Japan

They call it the World Baseball Classic. But don't let the name fool you. Because although the tournament began nearly three weeks ago with 16 teams from six continents playing in four countries, it will end tonight at Dodger Stadium almost as it began -- with Japan playing South Korea.

Monday's World Baseball Classic final was just that: a classic final. It featured great pitching, timely hitting, some spectacular defense, and a passionate, vocal crowd of 54,846 at Dodger Stadium. So much excitement they needed 10 innings to pack it all in. In fact, about the only thing separating it from a major league playoff game was, well, teams made up of major league players.

Nervous Japanese officials know that the first moments after North Korea launches a rocket will be critical: Barely seven minutes after liftoff, it is likely to be hurtling over Japan's northern coast. In 1998, Japan was caught unaware when the second stage of a North Korean test rocket sailed over its main island before dropping into the ocean. This time, North Korea says it plans to put a satellite into orbit. The U.S.

Every Aug. 15, the normally serene Yasukuni shrine in the center of Tokyo becomes the setting for a stakeout. The watchers are Japan's media. And they're watching for politicians, keeping count of who does and who does not show at this shrine to the war dead on the emotionally charged anniversary of Imperial Japan's surrender in World War II. With its soothing lanterns and elegant rice-paper walls, the 140-year-old Yasukuni is a place of contemplation and contention. The Shinto shrine is the repository for the souls of the roughly 2.5 million soldiers who died in the emperor's wars, and supporters say it serves the same purpose as Arlington in a country that has no national war cemetery.

From his window seat in the Roppongi bar district, Neil Garscadden eyes an exotic street parade: the reggae-styled hipsters, the Nigerian nightclub hawkers, the soft-stepping geishas, the secretaries in miniskirts and impossibly heavy eye shadow. The nuances of the scene, Garscadden insists, would be lost on a mere tourist. This, he says, is a job for Charisma Man. With his blue eyes, tousled blond hair and foreign passport, Charisma Man is a sake-sipping man about town, suavely negotiating the intricacies of Japanese culture.

Yukari Sato sat in her quiet campaign office and stared at the one-eyed doll that was supposed to bring her luck. The roly-poly talisman, known as a daruma doll, traditionally comes with blank eyes. While making a wish, the doll's owner fills in the left eye. The right eye is drawn when the wish is granted. That didn't happen last week for Sato, who experienced a crushing defeat in her bid for a second term in parliament with the Liberal Democratic Party. "I'm hoping to fill in the other eye four years from now," Sato said.

Japan's parliament named Yukio Hatoyama prime minister Wednesday, as his party took power for the first time with promises to revive the slumping economy and make Tokyo a more equal partner in its alliance with the United States. The Stanford-educated Hatoyama said he planned to review the American military presence in Japan, where 50,000 U.S. troops are stationed. But he said he wouldn't emphasize that potentially contentious issue in a first meeting with President Obama that could come sometime this month.

Shop owner Hideo Sakamoto knows this sad truth about his dying town: When he retires, no one will be left to take the reins of his tiny business selling eyeglasses and clocks. His two children have fled to big cities and his mother is bedridden. "It's a sad story," says the 57-year-old, "because I will not be passing down my business to my children." And not just that, he says. He and his wife, Mariko, are "so lonely." Almost every day, this Japanese town surrounded by streams and mountains is eerily quiet, with only a few elderly people walking down its narrow streets.

Japan's big-name electronics manufacturers are readying flat-screen TVs that can show high-definition movies and video games in 3-D for launch next year. At the country's biggest consumer electronics show, which opened Tuesday just outside Tokyo, all the major makers had large 3-D prototypes on display. Visitors to company booths at the show donned special electronic glasses and watched as soccer balls flew toward them in sports clips and virtual heroes moved deep into the background of video games.

There was a special dance created by a well-known choreographer, as well as DVDs, special posters and pamphlets. Masks and a "cough etiquette" campaign are already ubiquitous. As is lots and lots of soap. Thursday was proclaimed the second annual Global Hand Washing Day, and the U.N. agency that promotes child welfare sought to deliver the message that what is a simple measure is the most effective way to prevent many deadly diseases, including H1N1 influenza, commonly known as swine flu. Every year, 8.8 million children under age 5 die of preventable illnesses worldwide.