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Japan Times
LIFE
Apr 27, 2008

Deadly weapons forged as art

The slow, rhythmic thrust of a piston covered in tanuki (raccoon dog) skin blasted air from box bellows onto the searing-hot charcoal. A casual glance at his forge was, however, all that Yoshindo Yoshihara needed to know the fire's exact temperature.
CULTURE / Books
Apr 27, 2008

Reprising the identity of Vietnam's Mieu

AMBIGUITY OF IDENTITY: The Mieu in Vietnam, by Nguyen Van Thang. Silkworm Books, 2007, 206 pp., 595 bahts (paper) Modern states dominate the lives of minorities to an extent never experienced before. As the lines between respective ethnicities blur under pressures to change and assimilate into the mainstream,...
Japan Times
LIFE
Apr 27, 2008

Hack, slash and hew — all with Zen in mind

As hobbies go, you might describe mine as, well, quite bloodthirsty.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 26, 2008

Rudd has lots of 'big ideas'

Bring on a republic. That's one clear demand to come out of the biggest talk-fest ever stage-managed in Canberra. And new Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is just the leader to bring it on.
OLYMPICS
Apr 26, 2008

New swimsuits have Japan quite worried

For the Japan National Team's swimmers and coaching staff, this is a question that'll pop up often over the next several months: Will their choice of swimsuits diminish their chance of success at the upcoming Beijing Summer Olympics?
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Apr 26, 2008

Liverpool facing uphill climb against Chelsea

LONDON — If John Arne Riise believes there is a football god, the Liverpool substitute will have prayed to it every night since his stoppage time own-goal handed Chelsea a 1-1 draw in last Tuesday's Champions League semifinal, first leg.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Apr 26, 2008

Lions enjoying winning under Watanabe

During his playing days, Saitama Seibu Lions manager Hisanobu Watanabe was among the flashiest players in Japanese baseball.
JAPAN
Apr 26, 2008

Activist offers to halt Games protests for talks

The secretary general of nongovernmental organization Reporters Without Borders said Friday that his group will halt all protests against the Beijing Olympic Games if China agrees to hold talks with Tibetan leaders.
BUSINESS
Apr 26, 2008

TCI defies Japan's request to drop attempt to expand J-Power stake

The Children's Investment Fund (TCI) defied a government request Friday to drop its bid to raise its 9.9 percent stake in Electric Power Development Co., known as J-Power, to 20 percent.
BUSINESS
Apr 26, 2008

Subprime woes send Nomura to ¥67.8 billion loss

Nomura Holdings Inc. said Friday it booked a group net loss of ¥67.8 billion in the business year ended in March due to losses related to U.S. subprime mortgage loans and falling stock prices.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Apr 26, 2008

Stalked by cheesecake

Do you ever feel like you're being followed? Well, I do. And this time I'm definitely being followed, possibly even stalked — by cheesecake.
EDITORIALS
Apr 26, 2008

Insider trading at Nomura

The arrest of an employee of Nomura Securities Co. along with two acquaintances on suspicion of committing insider trading could lead not only to a loss of customers' confidence in the major securities house but also to the undermining of investor trust in Japanese stock markets. The incident points...
EDITORIALS
Apr 26, 2008

Unwise testing in education

A bout 2.32 million sixth graders and third-year middle school students took part in the education ministry's nationwide scholastic tests Tuesday. The tests, which cover Japanese and mathematics, followed similar tests that were carried out last year for the first time in 43 years. The ministry says...
BUSINESS
Apr 26, 2008

Honda logs record sales, profits for '07

Honda Motor Co. said Friday that group sales, operating profit and net profit marked record highs for the business year ended March 31, thanks to brisk overseas sales.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST
Apr 26, 2008

Overrated and underrated — again

Over the past couple of years I have twice offered lists of overrated and underrated aspects of Japanese life as seen from my bespectacled point of view. My glasses aren't exactly rose-colored, but neither do I have the evil-eye. These are just some friendly peeks and pokes at what I have come to like...
BUSINESS
Apr 26, 2008

Core inflation rose 1.2% in March

Japan's consumer prices rose at the fastest pace in a decade in March as companies foisted higher costs of energy and grains onto households to protect profits.
BUSINESS
Apr 26, 2008

DoCoMo sees discounts slowing profit growth

NTT DoCoMo Inc. forecast Friday that its profit will rise 2.4 percent this business year, falling short of analysts' estimates, because a discount-calling plan will cut into sales.

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