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COMMENTARY / World
Oct 10, 2007

Secure EU's energy future

PRAGUE — Most Europeans agree that reliable, affordable and sustainable energy is crucial to Europe's security and prosperity; that energy can be used as a political weapon, as when Russia shut off gas to Ukraine in January 2006; and that Europe is far too dependent on energy supplies from undemocratic...
Reader Mail
Oct 9, 2007

Clarification on fingerprinting

The Oct. 5 front-page article "Visitors face fingerprinting from November as security tightens" was both confusing and incomplete. First of all, it is special permanent residents (tokubetsu eijuusha) who are exempt from the law, not permanent residents (ippan eijuusha).
EDITORIALS
Oct 7, 2007

A gamble in Pyongyang

It is too early to tell whether South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun can call his trip to North Korea last week a success, but North Korean leader Kim Jong Il must be happy with the visit. The summit choreography appeared to confirm his status as the senior leader on the Korean Peninsula, and the summit...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Oct 7, 2007

The first and last foreigner to see Laotians as they were

TRAVELS IN LAOS: The Fate of the Sup Song Pana and the Muong Sing (1894-1896), by Dr. E. Lefevre, translated with an introduction by Walter Tips. Bangkok: White Lotus Press, 1995 (orig. edition), 224 pp., with contemporary photos and map, 725 Bahts (paper) During that late 19th-century feeding frenzy...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Oct 7, 2007

Nahoko Yamazaki: Off-stage woman stars in men's theater world

Just as in the realm of politics, in the arts world — and here, particularly regarding the performing arts — different countries adopt different policies depending on their historical and economic circumstances.
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2007

Ruling bloc, in rare twist, hands MSDF bill to opposition

The ruling coalition Friday submitted to the opposition camp the draft of a new bill to continue the Maritime Self-Defense Force's refueling mission in the Indian Ocean in support of antiterrorism operations in and around Afghanistan — a key goal of Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda in the current Diet session....
Japan Times
Reference / Special Presentations / WITNESS TO WAR
Oct 5, 2007

Veteran navy officer keeps an open mind

As the public still debates the Imperial navy's activities during the war, many veteran sailors say that at the time, at least, they saw their objective as liberating Asia from Western colonial rule.
COMMENTARY
Oct 4, 2007

Can Fukuda improve ties with China?

HONG KONG — China and Japan celebrated the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations on Saturday with glittering diplomatic receptions and an exchange of congratulatory messages by leaders of the two countries.
COMMUNITY
Oct 2, 2007

Have your say: Is it over for Nova?

Following are responses to last week's Zeit Gist on the Nova Corp. conversation school chain (see search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fl20070925zg.html):
LIFE / Language
Oct 2, 2007

Giving Japanese names as tricky as picking buns

When you see an obvious mistake, should you point it out or just keep silent? It was coming up to Christmas, and I was in the bakery beside the station getting a sandwich for my lunch, when I noticed something new on the shelves: hot cross buns.
MORE SPORTS
Oct 1, 2007

Hamilton masters conditions for victory

OYAMA, Shizuoka Pref. — McLaren's Lewis Hamilton won a rain-lashed Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday to move closer to clinching the world crown in his debut season in Formula One.
Reader Mail
Sep 30, 2007

Union accepts Nova teachers

Regarding the Sept. 25 article in the Community section "Advice for teachers": The statement that "The General Union and Nambu decided on a policy that we won't take new members if Nova goes bankrupt" is not an accurate reflection of the General Union's policy. The General Union has no special policy...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 30, 2007

Cancer may kill, but it can also revitalize a flagging media career

Right now there's a commercial on TV for the American insurance company AFLAC featuring veteran journalist Shuntaro Torigoe, who was diagnosed with cancer two years ago. It shows the 67-year-old reporter in what looks like home videos undergoing tests, or about to be operated on, or clowning around with...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 28, 2007

Rebel yell from the desert

Saharan bluesmen Tinariwen traded guns for guitars, then set about gaining an army of famous fans
JAPAN
Sep 27, 2007

'Military geek' Ishiba returns to friendly territory

takes over as defense minister from Masahiko Komura on Wednesday. KYODO PHOTO
JAPAN
Sep 26, 2007

Snap election becomes main issue

No sooner had Yasuo Fukuda formed his Cabinet on Tuesday than attention was being focused on how soon Japan's new leader will be forced to dissolve the House of Representatives for a snap general election.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Sep 26, 2007

Horned turban shell

* Japanese name: Sazae * Scientific name: Turbo cornutus * Description: One of the most prized of all marine gastropods, the horned turban shell — more familiar to sushi aficionados as sazae — has a large, thick, green-gray shell and a snail-like body. The shell has about five spirals, which turn...
LIFE / Digital / IGADGET
Sep 26, 2007

Back-chatting TVs and translating photocopiers

Bridging the gaps between the multiple towers of Babel that are modern languages has traditionally relied on software. Whether this be organic software, as in humans and their linguistic skills, or computers with their still relatively primitive ability to translate from one language to another. Fuji...
SUMO / SUMO SCRIBBLINGS
Sep 25, 2007

Hakuho, and other foreign-born wrestlers, dominate the Autumn Basho

Of the 700 men active in professional sumo less than 10 percent are foreign-born. Of the six divisions in which they compete, only one went the way of a Japanese rikishi at this year's Autumn Basho. The remaining five divisions were dominated by men from afar.
JAPAN
Sep 25, 2007

Little change expected in Japan-U.S. relationship

OSAKA — Those who keep close watch on Japan's political and defense ties with the U.S. expect no major changes in the fundamental security relationship under Yasuo Fukuda.
JAPAN
Sep 24, 2007

Fukuda elected new LDP president

joins his main contender, Taro Aso (left), and other members of the Liberal Democratic Party in shouting banzai after winning the party's presidential race Sunday. YOSHIAKI MIURA PHOTO
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Sep 24, 2007

The Self-Defense Forces: living with a lie

NEW YORK — Many commentators have invoked historical analogies for U.S. President George W. Bush's invasion of Iraq and its still unfolding aftermath, with some saying, correctly, that no exact historical analogies are possible for anything, the least of all this damnable war.
COMMENTARY
Sep 24, 2007

Okinawan state of mind

"An island of deep-seated resentment" — that was the first impression I had of Okinawa Prefecture on my visit there in late July. Everywhere in the island prefecture, I found monuments to the war dead. They number 419.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’