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COMMENTARY / World
May 16, 2007

The true meaning of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to the United States

WASHINGTON — Most of the reporting and reviews surrounding the visit of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to the United States on April 26-27 focused on the issue of North Korea or the wartime "comfort women," but in truth, the significance of the visit was much broader.
EDITORIALS
May 16, 2007

Referendum law raises questions

The Upper House on Monday enacted a law that establishes procedures for a national referendum to revise the Constitution. The legislation was backed by the Liberal Democratic Party, Komeito, one member of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan and an independent. The law's provisions concern the most...
BUSINESS
May 16, 2007

TBS demands Rakuten answer all questions

Tokyo Broadcasting System Inc., the target of an unwanted takeover bid by Rakuten Inc., said Tuesday it has asked the Internet mall operator for more information about its intentions.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
May 16, 2007

Seasons seen out of sync

I really thought I had missed out on spring this year. Having left Hokkaido when it was still blanketed with snow, I then spent a prolonged spell in South America before island-hopping across the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. It all left me overly warm (you can have too much of heat and humidity!),...
LIFE / Digital / IGADGET
May 16, 2007

Gadgets fall prey to multitasking, and a mouse keeps an eye on your computer

P eople these days are more like ly to remember to take their keitai in the morning than their keys. After all, the later only protects your life's property and valuables, whereas your mobile phone makes life worth living. Or at least it seems to be for those who spend more time with their portable communicators...
SUMO
May 15, 2007

Sumo and an American woman's search for Hinkaku

The summer basho is underway and I, an American woman who has never been to Japan, am so excited.
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

Nuclear chief sees possible fuel contract with Russia

Japan would benefit from a proposed nuclear energy deal with Russia by gaining access to Moscow's advanced fast-breeder reactor technology and uranium enrichment services, the atomic energy chief said Monday.
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.
JAPAN
May 15, 2007

Court rejects lawsuit over Monju coverup suicide

, argued he committed suicide in 1996 because Donen forced him to lie at a news conference about its attempt to conceal video footage of damage caused by the leak. But the presiding judge in the case, Tsutomu Yamazaki, said there was no objective evidence proving that Donen, the predecessor of the Japan...
EDITORIALS
May 15, 2007

Mr. Blair sets his departure date

After months of anticipation, British Prime Minister Tony Blair has announced that he will leave office June 27. Mr. Blair, who had kept his country on tenterhooks since revealing in 2004 that he would not complete his third term, leaves a mixed legacy. He transformed the Labour Party, which had been...
JAPAN / Q&A
May 15, 2007

What follows from passage of Constitution referendum bill?

The Diet on Monday passed a bill to establish procedures for a national referendum to revise the Constitution. The bill was a key agenda item for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a conservative who has repeatedly stressed his intention to revise the Constitution, which was drafted in 1947 under the Allied...
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
May 15, 2007

Who's paying for those free cell phones?

No longer just a simple device for placing calls, the mobile phone is now a must-have item for most people. To promote market penetration, many of these multimedia, high-tech handsets are sold at a discount, or sometimes even given away.

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight