Japan

Stories 1521 - 1540 | << Prev   Next >>

Lay Judges to Join Bench in Japan
Lay Judges
to Join Bench
in Japan
Aug 25, 2007 8:38 AM CDT

Lay Judges to Join Bench in Japan

Will citizens temper Japan's courts, where 99.9% are found guilty?

(Newser) - Japan will give citizens the gavel in an effort to counteract its judicial system’s prejudice for presuming guilt. Six citizens and three trained jurists will sit on criminal cases, and the majority will rule, Bloomberg reports. The new system follows a clamor of criticism about forced confessions, inhumane treatment...

Historian Begs to Differ With the Decider

Says Bush keeps misquoting him on post-war Japan

(Newser) - A historian quoted by President Bush yesterday said his words were misused in a “perverse” attempt to defend the Iraq War, Politico reports. At issue is John Dower's statement in a 1999 book that if naysayers had had their way, the fledgling democracy in Japan after WWII “would...

Arm Wrestling Game Breaks Japanese Arms

After three fractures, company blames "overexcited" players

(Newser) - Atlus Co. will remove all 150 of its "Arm Spirit" arm wrestling games from Japanese arcades after three broken arms have been reported. The company claims the recall is only a precaution, insisting that the machine isn't really that strong. "Even women should be able to beat it,...

Jet Catches Fire in Japan; Passengers, Crew Escape

Plane's engine exploded; cause unknown

(Newser) - A jet burst into flames after landing in Okinawa today, moments after all 165 people onboard escaped. The China Airlines plane skidded while landing on arrival from Taipei, and its left engine exploded shortly afterward. The cause of the fire is unknown, the AP reports. Firefighters took an hour to...

Asian Markets Soar After Fed's Rate Cut

Stocks see biggest jump in 5 years as panic gives way to optimism

(Newser) - The global equities sell-off ground to a halt today as Asian stocks had their biggest gains in five years. Responding to Friday’s cut in the US Federal Reserve’s discount rate, Japan’s Nikkei 225, Hong Kong's Hang Seng and South Korea's Kospi indexes all saw huge gains as...

Credit Fears Sink Asian Markets
Credit Fears Sink Asian Markets
Aug 15, 2007 3:08 AM CDT

Credit Fears Sink Asian Markets

Nikkei drops as subprime crisis rocks world

(Newser) - Global credit turmoil rocked Asian markets today, pushing Japan’s Nikkei to 2007 lows, as US and Canadian firms struggled to meet payments and Wal-Mart and Swiss Bank UBS released disappointing forecasts. Through it all the Yen rose, as risk-averse investors turned to some safe havens in Japan, Reuters reports.

Japan Pumps Cash Into Market
Japan Pumps Cash Into Market
Aug 13, 2007 12:16 AM CDT

Japan Pumps Cash Into Market

Interest rate hikes unlikely

(Newser) - The Bank of Japan pumped $5.1 billion into the Japanese financial system today as the  global credit crunch continued to ripple through the Asian markets, Bloomberg reports. Adding to the jitters, Japan's growth is slowing more markedly than economists predicted; the world's second-largest economy expanded by only 0.5%...

Big Boys Do Cry
Big Boys
Do Cry
Aug 11, 2007 4:03 PM CDT

Big Boys Do Cry

Sumo wrestler in tears after Japanese association won't let him go home

(Newser) - Japan's Sumo Association forbid a Mongolian wrestler from returning home after the ponderous athlete was in tears—diagnosed with a near breakdown. The organization, which suspended defending champion Asashoryu from two tournaments, said it wants the bawling behemoth to seek treatment at a Japanese hospital, against his doctor’s orders...

Toyota Banks Best-Ever Quarter
Toyota Banks Best-Ever Quarter
Aug 3, 2007 2:27 PM CDT

Toyota Banks Best-Ever Quarter

Good yen rate bolsters $4B quarter

(Newser) - Toyota reported its highest quarterly earnings ever today after profits surged 32% to $4.1 billion due to booming sales and favorable exchange rates for the yen. Revenue rose $54 billion, up 16% compared to the same quarter last year, and the Japanese giant sold 2.16 million cars, an...

Move Over, Yogi, and Make Room for Ichiro

Seattle slugger auditions for 'Lost in Translation'

(Newser) - Seattle Mariners star Ichiro Suzuki says some weird stuff, from reporting conversations with his dog to odd metaphors about bowling. Slate studies the Japanese import's bons mots and suggests that Suzuki may be unused to the American media's unending locker room interviews. Or perhaps, one reporter says, he's trying to...

Japanese PM Axes Minister, Clings to Job

Abe attempts to root out image of corruption as position remains tenuous

(Newser) - Embattled Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, whose party suffered a devastating election loss this past weekend, fired his scandal-ridden agriculture minister today in an effort to clean up his administration's image. But Abe still refuses to step down. "I take the results of the election seriously," he said....

New Party in Japan Prompts US Anxiety

Election winners threaten to veto anti-terror measures

(Newser) - The ruling party’s losses in Japanese elections last week are causing worry in the White House and the Pentagon, says the Financial Times. An anti-terror measure that that has allowed Japanese ships to refuel American vessels is set to expire in November, and the Democratic Party of Japan is...

Drinking Coffee May Fight Colon Cancer

Japanese study finds benefits of 3 cups a day apply only to women

(Newser) - Drinking three or more cups of coffee a day can cut the risk of colon cancer in half—but the benefit manifests itself only in women. What's more, Reuters reports, the research was conducted in Japan, where men drink and smoke so much that scientists had trouble controlling for those...

Japanese PM Refuses to Pack It In
Japanese PM Refuses to
Pack It In
Jul 30, 2007 4:59 AM CDT

Japanese PM Refuses to Pack It In

After crushing defeat, Shinzo Abe holds on as political gridlock looms

(Newser) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will keep his job despite a humiliating defeat for his ruling party in Sunday's election, party officials said today. Only 10 months into his term, Abe and his Liberal Democratic Party lost their majority as voters reacted to a series of government scandals. Now government...

Japan Election Results Spell Big Trouble for PM

Party loses majority in upper house; Abe insists he won't resign

(Newser) - Shinzo Abe's scandal-plagued administration suffered a possible death blow today as his coalition lost its majority in the upper house of the Japanese parliament, but the beleaguered PM vowed to remain on the job. Although Abe's Liberal Democratic Party dominates the lower chamber, the opposition can stall legislation in the...

Japan's Defense Force Goes on the Offense

Neighbors getting nervous; US applauds shows of might

(Newser) - Japan has been chipping away at a post-war rule that it's Self-Defense Force can only act, well, defensively. Tokyo recently completed a live-bomb training run on a small island near Guam, the Times reports, stirring tremors among its wary neighbors, but drawing support from a US eager for a powerful...

Meat Can be Tough on the Environment

Steaks do more damage than driving; cow farts also a problem

(Newser) - Four average-sized steaks generate as much greenhouse gas as an ordinary car traveling for 3 hours at 50mph. The meat also chews up 169 megajoules of energy, enough to light a 100-watt bulb for 20 days. These were among the findings of Japanese scientists investigating the effects of beef production...

Quake Damage Halts Auto Assembly Lines

Japanese car makers hit by damage to key suppliers

(Newser) - Japanese auto makers known for their lean inventories have had to shut down assembly lines for want of parts in the wake of Monday's earthquake. A key supplier of transmission and engine components was damaged in the 6.8-magnitude quake. Toyota, Nissan and Mitsubishi have all halted production at some...

Quake Triggers Wave of Nuke Plant Fears

Japanese disaster boosts movement for tighter control of power sources

(Newser) - New fears about the safety of nuclear power are rattling Japan after radioactive material leaked from a reactor damaged in this week's magnitude 6.8 earthquake. Plants must be built to withstand a 6.5, but stronger quakes are common on the Pacific Rim, and this year all 12 of...

Japanese Don't Want Their Day in Court

Traditional values clash with forthcoming jury-style system

(Newser) - Japan is switching to a jury-style system in 2009, but according to polls, 80% of Japanese don't want to serve. The new system clashes with traditional Japanese values, including deferral to authority and a reluctance to argue in public. To help win over the public, mock trials are being held...

Stories 1521 - 1540 | << Prev   Next >>