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EDITORIALS
Aug 16, 2001

Rome's unseemly retreat

Determined to avoid another bloody fiasco like last month's Group of Eight summit in Genoa, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has asked the U.N. Food and Agricultural Organization to move the World Food Summit, which is scheduled to be held in November in Rome, to Africa. That would be a mistake:...
JAPAN
Aug 16, 2001

Koizumi makes amity pledge at annual surrender day rites

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi pledged that Japan will never again isolate itself from the world but will seek only amity with its neighbors, during a secular ceremony Wednesday marking the 56th anniversary of Japan's World War II surrender.
JAPAN
Aug 16, 2001

Legitimized foreigners urge more amnesty

A 15-year-old Iranian girl's first trip to her home country in 10 years last July began with a surprise welcome at Tehran airport by some 100 relatives.
MORE SPORTS
Aug 16, 2001

World Games 2001 open in Akita

Who is the best lifesaver in the world? Who is the most elegant performer at a height of 3,000 meters? And who throws a flying disc the most accurately?
JAPAN
Aug 16, 2001

Decade-long district court trials highlight need for judicial overhaul

As calls for speedy trials mount following a blue-ribbon panel proposal in June to overhaul the judiciary, the pace of work at the Tokyo District Court probably serves as "exhibit A" in the argument for reform.
ENVIRONMENT
Aug 16, 2001

Wild answer to the deer problem

KAMIKITAYAMA, Nara Pref. -- It was a rainy Monday in July when Fumio Minamiura came across a shocking scene: a stray dog trotting along with the head and fore-parts of a young deer in its mouth. Blood was still dripping from the fresh kill.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 15, 2001

Fruits of U.S. economic expansion eluded many American families

FREDRICKSBURG, Virginia -- We're supposed to remember the 1990s as a period of economic expansion unlike anything the United States had ever seen. But to Oya Oliver and the rest of the staff at the Fredericksburg Area Food Bank, that decade always looked a little different than the official story that...
CULTURE / Film
Aug 15, 2001

So you think you're some sort of wiseguy?

Love, Honour and Obey Rating: * * * * Japanese title: London Dogs Director: Dominic Anciano and Ray Burdis Running time: 103 minutes Language: English Now showing "Oi, mate, what'ya up to this weekend?" "Dunno. Nothin' special -- maybe a spot of snooker." "How d'ya fancy making a film with us,...
JAPAN
Aug 15, 2001

Decline in busts belies widespread drug use: NPA

A total of 8,986 people allegedly violated the Stimulants Control Law in the first half of this year, down 632 from the same period last year, according to a recent police survey.
BUSINESS
Aug 15, 2001

Increasingly good massage chairs gain popularity

OSAKA -- Demand for electric massage chairs is steadily growing as more and more people seek attention akin to the touch of a professional masseur in the comfort of their own homes.
EDITORIALS
Aug 14, 2001

Mr. Koizumi's poor choice

In disregard of opposition at home and abroad, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi paid a controversial visit to Yasukuni Shrine on Monday, two days before the Aug. 15 anniversary of Japan's defeat in World War II. By avoiding going on Wednesday, the date originally planned, Mr. Koizumi apparently tried...
BASEBALL / MLB
Aug 14, 2001

Swallows widen CL lead

Pinch-hitter Hirofumi Watarai singled home two runs in the seventh inning to spark a four-run rally for Yakult on Sunday as the Swallows came from behind to defeat the Yomiuri Giants 7-4 and widen their lead to five games in the Central League pennant race.
EDITORIALS
Aug 12, 2001

The lure of Amelia Earhart

Life abounds with mysteries, both profound and trivial, and if we were to spend all our time pondering them we would never get any work done. Yet some tug more forcefully at our imaginations than others -- and of these, the mysteries surrounding disappearances are the most forceful of all. Nature abhors...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Aug 12, 2001

She's got legs . . .

You've probably seen her somewhere -- on product packaging, in fashion catalogs or TV commercials. But no one would recognize her, because she is famous only for her legs.
LIFE / Food & Drink / BEST BAR NONE
Aug 12, 2001

Some like it hot

There once was a Tokyo night empire called Ink Stick, which spawned a handful of cool jazz slash ambient slash progressive clubs around town. But this review has nothing to do with Ink Stick. It is about Shinichi Watanabe, who took over the space that the Nogizaka Ink Stick occupied. Even more than 10...
JAPAN / WEEKEND WISDOM
Aug 12, 2001

Copying Kyoto is way to revitalize Japan, fashion critic says

KYOTO -- If Japan wants to revitalize the sluggish economy and turn its prospects around, there are plenty of indications that Kyoto's way of life as well as its way of doing business are the answer, according to Hiromi Ichida, a fashion critic who has lived in the ancient capital for more than half...
JAPAN
Aug 11, 2001

Ex-UNEP official pushes business solutions to environment problems

Despite a sign of global economic recession, the private sector can help solve environmental issues by creating new business and stimulating the economy, according to Noel Brown, former director of the North American regional office of the United Nations Environmental Program.
SOCCER / World cup
Aug 11, 2001

Troussier opts for Nakamura

Yokohama F. Marinos midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura has been recalled to the Japan national fold but Jubilo Iwata midfielder Hiroshi Nanami has been excluded from the squad for next Wednesday's AFC/OFC Challenge Cup match against Oceania champion Australia at Ecopa Stadium in Shizuoka, Japan manager Philippe...
JAPAN
Aug 11, 2001

Tobacco lobby keeps lid on state health plans

Staff writerSusumu Motojima, head of Japan Tobacco Inc.'s Kyoto branch, recently said smoking is a "pastime or habit an adult has the right to choose."
EDITORIALS
Aug 10, 2001

Easing the pain of reform

Japan's unemployment rate stood at 4.9 percent in June, setting the worst post-World War II record for two consecutive months. It is likely to go up higher still, as Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's economic-reform plans received a solid mandate in the July 29 Upper House election. For one thing, bad-debt...
JAPAN
Aug 10, 2001

Smokers sue as Japan Tobacco denies causal links

Matao Yamamoto, a 67-year-old former Kyoto cab driver, is one of a large number of smokers in Japan who deeply regrets acquiring the hard-to-quit habit.
MORE SPORTS
Aug 10, 2001

Spring runnerup loses baseball opener

Yuta Yamashiro homered in the fourth inning and Yu Higa broke the game open with a two-run double in the seventh as Okinawa's Ginoza High School won 7-1 over Sendai Ikuei on Thursday in the high school baseball national championship tournament.
BUSINESS
Aug 9, 2001

Short margin positions rise

The balance of short margin positions rose for the second consecutive week last week.
COMMENTARY
Aug 9, 2001

The dangers of cohabitation

LONDON -- The institution of marriage has been taking some hard knocks lately. It is not just that cohabitation -- living together without the marriage commitment -- is now increasingly popular. Nor yet that, as is widely known, one in four British marriages end in divorce. (In the United States, the...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 9, 2001

Feelings run deep about Yasukuni

Staff writer Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi says he simply wants to pay his respects for those who died for Japan.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Aug 9, 2001

Injunction process hopeless; fate of Bullfrog Pond sealed

The fate of Bullfrog Pond now rests in the hands of a Tokyo District Court judge, but the wheels of justice turn slowly in Japan. The court has yet to grant a crucial injunction, and hearings have dragged into their third month. Meantime, the pond in Tokyo's Minato Ward, known as Gama-ike, is being destroyed....
CULTURE / Film
Aug 8, 2001

Director Veysset knows her characters by heart

Sandrine Veysset has only made three films so far, but it would be no exaggeration to call her one of France's most talented directors. Her debut, "Will It Snow for Christmas?" took a Cesar (French Academy Award), her follow-up "Victor . . . pendant qu'il est trop tard," grabbed a Critics' Award at Rotterdam,...
CULTURE / Art
Aug 8, 2001

Two takes on what's really happening

Shiseido Gallery in Tokyo's Ginza and Art Tower Mito in Mito, Ibaraki Prefecture, will simultaneously present exhibitions of contemporary art from East Asia by up-and-coming artists, starting Friday. Asian contemporary art has captivated many people over the past decade. Masaki Higuchi from Shiseido...
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2001

Masked man gets away with 20 million yen

OSAKA -- A masked man with a knife robbed a small post office Tuesday morning in Osaka's Joto Ward, making off with around 20 million yen in cash, police said.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji