Japan

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High-Tech Japan Struggles to Ditch Floppy Disks

Nation's digital minister pledges to get rid of them in government use

(Newser) - Japan may be known for its tech savvy, but government offices still use the humble floppy disk for data storage. As a result, the nation's digital minister has announced that he is declaring "war" on the technology, which first surfaced in the 1960s, reports the Sydney Morning Herald ...

Japan Wants Young People to Drink More Booze

Tax agency is worried about falling revenue

(Newser) - Japan's national tax agency is trying to tackle a decline in revenue by persuading young people to change their sober ways. Younger people in Japan aren't drinking as much as previous generations did, and so the tax agency has launched a competition to find ways to boost alcohol...

Swimmers in Japan Told to Be Wary of Dolphins

Officials have counted 17 dolphin attacks on three beaches this summer

(Newser) - Some claim it’s the work of a lone “rampaging” dolphin, but that has yet to be proven. What’s known is that there has been a string of dolphin attacks this summer at three beaches in Japan’s Fukui prefecture, which faces the Sea of Japan. Per the...

Attacks Continue After Japanese Monkey Killed

At least 56 people have now been injured by macaques in Yamaguchi

(Newser) - There's one less monkey terrorizing Yamaguchi, Japan , but the problem isn't solved. One of a group of Japanese macaques thought to be responsible for attacks on 56 people in recent weeks was euthanized Tuesday after it was found on the grounds of a high school. The male simian,...

Japanese City Averaging 2.4 Monkey Attacks Per Day

At least 45 people have been bitten or scratched in Yamaguchi

(Newser) - Update: A Japanese city thought it had a problem with one wild monkey. Now, however, it appears the problem is wild monkeys, plural. At least 45 people around the Japanese city of Yamaguchi have been attacked in 19 days, according to a government official. The rare attacks have doubled in...

Killer Who Triggered Change in Japan Knife Law Is Hanged

Tomohiro Kato carried out a mass killing in 2008

(Newser) - Twenty minutes before committing a 2008 mass murder that shocked Japan, Tomohiro Kato posted a warning online that read, "It's time." Japan apparently decided the same thing for him. The 39-year-old has been hanged in the Tokyo Detention Centre, some eight years after he received a death...

Gender Parity Index Puts Japan Near Bottom

Report says world has a long way to go for equality—about 132 years

(Newser) - The World Economic Forum's new Gender Gap Report found that Japan compares well with other nations in women's access to education and health. In Japan's political and economic fields, however, women's participation is still low, driving the nation's ranking to 116th among the 146 countries...

Unification Church May Be Source of Suspect's Grudge

Mother of man held in Abe's killing is a member

(Newser) - The Unification Church confirmed Monday that the mother of the man accused of killing Shinzo Abe is a member, raising the possibility that it's the organization against which the suspect held a grudge. Japanese police have said the suspect told them he was motivated by a grudge against a...

After Assassination, Voters Give Abe's Party a Boost

Former prime minister's party on track for strong showing in parliamentary elections

(Newser) - Japan voted Sunday in the shadow of the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe that brought heightened security as party leaders avoided mingling with crowds in last-minute campaign stops. Exit polls for the election for the parliament's upper house showed Abe's governing party certain to win a...

Expert: Weapon That Killed Abe Was 'No Standard Shotgun'

Police say they found homemade guns in raid of suspect's house

(Newser) - Japanese police said they found multiple homemade weapons in a raid Friday on the residence of the man held in the assassination of Shinzo Abe, several of which are similar to the one they say was used to kill the former prime minister. The murder weapon is more than a...

&#39;Hard to Think of a More Unexpected Place&#39;
'Hard to Think
of a More
Unexpected
Place'
OPINION
Jul 8, 2022 1:04 PM CDT

'Hard to Think of a More Unexpected Place'

Japanese laws mean gun violence is almost non-existent

(Newser) - There will be no erasing the scars carved into Japan with Friday's assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe, say those familiar with Japanese society. The country has been "brought to a standstill by the news," which is especially shocking given that gun crime is almost non-existent...

Japan Had 9 Gun Deaths in 2018. The US Had 39K
Making Abe's
Death More Jarring:
That a Gun Was Used
the rundown
Jul 8, 2022 9:46 AM CDT

Making Abe's Death More Jarring: That a Gun Was Used

Gun violence is practically zero in Japan

(Newser) - One theme that keeps emerging in coverage of Shinzo Abe's fatal shooting in Japan is that gun deaths are rare in Japan. But just how rare they are—and how strict the nation's gun laws are—might still come as a surprise:
  • Comparison: Japan had a total of
...

Shinzo Abe Was a &#39;Complex, Polarizing&#39; Figure
Shinzo Abe Leaves
a Mixed Legacy
OBITUARY
Jul 8, 2022 8:45 AM CDT

Shinzo Abe Leaves a Mixed Legacy

Assassinated ex-PM was 'complex, polarizing' figure in Japan

(Newser) - Shinzo Abe was a political blueblood groomed for power. Japan's longest serving prime minister, he was also perhaps the most polarizing, complex politician in recent Japanese history, the AP reports. Abe, who was assassinated Friday , angered both liberals at home and World War II victims in Asia with his...

The World Reacts to Shinzo Abe&#39;s Assassination
The World Reacts to
Shinzo Abe's Assassination
THE RUNDOWN
Jul 8, 2022 6:36 AM CDT

The World Reacts to Shinzo Abe's Assassination

A 'dark day for Japanese democracy'

(Newser) - World leaders are expressing sadness, shock, and outrage at the assassination of a man many of them knew personally—Shinzo Abe, Japan's longest-serving prime minister. Abe, who resigned in 2020, was fatally shot while delivering a speech at a campaign event in western Japan Friday. Former Australian prime minister...

Ex-Japan PM Shinzo Abe Dies After 'Barbaric' Shooting

Suspected assassin identified as Tetsuya Yamagami

(Newser) - Doctors were unable to save Shinzo Abe, Japan's former prime minister, after he was shot during a campaign event Friday. The 67-year-old died from his injuries after the attack in Nara, western Japan, public broadcaster NHK has confirmed. Abe, who resigned in 2020, was Japan's longest-serving prime minister....

Japanese Ex-PM Shinzo Abe Shot in Chest During Speech
Japanese Ex-PM Shinzo Abe
Shot in Chest
UPDATED
Jul 7, 2022 11:35 PM CDT

Japanese Ex-PM Shinzo Abe Shot in Chest

Details are still developing

(Newser) - This story has been updated with new details on Abe's condition. The former prime minister of Japan was reportedly shot in the chest during a political speech Friday afternoon. Media outlets were initially using words like "apparent shooting" to describe the still-unclear sequence of events, but photos from...

15 Cherries Sell for Almost $300 Each
These Cherries
Cost $295 Each
Jul 1, 2022 9:58 AM CDT

These Cherries Cost $295 Each

Supercherries were sold at Japanese auction

(Newser) - The pick of the cherry crop in a northern Japan town sold for a price that was stunning even by the standards of high-end Japanese fruit auctions. A box of 15 Aomori Heartbeat cherries sold for 600,000 yen, the equivalent of $4,435, or $295 per cherry, reports the...

Lights Out, Tokyo—It's Going to Be a Hot One

Government asks 37M residents to use less electricity to avoid power outages amid heat wave

(Newser) - Temps in Japan usually hover below 85 degrees Fahrenheit in the month of June, but a heat wave that's descended upon Tokyo and surrounding areas has led the government to plead with 37 million residents to switch off their lights to avoid power outages. The BBC reports that the...

City Blames Loss of Resident Data on Drunk Guy With USB Drive

Officials in Amagasaki, Japan, say man lost device with info on all of city's 460K residents

(Newser) - If you're a resident of the Japanese city of Amagasaki and find out over the next few months you're the victim of identity theft, you can allegedly blame a worker who had a little too much to drink. CNN reports that the city's government has put out...

It's the Opposite of Online Dating, and It May Be Working

Japanese city of Miyazaki expanding its love-letter program after early success

(Newser) - A Japanese city's decidedly low-tech venture into matchmaking appears to be working. Authorities in Miyazaki will expand their experiment involving handwritten love letters after numbers exceeded expectations, reports AFP . Those numbers are relatively small for now: About 450 people, mostly in their 20s and 30s, signed up for the...

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