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COMMENTARY
Mar 6, 2003

Time to face North Korea

HONOLULU -- While the Bush administration is to be commended for not overreacting to North Korea's saber-rattling and for its continuing assertion that it seeks a diplomatic solution to the current nuclear standoff, Washington needs to stop pretending that there is no "crisis" or that there is no difference...
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2003

Miyake Island inspires ballad

Popular "enka" ballad singEer Hiroshi Itsuki plans to reEcord a song for the residents of Miyake Island, who were evacuated in September 2000 because of volcanic activity, it was announced Wednesday at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government building.
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2003

Japan's second HIV-2 case confirmed

The health ministry has confirmed a case in Japan last year of an uncommon type of HIV found primarily in western Africa, according to sources.
BUSINESS
Mar 6, 2003

Group formed to drum up support for deregulation

A government panel established a working group Wednesday to encourage deregulation measures in 12 key areas.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
Mar 6, 2003

Fun guys can always find long-lasting allies

A coworker of mine in the Galapagos takes great delight in corny cracks and groan-inducing jokes, but as learning aids they are indeed memorable. Take his way of teaching the partnership involved in the lichen lifestyle and where they live. With apologies to Ron Sjostedt (and whoever he gleaned it from)...
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2003

UNESCO wants water action

UNESCO will seek concrete action from the upcoming World Water Forum in western Japan following years of failure to seriously address global water goals, the director of the body's World Water Assessment Program said Wednesday.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Mar 6, 2003

Withstanding the slings and sparrows of luxury cruises

As I try to write this, I'm aboard the cruise ship Asuka, sitting in my spacious starboard cabin on the ninth deck. Through the big square window to my right I can see a calm sea, bluer than any words of mine could describe.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2003

At 200,000 yen a bag, this is the world's costliest tea

Forget Starbucks, Tully's and Doutor. If you're after a real quality brew, perhaps it's time to enjoy Chinese tea at its best.
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2003

Labor having to swallow merit pay, lower income

Electrical machinery and automobile manufacturing companies are moving away from the annual pay raise system in a bid to reinforce performance-based pay and rein in payrolls.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 5, 2003

Silent diplomacy serves Japan poorly

A recent opinion poll in Japan shows that 68 percent of Japanese believe that the United States and Britain should not attack Iraq. Yet, in debates in the Diet, neither Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi nor Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi utter anything more than tepid responses such as: "Japan cannot...
BUSINESS
Mar 5, 2003

Shiokawa slams banks' capital plans

Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa criticized the nation's top banks Tuesday for planning to increase their capital through third-party stock allocations.
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2003

Politician's aides held over unreported funding

Two aides to House of Representatives member Takanori Sakai were arrested Tuesday on suspicion of failing to report some 120 million yen in political donations from a supporter over a period of several years.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Mar 5, 2003

Yokohama's Furuki ready for stardom

The start of the season may be four weeks away, but there's one player everyone should keep an eye on.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 5, 2003

Sri Lankan president must grasp the olive branch

MADRAS, India -- The five rounds of talks in as many months between the Sri Lanka government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, or LTTE, are perhaps the most significant development in South Asia in almost two decades. The discussions began after the two sides called a truce.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2003

Quake shakes northeastern Japan

An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.9 hit wide areas of the Tohoku region Monday morning, the Meteorological Agency said. It struck at around 7:47 a.m., registering 4 on the Japanese intensity scale to 7 in northern Miyagi Prefecture, and 3 in several parts in Iwate, Akita, Miyagi, Yamagata and Fukushima...
COMMENTARY
Mar 4, 2003

Don't give up on alternatives

Nearly three years have passed since Junichiro Koizumi made his dashing debut as prime minister with an unprecedentedly high public approval rate of 80 percent, after declaring somewhat self-contradictorily that he would not hesitate to destroy his own Liberal Democratic Party to attain his reform goals....
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2003

Experts to probe failure of flight data systems

The transport ministry said Monday it will establish later this month an investigative committee of outside experts to look into the recent breakdown of flight data processing systems.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2003

Spring wage talks going the way of the dinosaur?

The curtain has fallen on the "shunto" wage hike negotiations that unions have conducted every spring for almost half a century amid the nation's deflationary downturn and fierce international competition.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2003

Postal agency lifts lid on account scam

The Postal Services Agency has discovered about 49,000 illegal accounts for its postal insurance policy that provides tax-free capital gains if the money is applied to the purchase of a home or for use as a pension, agency sources said Monday.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Mar 4, 2003

Homesickness, toll-free numbers and money orders

Greetings Greetings from London, England, where my fellow Assyrians are making me feel at home with their sweet hospitality, wonderful food, but also making me homesick for Japan.
BUSINESS
Mar 4, 2003

Softbank in Yahoo Japan selloff

In an effort to bankroll its broadband business, Softbank Corp. announced Monday it will offload around 17 percent of its group stake in Yahoo Japan Corp.
JAPAN
Mar 3, 2003

Air traffic havoc hits second day

Troubles related to an air-traffic malfunction in Japan continued into their second day Sunday, with 10 flights canceled and dozens of others delayed for up to two hours, airline and airport officials said.
JAPAN
Mar 3, 2003

Safety measures for drug got sidetracked

A pharmaceutical firm's tardiness in taking safety precautions with a drug linked to more than 120 deaths may have been due to concerns that such moves could have hampered the drug's approval overseas, it was learned Sunday.

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes