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MORE SPORTS
Mar 2, 2008

Kitajima's form on course for Beijing

Kosuke Kitajima zoomed to a pair of first-place finishes at last weekend's Japan Open, reminding everyone that he's still this nation's undisputed king of the pool.
Reader Mail
Mar 2, 2008

Fear of foreigners holds Japan back

Regarding the Feb. 27 article (from Sentaku magazine) "Wanted: world's best minds": The writer evidently believes that Japan is largely unable to attract the best young minds from abroad for studies and employment because politicians and bureaucrats have been unwilling to institute the necessary measures,...
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Mar 2, 2008

Carp's Matsuyama could be surprise of new season

A year ago, almost no one had reason to expect Chiba Lotte Marines left-hander Yoshihisa Naruse would be one of the top players in Japanese baseball for 2007. After all, the 21-year-old pitcher had turned in a mediocre 5-5 record the previous season.
Reader Mail
Mar 2, 2008

Time for a town beauty contest

Regarding Kevin Rafferty's Feb. 28 article, "Why's Japan grown so ugly?": I love the idea of starting a competition for the most picturesque town/village in Japan. Somebody, hopefully including The Japan Times (as suggested by Rafferty), needs to do it! A community can work together to make their environment...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Mar 2, 2008

Compartmentalizing Japanese using prefectural stereotypes

At the heart of the current argument over whether or not to continue the special gasoline tax is a question that gets overlooked: Does the central government have too much control over prefectural governments?
CULTURE / Books
Mar 2, 2008

Verbal and visual tributes to the poetry of Santoka

HAILSTONES / ARARE / ZIARNA GRADU: Haiku by Taneda Santoka, English translations by John Stevens, Polish Translations by Wioletta Laskowska & Lidia Rozmus, with sumi-e by Lidia Rozmus. Deep North Press, 2006, 33 poem-cards, $50 (boxed) SANTOKA: A Translation With Photographic Images, English translations...
Reader Mail
Mar 2, 2008

Don't cry for the old leftists

Regarding the Feb. 25 article "Thai leader in hot water over remarks": I would like to comment as one who lost part of his life due to communist brutalities during the Cold War. Nowadays people tend to forget the past and to forgive leftists who might have caused great havoc to a country's security if...
Reader Mail
Mar 2, 2008

Restrictive reality of bicycling

The fact that so many people choose to cycle in Japan has a lot to do with the fact that they are not forced onto the road with motorized traffic. Young children, teenagers, women with kids, middle-aged women, the elderly, the unfit and unsporty -- all are well represented in the utility cycling demographic...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Mar 2, 2008

Father-daughter daytime soap opera, celebrity charity projects, Korean history special

The entire premise of the daytime soap opera "Mikon Roku-Shimai Part 2 (Six Unmarried Sisters Part 2)" (TBS, Monday-Friday, 1:30 p.m.) is right there in the title. The series is about a widower, Matsutaro (Shinyo Owada), who runs a traditional Japanese confectionery. He has six daughters who range in...
BASKETBALL
Mar 2, 2008

Albirex edge Evessa in tight game

The Niigata Albirex BB earned a 90-86 victory over the host Osaka Evessa on Saturday, defeating the two-time defending bj-league champions in a playoff-like setting.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Mar 2, 2008

'Kusamakura': What's the story?

KUSAMAKURA by Natsume Soseki, translated by Meredith McKinney. Penguin Classics, 2008, 152 pp., £9.99 (paper) In this early work (also known as "Grass Pillow") by one of Japan's best-known authors, the narrator is with a mysterious woman he meets at the hot spring. They are talking about reading, about...
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 2, 2008

Sanfrecce beat Antlers in controversy-marred match

A hugely controversial performance from referee Masaaki Iemoto overshadowed an unlikely penalty-shootout win for second-division Sanfrecce Hiroshima over J. League champion Kashima Antlers in the Xerox Super Cup on Saturday.
EDITORIALS
Mar 2, 2008

Education reform in reverse

The education ministry has unveiled drafts of revised courses of study for elementary and middle schools. The new courses of study will become effective in fiscal 2011 for elementary schools and in fiscal 2012 for middle schools. For the first time in 30 years, the drafts call for increasing the number...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Mar 2, 2008

Will Japan's insular mindset ever be inclusive of others?

First of two parts
Reader Mail
Mar 2, 2008

Neighborhood day-care shortage

The apartment that my wife and I purchased in the Toyosu area of Koto Ward in June 2006 is nearing completion. The complex incorporates a day-care center. Because my wife was pregnant, our purchase decision was significantly influenced by the close proximity of the day-care center. After the birth of...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / ON THE ROAD
Mar 2, 2008

Inviting Big Brother along for the ride

In-car camera systems that record accidents have the potential to change our behavior — and curb the rising number of traffic fatalities occurring around the globe as more vehicles pour onto our roads. They also open a debate on the right to personal safety versus the right to privacy; such systems...
Reader Mail
Mar 2, 2008

The drive to expel U.S. forces

Regarding Lt. Gen. Bruce Wright's Feb. 26 article, "Building a stronger alliance": Wright's perception of the U.S.-Japan security alliance seems constrained by the same "horse blinders" that characterize the general approach of the U.S. military toward Asia. In this post-Cold War era, he needs to...
Reader Mail
Mar 2, 2008

False hope for Myanmar opposition

Regarding David I. Steinberg's Feb. 27 article, " 'Rambo' movie sends the wrong message": I fully agree with professor Steinberg, but I don't think the next president of the United States will be as hawkish and greedy as George W. Bush.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Mar 2, 2008

Shintaro Tsuji: 'Mr. Cute' shares his wisdoms and wit

Shintaro Tsuji isn't joking when he says he wants to make Hello Kitty, his company's best-selling character, into a brand name that rivals Gucci or Hermes.
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 1, 2008

Antlers back in action in Xerox Super Cup

Club soccer returns to Japan on Saturday as reigning J. League champion Kashima Antlers take on Emperor's Cup runnerup Sanfrecce Hiroshima in the traditional curtain-raising Xerox Super Cup match.
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE MONTH
Mar 1, 2008

Sparks, Newton earn monthly honors

Rasheed Sparks picks his spots. He doesn't need to score, but when he does it has a profound impact on his team's success.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years