Latest news with #Iwasaki
Japan Forward
26-04-2025
- Japan Forward
Azaleas in Rikugien: A Beautiful Tokyo Alternative Without the Crowds
Now is the best time for viewing azaleas ( tsutsuji) in Tokyo and the surrounding Kanto Plain. There are many celebrated venues in Tokyo of which Nezu Shrine is probably the most famous. But, with fame comes crowds. Even during the period when pandemic restrictions all but eliminated foreign tourists, the Nezu Shrine became extremely crowded when the azaleas were at their best. A hill covered in azaleas. (©JAPAN Forward) Fortunately, there are alternatives that give a highly pleasurable viewing experience without extreme crowding, even now with "overtourism" as a major issue. Of these other venues, my favorite is Rikugien. I count myself very fortunate that this formal Japanese garden is an easy walking distance from my home office. Pond in Rikugien. (©JAPAN Forward) Created in 1702 at the behest of a daimyo (feudal lord), it later became the second residence of Iwasaki Yataro (1835–1885), founder of the Mitsubishi conglomerate. In 1938 the Iwasaki family donated it to Tokyo. Close-ups of azaleas in the garden. (©JAPAN Forward) Rikugien admission is ¥300 JPY (about $2 USD) for adults, discounted to ¥150 for those over 65. A joint ticket that gives admission to Kyu-Furukawa Gardens (walking distance) is available at ¥400 for general admission and ¥200 for those over 65. Western-style mansion designed by architect Josiah Conder at Kyu-Furukawa Gardens. (©JAPAN Forward) A path lined with azaleas at Kyu-Furukawa Gardens. (©JAPAN Forward) Rikugien is open 9 AM–5 PM year round except for December 29 to January 1. The main entrance is a seven-minute walk from Komagome Station (JR Yamanote Line and Tokyo Metro Namboku Line). The garden has limited wheelchair access. The Accessible Japan website provides further details. Panoramic view of the pond. (©JAPAN Forward) The grassy areas are off-limits and there is no provision for picnics. Food can, however, be brought in and consumed wherever there are benches. A dedicated shop has tea and traditional Japanese confections. There is also a snack shop with bench seating. Both offer good views of the pond. The central pond reflects the surrounding nature. (©JAPAN Forward) Until I retired from teaching and started writing articles about things to see in Japan, I thought of azaleas as a former resident of northern California. They are planted along Interstate 80 between San Francisco and Davis, chosen for their bright red color and ability to withstand a hostile environment. Visitors enjoying the view. (©JAPAN Forward) I know now they come in colors other than bright red. They also make a major contribution to the pleasures of spring in Japan, not just in parks and formal gardens, but also as a common planting in residential neighborhoods. Visitors walking among the flowers. (©JAPAN Forward) Rikugien is, in addition to its azaleas, a top-tier venue for sakura and autumn colors. A variety of flowering plants can be enjoyed here, depending on the season. (©JAPAN Forward) Author: Earl H Kinmonth Photographs by EH Kinmonth. Find other stories about Tokyo and nearby areas by Dr Kinmonth.
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Yahoo
Judge tosses police union lawsuit against LAPD commander accused of computer fraud
A Los Angeles County judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the union for rank-and-file police officers against an LAPD commander accused of accessing emails, surveys and materials intended only for lower-ranking cops. In a ruling Monday, L.A. County Superior Court Judge Bruce Iwasaki sided with Cmdr. Lillian Carranza and her co-defendant, Deputy Chief Marc Reina, who argued that the Los Angeles Police Protective League failed to prove the allegations of unlawful computer data access and fraud. Read more: Lawsuit claims LAPD commander tried to 'discredit' police union. Is it part of a broader rift? Iwasaki wrote that the league failed to make a clear allegation of the 'damage or loss' it incurred as a result of Carranza's actions, which centered on her accessing a union survey of its members, who are all below the rank of captain. Carranza and other command officers have their own separate union. Among other legal technicalities, Iwasaki wrote that the company Survey Monkey owned the survey in question — not the league. The suit was dismissed 'with prejudice,' which means it cannot be refiled. Carranza declined to discuss the ruling when reached this week, saying she wanted to explore her legal options first. Reina, who runs the department bureau that oversees training and recruitment, did not respond to a request for comment. Until recently, he also served as president of the Los Angeles Police Command Officers Assn., the union for department leadership. The league's suit, filed last year, accused Carranza of accessed the union's website by passing herself off as a lower-ranking officer and filled out a survey meant to grade supervisors. Carranza argued in court filings that she used her name when logging in, and pointed out that she and other command staff routinely used the league's system to access their agency benefits. In a letter to the command officers union last December, league President Craig Lally said command officers' access to the "benefits portal" would be cut off by the end of the year. A voicemail left for Lally went unreturned on Thursday. League officials have said a digital forensics firm hired to investigate the matter found that Carranza had opened approximately 49 'confidential emails' the union had sent to its members from 2016 to 2024, allegedly to undermine the union's credibility. The suit came amid an intensifying dispute between the league and Carranza, an outspoken commander from LAPD's Central Bureau, who in the past has repeatedly sued the department over its treatment of female officers and alleged underreporting of crime statistics. The league made a show of going after Carranza, calling a news conference, releasing YouTube videos and taking subtle shots at her in the pages of its monthly magazine, Thin Blue Line. Carranza further drew the league's ire when she came to the defense of a female captain who insisted on conducting a use-of-force investigation into an incident involving two of her officers. The union — whose members include most LAPD officers, detectives, sergeants and lieutenants — has argued that department morale is low because Carranza and other commanders lack accountability. Read more: LAPD cops shot 21 bystanders in 10 years. How does it keep happening? In addition to publicly criticizing Carranza, the union has also singled out other high-ranking officials — namely, Reina and Michael Rimkunas, another deputy chief who oversees internal investigations. Carranza, who was promoted to captain in 2012 and made commander in 2023, applied for the LAPD chief's job, which was vacated when Michel Moore retired in February 2024. Sources previously told The Times that Carranza was among a number of candidates who were invited for a second round of interviews. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
28-03-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Judge tosses police union lawsuit against LAPD commander accused of computer fraud
A Los Angeles County judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the union for rank-and-file police officers against an LAPD commander accused of accessing emails, surveys and materials intended only for lower-ranking cops. In a ruling Monday, L.A. County Superior Court Judge Bruce Iwasaki sided with Cmdr. Lillian Carranza and her co-defendant, Deputy Chief Marc Reina, who argued that the Los Angeles Police Protective League failed to prove the allegations of unlawful computer data access and fraud. Iwasaki wrote that the league failed to make a clear allegation of the 'damage or loss' it incurred as a result of Carranza's actions, which centered on her accessing a union survey of its members, who are all below the rank of captain. Carranza and other command officers have their own separate union. Among other legal technicalities, Iwasaki wrote that the company Survey Monkey owned the survey in question — not the league. The suit was dismissed 'with prejudice,' which means it cannot be refiled. Carranza declined to discuss the ruling when reached this week, saying she wanted to explore her legal options first. Reina, who runs the department bureau that oversees training and recruitment, did not respond to a request for comment. Until recently, he also served as president of the Los Angeles Police Command Officers Assn., the union for department leadership. The league's suit, filed last year, accused Carranza of accessed the union's website by passing herself off as a lower-ranking officer and filled out a survey meant to grade supervisors. Carranza argued in court filings that she used her name when logging in, and pointed out that she and other command staff routinely used the league's system to access their agency benefits. In a letter to the command officers union last December, league President Craig Lally said command officers' access to the 'benefits portal' would be cut off by the end of the year. A voicemail left for Lally went unreturned on Thursday. League officials have said a digital forensics firm hired to investigate the matter found that Carranza had opened approximately 49 'confidential emails' the union had sent to its members from 2016 to 2024, allegedly to undermine the union's credibility. The suit came amid an intensifying dispute between the league and Carranza, an outspoken commander from LAPD's Central Bureau, who in the past has repeatedly sued the department over its treatment of female officers and alleged underreporting of crime statistics. The league made a show of going after Carranza, calling a news conference, releasing YouTube videos and taking subtle shots at her in the pages of its monthly magazine, Thin Blue Line. Carranza further drew the league's ire when she came to the defense of a female captain who insisted on conducting a use-of-force investigation into an incident involving two of her officers. The union — whose members include most LAPD officers, detectives, sergeants and lieutenants — has argued that department morale is low because Carranza and other commanders lack accountability. In addition to publicly criticizing Carranza, the union has also singled out other high-ranking officials — namely, Reina and Michael Rimkunas, another deputy chief who oversees internal investigations. Carranza, who was promoted to captain in 2012 and made commander in 2023, applied for the LAPD chief's job, which was vacated when Michel Moore retired in February 2024. Sources previously told The Times that Carranza was among a number of candidates who were invited for a second round of interviews.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Taiwan Names Japan's Ex-Defense Chief as Cabinet Consultant
(Bloomberg) -- Taiwan named a former head of the Japanese defense forces as an adviser, according to officials in the archipelago's government, a move coming as the two governments deal with China's increasing assertiveness. New York Subway Ditches MetroCard After 32 Years for Tap-And-Go Despite Cost-Cutting Moves, Trump Plans to Remake DC in His Style LA Faces $1 Billion Budget Hole, Warns of Thousands of Layoffs Amtrak CEO Departs Amid Threats of a Transit Funding Pullback NYC Plans for Flood Protection Without Federal Funds Shigeru Iwasaki, the chief of staff of Japan's Self-Defense Forces from 2012 through 2014, was named a consultant to Taiwan's cabinet, said the two officials who asked not to be identified discussing the sensitive issue. The cabinet usually doesn't announce such appointments, one of the officials said. China has lodged protests with the Japanese side in regards to the appointment, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said during a press briefing on Friday. She reiterated the Taiwan question is 'China's internal affair that brooks no external interference.' Both Taiwan and Japan deal with increasing Chinese aggression in the region. Beijing held military exercises around Taiwan's main island this week, linking them to recent US moves backing the self-ruled archipelago. China wants to bring Taiwan under its control someday, by force if necessary. China and Japan are locked in a territorial dispute in the East China Sea. Relations between the two sides have also suffered over issues like a ban imposed by Beijing on seafood from Japan following the release of wastewater from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant. Japan and China are set to hold their first economic dialog in six years on Saturday, an event aimed at reducing those tensions. That's the same day as a meeting in Tokyo between Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya; China's top diplomat, Wang Yi; and South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-Yul. During Iwasaki's stint as Japan's top uniformed officer, tensions escalated between Tokyo and Beijing over islands in the East China Sea that are controlled by Japan but also claimed by China and Taiwan. Japan scrambled fighter jets and increased its coast guard and naval presence in response to a rise in Chinese activity around the islands, which are known as the Senkakus in Japan and Diaoyu in China. As SDF chief, Iwasaki played a leading role in developing joint operations for the Japanese military and coordinating with the US armed forces. --With assistance from Miaojung Lin, James Mayger and Foster Wong. (Updates with comment in fourth paragraph) A New 'China Shock' Is Destroying Jobs Around the World Tesla's Gamble on MAGA Customers Won't Work How TD Became America's Most Convenient Bank for Money Launderers The Real Reason Trump Is Pushing 'Buy American' One Man's Crypto Windfall Is Funding a $1 Billion Space Station Dream ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
New York Times
19-02-2025
- Health
- New York Times
Scientists Describe Rare Syndrome Following Covid Vaccinations
The Covid-19 vaccines were powerfully protective, preventing millions of deaths. But in a small number of people, the shots may have led to a constellation of side effects that includes fatigue, exercise intolerance, brain fog, tinnitus and dizziness, together referred to as 'post-vaccination syndrome,' according to a small new study. Some people with this syndrome appear to show distinct biological changes, the research found — among them differences in immune cells, reawakening of a dormant virus called Epstein-Barr, and the persistence of a coronavirus protein in their blood. The study was posted online Wednesday and has not yet been published in a scientific journal. 'I want to emphasize that this is still a work in progress,' said Akiko Iwasaki, an immunologist at Yale University who led the work. 'It's not like this study determined what's making people sick,' she said, 'but it's the first kind of glimpse at what may be going on within these people.' Independent experts noted that the findings were not conclusive on their own. Yet the results, from a scientific team known for rigorous work, suggest that post-vaccination syndrome deserves further scrutiny, they said. 'One of the most important things is that we get some attention to really shine a light on this and try to understand exactly what it is,' said John Wherry, director of the Institute for Immunology at the University of Pennsylvania. (Dr. Wherry has previously collaborated with Dr. Iwasaki's team, but did not participate in this work.) Thousands of people have said that Covid vaccines harmed them. But the United States' fragmented health care system complicates detection of uncommon side effects and has provided little clarity on the range of symptoms people might have experienced after a Covid shot. The patchwork has also made it difficult to compare and collate self-reported anecdotes. The new study is small, and the condition it is studying is 'very heterogeneous,' said Dr. Gregory Poland, emeritus editor of the journal Vaccine and president of Atria Research Institute. 'Despite these limitations, they found interesting data that need further study,' he said. 'Much larger studies of very carefully defined and phenotyped individuals need to take place.' Between December 2022 and November 2023, Dr. Iwasaki and her team collected blood samples from 42 people with post-vaccination syndrome and 22 healthy people without it. People with the syndrome were generally in poorer health than the average American, the researchers found. When they analyzed components of the immune system, those with post-vaccination syndrome had different proportions of some immune cells, compared with controls. It's unclear what these differences might mean; the researchers did not link them to individual symptoms. Because the symptoms reported by people with post-vaccination syndrome show considerable overlap with those of long Covid, the researchers also analyzed blood from 134 people with long Covid and 134 healthy controls. Like people with long Covid, those with post-vaccination syndrome showed reactivation of Epstein-Barr virus, a virus that may lie dormant in the body and is linked to mononucleosis, multiple sclerosis and other conditions. Some cases of long Covid are thought to result from the persistence of the spike protein of the coronavirus, resulting in a heightened state of inflammation in the body. Dr. Iwasaki and her team found that people with post-vaccination syndrome had significantly higher plasma levels of the coronavirus spike protein than everyone else — including those with long Covid — from 26 to 709 days after receiving the vaccine. Dr. Iwasaki said the mRNA vaccines were unlikely to be the source of the protein so long after the shots were administered. 'Something else is allowing this sort of late-phase expression of spike protein, and we don't really know what that is,' she said. Dr. Wherry suggested caution in interpreting that result. For example, it's possible that some of the protein may result from undetected coronavirus infections. 'I would like to see more data on this topic,' he said. Still, he added, the lack of clear answers makes it even more important to continue to explore the issue. 'One of the things that maybe scientists got trapped into a little bit during the pandemic is this perception that we should have all the answers, and if we can't give it a definitive answer, then we shouldn't be talking about it,' he said. 'I think that that's a mistake,' he added. 'We can't say for certainty that this can't happen.'
