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Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Jan 30, 2011

Murin-an Garden: an ode to water

Surprisingly, as modernization swept through Japan in the Meiji Era (1868-1912), the number of traditional gardens increased. The clients, though, were now of a different order. Instead of the shoguns, their court aristocracy and feudal lords, the new patrons of these meticulously crafted sites of reflection,...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 30, 2011

Cultural insensitivity no laughing matter

The tempest in a teapot whipped up by a segment on the British quiz-cum-comedy show "QI" has prompted debate on cross-cultural sensitivity. The BBC has apologized for the segment, which, contrary to a statement issued by Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara, did not make fun of its subject, the late Tsutomu...
JAPAN
Jan 29, 2011

FCCJ retools to remain relevant

With the Internet pressing down on traditional media and interest in news from Japan apparently in decline, many foreign journalists say reporting with a Tokyo dateline is increasingly becoming a challenge.
JAPAN
Jan 29, 2011

U.N. envoy vows to press North on abductions

A special rapporteur for the United Nations on human rights in North Korea urged Pyongyang on Friday to resolve the long-standing abduction issue and deal with wider matters relating to humanitarian and human rights regarding its people.
JAPAN
Jan 29, 2011

Kan defends being S&P-blindsided

Prime Minister Naoto Kan on Friday defended his remarks on the downgrade of Japan's sovereign credit rating by Standard & Poor's, saying he had yet to be informed of the news when he said he was "not familiar with the matter."
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jan 28, 2011

Sapporo's winter wonderland

Winter has been a treacherous affair overseas recently. The use of terms such as "snowmageddon" and "snowpocalypse" conjure up images of the worst the season has to offer. But while many in the West suffer from the stresses of snow, the city of Sapporo will revel in it.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 28, 2011

'Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps'

There was a time when an Oliver Stone film would approach its topic in much the same way that a pit-bull would approach a burglar's meaty calf. Films such as "JFK," "Natural Born Killers" and "Salvador" knew exactly who their targets were, and didn't mince around trying to be "fair" or objective; it...
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jan 28, 2011

Art collective gets the help of Internet character for latest piece

In an attempt to promote young Japanese artists, Tokyo Wonder Site will hold an event titled "Team 16: Arakawa Tomonori presented by Chaos*Lounge" in Tokyo's youth mecca of Shibuya.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jan 28, 2011

Osaka to celebrate tower

Artists from across the Kansai area are holding a series of art workshops and performances to boost the profile of Tsutenkaku, a longtime landmark in Osaka, from Feb. 5 through Feb. 13.
JAPAN
Jan 28, 2011

Two abductees 'alive' in '06

KAGOSHIMA (Kyodo) Two Japanese abducted by North Korea were reported alive there as of 2006, despite Pyongyang's claim they died decades earlier, a relative of one of them claimed Thursday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jan 28, 2011

Hirayama: Paying simple tribute to the Silk Road

Recently Stephen Fry's BBC comedy quiz show "QI," was in trouble over panelist's comments regarding Tsutomu Yamaguchi, a survivor of both atomic bombs dropped on Japan. Amid generally admiring chit chat about Yamaguchi, panelists treated the bombings with a degree of levity typical of the show, prompting...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jan 28, 2011

There's always art behind design

For some, life-changing moments involve a traumatic experience or a piercing epiphany. For others, something as simple as a teapot can elicit transformation.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 26, 2011

Economics for the people

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — We are in the midst of a boom in popular economics: books, articles, blogs, public lectures, all followed closely by the general public.
COMMENTARY
Jan 26, 2011

Universal values do matter

NEW DELHI — With a Nobel Peace Prize to his credit, U.S. President Barack Obama was widely expected to advance universal values. Yet he has signaled that promotion of human rights is a tool to be used only against the small kids on the global block who hold no major economic benefits for the United...
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 25, 2011

Hilton Hotels bag white elephant, turn it around

What is a luxury brand hotel like Hilton doing with a hot spring resort in the mountains of Shizuoka?
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 25, 2011

Whither Tunisia's 'Jasmine Revolution'?

NEW YORK — As I try to grasp the meaning of the Tunisian Revolution and gauge its future, I am looking at my desk, where I have spread two issues of The New York Times, both featuring Tunisia on their front pages. The two issues are dated 23 years apart.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jan 23, 2011

The countdown: six months and a day till TV goes digital

Quick: what happened in Japan on Sept. 10, 1960? A few people might recall that was the day Japan commenced color TV broadcasting. At the startup, color programs were few in number, but consumers still had four years and one month to buy a color set before the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Jan 23, 2011

Forests worldwide: a primer

For those living in Japan, it's easy to forget that forests are not a given.
CULTURE / Books
Jan 23, 2011

Why did Japan crash as Asia's lead goose?

ASIA'S FLYING GEESE: How Regionalization Shapes Japan, by Walter Hatch. Cornell University Press, 2010, 304 pp., $24.95 (hardcover) As we slog into the third decade of the Lost Decade, the enigma of Japan is why, given dire developments, change and reform happen so slowly, if at all.

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes