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BUSINESS
May 24, 2000

Four banks returned to profitability in 1999

Four major banks that released their fiscal 1999 earning reports Tuesday returned to the black after at least a year of losses.
COMMUNITY
May 24, 2000

Plutocrat's quiet country place preserved

Tonogayato Garden is located in Kokubunji, about 25 km from Tokyo Station. The garden is now owned by the Tokyo Metropolitan Parks Department but was originally owned by the Iwasaki family, of Mitsubishi fame.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
May 24, 2000

Shopping with the herd

We track the tickers of global auctions. We flock to comparative shopping sites seeking the deal of the century. We sign up for sweepstakes galore and even occasionally invite vendors into our in-boxes to inform us of their latest discounts.
JAPAN
May 24, 2000

Video violence begets real thing

When a 14-year-old Kobe boy shocked the nation three years ago by killing an elementary school boy and placing his severed head in front of a school gate, Masatoshi Taguchi said he was afraid similar crimes would follow.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / GETTING THINGS DONE
May 24, 2000

Contrasts everywhere

We all know generalizations are dangerous, we shouldn't make them, but we do, especially when there is considerable evidence to support them. Japanese conformity is an example, though we must acknowledge that there is much to suggest a contrasting, imaginative individuality. For example, five perfectly...
LIFE / Food & Drink / KISSA KULTUR
May 24, 2000

Fresh or aged, the coffee is kicking at Satei Hato

On a nondescript side street, a short walk from Shibuya Station's jangling cell phones and glaring white lipstick, Satei Hato first catches your eye with the dramatic vases and fresh flowers that grace its entrance. Intrigued, you discover a space much larger than you anticipated, filled with the warmth...
BUSINESS
May 24, 2000

JR East posts triple rise in net profit

East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) said Tuesday its group net profit in fiscal 1999 leaped threefold from the previous year, following two consecutive years of setbacks.
LIFE / Travel
May 24, 2000

Lazy days on Yanagawa's canals

Yanagawa, in Fukuoka Prefecture, almost doesn't feel like a castle town. After all, the castle's remains (several heavy stone walls covered with greenery) now have two schools sprawling over them, and today the city is more associated with water, willow trees and writers. However Yanagawa's most distinctive...
CULTURE / Stage
May 24, 2000

Dervish dancing to oneness

The mystical tradition of Sufism is little known outside the Muslim faith, yet all people, regardless of religious background or inclination, can benefit from its methods for developing unity in one's body, mind and spirit.
EDITORIALS
May 23, 2000

Tokyo leads the way to recovery

While the economy still shows mixed signs of recovery, small companies are engaged in a struggle for survival. Japan's economic fortunes hinge on the successes of small companies, including venture businesses, and their activities need to be watched closely.
JAPAN
May 23, 2000

Youth crime laid to insular life

Juvenile crimes stem from a society adults created, and changing laws to merely impose a stricter punishment on young offenders will not get to the root of the problem, according to a former family court examiner.
JAPAN
May 23, 2000

Residents to be asked to give way to garbage dump

A garbage-disposal association will soon ask the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to order residents of Hinodemachi, western Tokyo, to vacate land slated to be the site of an expanded dump, a source close to the association said Monday.
JAPAN
May 23, 2000

Sydney Olympics tours ready to wreak havoc on wallets

With the Sydney Olympics now less than four months away, many travel agents in Japan are busy selling tour packages to the Games.
CULTURE / Books
May 23, 2000

The new China, from hamburgers to lonely hearts

THE CONSUMER REVOLUTION IN URBAN CHINA, edited by Deborah S. Davis. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2000, 379 pp., 35 b/w photos, 21 tables, $22 (paper). McDonald's is the great equalizer. Wherever you go in the world it tastes exactly the same. The same beef, the same cheese, the same shredded...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
May 23, 2000

Basho, a man for all seasons

REDISCOVERING BASHO: A 300th Anniversary Celebration, edited by Stephen Henry Gill & C. Andrew Gerstle. Kent: Global Oriental/Global Books, 1999, 168 pp., 14.95 British pounds. During the 300 years since his death, Basho has turned into Japan's most famous poet, the personification of haiku culture...
BUSINESS
May 23, 2000

Consumer mood up a tick; worries remain

Consumer sentiment in Japan has improved, but only slightly, with concerns lingering about employment and income prospects, according to a survey released Monday by a governmental research institute.
CULTURE / Music
May 23, 2000

Steely Dan still rocks, albeit more tastefully

The first two songs Steely Dan played at their May 15 show at the Tokyo International Forum -- "The Boston Rag" and " Bodhisattva" -- come from their second record, "Countdown to Ecstasy," which happens to be their least-selling album as well as my personal favorite. I should have been giddy with appreciation,...
CULTURE / Books
May 23, 2000

In Cambodia, hell looks like this

VOICES FROM S-21: Terror and History in Pol Pot's Secret Prison, by David Chandler. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1999, pp. 238, $17.95. Men, women and children are arrested on the basis of rumor, rounded up in trucks and hauled, without trial, to prison, where they are asked to give information...
JAPAN
May 22, 2000

Former foes seek helping hand from Ishihara

Some politicians in Tokyo planning to run in the general election next month are seeking the backing of Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara in an attempt to ride on the popularity the governor maintains among unaffiliated voters.
JAPAN
May 22, 2000

Moderate quake shakes up Kyoto

An earthquake measuring 4.2 on the open-ended Richter scale jolted Kyoto on Sunday morning, the Meteorological Agency said.
BUSINESS
May 22, 2000

Ishihara tax reflects paralysis caused by national tax scheme

The new size-based tax on big banks that has been introduced by Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara is causing major repercussions and prompting Osaka Prefecture to consider a similar tax.
EDITORIALS
May 22, 2000

China's hope, Beijing's anger

Saturday was a historic moment in Chinese history. For the first time in that country's long past, the leader of the opposition party took power democratically and peacefully. The inauguration of Mr. Chen Shui-bian as president was celebrated -- and feared. The government in Beijing has made it clear...
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
May 22, 2000

Exotic pet importer confirms Japan is haven for illegal animal imports

The situation is worse than I imagined. In my last column (May 8), I wrote about smugglers carrying live primates into Japan in their luggage. Days after that column appeared, I was put in touch with an exotic pet importer who confirmed that government oversight of trade in animals is abysmal.
BUSINESS
May 22, 2000

As with risk, ranks of analysts rising

Once again the time has come for the mass-release of Japan Inc.'s annual earnings reports. While the stock market is showing signs of rumbling back to life after nearly a decade of dormancy, significant changes to Japan's financial landscape are forcing players to make rapid transitions just to keep...
JAPAN
May 21, 2000

Expats hit record high; women outnumber men

The number of Japanese women living abroad exceeded the corresponding number for Japanese men as of October last year, according to recent statistics released by the Foreign Ministry.

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes