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Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 28, 2007

Feting Japan's finest animators

Omnibus films are hard sells to ticket buyers and critics; the former because they want a full cinematic meal, not a plate of hors d'oeuvres, the latter because they see a package of segments as a sort of horse race — and proclaim disappointment when all the horses/segments don't cross the finish line...
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jun 12, 2007

Media scream 'yellow peril'

Days after the broken body of British teacher Lindsay Hawker was discovered in a fourth-floor flat in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture, when the media feeding frenzy was at its most intense, a newspaper editor called me from London.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Jun 6, 2007

Reflecting on life's amazing twists and turns

I came to Japan in October 1962 to learn martial arts.
BUSINESS / EAST ASIA SYMPOSIUM
Jun 4, 2007

Take your partners for economic integration

See related stories: U.S. presidential election casts long shadow Sustained economic growth is a question of balance for China
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
May 24, 2007

Closer Nakamura taking it a day at a time

When he left the locker room at Tokyo Dome carrying a big black bag, on the night he got his fifth save of the season against the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles at Tokyo Dome, unexpectedly, the closer didn't look happy.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Apr 17, 2007

SDF emerging as the military it truly is

The government has steadily expanded the activities of the Self-Defense Forces since the 1990s as the nation sought to play greater roles in international political and security affairs. Public perceptions toward the SDF have also changed in line with changes in the security environment, espe cially...
BASEBALL / MLB'S EFFECT ON JAPAN
Apr 14, 2007

NPB players in need of strong union like MLBPA

Last of four-part
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Apr 7, 2007

The short-lived cherry blossom -- Japan's national identity

The most beautiful time to be in Japan is right now -- cherry blossom season. Oha-nami cherry-blossom-viewing parties are taking place everywhere, and you don't need an invitation to go to one.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Mar 18, 2007

As London shows, assimilation is what migration's about

LONDON -- I have been coming to this city every few years for more than four decades, and this visit, of 10 days' duration, has, in some ways, been the most startling. Not that the mid-Sixties weren't. The Beatles, with every challenge to staid British routine that they personified, were in the ascendancy...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 15, 2007

'Crossing the Bridge'

Amusic "scene" tends to arise out of a number of like-minded musicians operating from the same cultural starting point. Think San Francisco psychedelia, Detroit techno, London punk or Kingston's reggae and dub -- all scenes full of musicians sharing the same cultural ferment and arriving at similar sounds....
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital
Mar 11, 2007

Jimmy Wales: Power to the Wikipeople

An Internet search for almost anything these days will likely lead you straight to Wikipedia, the worldwide online encyclopedia.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 4, 2007

Cinema goes back for the future

Cinema is on the ropes. So much so that a cabal of top Hollywood moguls are putting their faith in a very old idea -- one usually dismissed as a fad -- to save the day.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 19, 2006

ECB tools for assessing price risks work

STRASBOURG, France -- In October 1998, just before the start of the European Monetary Union, the Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) adopted a stability-oriented monetary policy strategy comprising three elements. The first was a commitment to the primary goal of the ECB -- safeguarding...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
Oct 18, 2006

Slow down to savor the turning seasons

The autumnal season of change is upon us once more, with delights for eye, ear and nose. As the thermometer dips, rises and falls erratically, some days seem almost balmy as if it is late spring or early summer; others carry a stronger hint of the chill to come as winter approaches.
SUMO
Sep 26, 2006

Stop thief -- he took my limelight!

Push came to shove, slap turned into frontal force out and both Hakuho (8-7) and Miyabiyama (9-6) flopped big time. Former sanyaku man Takanowaka took the Juryo title 11-4 after a fierce play-off with Toyozakura and Sawaii took the Makushita title 7-0; albeit securing his final win with a rather distasteful...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Jul 2, 2006

Tamiyo Kusakari: Dancing with body and soul

Tamiyo Kusakari has been on her toes since the age of 8. Japan's most treasured ballerina virtually grew up in her toe shoes, and spent her youth dancing on one stage after another. Now, at the age of 41, she continues to enthrall legions of fans with the skill and eloquence of her craft.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jun 6, 2006

From the sole, a new soul

There's nothing quite like a foot rub, especially after a hard day's work and a long commute home. It's sure to be even more pleasurable if the person working on your feet is a trained practitioner of reflexology, a holistic therapy currently enjoying a boom throughout Japan. Reflexology is an easy way...
EDITORIALS
May 8, 2006

Bracing for a new level of oil prices

Oil prices hovering at a historically high level are threatening to destabilize the world economy. Domestically they could exert a cooling effect on the economy just as it appears to be emerging from a long period of deflation, thus undermining the foundation for economic recovery. The public is now...
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Apr 16, 2006

What's really 'Chinese' about fortune cookies?

Try this for fun next time you're in New York City: Walk into any sushi bar, eat your fill and then ask for a fortune cookie.
COMMENTARY
Apr 15, 2006

2006 is all about democracy

HONOLULU -- The 2006 National Security Strategy (NSS) document has just been released. News coverage has focused on one word: preemption. Largely overlooked has been the much greater emphasis on the promotion of democracy as the primary objective of American foreign policy in the second administration...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Mar 28, 2006

Times get tough for teachers

English teaching in Japan is not what it used to be. Conditions are changing; the work is harder to come by, wages are falling, and staff are increasingly taking their employers to court.
LIFE / Food & Drink / VINELAND
Feb 10, 2006

Napa vineyards survive deluges

Tremendous flooding in California's wine country over New Year's made for dramatic, televised scenes of almost completely submerged vineyards. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger added to the excitement, proclaiming, "Napa was 4 feet under water, creating tremendous damage."
EDITORIALS
Jan 19, 2006

Labor offensive in for a thaw

This year's "spring labor offensive" seems likely to stage somewhat of a revival after a long moribund period in which labor-management negotiations for wage raises have been perfunctory. Reversing its long-standing policy of restraining wage raises, Nippon Keidanren (Japan Business Federation), the...
COMMENTARY
Jan 12, 2006

Step up positive diplomacy

The year 2005 is likely to be remembered as the year when rivalry between Japan and China over how to create a new international order reached a high point.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 3, 2005

Divine intervention for shrine epiphany

People always ask, "Amy, what do you do all day long on that island?" I assure them there is never a dull moment. A constant stream of visitors, mostly foreign, come to Shiraishi Island throughout the year. Some come out of curiosity, others to escape the city or catch a glimpse of old Japan. Some want...
JAPAN
Nov 2, 2005

Legal revision to speed hand of justice

Japan has long been notorious for extremely drawn out trials that seem to take forever to reach a verdict.
COMMENTARY
Sep 14, 2005

Major hurdle remains in six-party talks

KYOTO -- The fourth round of six-party talks aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear-weapons aspirations resumed Tuesday in Beijing after a five-week recess. One main sticking point, seemingly still unresolved, centers around North Korea's "right" to have a peaceful nuclear-energy program.
EDITORIALS
Aug 2, 2005

Iraqis draft a constitution

Iraq has a "road map" to normalcy. The first step was the withdrawal of the occupation government, which occurred a little over a year ago. The second major step was the national elections that were held in January. Despite protests by some Sunnis, the vote was largely a success. The third big step is...
EDITORIALS
Jul 18, 2005

Japan's quiet time bomb

Health problems linked to asbestos, which was used in large quantities as heat-insulation material for buildings during the period of Japan's high economic growth, are spreading among workers who inhaled the substance in the past. One enterprise after another has released lists of workers who have died...
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / NAME OF THE GAME
Jun 2, 2005

Racer for PSP is a real drag

The appeal of the "Shutoko Battle" series (known as "Tokyo Xtreme Racer" abroad) has always been the way it gives players a free pass to race through a digital representation of Tokyo. For car enthusiasts and armchair racers thirsting for the thrill of hitting Kasumigaseki at 150 kph, the lure of "Shutoko"...

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami