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Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 19, 2016

Omake Club helps Zombie-Chang escape down her own artistic rabbit hole

Midway through our conversation at a dimly lit Shibuya cafe, Meirin Yung offers to break down any song on her recently released album under the name Zombie-Chang. I choose the slacker-inspired "Semete Kanashii Tokiniwa" (loosely translated as "At Least in Sad Times") that served as the advance preview...
JAPAN / Society
Feb 19, 2016

Japan's Justice Ministry proposes scrapping six-month ban on women remarrying following divorce

In a landmark policy shift, the ministry says it will seek the abolishment of a six-month ban on women remarrying after divorce.
BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 19, 2016

Negative rates work best for smaller, open economies, economists say

A Bloomberg survey of 63 economists covering central banks in the euro area, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden and now Japan has found that rates below zero are thought to work better in smaller, open economies dealing with foreign exchange challenges, rather than in larger ones hoping to boost growth or...
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Feb 19, 2016

U.N. plans food airdrop to Islamic State-besieged Syrian city of 200,000

The United Nations plans to make its first air drops of food and other aid in Syria, to Deir al-Zor, an eastern city of 200,000 besieged by Islamic State militants, the chair of a U.N. humanitarian task force said on Thursday.
Reader Mail
Feb 19, 2016

NHK anchor a victim of the right-wing state

Regarding Jeff Kingston's Counterpoint column "Anchor's ouster is another blow to quality news" in the Jan. 24 edition, you don't have to be very smart to realize that the conservative right-wing state of Japan is following its pre-World War II modus operandi.
Reader Mail
Feb 19, 2016

What should we do in a missile attack?

The recent missile test by North Korea reminded me of the article in the Jan. 31 issue, "All eyes on North Korea missile test," with its reassuring statement that, in preparation for a possible missile launch by North Korea, the Self-Defense Forces have prepared a "two-layer missile shield" — the Standard...
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Feb 18, 2016

Akita in position for another trip to Final Four

The Akita Northern Happinets gained valuable experience as the back-to-back championship runner-up squad the past two seasons, but they didn't fulfill their ultimate goal.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Feb 18, 2016

Chef Rodolfo Guzman rediscovers his roots

On a cloudless afternoon a little over a year ago, chef Rodolfo Guzman contemplated a plant he had discovered while wandering up to the Salar de Tara salt flats, which lie 4,860 meters above sea level, in the middle of northern Chile's Atacama Desert.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / CABINET INTERVIEW
Feb 18, 2016

New economic minister Ishihara believes recovery underway

Facing reporters in one of his first interviews since being named Economic and Fiscal Policy Minister, Nobuteru Ishihara said Wednesday the economy is making a steady recovery despite recent sharp falls in stock prices and the negative growth logged in the final three months of 2015.
BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 18, 2016

Can you call the stock market? Equity analyst says he can

On the 10th day of every month, Junsuke Senoguchi has just one thing on his mind: the closing level of the Nikkei average.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 17, 2016

Time to recall FDR's words

The U.S and Europe must avoid becoming monsters in their efforts to defeat a monster.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 17, 2016

Refugees, jihad and the specter of terrorism

The Mediterranean holds the key to Europe's security, yet little attention is being paid to shoring up the continent's southern flank.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 17, 2016

Breaking into and out of Japanese show biz

Eiji Uchida's scabrous new comedy about the struggles of a down-and-out indie film director, "Lowlife Love" ("Gesu no Ai"), confirms what I have known for years: Japanese show business can be brutal to the weak or clueless. They end up used and discarded, like so many human Kleenexes.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Feb 17, 2016

Third Japanese municipality recognizes same-sex unions

The city of Iga, Mie Prefecture, has announced it will start issuing certificates recognizing same-sex partnerships starting in April, Japan's third municipal government and the first outside Tokyo to take such a step.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 16, 2016

Korean tensions at an alarming level

Rising tensions between North and South Korean pose a dangerous threat to regional peace and stability.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Feb 16, 2016

Takashi Murakami collects more than just his thoughts

"Takashi Murakami's Superflat Collection" is an exhibition of other people's work, amassed as the result of one man's phenomenally successful artistic career. It's evidence that Murakami must have done something right, or wrong, depending on your view of culture. He's sometimes portrayed as a kind of...
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / JAPAN TIMES BLOGROLL
Feb 16, 2016

The Uwaga Pies

The YouTube duo known as The Uwaga Pies — Krzysztof Gonciarz, from Poland, and Kasia Mecinski, from America — use their channel to give English-speakers a peek into Japan.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets / ANALYSIS
Feb 15, 2016

Tokyo stocks leap but Japanese market at mercy of global uncertainties

Japan's economic contraction in the fourth quarter has deepened lingering uncertainty in global financial markets, which have been gyrating since the start of the year.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 13, 2016

Pope meets Orthodox patriarch but reunion of churches unlikely, Tokyo priests say

Several Tokyo-based priests on Saturday welcomed the meeting in Cuba between Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill, calling it an important development but one that is unlikely to lead to reunion.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Feb 13, 2016

Should Japan's major newspapers be given a red card for sponsoring the Olympics?

Because it's never too early to talk about how expensive the Olympics will be, Tokyo Shimbun pondered the question on Feb. 6 and found out that no one involved has a clue about the cost of the 2020 Games.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Feb 13, 2016

Onagawa is on the rebound from devastation

On March 11, 2011, the magnitude-9 Great East Japan Earthquake propelled a powerful tsunami through the port of Onagawa, Miyagi Prefecture, claiming 827 lives — nearly 10 percent of the town's population — and destroying 70 percent of all of its buildings. It was the most severely damaged town in...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / CHILD'S PLAY
Feb 13, 2016

Trust robots to keep the kids occupied

'Can we go to the park?" In our household, this refrain is heard almost as frequently as "I want ice cream" and "I don't want to go to bed."
COMMUNITY / Voices / OVERHEARD
Feb 13, 2016

Role reversal

Mom, why won't you stop using your phone? You promised we would enjoy a tasty lunch today.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Feb 12, 2016

February 13, 2016

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