Asia **** 4 Upper Intermediate

Stories Checked for Students of English by Jamaby

Accused Akihabara killer said fit for trial

Prosecutors believe the 26-year-old man arrested over the June vehicle and stabbing rampage in Tokyo's Akihabara district is mentally competent and can be charged with murdering seven people and wounding 10 others, investigative sources said Monday. Tomohiro Kato will be charged with murder and attempted murder by Friday, the deadline for his detention. (Japan Times)

What do you miss about Japan when you go abroad?

Yuki KannoEngineer, 23I miss Japanese alcohol, especially Asahi and Ebisu beer. Foreign beer doesn't taste like Japanese brands. I really don't like the flavor. It's very different. Rikako YagiTOEFL student, 19People eat too much junk food overseas. It's hard to get healthy food. Japanese food is delicious and good for you. It's difficult to find nice sushi, rice and tofu abroad. (Japan Times)

'Nurk', 'A Beginning, A Muddle, and An End'

What makes "Nurk" such a readable little tale? There's nothing tingly and new about an adventure story in which the hero is a reluctant adventurer. A quiet homebody finds himself thrown into a situation where he must display his inner courage (if he has any) — we've all heard that one before. (Japan Times)

A year after privatization

Oct. 1 marked the first anniversary of the privatization of the nation's postal service. In April 2003, the Postal Service Agency became Japan Post, a public corporation. Then, in January 2006, Japan Post created Japan Post Corp., a stock company. On Oct. 1, 2007, Japan Post Corp. became Japan Post Holdings Co., consisting of four units: Japan Post Bank Co., Japan Post Insurance Co., Japan Post Service Co. (mail delivery firm) and Japan Post Network Co. (over-the-counter services). These four firms are not yet very stable, as they struggle to find ways to survive and grow. Given this situation, opposition lawmakers are calling for a review of privatization. (Japan Times)

Pressures on health system

The introduction in April of the health insurance system for people age 75 or over is exerting so much financial pressure on health insurance societies that some of them have dissolved themselves. As the graying of the population progresses, the government must reconstruct and set the nation's medical services system on a sound financial base. Health insurance societies that mainly insure employees of large companies and their families, and those intended for employees of small companies, public servants and their families are now required to offer "support money" to fund the medical costs of people age 65 and over. Half of the cost of the new health insurance system is funded by tax money, 40 percent by this support money and the rest by premiums from program participants. (Japan Times)

Three cabbies attacked in Daito

OSAKA (Kyodo) Three taxi drivers were attacked early Sunday in Daito, Osaka Prefecture, in what police said were failed robbery attempts by a group of teenagers. The first incident occurred when a 57-year-old driver stopped for a young man at around 4 a.m. and his taxi was suddenly surrounded by several people pounding the car with a metal bar. They ran away when the driver started dialing his cell phone. (Japan Times)

Quality of future legal professionals in doubt

The Supreme Court expressed concern in a recent report about the quality of some judicial apprentices gearing up to be lawyers, prosecutors and judges, saying they vary sharply in competence and the number at the bottom of the barrel has been increasing. The report says the trend could be connected to the increasing number of people passing bar exams. (Japan Times)

42 death-row inmates are seeking retrials

A survey by a citizens' group opposed to capital punishment found that at least 42 of some 100 inmates on death row have filed for retrials, with many claiming that false charges were filed against them, and another 19 are planning to follow suit. The group, Forum 90, also asked the inmates about what distresses them. One cited not knowing until the last minute when they will be executed, while for another it was thinking about the victim of his crime. (Japan Times)

Study abroad agent apologizes to clients, says it won't pay them

Gateway21 Co., a failed private agency to help Japanese study overseas, apologized to its clients Sunday but said it has no money to pay them back. "I am really sorry that your dreams and lives fell apart" because of the company, President Tomomasa Fukui said as he threw himself on the ground and bowed in apology. (Japan Times)

Japan has nothing to fear but fearlessness

The accepted wisdom seems to be that Japan is being less affected than most by the ongoing banking crisis. I wouldn't bank on it. True, for the moment we are not having it as bad as the Americans or the Europeans. Yet there is no room for complacency in this financial meltdown saga. Indeed, the very speed with which the Europeans are suddenly finding themselves at the heart of the turmoil should give us the strongest warning yet of how abruptly and violently this kind of thing can become contagious. (Japan Times)

Japan's foreign workers

Japanese companies are not as Japanese as they once were. Japanese banks are taking over the assets of failed Wall Street investments firms, of course, but in addition to those economic assets, Japanese companies have been obtaining another asset — foreign workers. Statistics released two months ago by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare found that the number of foreign workers at Japanese firms took a huge leap from 2007 to 2008, rising by nearly one-third to a total of 330,000, the largest number ever. This may not constitute a large percentage overall, but it signals a large shift in attitude. The rise in the number of foreign workers indicates the beginning of quantitative and qualitative changes in the working environment in Japan. If the attitude toward work has been changing among younger Japanese, the addition of foreign workers will surely accelerate those changes and add new ones. The government's proposal earlier this year to progressively allow more foreign students and workers in the next few years will ensure that the nature and structure of many Japanese companies will evolve in the future to accommodate and integrate them. (Japan Times)

Ready-to-eat dishes dominate dining table

Although there is plenty of information available on maintaining a healthy diet, many people are tied up with work, school and leisure, forcing them to compromise on cooking at home. Research by a private firm sheds light on what ordinary Japanese families are eating daily. (Japan Times)

Brought together by fate — and a whim

Rajesh and Kayo Prasad have no doubt they were destined to marry. In 1996, almost on a whim Rajesh, from Manipur in northeastern India, entered Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, where he met his future wife, Kayo Shiozaki. (Japan Times)

1.44 million pension records corrupted

More than 1 million records in the state pension system for corporate employees likely contain false information, government sources said Friday. The falsifications could seriously affect the amount of pension both current and future pensioners are entitled to. (Japan Times)

Park dweller loses address case

In the first ruling of its kind, the Supreme Court on Friday rejected an Osaka Prefecture homeless man's bid to use a city park as his registered address. On Friday, presiding Justice Osamu Tsuno and three other justices of the Second Petty Bench unanimously supported the Osaka High Court's decision that the plaintiff, Yuji Yamauchi, 58, could not register Ogimachi Park in Kita Ward, Osaka, as his place of residence because his tent's location cannot be recognized as a legitimate address. (Japan Times)

Music firm goes to seed for a rockin' good future

Last year, all too aware that sales of CDs were dropping, Douglas Allsopp of Buffalo Records went along to the annual fair of promotional goods at Tokyo's Big Sight to look for a possible additional venture. "I already knew about Greensticks, made by an Australian company. It was the lack of interesting new products — 400 companies all pushing the usual stuff, tissues, bags — that helped convince us to start doing Greensticks in Japan." (Japan Times)

Rekindling trust in pensions

At a time when people's trust in the nation's pension system has practically vanished due to pension records scandals, a panel of the Social Welfare Council, an advisory body to the welfare minister, is discussing problems related to the government's 2004 decision on dealing with pension issues. It may be difficult for the council to propose drastic changes to the pension system in a short time. But the council should at least address problems that require quick action and can be resolved with relative ease. Such a move will contribute to restoring people's trust in the pension system. (Japan Times)

Who's distressing the kids?

Who's distressing the kids? I was not a little amused by B.K. Cottle's Sept. 25 letter, "Dangers lurk at local park." By way of illustrating the dangers at Japanese parks, particularly for children, he states that "there are several love hotels" near his local park. (Japan Times)

Web society opts to stay anonymous

Like a lot of 20-year-olds, Kae Takahashi has a page on U.S.-based MySpace, and there is no mistaking it for anyone else's. It's got pictures of the funky Tokyoite modeling the clothes she designs in her spare time, along with her name, plus personal details and ramblings in slightly awkward English about her love life. (Japan Times)

Suspected arson in Osaka kills 15

OSAKA (Kyodo) Fifteen people were killed and 10 were injured in a suspected arson early Wednesday at a video parlor in Osaka, police and firefighters said. Police arrested Kazuhiro Ogawa, 46, an unemployed man from Higashiosaka, Osaka Prefecture, who was using one of the parlor's private viewing rooms, on suspicion of arson and murder. (Japan Times)

Slide in land prices

Commercial land prices fell an average 0.8 percent in the year ended June 30 — following their first upturn in 16 years the year before — while the 1.2 percent average decline in residential land prices for the same period marked the 17th straight yearly dip and was steeper than the previous year for the first time in five years. Falling real estate investment with foreign capital due to the subprime housing loan crisis in the United States, and to the slackening demand for office buildings as the Japanese economy cools, have led to the nationwide downturn in land prices. (Japan Times)

Net communication putting students in touch

More schools are using information-communication equipment and some are even using the technology to carry out exchanges with other schools in distant places. Yoshiki Ishii, a teacher at an elementary school in Higashimiyoshi, Tokushima Prefecture, began using "Wai Wai Recorder," online collaboration software sold by JR Shikoku Communication Ware Co., in his classes about three years ago. (Japan Times)

Dire economic data show slump deepening

The economic slump deepened in August as industrial production fell at its fastest pace in at least five years, household spending tumbled and the unemployment rate rose to a two-year high, government figures showed Tuesday. Factory output dropped 3.5 percent from July, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said. The jobless rate climbed to 4.2 percent and purchases by households dropped 4 percent, the most since September 2006, the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry said. (Japan Times)

Housing starts jump 53.6%

Housing starts jumped a startling 53.6 percent to 96,905 units in August, chalking up their second consecutive year-on-year gain, the land ministry said Tuesday. The surge contrasts sharply with the sluggish figures from August 2007, when housing starts were slowed by a stricter law on building standards introduced in June 2007. (Japan Times)

Villegas overcomes five-shot deficit to win Tour Championship title

ATLANTA (AP) A two-putt par to win the Tour Championship in a playoff was worth an extra $1.5 million to Camilo Villegas. A 7-iron to a scary pin on the 71st hole, under more pressure than he has ever faced? (Japan Times)

Practical fashion for the other end of life

One after the other, the models strutted across the stage to bouncy '80s dance tunes, all showing off designs of the same article of clothing — adult diapers. Japan has one of the world's most rapidly aging societies, and the fashion show last week proved the country's diaper producers are intent on keeping the elderly clean and dry. (Japan Times)

Obuchi ready to fight demographic woes

Yuko Obuchi, state minister for population and gender equality, pledged Monday to make her Cabinet colleagues aware of the seriousness of Japan's aging society and to ask them for cooperation at every opportunity. "I'm willing to accept difficulty and criticism. I will directly face the problem (of the decline in the number of children) Japan has and give instructions to ministries and agencies to solve it," Obuchi, a 34-year-old mother who is the youngest Cabinet minister in the postwar period, said in an interview at her office. "And I will make these transactions transparent." (Japan Times)

Berlitz strike grows despite naysayers

As union representative for Berlitz General Union Tokyo (Begunto), let me set the record straight. Despite scabs, naysayers and second-guessing pundits in the English-language media, Berlitz teachers are making history. With more than 100 teachers striking at dozens of schools around the Kanto region for over six months, the industrial action at Berlitz is now the largest sustained strike in Japan's language school history. (Japan Times)

Jitensha odantai

Dear Alice, I recently returned to Japan after almost 20 years back in my native Canada. Among the many new things I've noticed are crosswalks with special lanes for bicycles. As an avid cyclist, I welcome anything that makes it easier to get around on two wheels, but I have to say this seems like one of those great ideas that doesn't work. The marking makes it perfectly clear that bikes are supposed to use one side and pedestrians the other, yet I constantly see pedestrians where only bicycles are supposed to be and bicycles where only pedestrians are supposed to be. This surprises me, because Japanese are generally so good about following rules. So, what the heck's wrong? Clark M., Yokohama (Japan Times)

Making aid work

In 2000, world leaders adopted the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), which were aimed at raising the standard of living in the developing world. Among other things, the eight goals called for cutting by half the number of people worldwide who live on less than $1 a day, achieving universal primary school literacy, ending gender discrimination in primary and secondary education, reducing child mortality by two-thirds, improving maternal health and making significant inroads in the fight against infectious diseases. In a midterm report released recently, the United Nations concluded that progress has been spotty. Much more needs to be done to realize MDG objectives: The last eight years are proof that business as usual will not do the trick. (Japan Times)

Garcia takes Tour Championship lead away from Kim

ATLANTA (AP) The cheers weren't as loud, but Sergio Garcia had heard them before. Six days ago at the Ryder Cup, he was helpless as Anthony Kim fired at flags and birdied nearly half his holes in a 5-and-4 romp that revved up the gallery during an American victory. (Japan Times)

Learning from BOJ's choice to do nothing

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Ben S. Bernanke, the chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve System, may be dead wrong about the urgent need for the proposed $700 billion that the former professor and his buddy, U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson, have been peddling to Congress. Or he may be dead right. (Japan Times)

Blessings — from the hollow of my head

I suppose the luck of the Irish was with me. For in search of our ever-elusive nail clipper, I dug among the various vials and brushes of my wife's makeup bag and instead clawed up . . . an Irish blessing. (Japan Times)

Tell me 'taint so!

Dear Prime Minister Aso, I would like to apply for the position recently vacated by Seiichi Ota — that of agriculture minister. I can empathize with you on the current rice scandal and I believe I can help you overcome this. As a matter of fact, I evaded authorities for years while working as an independent contractor under the title of Master of Coverups for Defective Products. In addition, I have another qualification for becoming Japan's agriculture minister: I like cows. (Japan Times)

Average pay grew 0.5% in 2007

Average annual wages rose 0.5 percent to ¥4.372 million in 2007, the first year-on-year gain in 10 years, the National Tax Agency said. The gain took place after several companies finally started passing on their earnings, which were growing line with the economic expansion, analysts said. (Japan Times)

Net-savvy parents shield children from harmful sites

MAEBASHI, Gunma Pref. (Kyodo) A movement is spreading across Japan to train parents to be more Internet-savvy when it comes to protecting their children from harmful sites, after the enactment of a new law this summer. The Diet passed a bill in June aimed at controlling Web sites considered harmful to children. The law obliges Internet service providers and cell phone operators to offer filtering services to prevent people under the age of 18 from browsing such material. (Japan Times)

Something fishy going on

I 'm just your average fish, so cormorants are a pretty scary prospect — even at the best of times. They can fly; they can swim; they have a beak that can dispatch me with one vicious snap behind my eyes and an elastic neck where they can stow me until they get hungry. (Japan Times)

Support your local farmer

The Sept. 20 article "Tainted rice scandal swallows Ota" highlights a few things:• Either regulations cost too much to implement, or company officials really don't care about humanity.• Government food safety and inspection officials are getting paid to do nothing. With Japan's bureaucracy, taxpayers should wonder what they are really paying for.• Buying from your local farmer should be your first option before going foreign, if you can help it.• Do those who kill themselves after unethical and immoral behavior deserve our sympathy (I feel for the families)? I usually try to buy local food as much as possible because in most cases I can be assured that the food I'm eating is safe. I actually shake hands with the farmers and producers. It gives me greater satisfaction. I might pay a bit more, but in most cases I don't. In these economic times where prices often make our decisions, we still need to keep up with safety standards. The fact that 370 other companies were involved in this scandal sends a shiver down my spine, and so it should others. (Japan Times)

Dangers lurk at local park

Regarding the Sept. 23 article "Mother held for killing son in Fukuoka park": My wife and I were very saddened to hear of the strangulation of 6-year-old Koki Tomiishi. Unfortunately, it is a painful reminder that Japan is not the "safe" country many Japanese proclaim it to be. Regardless of the mother's involvement, most parks in Japan leave much to be desired. Our local park in Edogawa-ku (Tokyo) is a prime example. First, there are several love hotels nearby. Prostitutes wait for customers then escort them through the park to their hotel of choice. How can we teach our children morality when they are surrounded by immoral behavior? (Japan Times)

Papers big players in the canvas game

Japan's largest Pablo Picasso exhibition ever opens in Tokyo next month. It's so big it occupies not one but two venues — the National Art Center, Tokyo, and the Suntory Museum of Art in Roppongi. The idea that an exhibition could monopolize two museums will seem odd to observers in the West, where institutions compete for exhibitions and audiences alike. (Japan Times)

Bright side of the U.S. financial meltdown

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Rather than curse the current financial darkness, let us try to light candles. Without blowing our credibility entirely, let us see if we can illuminate the brighter side of this global meltdown. Here is a trio of pluses to try on for size. No. 1 is that the United States will probably now have to lecture the world a lot less on economic issues. How wonderful! That, at least, should reduce global rhetorical warming. Asia, in particular, deserves get a break from Uncle Know-It-All. (Japan Times)

Will bankers ever learn?

PARIS — For a week it looked as though banking was not "as safe as houses" (a phrase that has seemed singularly inappropriate recently), but instead would turn into a "house of cards" that might be blown down with a puff of wind. The main concern in Britain has been the potential effects of the banking crisis on the economy generally at a time when energy and food prices are rising and inflationary pressures are growing. (Japan Times)

Tokyo police officer shoots self to death

A police officer apparently shot himself to death at a police station in Itabashi Ward, Tokyo, while on duty, police said. An officer at the Shimura Police Station heard a gunshot in a bathroom at around 5:45 a.m. Monday and found Daisuke Orihara, 26, collapsed inside one of the stalls, bleeding from the head. He died later at a hospital. (Japan Times)

More schools opening tourism departments

The number of colleges and universities in the business of training tourism personnel, such as hotel clerks and overseas tour escorts, is increasing and expected to total 40 by April with an enrollment of more than 4,000 students. With the government looking to increase the number of foreign tourists visiting Japan to 10 million a year, students believe that the study of tourism looks good on their resumes. (Japan Times)

Mother held for killing son in Fukuoka park

FUKUOKA (Kyodo) A 35-year-old woman was arrested Monday on suspicion of strangling her 6-year-old son and abandoning his body behind a public restroom in a park in Fukuoka last week, police said. Kaoru Tomiishi was escorted by investigators to a police station early in the morning and allegedly admitted to strangling her son, Koki, a first-grader. (Japan Times)

Members of BOJ Policy Board note growing downside risks

Some Bank of Japan policymakers share the view that the economy faces growing downside risks, according to the minutes of the August meeting of the bank's Policy Board. A few members of the interest rate-setting body commented during the Aug. 18-19 session that "downside risks to the economy had further increased recently," the minutes, released Monday, show. (Japan Times)

'The Prison Runner,' 'The Charlie and Lola Series'

A wobbly tooth, a favorite library book that has been lent out to someone else — these are the sorts of problems that children should be growing up with. But life isn't the same everywhere, and in developing countries such as Bolivia, children grow up too fast to have a real childhood. Like Diego, the 12-year-old hero of Deborah Ellis' "The Prison Runner." (Japan Times)

Awesome Safina breezes to Toray Pan Pacific win

Russia's Dinara Safina hailed her "best ever tennis" as she swept past compatriot Svetlana Kuznetsova to win the Toray Pan Pacific Open final in straight sets on Sunday. Safina followed up her semifinal demolition of Nadia Petrova with another awesome display to beat Kuznetsova 6-1, 6-3 and move up two places in the world rankings to No. 3. (Japan Times)

Safina overpowers Petrova in semis, awaits all-Russian final

Dinara Safina turned in a brutal display of power tennis Saturday to annihilate Nadia Petrova and set up an all-Russian final against Svetlana Kuznetsova in the Toray Pan Pacific Open. Safina went into the match having never beaten Petrova in five previous attempts, but soon set the record straight as she bludgeoned her way to a 6-1, 6-0 victory in just 52 minutes at Tokyo's Ariake Colosseum. (Japan Times)

No substitute for Japanese rice

Since moving here to the other side of the planet, I have never ceased wondering what it would be like to live in any number of other places in the world, because it's fascinating that human beings live everywhere. I am entertained by the notion that every little village I can find in my atlas supports communities of people, and that there are most likely people of a similar character there looking at Tokyo in their atlases and wondering what life here is like. I believe that every place in the world is pretty much the same as every other place. So I sometimes ask my Japanese acquaintances, "If you could live your life anywhere, where would you like to live?" Many Japanese impress me with the wanderlust that they communicate. But so often it happens that they express a longing for Japanese rice as an addendum to their fantasies. (Japan Times)