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JAPAN
Nov 17, 2006

Abe education bill clears Lower House

The House of Representatives passed the controversial bill to revise the 1947 education law Thursday amid an opposition camp boycott.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 17, 2006

FILMeX shows size doesn't matter

Tokyo FILMeX enters its seventh year as the smaller, friendlier, artier alternative to the Tokyo International Film Festival.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Nov 17, 2006

Sakura Sakura: After dark in the alleys of Kagurazaka

NOTE: Sakura Sakura is no longer in business.
JAPAN
Nov 15, 2006

Abe tasks panel to form security body like NSC

of the prime minister's office that will give orders on diplomatic and national security policy," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki said. One of Abe's priorities has been to create a body similar to the U.S. National Security Council. It would act as a central information-gathering body that...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
Nov 15, 2006

Lure of money set to empty the oceans

Afriend of mine who lives in the picturesque port city of Otaru, western Hokkaido, is a fish-hunter. He loves to dive, and hunts for fish with a spear gun -- seafood is his manna from heaven.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Nov 14, 2006

Unique team spirit of Hillman's Fighters brought about success

The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters may not have been beautiful every waking moment on the way to winning the Pacific League, Japan Series and Asia Series championships, but they were oh so pretty in getting it done.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Nov 14, 2006

Beneath the surface

A converted bean storehouse in a Kyoto back-street is the unusual venue for an innovative introduction to traditional Japanese culture. During just one busy day, participants in the Origin Arts Program can try their hand at the ancient martial art of "Waraku," tea ceremony, calligraphy and Noh theater....
CULTURE / Books
Nov 12, 2006

No ordinary guide to China

SHENZHEN: A Travelogue From China, by Guy Delisle, translated by Helge Dascher. Montreal: Drawn & Quarterly, 2006, 152 pp., $19.95 (cloth). Surely those dinosaurs who believed that comics were suitable only for stories of men in tights have all died off. With the popularity of comics growing by leaps...
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 12, 2006

Vatican places state of limbo in limbo

HONG KONG -- Theologians of the Roman Catholic Church are recommending the abolition of a special place that has existed for more than 2,000 years and enriched the world of literature and politics, as well as theology. Pope Benedict XVI himself has given his clear opinion, as an eminent theologian, that...
Japan Times
LIFE
Nov 12, 2006

SF hero conjures memories old and new across the generations

A few months ago, Hiromasa Kaneko noticed that his son Hibiki had started pretending he was characters from "Ultraman Mebius" that he said the other children at his nursery in Tokyo's Meguro Ward were all into. But rather than just let his 4-year-old son copy his friends, Kaneko figured it would be better...
Japan Times
LIFE
Nov 12, 2006

Serious toys for serious fans

Ultraman is often cited as an example of just how different the Japanese outlook is from that of Westerners. While the bug-like eyes and clingy bodysuit of the hero himself may strike the uninitiated as ridiculous, it is the outlandish aspect of the monsters from whose wrath Ultraman is perpetually saving...
SUMO
Nov 11, 2006

Komusubi Kisenosato

Kisenosato entered professional sumo in 2002 while still in his mid-teens. A native of Ibaraki Prefecture to the northeast of Tokyo and only age 20, he is perhaps the most promising young Japanese rikishi in sumo today.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 11, 2006

The mysterious red light heeded by few

Big news for our island: They've put in a traffic light! Now, I've always been under the impression that there must be oncoming traffic to justify a traffic light. But hey, this is Japan, maybe they drive differently here.
BUSINESS
Nov 10, 2006

Doyukai chief gets Zaikai Prize

Kakutaro Kitashiro, chairman of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai), has received the annual Zaikai Prize, awarded by the publisher of business magazine Zaikai.
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Nov 10, 2006

Hats off to expansion Grouses for road win in first game ever

Talk about a great start.
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Nov 10, 2006

Miraikan explores science as human survival tool

The depletion of natural resources, ongoing energy crises and the dangers of global warming pose threats to our modern lifestyles.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Nov 8, 2006

Chiton

* Japanese name: Hizara-gai * Scientific name: Acanthopleura japonica * Description: Chitons are mollusks, not bivalves like mussels, but single-shelled animals like limpets. To the casual observer, though, these creatures, which grow to about 4-cm long, might not be noticed, as they blend in extremely...
JAPAN
Nov 7, 2006

Hawks circling as Constitution turns 60

may be unable to participate in some missions due to the provision, even if all U.N. members are taking part. It is time to make a change." Since the first overseas deployment of the SDF on a minesweeping mission to the Persian Gulf in 1991 after the Gulf War, the scope of international military involvement...
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 7, 2006

An uneasy introduction to a grandchild

According to an announcement last month by Nagano Prefecture obstetrician Yahiro Nezu, a woman nearly 60 years old has served as a surrogate mother for her daughter. Last spring the woman gave birth to a baby that had been conceived externally using a fertilized egg provided by her daughter and the daughter's...
JAPAN
Nov 7, 2006

Japan talk of nukes 'not desirable': Ban

U.N. secretary general, I'd like to express concern." Ban said he understands the Japanese government will maintain its nonnuclear policy, as affirmed by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Nov 6, 2006

Keidanren lauds Abe's first 40 days in office

Forty days have passed since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe took office Sept. 26, and the administration, judging by the actions of the first new prime minister in 5 1/2 years, appears to be off to a very good start.

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