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JAPAN
Jul 26, 2002

Rainy season ends two days early

The nation's rainy season is over for the year, now that it has ended in the northern part of the Tohoku region, the Meteorological Agency said Thursday.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Jul 26, 2002

Robber fly

* Japanese name: Shioya abe * Scientific name: Promachus yesonicus * Description: Robber flies are robust insects with powerful legs. The face of the fly is covered in a dense "beard" of bristles, and there is a deep groove between the eyes. There are many species of robber fly (almost 5,000 worldwide),...
BUSINESS
Jul 26, 2002

Ministry hints it may sue Moody's over bond rating

The Finance Ministry has hinted it may seek compensation for any damage caused by the downgrading of Japan's credit rating by U.S.-based Moody's Investors Service Inc.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 26, 2002

Summertime wisdom out of the mouths of shogakusei

My French professor used to say that France is a nation where children try to become adults as soon as they possibly can, while in Japan, adults try to extend their childhood for as long as they possibly can.
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2002

Theme park faces inspection

OSAKA -- Osaka municipal authorities will inspect Universal Studios Japan, possibly Friday, in connection with the theme park's admission that one of its drinking fountains was dispensing unsterilized water meant for industrial purposes.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 26, 2002

U.S. farm secretary promotes beef, rice

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman took on the role of a marketing campaigner for U.S. beef and rice Thursday in meetings with housewives and consumer groups in Tokyo.
EDITORIALS
Jul 25, 2002

JFA scores with new lineup

While the echoes of the 2002 World Cup are still ringing in our ears, Japanese soccer is making the first moves toward reform. At a meeting of its council and a new board of directors last Saturday, the Japan Football Association officially approved the appointment of a new executive lineup led by Mr....
COMMENTARY
Jul 25, 2002

Home of the brave, land of the snitches

WASHINGTON -- Washington "will do everything conceivable, everything humanly and technologically possible to preserve our way of life and our citizens," says Tom Ridge, director of the U.S. Office of Homeland Security. Unfortunately, the Bush administration seems ready to threaten our way of life in...
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2002

Suzuki tied to illegal payments to cover bureaucrat's meal bills

The office of indicted lawmaker Muneo Suzuki illegally paid the restaurant bills of a former Foreign Ministry bureaucrat -- who is also under arrest -- by disguising them as political activity expenses at Suzuki's political fund management organization, sources said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2002

Mitsui execs take pay cut over scandal

Mitsui & Co. President Shinjiro Shimizu announced Wednesday that he and two other executives of the major trading house will take voluntary pay cuts of 20 percent for three months to assume responsibility for a scandal involving bids for a power plant project on Kunashiri Island, off Hokkaido.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2002

Attacker burns woman with chemical

A 30-year-old woman suffered severe burns to her face and shoulder early Wednesday after a man poured a corrosive chemical on her in Nakano Ward, Tokyo, police said.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2002

59 SDF members killed themselves last year

Fifty-nine members of the Self-Defense Forces committed suicide in fiscal 2001, down 14 from the previous fiscal year, according to a Defense Agency report released this week.
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2002

UFJ to spin off computer operations

UFJ Holdings Inc. plans to spin off the running of its computer system to a joint venture it will create with Hitachi Ltd. in the fall, UFJ officials said Wednesday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jul 25, 2002

'Other Saito' starting to make a name for himself with Giants

Players with the same name on the same team are no rarity in Japanese baseball. When one of these duplicates is an exceptionally good player, he is likely to be remembered as "THE" as opposed to "THE OTHER."
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2002

First-half trade surplus up 57%

Japan's trade surplus in the first half of 2002 jumped 56.8 percent from a year earlier to 4.99 trillion yen, marking its first rise in 3 1/2 years, according to a preliminary report released Wednesday by the Finance Ministry.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2002

Diet clears the way to redraw electoral districts

The Diet passed a bill Wednesday aimed at redrawing electoral districts in an effort to correct the imbalance in the value of votes cast in rural and urban areas.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2002

Sato tapped as next chief of NPA

The government will announce the appointment of Hidehiko Sato as director general of the National Police Agency on Aug. 2 to succeed Setsuo Tanaka, who is retiring, government sources said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2002

Nikkei average ends below 10,000 line

Tokyo stocks tumbled Wednesday amid lingering jitters over bearish U.S. equity markets, sending the benchmark Nikkei index to a sub-10,000 close for the first time in five months.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jul 25, 2002

Health insurance, pension cash claims and odd-job search

It's been quite surprising to receive so many "thank yous" from readers, but more surprising has been that they come not only from Japan but from all over the the world. It seems a lot of people who have lived in Japan in the past and moved on read the column at www.japantimes.co.jp to keep up on things...
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2002

Department store sales down 1.7%

Department store sales slipped to 3.98 trillion yen in the January-June period, down 1.7 percent from the same period last year and underlining depressed consumer spending, the Japan Department Stores Association said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2002

Market volatility could hamper recovery: Hayami

Bank of Japan Gov. Masaru Hayami said Wednesday that declines in U.S. share prices and the appreciation of the yen could hamper Japan's tentative recovery.
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2002

Supermarkets snap 43-month streak

Sales at Japanese supermarkets rose 0.1 percent in June from a year earlier to 1.174 trillion yen on a same-store basis, marking a first increase in 43 months, an industry body said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2002

METI to OK excess energy sales by private power facilities

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry plans to lift the ban on the retail supply of electricity generated at small private power facilities, METI officials said Wednesday.

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