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COMMENTARY / World
Jan 6, 2005

Finding succor in tragedy

WASHINGTON -- It is said that even the darkest cloud has a silver lining. So what positives could possibly be connected with the sorrowful destruction from Sumatra's tsunami? The catastrophe has shown us several things:
EDITORIALS
Jan 6, 2005

Uncertain economic prospects ahead

The world's economic outlook for 2005 is uncertain at best. Pessimists may worry about worst-case scenarios, but economic disasters, unlike natural disasters, can be prevented through better planning and management. Much depends on how major economic powers -- particularly the United States, Europe,...
JAPAN
Jan 6, 2005

ASDF sending C-130 to Thai base

An Air Self-Defense Force C-130 transport will leave for Thailand Thursday to join a U.S. military-led relief operation for survivors of the Dec. 26 tsunamis, the Defense Agency said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jan 6, 2005

Japan needs to train Iraqi officials to be self-reliant, diplomat says

Japan should help to train Iraqi engineers and local administrative officials who will play key roles in rebuilding the nation, according to a Foreign Ministry official who heads Japan's diplomatic office in the southern Iraq city of Samawah.
JAPAN
Jan 6, 2005

JAL to aid study of greenhouse gas with new device

A team of scientists will analyze greenhouse-gas concentrations in the atmosphere by using a new device aboard international flights in cooperation with Japan Airlines.
JAPAN
Jan 6, 2005

Time has come to end ODA to China, Yachi says

It's time to decide when Japan will terminate its official development assistance to China, the vice foreign minister said Tuesday.
COMMENTARY / WASHINGTON UPDATE
Jan 6, 2005

Lessons from last year's landmark U.S. election

WASHINGTON -- The last election that we just endured is still being quantified and dissected. From the seemingly endless forums and reviews that have flowed since Nov. 2, we are learning a bit about how our elections are run and won.
JAPAN
Jan 6, 2005

Koizumi contradicts Yachi on North

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Wednesday downplayed the idea of prioritizing the abduction issue over the nuclear standoff when dealing with North Korea.
JAPAN
Jan 6, 2005

Yamasaki declares bid to win back Fukuoka Diet seat

Former Liberal Democratic Party Vice President Taku Yamasaki said Wednesday he will run in April's by-election in Fukuoka Prefecture in a bid to retake the Diet seat he lost in the 2003 general election.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Jan 6, 2005

Buckwheat booze lifts locals' spirits

The first flurries of snow usually fall here where I live in Kurohime in mid-November, just at the start of the hunting season.
MORE SPORTS
Jan 5, 2005

Kawashima retains title

Japanese WBC super-flyweight champion Katsushige Kawashima won a split decision over top-ranked American southpaw Jose Navarro in a world title doubleheader Monday at Ariake Colosseum.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jan 5, 2005

Who's who (and where) among '05 foreign players

Happy New Year. Five days into 2005, and the 12 Japan pro baseball teams have spent the offseason wheeling and dealing, acquiring and firing foreign players. Confused about who left and who is left? Following is a team-by-team rundown of who's gone and who's on at this point.
EDITORIALS
Jan 5, 2005

Easier path for foreign investors

Japan is beginning to open the door wider to foreign direct investment. The Justice Ministry has completed a skeleton draft of a new law that will make it easier for foreign companies to purchase Japanese ones. Japanese executives understandably fear that their companies might become targets for foreign...
JAPAN
Jan 5, 2005

Koizumi pledges robust reconstruction aid in disaster area

Japan will do its best to provide aid and help reconstruction efforts in the Asian countries hit by last month's killer tsunamis, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jan 5, 2005

Team in South Asia to assess SDF aid role

The Defense Agency sent a 20-member team Tuesday to South Asia to assess what the Self-Defense Forces can do to help survivors of the Dec. 26 earthquake and widespread killer tsunamis.
JAPAN
Jan 5, 2005

Massive response to tsunamis still not enough: aid groups

Japanese aid groups participating in the largest international disaster relief operation in Southern Asia said Tuesday that efforts to help the survivors are falling short despite the unprecedented level of support and donations.
JAPAN / BY THE NUMBERS
Jan 5, 2005

Vending machines turn new tricks to make a buck

Japan is a vending machine paradise. They're ubiquitous -- on streets, train platforms, even at the top of Mount Fuji -- and sell about everything.
JAPAN
Jan 5, 2005

Japan, U.S. reach agreement on civilian-military use of Yokota base

Japan and the United States have reached a broad agreement on joint civilian-military use of the U.S. Air Force's Yokota Air Base, according to Japanese officials.
JAPAN
Jan 5, 2005

Shrine, temple tills yield more fake 10,000 yen bills

About 230 counterfeit 10,000 yen bills were used in transactions in shops near shrines and temples in Tokyo and 11 other prefectures from Dec. 31 to Jan. 3.
COMMENTARY
Jan 5, 2005

Beijing counts on more high-speed growth in '05

HONG KONG -- Barely three years after joining the World Trade Organization, China has emerged as a major trading power, with total trade last year exceeding $1 trillion, an increase of more than 30 percent over 2003, making China the world's third-largest trading power. This is an astonishing performance...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 5, 2005

Momix: taking it to the top

Moses Pendleton remembers well his first taste of live performance. He was an elementary school kid when his father -- a dairy farmer in northern Vermont -- hired his young son to show off his prized Holstein cows at the county fair. "My job was to walk the animals around and make them look good in order...
JAPAN
Jan 5, 2005

Japan to revise CO2 goal to a rise rather than a cut

Japan plans to revise its target for carbon dioxide emissions from energy uses to a 0.4 percent increase in fiscal 2010 from the current target of a 2.0 percent cut under a new action program to be adopted in March for the 1997 Kyoto Protocol.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jan 5, 2005

Following the line to enlightenment

In order to write an article about renowned Zen master Tanchu Terayama's Hitsuzendo calligraphy exhibition, I was offered the rare opportunity to visit his mountain retreat in Ibaraki Prefecture to participate in a workshop with Terayama himself. I first got a call from Terayama's most dedicated student,...

Longform

Mamoru Iwai, stationmaster of Keisei Ueno Station, says that, other than earthquake-proofing, the former Hakubutsukan-Dobutsuen (Museum-Zoo) Station has remained untouched.
Inside Tokyo's 'phantom' stations — and the stories they tell