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MORE SPORTS
Dec 31, 2007

Brady, Moss make TD plays look easy

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Stripped to the essentials, it's just a throw and a catch.
COMMENTARY
Dec 31, 2007

China's public diplomacy

China's public, or soft-power, diplomacy has traditionally consisted of "people's diplomacy," meaning the cultivation of people friendly to China within other countries. Under this method, China would nurture people sympathetic to its ideas within a country and use these figures to exert influence on...
COMMENTARY
Dec 31, 2007

Killing cycle claimed Bhutto

WATERLOO, Canada — Born amid the mass killings of partition in 1947, Pakistan has never escaped the cycle of violence, volatility and bloodshed. Benazir Bhutto (1953-2007) is the latest casualty of that murderous cycle.
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Dec 31, 2007

'08 to see nightmare of globalization, or alert central banks?

Looking back at what I wrote in this space this time last year, I find that I was dreaming of a Japan of the United States, in which the regions become city states unto their own and make Japan a generally more interesting place. The dream still remains but a dream. But I keep hoping.
COMMENTARY
Dec 31, 2007

Censorship serves to flag our own limits

LOS ANGELES — It appears that many mainland Chinese moviegoers are traipsing over to Hong Kong in droves to view the uncensored version of Ang Lee's latest blockbuster, "Lust, Caution." With their feet, in effect, they are voting for lust — and as if wishing for official Beijing caution to be gone...
EDITORIALS
Dec 31, 2007

The falsity of 2007

The kanji for the Japanese word "nise," meaning fake or false, has been chosen by the Kyoto-based Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation as the kanji that most appropriately defines domestic events in 2007. Unveiled at Kiyomizu Temple in the ancient capital, the choice underscores flawed ways of thinking...
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Dec 31, 2007

Fukuda keeps thaw with China on track

JINAN, China — Shinzo Abe's trip to China as prime minister in October 2006 was dubbed "the ice-breaking trip" to mend diplomatic relations damaged by predecessor Junichiro Koizumi. Then came Premier Wen Jiabao's "thawing-ice visit" to Japan last April.
JAPAN
Dec 31, 2007

37,000-year-old baby mammoth here for study

The frozen carcass of a 37,000-year-old baby mammoth unearthed this summer in Siberia has arrived in Japan for tests that researchers hope will shed new light on the internal structure of the ancient beasts.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Dec 30, 2007

Odds for Big Sam's future at Newcastle starting to look grim

LONDON — Bookmakers are rarely wrong and Sam Allardyce, who took charge at Newcastle six months ago, should be worried that he is favorite to be the next Premier League manager to be sacked.
Reader Mail
Dec 30, 2007

Korean workers not used as slaves

Regarding Joergen Jensen's Dec. 25 letter, "Japanese aren't the only victims": Koreans were not forced to work as slaves during World War II. Koreans had Japanese nationalities in those days, since Korea had been annexed to Japan in 1910. So they had the same duties as the Japanese had.
Reader Mail
Dec 30, 2007

Precursor of future assaults

Having suffered the tyranny of the Japanese Immigration Department for the past 40 years, I was bemused recently when experiencing firsthand the Justice Ministry's new electronic photo and fingerprinting impediments in action at Okayama International airport as I returned from a business trip to Beijing. ...
Reader Mail
Dec 30, 2007

Moronic remarks repel readers

Letters like "Human existence demands sacrifice" on Dec. 27 (which asks why whales should be treated as special creatures) are too obviously controversial pieces that are published in order to draw a response. Normally, I would say that this tactic would be acceptable as it can promote the exchange...
Reader Mail
Dec 30, 2007

Automakers can fulfill dreams

Every household in India should dream of being the proud owner of an automobile. After 60 long years of independence, this basic necessity should be fulfilled. India is developing with the Indian currency getting stronger day by day. You find multistory buildings with car parks. Supermarkets and flyovers...
JAPAN
Dec 30, 2007

Mid-January reshuffle of Cabinet eyed

Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda hinted Saturday that he may reshuffle the Cabinet in mid-January in an effort to shore up his administration's falling approval ratings.
Reader Mail
Dec 30, 2007

'Terrorists' walking the streets

Regarding the Dec. 22 front-page article "Mob crackdown targets bosses, bidders": Is there any possible excuse for the National Police Agency and the Japanese government allowing terrorists with guns, swords and knives to freely roam the streets of Japan killing whomsoever they please? Surely, it is...
Reader Mail
Dec 30, 2007

Christianity's big impact on Japan

As one interested in the history of Christians in Japan, I was excited to see Michael Hoffman's "From Bliss to blood" articles on Dec. 23. Unfortunately, I was sad to see that he had very little to say beyond the common assumed stereotype of Christianity in Japan -- both past and present.
BASKETBALL
Dec 30, 2007

Kosuge shines in East's runaway victory

NIIGATA — The victorious East team had 34 assists in its runaway victory over the West in the 2007-08 bj-league All-Star Game on Saturday. But really, you could say, it finished with one big, collective assist, a well-deserved pat on the back for getting the ball to the right man at the right time....

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes