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EDITORIALS
Dec 17, 2006

'Defense Ministry' will bear watching

The legislation just enacted to upgrade the Defense Agency to ministry status and revise the Self-Defense Forces Law will significantly change the character of the Self-Defense Forces, which has assumed a low-profile posture under the nation's strictly defensive security policy, reflecting the nation's...
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2006

Sasae, Hill confer ahead of six-party talks Monday

The chief Japanese and U.S. negotiators on North Korea's nuclear weapons met Saturday in Tokyo and confirmed their solidarity -- including Washington's support for Tokyo's hard line on the abduction issue -- during the six-party talks resuming Monday.
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2006

Sasae, Hill confer ahead of six-party talks Monday

The chief Japanese and U.S. negotiators on North Korea's nuclear weapons met Saturday in Tokyo and confirmed their solidarity -- including Washington's support for Tokyo's hard line on the abduction issue -- during the six-party talks resuming Monday.
EDITORIALS
Dec 17, 2006

Political theater in town

In June 2001, the first government-sponsored town meeting under the initiative of then Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi was held to promote direct dialogue between the people and Cabinet ministers. So far, there have been 174 such meetings. But a report by a Cabinet Office investigation panel shows that...
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Dec 17, 2006

Classified information

Every week in Japan, English-language magazines carry upward of 200 classified ads placed by both Japanese and non-Japanese people seeking to meet strangers whom they hope to strike up a relationship with.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 17, 2006

It's horses for courses if there's a few bucks to be made

Whenever the media covers some story about an animal that has been rescued or neglected there are always dozens of people willing to adopt it.
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Dec 17, 2006

High-end fashion on the (fairly) cheap

Japanese consumers are famous (or infamous) the world over for their obsession with luxury brands -- and as hard data demonstrates, this is definitely no globalized urban myth.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Dec 17, 2006

McSato et al prompt mastication over whose 'real' is really real

I've been running around lately like a headless chicken -- and the simile is more literal than you might think. I have been spending my evenings going around Tokyo restaurants, doing a survey strictly in the interests of scrupulous journalism.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Dec 17, 2006

The past captured by a photography of conflict

PHOTOGRAPHY IN JAPAN: 1853-1912, by Terry Bennett. Tokyo/Singapore: Tuttle Publishing, 2006, 320 pp., 404 photographs, $65 (cloth). This beautifully produced large-format photo collection is intended for the scholar. It is an illustrated historical accounting of all of the early photographers in Japan....
CULTURE / Books
Dec 17, 2006

Getting the best view of Japan's history

JAPAN AND THE ILLUSTRATED LONDON NEWS: Complete Record of Reported Events 1853-1899, compiled and introduced by Terry Bennett. Global Oriental, 2006, 411 pp., with illustrations, £125 (cloth). The Illustrated London News was among the first journals to carry illustrations of contemporary events. The...
CULTURE / Books
Dec 17, 2006

Economic power struggles in Asia

JAPAN IN A DYNAMIC ASIA: Coping With the New Security Challenges, edited by Yoichiro Sato and Satu Limaye. Lexington Books, 2006, 271 pp., 2006 (paper). Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said he will pursue a more assertive foreign policy. That won't be easy, report the authors of this comprehensive survey...
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Dec 17, 2006

How can anyone remember 100,000 numbers?

Unless you're a mathematician or an engineer, pi probably ranks high on the list of things that are of little or absolutely no use in your life.
SOCCER / J. League
Dec 16, 2006

Japan women to face Mexico

Japan will face Mexico at home in March in the first leg of a playoff for a place at next year's Women's World Cup in China, soccer's world governing body FIFA said Friday.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Dec 16, 2006

Pardew had short leash in final days at West Ham

LONDON -- "We can move forward with Alan Pardew leading our efforts on the pitch. I will be continuing talks with him on how he sees the future of the playing side. He has my full support and confidence." -- New West Ham chairman Eggert Magnusson assures manager Pardew his job his safe despite the club's...

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