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JAPAN
May 13, 2007

U.S. soldiers killed in car accident

Two U.S. Army soldiers died and one was injured when their car slammed into a signpost Saturday in Okinawa, police said.
Reader Mail
May 13, 2007

Obara ruling disgraceful

I was astonished and outraged at the acquittal of Joji Obara in the Lucy Blackman rape and murder case. If Blackman did not get the justice that she deserved, at least her case will open eyes and make people question the quality of police forensic work and, above all, the credibility of the entire judiciary...
Reader Mail
May 13, 2007

Lay it to rest

It's time that all this Yasukuni Shrine, Kimigayo and textbook-revision nonsense was laid to rest.
Reader Mail
May 13, 2007

Don't stereotype the mentally ill

The horrendous massacre of 32 Virginia Tech students by Seung-Hui Cho has caused a frenzy within the news media, talk show hosts and the general public regarding the long hypothesized link between acts of violence and mental illness. Although the true causal origin of Cho's decision to engage in a murderous...
EDITORIALS
May 13, 2007

Path to mutual prosperity

As the economic interdependence between Japan and China deepens, Japan needs to realize a "mutually beneficial strategic relationship" — the goal that the two countries have agreed to jointly pursue. The agreement to pursue such relations was first struck when Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had a summit...
Reader Mail
May 13, 2007

Government's priorities misplaced

Regarding the April 22 article "Japan eyes buying U.S. F-22A, F-15FX fighters," Japan has a budget deficit of 16 percent, a public debt of 176 percent of GDP and an external debt of 150 trillion yen. Despite this, the government -- infatuated with military pomp and kit -- wants to spend a further 1...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
May 13, 2007

Combining East and West in dramaturgy

AN ACTOR'S TRICKS by Yoshi Oida and Lorna Marshall, foreword by Peter Brook. London: Methuen Drama, A&A Black Ltd., 2007, 102 pp., £10.99 (paper) Yoshi Oida, born in 1933, is one of Japan's most interesting actor-directors. Trained in the classical stage disciplines, particularly that of the Kyogen,...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
May 13, 2007

Celebrity gravel show, restaurant eating-out game show and the lasts days of a dying director

Kiyotaka Nanbara, half of the comedy duo Utchan- Nanchan, is this week's guest on the travel show "Tsurube no Kazoku ni Kampai (Tsurube Toasts Families)" (NHK-G, Mon., 8 p.m.). In this second installment of a special two-part visit to Toshijima, an island off the coast of Mie Prefecture, rakugo storyteller...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
May 13, 2007

One culture's dirty old man is another's dandy

Despite the close proximity of the world afforded by the Internet and global media conglomerates, intercultural ignorance is still pretty common. Richard Gere almost got himself arrested in India when, during an AIDS-awareness event last month, he grabbed Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty and kissed her....
CULTURE / Books
May 13, 2007

Opening the shutter to internment

IMPOUNDED: Dorothea Lange and the Censored Images of Japanese American Internment, by Dorothea Lange, edited by Linda Gordon and Gary Y. Okihiro. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2006, 205 pp., $29.95 (cloth) Reviewed by DAVID COZY On Feb. 14, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed "Executive...
Japan Times
LIFE
May 13, 2007

Daisuke's graduation

The first two e-mails that I sent to my ex-wife went unanswered. That came as no surprise. I had become used to the silent treatment from her since our return from our honeymoon in Hawaii 12 years ago. But this time I was not about to put up with being ignored.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
May 12, 2007

Gang of Four holding out hope courts will drop West Ham

LONDON — Celebratory glasses will be raised by those who escape relegation from the Premiership, but a nasty whiff of sour grapes surrounds the final round of fixtures tomorrow Sunday.
JAPAN
May 12, 2007

State wants Murakami to forfeit 1 billion yen

Prosecutors on Friday asked the Tokyo District Court to send Yoshiaki Murakami to prison for three years, fine him 3 million yen and make him forfeit 1.1 billion yen to cover the estimated profit he made in 2004 and 2005 on alleged insider trading involving Nippon Broadcasting System Inc.
JAPAN
May 12, 2007

Legislation enacted to curb air pollution of vehicle congestion

The Diet enacted legislation Friday to cut vehicle pollution around hotels, theaters and offices in major cities by requiring builders to forecast air pollutant emissions and submit plans for their reduction.
JAPAN
May 12, 2007

Cool Biz returns to fight global warming

Japanese workers will again ditch their neckties and dress casually this summer to combat global warming in an iconic seasonal campaign known as Cool Biz.
BUSINESS
May 12, 2007

Pentax can let go of Hoya ties: camera exec

Backed by brisk earnings in 2006, a senior executive at Pentax Corp. said Friday the firm was confident it could go it alone without Hoya Corp.
JAPAN
May 12, 2007

Constitution referendum bill clears key committee

has been asked to cooperate (in the international community) and we ourselves need to protect the lives and assets of the people, and it is natural that we discuss what is (a suitable) new Constitution." The Constitution stipulates that any changes to the charter must be approved by a two-thirds majority...

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