Japan

"The Comfort Women: Japan's Brutal Regime of Enforced Prostitution in the Second World War," by George Hicks. Illustrated. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. 303 pages. $25 Once again, the Japanese government has sought to right a wrong of its wartime past - apologizing to the Asian women who were rounded up and forced into satisfying the sexual needs of the Japanese Armed Forces. Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama's July 18 acknowledgement of Japan's complicity in the sexual enslavement of the so-called "comfort women" is not the first apology offered to the victims, the majority of whom were Korean.

Kyuji Fujikawa, a 32-year-old, hard-throwing right hander who is considered one of the best closers in Japan, toured Camden Yards on Friday and had lunch with, among others, Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette. Fujikawa, who is an unrestricted free agent and wants to pitch in the United States on a multi-year deal, was on a tour of sorts. In the past two weeks, he also has met with representatives of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Angels.

FUKUOKA, JAPAN -- "I could never again wear a white smock," says Dr. Toshio Tono, dressed in a white running jacket at his hospital and recalling events of 50 years ago. "It's because the prisoners thought that we were doctors, since they could see the white smocks, that they didn't struggle. They never dreamed they would be dissected."The prisoners were eight American airmen, knocked out of the sky over southern Japan during the waning months of World War II, and then torn apart organ by organ while they were still alive.

When the Orioles signed left-hander Wei-Yin Chen, 10 days into 2012, they did so because they believed the 27-year-old had displayed unflappability in big games. He represented his native Taiwan in the Olympics four years ago. He overcame all the obstacles of pitching in a different country, shining for four seasons in Japan with the Chunichi Dragons. When Chen won his 12th game of the season Aug. 19 in Detroit, he became the first Orioles' pitcher to record that many wins since 2007.

TOKYO -- Telephone sex has come to Japan, and it has gray-suited executives of the world's biggest corporation squirming -- with embarrassment.Scores of phone-a-moan lines have taken over more than one-fourth of the business of Dial Q2, an 18-month-old information-call service that at first provided sports results, advertisements and medical guidance.Going beyond the lead of tele-porn pioneers in the United States, Japan's entrepreneurs buy space in tabloid newspapers, sports dailies and mass-circulation magazines to run full-color photos of semi-nude women as promotions for tape-recorded sex programs or for a purported chance to talk with a female porn star.

WASHINGTON -- Any U.S. business pondering whether to take a crack at the bountiful market of Japan might first consider the pile of debt burying New Jersey inventor Sal Monte.A dozen years ago, Mr. Monte's small company, Kenrich Petrochemicals, set out to conquer Japan armed with 15 patented chemical additives that did such things as juice up the performance of audio recording tapes.One by one, the Japanese knocked his products off the market, citing environmental regulations and other fine print -- although those rules never affected the Japanese-made products that sprung up in their place.

Cal Ripken Jr. is on a U.S. State Department visit to the earthquake-damaged parts of Japan.  We will post his videos from the trip here.  You can get more information on the trip on Cal's blog.                    

For the past few years, Big in Japan has been one of the more enigmatic bands on the Baltimore music scene. Made up largely of former members of electro-rockers Lake Trout, Big in Japan gigged sporadically around town, changed lineups fairly often and recorded music but never released it. They were a live band first and foremost, with a reputation for putting on killer dance shows. Much of their music was improvised. "It was a one-time-only kind of thing," said Matt Pierce, who plays keyboards and flute.

The news of Mayor William Donald Schaefer's passing saddened many Japanese, especially the residents of Kawasaki, our sister city since 1979. The late mayor was instrumental and vital in the creation of the sister city relationship with Kawasaki. The sister city program flourished under his leadership and his tireless slogan, "Do It Now. " He traveled to Japan many times, bringing the Baltimore Orioles and the famous manager Joe Altobelli. The Japanese people love baseball too and were so impressed with our team and observing our mayor who was so involved.

On April Fool's Day, President Clinton said: "This is Japan's turn to lead." He must have been joking. As Mr. Clinton suspects, and will soon confirm when he meets Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa Friday, Japan is incapable of leading. If our new president had any doubts on the subject, he could tune in on Mr. Miyazawa's pre-summit conversation with American reporters. The wily old pol explained it's all a matter of gaiatsu, which, roughly translated, means Japan needs U.S. pressure to embarrass it into adopting prudent policies that its government detests and its people oppose.

The Towson men's lacrosse team ran out to a 5-1 first-quarter lead and defeated visiting Keio University, 11-4, in an international friendly Wednesday evening at Johnny Unitas Stadium. "It was a great evening," Towson coach Shawn Nadelen said. "We were happy to welcome Keio University to Towson. They are the premier lacrosse-playing school in Japan, and we were honored to host them. " Playing international rules did not slow down the Tigers, who got plenty of early shots. Junior Thomas DeNapoli scored unassisted at 16:37 in the first quarter.

China and Japan are making a mountain of a molehill in their territorial dispute over a group of tiny, uninhabited islands in the East China Sea known as the Senkaku (in Japan) or the Diaoyu (in China). Whatever their name, they're basically just a bunch of rocks sticking out of the water; the largest is less than two miles square. Yet they've become the flash point for an increasingly shrill confrontation between Asia's two economic giants that has threatened to disrupt their $340 billion trade relationship and even prompted talk of war. Both sides have dispatched naval vessels to the area.

The UMBC men's lacrosse team will open their fall schedule Thursday when they welcome Keio University of Japan for the fifth time in the past 11 years. The time for the scrimmage at UMBC Stadium is 4:30 p.m. The Retrievers will compete in the annual Varsity vs. Alumni game Oct. 13 and close fall play at the Drexel Fall Ball event on Oct. 20; UMBC will take on Navy (1 p.m.) and Penn (3 p.m.).

The Towson men's lacrosse team will host Japan's Keio University for a friendly international game on Sept. 26 at 7:30 p.m. at Johnny Unitas Stadium. “Towson Lacrosse is very excited to host Keio University,” Tigers coach Shawn Nadelen said. “It is the premier lacrosse-playing school in Japan.  Keio is very passionate for the sport of lacrosse, and it is displayed in how they perform on the field.  We are honored to have Keio at Towson, and our players will share in a great experience playing against the Japanese players.  We look forward to having a competitive game.

Though its chances of making it out of pool play at the Cal Ripken World Series faded a few days ago, the Harford County squad from Forest Hill did not lie down in its final game of the tournament Tuesday afternoon, handing the Midwest Plains squad of Lamar, Colo., a 5-1 defeat. Playing as the visiting side at Fenway Park, Harford County (1-3) scored three times in the top of the first, with Jordan Wax starting things by doubling in Nicholas Sulzbach. Wax then scored on a single by Sean D'Adamo, while D'Adamo scored on a single by Jake Johnson.

LONDON — Before the largest crowd to ever watch a women's Olympic soccer match, in a stadium synonymous with what Europeans call football, the U.S. won gold and with it, another chance for the sport to become less of a quadrennial attraction back home. "Eighty thousand for a women's final?" said Carli Lloyd, who scored both goals for the U.S. in a 2-1 victory over Japan Thursday at Wembley Stadium. "That says a lot about women's soccer, and women's sports. " The match nearly filled the storied stadium, home to the English national team.

In good times, Japan does not need political leadership. The civil service makes everything work. But Japan is in economic crisis, trying to get out of recession and regain prosperity so Japanese can buy imports and mute American criticism. Japan is facing a run by world money managers from a weak dollar into a stronger yen, making Japanese products expensive to export. Unless action is taken and confidence regained, Japan's recovery will halt. For that, the Japanese do need a government.

Paris. -- There were many historical parallels drawn in the course of last weekend's Pearl Harbor memorials, but the most important was neglected. It is that once again Japan's perception of encirclement and international incomprehension is being fed.The incomprehension is perhaps more important than the encirclement, but both produce a sense of vulnerability and isolation, which in turn may produce the conviction that Japan will eventually be forced into...

Et cetera I'll Have Another will stand at stud in Japan I'll Have Another, the winner of the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness last month, will head to Japan to stand at stud, The New York Times reported Saturday. The owner, Paul Reddam , said Friday that a deal had been reached with Shigeyuki Okada 's Big Red Farm on the island of Hokkaido to stand I'll Have Another beginning next year's breeding season. Financial terms were not disclosed. I'll Have Another, who is based at the trainer Doug O'Neill 's stable at Hollywood Park, was retired the day before the June 9 Belmont Stakes because of a tendon injury.

Stink bugs have begun to emerge from winter hibernation. They often take refuge in only to creep into your bedroom once the weather warms , as they try to find their way outside again. The pests have only been in this country since 1998, likely from China or Japan. They have only been in Maryland since 2009 or so. But their populations have grown rapidly since then. Try flushing them rather than squishing. And make sure to seal any openings to your house they might sneak in through.