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Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 31, 2003

Automakers turn to 'telematics' to get tech lovers' attention

In the fight for a bigger share of the domestic car market, Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. have shifted to a new battlefield -- "telematics" informational network systems
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 30, 2003

Mobile commerce market taking off

Taking the 15-minute walk from her home to her office in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, every morning, Noriko Kato, 29, looks at the tiny screen on her DoCoMo 505i mobile phone to check her e-mail and sometimes access her favorite shopping site, run by Netprice Ltd.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Dec 28, 2003

If truth be told . . .

There was once a Chinese emperor who abolished time. Wei Ming decreed that day broke when the dawn sky flushed the color of his pet bullfinch's breast. Nighttime began whenever he retired from the audience chamber with his concubines, and was consequently rather longer.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 19, 2003

Islamic scholars: America's natural allies

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Since the tragic events of 9/11, millions of words have been written attempting to understand and explain the causes of Muslim terrorism and the extremist ideologies that underpin it. Many have suggested that terrorism is simply a reaction to social injustice, whereas others have...
JAPAN
Oct 28, 2003

Radiation leak 'could kill 400,000'

A large-scale radiation leak at a major nuclear reactor in Japan could kill more than 400,000 people and cost up to 460 trillion yen over 50 years, according to a study by a Kyoto Sangyo University researcher released Monday.
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Sep 22, 2003

Dwindling benefits cast doubt on rigid pension and deposit schemes

An insurance policy is an agreement whereby the payment of premiums and the receipt of benefits are inseparable. However, this fundamental principle is now being challenged by the nation's public insurance systems, which are creating anxiety and discontent by gradually denying policyholders freedom of...
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jul 29, 2003

In search of senbei and more culture

Senbei fan Randall writes from California, reporting that around 1900 a Japanese gardener in San Francisco started serving cookies with thank you notes inside at that city's Japanese garden.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 28, 2003

A Tibetan history lesson for China

CHIANG MAI, Thailand -- With India's recognition of the Tibet Autonomous Region as a part of China -- a corollary result of the recent talks in Beijing between Chinese and Indian leaders -- the region has ceased to be viewed as a historical buffer state between two Asian giants. This is of tremendous...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 28, 2003

Political reformers of Japan unite!

The new buzzword in Japanese politics these days is "manifesto." The Japanese language does not use capital letters, but if it did, you can be sure "manifesto" would be written with a capital M to convey the weighty tone with which it is pronounced by those who believe it is the answer to Japan's political...
EDITORIALS
Jul 6, 2003

The case of the missing WMD

Since the war in Iraq ended, supporters and critics alike have reached a near-consensus that the main reason given for the U.S.-led operation -- the threat posed by Iraq's possession of weapons of mass destruction -- was baseless. U.S. President George Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair insist...
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jul 1, 2003

Auto English, penguin suits and frugality

Driving in English Dear Lifelines: I would like information on driving schools in Tokyo that give instructions in English. -- Lalila
COMMENTARY / World
May 28, 2003

Slander poses a greater danger than SARS itself

EDMONTON, Canada -- Outside of Asia, Toronto has been the city hardest hit by severe acute respiratory syndrome. Canadian Chinese living there, as well as Canadians of Japanese and Korean ethnic origin, have felt the chill of blame.
COMMENTARY / World
May 17, 2003

Blasts send message to Riyadh

BEIRUT -- Such a spectacular al-Qaeda-style exploit might have come as no great surprise to moderate Saudi Islamists familiar with the thinking of the extremists in their midst. The Iraq war brought anti-American sentiments in the kingdom to new heights and increased the determination of militants to...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Apr 6, 2003

Popping up everywhere

GLOBAL GOES LOCAL: Popular Culture in Asia, edited by Timothy J. Craig and Richard King. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2002, 310 pp. with illustrations, $24 (paper) It is commonly observed that as the political hegemony of the West has grown, so has its cultural dominance: Mickey Mouse, Elvis...
CULTURE / Music
Mar 30, 2003

Setting music free on the open road

While major record labels battle Internet file-sharing to preserve the sanctity of music delivery media (CDs and whatever the hell will take their place), major artists challenge their contracts and less-than-major artists avoid the "entertainment industry" altogether. The consequence of technological...
JAPAN
Mar 29, 2003

Yakuza pestering civil servants

A National Police Agency poll of 2,956 local-government departments that deal directly with the public found that about 30 percent of them have had confrontations with gangsters, and around 70 percent of those faced extortionist demands in the past year alone.
JAPAN
Mar 20, 2003

Medical care for elderly to be reformed

The health ministry and the ruling coalition parties have agreed to consider dealing with the expected rise in the nation's medical insurance burdens by examining a proposal to create an independent scheme for people over 75 years old.
COMMENTARY / JAPAN IN THE GLOBAL ERA
Jan 20, 2003

Intellectual alienation spawns hazy polic

WASHINGTON -- The main purpose of my visit to Washington at the beginning of 2003 was to carry out discussions on U.S. perspectives, policies and strategies for the Doha Development Round, in particular, and global economic policy in general. Meetings were held with U.S. government departments, foreign...
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Dec 26, 2002

Thirty years of environmental progress, but . . .

Yet another year is tugging impatiently at the sleeve of closure and within days will be history.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 6, 2002

Blocs should transcend members' shortcomings

CHIANG MAI, Thailand -- As long as regional cooperation develops in various parts of the world, it is only natural that some concerns are voiced from time to time, especially about the composition of these groupings.
BUSINESS
Nov 16, 2002

Another IP phone service on the way

NEC Corp., KDDI Corp., Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. and Japan Telecom Co. said Friday they have agreed to jointly offer an Internet Protocol-based phone service for individuals next spring.
EDITORIALS
Oct 20, 2002

All the news, period

Ever since news first met the Internet, informed observers have been predicting the death of print newspapers. When it didn't happen after people began retrieving their daily news with the help of Internet search engines, the sages said it would happen after the major newspapers launched their own online...
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Sep 25, 2002

From the mailbox: What's wrong with Ichiro?

Wayne: Have there been any negative or questioning press comments about Ichiro's (Suzuki) recent slump in batting here in Seattle? From my perspective it almost looks like he might be hiding a health problem; he seems to have no fire in the belly and is almost running on empty, so to speak. Also, do...
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2002

DoCoMo to license i-mode service to Telefonica Moviles

Cellular giant NTT DoCoMo Inc. said Wednesday it has agreed to license its i-mode mobile Internet access technology to Spain's Telefonica Moviles group.
LIFE / Digital
Apr 25, 2002

Broadband security: put a lock on the back door

It's late one evening last July, and a green activity light is blinking on the front of the DSL modem next to my desk.
LIFE / Digital
Apr 18, 2002

Navigating the broadband connection

Last week we discussed the different broadband services available in Japan and how to subscribe to each. This week we'll take a look at the steps necessary to configure your system to connect to the Internet using your new broadband service, and also consider some of the options available to users with...
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
Mar 6, 2002

Bush's incendiary pulpit

MOSCOW -- It would be interesting to know who attended U.S. President George W. Bush's talk at Tsinghua University in Beijing on Feb. 22. Obviously planned as a mixture of calculated propaganda and heartfelt preaching, the talk targeted Chinese youth who hopefully will make China democratic, tolerant...
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 14, 2002

North Korea: signs of trouble but no evil

CAMBRIDGE, England -- I have just returned from a week visit to North Korea, one of the countries on U.S. President George W. Bush's "axis of evil." I was one of three British academics running a workshop under a new technical assistance program inaugurated when the two countries opened diplomatic relations...
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
Feb 10, 2002

TV sports trump freedom; public loses

MOSCOW -- There is no television broadcast in Russia anymore that is independent of the Russian government. Having applied the poisonous gas of legal niceties, the Kremlin has shut down the last stronghold of dissent, the vocal and opinionated TV-6. It was the coup de grace in Russian President Vladimir...

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Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?