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BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / NPB NOTEBOOK
Sep 19, 2008

Tigers have easier path down stretch

Not too long ago the Hanshin Tigers were running away with the Central League race.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 19, 2008

Will open-door immigration plan die after Fukuda?

Japan isn't exactly known as an open country to foreigners, but there was a recent brief ray of hope in June.
CULTURE / Film
Sep 19, 2008

Downey Jr. revels in newfound 'A-list' status

So I'm sitting at the "Iron Man" press conference, watching the trailer for the umpteenth time, waiting for Robert Downey Jr. to appear, and I'm thinking, what should I ask him if I can get a question in? Not that I will. I think most distributors have a rule now not to call on the tall, skinny guy...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / BACKSTREET STORIES
Sep 19, 2008

Daimyos and deluge around the Kanda River

Most major stretches of greenery in Tokyo are tax-trimmed remainders of massive estates once owned by Edo Period (1603-1867) feudal lords, or daimyo. So, in the wake of this summer's torrential rain and dodging some early autumn typhoons, I set out to find a daimyo domain or two.
CULTURE / Art
Sep 18, 2008

Artistic director Tsutomu Mizusawa delves into his 'Time Crevasse'

For the last two years, Yokohama native Tsutomu Mizusawa has been juggling two jobs — chief curator of the Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura and Hayama, and artistic director of Japan's biggest exhibition of contemporary art, the Yokohama Triennale. The Japan Times caught up with him on the first day...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 18, 2008

Hitting skins to find sound's color

'It is amazing that I have participated in 12 out of the 31 performances of the 'Nihon no Taiko' program that started at the National Theater of Japan in 1977," says the drummer Eitetsu Hayashi, who helped start the wadaiko (Japanese drums used in festivals) boom that has lead to the formation of more...
TENNIS
Sep 17, 2008

Russian Olympians fight to stay focused after success in Beijing

Olympic gold-medal winner Elena Dementieva admits she is having trouble focusing on her game after the euphoria of Beijing, but losing finalist Dinara Safina has no such problems heading into this week's Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo.
COMMENTARY
Sep 17, 2008

Hope overwhelms reality on U.S.-India nuclear deal

The controversy that has dogged the vaunted U.S.-Indian civil nuclear deal is unlikely to dissipate anytime soon despite the recent rule change by the Nuclear Suppliers' Group. Deep-seated partisan rancor in India over the deal and the still-needed U.S. congressional ratification will ensure that. But...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 15, 2008

Russia disappointed in Dushanbe

SEATTLE — In the wake of the Russian military incursion into South Ossetia and Georgia in early August, the Russian government has looked far and wide for support. As Russia's European neighbors discussed economic sanctions and both U.S. presidential candidates spoke of naked aggression, Russian leaders...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 15, 2008

Bailout raises moral issues

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — The United States government's takeover of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac constitutes a huge bailout of these institutions' creditors, whose losses have ballooned as house prices continue to plummet. With the government now fully guaranteeing Fannie's and Freddie's debts,...
Japan Times
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Sep 14, 2008

Kitanoumi epitomizes all that is wrong with sumo

Every time I hear somebody refer to sumo as "Japan's national sport," I just have to shake my head in amazement.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Sep 14, 2008

Tokyo's catwalks at last purr with pizazz

"Is Tokyo really the world's fifth fashion capital after Paris, New York, Milan and London?"
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 14, 2008

Feed, don't fight, Afghanistan

The circumstances surrounding the kidnapping and killing of Japanese aid worker Kazuya Ito in Afghanistan last month remain unclear. In the web journal Japan Focus, Michael Penn conjectures that Ito's death resulted from a "botched effort to abduct him, not . . . premeditated murder." The gunshot wounds...
SOCCER / J. League
Sep 14, 2008

Bosnar confident JEF United can avoid relegation

JEF United Chiba defender Eddy Bosnar is adamant his side can escape relegation from J. League Division 1, despite lying eight points adrift of safety with just 11 games of the season left to play.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Sep 14, 2008

Japan Fashion Week: New stars are a-rising

Fashion is sometimes like soccer, in that you can't always rely on older players and expensive foreign imports. Until recently, Japan Fashion Week tended to bank on the same names from season to season. However, to keep the progression of new talent and new faces you eventually need to invest in young...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 13, 2008

Mindanao peace process: so near, yet so far

The Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) that had been given preliminary approval by peace panels of the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Kuala Lumpur on July 27 stands as the only agreement in the annals of the peace process in the Philippines that...
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Sep 13, 2008

Asahara awaits final race of track career

Hammer thrower Koji Murofushi, 400-meter hurdler Kenji Narisako and women's long jumper Kumiko Ikeda are among the well-known Japanese Olympics who will compete in the 2008 Seiko Super Track and Field Meet on Sept. 23.
BUSINESS
Sep 13, 2008

Economy shrank 3% last quarter

The economy shrank 3 percent last quarter, the steepest contraction since 2001, as companies and households cut spending and exports fell.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 12, 2008

Water management for the Mekong basin

SINGAPORE — China says it remains a developing country despite its rapid rise in the league of global power. By some measures, it is now the world's third-biggest economy and second-largest exporter. However gauged, China is clearly a nation with increasing impact and influence, especially if you live...
Japan Times
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Sep 12, 2008

Stellar in Sendai: Iwakuma bright spot for lowly Eagles

While the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles have faded out of contention during the second half of the season, Hisashi Iwakuma has continued to establish himself as the top pitcher in Japanese baseball.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 12, 2008

Tarsem talks us through his fantasy world

A lot of people get out of film school full of ideas, but when faced with the reality of making a living, they decide to make commercials or a formulaic Hollywood movie or two. Still, they think, "Once I make some money, I'm gonna take my millions and make the films I really want to make."
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Sep 12, 2008

Heinrich Schuetz chorus marks 40th with rendition of 'Psalmen Davids'

Heinrich Schuetz Chor, Tokyo, will give a rare performance of 17th-century German Protestant music on Sept. 19 at Tokyo Cathedral (Maria Daiseido) in Sekiguchi, Bunkyo Ward, to mark the 40th anniversary of the chorus group.

Longform

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.
Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat