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JAPAN
Jul 13, 2006

Ministry looks to forecast storms 30 years ahead

The government said Wednesday it will launch a project in the next fiscal year to develop a 20- to 30-year forecast for typhoons, heavy snowfalls and other potential disasters likely to affect Japan.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 13, 2006

'Individualist' achievements

When Joe Price visited New York at the age of 24 with renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright -- his father's friend and the designer of the famous Price Tower in Bartlesville, Okla. -- it had never crossed his mind to join the art world. But there in an antique shop, captivated by deft brushwork on an...
BUSINESS
Jul 13, 2006

Japan Post mulls '11 listing of bank, insurer

Japan Post Corp. is considering listing in fiscal 2011 two of the four units that will be created during the organization's privatization, starting next year, sources said Wednesday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 13, 2006

A stroll among the masterpieces

The Price exhibition at the Tokyo National Museum is divided into five sections, each devoted to a specific area of painting. The first sets the stage with examples of "mainline" painters -- members of the Kano school (which, from the late 16th century to the late 19th century, combined Chinese academic...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 13, 2006

Firm pioneers dealing with belongings of departed

With more than 4 million people over 65 living alone and many dying a solitary death, a niche business has emerged in dealing with the belongings of those who pass away.
BUSINESS
Jul 13, 2006

First-half used vehicle sales fall again

Used vehicle sales for the January-June half fell 0.9 percent from a year earlier to 2,688,518 units, marking the sixth consecutive drop in a first-half period, an industry body said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jul 13, 2006

Recalls pose big image challenge for carmakers

Tuesday's revelation that three Toyota Motor Corp. officials are under investigation for professional negligence over a delay in a vehicle recall highlights a dilemma for carmakers.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 13, 2006

The accidental art collector: Unearthing the pure essence of Nature

The painters in your collection are commonly described simply as "Individualist." Can you elaborate on what is meant by that?
BUSINESS
Jul 13, 2006

June wholesale prices rise 3.3%

Wholesale prices rose strongly again in June, jumping 3.3 percent from a year earlier, matching the May increase and reflecting a continued surge in crude oil and other commodities, the Bank of Japan said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 13, 2006

Convenience store trio circle wagons against Seven-Eleven

Three major convenience store chains have agreed to jointly develop and market soft drinks in cut procurement costs and to better compete with industry leader Seven-Eleven Japan Co., sources said Wednesday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jul 13, 2006

Antiestablishment for all

Founded in 1970 by director Sho Ryuzanji, the Engekidan company was a natural bridge between two major theatrical movements in postwar Japan: the 1960s underground scene of dramatists such as Shuji Terayama and Juro Kara and the so-called "small-scale theater movement" started in the 1980s by the likes...
JAPAN
Jul 13, 2006

Student loan defaults hit 142,000 in '05

A record 142,000 people have failed to repay their student loans even a year after the deadline, a survey by the government-affiliated Japan Student Services Organization showed Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 13, 2006

Kirin bests Asahi in first-half suds shipments for first time in five years

Kirin Brewery Co. overtook Asahi Breweries Ltd. in terms of shipments of beer and beerlike drinks in the January-June period for the first time in five years, industry figures showed Wednesday.
EDITORIALS
Jul 13, 2006

Mr. Ozawa makes the right moves

Democratic Party of Japan President Ichiro Ozawa's efforts to convince the public that his and his party's policies significantly differ from those of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and the Liberal Democratic Party are taking concrete shape, especially in foreign policy. He is embracing the principle...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / NEW ART SEEN
Jul 13, 2006

Soaking up the 'male gaze'

What to make of photographs of blue tarpaulins, mobiles of cigarette butts and bathroom sponges folded to suggest a woman's derriere?
JAPAN
Jul 13, 2006

Japan firm on missile position

Japan remains firmly behind its U.N. Security Council draft resolution to impose sanctions on North Korea, despite France's proposed compromise this week, Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 13, 2006

Kabu.com will launch after-hours exchange

Online brokerage kabu.com Securities Co. said Wednesday it plans to start an after-hours trading system in August that will take orders from kabu.com account holders.
EDITORIALS
Jul 13, 2006

Problems go beyond data falsification

The criminal investigation into the falsification of earthquake-resistance data for buildings, which surfaced in November 2005 and shook the nation, has ended with the indictment of disgraced structure designer Mr. Hidetsugu Aneha and several other people. The investigation's outcome shows the issue...
JAPAN
Jul 13, 2006

Osaka activist's arrest lays bare yakuza ties with 'burakumin'

On the night of Jan. 26, 1985, four hit men from the Ichiwa-kai crime syndicate drove up to an apartment complex in Suita, Osaka Prefecture.
JAPAN
Jul 12, 2006

Toyota execs suspected of negligence

Three Toyota officials are under criminal investigation on suspicion of professional negligence for allegedly not issuing vehicle recalls for eight years and not fixing a defect that might have caused an accident, police said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jul 12, 2006

Officials try to defuse fallout from pre-emption issue

Monday's inflammatory remarks by Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe in the wake of North Korea's missile tests have touched off a controversy over Japan's interpretation of "pre-emptive attacks."
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 12, 2006

Racism plagues Western media coverage

GAZA -- Racism is "the belief that one 'racial group' is inferior to another and the practices of the dominant group to maintain the inferior position of the dominated group. Often defined as a combination of power, prejudice and discrimination."
EDITORIALS
Jul 12, 2006

Crisis for the WTO

A nother attempt to revive the Doha Round of international trade negotiations has failed. Unable to find common ground on agricultural issues, some 60 trade ministers -- less than half the members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) -- cut short efforts recently to break the deadlock in Geneva. Before...
BUSINESS
Jul 12, 2006

ANA, Rakuten tie on online booking

All Nippon Airways Co. and the Rakuten Inc. group will start a new service in October enabling people to reserve cheaper flights and hotels via the Internet, sources said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 12, 2006

Major insurers plan firm to run joint sales outlets

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co., Mitsui Life Insurance Co. and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. said Tuesday they will jointly set up a new company to operate outlets to sell insurance products.

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