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JAPAN / Politics
Oct 8, 2016

Unknown quantity: How the outcome of the presidential election in November could affect Japan-U.S. relations

"Jesus! Where will it end? How low do you have to stoop in this country to be president?" — Hunter S. Thompson, "Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail '72"
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Oct 8, 2016

Seeking remedies for maladies new, old and absurd

The Sept. 29 cover of Shukan Bunshun was adorned with an illustration of legendary New York Yankees slugger Babe Ruth, portrayed by Makoto Wada in a pinstripe uniform and with bat in hand.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Oct 8, 2016

Oki Sato of Nendo: on the objects of design

This year alone, Oki Sato, founder and director of Nendo, has not one, but two major retrospective exhibitions of the design unit's work — one at the Design Museum Holon in Israel, the other at the Taiwan Design Museum. His acclaimed "50 Manga Chairs" installation for Friedman Benda, which first debuted...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Oct 8, 2016

'Lone Wolf and Cub': Japan's greatest samurai manga?

First serialized in 1970, "Lone Wolf and Cub" is among the most iconic manga of all time, spawning TV shows and film adaptations. Its story has been referenced in an eclectic range of modern works from the music of Wu-Tang Clan to the comics of Frank Miller and Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Oct 8, 2016

'Pull Me Under': Whirlpools of confusion and psychosis in Tokushima

Chizuru Akitani, daughter of violinist Hiro Akitani, a National Living Treasure, and American Elena, who committed suicide by jumping from the Naruto Bridge, has apparently inherited her mother's depression. With her mother gone and her father remote, 12-year-old Chizuru has little defense against the...
COMMUNITY / Voices / OVERHEARD
Oct 8, 2016

Wake up and smell the coffee

One espresso please.
Japan Times
TENNIS
Oct 8, 2016

Goffin, Kyrgios roll into Japan Open final

Belgium's David Goffin set up a Japan Open final showdown with Australian Nick Kyrgios after beating Croatia's Marin Cilic 7-5, 6-4 in Saturday's semifinal.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 8, 2016

CL teams keep starting pitchers a secret until last minute during Climax Series

Alex Ramirez has a season's worth of information at his disposal as he prepares to lead his Yokohama BayStars against the Yomiuri Giants in the first stage of the Central League Climax Series.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Oct 7, 2016

October 8, 2016

Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 7, 2016

Luca Fantin: Italian creativity blooms in the heart of Ginza

Chef Luca Fantin's cooking is far from most people's idea of typical Italian fare. The softly spoken 37-year-old native of Treviso serves elaborate multicourse tasting menus that are as creative, contemporary and cutting edge as anywhere else in Tokyo. This has won him plaudits, a Michelin star — he's...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Oct 7, 2016

Rating, ranking — and ruining? — Japanese sake

On Aug. 31, the Wine Advocate, a publication started by the influential U.S.-based wine critic Robert Parker, released its first "official" ratings guide to sake with reviews written by Chinese critic Liwen Hao. Parker, who gained fame for creating the 100-point scoring system widely used to rate wines,...
EDITORIALS
Oct 7, 2016

Expanding scope of wiretapping

The police are being handed expanded wiretapping powers. Where should the line be drawn to prevent such measures from going too far?
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 7, 2016

These veep guys sure don't feel like leaders

Tuesday's debate between the two vice presidential nominees won't alter the course of the election, but it did drop hints about the future of the Democratic and Republican parties.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Oct 7, 2016

Classified ads website CEO arrested over sex trafficking allegations

Carl Ferrer, chief executive of the advertising website Backpage.com, was arrested on Thursday on criminal charges including pimping, as authorities investigate the company, which has been accused of facilitating sex trafficking of minors.
Reader Mail
Oct 7, 2016

Team Hillary better than Trump for U.S. and the world

Regarding the editorial "An unnerving debate in the U.S." in the Sept. 29 edition, everyone knows that Donald Trump lost the first presidential debate to Hillary Clinton hands down, but the real reason was that so far Trump has spoken almost exclusively to audiences handpicked to support him and his...
Reader Mail
Oct 7, 2016

No such thing as 'sexless Japan'

I would like to begin by saying that I love Japan and its people. I was a teacher and ESL supervisor for eight years, and hated to leave. I wept bitter tears.
Reader Mail
Oct 7, 2016

Beijing the city has much to offer

In the opinion column titled "Dim outlook for democracy" in the Sept. 17 edition, Hiroki Sugita wrote: "Even given the strong economic growth of China and the political stability of Russia, the majority of people living in liberal democracies would not consider moving to Beijing or Moscow as permanent...
Reader Mail
Oct 7, 2016

Tsukiji fiasco just business as usual

The article "Koike vows to nail officials who cut corners in Tsukiji" in the Oct. 6 edition didn't mention the fact that the original budget for the new market in Toyosu has ballooned greatly from the original estimate, to where it now stands at around ¥600 billion.
Japan Times
JAPAN / AT A GLANCE
Oct 6, 2016

Head-turning camera puts new spin on Tokyo tourist sites

Talk about revolutionary. Ricoh's Theta S camera shoots 360 degrees and turns out head-spinning spherical images when paired with an image-processing app. The camera, which has two lenses, can be hand-held or triggered by remote control.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 6, 2016

Olympic mania sidetracking efforts to revitalize Japan

Tokyo 2020 is diverting attention away from the best chance Japan has had in 20 years to regain its mojo.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / B. League / B. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Oct 6, 2016

Teams still finding way in first season

Parity has been the name of the game so far this season.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 5, 2016

In new low for relations, Duterte tells Obama to ‘go to hell’

Manila's relations with Washington appeared to be in critical condition late Thursday after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte told U.S. President Barack Obama to "go to hell." It was Duterte's strongest outburst yet over criticism of his deadly war on drugs.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Oct 5, 2016

U.S. warships make landmark visit to Vietnam's strategic Cam Ranh Bay

U.S. Navy vessels paid a port call this week to Vietnam's Cam Ranh Bay — the first visit by American warships to the strategically important site since the two nations normalized relations 21 years ago
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 5, 2016

'Star Trek' lives on and prospers

In principle, it's hard to dislike "Star Trek." Each time the crew of the USS Enterprise venture into the great beyond, broadcasting their mantra of peace and intergalactic harmony, it's a riposte to the iffy politics advocated by other movie franchises: they're the United Nations to Marvel and DC's...
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Oct 5, 2016

Pence takes harder line than Trump on Russia at contentious vice presidential debate

U.S. Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence called Russian President Vladimir Putin a "small and bullying leader" on Tuesday and condemned his actions in Syria, taking a harder line than Donald Trump at a contentious debate with Democratic rival Tim Kaine.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 4, 2016

Can Spotify crack CD-loving Japan?

The music-streaming company may find the world's second largest and most idiosyncratic music market a tough nut to crack.

Longform

Members of the nonprofit group Japan Youth Memorial Association search for the remains of dead soldiers in a cave in Okinawa Prefecture in February.
The long search for Japan’s lost soldiers