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Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 24, 2002

Beautiful people

Men, does your weedy physique or receding hair line make you feel inadequate? Women, do you worry about wrinkles or whether to brave the pain of a bikini-line Brazilian wax? Ever feel that all of us, every day, are bombarded with images of physical perfection that are impossible to live up to?
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 24, 2002

Celebrate the fragile art of glass

With the sweltering heat of summer now upon us, you could do worse than escape into the Suntory Museum in Akasaka to visit its exhibition of glass art. There is something particularly cooling about looking at these 142 exhibits, which range from a fragment enameled with a charming bird design from Roman...
COMMENTARY
Jul 23, 2002

Who can succeed Koizumi?

A sense of frustration prevails as the marathon Diet session nears its end. Since it convened in January, the scandal-racked legislature has achieved very little, and the political situation has become increasingly unstable.
JAPAN
Jul 23, 2002

Killer's legacy builds bridges

One of the last wishes of executed mass murderer Norio Nagayama has helped to link Japanese kids who refuse to go to school with working children in Peru.
BUSINESS
Jul 23, 2002

Report to call for FTA negotiations with Mexico

Japan and Mexico should begin formal negotiations as soon as possible on concluding a comprehensive pact aimed at shoring up a bilateral economic partnership, including a free-trade agreement.
EDITORIALS
Jul 22, 2002

A nuclear conundrum

The world is increasing its reliance on nuclear energy. For many people, that is a dangerous development. For many others, it is the only responsible choice. The truth is energy-policy decisions are becoming increasingly difficult. A national debate -- in Japan and elsewhere -- is a necessity. Ultimately,...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jul 21, 2002

A rollicking romp through ancient Edo

THE PILLOW BOOK OF LADY WISTERIA, by Laura Joh Rowland. St. Martin's Minotaur: New York, 2002,292 pp., $24.95 (cloth) While sports fans' attention is focused on Ichiro Suzuki of Seattle Mariners baseball fame, the exploits of Ichiro Sano, the Tokugawa shogunate's "Most Honorable Investigator of Events,...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jul 21, 2002

Let's have some quiet, please

SPACES FOR SILENCE, text by Caro Ness, photos by Alen MacWeeney. Foreword by Ruth La Feria. Tokyo/Boston: Tuttle Publishing, 2001, 142 pp., 135 color plates, 4,500 yen (cloth) The late Jiddu Krishnamurti once said that religion is frozen thought, and that out of it one builds temples. The implication...
COMMENTARY
Jul 21, 2002

Will Jiang cling to power?

HONG KONG -- As top politicians in the Communist Party of China consult and confer with each other at Beidaihe during their annual seaside retreat, one key question facing them is whether 76-year-old President and CPC Secretary General Jiang Zemin will seek to extend himself in office.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jul 21, 2002

On the crest of something big

When you drop from the crest of a vertical wall of water teetering on a narrow piece of fiberglass, the human instinct for survival takes over and there's only primal fear and wild excitement in your heart. The ocean's roar engulfs you, though all seems strangely silent; time freezes, and the gods look...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / NIHONSHU
Jul 21, 2002

Right down to the nitty-gritty grains

Rice is not, as most readers know, simply rice. Good sake is made from proper sake rice, and cheaper sake is made from much less expensive rice. In fact, most run-of-the-mill sake is made with rice bought from the local agricultural co-op, and often the purchaser knows nothing about it other than it...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jul 21, 2002

The search for Mr. Purrfect

OF CATS AND KINGS, by Clare de Vries. Bloomsbury, 2002, 308 pp., $14.95 (cloth) In her first book, "I & Claudius," British writer Clare de Vries went on a tour of the United States with an unusual traveling companion: a dashing chocolate-brown Burmese cat called Claudius. De Vries and Claudius lived...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jul 21, 2002

Flawed assumptions that courted disaster

PEACE, POWER AND RESISTANCE IN CAMBODIA: Global Governance and the Failure of InternationalConflict Resolution, by Pierre P. Lizee. Macmillan/St. Martin's Press, 2000, 206 pp. (cloth) According to the famous dictum, war is the continuation of politics through other means. Is the reverse true? Is politics...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / BEST BAR NONE
Jul 21, 2002

Whet your appetite

If you know Bourbon Street, the New Orleans-style restaurant in Roppongi, chances are a friend introduced you. Sohan Ahluwalia vowed that he would never directly promote his restaurant but would let satisfied customers spread the word. And it worked. Sohan has put his heart and soul into creating his...
JAPAN
Jul 21, 2002

Economic support to China necessary, Kawaguchi says

OSAKA -- Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi said Saturday she believes it is necessary for Japan to extend economic assistance to China, despite international concerns about the country's increasing military budget.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jul 21, 2002

Think aquatically, dive locally

Scuba diving in the waters of Palau, Hawaii, the Great Barrier Reef of Australia, Grand Cayman Island and the Red Sea certainly provides exciting and unforgettable experiences. I can say this with confidence because I have dived in then all.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Jul 21, 2002

Basement beats and eats

So what do hip young French eat when they go out clubbing these days? Actually, that's a trick question. Nobody feels like eating much when there is a first-rate DJ working the turntables. But that doesn't mean there's nothing worth eating on the menu at La Fabrique Paris, the cutting-edge club-cum-diner...
Japan Times
JAPAN / MUSEUM MUSINGS
Jul 20, 2002

Printing technology through the ages awaits

How have advances in printing technology contributed to our society as a means of communication?
JAPAN
Jul 20, 2002

Better deal urged for part-timers

Japan should improve working conditions for part-time and contract workers and try to bring conditions for this sector of the workforce more in line with regular employees, an advisory panel to the labor ministry urged in a report released Friday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 20, 2002

Ex-governor pleads guilty to taking bribes

Former Tokushima Gov. Toshio Endo pleaded guilty Friday to charges of receiving 8 million yen in bribes from a business consultant in 1997 and 2000 in return for helping a local construction firm win public works projects in the prefecture.
BUSINESS
Jul 20, 2002

Eco-fund creator urges responsible investment

Mizue Tsukushi, who introduced so-called eco-fund investment trusts to Japan, has called on individuals to make socially responsible investments to create a better environment.
JAPAN
Jul 19, 2002

New agency should handle ODA, panel says

An advisory panel to Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi may urge the government to weigh the possibility of creating a new agency to oversee Japan's official development assistance in line with moves to reform the nation's diplomatic operations, it was learned Thursday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 19, 2002

Bogus forecasts yield mega-project fiascoes

Japan has seen a number of soured public works projects now grappling with snowballing debts, ranging from toll expressways, gigantic bridges, airports and empty ports with huge container facilities.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 19, 2002

Groups rally against pro forma standard tax

The Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry and three other groups representing small and midsize firms rallied Thursday against government moves to launch a corporate tax based on criteria other than profits.
EDITORIALS
Jul 18, 2002

Icons with feet of clay

Icons have been having a hard time of it in America lately. There hasn't been so much toppling since the Berlin Wall came down. Just think of the scope: Catholic priests accused of pedophilic abuses and coverups; public accountants charged with complicity in all manner of corporate funny business; doctors...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 18, 2002

Performing 'rakugo' in English provides a true test of 'character'

OSAKA -- Clad in a bright pink kimono and blue obi with matching color accessories in her neatly tied blonde hair, English-language "rakugo" comic storyteller Diane Orrett appeared on stage recently in front of a mostly Japanese audience in central Osaka.
JAPAN
Jul 18, 2002

Refugee denied medical care: group

OSAKA -- A Kurdish asylum seeker detained at an immigration facility in Osaka Prefecture is being denied proper medical treatment, although he has symptoms of high blood pressure and heart trouble, a refugee aid group in Osaka said Wednesday.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji