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COMMUNITY
Mar 24, 1999

Tantalizing tempura a crowd-pleaser

Tempura is probably the most internationally popular Japanese dish. It seems difficult to cook the dishat home, but actually, tempura is a very simple dish and tastes good with any kind of ingredients.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 24, 1999

Chinese cronyism hinders reform efforts

The People's Republic of China will celebrate the 50th anniversary of its founding Oct. 1, and major national events are scheduled to take place at that time. President Jiang Zemin has been promoting the slogan of "stability first" -- a reflection of his desire to complete the ceremonies successfully...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Mar 24, 1999

Martin and the king of Siam

A RESOUNDING FAILURE: Martin and the French in Siam, 1672-1693, by Michael Smithies. Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books, 1998, 156 pp., 395 baht. Of the many mercantile adventures that marked European exploitations of Asia, one of the most entertaining is that of the French in Siam. This is a well-known...
COMMENTARY
Mar 24, 1999

A testing summit for the EU

PARIS -- In many respects, the main body of the European Union is the European Commission, the mass resignation of which was announced last week. The commission's president and its 19 other members are appointed for five years by the European Council, which consists of the heads of state or of government...
JAPAN
Mar 24, 1999

Softbank, Microsoft plan online car-shopping venture

Softbank Corp., Microsoft Corp., and Yahoo Japan Corp. announced Wednesday that they will establish a joint venture in April, capitalized at $7 million, offering a car-shopping information service for Japanese customers.
ENVIRONMENT / GARDENING FOR ALL
Mar 24, 1999

Weaving a fall brocade of spindle trees

The spindle tree family (nishikigi-ka, Celastraceae) contains some very ornamental trees, shrubs and climbers, among which nishikigi, the genus Euonymus, is a large group encompassing some 176 species. They grow wild in the temperate to warm regions of the world and can be found in Australia, Europe...
CULTURE / Books
Mar 24, 1999

Frustration and anger produce great Korean fiction

A READY-MADE LIFE: Early Masters of Modern Korean Fiction, selected and translated by Kim Chong-un and Bruce Fulton. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1998, 191 pp., $38 (cloth), $15.95 (paper). "What's driving me to drink isn't anger and isn't the dandies. It's this society -- our Korean society...
LIFE / Travel
Mar 24, 1999

Adventures in suspended reality

Porto Europa, just outside of Wakayama City, is without doubt a playful place to visit and offers a wide range of entertainment, action rides, cuisines and new technology games, but don't expect it to duplicate your last sojourn overseas.
EDITORIALS
Mar 23, 1999

Another global survival gambit

The tieup deal between Nissan Motor Co. and Renault SA, which will be officially announced on Saturday, is about to change the face of the world auto industry. The French carmaker has decided to take a controlling stake of 35 percent in Nissan. The money Renault will pay for Nissan shares, estimated...
COMMENTARY
Mar 23, 1999

Strategies for a secure Japan

Diet has finally begun debating the enabling bills for the Japan-U.S. defense cooperation guidelines, almost a year after the government sent them to the legislature last April. How the debate will develop in the weeks ahead has an important bearing on the security environment of Asia, including the...
CULTURE / Music
Mar 23, 1999

Fusion group raises the Five Star Flag

"You'll never be able to guess the next song!"
JAPAN
Mar 22, 1999

Italian theme, cheaper goods key to joint outlet mall

Staff writer
JAPAN
Mar 22, 1999

Dioxin high near Nose incinerator

OSAKA -- Tests on soil samples taken from areas around a controversial incinerator in the town of Nose, Osaka Prefecture, revealed that two sites had dioxin levels exceeding limits set by the Environment Agency, operators of the facility said Monday.
JAPAN
Mar 22, 1999

Roadbed cave-in delays Chuo Line runs

Some 82 trains running on the JR Chuo Line were canceled Monday morning because the roadbed on a section running through the Namikicho area of Hachioji, western Tokyo, was found to have fallen away, according to East Japan Railway Co.
JAPAN
Mar 22, 1999

Activists seek automatic plebiscites upon petition

KYOTO -- In an effort to empower citizens in local politics, a civic group was formed here Monday to draw up a draft ordinance that would require municipalities to hold plebiscites upon request by local voters.
JAPAN
Mar 22, 1999

Doctors far from malpractice accountability

Staff writer
JAPAN
Mar 22, 1999

Gist of lawmakers' past initiatives

Bills initiated by Diet members in recent years:
JAPAN
Mar 22, 1999

U.S. ties central to defense, Obuchi tells academy grads

YOKOSUKA, Kanagawa Pref. -- Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, speaking at a National Defense Academy graduation ceremony Monday, reiterated his pledge to win quick Diet approval of bills to cover revised Japan-U.S. defense cooperation guidelines.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Mar 21, 1999

Reach out and touch your four-footed friends

Do you ever get the feeling that your cat isn't listening to you? Have you ever tried to find a gift for the dog who has everything? Don't despair. The latest in pet communication is here: greeting cards for cats and dogs.
COMMENTARY
Mar 21, 1999

Consensus or confrontation?

LONDON -- The popular image in Japan is that Britain is a society governed by confrontation and that this has been the source of British failures. Japan, on the other hand, is a society where consensus prevails, and this has led to harmony and to economic success. The popular image is at best a caricature...
COMMUNITY / How-tos / GETTING THINGS DONE
Mar 21, 1999

Obligations

What a downer! A reader has just looked at his calendar and realized that March 15 has passed -- and he forgot to file his Japanese tax return. While he should do it as soon as possible, he does not need to worry. Japan's bureaucracy tends to be compassionate in such matters, especially when the wrongdoer...
EDITORIALS
Mar 20, 1999

Much ado about doing nothing

In tiny news items inspiring ideas may lurk. Last week, for example, it was reported in the U.S. state of Minnesota that the wife of Gov. Jesse ("The Body") Ventura was ill and had been told by her doctor "to do nothing for a month." The nature of Ms. Ventura's illness was not disclosed, although the...
CULTURE / Stage
Mar 20, 1999

Passing time and timeless passion

The Kabukiza this month features such outstanding actors as Danjuro Ichikawa, Koshiro Matsumoto, Kikugoro Onoe, Jakuemon Nakamura and Tamasaburo Bando.
COMMENTARY
Mar 20, 1999

A cloudy outlook for spring

The Dow-Jones industrial average on the New York Stock Exchange broke through the barrier of 10,000 March 16. Following the overnight rally, the benchmark Nikkei average on the Tokyo Stock Exchange regained the 16,000 level for the first time in seven and a half months. The advances appear to signal...
CULTURE / Art
Mar 20, 1999

Japanese custodians of French 'Liberty'

On the occasion of French President Jacques Chirac's visit to Japan in 1996, an exchange of national treasures was agreed upon for the 1998-1999 "Year of France in Japan." Following this agreement, Kudara Kannon, a 7th-century 2-meter wooden bodhisattva from Nara's Horyuji Temple, was sent to France...
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 20, 1999

Learning on the job can be a good idea

The value of education has become a cliche. But few people seem to realize that school-based education can often prove a liability. Consider the views of Ram Mohan, a young farmer from the Indian state of Rajasthan, who refused to go to school. "My father wanted me to go," he said, "but I didn't. My...
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
Mar 20, 1999

The squirrel or the eagle?

Thirty-five years ago, during the "Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution," China's Chairman Mao Zedong announced the coming of an uncompromising global struggle between the City and the Village. China, in Mao's eyes the best country in the world, symbolized the sturdy and righteous Village. Haughty and...
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 20, 1999

U.S. apologists for China disregard reality

"China apologists," mainly representing newspapers and academic haunts in Los Angeles, New York and Boston, claim that the rest of us are beating up on China merely because Beijing is into heavy-duty spying on the United States, stealing high-tech secrets and deploying enough missiles opposite Taiwan...
CULTURE / Music
Mar 20, 1999

Tokyo says 'Bravo!' to tango explosion

The hottest song now in Japan is undoubtedly "Dango 3 Kyodai," which humorously depicts the story of three dumpling brothers. Though originally composed for a children's TV program, the song appealed to adults as well, and 3 million CDs have been sold so far.
EDITORIALS
Mar 19, 1999

A welcome step forward

Once again, the United States has shown that engagement with North Korea works. After four rounds of talks in as many months, a deal has been struck in New York with the North Korean government on access to an underground site suspected of housing a secret nuclear-weapons project. Japan, South Korea...

Longform

A sinkhole in Yashio, which emerged in January, was triggered by a ruptured, aging sewer pipe. Authorities worry that similar sections of infrastructure across the country are also at risk of corrosion.
That sinking feeling: Japan’s aging sewers are an infrastructure time bomb