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JAPAN
Jul 26, 2008

Okada declares DPJ ready to take charge, reform the public sector

Long viewed as content to live in the shadow of the entrenched Liberal Democratic Party, the largest opposition force is now ready to seize the reins of power and carry out a thorough reform of the public sector, Democratic Party of Japan Vice President Katsuya Okada said Friday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 25, 2008

'Kimi no Tomodachi'

Kids often make friends easily — and lose them quickly. The boy who was your best buddy yesterday has today found a new friend, a new crowd, a new world that doesn't include you. He has moved on — and you're just part of the receding scenery.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 25, 2008

Spiritualized beat the reaper

Jason Pierce almost died in July 2005. Hooked up to a ventilator and suffering from double pneumonia, Pierce — aka J Spaceman — shrank to 45 kg and spent two weeks in intensive care in a London hospital. Things looked so bad that his girlfriend was offered grief counseling.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 25, 2008

Various "Post Flag"

It's a shame that the era of homemade mixtapes is already behind us. "Post Flag" would have gone down well with the budding compilers of this world, sweating over their cassette decks as they searched for a choice oddity to slot between The Beatles and Lee "Scratch" Perry. They'd find plenty on this,...
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2008

Exports fall for first time since '03 as U.S. slump spreads out

Exports fell for the first time in more than four years as demand for cars and electronics cooled, signaling the U.S. slowdown is spreading to the emerging markets that helped sustain growth.
Reader Mail
Jul 24, 2008

Sports no match for good books

I applaud The Japan Times for publishing Grant Piper's July 21 letter, "Social competition or pathology?" I agree with his views that competitive sports are immoral and inappropriate, but I disagree that noncompetitive, friendly and recreational sports are qualitatively any different from organized sports....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 24, 2008

Bettye LaVette brings her triumphant soul battle to Fuji

Few artists could have struggled through a career as thoroughly frustrating as that of American soul singer Bettye LaVette and still continue to display the strength and good humor that she does.
BUSINESS
Jul 24, 2008

Tokio Marine to buy U.S. insurer

Tokio Marine Holdings Inc. said Wednesday it has agreed to buy U.S. insurer Philadelphia Consolidated Holding Corp. for $4.7 billion (about ¥500 billion) to expand in the world's biggest insurance market.
BUSINESS
Jul 24, 2008

Idemitsu considering new pricing method

Idemitsu Kosan Co., Japan's second-biggest refiner, may follow the example of Nippon Oil Corp. in adopting a new pricing method to better reflect soaring crude-import costs, company President Akihiko Tembo said Wednesday.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 23, 2008

Osama bin Laden: the Islamic bard of terror

PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY — In Riyadh last March, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia decorated U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney with the Kingdom's Order of Merit. This gesture elicited hundreds of Internet postings from Arabs condemning the award as treachery and lamenting the pitiful state of leadership in...
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / IGADGET
Jul 23, 2008

New entry adds zing to Wii swing

In motion: Nintendo Co. became the big dog in the console-game arena by never resting too much on its laurels and always trying to squeeze one more success or innovation out of its best achievements. (For some reason, the name "Mario" keeps coming to mind.)
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jul 22, 2008

Big clubs' shortcomings taking shine off J. League championship race

On the face of it, a league table where just 10 points separated the top 13 teams at the halfway point of the season would suggest an exciting contest, but this year's J. League has been more infuriating than it has been enthralling.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
Jul 22, 2008

Professor Kunihiko Takeda

JUDIT KAWAGUCHI Professor Kunihiko Takeda, Ph.D., is vice-chancellor of the Institute of Science and Technology Research at Chubu University and one of the world's leading authorities on both uranium enrichment and recycling. The 65-year-old is also a bestselling author of books with titles such as “We...
LIFE / Language
Jul 22, 2008

Katakana makes Japanese trendy and accessible

Words and phrases in katakana may appear to be easily recognizable to non-native speakers of Japanese, but they are often fiendishly difficult. This generally comes as a surprise to Japanese, who naturally assume that we can understand katakana words readily, seeing as many of them originated in foreign...
Japan Times
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jul 20, 2008

Writer takes memorable trip to Victor Starfin Stadium in Asahikawa

ASAHIKAWA, Hokkaido — Last week I had the pleasure of attending a regular-season baseball game in the central Hokkaido city of Asahikawa, as the Yomiuri Giants played the Chunichi Dragons at the 25,000-seat Victor Starfin Stadium. It was the first appearance by the Giants in 16 years at the ballpark...
Reader Mail
Jul 20, 2008

Supporting a tobacco tax hike

Regarding the July 11 article "Lawmakers seeks sweet spot in tobacco tax debate": I support the tobacco tax hike. Many countries and localities have already traveled this path and their examples show clearly that increased taxes do not eliminate revenues, while they bring about meaningful public health...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jul 20, 2008

Tokyo: A guide for a certain type of resident

TOKYO: The Complete Residents' Guide, by Andy Sharp, Beau Miller, Frank Spignese, Jennifer Geaconne-Cruz, Julian Satterthwaite, Karryn Cartelle, Tamsin Bradshaw. Dubai: Explorer Group, Ltd., 2008, 444 pp., profusely illustrated, $14.99 (paper) This book, says the introduction, "is going to help you to...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 19, 2008

What's the beef with Seoul?

NEW YORK — At the outset of the violent protests in South Korea over imported beef from the United States, the entire Cabinet of South Korean President Lee Myung Bak offered to resign. Last week, Lee fired three of them. But beef, it turns out, represents just the tip of the iceberg of grievances against...
EDITORIALS
Jul 19, 2008

Niigata earthquake anniversary

The first anniversary of the earthquake off Niigata Prefecture came Wednesday, reviving sad memories for residents in Kashiawazaki, Niigata Prefecture, and other places. The quake resulted in the deaths of 15 people, and more than 2,300 were injured. Some 40,000 homes sustained damage, including 1,330...

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight