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CULTURE / Music / HOGAKU TODAY
Oct 7, 2000

Tales of romance and bloodshed come alive in Shinnai song

Some of the performing arts of Japan are so spectacular that they grab your attention and immediately make you feel a part of the music. Taiko drumming is one; rhythm speaks directly to our bodies, and the beating of a stick on a drum has a physical appeal to all, regardless of language or culture.
MORE SPORTS
Oct 7, 2000

Purple princess outdukes Dokic

Serena Williams might aspire to be the queen of women's tennis, but for now she's merely aiming to be a Toyota Princess.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 7, 2000

Britain's future is at the heart of Europe

Britain is still on course to join the euro despite the narrow rejection of formal membership by Denmark in last week's referendum. Denmark is Europe's second-smallest country, represents only 2 percent of European gross national product, and anyway has already tied its currency, the krone, to the euro....
CULTURE / Stage
Oct 7, 2000

Loose Sock theater company offers creative collaboration

Nestled in the cloudy seaside bluffs of Yamate in Yokohama stands the newly renovated Gaiety Theater. With origins dating back to 1870, the Gaiety has operated from various locations and hosted numerous theatrical organizations of Yokohama's foreign thespian community.
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2000

Hermit problem recognized

The Health and Welfare Ministry is planning to conduct extensive research on a growing legion of people who refuse to go to school or work, choosing instead to remain at home for long periods of time, ministry officials said Thursday.
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2000

NPA targets credit card fraud

The National Police Agency said Thursday it will develop a data-sharing system aimed at curbing the surge in crimes involving counterfeit credit cards, which caused losses exceeding 9 billion yen last year.
EDITORIALS
Oct 6, 2000

China's war on faith

Faith may be a private matter, but the Chinese government takes no chances. The Chinese Constitution guarantees every citizen the freedom to practice whatever religion he or she chooses. In practice, however, every religion has to subordinate itself to the Chinese Communist Party. The power holders in...
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2000

Asset-hiding cases decline

Tax officials reported 3,087 cases of what they see as overt attempts to conceal assets to avoid or reduce inheritance taxes in the year to June, the National Tax Administration said Thursday.
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2000

University organization aims to build regional ties

An organization of universities in Asia and the Pacific is promoting "life-long friendships" among young scholars to contribute to peace and prosperity in the region, one of the group's top administrators said.
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2000

Sansei make busy visit for the sake of relations

Most of them can't speak Japanese, or can't speak it very well. Some have only been to Japan a few times.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 6, 2000

Singapore media monopolies break into rival's turf

SINGAPORE -- Competition in Singapore's expanding media industry is growing more intense as the two rival main players prepare to slug it out, having pumped in millions of dollars to upgrade existing projects and invest in new ones.
CULTURE / Books
Oct 6, 2000

'Exodus' to a country of hope?

In recent years Murakami Ryu has received much attention for his uncanny knack of writing novels taking up themes, such as teen crime and hikikomori (withdrawing from the world and shutting oneself up in one's room), just before they come to public awareness as social problems. Now Murakami's new novel...
EDITORIALS
Oct 5, 2000

The Middle East boils over

Since the Middle East peace talks broke off last summer, following the failure of U.S. President Bill Clinton's high-profile Camp David initiative, there have been fears that mounting frustrations would explode in violence. Those fears were realized last week when tensions boiled over in Jerusalem. Over...
JAPAN
Oct 5, 2000

Mindan petitions lawmakers

The pro-Seoul Korean Residents Union in Japan (Mindan) petitioned Diet lawmakers Wednesday to pass a controversial bill to grant local-level suffrage to permanent foreign residents by the end of this year.
JAPAN
Oct 5, 2000

Firms plan atomic waste disposal unit

The Federation of Electric Power Companies applied Wednesday to the Ministry of International Trade and Industry for approval to set up an organization aimed at disposing of high-level radioactive waste from nuclear power plants.
COMMUNITY
Oct 5, 2000

Vanity, thy name is . . . Vince?

SAN FRANCISCO -- Clairol, the staid manufacturer of women's hair dyes, tried something new this year: It went after kids.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Oct 5, 2000

Japan must build on Takahashi's golden moment

She arrived in Sydney an athlete and returned to Japan an icon.
COMMENTARY
Oct 5, 2000

No rush to grant foreigners voting rights

A major domestic political debate is brewing over whether non-Japanese permanent residents should be granted the right to vote in local elections of prefectural governors, prefectural legislators, and chiefs and council members of lower local administrative entities. Those foreigners will still be ineligible...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Oct 5, 2000

Celebrate the elderly when they stop saving

On Sept. 15, the country "celebrated" Respect for the Aged Day, when we honor our elders, who pass their wisdom and experience down to us so that our lives and those of our children will be happier and more fulfilling. Of course, nothing is farther from the truth. We in the industrialized world seem...
JAPAN
Oct 5, 2000

Ex-JICA chief volunteers for the trenches

Upon retiring after a 38-year career with the Foreign Ministry followed by six years as head of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, Kimio Fujita was naturally expected to accept an honorary post, such as on a government panel.
CULTURE / Music
Oct 5, 2000

Passionate affairs with flamenco

MADRID, Spain -- At a recent flamenco show in downtown Madrid, guitars strumming to furious crescendos and sudden stops, a spectator might have found himself thinking, "Hey, there's a long-haired guy clapping at the back of the stage who looks Japanese. Wait a second, he is Japanese!"
JAPAN
Oct 5, 2000

Activists find endangered birds for sale in shops

About 90 species of native wild birds are on sale in pet shops across the nation despite regulations forbidding their sale, the Wild Bird Society of Japan said Wednesday.
LIFE / Style & Design / BEAUTY EAST AND WEST
Oct 5, 2000

The power of St. John's wort: A herb to make you happy

In these days of miracle medication for nearly any psychological complaint, the botanical alternatives are getting a lot of attention. There have been happiness remedies around for millennia, of course; as with most botanical treatments, the knowledge is ancient.
LIFE / ALTERNATIVE LUXURIES
Oct 5, 2000

A dance of color, space and line

"Sometimes just to touch the ground is enough for me," says Wakako Oe with all the warmth of her plenteous years, "even if not a single plant grows in the garden."
MORE SPORTS
Oct 5, 2000

Seles, Serena pass first tests at Toyota Princess Cup tennis

Monica Seles and Serena Williams, the first and second seeds, respectively, who both had byes in the first round, cruised through their first tests at the Toyota Princess Cup on Wednesday to advance to the quarterfinals.
SOCCER / J. League
Oct 4, 2000

Baggio wants to play in 2002 World Cup

Former Italy striker Roberto Baggio said on Tuesday he's eyeing a return to the national team for the 2002 World Cup.
EDITORIALS
Oct 4, 2000

Banks must get better, not just bigger

The official debut last week of the Mizuho financial group is a fresh reminder of the large-scale bank mergers and tie-ups now in the works in Japan. The group brings together Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank, Fuji Bank and the Industrial Bank of Japan under the umbrella of Mizuho Holdings Inc. Two years from now,...
JAPAN
Oct 4, 2000

Alpinist, Everest garbage man has bone to pick with polluters

The problem of garbage disposal -- a nagging issue common to major cities around the globe -- has grown so large that even the world's most lofty place is not immune to litter anymore, mountaineer Ken Noguchi laments.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’