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JAPAN
Mar 2, 2006

Ikata pluthermal plan basically OK: safety panel

The safety examination panel of the Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan raised no objections Wednesday to a plan use fuel with uranium and plutonium for the Ikata power plant in Ehime Prefecture, panel members said.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 2, 2006

Diplomatic reposturing in the Mideast

SINGAPORE -- Certain Middle East nations are repositioning themselves diplomatically, a move that holds great significance in the international arena.
JAPAN
Mar 2, 2006

City's collection of health-care premiums is legal: top court

The Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected an appeal by a man demanding reimbursement of his health insurance premiums who claimed the manner in which his city collected the fees was unconstitutional.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 2, 2006

Mortensen, Bello jump into the deep end

Viggo Mortensen and Maria Bello, co-stars of "A History of Violence," show up for an interview at the Canadian Embassy in Tokyo looking like, well, if not an item, close enough friends that they could be mistaken for one. (They even finish each other's sentences.)
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Mar 1, 2006

Japan aiming for top spot in first round of World Baseball Classic

Make no bones about it. Japan more than plans to make it to the second round of the World Baseball Classic.
BUSINESS
Mar 1, 2006

Inflation target a bad idea, Yosano says

The economy minister on Tuesday rejected the idea of inflation targets as the central bank moves toward tightening its supereasy monetary policy, urging it instead to adopt a flexible approach.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Feb 26, 2006

Will Barry Bonds play his last game at Tokyo Dome?

News came last week that San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds announced he would be retiring at the end of the 2006 season. The next day, he said he may play several more years. Typical for a guy who often changes his mind, but there's nothing wrong with that.
JAPAN
Feb 25, 2006

Prosecutors want Asahara appeal dismissed over deadline

Prosecutors asked the Tokyo High Court on Friday to turn down an appeal filed by the counsel for Aum Shinrikyo founder Shoko Asahara against the death sentence he was handed two years ago for 13 criminal counts, including the 1995 nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway system.
COMMENTARY
Feb 20, 2006

New demands, more delays

Japan and North Korea made little progress toward solving their problems in five days of bilateral talks that ended early this month in Beijing. The only agreement was to continue to talk.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Feb 14, 2006

Enemy of the state

Is Toshiyuki Obora a threat to society? The Japanese state certainly seems to think so. The police arrested the 47-year-old elementary school worker and held him in detention for 75 days.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 10, 2006

A unique take on Nazi Germany

Filmmaker Marc Rothemund says of the German film industry: "The environment has never been more suited to making quality films. Young people are now avidly watching German films whereas 10 years ago the theaters were all about Hollywood productions. And, surprisingly, there's a great demand for historical...
COMMENTARY
Feb 6, 2006

Containing a growing divide

The growing economic gap in Japanese society under Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's reform policy is emerging as a major national political issue. Critics in the opposition camp as well as the ruling coalition charge that deregulation and intensified competition have divided society into winners and...
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2006

Yasukuni comment was Aso's private view: Abe

Foreign Minister Taro Aso was expressing his personal opinion when he said Emperor Akihito should visit Yasukuni Shrine, Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said Monday in a bid to ease the diplomatic fallout.
COMMENTARY
Jan 30, 2006

Iran highlights EU failings

LONDON -- The battle for Europe's soul continues. Austria now holds the presidency of the European Union until July, and the Austrians see themselves very much as being at the heart of an integrated European state.
COMMENTARY
Jan 30, 2006

A way past Kyoto's 'hot air'

In a Jan. 7 symposium at Dalian University of Technology, I delivered a keynote speech on the possibility of Japan's implementing the clean development mechanism in China.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jan 29, 2006

With Horie's downfall, who can young Japan look up to?

The media has had a field day with Takafumi Horie, the 33-year-old founder of the communications firm Livedoor.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Jan 28, 2006

Yuko Nishimura

"I was lucky, in a way," Yuko Nishimura said. "I did most of the things I wanted. I like what I am doing now."
JAPAN
Jan 25, 2006

Fans liked how Horie lived on the edge

Monday's arrest of Takafumi Horie, the 33-year-old founder of Internet services firm Livedoor Co., left the public wondering how he rose to fame so fast and what his impact on society, especially the young generation, will be.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Jan 25, 2006

Saving our environment one step at a time

Having ended 2005 with a rant (see below), let me begin 2006 on a more positive note by introducing some valuable environmental education resources.
COMMENTARY
Jan 23, 2006

The feud can end anytime

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi should realize that he holds the key to settling the growing discord with China even as Beijing adds fuel to the fire by urging the Japanese government to restrict news media reports on the alleged security threat posed by China.
JAPAN
Jan 21, 2006

Koizumi reform pitch in last Diet-opener

In his final speech as Liberal Democratic Party president to mark the opening of the ordinary Diet session Friday, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi reiterated his plan to trim the civil service, consolidate state-backed financial institutions and push further administrative reforms.
JAPAN
Jan 20, 2006

Yasukuni 'nightmare' for ties: Seoul ambassador

South Korea's ambassador to Japan called Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's repeated visits to Yasukuni Shrine a "nightmare" -- the sole issue damaging what could have been more amicable ties between the two neighbors.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 19, 2006

Aussies tackle global warming

SYDNEY -- Amid exploding energy demand from Asia-Pacific countries, resource-rich Australia has emerged as a leader of planned energy supply and use into the foreseeable future.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Jan 17, 2006

Is the popularity of "Hard Gay"on tv a help or hindrance?

Shane Rice Marketer, 24 I think that it's OK. I think it's light-hearted, fun and not really too serious. People aren't too threatened by it and don't feel like they have to have much of an opinion on it, as opposed to having it shoved in their faces.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jan 15, 2006

Spreading the word on popular literature

THE BAMBOO SWORD AND OTHER SAMURAI TALES by Shuhei Fujisawa, translated by Gavin Frew. Tokyo: Kodansha International, 2005, 254 pp., 2,400 yen (cloth). Japanese critics have long made a distinction between taishu bungaku, "popular literature," which is simple entertainment, and jun bungaku, "pure literature,"...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jan 15, 2006

Two writers, two very different North Koreas

NORTH KOREA: The Struggle Against American Power, by Tim Beal. Pluto, 2005, 352 pp., £18.99 (paper). NORTH KOREA: The Paranoid Peninsula, by Paul French. Zed Books Ltd., 2005, 352 pp.,£17.95 (paper). The subtitles of these books reveal the sharply differing points of departure on North Korea for writers...
Japan Times
Features / WEEK 3
Jan 15, 2006

Full of the fittest intentions

I nervously typed the numbers onto the Web site -- first my height, then my weight. I held my breath and clicked "Calculate."
COMMENTARY
Jan 12, 2006

Step up positive diplomacy

The year 2005 is likely to be remembered as the year when rivalry between Japan and China over how to create a new international order reached a high point.
EDITORIALS
Jan 10, 2006

A vacuum in Israel

A massive stroke has felled Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Recovery is uncertain, and most observers believe his political career is over regardless. The loss will be felt not only by Israel but also by Palestinians and the world. For all his shortcomings, Mr. Sharon has been a leader with a vision,...

Longform

Japan's growing ranks of centenarians are redefining what it means to live in a super-aging society.
What comes after 100?