Japan News for July 09, 2007
Japan-related news links for today:
Defending His Cabinet: Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe strongly defended his scandal-hit agriculture minister on Sunday, as opposition leaders attacked Abe’s beleaguered government ahead of elections later this month. [Link]
Constitutional Reform: Most of the people planning to run in the July 29 House of Councilors election favor some form of revision to the Constitution, but an overwhelming majority say their top priority will be reforming social security, particularly pensions. [Link]
Ethical Educators? At least six teachers at a public elementary school in Tokyo’s Adachi Ward have said they were told by the school principal to alert students to mistakes while they were taking achievement tests in April 2006. [Link]
Kamikaze Spirit: Japan’s “right” is looking to kamikaze pilots as models for youth, according to the Associated Press. [Link]
My Name Is Prince Tomohito, and I’m An Alcoholic: Japanese Emperor Akihito’s cousin, who once sparked outrage by suggesting reviving the tradition of royal concubines, confirmed his reputation for frankness on Saturday when he spoke openly about his alcoholism. [Link]
10 Years Later: Japanese police are set to arrest a South Korean man, who is already detained in South Korea, on suspicion of driving away after hitting a Japanese man with his car in the city of Nagano in 1997. [Link]
Baseball Victory: Toyo University right-hander Shota Oba pitched a complete game Saturday as Japan beat the United States 5-2 in Game 4 to win their collegiate all-star series for the first time in 19 meets on U.S. soil. [Link]
Smokers Haven: A nonsmoker has started driving the only smoking taxi in Nagoya, a city where smoking has been completely banned in cabs. [Link]
Sonny Chiba To Retire: On Saturday, actor Sonny Chiba appeared on N-H-K’s “Doyo Studio Park.” During the program, he stated that he plans to retire from acting at the end of this year. [Link]
Washlets Take Flight: All Nippon Airways, the nation’s number two carrier, has decided to fit its new Boeing 787 Dreamliners with toilets that project jets of warm water, allowing users to clean themselves. [Link]
60 Rounds: A veteran professional bowler in Ibaraki Prefecture has successfully played 60-straight games in one day to celebrate his 60th birthday. [Link]
