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BUSINESS
May 23, 2009

BOJ sees recession starting to level out

The Bank of Japan on Friday raised its view of the economy for the first time in almost three years on signs that the record-setting contraction suffered in the first quarter was probably the worst of the recession.
JAPAN
May 22, 2009

H1N1 tally hits 292 over six prefectures

The H1N1 swine flu tally grew to 292 on Thursday after Kyoto confirmed its first case and Tokyo confirmed its third, placing the virus in six prefectures so far.
JAPAN
May 22, 2009

Lawmakers question 'saibanin' system

A group of nonpartisan lawmakers gathered Thursday, the first day of the new lay judge system, to call for a moratorium on the new criminal trial system that every political party voted unanimously to institute five years ago.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 22, 2009

Taico Club

Although it's gearing up to be a bonanza year for Japan's two main outdoor summer showcases, with Fuji Rock looking set to bounce back triumphantly after last year's lineup fiasco, where Primal Scream ended up playing two nights on the mainstage, and Summer Sonic celebrating it's 10th anniversary by...
Reader Mail
May 21, 2009

Tension between men and women

I found the May 10 Timeout feature, "Blurring the boundaries," very interesting as this is something I've been watching over the last several years. It was interesting that the natural question in response to men's change toward becoming "soushokukei (herbivorous)" was whether women should become "nikushokukei...
Reader Mail
May 21, 2009

Symbolic cleanliness vs. hygiene

In her May 17 letter, "First things first to fight the flu," Susan Menadue-Chun hits directly at one of Japan's polite fictions. Contrary to its reputation, Japan is very doubtfully the most hygienic country in the world. Washing hands is for show more than for hygiene. It's only symbolic cleanliness....
EDITORIALS
May 21, 2009

Containing the new flu

The new H1N1 influenza has spread rapidly mainly among high school students, their family members and teachers in Hyogo and Osaka prefectures. On Saturday, the first eight cases were confirmed. By Sunday, the number of confirmed cases topped 80, and on Wednesday it climbed to at least 238.
Reader Mail
May 21, 2009

Positions on Kurils not binding

Gregory Clark's May 12 article, "Northern Territories dispute lives on self-righteous deadlock," contains some inaccuracies:
JAPAN / History
May 21, 2009

Apologize on record, ex-POW urges

Former prisoner of war Raymond Heimbuch told members of the Democratic Party of Japan at a hearing Wednesday that he wants an official apology from the Japanese government extended to him and to other POWs.
JAPAN
May 21, 2009

Flu infiltrates Tokyo as patient tally leaps to 267

Two female high school students who live in Hachioji, western Tokyo, and Kawasaki were confirmed Wednesday as having H1N1 swine flu — the first people in the Tokyo area to catch the contagion.
BUSINESS
May 21, 2009

Fuji Heavy may launch hybrid vehicle by '12

Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. may introduce a gasoline-electric hybrid vehicle by 2012, as the United States, Japan and Europe tighten their emission rules.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 20, 2009

Nissan racing to catch rivals in hybrid market

Hybrid vehicle laggard Nissan hopes to catch up with its rivals after launching the company's own green car technology next year, an executive said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
May 20, 2009

Yosano brushes aside upgrade

Finance Minister Kaoru Yosano said Tuesday that the decision by Moody's Investors Service Ltd. to raise its rating of the government's yen-denominated bonds doesn't alter the country's fiscal problems.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
May 19, 2009

Going clubbing in the capital

New to Tokyo, T.B. is trying to make friends and wants to know if there are any clubs that he can join to meet new people and get involved with the international community.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
May 19, 2009

Weight of Imperial world on Princess Masako

Observers often liken Crown Princess Masako to Britain's Princess Diana. They both embody the fairy tale gone tragically wrong — women outside the royal circle wooed by the heir to the throne, only to end up clashing with the establishment and surrounded by controversy and speculation that has made...
JAPAN
May 18, 2009

Domestic H1N1 flu cases increase to 42

The number of domestic swine flu cases hit 42 on Sunday after 34 high school and college students as well as their family members and teachers in Osaka and Hyogo prefectures were confirmed to have been infected.
JAPAN / History / JAPAN TIMES GONE BY
May 17, 2009

Don'ts for ladies, hunting pickpockets and Tokyo named Olympic host

100 YEARS AGO
JAPAN
May 17, 2009

Kobe officials start limited measures to halt flu spread

KOBE — As Kobe confirmed the nation's first domestic swine flu infections, city officials instituted a limited number of measures to prevent further infections from developing, prompting Kansai-area residents to prepare for further possible outbreaks.
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
May 17, 2009

Tokyo's 'song and dance man'

Three-dozen sozzled office types, teachers and the like are cradling their drinks in one hand and punching the air with the other, bawling, "Everybody must get STONED!"
EDITORIALS
May 16, 2009

Marine relocation to Guam

The Diet on Wednesday endorsed a Japan-U.S. accord on the planned transfer of U.S. Marines from Okinawa to Guam by 2014. The opposition-controlled Upper House voted it down, but under a constitutional provision, the Lower House's earlier approval of it prevailed.
JAPAN
May 16, 2009

Quarantined students, teacher target of ill will

Three high school students and a teacher from Osaka who were the first people in Japan confirmed to have the new flu have become the target of malicious phone calls and e-mails, local board of education and municipal officials said Friday.
JAPAN
May 16, 2009

P-3Cs sent to join hunt for pirates

Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada issued the order Friday to send two P-3C patrol airplanes to the Gulf of Aden, expanding the ongoing antipiracy mission of two Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyers off Somalia.
JAPAN
May 16, 2009

Lack of fireworks as DPJ rivals' debate ends in a tie

Yukio Hatoyama and Katsuya Okada, the two candidates in the Democratic Party of Japan's presidential election Saturday, both stuck to the party line in a public debate in which the only way they seemed to differentiate themselves from each other was in their choice of ties.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST
May 16, 2009

Holy mackerel — a fish story

If you live in Japan long enough, various shipwrecks of odd jobs will float your way. For example, a short while ago I was asked to do some translation work regarding . . . fish.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past