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JAPAN
Sep 20, 2003

Koizumi, Bush agree over Iraq

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and U.S. President George W. Bush confirmed Friday that Japan and the United States will cooperate on the reconstruction of Iraq, government officials said.
EDITORIALS
Sep 18, 2003

One year after the Pyongyang summit

Wednesday marked the first anniversary of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's historic visit to North Korea, during which he met face to face with General Secretary Kim Jong Il. The meeting produced a joint declaration calling for, among other things, an early normalization of relations between the two...
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Sep 18, 2003

Who will be the CL (and Tigers) MVP?

Congratulations to the Hanshin Tigers for winning the 2003 Central League pennant. It took a while to wrap it up, but it's always better when a team clinches the flag at home as the Tigers did on Sept. 15, a full one month and three days prior to the Oct. 18 start of the only post-season play in this...
EDITORIALS
Sep 17, 2003

High hopes for Ms. Ogata and JICA

Japan has updated its policy guidelines for official development assistance -- concessionary aid to developing countries -- for the first time in 11 years. ODA has long been considered a key instrument of Japanese diplomacy, but its effectiveness as such has been admittedly less than satisfactory. The...
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Sep 17, 2003

Hand-made objects have a soul of their own

I've often been asked about my beginnings with Japanese pottery and how I got so deeply interested in the subject. Mostly, it was a philosophical and intuitive introduction that just struck a chord within me, as well as topics associated with Zen and the present. As with most inspiring art, words often...
JAPAN
Sep 15, 2003

LDP candidates want military flexibility

All four candidates in the Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election said Sunday that Japan should be able to exercise the right of collective defense, a controversial issue related to the war-renouncing Constitution.
JAPAN
Sep 14, 2003

LDP candidates all favor revisions to Constitution

The four candidates for the presidency of the governing Liberal Democratic Party each appeared positive Saturday about the possibility of revising the war-renouncing Article 9 of Japan's Constitution.
MORE SPORTS
Sep 14, 2003

Sungoliath kicks off Top League with 54-31 victory

The new Top League may have been established to ensure the next generation of Japanese rugby players can compete on the world stage and Hirotoki Onozawa certainly made his mark with four tries -- but the party that marked the launch of the new league was for a time gate-crashed by some of the veterans...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 14, 2003

That obscure object of trivial pursuits

Last week, I read a review of the new Sofia Coppola movie, "Lost in Translation," on the Web. The movie, which was received enthusiastically at the Venice Film Festival, is about two Americans who strike up a friendship in Tokyo, and the writer referred in passing to the "unfathomable craziness of [Japanese]...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Sep 13, 2003

Marco Crivelli

Marco Crivelli has a guiding principle that he applies to personal relationships and to wider circles of society. He said: "It is very rewarding to give something back to your parents. And since we are so lucky, I have always wanted to do something for society." Here in Tokyo, he is chairman of the Foreign...
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Sep 11, 2003

Ichiro needs to learn how to pace himself

It has been painful to watch, but predictable.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Sep 11, 2003

Dolphins: To kill them or let them be

Japanese, just like anybody else, love dolphins.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 10, 2003

Music of the spheres

Acid Mothers Temple and the Melting Paraiso U.F.O. is arguably one of the most influential Japanese bands in the world at this moment.
EDITORIALS
Sep 8, 2003

Moving too fast on missile defense

The Defense Agency's plan to build a missile-defense system is causing much controversy here. The basic question is whether such a system is urgently needed and whether it is suitable for ensuring the peace and security of Japan. The question should be addressed very carefully from various angles. The...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / FUZZY LOGIC
Sep 7, 2003

Boiled alive . . . all for rock 'n' roll

It's hitting 40 degrees in the concrete badlands of Odaiba and the asphalt beneath our feet is attaining the viscosity of quicksand. We wanna run for cover, but this stuff sucks at your sneakers and makes the beer tent slower to get to. The only sea breeze today is the cocktail mixed by the bartender,...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Sep 7, 2003

For Barry Eisler, when it rains, it pours

In Tokyo this month to promote his latest work and research story ideas, Barry Eisler shares his thoughts on the art of fiction -- and martial arts.
BUSINESS
Sep 6, 2003

Foreign exchange reserves down in August

Japan held $555.09 billion in foreign exchange reserves at the end of August, down $1.75 billion from a month earlier for the first decline in nine months, the Finance Ministry said Friday.
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
Sep 4, 2003

Labrador tea and forests to walk on

During the heat of a Honshu summer it is hard to imagine that there are hints of tundra here, or that refreshing tea might come from an unusual source. However, the alpine regions of high-altitude Japan, and small areas of the cool, fog-shaded regions closer to sea level in southeast Hokkaido, not only...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 3, 2003

The Plan finally disbands, but the dialogue continues

Last January, The Dismemberment Plan announced that after 10 years, four well-received albums and countless tours that earned them a reputation for being one of the most consistently exciting live acts on the planet they were calling it quits.
JAPAN
Sep 2, 2003

The heat was off this summer across the nation

The average summer temperature in the Tohoku region this year was the third lowest since the end of World War II, and most other parts of the country also saw less sunshine and more rain.
JAPAN / AFTER 2 1/2 YEARS
Sep 2, 2003

Koizumi's failings linked to inflexible fiscal policy

Some economists compare it to trying to lose weight by fasting when the real solution is exercise, while others talk about repairing an airplane's altimeter when it's the engine that needs attention.
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Sep 1, 2003

Surge in JGB issuance proves need for Koizumi reform drive

The preliminary GDP figures for the latest quarter, released Aug. 12, show that Japan's economy grew at an annualized rate of 2.3 percent in the April-June period. The economy is on a continuing uptrend, with GDP having expanded six quarters in a row since the January-March period of last year.
COMMENTARY
Sep 1, 2003

Merger of opposition parties may bring grand reform era

On July 24, lawmakers of the Democratic Party of Japan and the Liberal Party approved an agreement for the two opposition parties to merge before the end of September. Some pundits criticized the scheduled merger as "unprincipled," but I disagree. I believe it has major significance for the nation.
EDITORIALS
Aug 31, 2003

A hopeful start

The much-heralded six-nation talks in Beijing ended Friday without any specific progress on North Korea's nuclear weapons development. But all parties agreed to resolve the issue peacefully while addressing Pyongyang's security concerns. Japan and North Korea reached no explicit agreement on the abduction...
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Aug 29, 2003

Zico should keep perspective

The question on everyone's lips after Japan's resounding 3-0 thrashing of a second-string Nigerian team, was has Japan turned the corner and will Zico now be given the elbow room he has so craved in order to take the national team to a new level?
JAPAN
Aug 28, 2003

Environment panel calls for carbon tax in 2005

A government advisory panel tasked with studying environmental taxes adopted a proposal Wednesday for the introduction of a carbon levy by as early as 2005.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 23, 2003

Bringing Alberto Fujimori to justice

Alberto Fujimori, Radovan Karadzic, Augusto Pinochet, Saddam Hussein, George W. Bush and Tony Blair all share a common, though dubious, distinction. All these heads or former heads of state have been charged with crimes against humanity.

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