http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/japan/ en-us Thu, 31 Dec 2009 07:57:51 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2418216/posts Scientists breed see-through goldfish with visible heart, brain, organs: report BY NICOLE CARTER DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER Wednesday, December 30th 2009, 2:43 PM A photo released by Mie University shows the see-through 'ryukin' goldfish, whose beating heart can be seen through translucent scales and skin. A see-through goldfish created by Japanese scientists may be a humane alternative to dissection, as well as a unique pet, the London Daily Mail reports. The new transparent breed of fish, whose heart, brain and other organs are visible through its scales and skin, is the first of its kind, according to the Mail. "You... New York Daily News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2418216/posts#comment Thu, 31 Dec 2009 07:57:51 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415165/posts Yukio Hatoyama, the new Japanese Prime Minister, has stunned a nation already mired in huge public debt by unveiling the country’s biggest ever postwar budget: a 92.3 trillion yen (£630 billion) spending spree aimed at “saving people’s lives”. The unprecedented budget, which supposedly shifts Japan’s fiscal spending focus “from concrete to lives”, comes amid rising concern about the solidity of sovereign debt in the world’s second-largest economy. The new budget will require additional debt issuance of Y44.3 trillion — within the Government’s expected band, but still at a level that will raise Japan’s debt-to-GDP ratio to nearly 195 per cent.... The Times (UK) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415165/posts#comment Sat, 26 Dec 2009 02:19:58 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411539/posts Lawmakers and U.S. automakers are peeved with Japan, which has launched a cash-for-clunkers program that doesn’t accept American-made cars. Under Japan’s program, consumers who trade in a car at least 13 years old can get a tax cut of up to $2,800 toward the purchase of a new car. But the program excludes imported vehicles from companies that have low sales in Japan. That covers General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, according to the American Automotive Policy Council, which has pressed the Obama administration for action. U.S. producers are particularly irked since Japanese companies did well under the cash-for-clunkers program Congress... The Hill http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411539/posts#comment Sun, 20 Dec 2009 05:57:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411016/posts SASEBO NAVAL BASE, Japan — Two minesweepers that arrived here on temporary rotation last summer will make a permanent home in Sasebo, the U.S. Navy announced Wednesday. The USS Avenger and USS Defender, both from San Diego, will remain here after a review found it would be better to keep the two minesweepers in Sasebo rather than regularly rotate ships in from the United States, the Navy said. Both ships had been in Sasebo for about six months and will join the base’s two other forward-deployed mine ships, the USS Patriot and the USS Guardian. The change was not due... Stars and Stripes http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411016/posts#comment Sat, 19 Dec 2009 07:53:25 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2407300/posts CHIBA — Police on Friday arrested a truck driver Friday on suspicion of property damage after he allegedly urinated on a towel at the entrance of the apartment belonging to a woman he liked. Police said that 22-year-old Yuuki Oshima, a resident of Noda Cioty, visited the woman’s apartment after midnight on Nov 19 and urinated through the mail slot in the door onto a towel that was hung inside to keep people from peeping into the apartment. Police said Oshima admits to the charges, and quoted him as saying, “I absolutely went crazy for her the first time I... Japan Today http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2407300/posts#comment Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:17:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406952/posts Todd Crowell Japan’s Covert Moves to Save The Endangered Tomahawk To listen to disarmament specialists, the country that is raising the most serious obstacles to new moves to reduce the role of nuclear weapons in defense strategy is Japan. Japan? Is this not the nation with the famous nuclear allergy? Is it not the nation that loudly reminds everyone that it is the only country on the globe to suffer an atomic attack? Is it not the country that loudly proclaims the “Three Noes” (Never to manufacture, possess or allow nuclear weapons onto its soil)? No country is more vocal... Asia Sentinel http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406952/posts#comment Mon, 14 Dec 2009 04:41:12 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2406139/posts <p>Masamune Date is not an obvious heart-throb for today’s young Japanese women. He has an aristocratic lineage and love of the arts — but he is also a one-eyed ruthless killer. He lost an eye to smallpox and in his relentless pursuit of power is said to have slaughtered his own brother, as well as Christian missionaries, Korean peasants and countless of his compatriots.</p> The Times(UK) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2406139/posts#comment Sat, 12 Dec 2009 17:08:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2405896/posts Japan's Crown Princess Masako has said she will keep working to fight her stress problems. The 46-year-old royal - who is married to Crown Prince Naruhito - said she has been working with medical professionals to solve her illness. Royal Watch News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2405896/posts#comment Sat, 12 Dec 2009 02:36:26 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404331/posts A Chinese national who is believed to have manipulated her fingerprints to slip past Japan's fingerprint identification system has been arrested for violating the Immigration Control Law, the Metropolitan Police Department's Organized Crime Control Bureau announced on Monday. mainich http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404331/posts#comment Thu, 10 Dec 2009 05:01:42 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404337/posts Nikkei Falls 1.1% As Yen, Credit Worries WeighBy Aiko Hayashi Wed Dec 9, 2009 11:44pm * Credit woes in Dubai, Greece weigh on confidence - analyst * Sharp rebound rally may have come to an end - analyst * Suzuki down after Volkswagen deal announcement TOKYO, Dec 10 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average fell 1.1 percent on Thursday after a recent sharp rebound, as credit troubles overseas weighed on investor confidence and a stronger yen pressured shares of exporters. Suzuki Motor (7269.T) skidded nearly 5 percent, erasing the gain logged Wednesday on hopes for an alliance agreement with Volkswagen, after... Reuters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404337/posts#comment Thu, 10 Dec 2009 05:10:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404138/posts U.S. puts off meetings on broader ties / PM's inaction on Futenma issue blamed The Yomiuri Shimbun The U.S. government, reacting to Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's procrastination over the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture, has informed Tokyo it will postpone key bilateral consultations aimed at "deepening the Japan-U.S. alliance," government sources said Tuesday. The previously agreed consultations were suggested by Hatoyama in summit talks with U.S. President Barack Obama when he visited Tokyo last month. Expectations on the part of the Japanese government were to see the consultations start before the end of... Yomiuri Shimbun http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404138/posts#comment Wed, 9 Dec 2009 23:52:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402023/posts Introductory Remarks: On December 7, 1941, U.S. military installations at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii were attacked by the Imperial Japanese Navy. Could this tragic event that resulted in over 3,000 Americans killed and injured in a single two-hour attack have been averted? After 16 years of uncovering documents through the Freedom of Information Act, journalist and historian Robert Stinnett charges in his book, Day of Deceit, that U.S. government leaders at the highest level not only knew that a Japanese attack was imminent, but that they had deliberately engaged in policies intended to provoke the attack, in order to draw... The Independent Institute http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402023/posts#comment Mon, 7 Dec 2009 15:25:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403685/posts Japan Bets $81B On Plan To Avoid “Double-Dip Recession” By Rocky Vega 12/08/09 Stockholm, Sweden – Today Japan decided on spending 7.2 trillion yen, or $81 billion, in stimulus. The funds will be used for loan guarantees and employment subsidies as well as to encourage purchases of energy-efficient goods. However, according to Bloomberg coverage: “Not everyone thinks the spending will help the economy. Morgan Stanley Asia Chairman Stephen Roach said Hatoyama needed to be ‘much more aggressive’ with his policies. “‘It’s tiny,’ Roach said of the stimulus in an interview on Bloomberg Television yesterday. ‘This is an economy that went... The Daily Reckoning http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403685/posts#comment Wed, 9 Dec 2009 14:44:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2403403/posts Here is video of Sean Hannity's interview with former Vice-President Dick Cheney that aired tonight. More of the interview with be aired on the Hannity show tomorrow night. Cheney hailed "American Exceptionalism," and hammered Obama for "going around the world bowing" to world leaders and "apologizing profusely for the United States." . . . (VIDEO) Freedom's Lighthouse http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2403403/posts#comment Wed, 9 Dec 2009 02:39:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402818/posts TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's government agreed on a $81 billion stimulus package on Tuesday, aimed at preventing the economy from tipping back into recession as deflation persists and a strong yen threatens exports. Economists said the 7.2 trillion yen plan, equal to about 1.5 percent of gross domestic product, would not provide a significant lift to an economy dependent on overseas demand for machinery, electronics and cars. While several other economies are already debating phasing out economic stimulus deployed to fight the financial crisis, Japan continues to struggle amid chronically weak consumer demand and falling prices. The budget underscores the... Reuters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402818/posts#comment Tue, 8 Dec 2009 14:33:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2401824/posts OSAKA (Kyodo) – Suntory Holdings Ltd. acquired a U.S. PepsiCo Inc. unit Friday, company officials said, for an estimated ¥10 billion. Suntory’s acquisition of Conway-Myrtle Beach Inc., a franchise bottler based in South Carolina, comes as Suntory is holding merger talks with Kirin Holdings Co. that would create one of the world’s largest beverage and food firms. Suntory, which has the exclusive sales rights to PepsiCo products in Japan, bought the assets and exclusive marketing rights from Conway-Myrtle Beach through a joint venture with PepsiCo. The firm buys ingredients from PepsiCo and sells the products in South Carolina. The... AsiaLynx.com (JapanTimes.com) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2401824/posts#comment Mon, 7 Dec 2009 03:43:14 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2401289/posts Major "Chuck" Sweeney had an extremely risky takeoff before dawn, loaded as he was with the 4.5-ton A-bomb, "Fat Man". Now they were over their primary target, Kokura. He had made three runs over the hopelessly clouded city when he made a shocking discovery: the auxiliary gasoline pipe was blocked. Unless they dropped the bomb soon, they would never get home. He turned his plane southwest for the secondary target, "Nagasaki, urban area". His B-29 was over Shimabara just before 11 A.M. A radio announcer saw this and excitedly broadcast a warning, and Nagasaki people who heard him ran for... Insight Scoop http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2401289/posts#comment Sun, 6 Dec 2009 02:00:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2400569/posts Fears Mount Over Japan's $100 Billion Treasury Sell Off Vince VenezianiDec. 4, 2009, 3:39 PM Japan denies it, but rumors persist that the country may dump Treasuries. Bloomberg continues to fan the flames. Bloomberg: Speculation that the Japanese government plans to sell $100 billion of U.S. Treasury debt to pay for domestic spending may impede the Obama administration’s borrowing plans. Japan has been this year’s biggest buyer of Treasuries, which means it has done more to help finance the widening U.S. budget deficit than any other country. Its holdings have risen by $125.5 billion, according to data compiled by the... The Business Insider http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2400569/posts#comment Fri, 4 Dec 2009 23:03:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399914/posts Nikkei Slips 0.4% After Breaking Above 10,000 Thu Dec 3, 2009 8:23pm ESTBy Aiko Hayashi TOKYO, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average slipped 0.4 percent on Friday after briefly going above 10,000 for the first time in five weeks, as exporters such as Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) took a breather after sharp gains. Takefuji Corp (8564.T) tumbled more than 8 percent after the Asahi newspaper reported that the struggling consumer finance firm has significantly scaled back lending to preserve cash as it faces difficulty raising funds. "A short-cover rally, which was supported by foreign investors who were relieved to... Reuters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399914/posts#comment Fri, 4 Dec 2009 03:44:42 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399683/posts This morning, this message popped up on Bloomberg: "MARKET NEWS SAYS 'RUMORS' ARE JAPAN MAY TELL OF PLANNED SALE" Said sale in question is rumored to be a U.S. Treasury sell off by the Japanese government. Adding fuel to the fire is the U.S. and the Federal Reserve. Today, the Fed conducted a reverse repo (repurchase) test that could help with the Japanese UST sale. On the other hand, this wouldn't seem to jibe with reports that the country's main concern is the rising yen. If anything, you'd think they'd be snapping up more treasuries. So something is amiss. The... The Business Insider http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399683/posts#comment Thu, 3 Dec 2009 22:22:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399365/posts Japan's leader apologizes for donation scandal PROBE DOGS PRIME MINISTER Family linked to fake campaign contributions By Blaine Harden Tuesday, December 1, 2009 TOKYO -- For politicians in Japan, the road to scandal usually winds through construction companies, defense contractors or a mistress. For newly elected Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, the road leads to his mother, an octogenarian heiress. Prosecutors have traced about $10.4 million that Yasuko Hatoyama, 87, gave to her son over a five-year period ending in 2008, sources in the investigation have told major news outlets in Japan. Some of that money was reportedly funneled into fake... WP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399365/posts#comment Thu, 3 Dec 2009 15:59:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399280/posts The Nikkei Explodes 3.8% Higher Joe WeisenthalDec. 3, 2009, 4:57 AM Forget that the Yen is sitting at a 14-year high, or that the country remains a gigantic mess. Buyers went nuts in Japan last night. WSJ: Japan's Nikkei 225 closed up 3.8%, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 added 0.3%, South Korea's Kospi Composite gained 1.5% and New Zealand's NZX-50 finished 0.1% higher. Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended up 1.2%, while China's Shanghai Composite fell 0.2% and Taiwan's main index edged up 0.1%. In foreign exchange markets, the U.S. dollar remained supported against the yen on speculation Japanese authorities may step in... The Business Insider http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399280/posts#comment Thu, 3 Dec 2009 14:27:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399238/posts Japan has successfully launched another optical (picture taking) spy satellite. This one joins two other optical birds and one radar satellite. This most recent satellite launch cost $109 million. The satellite cost quite a bit more. In early 2007, Japan lost the use of one of its two radar satellites. The "No. 1 radar satellite", which went into orbit in March 2003, was supposed to last for five years. But the bird has been having electrical problems, and had to be written off. Nearly three years ago, Japan launched its fourth spy satellite into orbit, using a Japanese made rocket.... The Strategy Page http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399238/posts#comment Thu, 3 Dec 2009 13:33:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399190/posts Japan has grounded all of its F-15J fighters until it can figure out what exactly caused one of its F-15s to shed several parts during a recent air show. Seven pieces fell off the aircraft as it made a sharp turn.. This sort of thing makes Japan even more eager to find a modern fighter to replace its 118 F-4 and 202 F-15 aircraft. With China and Russia putting more new fighters into service, Japan sees a threat. Japan has made several efforts to buy the U.S. F-22, without success. The United States does not want to export its premier... The Strategy Page http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399190/posts#comment Thu, 3 Dec 2009 12:43:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399090/posts Recently Jim Robinson posted two threads declaring Free Republic’s determination to see Conservatives elected and ousting Rino's from government. Jim and a great many Freepers believe that we need to take back control. But the RNC is not hearing us. Activism is called for NOW. 2010 is nearing and we need Conservative candidates to run. The time is ripe and people are ready for another 1994 type election. But we need to make the RNC hear us loud and clear. This is the Rino Free America Project. Get involved. Make them listen. Write a letter and MAIL it. Republican... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2399090/posts#comment Thu, 3 Dec 2009 06:31:56 GMT