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LIFE / Food & Drink / NIHONSHU
Jul 8, 1999

Oasis of serenity found in rowdiest Roppongi

One of Tokyo's greatest charms, and one of its greatest oddities, is its occasional lack of congruency. Like architectural hiccups, you often see a building where you would least expect it, completely unrelated to everything around it. Aburaya in Roppongi is like that, albeit it is more a matter of atmosphere...
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Jul 8, 1999

'Wabi-sabi' with a modern edge

Wasabiya epitomizes the very 1990s genre that has come to be known in Japanese as "dining bars." That means you can treat it as a restaurant, as an izakaya or even as a kind of designer drinking hold; it just depends on how hungry or thirsty you are.
LIFE / Food & Drink / WINE WAYS
Jul 8, 1999

Wines you'll still love the morning after

As far back as the 11th century, Norse explorers, in what was to become America, had already perceived the winemaking possibilities of this vast, verdant land. Seven centuries later the sagacious American statesman Thomas Jefferson began dabbling in grape-growing. One might assume, then, that by now...
EDITORIALS
Jul 7, 1999

Toward a debate on national security

The Democratic Party of Japan, the largest opposition group, has so far lacked a clear-cut security policy. The reason is clear. As a "scratch team" put together by breakaways from various parties, including the Liberal Democratic Party and the former Japan Socialist Party, the DPJ has found that its...
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1999

Sony quits North America cell phone market

Sony Corp. announced Wednesday it will withdraw from the cellular phone business in North America, citing dwindling market share and profits due to intensifying competition.
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1999

Ishihara to ban Aum members from facilities

Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara told the metropolitan assembly Wednesday that he will not allow members of Aum Shinrikyo to use Tokyo's public facilities.
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1999

Favor sought for protecting corporate accounts

The Financial System Council is recommending that corporate deposits for use in settling business transactions be protected after the introduction of a reduced guarantee scheme in April 2001.
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1999

Economic progress hoped for at China summit

Staff writer
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1999

Will wiretapping hurt the news?

Staff writer
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1999

Highway signposts found defective

Five steel posts supporting signs along Tokyo's Metropolitan Expressway system have been removed due to cracks found in inspections following an accident involving a broken pole Tuesday, the Metropolitan Expressway Public Corp. said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1999

Toshiba, IBM scrap DRAM deal

Toshiba Corp. and IBM Corp. have agreed to cancel a memory chip production tieup in the U.S., and Toshiba will purchase all shares of a joint venture of the two firms by the end of next year, Toshiba officials in Tokyo said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1999

Osaka puts on job fair to help the unemployed

OSAKA -- In a bid to help job-seekers in the Kansai region, where the unemployment rate exceeds the national average, Osaka Prefecture Wednesday kicked off Job Information Fair '99, featuring 200 computers listing 15,000 jobs.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 7, 1999

Numbers shape U.S. political landscape

WASHINGTON -- For the past two decades, Americans have been living in the shadow of the "twin towers of debt" that overhung the federal government and threatened the economic well-being of future generations: the national debt and the international balance of payments. Both grew geometrically during...
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1999

Japan an eavesdropping paradise

Staff writer
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1999

Obuchi asks New Komeito to join the ruling coalition

Seeking to solidify the base of his ruling coalition, Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi on Wednesday officially proposed to New Komeito leader Takenori Kanzaki that the No. 2 opposition party join the alliance.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Jul 7, 1999

Technoborrrring

With rare exceptions, no one likes being called a Luddite. Steve Talbott, the thoughtful, somewhat skeptical philosopher who writes the Netfuture e-mail newsletter, for example, takes offense at being labeled "pessimistic." I thought it was a fair beef, but he devoted considerable space in his last missive...
JAPAN
Jul 7, 1999

JR research team to take on tunnels

OSAKA -- West Japan Railway Co. has set up an internal research team to review the process of inspecting and repairing tunnels after the discovery of over 2,000 faulty points in Sanyo Shinkansen Line tunnels, it was learned Wednesday.
EDITORIALS
Jul 6, 1999

New life for Mideast peace

Emerging from arduous interparty negotiations, Israeli Prime Minister-elect Ehud Barak has presented his nation -- and a waiting world -- with a rainbow coalition whose sweeping diversity may just be what it takes to revive the dormant Middle East peace process.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

Australia, Japan stick to pushing free trade

Japan and Australia on Tuesday reaffirmed their intention to cooperate in pursuing free trade during the next round of international trade liberalization negotiations at the World Trade Organization.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

Setouchi Special: Bridge-linked isles hope for tourist blitz

Staff writer
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

NTT Communications to buy stake in JSAT

In a bid to strengthen its foothold in international telecommunications, NTT Communications Corp. will make a capital investment in Japan Satellite Systems Inc., top officials of the two firms announced Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

Ailing prefecture wants city to share teacher pay

OSAKA -- Faced with critical financial difficulties, Osaka Prefecture will request the central government to have the city of Osaka share the burden for salaries of public elementary and junior high school teachers, it was learned Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

Setouchi Special: Sand, fruit and fun beckon in Ehime

IMABARI, Ehime Pref. -- Residents in Ehime Prefecture have long referred to their area as the "Orchard of Japan."
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

Setouchi Special: Museum a journey into Hirayama's art

SETODA, Hiroshima Pref. -- A museum dedicated to one of Japan's most prominent artists, Ikuo Hirayama, traces the artistic growth of the famous native and his travels throughout the world.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

DPJ submits bill to ban corporate donations

The Democratic Party of Japan on Tuesday submitted to the Diet a bill to revise the Political Funds Control Law, which calls for banning politicians from receiving political donations from companies and other organizations beginning in January 2000.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

Crisis manual details local obligations to U.S. troops

The government finished drafting a manual Tuesday that will tell local governments and private businesses how they should support U.S. forces in times of emergency in areas near Japan.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

Local LDP chapters accept New Komeito

The Liberal Democratic Party leadership on Tuesday gained approval from its prefectural chapters to ally with New Komeito, taking another step toward the realization of a tripartite coalition.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

Panel urges sweeping investor protection law

A financial service law should be designed to cover all relevant sectors to better protect investors and improve efficiency in financial services, an advisory panel to the finance minister said Tuesday in an interim report.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

Flag-anthem hearings held in Sapporo, Naha

The House of Representatives Cabinet Committee conducted hearings Tuesday in Sapporo and Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, on the government-proposed bill to recognize the Hinomaru as the national flag and "Kimigayo" as the anthem.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 1999

Honda says next hybrid car will be world's most efficient

Honda Motor Co. unveiled a hybrid engine system and lightweight aluminum body structure Tuesday for a new car to be released this fall that the automaker claims will achieve the world's lowest fuel consumption among mass-produced gasoline-powered vehicles.

Longform

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What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji