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EDITORIALS
Dec 6, 2007

The reality of bullying

A new education ministry survey shows that elementary, junior high and high schools saw about 125,000 bullying cases in fiscal 2006 — up 6.2 times from 2005. The increase is mainly attributed to the ministry's making the definition of bullying less strict.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Dec 6, 2007

Picking up where science slips

When it comes to giving us a handle on the world we live in, science no longer cuts it. In its latest incarnations — superstring and M-theory — it postulates 10, 11 or even more dimensions, only three or four of which we can perceive. Science's explanation of matter is equally unsatisfying. Since...
COMMENTARY
Dec 6, 2007

Israel's ticking time bomb

LONDON — Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was just back from the Annapolis summit where U.S. President George W. Bush tried to reboot the moribund Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. More importantly, last week was also the 60th anniversary of the United Nations vote that divided British-ruled Palestine...
BUSINESS
Dec 5, 2007

Airbus to order more than 5% of parts for A350 from Japan

Airbus SAS, the world's largest commercial plane maker, plans to order more than 5 percent of parts and material for its new A350 jetliner from suppliers in Japan, seeking a foothold in a market dominated by Boeing Co.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Dec 5, 2007

Oh honored by FSAJ for lifetime achievement

After the most distinguished career in Japanese baseball history, Sadaharu Oh has gotten a lot of practice in accepting awards.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / IGADGET
Dec 5, 2007

Phones get both weirder and simpler; everything else becomes waterproof

Boning up on new tech: Call me old fashioned, but I like to hear sounds with my ears. Progress, however, is no fan of nostalgia, and so the bone-induction trend continues. NTT DoCoMo ups the ante with its Sound Leaf Plus keitai (cell phone) accessory, due out in February for around ¥13,000. The device,...
Reader Mail
Dec 4, 2007

Hold your beef about whale meat

J.H.G.'s Nov. 22 letter, "Plenty of other things to eat," motivated me to respond. It is true that only a few countries such as Japan, Norway and Iceland have hunted whales for food. Japanese fishermen used to make the best use of all parts of the whale, not only its meat but also fats and other stuff....
Reader Mail
Dec 4, 2007

Fingerprinting issue trivialized

The Nov. 27 article by Mark Schreiber, "Prints rejected, scribe accepted," described Schreiber's re-entry to Japan after a trip to Saipan that appears to have been made purely for the opportunity to write the piece. The tone and conclusion made light of what many view as a serious issue, and were touted...
JAPAN
Dec 4, 2007

Osaka governor, hit by scandal, lack of backers, won't seek a third term

OSAKA — Abandoned by her major backers, Osaka Gov. Fusae Ohta announced Monday she will not run for a third term in next month's election. The decision ends her career as Japan's first female governor and throws open an election likely to have national repercussions.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Dec 4, 2007

What is the most important issue facing foreigners in Japan right now?

BUSINESS
Dec 4, 2007

DoCoMo, KT eye Malaysia stake

NTT DoCoMo Inc. said Monday it has agreed with KT Freetel Co., South Korea's second-largest mobile-phone operator, to jointly invest $200 million in Malaysian wireless carrier U Mobile Sdn. to increase overseas earnings.
LIFE / Language
Dec 4, 2007

Translating full of judgment calls, compromises

Second of two parts
SOCCER
Dec 3, 2007

Becks superb in exhibition tour finale

WELLINGTON (AP) Even David Beckham was impressed with this virtuoso display.
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Dec 3, 2007

Wrathful gods bear down on sinful global economy

'W rath of Gods" is the title of an award-winning documentary directed by Jon Gustafsson, the Iceland-born filmmaker. It could equally be the title of a documentary about the state of the global economy as it stands in November 2008.
BASKETBALL / ONE-ON-ONE WITH ...
Dec 2, 2007

Niigata's Webb enjoys beef bowls, team camaraderie on, off court

The Japan Times will be featuring periodic interviews with players in the bj-league — Japan's first professional basketball circuit — which recently began its third season. Rodney Webb of the Niigata Albirex BB is the subject of this week's profile.
Reader Mail
Dec 2, 2007

Beautiful fruit that disappoints

Regarding Michael Hoffman's Nov. 25 article, "Taste buds of children destroyed by junk food" (a translation of a Sapio article): It's not just food additives that are destroying taste buds; Japan has a depressing lack of good produce available in stores.
Reader Mail
Dec 2, 2007

Homegrown emissions say a lot

Regarding the Nov. 22 article "Fukuda, Singh eye FTA deal by mid-'08": I believe that global warming and recent natural calamities worldwide have sensitized people to natural-gas emissions and pollution. Japan has been preaching to the rest of the world about natural-gas emissions, but it forgets itself:...
Reader Mail
Dec 2, 2007

Taboo subject takes lower priority

Should I assume that since no letters were published in response to the Nov. 14 Los Angeles Times article "Sumo killing casts spotlight on lack of autopsies" that The Japan Times didn't receive any reactions? It's easier to believe that the subject is taboo. If so, manslaughter may be observed as not...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Dec 2, 2007

Big-family sitcom, judo docu-drama, life makeover show

Teru Miyamoto's best-selling novel "Suisei Monogatari (Meteor Story)" (TBS, Monday, 9 p.m.) is brought to the small screen this week in a two-hour adaptation. The book focuses on a very large household containing 13 people and one dog, a beagle named Hook.
Japan Times
JAPAN / ALSO OUT THERE
Dec 1, 2007

Editors to single out buzzword of the year

Amplification of the Japanese language reaches its annual culmination every December when editors of Gendai Yougo no Kisochishiki (Encyclopedia of Contemporary Words) crown a word or a phrase as its "ryuko go taisho" — buzzword of the year.
BUSINESS
Dec 1, 2007

Unemployment rate at 4% for second month

The jobless rate held at 4 percent for a second month, suggesting a recovery in consumer spending may falter.

Longform

Eme-Ima Kitchen is one of over 10,000 kodomo shokudō in Japan. A term first used in 2012 to describe makeshift eateries offering free or cheap meals to disadvantaged kids, it now refers to a diverse range of individuals, groups and organizations working to provide not only food but a sense of belonging to both children and adults.
Japan’s ‘children’s cafeterias’ are booming — but is that a good thing?