Search - 2002

 
 
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Mar 9, 2003

Dropping out and tuning in to the rhythm of nature

SANTOKA: Grass and Tree Cairn, translated by Hiroaki Sato. Vermont: Red Moon Press, 2002, 74 pp., $14.95 (paper) No matter how deep one's faith or religion is, one may experience feelings of resignation and defeat as well as the loss of compassion for others and oneself.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Mar 9, 2003

All eyes on Russia's Far East

RUSSIA'S FAR EAST: A Region at Risk, edited by Judith Thornton and Charles E. Ziegler. Seattle: National Bureau of Asian Research, University of Washington Press, 2002, 498 pp. (paper). The Russian Far East is a land of contradictions. It is a vast territory of 6.2 million sq. km., roughly one-third...
JAPAN
Mar 8, 2003

Bribe-taking mayor gets suspended term

Yoshishiro Kimura, a former mayor of Ishioka, Ibaraki Prefecture, was sentenced Friday to a suspended prison term for taking 2 million yen in bribes in 1999 while he was still in office.
COMMENTARY
Mar 8, 2003

Japan's oil diplomacy is dead

LOS ANGELES -- Since September 2001, Tokyo has come a long way toward redefining its international security interests. One significant result of this is that should any American hostages be taken in the war with Iraq or anywhere else in the Middle East, the Japanese are not likely to be indifferent to...
BUSINESS
Mar 8, 2003

Toshiba to focus on digital, electronic devices

Toshiba Corp. said Friday it will spin off some of its operations so it can concentrate its resources on semiconductor and digital products.
JAPAN
Mar 8, 2003

'Blue book' draft seeks global unity

Japan will call for international unity in dealing with growing security concerns, including the crisis in Iraq and North Korea's nuclear weapons program, says the Foreign Ministry's annual "blue book" draft, which was submitted to the ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Friday for endorsement.
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

McDonald's Japan chief Fujita decides to resign

Den Fujita, founder of the McDonald's chain in Japan, is stepping down as chairman and chief executive officer after the company suffered its first loss in almost three decades, McDonald's Holdings Co. (Japan) said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Mar 6, 2003

Business leaders sink deeper into despair

Business sentiment at major companies remained negative in the January-March period but is expected to improve in the next two quarters, according to a Finance Ministry survey released Wednesday.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / ON THE BOOK TRAIL
Mar 6, 2003

"Dealing with Dragons," "The Last Castaways"

"Dealing with Dragons," Patricia C. Wrede, Magic Carpet; 2002; 228 pp.
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2003

Recruit trials finally come to end

Hiromasa Ezoe was found guilty Tuesday for his role in the Recruit scandal, which shook Japan's political, bureaucratic and business circles in the late 1980s, making him the last of the 12 charged in the case to be sentenced.
BUSINESS
Mar 5, 2003

Nearly 41% of firms have adopted merit-based annual pay

Nearly 41 percent of listed companies have adopted merit-based annual pay systems, according to a survey by a nonprofit organization.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Mar 5, 2003

Definitive Jux

When Rawkus Records and Quannum Projects were sucked into Universal's corporate black hole last year, the breadth of so-called underground hip-hop shrank considerably. Whatever such a grab means for music in general, it inadvertently boosted the street cred of the scene's most aggressively indie label,...
BUSINESS
Mar 4, 2003

Hikari Tsushin hikes loss forecast

Hikari Tsushin Inc. said Monday it expects a consolidated net loss of 4.4 billion yen for the year to March 31, well up from an earlier projected loss of 400 million yen.
BUSINESS
Mar 4, 2003

Nissan hopes to boost dealer profits with tailor-made insurance policies

Nissan Motor Co. has taken the unusual step of agreeing to have its affiliated car dealers sell auto insurance provided exclusively by Sompo Japan Insurance Inc. and Millea Holdings Inc., according to company sources.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2003

Lower House expected to OK fiscal 2003 budget

The House of Representatives was set Monday night to endorse an 81.79 trillion yen budget for fiscal 2003. The move would ensure the budget's enactment in time for the April 1 start of the new fiscal year.
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.
JAPAN
Mar 2, 2003

Daiwa, Asahi banks reborn as Resona duo

Daiwa Bank and Asahi Bank, the core banks in the Resona Group, integrated their operations Saturday to form Resona Bank and Saitama Resona Bank.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 2, 2003

The real deal of high fidelity

Twin sisters Kim and Kelley Deal pass the phone back and forth like siblings accustomed to dividing everything. Today they're sharing an interview, and only the tone of their near-identical voices indicates who is on the line. Kelley's measured, Midwestern accent remains at a clipped, cordial distance,...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Mar 2, 2003

The Great North

"It is Japan, but yet there is a difference somehow.'' -- Isabella Bird, 1878
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Mar 1, 2003

Seven riddles suggest a secret city beneath Tokyo

During the Gulf War in 1991, Shun Akiba was one of only two foreign journalists reporting from Baghdad, along with Peter Arnett of CNN. With such experience and expertise, it would be reasonable to imagine him in great demand right now. Wrong.
JAPAN
Mar 1, 2003

Japan to rethink KEDO program

Japan is reconsidering its commitment to building light-water nuclear reactors in North Korea now that Pyongyang has reactivated nuclear facilities linked to its weapons development program in violation of a 1994 accord.
BUSINESS
Feb 28, 2003

Kinki Nippon lays profits to cost cutting

Kinki Nippon Tourist Co. said Thursday its group net profit grew 4.8 percent to 2.45 billion yen last year thanks to cost cuts and a rebound in overseas travel.
EDITORIALS
Feb 28, 2003

A new role in nation-building

Restoring internal security is an essential condition for nation-building in Afghanistan, where local warlords continue to defy the authority of the central government. It is welcome news, therefore, that the international community has pledged new aid for an Afghan program to disarm those chieftains...
BUSINESS
Feb 27, 2003

Visiting Belgian leader seeks Japan investment

Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt called Wednesday for increased Japanese investment in Belgium, saying his country has steadily carried out economic reforms, including corporate tax cuts.

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