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SPORTS / MULLY'S MISSIVES
Jun 26, 2006

Mully passes out some first-round hardware

MUNICH -- As the second round begins, Mully's Missives looks back at the World Cup so far and dishes out some awards.
COMMENTARY
Jun 26, 2006

U.S.-dependent to what end?

At a Cabinet meeting May 30, the government finalized its basic policy on the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan. The action followed a final Japan-U.S. agreement May 1 on realignment aimed at strengthening deterrents and reducing Japan's burden of hosting U.S. military installations.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jun 25, 2006

Who needs a trial when the media has hanged, drawn and quartered the accused?

Cynicism comes naturally to members of the tabloid press, who report sensational news in a sensational way and rarely think about what exactly it is they're doing. All they care about is the gory details. However, their coverage of the murder of a 7-year-old boy last month in Akita Prefecture and the...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 24, 2006

Japan heats up whaling wars

The battle over whaling has grown more acrimonious in recent years principally because Japan has become a more vociferous and belligerent advocate for a resumption of commercial whaling. In the recently concluded meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC), Japan's representative browbeat and...
CULTURE / Music
Jun 23, 2006

Sonic Youth "Rather Ripped"

Ever since Kim Gordon sang about her friend Goo, she has epitomized what's great about Sonic Youth as a rock band.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / BEST BAR NONE
Jun 23, 2006

Here for your a muse ment

Though Roppongi is party central for most foreigners, Shibuya has, in the course of the last 10 years or so, emerged as a brave new challenger for the title. Even foreigners have come around to the upstart, which was originally put on the party map by a new breed of then young and restless Japanese revelers,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / FUZZY LOGIC
Jun 23, 2006

Beasts of burden

Seems like a sennin is in town. This mythical Japanese being has supernatural powers -- he can fly, ride clouds and make the winds blow. And he's certainly whipping up a storm in Kyoto. A gale is battering the city and there's something of a musical hurricane blowing in the small rock bar Uh-La-La in...
BUSINESS
Jun 21, 2006

Foreign direct investment steps set

The government's Japan Investment Council approved measures Tuesday aimed at promoting foreign direct investment through such means as assisting local authorities' efforts to attract foreign capital, government sources said.
JAPAN
Jun 20, 2006

Plastic recyclers can't compete with China

Many Japanese companies that produce materials recycled from used plastic bottles are on the verge of bankruptcy as more and more of their raw material ends up in China and may soon be finding their way to India as well.
JAPAN
Jun 20, 2006

Plan to curb false acacias stings apiarists

Beekeepers producing honey from the flowers of false acacias are panicking about the possibility that the trees may soon be regulated as an exotic species.
MORE SPORTS
Jun 19, 2006

Elias leaves crowd hungry for more

Japanese football players and coaches got more than just a taste of U.S. football, they got the full flavor of the NFL, when Keith Elias took the field with or against them in the third annual Ivy-Samurai Bowl on Sunday.
SPORTS / MULLY'S MISSIVES
Jun 19, 2006

Best quotes of the World Cup (so far)

NUREMBURG, Germany -- A look back on some of the best quotes of the World Cup so far:
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Jun 17, 2006

Mitsuru Yamazaki

Rumor had it that Mitsuru Yamazaki used to drive a taxicab in New York City.
EDITORIALS
Jun 16, 2006

Demarcation of troubled waters

Japan and South Korea failed to make any progress in their two-day meeting aimed at determining the boundary of their exclusive economic zones in the Sea of Japan. An early breakthrough in the dispute is unlikely, although both countries agreed to hold another round of talks in September. Blocking progress...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 15, 2006

Fuji Rocking 10 years on

Fuji Rock Festival is the biggest event on the calendar for many Japanese and foreign residents alike. Sure, it costs a stack of cash to go, but the festival is not your typical commercial venture. Word on the street is that it has been anything but a money spinner for concert promoter Smash Japan. Instead,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jun 15, 2006

Nihonga painter captured Taiwanese beauty

The scene was tranquil in 1927 at the newly established "Taiten" annual fine arts exhibition in the Japanese colony of Taiwan, which had been ceded by China in 1895 as a result of the First Sino-Japanese War. None of the artists practicing in the Qing Period (1644-1911) styles of Chinese painting were...
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2006

JAL hijacker's daughter in Japan

The 27-year-old daughter of one of the Japanese men who hijacked a Japan Airlines airplane and defected to North Korea in 1970 arrived in Osaka on Tuesday, a supporter who promoted her return said.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Jun 14, 2006

Cattle egret

* Japanese name: Amasagi * Scientific name: Bubulcus ibis * Description: Cattle egrets are in the heron family, but they are shorter and have stouter necks than their relatives. They have a "hunched" posture, even when they stand up straight. They are medium-sized birds, 46-56 cm long, with a wingspan...
BUSINESS
Jun 14, 2006

Government still upbeat on economy, points to improvement in price trends

The government Tuesday upgraded its view on price trends and maintained its upbeat assessment on the overall economy for the fourth straight month.
EDITORIALS
Jun 13, 2006

Shoddy care of a nation's heritage

The Cultural Affairs Agency has come under public criticism for slipshod preservation work on the Takamatsuzuka ancient burial mound in Asuka, Nara Prefecture, which is well known for its colorful painted frescoes. Not only has the agency failed to prevent the formation of mold in the mound -- which...
BUSINESS
Jun 13, 2006

Official nixes latest WTO proposal on farm tariffs

Vice farm minister Mamoru Ishihara said Monday he is opposed to the latest WTO proposal calling for an average cut of 54 percent in tariffs on farm goods and based on ideas put forward by the Group of 20, a coalition of developing-country exporters.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
Jun 13, 2006

Suzue Akashi

Suzue Akashi, 74, is a folk musician who plays traditional Japanese songs on shamisen with taiko drum accompaniment. Her insatiable desire to learn took her from a Tokyo dairy to the education center at Haneda Air Force Base, to university in Tennessee and work in Texas during the 1950s. Back in Japan,...
BUSINESS
Jun 13, 2006

Current account surplus declined 20% in April

The current account surplus fell 20.2 percent in April from a year earlier to 1.28 trillion yen, its first decline in three months, due mainly to higher oil prices and a rise in the services trade deficit, the Finance Ministry said Monday.
COMMENTARY
Jun 12, 2006

A tenable vision of efficiency

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's structural reforms for creating a "simple, efficient government" have entered the final phase. In late May, the Diet enacted the administrative reform promotion law and four related bills aimed at continuing Koizumi's reform programs after he steps down in September...
EDITORIALS
Jun 9, 2006

Defense of the nonnuclear option

The nuclear genie cannot be put back in the bottle; the knowledge that yielded the nuclear bomb cannot be unlearned. That does not mean the world must merely accept the existence of such weapons of mass destruction (WMD), however. Rather, it requires more vigilance in halting their spread and more creative...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 9, 2006

He's moving on up

Andrew Lau belongs to a new generation of Hong Kong action filmmakers comfortable with drawing out their characters' psyche and personality as much as choreographing wire stunts and deploying CG techniques.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jun 8, 2006

Seikado Bunko Art Museum shows off one-of-a-kind collection

Depictions of swashbuckling fights on Japanese battlefields have often graced the silver screen, bringing international fame to the samurai and his indispensable sword. Admired for their craftsmanship, swords hold a special place in Japan not only as weapons, but as an art form as well.

Longform

Dangami House is a 180-year-old former samurai residence of the Kato clan, who ruled over Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, until the Meiji Restoration.
A house, a legacy and the quiet work of restoration in rural Japan