Yomiuri Shimbun/Daily Yomiuri articles from December 2008, page 4

Yomiuri Shimbun/Daily Yomiuri archives from December 2008

About 1,000 bridges in dangerous condition.
December 19, 2008... About 1,000 bridges in dangerous condition Yomiuri Nearly 1,000 bridges under the jurisdiction of local governments are in a dangerous condition, an inspection by the Construction and Transport Ministry has revealed. The...

EDITORIAL / Textbook move could see new chapter in educati.
December 19, 2008... EDITORIAL / Textbook move could see new chapter in education Yomiuri Now that a policy to boost the content of school textbooks is certain to be adopted, we hope the move will improve the academic abilities of schoolchildren and...

FRESH PERSPECTIVE / Year grows short; so does my temper.
December 19, 2008... FRESH PERSPECTIVE / Year grows short; so does my temper Yomiuri Dear Fresh Perspective: Although I'm grateful to have a job in these uncertain times, I'm finding it stressful lately as everyone is even busier than usual with the...

FRESH PERSPECTIVE / Apology gesture was misinterpreted.
December 19, 2008... FRESH PERSPECTIVE / Apology gesture was misinterpreted Yomiuri Dear Fresh Perspective: I love showing guests around Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, because of its small-town atmosphere, temples, woods and beaches. Recently, I...

Toshio Shibata's landscape.
December 19, 2008... Toshio Shibata's landscape Robert Reed / Special to The Daily Yomiuri Yomiuri It has been more than 30 years since Toshio Shibata turned to photography after earning a master's degree from the oil painting department of elite...

Tiny, tasty Xmas presents from the heart.
December 19, 2008... Tiny, tasty Xmas presents from the heart Ikuko Kitagawa / Daily Yomiuri Staff Writer Yomiuri Christmas is coming. Every year, I used to eat a cake topped with whipped cream, a candy Santa and a piece of chocolate with icing that...

Gift-wrapping made simple: From DIY to professional servic.
December 19, 2008... Gift-wrapping made simple: From DIY to professional services Kumi Matsumaru / Daily Yomiuri Staff Writing Yomiuri "One of the most important things to remember when wrapping a gift is that you should choose a look based on the...

Watch out: 'Mirrors' have sharp edges.
December 19, 2008... Watch out: 'Mirrors' have sharp edges Tom Baker / Daily Yomiuri Staff Writer Yomiuri Mirrors 4 stars out of five Dir: Alexandre Aja Cast: Kiefer Sutherland, Paula Patton, Cameron Boyce, Mary Beth Peil Birds...

VIEW FROM THE SOFA.
December 19, 2008... VIEW FROM THE SOFA Stuart Galbraith IV / Special to The Daily Yomiuri Yomiuri A curiously North American ritual is the annual viewing of holiday-themed TV specials. This has been a tradition for so long, youngsters who first...

TELEVIEWS / Meri Kurisumasu to all, and to all a strange n.
December 19, 2008... TELEVIEWS / Meri Kurisumasu to all, and to all a strange night Wm. Penn / Daily Yomiuri Columnist Yomiuri Meri-Kurisumasu! Meri-Kurisumasu! The longer I live in Japan the more I appreciate the creative genius of the katakana...

The stuff that screams are made of.
December 19, 2008... The stuff that screams are made of Ikuko Kitagawa / Daily Yomiuri Staff Writer Yomiuri "In dreams, anything can happen. The events that occur within them broaden our imagination," says Ryuhei Matsuda, star of the new film Akumu...

MOVIE ROUNDUP.
December 19, 2008... MOVIE ROUNDUP Yomiuri K-20: Kaijin Niju Menso Den: Takeshi Kaneshiro tackles an action role about popular Japanese dark hero Kaijin Niju Menso, a professional thief who steals art and antiques from the rich. Heikichi (Kaneshiro), a...

NATURE IN SHORT / As the sun sets in winter, hooting owls.
December 19, 2008... NATURE IN SHORT / As the sun sets in winter, hooting owls make Japan a magical place Kevin Short / Daily Yomiuri Columnist Yomiuri Past the midpoint of December, the Gregorian year is rapidly drawing to a close. The traditional...

SYMPOSIUM: THE NEW U.S. PRESIDENT / Time for change in Jap.
December 19, 2008... SYMPOSIUM: THE NEW U.S. PRESIDENT / Time for change in Japan-U.S. relations Yomiuri KYOTO KYOTO--A symposium to discuss Japan-U.S. relations under the administration of President-elect Barack Obama was recently held at Kyoto...

Miura inks 3-year deal The Daily Yomiuri.
December 19, 2008... Miura inks 3-year deal The Daily Yomiuri The Daily Yomiuri Yomiuri BayStars ace Daisuke Miura, who spurned an offer to sign with the Hanshin Tigers to return to Yokohama, signed a three-year deal on Thursday worth about 900...

Man Utd too strong for Gamba.
December 19, 2008... Man Utd too strong for Gamba Shintaro Kano / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri YOKOHAMA--Akira Nishino had said he wouldn't change the attacking style of Gamba Osaka even against Manchester United, and the manager meant it. ...

Van der Sar plays the hero again.
December 19, 2008... Van der Sar plays the hero again James Hardy / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri YOKOHAMA--Edwin Van der Sar's star turn in a penalty shootout handed Manchester United the European Cup. According to Alex Ferguson, his...

34% of Japanese think Japan-U.S. ties good.
December 18, 2008... 34% of Japanese think Japan-U.S. ties good Yomiuri A decreasing number of Japanese think Japan-U.S. relations are good, a new Yomiuri Shimbun/Gallup survey shows, with just one-third of respondents describing relations as positive....

Online sale of pills in spotlight / 19-year-old used sedat.
December 18, 2008... Online sale of pills in spotlight / 19-year-old used sedative bought via Internet in suicide attempt Yomiuri A youth used sedative pills bought online from a pharmacy in Kitakyushu in a suicide attempt in 2006 when he was 19 years...

Papers sent on principal, teacher over boy's death.
December 18, 2008... Papers sent on principal, teacher over boy's death Yomiuri The Metropolitan Police Department on Wednesday sent papers to prosecutors on a case involving a school principal and a teacher in connection with the death of a 12-year-old...

Comic begins quest to run, sail the globe.
December 18, 2008... Comic begins quest to run, sail the globe Yomiuri OSAKA OSAKA--Popular comedian Hazama Kanpei set off on a voyage from Osaka on Wednesday in which he will run and sail around the world. Hazama, 59, plans to travel 36,000...

Special zone college stops accepting applicants.
December 18, 2008... Special zone college stops accepting applicants Yomiuri OSAKA OSAKA--The LCA Institute of Business, established by a joint-stock firm in a government-designated special zone for structural reform, will not be accepting...

Consumers warned over tree-planting scam.
December 18, 2008... Consumers warned over tree-planting scam Yomiuri OSAKA OSAKA--Since April last year, local consumer affairs bureaus in five prefectures in the Kansai region have received about 50 inquiries regarding potentially unscrupulous...

Children's painting foretells future of Sumida Ward.
December 18, 2008... Children's painting foretells future of Sumida Ward Yomiuri A picture of a tower that strongly resembles the Tokyo Sky Tree, under construction in Sumida Ward, Tokyo, was drawn by children 29 years ago, it has been learned. The image...

Firms, labor unions on collision course.
December 18, 2008... Firms, labor unions on collision course Sachio Nikaido and Katsuki Honda / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers Yomiuri Next year's spring labor-management negotiations, known as the shunto, likely will be more confrontational than in...

Secure jobs before demanding pay hikes.
December 18, 2008... Secure jobs before demanding pay hikes Yomiuri Although Rengo called for uniform basic pay hikes, there was a mixed reaction among individual labor unions. A senior labor union member in a small Tokyo-based company expressed...

Full funding sought for services for disabled.
December 18, 2008... Full funding sought for services for disabled Yomiuri The ruling parties will submit a bill requiring the government to fully fund welfare services for people with disabilities, a change from the current system requiring users to pay...

Crisis looms for Nishijin textile industry.
December 18, 2008... Crisis looms for Nishijin textile industry Yomiuri KYOTO KYOTO--Kyoto's Nishijin woven textile industry is concerned it may not be able to stay in business as one of three major power loom maintenance firms is closing and no new...

Lay judge system explained.
December 18, 2008... Lay judge system explained Yomiuri District public prosectors offices nationwide are running frequent explanatory sessions to educate the public on how the lay judge system, which is set to start in May, will work. The campaign...

200 clubs closing at Tokyo middle schools each yr.
December 18, 2008... 200 clubs closing at Tokyo middle schools each yr Yomiuri More than 200 clubs at about 640 public middle schools in Tokyo have been terminated or have suspended their activities in recent years due to such reasons as changes in...

EDITORIAL / Fed entering uncharted territory in crisis fig.
December 18, 2008... EDITORIAL / Fed entering uncharted territory in crisis fight Yomiuri The U.S. Federal Reserve Board finally decided Tuesday to adopt a zero-interest-rate policy. It also announced the introduction of a policy of quantitative...

Educational Renaissance / Learning physics by remote contr.
December 18, 2008... Educational Renaissance / Learning physics by remote control Mina Matsumoto / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer Yomiuri SAPPORO The following are excerpts from The Yomiuri Shimbun's Educational Renaissance series. This part of...

Bulletin Board.
December 18, 2008... Bulletin Board Yomiuri JALT West Tokyo chapter to host micro-conference The West Tokyo chapter of the Japan Association for Language Teaching will host a micro-conference titled "Teaching English to Young Learners: Paving the...

Vocabulary is power.
December 18, 2008... Vocabulary is power Lynn Stafford-Yilmaz / Special to The Daily Yomiuri Yomiuri In the last column (Nov. 20), we looked at the TOEFL test. This week, we turn to the TOEIC test. We will look at Part VI, Text Completion. We will...

Puppeteering home gets back to roots.
December 18, 2008... Puppeteering home gets back to roots Kiyomi Arai Daily Yomiuri Staff Writer Yomiuri NISHINOMIYA, Hyogo--A new puppet theater here is introducing local residents to the charms of the traditional entertainment and helping to...

Beethoven's 9th symphony strikes universal chord.
December 18, 2008... Beethoven's 9th symphony strikes universal chord Kahori Sakane Daily Yomiuri Staff Writer Yomiuri OSAKA OSAKA--Almost every day in December, Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 is performed somewhere in Japan, a curious phenomenon of...

Dragons ink 2 more to 5-year deals.
December 18, 2008... Dragons ink 2 more to 5-year deals Yomiuri The Chunichi Dragons locked in two more starters for five years. Third baseman Masahiko Morino and second baseman Masahiro Araki, both eligible for free agency, each re-signed Wednesday...

Fergie calls on veterans to handle Gamba.
December 18, 2008... Fergie calls on veterans to handle Gamba Shintaro Kano / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri YOKOHAMA Alex Ferguson will turn to the experience and intelligence of the Toyota Cup-winning trio of Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and...

Quito books spot in final.
December 18, 2008... Quito books spot in final Shintaro Kano / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri Liga de Quito validated its place in the FIFA Club World Cup as the South American champions reached the final with a clinical 2-0 victory over...

Panel eyes school phone ban / Government body suggests stu.
December 17, 2008... Panel eyes school phone ban / Government body suggests students leave mobiles at home Yomiuri A government education panel has proposed a ban, in principle, on primary and middle school students taking cell phones to school, it has...

Tottori Pref. test scores ordinance nears final OK.
December 17, 2008... Tottori Pref. test scores ordinance nears final OK Yomiuri TOTTORI TOTTORI--A Tottori Prefectural Assembly committee on Tuesday passed a revision of an ordinance that releases results of nationwide achievement examinations by...

Elderly woman, daughter hit, killed by train.
December 17, 2008... Elderly woman, daughter hit, killed by train Yomiuri SAITAMA SAITAMA--A senile 93-year-old woman and her 65-year-old daughter were fatally hit by a train at a level crossing in Kasukabe, Saitama Prefecture, at about 3:20 p.m....

Govt instructs all ministries to shift to open tendering.
December 17, 2008... Govt instructs all ministries to shift to open tendering Yomiuri Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Kunio Hatoyama on Tuesday instructed all ministries and other central government entities to shift from discretionary...

Students rescue man who fell onto rails.
December 17, 2008... Students rescue man who fell onto rails Yomiuri A dramatic rescue occurred at JR Komagome Station on Saturday, when a man who is nearly blind fell from the station platform and was pulled to safety by three high school boys just...

Child care firm fails to submit subsidy reports.
December 17, 2008... Child care firm fails to submit subsidy reports Yomiuri SAITAMA--A Tokyo-based company that suddenly closed down its 26 child care facilities in Tokyo and neighboring prefectures in late October has failed to submit performance...

Govt finds 60 billion yen for relaxing welfare cuts.
December 17, 2008... Govt finds 60 billion yen for relaxing welfare cuts Yomiuri The government and the ruling coalition parties, aiming to minimize cutbacks in social security spending growth for fiscal 2009--currently set at 220 billion yen--agreed...

Subpanel undecided on adulthood at 18.
December 17, 2008... Subpanel undecided on adulthood at 18 Yomiuri A Legislative Council subpanel has failed to reach a conclusion on lowering the legal age of majority to 18 years old from the current 20, officials said Tuesday. The subpanel has...

IN THE NEWS / Photojournalist protests rape with pictures.
December 17, 2008... IN THE NEWS / Photojournalist protests rape with pictures of victims Mihoko Tsukino / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer Yomiuri Nobuko Oyabu has been taking and exhibiting photographs of sex crime victims since 2001, hoping they...

NPA to ease test burdens on elderly drivers.
December 17, 2008... NPA to ease test burdens on elderly drivers Yomiuri The National Police Agency plans to drastically reduce the requirements for elderly motorists to renew their driver's license as long as their physical condition is deemed...

Musings / Dec. 16, 2008.
December 17, 2008... Musings / Dec. 16, 2008 Yomiuri The following is a translation of the Henshu Techo column from The Yomiuri Shimbun's Dec. 16 issue. * * * I wrote down two poems after reading in September The Yomiuri Shimbun's weekly column...

Green laws planned for sea / National park changes eyed to.
December 17, 2008... Green laws planned for sea / National park changes eyed to protect marine environment Yomiuri Areas containing such precious natural features as coral reefs and wetlands are to be designated as national marine parks as part of the...

POLITICAL PULSE / Aso strange or man of change?
December 17, 2008... POLITICAL PULSE / Aso strange or man of change? Koichi Akaza Yomiuri The kanji character chosen to symbolize this year is one pronounced "hen," meaning "change." "Change" was the byword used by U.S. President-elect Barack...

Companies hit by high yen, tightened lending.
December 17, 2008... Companies hit by high yen, tightened lending Tetsushi Onoda and Kunihiko Yasue / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers Yomiuri The nation's economy has been dealt a severe blow by the current global recession. The Bank of Japan's...

EDITORIAL / Deepen debate on cutting majority age.
December 17, 2008... EDITORIAL / Deepen debate on cutting majority age Yomiuri Many countries in the world set the legal age of adulthood together with the voting age at 18. This is not to say that young people in Japan are especially immature, compared...

A STUDY OF BRANDS / Omega a watchword in traditional excel.
December 17, 2008... A STUDY OF BRANDS / Omega a watchword in traditional excellence Yomiuri Omega, the 24th and last letter of the Greek alphabet, also means the ultimate point. True to its Greek meaning, Swiss watchmaker Omega has won a loyal following...

2010 Tokyo Marathon slated for Feb. 28.
December 17, 2008... 2010 Tokyo Marathon slated for Feb. 28 Yomiuri The 2010 Tokyo Marathon is scheduled for Feb. 28, the Tokyo metropolitan government and the Japan Association of Athletics Federations (JAAF) announced Monday. The event will take...

JLPGA sees 3 events cut in '09 tour schedule.
December 17, 2008... JLPGA sees 3 events cut in '09 tour schedule Yomiuri The worldwide economic slump has reached the Japan women's golf tour. The Japan LPGA announced next season's schedule on Tuesday, with the number of tournaments cut by three...

SCRUM DOWN: Tours would get crowds abuzzing.
December 17, 2008... SCRUM DOWN: Tours would get crowds abuzzing Rich Freeman / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri Takuro Miuchi has a number of claims to fame, besides having captained Japan at the last two Rugby World Cups. The 33-year won a...

Unsung Quito looking to crash CWC party.
December 17, 2008... Unsung Quito looking to crash CWC party Shintaro Kano / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri With a paltry payroll of 6 million dollars, Liga de Quito was never tipped to win the Copa Libertadores, but the Ecuadorian side beheaded...

Ferguson has sights set on world title.
December 17, 2008... Ferguson has sights set on world title James Hardy / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri YOKOHAMA Regardless of what some sections of the British media say, Alex Ferguson thinks Manchester United are onto a good thing at the...

Business confidence dives 21 pts / Biggest Tankan tumble s.
December 16, 2008... Business confidence dives 21 pts / Biggest Tankan tumble since 1974 oil shock Yomiuri Domestic business sentiment has declined to the lowest level in nearly seven years among major manufacturers, more evidence that the national...

Ichiro, Matsuzaka head list of Japan's WBC candidates.
December 16, 2008... Ichiro, Matsuzaka head list of Japan's WBC candidates Ken Marantz Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki and Boston Red Sox right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka were among seven major leaguers...

Suspect held 5-yr-old girl 'underwater in bathtub'.
December 16, 2008... Suspect held 5-yr-old girl 'underwater in bathtub' Yomiuri CHIBA CHIBA--Ryo Katsuki, 21, who has been arrested on suspicion of abandoning the body of 5-year-old Yukimaro Narita in Togane, Chiba Prefecture, told investigators she...

Work centers, Tokyo govt offer emergency advice to jobless.
December 16, 2008... Work centers, Tokyo govt offer emergency advice to jobless Yomiuri In an effort to help victims of the deteriorating employment situation, the 187 Hello Work job placement centers in the nation on Monday started offering dispatch...

25 mil. yen subsidies up in smoke / Local govts unlikely t.
December 16, 2008... 25 mil. yen subsidies up in smoke / Local govts unlikely to recoup fundsCopyright 2008 The Daily Yomiuri

'Bullet' in license plate said likely USMC ammo.
December 16, 2008... 'Bullet' in license plate said likely USMC ammo Yomiuri NAHA NAHA--A piece of metal that appears to be a rifle bullet was found embedded in a license plate of a car parked in the garage of a male company employee in Kincho,...

Suit filed over death of man tossed in air.
December 16, 2008... Suit filed over death of man tossed in air Yomiuri OTSU OTSU--The bereaved family of a 60-year-old company employee who died in September from serious injuries suffered when he was tossed into the air by his colleagues in...

Can you make a rabbit out of an apple?--35% of parents can.
December 16, 2008... Can you make a rabbit out of an apple?--35% of parents can't Yomiuri About 35 percent of parents in their 20s, 30s and 40s do not know how to make usagi ringo (rabbit apple), a piece of an apple with its skin peeled into the shape of...

Cracks show in largest LDP faction.
December 16, 2008... Cracks show in largest LDP faction Yomiuri The confrontation between former Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura and Hidenao Nakagawa, former secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party, is rocking the party's largest...

Japan, China, ROK ties enter new phase.
December 16, 2008... Japan, China, ROK ties enter new phase Kakuchi Funatsuki and Takeshi Endo / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers Yomiuri Saturday's summit meeting of Japan, China and South Korea held in Dazaifu, Fukuoka Prefecture, came about due to...

Seismic refits too much for old N-plants.
December 16, 2008... Seismic refits too much for old N-plants Yomiuri NAGOYA NAGOYA--Chubu Electric Power Co.'s plan to decommission two long-suspended nuclear reactors and build a new reactor in their place at its Hamaoka power station is mainly...

ECONOMIC FORUM / Ruling camp's rifts may grow / Tax disput.
December 16, 2008... ECONOMIC FORUM / Ruling camp's rifts may grow / Tax disputes expose differences within party, ruling coalition Masaki Masuda Yomiuri Both the government and the ruling bloc as a whole now seem devoid of a solid base from which...

EDITORIAL / Economy's downhill slide picking up speed.
December 16, 2008... EDITORIAL / Economy's downhill slide picking up speed Yomiuri The nation's economy has been deteriorating at surprising speed. The government and the Bank of Japan must employ all available measures to prevent the economy from...

Learning what hip hop's all about.
December 16, 2008... Learning what hip hop's all about Sawa Kurotani / Special to The Daily Yomiuri Yomiuri I'll begin with a confession: I don't get hip hop. I don't like its often masculinist contents, I don't care for its fashion and other...

Sungoliath capitalize on dubious call.
December 16, 2008... Sungoliath capitalize on dubious call Rich Freeman / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri Sunday was a mixed day for the Top League's two Fuchu-based teams. Suntory Sungoliath made the most of a controversial call by referee...

Gamba earns clash with Man U.
December 16, 2008... Gamba earns clash with Man U Shintaro Kano / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri Adelaide United proved to be a much tougher proposition for Gamba Osaka on Sunday evening, but in the end, Akira Nishino's men reminded their...

Kitajima wins Japan Sports GP.
December 16, 2008... Kitajima wins Japan Sports GP The Yomiuri Shimbun Yomiuri Double Olympic gold medalist swimmer Kosuke Kitajima was named the winner of the Grand Prix of the 58th Japan Sports Awards on Monday. Kitajima, who became the first...

Blatter: FIFA not feeling money pinch.
December 16, 2008... Blatter: FIFA not feeling money pinch Shintaro Kano / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri FIFA president Sepp Blatter said Monday that world soccer's governing body remains invincible to the financial storm that has devastated...

Hara high on team concept.
December 16, 2008... Hara high on team concept Ken Marantz / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter Yomiuri They may have the highest profiles and biggest salaries of the players he will be managing, but Japan skipper Tatsunori Hara considers Japan's major...

Takamatsuzuka murals damaged for 3rd time.
December 14, 2008... Takamatsuzuka murals damaged for 3rd time Yomiuri The Cultural Affairs Agency has said that a small section of a colorful mural removed from the Takamatsuzuka ancient tomb in Asukamura, Nara Prefecture, for restoration work was...

Judicial scrivener faces tax evasion charge.
December 14, 2008... Judicial scrivener faces tax evasion charge Yomiuri The Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau has filed a complaint with the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office against a judicial scrivener for allegedly evading tax of 90 million yen...

Pupils told to take part in hot classroom test.
December 14, 2008... Pupils told to take part in hot classroom test Yomiuri NAGASAKI NAGASAKI--Thirty-seven students were made to sit in a classroom with the windows closed and only electric fans working in the height of summer in a "human...

Livedoor arm hid earnings in Swiss bank account.
December 14, 2008... Livedoor arm hid earnings in Swiss bank account Yomiuri Tax authorities have ordered a subsidiary of Livedoor Co. to pay penalty taxes on about 3.51 billion yen in undeclared income, including funds held in a private Swiss bank...

Medical mishap families vilified / Online postings slander.
December 14, 2008... Medical mishap families vilified / Online postings slander victims, kin in cases involving indicted doctors Yomiuri Families of people who died in medical mishaps over which the doctors involved were indicted have been defamed on...