Sputnik moment" was a wakeup call that pushed the U.S. to increase investment in technology and science education. Months later,...
JAPAN
Jan 27, 2011

Ichihashi recalls manhunt stress

Accused killer Tatsuya Ichihashi's book released Wednesday offers anecdotal accounts of his 31-month life on the run, from fears of being caught and listening to radio updates on the manhunt, to moments of awe over nature, to how he abstained from sex because of what he had done, and how it may feel...

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear