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COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
May 28, 2007

Rooting out the purplish, yellow perils

NEW YORK — A certain plant of the pea family has been appreciated in Japan — poetically, dietarily and medicinally — since ancient times. So, in the oldest extant anthology of Japanese poetry, the "Man'yoshu," it is used as an epithet for "without interruption," "for a long time" and so forth,...
Reader Mail
May 27, 2007

Constructive mayor will be missed

Misawa Mayor Shigeyoshi Suzuki passed away on May 1 at age 66. I was shocked to hear this, having met him in my previous capacity as director of the Status of U.S. Forces Agreement Division of the Foreign Ministry.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
May 27, 2007

MLB should eliminate 'rookie' label for Japanese veterans

Last week an Associated Press photo appeared in these pages with a caption that began, "Boston Red Sox rookie hurler Daisuke Matsuzaka . . . "
LIFE / QUEUING
May 27, 2007

Patience pays off for firms on standby to queue for you

With queuing playing such an important role in Japanese life — just watch any breathlessly excitable TV magazine program fearlessly reporting any day of the week on long lines outside noodle shops or dog groomers — there are even those who cash in on the phenomenon directly.
EDITORIALS
May 26, 2007

Stepping up realignment of forces

The Diet has enacted a law to facilitate the largest-ever realignment of U.S. forces stationed in Japan. The law, supported by the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito and opposed by the Democratic Party of Japan and three other opposition parties, reflects Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's determination to...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 26, 2007

Japan urged to lead on Africa aid

Japan should take the lead in developing an agenda for the international community for giving aid to Africa when the country hosts the Group of Eight summit next year and the fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development, according to the vice president of the U.N. International Fund for...
EDITORIALS
May 25, 2007

Juvenile Law revision

A bill to revise the Juvenile Law, which passed the Lower House with the backing of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito, is now in the Upper House. The bill is designed to provide harsher treatment of juvenile offenders. Lawmakers must question whether such a move will really help to prevent juvenile...
COMMENTARY
May 25, 2007

Fears of new 'Nixon shock'

HONOLULU — The U.S.-Japan relationship is on solid ground and growing stronger by the day. As a result of their recent Camp David summit, U.S. President George W. Bush and Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo have become each other's new best friend — perhaps not as close (yet) as Bush's ties with...
EDITORIALS
May 24, 2007

Uptick in shooting incidents

One month after Nagasaki Mayor Itcho Ito was shot to death by a gangster, a former gangster holed himself up in his house in Nagakute, Aichi Prefecture. He shot and injured his two children and a policeman and killed a member of the police special assault team (SAT). These incidents underline the need...
JAPAN
May 24, 2007

LDP's platform to call for a new Constitution

Education Rebuilding Council." The draft contains measures on dwindling medical services in provincial areas as a way to win votes in regional single-seat districts, while vowing enhanced efforts to fight global warming and other environmental issues to draw the attention of unaffiliated urban voters....
SPORTS / MULLY'S MISSIVES
May 23, 2007

Liverpool fans swamp Athens ahead of CL final

ATHENS — Liverpool fans began to pour into central Athens on Monday ahead of the Reds' Champions League final against AC Milan on Wednesday, thousands without tickets and some still looking for hotel rooms.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
May 23, 2007

Mitten crab

* Japanese name: Mokuzu gani * Scientific name: Eriocheir japonica * Description: A curious-looking crustacean, colored light brown or olive green, the mitten crab does indeed appear to be wearing a furry pair of gloves, with dense tufts growing on the claws, which have white tips. Adults and large...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
May 22, 2007

Haruko Iino

Haruko "Big Momma" Iino, an independent public relations consultant, became one of Japan's first female advertising account executives back in the 1980s. Even before working at advertising agencies Chuo Senko and Dentsu Eye, the now 63-year-old Iino had understood the potential of the luxury fashion...
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design / ON: DESIGN
May 22, 2007

OVO, DateBlock, VAPE No. 1 NEO and DECO LAMP

Eggish timer
Reader Mail
May 20, 2007

Baby drop rekindles memories

I sobbed Friday morning (May 11) when I read the front-page article "Calls flood Kumamoto hospital as it opens first baby hatch." Sixty-year old memories shocked me like jolts of electricity. After being abandoned in an orphanage, I spent many agonizing years not understanding the subliminal pain and...
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
May 18, 2007

Slapstick 'n' high-flyin' kicks

A chop suey of martial arts, acrobatics and slapstick, "Jump" is a nonverbal, comic martial-arts musical centered around a zany Korean family. It runs through May 18-June 24 (times vary) at Shinjuku Theater Apple, Tokyo. It then tours to Osaka's Kosei Nenkin Kaikan from June 28-July 5. The company behind...
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
May 16, 2007

Nets nearly dealt Kidd to Lakers

NEW YORK — President Rod Thorn's "bold" admission last week that he tried to trade Jason Kidd to the Lakers right up until the deadline is a dead giveaway the Nets guard was intimately involved in New Jersey's game plan.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 16, 2007

Documentary traces 'ritual' of Japan election campaign

In Japan, candidates who run for office generally don't rise naturally from the grass roots. Many are molded into politicians by extremely organized election campaigns.
MORE SPORTS
May 15, 2007

Abe teaches team importance of mental focus

KAWASAKI — It was what he'd always said it would be.
JAPAN
May 15, 2007

Diet clears path to referendum on Constitution

law will in reality destroy the Constitution," Fukushima told reporters in the Diet following the bill's passage. Fukushima also expressed anger over the short deliberation period in the Upper House — barely one month since the bill passed the Lower House on April 13.

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’