Search - 2005

 
 
JAPAN
Jul 6, 2007

Voter litmus test last thing Abe needs now

Scandals, from corruption to suicide, have been the hallmarks of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's first ordinary Diet session, which ended Thursday with support for his Cabinet at its lowest ebb.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 6, 2007

'Koi Suru Nichiyobi Watashi Koi Shita'

In the 1990s the WOWOW satellite station financed a series of films under the banner J Movie Wars. With producer Takenori Sento at the helm, J Movies Wars became a fertile breeding ground for young directing talent, including Naomi Kawase, who won the Cannes Camera d'Or prize in 1997 for her debut feature...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 6, 2007

'Glastonbury'

As the summer festival season draws closer in Japan, now is a good time to take a moment and recall the festival that has served as an inspiration for so many others (including Fuji Rock Festival). No, I'm not talking about Woodstock, which is a great example of how to run a nonsustainable event in which...
JAPAN
Jul 5, 2007

Kyuma incident rekindles A-bomb debate

Fumio Kyuma's resignation Tuesday as defense minister over his remarks on the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has spotlighted the still sharply divided perception gap between Japan and the United States over what some see as one of the most horrific war atrocities in history.
JAPAN
Jul 5, 2007

'Japan's Condi Rice' known for courting controversy

OSAKA — New Defense Minister Yuriko Koike, 54, is a world traveler fluent in Arabic and English and considered one of the Diet's leading experts on the Middle East.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 5, 2007

Will the dollar lose its crown to the euro?

NEW YORK — Much of America's dominance in world finance comes from the dollar's status as international money. America's commitment to free capital markets, the rule of law, and price stability confer credibility on the dollar as a store of value. But American spending habits have undermined the dollar's...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 5, 2007

Exposing our tacky selves

Walking through an exhibition of Martin Parr's photography is an emotional experience. The Englishman's works make you laugh, snicker, cringe; they prompt self- and societal reflection; but most of all they make you marvel at the dry wit and superior eye that Parr has for things simultaneously insipid...
EDITORIALS
Jul 4, 2007

A corporate culture turned fatal

The final report of the government's Aircraft and Railway Accidents Investigation Commission on the April 25, 2005, West Japan Railway accident in Hyogo Prefecture — which killed the train driver and 106 passengers and injured 562 people — has blamed the railway company's corporate culture for the...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 4, 2007

U.S., SDF face new challenges 50 years on

U.S. Forces Japan enjoys a mature, strong relationship with the Self-Defense Forces developed over the 50 years since establishing its headquarters here, according to the USFJ commander.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2007

Ozawa hits Abe over Kyuma remarks

Defense Minister Fumio Kyuma's remarks on the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were an easy target for Democratic Party of Japan President Ichiro Ozawa during a policy debate Sunday in Tokyo with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 1, 2007

Immigrant workers in Japan caught in a real racket

The debate over whether Japan should allow foreign workers in to make up for current and future labor shortages is dominated by the so-called foreign trainee program, which is overseen by the Japan International Training Cooperation Organization (JITCO). The program is itself the subject of a debate,...
MORE SPORTS
Jun 30, 2007

WWE hysteria all McMahon's doing

NEW YORK — Hucksters make their living ahead of the curve, or at the very least, by selling that illusion.
BUSINESS
Jun 30, 2007

U.S. beef back on Ito-Yokado shelves

Major supermarket chain Ito-Yokado Co. brought American beef back to its shelves Friday, about 3 1/2 years after sales were halted in the wake of the first U.S. case of mad cow disease, a parent company spokesman said.
JAPAN / Q&A
Jun 30, 2007

Why the big fuss about SIA? Some answers

Two bills to replace the Social Insurance Agency with a government corporation were set to be enacted in the early hours of Saturday morning, despite the opposition camp's last-ditch attempts to stop the vote in the House of Councilors.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 29, 2007

'Sidecar ni Inu'

Kichitaro Negishi has a typical resume for a Japanese baby boomer director: Graduation from an elite university (Waseda), apprenticeship in the porno industry (Nikkatsu), awards for his first straight feature ("Enrai," 1981), followed by success as a maker of TV commercials and music videos. Meanwhile,...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2007

Office weighs less in the work-life balance

After his son was born last April, Hyogo Prefecture civil servant Akira Hirabayashi decided to cut back on overtime at work. He yearned for more time with little Susumu and also wanted to give his wife, Chie, a chance to return to her teaching job at an elementary school.
BUSINESS
Jun 29, 2007

TBS wins proxy fight to get takeover-defense measures

Tokyo Broadcasting System Inc. scored a victory in a proxy fight Thursday with Rakuten Inc. as its shareholders approved the broadcaster's plan to introduce takeover-defense measures that could foil the Internet mall operator's attempt to increase its stake in TBS to more than 20 percent.
COMMENTARY
Jun 28, 2007

Put yourself in China's shoes

LONDON — The United States is off the hook: last year China overtook the U.S. to become the world's biggest emitter of carbon dioxide. "The tall tree attracts the wind," and from now on China will be the main target of the criticism that used to be directed at the U.S. for refusing to accept binding...

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami