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Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 30, 2018

Breaking social taboo, Tokyo cram school gives children chance to learn and talk about sex

On a recent Tuesday in August, a group of preschoolers and elementary school pupils in Tokyo listened carefully to their cram school teacher's explanation about what would normally be a taboo subject for kids this age — sex.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Aug 30, 2018

Trump says 'we did a fantastic job in Puerto Rico' after being told 2017 storm killed almost 3,000

President Donald Trump lauded the U.S. response to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico last year just a day after the commonwealth said almost 3,000 people died from the storm.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 29, 2018

'The Miracle of Crybaby Shottan': It's never too late to make your move

Chess pops up in a surprising number of feature films. Just look at all the documentaries and dramas about the outrageously gifted Bobby Fischer. Shogi, or Japanese chess, is a different and smaller story, though "Satoshi: A Move for Tomorrow," a 2016 film about prodigy Satoshi Murayama, garnered awards...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 29, 2018

'And Your Bird Can Sing': A vague take on the complexities of youth

The work of the late novelist Yasushi Sato, who took his own life in 1990, has been enjoying a minor cinematic renaissance over the past decade. Starting with Kazuyoshi Kumakiri's "Sketches of Kaitan City" in 2010, the author's stories have spawned four films to date.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies / IDEAS IN ACTION
Aug 29, 2018

The sky is the canvas: Tokyo startup looks to launch world's first artificial meteor shower

It was literally an out-of-this-world idea that seemed unfeasible when it struck her nearly two decades ago: Made-to-order shooting stars. But Lena Okajima's audacious project to reproduce nature's fireworks for mass entertainment is getting ready for takeoff.
Japan Times
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Aug 29, 2018

Unsung yobidashi keep sumo running smoothly

Who spends the most time in a sumo ring?
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Aug 29, 2018

U.S. Rohingya report 'consistent' with U.N. findings of genocide by Myanmar regime: Nikki Haley

Findings of a U.S. State Department investigation into Myanmar's Rohingya crisis are "consistent" with those of a report by U.N. investigators released this week that called for Myanmar's commander-in-chief and other generals be tried for genocide, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations said on Tuesday....
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Aug 29, 2018

Defenders rally around pope, fear conservatives escalating war to oust him

Supporters of Pope Francis have rushed to his defense after a former top Vatican official launched an unprecedented attack on him, a move they say dangerously escalates a campaign to weaken his papacy by conservatives who condemn him as too liberal.
Japan Times
WORLD
Aug 29, 2018

Nigerian schoolgirl kidnapped by Boko Haram begs for freedom in audio release

The father of a Nigerian schoolgirl kidnapped by Boko Haram called on Tuesday for the government to do more to secure her freedom after audio of her begging for help was released.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 28, 2018

Startup takes stress out of fed-up workers' exit plans

There was the 24-year-old insurance saleswoman who got sick of being yelled at when she couldn't reach her quota. Then there's the exhausted designer who clocked 160 hours of monthly overtime. And the ramen noodle shop employee who suffered stress to the point of developing depression.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Aug 28, 2018

The Louvre has a new seat of power

Kohei Nawa talks about his 3-ton golden 'Throne,' which takes a seat of honor at the Louvre as one of the works for Japonismes 2018, Paris' large-scale event celebrating 160 years of France-Japan relations.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 28, 2018

Address Japan's demographic, fiscal woes

The most important items on the agenda should be reversing Japan's population decline and rebuilding the government's fiscal health.
Japan Times
Events / Events In Tokyo
Aug 28, 2018

TELL climb of Tokyo Tower aims to start dialogue on suicide prevention

While the Tokyo English Life Line was established in 1973 to help the city's international community, TELL's services have come to benefit people across the entire country.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Aug 28, 2018

Get ready for the robot invasion — of our classrooms

We may be wary of trusting robots enough to let them educate our children, but what if children were to help teach them a thing or two?
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 28, 2018

U.S. and Mexico reach NAFTA overhaul deal, upping pressure on Canada

The United States and Mexico agreed on Monday to overhaul the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), putting pressure on Canada to agree to new terms on auto trade and dispute settlement rules to remain part of the three-nation pact.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 28, 2018

Toyota to invest $500 million in Uber for development of self-driving cars

Toyota Motor Corp. will invest $500 million in Uber to jointly work on developing self-driving cars, the companies said Monday, in a bid by both firms to catch up with rivals in the hotly competitive autonomous driving business.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 27, 2018

Paying tribute to a man of American dignity

On Saturday, Sen. John Sidney McCain III passed away. U.S. mainstream media, whether liberal or conservative, carried feature articles or broadcast special programs over the weekend to pay tribute to this great American statesman from Arizona. McCain was always original and unusual in many ways.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 27, 2018

Myanmar generals had 'genocidal intent' against Rohingya, must face justice: U.N. report

Myanmar's military carried out mass killings and gang rapes of Muslim Rohingya with "genocidal intent" and the commander-in-chief and five generals should be prosecuted for orchestrating the gravest crimes under law, U.N. investigators said Monday.
Japan Times
WORLD
Aug 27, 2018

Notting Hill Carnival crowds defy London rain for annual revelry

London's famous Notting Hill Carnival transformed the streets into a sea of color and sound on Sunday as revelers joined one of Europe's largest open-air parties in their thousands despite heavy rain in the British capital.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / The Big Questions
Aug 26, 2018

At the helm of a diverse club seeking lasting community

Tokyo American Club (TAC) President Michael Alfant is the kind of person who thinks on his feet. And he spends a lot of time on them; the native of Brooklyn, New York, walks about 100 kilometers every week.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Aug 26, 2018

Tokyo Medical University scandal is a throwback to when discrimination against women was the norm

Listening to the excuses being given for discrimination today, it's almost as if 1985's Equal Opportunity Act never happened.
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Aug 26, 2018

Views From Tokyo: What do you think about the Tokyo Medical University test scandal?

Women in the capital were asked about their feelings about the gender discrimination in the medical school exam-fixing case and the situation where they live and work.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Aug 26, 2018

Lexus: A driving force for the 'experiential' store?

Do creative projects, like 'experiential stores' really bring such intangible benefits as increasing brand awareness among the golden goose target of millennials?
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 26, 2018

Soviet Union's collapse gets a revisionist view

A new narrative from a former vice president paints Yeltsin as a tool of the U.S. in thwarting the 1991 coup by hardliners.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past