Former Prime Minister Taro Aso, vice president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, on Wednesday dismissed the party's past electoral cooperation with its former coalition partner, Komeito, as "nonsense." https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/05/japan/politics/japan-aso-blasts-komeito/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #taroaso #ldp #komeito #cra #osaka
Despite being coalition partners, the Liberal Democratic Party and the Japan Innovation Party are facing off against each other in all 19 single-seat constituencies of Osaka Prefecture in Sunday’s general election. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/03/japan/politics/japan-lower-house-election-osaka-ldp-jip/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #2026lowerhouseelection #osaka #ldp #jip #komeito
Summer Sonic’s 2026 edition will run three days for its 25th anniversary, featuring The Strokes, Jamiroquai and L’Arc-en-Ciel. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2026/02/02/music/summer-sonic-25th-anniversary/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #culture #music #musicfestivals #summersonic #kpop #jpop #osaka
Tokyo police have arrested a 61-year-old man for allegedly registering a fake address to rent an internet server and on suspicions of involvement in a blog that alludes to child prostitution in Laos. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/30/japan/crime-legal/laos-child-prostitution-blog/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #crimelegal #japanesepolice #laos #children #osaka #internet #prostitution #blogs
The Japan Innovation Party hopes voters in the Feb. 8 Lower House election will see their being on the inside of government as a sign of strength, but the party has long had trouble expanding beyond its Osaka base. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/28/japan/politics/nippon-ishin-election/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #nipponishinnokai #hirofumiyoshimura #osaka #seijimaehara #fumitakefujita #2026lowerhouseelection
Despite growing concerns about overtourism, Japan remains the top destination for international travelers in 2026 — and data suggests the gap with other contenders is widening. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2026/01/24/travel/travel-japan-world-rankings-tokyo-kyoto-osaka/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #life #travel #travel #overtourism #tokyo #osaka #kyoto
Japan still needs to overcome mounting challenges to achieving its goal of 60 million annual visitors by 2030 amid worsening Tokyo-Beijing relations and overtourism. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/21/japan/tough-road-visitor-goal/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #tourism #travel #osaka #sapporo
The Japan Innovation Party is touting itself as the axle of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s administration — and not its brake — as it unveils its manifesto to woo supporters of her Liberal Democratic Party. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/21/japan/politics/jip-manifesto/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #2026lowerhouseelection #nipponishinnokai #sanaetakaichi #ldp #fumitakefujita #osaka
A 31-year-old Thai woman has been arrested by Japanese police for allegedly smuggling etomidate, known as "zombie cigarettes," in a suitcase. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/21/japan/crime-legal/zombie-cigarettes-smuggling-arrest/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #crimelegal #drugs #japanesepolice #thailand #osaka #kansaiairports #smuggling
More anime studios are setting up operations outside Tokyo, drawn by advantages such as easier access to local graduates and the potential for better work-life balance. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2026/01/21/anime-studios-operations-outside-tokyo/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #anime #jobs #workstylereform #osaka #sendai #kobe #kochi
Major political parties other than the Japan Innovation Party are expected to not participate in the upcoming double election for the governor of Osaka Prefecture and the mayor of Osaka, the prefecture's capital. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/18/japan/politics/osaka-double-election-candidates/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #osaka #hirofumiyoshimura #hideyukiyokoyama #jip
The Osaka District Court on Friday dismissed a request from three death-row inmates for the state to ban executions by hanging. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/16/japan/crime-legal/osaka-court-hanging-executions/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #crimelegal #osaka #japanesecourts #deathpenalty
Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura resigned Friday morning to call a snap gubernatorial and mayoral election in the hope of winning local support for a third referendum on merging the city’s wards. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/16/japan/politics/osaka-referendum/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #osaka #nipponishinnokai #hirofumiyoshimura
JKB
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Title: Tennoji Temple, Osaka (1927)
Artist: Hasui Kawase
https://www.japan-experience.com/all-about-japan/osaka/temples-and-shrines-in-japan/shitennoji-temple-tennoji-osaka #ShinHanga #Art #Showa #HasuiKawase #Winter #Snow #ShitennojiTemple #Osaka #Japan
Title: Tennoji Temple, Osaka (1927)
Artist: Hasui Kawase
https://www.japan-experience.com/all-about-japan/osaka/temples-and-shrines-in-japan/shitennoji-temple-tennoji-osaka #ShinHanga #Art #Showa #HasuiKawase #Winter #Snow #ShitennojiTemple #Osaka #Japan
Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura said Tuesday that he might step down to hold a gubernatatorial election in hopes of seeking a mandate over whether to hold a third referendum on his party’s Osaka merger plan. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/13/japan/politics/osaka-governor-mayor-backup-capital/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #osaka #hirofumiyoshimura #hideyukiyokoyama #decentralization
Several municipalities in Japan are giving Osaka a run for its money in the race toward winning the designation as the country’s secondary capital. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/09/japan/politics/back-up-capital-cities/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #disasterpreparedness #cities #nipponishinnokai #osaka #ldp #hirofumiyoshimura #fukuoka #kumamoto #saitama #nagoya
A 40-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder over an attack on a policeman with a car in Osaka Prefecture. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/09/japan/crime-legal/man-arrest-police-attack-car/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #crimelegal #japanesepolice #osaka
The Osaka city government has announced plans to sell about 500,000 square meters of prime land at the center of what was once the site of the Osaka Expo, sparking concerns about preserving the event's legacy. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/08/japan/osaka-expo-legacy-debate/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #osaka #2025osakaexpo #casinos
With only about 1,000 Dosanko Japanese horses to be found in Japan, a horse park in Osaka Prefecture is protecting and raising the breed while letting visitors experience riding them. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/08/japan/horse-park-protection/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #osaka #animals #horses #hokkaido