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Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / NEW ART SEEN
Oct 2, 2002

Oppai -obsessed oeuvre that isn't well-rounded

I'm often asked the question: "What characterizes Japanese contemporary art?" At the risk of over-generalizing, I usually reply that two qualities recur among artists at the vanguard of this country's creative culture -- an obsessiveness vis a vis the subject, or an obsessive attention to detail in the...
EDITORIALS
Oct 1, 2002

UNESCO's second chance

Eighteen years after withdrawing in a huff, the United States is rejoining the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The move, announced by U.S. President George W. Bush in his recent U.N. speech, is a victory for the world and for Mr. Koichiro Matsuura, the Japanese diplomat...
BASEBALL / MLB
Oct 1, 2002

Cabrera tees off against Lotte

TOKOROZAWA, Saitama Pref. -- Brian Sikorski offered a loud warning to every Pacific League pitcher: Watch out -- Seibu's Alex Cabrera is red hot.
EDITORIALS
Oct 1, 2002

A baffling Cabinet reshuffle

When Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi launched his Cabinet on April 26, 2000, he made a public pledge to the effect that he would not shuffle his Cabinet for an unjustifiable purpose. On Monday, he carried out his first Cabinet change allegedly for the purpose of accelerating structural reforms -- the...
JAPAN
Sep 30, 2002

DPJ power struggle to continue

A former acting secretary general of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan said Sunday he will call for replacing party head Yukio Hatoyama in January if the re-elected leader fails to live up to expectations.
MORE SPORTS
Sep 30, 2002

Believe captures Sprinters Stakes

NIIGATA -- Believe, it's what all racing fans do when they put their money down on a horse for the win and Sunday the money was well-placed on a filly by that very name.
COMMENTARY
Sep 30, 2002

China keeps its cool, and its national focus

LOS ANGELES -- When U.S. President George W. Bush won the last election, Beijing warmly congratulated the winner. This was remarkable, given his harsh campaign rhetoric, which was anti-China and pro-Taiwan. Yet, China avoided losing its cool and, as we have seen since, pretty much remained focused on...
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Sep 30, 2002

Great Tokyo Air Raid was a war crime

On Dec. 7, 1964, the Japanese government conferred the First Order of Merit with the Grand Cordon of the Rising Sun upon Gen. Curtis LeMay -- yes, the same general who, less than 20 years earlier, had incinerated "well over half a million Japanese civilians, perhaps nearly a million."
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 30, 2002

Give democracy a chance in postwar Iraq

LIMASSOL, Cyprus -- In recent months, the Iraqi debate has played in the news like a tennis match, with observers awarding points to U.S. President George W. Bush for his U.N. speech, then to Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein for his shrewd move to admit inspectors "without conditions" -- subject, of course,...
COMMENTARY
Sep 30, 2002

Japan as a 'banana republic'?

The announcement that the governor of the Bank of Japan was considering the purchase of company shares held by Japanese banks at market prices has done nothing to reassure opinion in Britain about the state of the Japanese economy. The general view remains, to quote the Financial Times, "that price deflation...
Japan Times
JAPAN / WEEKEND WISDOM
Sep 29, 2002

'Kabukicho guide' offers punters a walk on the wild side

Sporting a pinstripe suit, a wiry figure hovers on the main street of Shinjuku Ward's Kabukicho -- Tokyo's busiest and arguably seediest entertainment district.
EDITORIALS
Sep 29, 2002

Bracing for the fall

For a week now, we have officially been experiencing autumn. The nights are longer than the days, extending their dark dominion by two and a half minutes every 24 hours. The air is turning cooler. Leaves and grasses are showing hints of yellow. We've even found ourselves reaching for a sweater occasionally,...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 29, 2002

Exactly when does old age really begin?

"Put simply, we are having fewer children and living longer," says Michelle Gunn, an Australian journalist and social-affairs writer. Our time is undeniably the age of longevity.
COMMENTARY
Sep 29, 2002

Signs the EU is coming of age

PARIS -- The most striking fact to emerge from the recent Germany elections is that for the first time a majority of voters in a EU member-state has been motivated by foreign-policy concerns. In the past, the country's worsening economic situation and high unemployment rate would have cost Chancellor...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / NIHONSHU
Sep 29, 2002

How to gain flavors and influence yeasts

When looking at what makes sake special, one thing that comes up often is koji mold. It is the heart of the sake-making process -- no beverage in the world uses koji in its production the way that sake does. Of all factors involved in sake brewing, the addition of koji exerts the most influence on the...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 29, 2002

Ken Hirai: Soul to soul

We've seen Ken Hirai do it time and time again: mesmerize audiences with his silky tenor voice and those sexily svelte good looks -- kneading the air up on stage as if to squeeze from it any drop of passion that his music has somehow failed to discharge.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Sep 29, 2002

30 years of China relations aired out

Thirty years ago, the late Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka normalized relations with the People's Republic of China. Historically, the relationship between Japan and China has often been compared to that between Rome and Greece, since much of Japan's culture (writing system, Buddhism, handicrafts, etc.)...
CULTURE / Music
Sep 29, 2002

Music of the J-people

Japanese pop music is crap. So say many of my friends, especially the non-Japanese ones. They reach that conclusion after noticing that the charts are full of chipmunk-voiced idols who are long on looks and short on talent -- and whose shelf lives are only slightly longer than sushi.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 29, 2002

When mourning makes straight talk taboo

The shock that accompanied the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, quickly turned into a mood of national mourning that continues to hang over the United States a year later. As a form of social behavior, mourning comes with its own protocol, and in this particular case attempts to place the attacks...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / BEST BAR NONE
Sep 29, 2002

Father, son mix it up in Yokohama

Yokohama was once the undisputed headquarters for foreigners in the Kanto region. Its wide accommodating port facilities were the destination for postwar U.S. fleets arriving to establish their presence in Japan. And, as with any port town, many bars and restaurants sprang up to cater to the ebb and...
CULTURE / Music
Sep 29, 2002

Scouting out the Next Big Thing

At this very moment, thousands of young musicians throughout Japan are busy pursuing the same elusive goal: pop stardom. Some are driven by the need to express their artistic vision; others by the perks of stardom; and still more of them by the simple desire to support themselves by playing the music...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Sep 29, 2002

How is marine Miyakejima now?

In early July 2000, Miyakejima Island's 7,000-year-old volcano roared back to life. Continual eruptions led to the entire population being evacuated over the next two months as emissions of very fine, extremely heavy ash were replaced by lethal gases gushing daily from a new 400-meter-deep crater. What...
JAPAN
Sep 28, 2002

Photos, information released on latest group of war orphans

The government released on Friday photographs of and information about six newly recognized war-displaced Japanese left behind in China in the closing days of World War II.

Longform

"Shake hands with Lima-chan," a statue that shares the name of the Peruvian capital looks in the direction of Peru, where a sister statue, "Sakura-chan," is located. Erected in Yokohama's Rinko Park in 1999, it commemorates Peruvian-Japanese friendship.
The journey of Peru’s Nikkei: Finding identity in Japan