Can anyone explain how this worked? Were the large fees recently paid to advisors not really paid but just put down on the books in the place of legitimate losses (that were somehow off the books?). Or were the large fees paid for some service related to this coverup and not to the transaction they...

Reuters via Asahi: Olympus scandal tied to banker who shuffled losses A former Japanese banker who helped Japan's Olympus Corp shift losses off its books decades ago appears to be a key figure behind its decision to award a massive advisory fee to a little-known U.S. investment firm, Japanese broki...

Well, Olympus has now admitted that the company deliberately overpaid during its recent M&A transactions as a smokescreen to cover up booking losses incurred in the 1990s. It's not a crime to have made bad investments which lost money. However, some questions now are: - Were those original investmen...

A group in Fukui has started a couple of courses to help foreign residents settle in Japan: traffic regulations and self-defence.

Source (Japanese)

There was an interesting article in English on JB Press a few months ago. Less influential than presumed? The truth about Japan's farming vote It argues that agricultural issues are less important in determining voting patterns that often believed. Here's my theory: what we call the 'farming vote' i...

This site explains the possible number of American children being denied access to their American parent. http://japanabductionrui.wordpress.com/2011/11/06/child-abduction-and-denial-of-access-are-masked-as-custody-determination-in-japan/ So your original claim that that "there are tens of thousand...

Sport24: Fears for 2019 hosts Japan Japan's winless exit from the Rugby World Cup raises a worrying question for the perennial Asian champions but minnows on the global stage: What will happen when they hold the event in 2019? "Isn't it shameful for Japan to host the 2019 Rugby World Cup?" asked a ...

There's an interesting discussion taking place in Britain following the release of a review of the family justice system by David Norgrove . (225 page PDF) One of the problems the review was designed to address is the way that many issues surrounding divorce end up in courts rather than mediation wh...

A: All we can do is to make them go abroad to learn, even if we have to force them. What is important is to immerse them in foreign communities and let them work using their individual skills, without flocking together [with other Japanese]. Foreign language skills are also necessary for this. How d...

Yomiuri: Economy became borderless long ago [Interview with Tadashi Yanai of Fast Retailing] What is the goal of globalization for Uniqlo? A: We intend to increase overseas sales from the current 15 percent to more than 50 percent by 2015. For fiscal 2012, we'll hire only 200 to 300 Japanese among ...

Kyoto has also officially thrown its hat into the ring for a casino exclusive to foreign visitors.

Source (Japanese)

http://www.fuckedgaijin.com/forums/images/vbimghost/9794eb3bad4580b4.jpg Throw out those textbooks, Docomo is coming to the rescue. The mobile operator will start trials next week of a new translation service to allow Japanese to hold conversations over the phone with other language speakers. The s...

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New Rosetta Stone ad.

Not Japanese, not a marriage. Still of passing interest:

Greji wrote:That seems like a pretty high figure for fgs. You got a source for that?

No, he won't have. He's pulled the number out of his arse. This is a serious and often distressing issue, and that kind of hyperbole does nothing to serve the cause of finding some means of resolution.

A former Donki executive has been given a 3 year and 6 month prison sentence for a 30 million yen fraud relating to compensation payments the company made to the families of those who died in the 2004 arson attacks. He diverted over 30 million yen to a consulting company he set up himself under the ...

It's certainly not the first time a court has found in favour of a foreign defendant and not even the first time in a drug smuggling case. Several foreigners have argued they were deceived and have been believed, much to the chagrin of the prosecutors. Not guilty verdicts have been handed down under...

Japan targeted two wins at the World Cup but came back with one draw. Coach John Kirwan is under contract until December but has already said he won't be reapplying for his job. He probably wouldn't be reappointed anyway after those Cup results and a new coach will be selected shortly. The JRFU want...

...Seriously, though, methinks Hyogo printers were maybe not getting much underworld business in the first place if they can afford to come out publicly to declare they will turn away potential customers in these times in what is a dying industry. The new anti-yakuza ordinances now put the onus on ...

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The aim is to develop this for the elderly rather than some Wallace and Gromit morning routine.

Shinto priest Florian Wiltschko

[YT]jpqvlJu7QX4[/YT] Tokyo residents on this board may have had the pleasure of visiting Hanezawa Garden . An old Taisho era property just off Nisseki Dori in Shibuya, it was turned into a restaurant and bar complex, mainly known for its beautiful beer garden. The place closed down in 2005, and Mits...