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Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / IGADGET
Dec 3, 2008

Preholiday offerings speak of sensibility

Ahead to basics: Pentel is not ready to write the eulogy for the humble pen. Rather than killing off the ages-old device, it is intent on bringing it into the digital age. Its latest effort is the airpenMini digital pen.
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Dec 3, 2008

Hiiragi-nanten (Mahonia)

BUSINESS
Dec 3, 2008

Toyota trims managers' bonuses

Toyota Motor Corp. cut winter bonuses for the first time for about 8,700 managers as a global recession cripples car demand, the automaker said Tuesday.
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Dec 2, 2008

Hailing the tail end of Bush

Regarding Barack Obama's election as U.S. president, I welcome the groundswell of hope. It's about time. The past eight years have been, well, awkward for Americans overseas.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Dec 2, 2008

Back to the baths: Otaru revisited

The story is familiar to regular readers of Zeit Gist. Debito Arudou, a naturalized Japanese citizen, originally from America, was living in Sapporo, Hokkaido, and had heard of the Yunohana public bath's policy of denying entry to foreigners. In 1999, media in tow, he decided to put that onsen's policy...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 2, 2008

Bras, bros and other borrowings into Japanese

There is a misunderstanding commonly voiced around the world that languages borrow words from other languages when they lack a native word for something in their own vocabulary. This is, actually, only one reason, and not the primary one, for the existence of direct loan words.
COMMENTARY
Dec 1, 2008

Lessons for India after three days of terror

WATERLOO, Ontario — Mumbai is remarkably resilient in bouncing back to a semblance of normalcy within days. We've been here before — in 1993 and again in 2006 — when terrorists killed more than 200 people each time. Each time the government expresses shock, promises resolute action against the...
EDITORIALS
Dec 1, 2008

Calmer tack with Russia

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is pushing a proposal for a Euro-Atlantic security pact. This has apparently been prompted by the NATO expansion into Eastern Europe, formerly Russia's sphere of influence; the U.S. plan to use sites in the Czech Republic and Poland for missile defense; and Russia's...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 1, 2008

Hedge funds troll for Japan's wealthiest

The city of Ashiya, Hyogo Prefecture, has been home to the nation's industrial titans since samurai ruled the land more than a century ago. Now it is a feeding ground for hedge funds tapping the wealth of new multimillionaires like Kunihisa Sagami.
MORE SPORTS
Dec 1, 2008

Oda wins to cap return

Nobunari Oda capped a successful return to competitive skating on Sunday with a victory at the NHK Trophy.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 1, 2008

U.S. could ignite growth in six months

The global financial crisis that erupted in the United States this fall appears to be largely under control, but how long the recession in the world's largest economy will last depends on the actions of the administration of Barack Obama, the editor of Barron's weekly said at a recent seminar in Tokyo....
EDITORIALS
Nov 30, 2008

More horror in Mumbai

Terrorists launched a multipronged siege of the Indian city of Mumbai last week, which left at least 195 people dead and more than 300 wounded. The attacks are an offense against all civilized people and must be roundly condemned. But words alone are not enough. Those responsible for this outrage, and...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Nov 30, 2008

Gems of Asia: hotels worth the splurge

I admit to an incurable travel addiction, which I have been lucky enough to feed by journeying around Asia since 1980, driven by an abiding interest in the wonders and troubles of the region.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 30, 2008

Building a curative response to sea banditry

KUALA LUMPUR — Although the conditions for piracy and terrorism to thrive are similar, their objectives are different. The motivation for piracy is old-fashioned greed while terrorists are predominantly driven by political and religious ideology. Moreover, pirates usually want to grab their booty and...
Reader Mail
Nov 30, 2008

Very last option against pirates

Regarding Ramesh Thakur's Nov. 25 article,"Pirates feel the sting of India's naval muscle": This analysis is founded in part on a gross inaccuracy because, as it turned out, the Indian Navy did not sink a pirate "mother ship."
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS / NHK TROPHY
Nov 29, 2008

Mao dazzles at NHK

World champion Mao Asada posted a decisive victory in the short program at the NHK Trophy on Friday night with a sparkling program which included three triple jumps.
MORE SPORTS
Nov 29, 2008

Strong competition lined up for 28th running of Japan Cup

Japan Cup weekend is upon us, but this year's is not the double G1 combo of the past eight years. It's the turf version only, Sunday at Tokyo Racecourse.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Nov 29, 2008

Super Sunday provides full slate of excellent matches in U.K.

LONDON — The words many football-loving married men in Britain would love to hear from their wives today are: "I have some bad news for you. . . . an old school friend of mine is in town. . . . I said I would see her tomorrow to catch up on things. . . . I'd ask you to come along but we'll be talking...
BUSINESS
Nov 29, 2008

Tax Commission pressures Aso to clarify timing of sales tax hike

The government's Tax Commission on Friday urged Prime Minister Taro Aso to clarify when the 5 percent consumption tax would be hiked to deal with the country's ballooning social security costs.
BUSINESS
Nov 29, 2008

Japan Post Bank logs first-half profit

Japan Post Bank Co., the world's biggest deposit holder, reported half-year profit of ¥150.1 billion Friday, beating listed rivals that have been struck by rising bad loans and investment losses.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Nov 28, 2008

A hideaway in Mito

The historic city of Mito in Ibaraki Prefecture serves as the transfer point to the JR Suigun Line, a narrow-gauge single-track line that runs along the scenic Kuji River en route to the Fukuroda Falls.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 28, 2008

Defense of an artist who had lived as a slave

NEW YORK — Next year will mark the 20th anniversary of the collapse of communism in Europe. Liberated from the complexity of knowing too much about the cruel past, the young people of Eastern Europe's postcommunist generation seem uninterested in what their parents and grandparents endured.

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