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Japan Times
JAPAN / PREFECTURAL FARE
Feb 1, 2003

Hiroshima's long-neglected cuisine brought to the fore at Shinjuku store

Hiroshima Prefecture's natural beauty and abundance of marine life are almost always upstaged by the tragedy that befell its capital in 1945.
EDITORIALS
Jan 31, 2003

Thorough inspection must come first

The U.N. search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq has turned up no conclusive evidence that it is developing or possessing these deadly arms. But the inspectors have also reported to the U.N. Security Council that Baghdad has given them only limited cooperation during the past two months and that...
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 31, 2003

Lifetime of missed chances

LONDON -- On Jan. 22, two of the world's leading powers celebrated the 40th anniversary of a remarkable reconciliation. At the historic Palace of Versailles, France's President Jacques Chirac and Germany's Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder toasted a treaty signed in 1963 by their visionary predecessors, Charles...
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 30, 2003

Forget about military draft

WASHINGTON -- In recent weeks, motivated partly by a looming war in Iraq, a debate has again begun about whether the United States should adopt military conscription to replace its all-volunteer force. While the motivation behind this debate is understandable, it would be a very bad idea -- the equivalent...
EDITORIALS
Jan 29, 2003

An improved privacy bill

The new privacy legislation prepared by the government -- a replacement for a similar measure that died in last year's Diet session -- represents a step forward. The improved version leaves out, among other things, rules that would unreasonably restrict the media handling of personal information. It...
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jan 28, 2003

Turning Japanese no simple process

Japan's aging society and low birthrate demand dramatic measures, some say.
BUSINESS / ON MANAGEMENT
Jan 28, 2003

Habit vs. mechanics: Going from good to great can necessitate a 'Tiger Woods' overhaul

Recently an executive returned from a trip with a story about the salesman he visited. Now in his late 50s, the fellow had been a proven performer since early in his career, hitting his numbers and accumulating bonuses at a prodigious clip. His sales approach was direct to the point of being confrontational,...
BUSINESS
Jan 27, 2003

C&W IDC exec hands on challenge of making telecom regulations fairer

Changes in Japan's telecommunications industry over the past two years have been far-reaching and important, but much remains to be done to achieve a truly free and transparent market, according to Lisa Suits, outgoing vice president of the public policy division of Cable & Wireless IDC Inc.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / JET STREAM
Jan 27, 2003

The god of small things

Nanotechnology researcher Istvan Varga is unique among the more than 6,400 participants in this year's JET program. While the majority work as assistant English teachers in Japanese public schools, the 34-year-old Hungarian-born electrical engineer spends his days exploring the secrets of magnetism....
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 27, 2003

Trials of a singleton

When a man's been single for too long, he can start to exhibit strange symptoms.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jan 26, 2003

Replica habitats aim to create more natural animal displays

Spending the day at the zoo isn't one of the first things families think of any more when they're looking for weekend recreation. As both new alternatives -- from the recent upsurge of interest in soccer to the rash of flashy theme parks -- as well as more familiar ones -- like the movies -- vie for...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jan 26, 2003

First, dump the zombie debtors

JAPANESE PHOENIX: The Long Road to Economic Revival, by Richard Katz. M.E. Sharpe: Armonk, NY, 2003, 351 pp., $24.95 (paper) As Japan limps further into a second decade of recession, optimists about its future economic prospects are thin on the ground. In this provocative and thoughtful study, Richard...
COMMENTARY
Jan 26, 2003

Undoing a dictator's legacy

HONG KONG -- There was a largely unseen symmetry underlying two political bombshells that recently exploded in the northern Philippines, one after the other: Early on Dec. 29, the effigy of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, seemingly carved into rock in northern Luzon, was at long last blown up. Then,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / PLAY BUTTON
Jan 26, 2003

A rare chance to tap into Cat Power

Chan Marshall sits in her record company's office toying with a partially eaten apple. It is a fitting symbol. In Tokyo to promote her new album under the Cat Power moniker, "You Are Free," Marshall (first name pronounced Shawn) is dealing with her own peculiar fall from grace: the publicity tour.
COMMENTARY
Jan 25, 2003

Avoiding World War III

HONOLULU -- Help me get this straight!
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 25, 2003

Only Mitzna offers real hope for peace

NEW YORK -- The Jan. 28 elections in Israel offer voters a clear choice: either they choose to continue with policies that have only brought increased violence and misery to their country, or they can take the bold step of choosing a candidate with risky but novel ideas on how to deal with the ongoing...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 25, 2003

'Gaijin' do just the strangest things

People often ask me what I find strange about being the only "gaijin" living on a Japanese island. I wonder if people also ask the residents what they think is strange about the gaijin living on their island. Indeed, we gaijin seem to have unlimited ways of causing consternation and raising eyebrows...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST
Jan 25, 2003

Joy for the standing man: Densha Don's seat secrets

In riding the iron ponies hither and thither across the urban plains of Japan, I'm one railroad cowboy who would just love to experience the singular pain of a real-life horsemen.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 24, 2003

Koizumi shrugs off failures

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi caused a stir in the House of Representatives Budget Committee on Thursday by claiming his breaches of three key policy pledges were "no big deal."
BUSINESS
Jan 24, 2003

Inflation-targeting: facts behind the hyperbole

Academics, central bankers and politicians are divided over the issue currently occupying the center stage of public debate: a monetary policy tool known as inflation-targeting.
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
Jan 23, 2003

Wilkens hanging on as Raptors coach but for how long?

TORONTO -- Twice enshrined Lenny Wilkens probably has no idea how close he came to being deported from Toronto less than two weeks ago. Yet, surely the Hall of Fame player and coach, the NBA's all-time winningest (1278) and runnerup losingest (10 behind Bill Fitch at 1106) coach, knows his history-making...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Jan 22, 2003

Ms. Jade: "Girl Interrupted"

Twenty-three-year-old Chevon Young was not an overnight sensation. She was repeatedly passed over by A&R people because Eve was already a star and they didn't think there was room in the majors for two female MCs from Philadelphia. Then someone steered her to the Beat Club, the new record label run by...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 22, 2003

This 'Pilgrim' is hardly progress

After the bubble economy burst in 1991, disillusionment and emptiness were felt throughout Japan. When "Pilgrim" was first performed in 1989 by The Third Stage Theater Company, however, most people foresaw only continuing prosperity, fueled by rising stock and property prices and the strengthening yen....
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jan 21, 2003

Leaving Japan, getting organized and cash refunds

Being thankful Hello from Tokyo. For all of our complaints, isn't it wonderful to be in Japan? With war, hunger and strife rampant in the world, Japan, with all its problems, is an oasis. It's a good time to be thankful, as we enter the new year, for the simple blessings of peace, trains that run on...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jan 21, 2003

Gadgets gnaw at polite society

A funny thing happened to me on the train home the other day. I had a conversation with a total stranger.
COMMENTARY / JAPAN IN THE GLOBAL ERA
Jan 20, 2003

Intellectual alienation spawns hazy polic

WASHINGTON -- The main purpose of my visit to Washington at the beginning of 2003 was to carry out discussions on U.S. perspectives, policies and strategies for the Doha Development Round, in particular, and global economic policy in general. Meetings were held with U.S. government departments, foreign...
MORE SPORTS
Jan 20, 2003

Toshiba, Suntory to contest company clubs final

The 55th and final Company Clubs Rugby Football Championship will be contested between Toshiba Fuchu and Suntory following two tight semifinals on Sunday. At Hanazono Stadium, Osaka, Toshiba beat Ricoh 21-14, while Suntory beat NEC 35-23 at Chichibunomiya Stadium, Tokyo.
COMMUNITY
Jan 19, 2003

The danchi and postwar society

At the time, they were homes most Japanese could only dream about. Within their thick concrete walls, they were equipped with such mod cons as flush toilets and stainless-steel kitchen sinks, and they even had separate bedrooms -- for parents and children.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 19, 2003

Amateurish TV? Well let it be, just let it be

The Jan. 16 issue of Shukan Bunshun carries an article that lists and describes the 10 worst TV specials broadcast during the New Year's holidays. Coming up with a Worst 10 is not difficult, since practically any special broadcast during the New Year's break could qualify for a list of the 10 Worst Programs...
CULTURE / Books
Jan 19, 2003

Trail of tears from Deshima

TITIA: The First Western Woman in Japan, by Rene P. Bersma. Amsterdam: Hotei Publishing, 2002, 140 pp. with 37 plates, $17.50 (paper) One August afternoon in 1817, a Dutch ship entered Nagasaki and anchored in the bay. Waiting for clearance was Jan Cock Blomhoff, the new director of the Dutch trading...

Longform

After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan