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EDITORIALS
Aug 8, 2009

Stronger case for videotaping

In preparation for the lay judge system, which recently started, public prosecutors and police began partially videotaping the interrogation of suspects on a trial basis in August 2006 and in September 2008. The videotaped scenes are of investigators reading the record of a suspect's oral statement to...
COMMENTARY
Aug 8, 2009

Disaster in Afghanistan

Thousands of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom and several other nations are struggling on in Afghanistan, with the Americans and British in particular suffering heavy casualties. But why are they there, and what are they trying to achieve?
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Aug 8, 2009

Goalkeeper Foster set for World Cup audition

LONDON — Carlo Ancelotti takes charge of Chelsea in a senior game for the first time on Sunday when it plays Manchester United in the Community Shield at Wembley.
JAPAN
Aug 7, 2009

Lay judges relieved case over but enthusiastic about experience

The first serving lay judges expressed relief Thursday at having completed their duties and encouraged others to step up and benefit from what they called "a valuable experience."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Aug 7, 2009

The 'big bang' at Echigo-Tsumari

It is a picture-book perfect shrine. Tiny and tranquil, it is framed by a red gateway at the top of a winding forest path. But there is one surprising intrusion on the scene: a shiny Coca-Cola bench matching the vermilion hue of the shrine sits under its roof.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Aug 7, 2009

Allowing ourselves to be deceived by art

Whether enjoying the sight of shadow puppets against a wall or the suggestive placing of objects in an Austin Powers movie, people have long delighted in the playful use of images.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Aug 7, 2009

English teachers photographed in anthropologically minded study

If aliens were to arrive in Tokyo wanting to document its inhabitants, they might end up taking photos like those now on show at The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan.
BUSINESS
Aug 7, 2009

Sapporo sex shops count: BOJ poll

The Bank of Japan is counting brothels in Hokkaido to help determine demand for services as the country battles its deepest postwar recession.
EDITORIALS
Aug 4, 2009

Foundation of news gathering

The Tokyo High Court on July 28 overturned a September 2007 Tokyo District Court ruling that said three newspapers libeled a doctor at Tokyo Women's Medical College Hospital in a news report, and acquitted the news agency that originated the report. The high court ruling correctly understands the role...
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Aug 4, 2009

Unlike humans, swine flu is indiscriminate

The biggest news a few months ago, now affecting every prefecture in Japan, has blipped off our radar screens. For the time being.
Reader Mail
Aug 2, 2009

The wealthy don't create wealth

N.R. Williams' July 23 letter,"A guiding light for the economy," states an interesting opinion with which I agree. After World War II, the governments of most Western countries intervened in the control and management of their national economies. This contributed to maintaining stable economic growth...
Japan Times
LIFE / CLOSE-UP
Aug 2, 2009

Sokun Tsushimoto: Caring for body and soul

With his shaven head, straight back and deep, calming voice, Sokun Tsushimoto, a newly qualified physician who started practicing at a Tokyo clinic in April, clearly betrays evidence of his long and rich life experience.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 2, 2009

Two funerals plus the legacy of Khrushchev

NEW YORK — My great-grandfather, Nikita Khrushchev, has been on my mind recently. I suppose it was the 50th anniversary of the "kitchen debate," which he held with Richard Nixon that first triggered my memories.
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2009

Kagawa slams China trademark quest for 'udon'

The Kagawa Prefectural Government announced Friday it will file a complaint with the Chinese trademark office over an application to trademark the kanji meaning Sanuki "udon," a specialty noodle named after a local region.
COMMENTARY
Jul 31, 2009

Gay ruling takes Delhi back to where it was

CHENNAI, India — The Delhi High Court's recent ruling that decriminalized sex between two consenting men or women is widely seen in India as a move toward a healthier sexual climate. Though confined to Delhi now, the law could eventually be adopted by the country's other regions.
JAPAN
Jul 30, 2009

The new face of home caregivers

Kazuo Yamazaki was in the prime of his career as an engineer at a Japanese music company doing business across borders. His decades-long profession came to an abrupt end six years ago, however, when at age 55 he became his mother's primary caregiver.
Japan Times
JAPAN / ELECTION 2009
Jul 29, 2009

Politicians tap Twitter to tweak profiles

At 6:44 p.m. on July 15, Democratic Party of Japan lawmaker Seiji Osaka posed a question on his Twitter profile: "I think bringing the voting age down to 18 years old is OK. What do you think about it?"
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 29, 2009

All stimulus roads lead to China

BEIJING — Now that the "green shoots" of recovery have withered, the debate over fiscal stimulus is back with a vengeance. In the United States, those who argue for another stimulus package observe that it was always wishful thinking to believe that a $787 billion package could offset a $3 trillion...
SUMO / SUMO SCRIBBLINGS
Jul 28, 2009

Dejima bows out as Hakuho picks up another Emperor's Cup

In July 1999, longtime Musashigawa Beya sekitori Dejima Takeharu won his first and only career Emperor's Cup after defeating former yokozuna Akebono in a play-off victory.
COMMUNITY / Voices / HAVE YOUR SAY
Jul 28, 2009

My nursery nightmares: responses

Following are some readers' views on Jenny Holt's June 23 Zeit Gist article "My nursery nightmares":
EDITORIALS
Jul 28, 2009

The deadline to prosecute

A study panel of the Justice Ministry has issued a final report urging abolition of the statute of limitations for serious crimes such as murder. It will ask the ministry's Legislative Council to discuss revisions to the Code of Criminal Procedure and other laws. The statute of limitations was first...
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Jul 26, 2009

Blunderbuss followup to the invasion of Iraq

NEW YORK — The New York Times editorial on June 30, "The First Deadline," showed America's egocentrism at its worst. Dealing entirely with a single subject — the withdrawal of American combat troops from Iraqi cities, with 130,000 soldiers still remaining in the country — the lengthy commentary...
JAPAN / History
Jul 26, 2009

Soldier who stayed on tells filmmaker how 'We had to kill, kill, kill'

The most astounding moment in "Flowers and Troops," a documentary film by Yojyu Matsubayashi, is when the young director leans close to one of his subjects — an 87-year-old former corporal in the Imperial Japanese Army — and says, "I've heard that some Japanese soldiers ate human flesh."
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 26, 2009

Japan's maglev on track for financial crash

About 40 people are crowded onto the observation deck of the Yamanashi Linear Test Line Center, holding their cameras at the ready and waiting for the world's fastest train — an experimental maglev model that's called a "linear motor car" (LMC) — to make its appearance.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Jul 26, 2009

'Groundhog Day' man realizes why solar fans love running backward

Events this month have brought home to me once again the enduring truth of that popular slogan, "Think globally, act locally."
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2009

Cool Biz said to undermine productivity

Takashi Kadokura used to strip down to his underwear when working late because of the heat.
Japan Times
JAPAN / PARTY POWERS
Jul 24, 2009

Do or die at poll for Kokumin

The upcoming Lower House election is the last chance for Kokumin Shinto (People's New Party) to stop postal privatization — and failure would leave the party's survival in doubt, leader Tamisuke Watanuki said.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji