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Japan Times
Features
Aug 15, 2004

Barbed organ of delights

"Whereas women were created solely for amusement of men it ill becomes them to emancipate themselves," begins an article in an 1873 edition of Japan Punch. "As our slaves they are the most delightful of animals, but when they attempt to assume airs of superiority, then they become hateful."
Features
Aug 15, 2004

Serendipity with suds

Forget that Kanto has a GDP bigger than Italy's. What really fills me with a sense of civic pride is the knowledge that my Tokyo is home to the only museum in the world dedicated to laundry.
CULTURE / Music
Aug 15, 2004

Free spirit moves between jazz and classical

Jazz pianist Makoto Ozone has spent the last 20 years moving between Japan and the United States, so it is perhaps no surprise that his most recent release, New Spirit, moves comfortably between two musical worlds classical and jazz. Though Ozone could rest on a remarkable career in jazz, becoming one...
CULTURE / Music
Aug 15, 2004

Recorded: Rogue Wave: "Out of the Shadow"

Rogue Wave"Out of the Shadow" (Subpop) Indie-pop outfit, Rogue Wave, should consider themselves lucky. Ever since the Subpop label re-released their overlooked debut, Out of the Shadow, the gushing reviews keep pouring forth. Critics compare them to everyone from the Beach Boys to Elliot Smith. That's...
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
Aug 15, 2004

Life in a Russian namesake

MOSCOW -- To be a namesake of a celebrity is a curse. A person who bears the same name as a baseball star or a TV anchorman invariably finds himself a target of countless unkind comments that demean his intellect, looks and savings account, and even make fun of the car he drives. No matter how hard he...
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2004

North gets 150 questions regarding 10 abductees

Japan has requested that Pyongyang provide full answers to 150 questions about the fate of 10 Japanese citizens whom Tokyo believes were abducted to the North, government sources said Friday.
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2004

Spa-drilling may sink metropolis?

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government will regulate drilling for new hot springs in the capital, alarmed that a recent rush by developers to build spas might cause the water supply to dry up and the land to sink.
BASEBALL / MLB
Aug 14, 2004

Sasaki changes tune, decides to play on

Yokohama BayStars closer Kazuhiro Sasaki has changed his mind about retiring and decided to continue pitching for the Central League club, at least until the end of the season.
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2004

'Gender-free' roll calls may be axed

The Tokyo board of education might ban schools under its control from holding student rolls by alphabetical order and order a return to the old way of calling the roll by gender, board officials said Friday.
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2004

Pyongyang defector to testify in Diet

The Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives said Friday it will invite high-ranking North Korean defector Hwang Jang Yop to Japan in mid-September to give Diet testimony on issues concerning North Korea.
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2004

0.4% GDP rise rains on parade

Japan's economy expanded 0.4 percent in the April-June quarter from the previous quarter, sharply slowing on lackluster corporate investment and consumer spending, Cabinet Office data showed Friday.
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2004

UNHCR petitioned to aid Kurd asylum-seekers

Two Kurdish families seeking asylum in Japan and their supporters submitted more than 3,000 signatures Friday to the Tokyo office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees seeking support for their plea.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2004

Top parodist serves anti-Koizumi camp

People not in positions of authority might feel they can do little to change a political situation they disagree with, but for one of the nation's leading parodists, the answer is simple: ape those in positions of power in an unflattering way.
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2004

North gets 150 questions regarding 10 abductees

Japan has requested that Pyongyang provide full answers to 150 questions about the fate of 10 Japanese citizens whom Tokyo believes were abducted to the North, government sources said Friday.
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2004

Spa-drilling may sink metropolis?

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government will regulate drilling for new hot springs in the capital, alarmed that a recent rush by developers to build spas might cause the water supply to dry up and the land to sink.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 14, 2004

Bon brings more than family back home

"Attention Shiraishi Island residents. This is an announcement from the Kasaoka city Environment Committee. This month's toilet cleaning will take place on Friday, Aug. 3 and Thursday, Aug. 26. Please register for toilet cleaning at least one day beforehand. And don't forget to buy your toilet tickets."...
BUSINESS
Aug 14, 2004

DoCoMo, KDDI give number service

NTT DoCoMo Inc. and KDDI Corp. will begin a free recorded message service to give out a subscriber's new telephone number when the person switches to their services.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2004

'Onsen': know what you're getting into

Another big labeling scam is unraveling, and this time it's not over beef or milk but the nation's biggest tourist draw: "onsen" hot springs.
BUSINESS
Aug 14, 2004

Department store sales down 1.1%

Sales at Tokyo department stores fell 1.1 percent in July from a year earlier to 182.53 billion yen, marking the fifth straight monthly decline, the Japan Department Stores Association said Friday.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Aug 14, 2004

Yuko Ono

Before World War II, Kobe was a very international city, says Yuko Ono. She grew up in tranquil surroundings there. In her girlhood she was accustomed to the presence of several non-Japanese residents, who loved Kobe for its ranging hills, mild winters and idyllic waterside setting. Ono liked the city's...
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 14, 2004

Rowdy Chinese fans raise some Olympic-size questions

HONOLULU -- Nasty outbursts against a Japanese sports team in China have raised worrisome questions about Beijing's fitness to host the 2008 Olympic Games, which China's rulers intend to be a showcase for the progress of their nation, much as the Games were for Japan in 1964 and for South Korea in 1988....
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Aug 14, 2004

Optimists head out to sea, next Olympics in view

You must forgive the fact I am not straying far from the ocean side this summer, but interesting people just keeping falling into my lap within kilometers of my home. Take this week, for example. . . .

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight