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Japan Times
JAPAN / CLOSE NEIGHBORS
Aug 9, 2002

Asian appliance firms seek cracks in Japanese market

Customers shopping for TVs, refrigerators, microwave ovens and other electrical appliances are increasingly likely to come across brand names Galanz, Haier, LG and Samsung, which feature stylish designs and low prices that undercut those of their Japanese rivals.
JAPAN
Aug 9, 2002

Treatment of depression eyed to stem suicide tide

With the nation's annual suicide toll exceeding 30,000, the government is considering ways to combat the runaway malaise by focusing on preventing and treating depression.
BUSINESS
Aug 9, 2002

View of economy watchers grim

The average view of the economy among those with jobs sensitive to consumer sentiment worsened in July for the third straight month as household spending took a beating from falling summer bonuses, a government survey showed Thursday.
JAPAN
Aug 9, 2002

National servants looking at 2.03% reduction in wages

The National Personnel Authority recommended Thursday that the Diet and Cabinet introduce a 2.03 percent cut in monthly wages for national government employees for the current fiscal year.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / JET STREAM
Aug 9, 2002

Tuning in to another culture

Seoul native Kim Ji Sook, host of Fukuoka's Love FM Thursday night Inter Wave radio program, brings the sounds and the spirit of Korea to fans throughout northern Kyushu.
EDITORIALS
Aug 8, 2002

China's military buildup

Two annual reports released last month -- one from the U.S. Department of Defense and the other from the U.S.-China Security Review Commission, a congressional panel -- express serious concern about China's military buildup and economic development. Such a perception does not sit well with the Japanese...
COMMENTARY
Aug 8, 2002

Kim's last chance to shine?

MANILA -- Politically, South Korean President Kim Dae Jung's time is running out, and the alleged corruptive practices of his sons have accelerated the erosion of his authority tremendously. The recent thaw in inter-Korean relations may well be Kim's last chance to improve his tarnished image.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2002

Aum grows again, guru still revered

Several of its senior members have been convicted of heinous crimes, including two deadly nerve gas attacks. It has been placed under tight surveillance and wherever its members try to settle, local residents and municipalities turn out to keep them away.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2002

Cities waging a new kind of bidding war

With Japan's public works projects having long been tainted by bid-rigging and bribery, the city of Yokosuka in Kanagawa Prefecture is taking an aggressive approach toward curbing such corruption.
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Aug 8, 2002

Debunking strange Asian myths: Part II

This story began over a beer in a Kabukicho restaurant, when an adventuresome Canadian lassie named Christine, who had requested a tour of Shinjuku's sleazier hangouts, leaned suggestively across the table and asked me in a husky voice if I had ever eaten monkey brains.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 8, 2002

Wireless LAN services untether Internet surfers on the go

With high-speed wireless Internet connection points springing up at retail businesses in Tokyo and other cities, Kazuhiko Sekimoto has become one of many a mobile Internet surfers.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2002

USJ submits reform plan to city

OSAKA -- Universal Studios Japan announced Wednesday that it has fired or suspended six employees in the wake of a series of revelations about health and safety problems at the theme park.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2002

Achievement awards to be gender-neutral

The government said Wednesday it will simplify the ranks of honors it gives individuals for distinguished achievement and make them gender-neutral to try to improve the system.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Aug 8, 2002

UNEP envoy strikes the right eco-chord

Tokiko Kato has been popular in Japan for decades as a singer and songwriter who is passionate about people and the planet. Two years ago, when the Environment Ministry asked her to act as a Special Envoy to the United Nations Environment Program it was a natural fit. Since then she has established herself...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2002

Government to file charges against Nippon Ham subsidiary

The government will file a criminal complaint against a unit of Nippon Meat Packers Inc. if it finds that the firm abused a beef-buyback program by disguising imported meat as domestic, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda said Wednesday.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Aug 8, 2002

DNA testing for all?

The 1986 rape and murder of a 15-year-old schoolgirl in an otherwise quiet village in central England did more than shock residents: It led to the worldwide acceptance of what Australian scientists Robert Williamson and Rony Duncan call in this week's Nature "the most important advance in forensics in...
BUSINESS
Aug 8, 2002

Road panel calls for head of Japan Highway president

A government advisory panel considering ways to privatize four road-related public corporations urged the government Wednesday to oust Japan Highway Public Corp. President Haruho Fujii for dragging his feet.
BUSINESS
Aug 8, 2002

Kao to enter mayonnaise market

Kao Corp. will enter the mayonnaise market in early September with a product that uses its low-fat Econa cooking oil.
COMMUNITY
Aug 8, 2002

Prominent figures raise questions over numbering system

Last Monday, Japan changed forever. The old city registration system has been dramatically changed to the "juki network," or basic residential register network system numbering system.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Aug 8, 2002

Looking after your mental and physical well-being in Japan

"Several weeks ago you published information about English-speaking doctors and wrote that you would be glad to receive information on others," writes Mary in Tokyo.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / GARDENS FOR ALL
Aug 8, 2002

A wetland wonderland way out west

In Tessei town in western Okayama, there is a wetland called Koi-ga-kubo Shitsugen whose range of rare and interesting flora makes even the difficulty of getting there well worthwhile.
BUSINESS
Aug 8, 2002

Shiokawa pushes tax-cut plan

Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa said Wednesday he wants to introduce tax cuts over three years and offset expected revenue shortfalls with tax hikes over five years.
LIFE / Digital / NAME OF THE GAME
Aug 8, 2002

American football at its best

My pal Nathan played American football for Brigham Young University before going to graduate school to earn an MBA.
EDITORIALS
Aug 7, 2002

Keep the antinuke torch burning

That fateful moment is etched in the minds of the Japanese people: At 8:15 a.m., Aug. 6, 1945, the world's first atomic bomb exploded over Hiroshima. Inscribed on the memorial cenotaph for the deceased victims, located at the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima, is a vow "never to repeat the mistake." The...

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear