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Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Jan 4, 2003

Junko Okura

Last month the Junior Group of the Japan-British Society held a traditionally British Christmas party. In the revelry of a Tokyo British pub, participants enjoyed roast turkey and stuffing, and mince pies with cream and brandy sauce.
EDITORIALS
Jan 3, 2003

Folly in chasing a 'bubble' mirage

The past year saw Japan's economy continue to wallow in a quagmire of deflation. The problem was compounded by the bad-debt crisis in the banking sector. The recurring afterthought is that the economy is still paying a heavy price for the 1980s bubble. Even more dismaying is the realization that there...
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Jan 3, 2003

The mice with the windows in their skulls

The British entertainer Derren Brown has caused a stir by apparently demonstrating mind control. He's not psychic, he says, but he can see into other people's brains.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 3, 2003

Koreans on either side sweep offbeat honors

HONG KONG -- The two Koreas swept the board with the most Asian Institute of Discord Analysis (Aida) "awards" for 2002, in a way reminiscent of the glory days of the Indo-Pakistani antagonism, before those two South Asian nations won the "Rivalry of the Year" award in perpetuity.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 1, 2003

These things take time

Jazz fans have long taken scratches, hisses, poor miking and wobbly mixing as signs of hidden truths and authenticity in recordings of their legends. In 2002, though, they had to deal with a little cleanliness. Last year's releases of freshly remastered classics showed off extended sonic depth and range,...
MORE SPORTS
Dec 31, 2002

'Sappu' phenomenon captures imagination of Japanese public

A beast will send chills down the spine of the bravest of men.
COMMUNITY
Dec 31, 2002

Bringing AIDS awareness to the EFL classroom

Burning the candle at both ends has a different meaning for Louise Haynes, director of Japan AIDS Prevention Awareness Network (JAPANetwork).
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Dec 31, 2002

Don't pay extra for shipping when you move to Japan

Belated greetings
COMMUNITY
Dec 29, 2002

A master of tea's art and science

Kunihiko Sokan Horinouchi, 59, is not just the 13th master of the tea house Horinouchi Choseian, one of the two subdivisions of the Omotesenke, a major school of traditional Japanese tea ceremony. As the head of one of the two families which, for generations, have been supporting the Omotesenke tradition...
COMMUNITY
Dec 29, 2002

Winter's ancient symbol of vigor and life

In the contemporary Western world, Christmas starts with Christmas Eve on Dec. 24. and ends with Boxing Day on Dec. 26. In times now long past, though -- and on calendars now long since consigned to history -- the date of Christmas and celebrations of the birth of Christ have varied from Dec. 25 to Jan....
COMMENTARY
Dec 29, 2002

Resist the potions of the past

LONDON -- "Capitulation bottom" is the ugly and inelegant phrase used by financial analysts in London to indicate the low point in the cycle of investor optimism and pessimism -- the point where investors give up in despair, sell their shrunken shareholdings, if they can find a buyer, and start putting...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 29, 2002

Hideki Togi out to gagaku your world

He is the man responsible for bringing gagaku back into the Japanese lexicon. He is to gagaku (classical Japanese court music) what Ayumi Hamasaki is to J-Pop. Since Hideki Togi left the Imperial Household Agency in 1996, armed with his hichiriki, black leather pants and cool charm, he has been on a...
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 29, 2002

Modernization model for Islamic nations

HONOLULU -- With all due respect to his office, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia got it wrong when he suggested in Tokyo in mid-December that the Japanese help Americans and Europeans to understand Islam.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Dec 28, 2002

Japan being led into war again, this time by U.S.

For years, ever since leaving Doshisha University, Shinpei Ishii worked for TV Man Union Inc. Then in 1989, tired of kowtowing to authority and wanting to write and speak out freely, he went freelance. It was a good move. He won an award for a program made for NTV and acclaim for literary translations,...
COMMENTARY
Dec 26, 2002

Marketing matters in foreign policy

HONOLULU -- Call me a cynic, but I've long believed that one of the greatest foreign-policy advantages the United States has enjoyed is the ineptness of the governments it has confronted. It's always good to have right on your side, but sometimes that isn't enough. Nor is might the answer: The reality...
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Dec 26, 2002

Thirty years of environmental progress, but . . .

Yet another year is tugging impatiently at the sleeve of closure and within days will be history.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Dec 25, 2002

The Pascals: "The Pascals Go"

The Pascals are a quirky collection of outstanding Japanese musicians whose tunes are penned in the spirit of the French composer Pascal Comelade.
EDITORIALS
Dec 24, 2002

Afghan revival depends on security

Sunday marked the first anniversary of the establishment of an interim government in Afghanistan following the collapse of the Islamic fundamentalist Taliban regime. Earlier this month, Mr. Hamid Karzai, head of the transitional government that took over from an interim administration in June, noted...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / NOTES FROM THE SMOKE
Dec 24, 2002

Veering from Brookside Close to Robocop

As Notes From the Smoke afternoons go, the one I spent in Monzennaka-cho got off to an unpromising start.
COMMENTARY / JAPAN IN THE GLOBAL ERA
Dec 23, 2002

Bleaker times may await the grandkids

LAUSANNE, Switzerland -- In four weeks this series will have run for a year, and it will be time to bring it to an end. These last four articles, therefore, will constitute a combination of conclusions and parting thoughts.
COMMENTARY
Dec 23, 2002

Fix the U.S.-ROK alliance

HONOLULU -- Now that the South Korean presidential elections are over, it's time for outgoing President Kim Dae Jung to take the necessary steps to ensure a proper legacy. No, I am not talking about his "sunshine policy" of engagement with North Korea. His bold, if only partially successful, efforts...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 22, 2002

Trial judge completes the vicious circle in curry-poisoning case

Exactly four years ago in this column, I wrote that, egged on by the media, which had already tried and convicted Masumi Hayashi for murder in the Wakayama Curry Poisoning Incident even before she was arrested, "the police . . . proudly announced that they have enough circumstantial evidence to convince...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Dec 22, 2002

The Christmas business

Japanese marketers are well aware that Christmas ranks second in popularity only to New Year's -- above even the Bon holiday in August, when people flock back to their hometowns to pay respect to their ancestors.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / PLAY BUTTON
Dec 22, 2002

Exploring musical compositions' demarcation lines

What is the difference between a track and a song? To the average listener, nothing -- the terms are often used interchangeably.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Dec 22, 2002

A little something for the god

GRACIOUS GIFTS: Japan's Sacred Offerings, photographed by Gorazd Vilhar, text by Charlotte Anderson. Tokyo: Shufunotomo-sha, 1999, 128 pp., 172 color plates, 4,000 yen (cloth) All religions encourage gifts. From Catholic prayer boxes to Protestant collection plates, from the donation repositories of...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 21, 2002

You call that twig a Christmas tree?

The Japanese have adopted Christmas with great zeal, in the same manner they have adopted other Western things such as Snoopy and Disney. The holiday -- with glittery trees, sparkly lights and fairy-tale songs -- is irresistible to the Japanese. This, along with the "If it blinks I want it!" mentality,...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Dec 20, 2002

Vin Picoeur: Le BBQ Franco-Japonais

'Tis the season to be merry, but too many office parties, bonenkai drink fests and lavish yearend dining can quickly take their toll. In the face of hectic schedules and chronic overindulgence, the only remedy is to slow down and concentrate on the fundamentals -- good, satisfying food; fine wine; and...
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
Dec 19, 2002

Grant cut after bad scene on team plane

NEW YORK -- Horace Grant always speaks his mind, though, at times, it becomes muffled by mystery. As a principal beam of four NBA championships, he is notorious for confronting teammates and chopping on coaches, not always for attribution.

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