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COMMENTARY
Aug 27, 2009

Are green shoots sprouting?

Is recovery from the global recession already under way? In Germany, France and the United States, authoritative voices are declaring the recession over and telling us that growth has resumed. And now the same view is heard in Japan. Yes, if you take a magnifying glass you can see tiny little specks...
JAPAN
Aug 26, 2009

Rural areas fear DPJ bid to ax big projects

AGATSUMA, Gunma Pref. — As media speculation mounts that the Democratic Party of Japan will win big in Sunday's Lower House election, Akiyoshi Toyoda, 44, is spending sleepless nights worrying about what may happen to his business if the opposition camp takes power.
Japan Times
JAPAN / ELECTION 2009
Aug 26, 2009

Hokkaido figures to be key showdown for LDP vets

SAPPORO — The winds of change are blowing nationwide as the Lower House election nears.
Japan Times
Events / WHERE IT'S AT
Aug 25, 2009

Socializing on the volleyball court in Roppongi

Roppongi on Saturday morning tends to be quiet and empty, and pretty much all you see moving there apart from cars and trucks are a few sleep-deprived, hung-over remnants of the Friday night party crowd hobbling toward the station.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / HAVE YOUR SAY
Aug 25, 2009

One pocket knife, nine days' lockup

Following are a selection of readers' responses to the July 28 Hotline to Nagatacho column headlined "Pocket knife lands tourist, 74, in lockup."
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Aug 25, 2009

What would you do if you were prime minister of Japan?

BASEBALL / SPORTS SCOPE
Aug 23, 2009

Several NPB managers in danger of losing jobs

As the NPB season begins to head into the stretch run, an unusually high number of mangers find themselves on the hot seat — or at least very warm ones — as the Climax Series races begin in earnest.
CULTURE / Books
Aug 23, 2009

Making the time to find mono no aware

Detached and contemplative,"Oh!" draws the reader into a mesmerizing journey of discovery while also exploring contemporary Japanese pathologies along the way. This philosophical mystery gives us leads on understanding sadness, loss, family ties, identity and suicide. It is also a search for clues about...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Aug 23, 2009

Imagine a time with no fish in the sea

BAR HARBOR MAINE — Each summer, our family visits this part of the New England coast, and each year I am reminded of the elemental connections humans share with the oceans.
Japan Times
LIFE
Aug 23, 2009

Japan's creeping natural disaster

In October 2010, government officials from almost every country in the world will meet in Nagoya for the 10th Conference of Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP10). The aim of the Convention, which came into effect in 1993, is simple but momentous: To maintain the richness of life on...
COMMENTARY
Aug 23, 2009

Japan has plenty of work to do in transforming how it governs

The world is changing dramatically and political governance is at stake.
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Aug 23, 2009

JBA leaders should resign following national team's poor showing

It's foolish to think the Japan Basketball Association understands what it takes to build a successful men's basketball program.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2009

Japan's H1N1 cases at flu epidemic stage

On the basis of substantially increased hospitalizations, the H1N1 swine flu outbreak was declared an epidemic by the National Institute of Infectious Diseases on Friday.
EDITORIALS
Aug 21, 2009

Devolution moves forward

In past elections, "devolution" was hardly an issue because political parties thought the subject would not rouse voter interest. Even if local government leaders made demands, political parties did not seriously heed them. Things are different ahead of the Aug. 30 Lower House election.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 21, 2009

Honey Sac "Allege"

Sac are a hard sell. On the one hand, the band of five girls from Osaka make anime-ready guitar music that has been shaped and moulded into the most commercial of packages. And yet . . . there's something curious about them.
COMMENTARY
Aug 21, 2009

Decay of Japanese politics

Japan's politics in recent years has lacked dynamism and incurred people's distrust. The purpose of politics is to present a vision for the nation's future, identify the systems and policies needed, and ensure the safety and prosperity of the nation and its people. Recently, though, Japanese politics...
JAPAN / ELECTION 2009
Aug 21, 2009

Decentralization picking up steam?

OSAKA — Imagine, if you will, Japan in 2018. Following the historic Lower House election in 2009, the country passed legislation that abolished the 47 prefectures and thousands of smaller local governments.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 21, 2009

'20-Seiki Shonen'

Yukihiko Tsutsumi's hit "20-Seiki Shonen" ("20th Century Boys") trilogy is based on one of those "what if" premises that may look almost childishly obvious, but, from a commercial standpoint, is simply brilliant.
Reader Mail
Aug 20, 2009

Aquino eulogy seems exaggerated

Regarding former Philippine President Fidel Ramos' Aug. 14 article, "Cory Aquino's legacy of enriched freedom": Cory Aquino was undoubtedly a kind, honest and unpretentious president, but she was ineffectual. To attribute "enriched freedom" to her is simply an intellectual exaggeration bordering on flatulence....
Japan Times
BUSINESS / TAKING A CHANCE
Aug 20, 2009

Starting up Net portal for women turns into lifetime career choice

Kikuko Yano was searching for a job she could do her entire life, and found it in the Internet firm she started on her own.
Japan Times
JAPAN / PARTY POWERS
Aug 19, 2009

Down in polls, Aso says only LDP can provide security

The Liberal Democratic Party is the only political party that has the ability to protect the Japanese people, claimed Prime Minister Taro Aso, who is campaigning furiously ahead of the Aug. 30 election.
Reader Mail
Aug 16, 2009

Voters expect more in return

Regarding the Aug. 5 article "DPJ will say anything to win": Keiichiro Asao (who quit the Democratic Party of Japan to run in the Aug. 30 Lower House elections as an independent) is right to say it will take more than a change of administration to solve current problems. Before changes can be effected,...
Reader Mail
Aug 16, 2009

Good education feeds dreams

Regarding Michael Hoffman's Aug. 5 article, "Heisei kids: a generation that struggles to dream": I am 31 and have thought about this subject for a long time. Why are so many kids today, who have access to so many fancy gadgets, have so few or such hazy dreams? What inspires one to dream?
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Aug 16, 2009

Shoplifting detectives; TOKIO vs. Takako Matsu; Doraemon in love

When evening news shows have time to fill they often run short reports by freelance news teams about pressing social problems. A common theme right now is the rise of shoplifting among senior citizens, a development that has in turn given rise to specialty security guards who patrol department stores...

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