Search - 2005

 
 
EDITORIALS
Sep 7, 2006

Congratulations to the Imperial Family

Princess Kiko, the wife of Prince Akishino, the second son of the Emperor and Empress, has given birth to a baby boy. We congratulate the couple, the Emperor and Empress and the entire Imperial family on the birth of the boy, who is third in line to the Chrysanthemum Throne after the Crown Prince and...
BUSINESS
Sep 7, 2006

Parliamentary secretary quits over bill

Masazumi Gotoda, parliamentary secretary in charge of financial services, said he resigned Wednesday to protest a draft bill to lower the ceiling on consumer loan interest charges because it would allow lenders to continue to charge up to 28 percent for nine years after the bill is passed.
BUSINESS
Sep 7, 2006

Yoshinoya chief announces gradual resumption of 'gyudon' mainstay

The fast-food chain that made its fame on a rice dish topped with American beef announced Wednesday that "gyodon" will return Sept. 18 after a two-year hiatus caused by the mad cow scare.
BUSINESS
Sep 7, 2006

Insurers covering more suicide debt

There were 3,649 cases of suicide in fiscal 2005 that resulted in the person's consumer loan debts being paid off by their life insurance companies, the Financial Services Agency said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Sep 6, 2006

Paper makers race to raise output in wake of failed Oji bid

Oji Paper Co. abandoned its bid to take over Hokuetsu Paper Mills Ltd. after an alliance was formed against it, forcing the company to change its strategy and giving rise to fears of a glut in the paper market.
JAPAN
Sep 6, 2006

'Nagai Sanpo' wins big in Montreal

The film "Nagai Sanpo" ("A Long Walk") has won the Grand Prix at the Montreal World Film Festival, the film's distributor said Tuesday.
SUMO
Sep 5, 2006

Lights, camera, action -- 'Hakuho for Yokozuna' -- Take II!

September's Aki Basho approaches and as was the case prior to Nagoya in July, with it comes the talk of how Mongolian ozeki Hakuho will fare; whether or not he'll be performing the yokozuna dohyo-iri alongside yokozuna Asashoryu at the next tournament.
JAPAN
Sep 5, 2006

Even without direct say, public influencing LDP race

, Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe (center) and Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki, attend an LDP regional meeting last week. KYODO PHOTO
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 5, 2006

Change needed at Yasukuni

In the Washington Post article that ran on this page Aug. 22, "Much to-do about a shrine," conservative U.S. commentator George Will suggests that Shinzo Abe, the front-runner in the Liberal Democratic Party's presidential race, stop visiting Yasukuni Shrine, the memorial for Japan's war dead, if he...
BASKETBALL
Sep 5, 2006

Even loss doesn't temper excitement of golden Greek guard Papaloukas

SAITAMA -- Theodoros Papaloukas experienced something unfamiliar at the FIBA World Championship: a loss in a title game.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Sep 5, 2006

CL to follow PL playoff model

The Central League will introduce a three-team, two-stage playoff system next year that has gained support among Pacific League backers, the Nippon Professional Baseball executive committee decided Monday.
BASKETBALL
Sep 4, 2006

Spain thrashes Greece in final

SAITAMA -- It seemed only fitting that when the public-address announcer called out the names of the players before Sunday's FIBA World Championship final the first name he said was Pau Gasol's.
COMMENTARY
Sep 4, 2006

Declining sources of pride

The 9/11 terrorist attacks five years ago added a new page to world history, posing a new threat to global security. Following the attacks, the Bush administration in the United States demanded that the international community choose between democracy and dictatorship, between good and evil. Calling...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 4, 2006

Morality of boss's pay can't be legislated

PARIS -- Ever since 2001, when France enacted a law requiring listed companies to reveal their executives' pay packages, newspapers have had a field day denouncing greedy bosses. Not only are fixed salaries revealed, but so are bonuses, fees for serving on boards of directors, returns on stock options,...
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2006

Royal boy will put off succession crisis, not solve it

and Emperor Akihito (second from left) walk on a beach in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture, with Prince Akishino (third from left) and his family -- Princess Mako, Princess Kiko and Princess Kako (from left to right), in this file photo taken Aug. 4, 2004. KYODO PHOTO
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Sep 3, 2006

Kids of former foreign players in Japan making news

Hard to believe that story about former major league outfielder Jesse Barfield being pushed down a flight of stairs by his 18-year-old son Jeremy.
LIFE / WEEK 3
Sep 3, 2006

An 'outsider' speaks out

Later this month, when Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi concludes what may have been Japan's most flamboyant premiership ever, pundits aplenty are sure to lavish his five-year term with glowing praise.
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2006

Yoshinoya to have a 'gyudon' day

Yoshinoya D&C Co. will resume sales of "gyudon" beef-on-rice dishes for the first time in 19 months -- for one day only -- around Sept. 18, company sources said Saturday.
JAPAN
Sep 2, 2006

Bill eyed to make NHK fees mandatory

The government plans to introduce a bill next year to require all television viewers to pay fees to NHK, Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Heizo Takenaka said Friday.
JAPAN
Sep 2, 2006

Majority in survey favor English for elementary kids

Opinions are divided over whether English language lessons should be mandatory at elementary schools, according to a recent survey by the education ministry.
BUSINESS
Sep 2, 2006

Asahi Tec to buy U.S. car parts rival Metaldyne

Auto parts maker Asahi Tec announced Friday it will buy U.S. rival Metaldyne Corp. for $1.2 billion.
EDITORIALS
Sep 2, 2006

Pyongyang taking it to the brink?

There is a growing concern that North Korea might be preparing to test a nuclear bomb. On July 5, the country test-fired seven missiles into the Sea of Japan, prompting a United Nations Security Council resolution, which condemned the country and banned U.N. member states from transferring missile-related...
JAPAN
Sep 1, 2006

Courts refuse to hire lawyers on nationality

Three courts have refused to allow three Korean residents working as lawyers to assume commissioned jobs despite being nominated by their bar associations, because they are not Japanese, attorneys said Thursday.
JAPAN
Sep 1, 2006

Ito-Yokado must pay 5.5 million yen over import heater ills

The Tokyo High Court ruled Thursday that a 22-year-old man developed chemical sensitivity syndrome from using an electric heater and ordered major retailer Ito-Yokado Co., which sold the appliance, to pay about 5.5 million yen in damages.
BUSINESS
Sep 1, 2006

Toho Housing buys back Aneha-tainted condos

Toho Housing Co. has bought back all 32 units of a Tokyo condominium complex constructed with data fabricated by disgraced architect Hidetsugu Aneha and started razing the structure with a plan to rebuild it, company sources said Thursday.
CULTURE / Music
Sep 1, 2006

Metalchicks "St. Wonder"

Formed in 2000, Metalchicks are comprised of Sugar Yoshinaga from Buffalo Daughter and Yuka Yoshimura, formerly of DMBQ and OOIOO. Their sophomore disc, "St. Wonder," is the soundtrack for the film "Warau Michael."

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