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COMMENTARY / World
Jan 7, 2001

Australia's humble founders got it right

SYDNEY -- Egalitarianism has always ruled here, ever since the first white settlers arrived in Sydney Cove from their London jails in 1788. One of the first convicts off the boat became chief magistrate and another chief architect. Jack is not only as good as his master; here he considers himself a damn...
CULTURE / Music
Jan 7, 2001

Beyond technical perfection: the best from 2000

It is time once again to look back over some of the most significant musical events of the year 2000.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 7, 2001

Demolition derby in world's biggest game center

Whenever you step off the airplane in a new country, you are forced to throw all common sense aside and sacrifice your body and possessions to a complete stranger -- the taxi driver. From the moment you get inside his car, you become his.
COMMUNITY
Jan 7, 2001

Good manners make comfortable relations

In Japan, there has been much discussion of late of both morals and manners. Indeed, one national newspaper on Jan. 1, in a section devoted to scrutinizing how Japanese have changed in recent years, devoted a whole page to the question: Are good manners a thing of the past?
BUSINESS
Jan 6, 2001

Business chiefs gauge economy

The leaders of Japan's four most powerful business groups on Friday voiced cautious optimism over the nation's economy, predicting an annual growth rate of between 1.5 percent and 2 percent for 2001.
BUSINESS
Jan 6, 2001

Young information technology execs join social revolution

The role played by young people in promoting information technology in society was highlighted in early December when a teenage company executive was recognized and won an award for being the person most representative of the IT revolution.
CULTURE / Art
Jan 6, 2001

Gentility of famed Wedgwood

Despite fears that England is increasingly becoming an unpleasant and vulgar country with an antisocial yob culture, internationally it is still blessed with an image of civilized gentility.
JAPAN
Jan 5, 2001

Changing diet brings rising food concerns

The traditional Japanese diet of rice, grilled fish and vegetables has long been heralded as among the healthiest a culture has produced -- just witness Japan's long life spans.
CULTURE / Books
Jan 5, 2001

Have Japanese novelists lost touch with readers?

The fading interest in reading among younger Japanese first caused alarm several years ago in Japan, but I was recently startled to see a full page devoted to the topic in The New York Times' Book Review section (Dec. 10).
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Jan 4, 2001

2001: A Sports Odyssey

Welcome to the first Sports Scope of the 21st century. By now you've probably read a zillion stories about the sporting year in review. Have no worries; this column looks toward the future. Here are 13 fearless predictions for the Year of the Snake. Wager at your own risk!
BUSINESS
Jan 3, 2001

Net provides alternative for job-seekers

Print media and conventional job-placement agencies are still the main players in connecting jobs to seekers, but the Internet is slowly emerging as an alternative.
BUSINESS
Jan 3, 2001

Virtual marketplace moves next door

Stop by a neighborhood liquor shop a few months from now and chances are it will offer TVs, refrigerators and thousands of other items for either home delivery or later on-the-spot pickup.
JAPAN
Jan 3, 2001

Britain feared a revival of militarism after Mishima's suicide

LONDON -- The dramatic suicide by Japanese writer and nationalist Yukio Mishima after his failed attempt to foment a coup in 1970 triggered British concern about a revival of militarism in Japan, according to 30-year-old declassified British documents released on New Year's Day.
LIFE / Travel
Jan 3, 2001

Tickets here for Asia

By the time the lunch gong sounded in the great hall of the Heng Yang monastery, I had already placed generous votive offerings at a shrine in the Temple of the Goddess of Mercy, watched a flour-doll and knot maker at work, witnessed minor grievances being aired at the Ancient Courthouse and met a talking...
JAPAN
Jan 1, 2001

State-backed Internet expo kicks off

The government-sponsored virtual Internet exposition, an event for the new millennium, went online Sunday.
BUSINESS
Jan 1, 2001

Cellphones may bridge 'digital divide'

While the past year may be remembered for the surge in use of the Internet-capable cellphone, it remains to be seen whether this technology will thrust Japan to the forefront of the digital revolution as policy and industry experts hope.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 1, 2001

A question of hegemony

An implicit alliance has emerged in Washington since the Cold War's end between avowedly "Wilsonian" liberals, anxious to extend American influence and federate the democracies, and unilateralist neoconservative believers in U.S. power projection, who call for American world leadership, aggressively...
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 1, 2001

Toward mutually assured peace

As we enter the 21st century, recent trends in technological development make the problems of nuclear weapons a pressing issue requiring greater attention and a more serious response.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 1, 2001

The true meaning of civilization

History shows that on the eve of the collapse of the Roman Empire, its denizens reveled as if they were crazy. Just before Paris fell to German forces during World War II, dressed-up people danced all night at nightclubs in the city. And when the Cuban government of President Fulgencio Batista fell,...
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 1, 2001

A possible Third Way for Japan

During the last decade of the 20th century, Japan's economy stagnated. The recession that followed the collapse of the asset-price bubble (1987-90) hit bottom in October 1993, but the economy remained flat through the end of 2000, with no visible signs of a lasting recovery.
JAPAN
Dec 31, 2000

Mohri leaves NASDA for museum

Japanese astronaut Mamoru Mohri, who participated in U.S. space shuttle missions in 1992 and in February this year, is retiring from the National Space Development Agency of Japan to head a science museum to be completed in July, NASDA officials said.
JAPAN
Dec 30, 2000

Aum ranks' rights compromised by fear

NAGAREYAMA, Chiba Pref. -- As night falls, all the houses in this quiet bedroom community melt into darkness.
CULTURE / Art
Dec 30, 2000

'Discovering' Heinrich Vogeler

With most Tokyo galleries closed during the New Year's break, it can be difficult to find an interesting contemporary art show in the city.
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2000

Number of municipalities could be slashed by 81%

The number of Japan's cities, towns and villages could be slashed from the current 3,229 to as few as 600 if merger plans that some two-thirds of all prefectures have drawn up are fully implemented, and if the remaining prefectures compile similar plans, a Kyodo News survey showed Thursday.
COMMENTARY
Dec 28, 2000

The fight for liberty continues

WASHINGTON -- We are entering a new year, the true third millenium. Unfortunately, the prospects for liberty do not burn bright. Human history is largely one of tyranny. The history of the last couple thousand years has been largely one of combatting tyranny.
JAPAN
Dec 27, 2000

Education panel hits individuality, stresses Japanese-language focus

An Education Ministry advisory panel is calling for increased Japanese-language study and reading opportunities for children, saying a good command of the language provides a solid platform for education and cultural literacy.

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami