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JAPAN
Nov 11, 1999

Obuchi plies Annan for U.N. reform

Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi on Thursday told visiting U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan that Japanese are becoming dissatisfied with their nation's increasing share of U.N. expenses and the lack of progress in reforming the Security Council, a Foreign Ministry official said.
JAPAN
Nov 11, 1999

Tokyo governor's house goes Italian

Staff writer
JAPAN
Nov 11, 1999

Tokyo to host secret emissions talks

Staff writer
LIFE / Food & Drink
Nov 11, 1999

Japanese white lightning from a still in Tonga

I admit it. I had to travel all the way to the Kindom of Tonga to learn about shochu. In my six years in Japan, I had simply not heard of it. Sounds ridiculous, but it's true. No, the Tongans don't make it, never mind drink it. They hadn't heard of it till recently either. In fact, most of them still...
LIFE / Food & Drink / WINE WAYS
Nov 11, 1999

Whatever the varietal, the grape has to be great

Had any good wine lately? I'm sure you have, but make a note of Baron de Ley Reserva 1995. It is aged in oak for 24 months and is a typical yet wonderful Rioja red that's characteristic of those made from the elusively flavorful tempranillo grape, an indigenous Spanish varietal noted for its plummy,...
JAPAN
Nov 11, 1999

Economists give stimulus plan mixed reception

Staff writer
LIFE / Food & Drink
Nov 11, 1999

Homebrewing for fun, taste and profit

"Hamm's" is the first spoken word recorded in Rob Nelson's baby book. His parents say he was influenced by the rhythmic beat of the Hamm's Beer television commercial. Now, when not consuming one of his own homebrew creations, Nelson, 47, is out searching for the perfect pint. His favorite beer to date,...
JAPAN
Nov 11, 1999

Will WTO waiting game pay off for Japan?

Staff writer
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Nov 11, 1999

No smoke gets in your eyes here

It is not so much ironic as inevitable that the shichirin -- the basic, mass-produced, charcoal-fired clay stove so widely used in Japan in the austere postwar reconstruction days -- has now been reinvented as the favorite cooking accessory for recession- chic dining out.
LIFE / Food & Drink / NIHONSHU
Nov 11, 1999

A toast to you, the brewers, and all the hard work you do

There are at present about 1,700 sakagura, or sake breweries, in Japan. This number is dropping somewhat quickly, with several kura going under each year. But for those 1,700-odd kura brewing again this year, just about now is when the brewing season begins.
EDITORIALS
Nov 10, 1999

Cracking down on loan sharks

Japan's continuing credit squeeze is turning the spotlight onto small-business loans from commercial moneylenders -- so-called "shoko" (commerce and industry) loans that carry extremely high interest rates because they require no collateral, only a third-party guarantee. To collect loans, the lenders...
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Nov 10, 1999

A trans-Pacific e-channel

The name, us-style.com, hints at the focus: e-commerce with an American twist. The use of "US" suggests that the target audience considers place of origin important.
JAPAN
Nov 10, 1999

New debate catches Obuchi off guard

Staff writers
JAPAN
Nov 10, 1999

Ban won't slow lawmaker cash flow

Staff writer
JAPAN
Nov 10, 1999

Court rules electoral voting system constitutional

The Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that the current electoral system used by the House of Representatives is constitutional, rejecting claims it violates the basic law for failing to provide equality due in part to disparities in the value of citizens' votes.
JAPAN
Nov 10, 1999

KDD, SingTel form strategic tieup

KDD Corp. and Singapore Telecom reached an agreement to form a strategic partnership that includes a joint venture for corporate data communications services and the cross-holding of shares, top officials of the two major telecom carriers in Asia announced on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Nov 10, 1999

Air travel unruffled by Y2K: IATA chief

Staff writer
JAPAN
Nov 10, 1999

Population fall a 'blessing,' U.S. expert argues

Staff writer
COMMENTARY
Nov 10, 1999

America should cut taxes, not the debt

The standoff over the U.S. budget between the Republican Congress and Democratic president has had a curious byproduct: leaving more money to pay off the national debt. Some analysts are lobbying to devote future surpluses to the same purpose, perhaps eventually paying off the entire $5.6 trillion national...
CULTURE / Books
Nov 10, 1999

World of washi

WASHI CRAFTS: Working with Japanese Handmade Paper, by Andrea Heinrichsohn. Tokyo: Shufunotomo Co. Ltd., 1999, 95 pp., 2,400 yen. If you have ever looked longingly at the richly decorated sheets of "washi" in a Japanese paper shop, but left empty-handed for lack of an idea of how to put them to appropriate...
COMMUNITY
Nov 10, 1999

Walking the way of the gods

As long as there has been Japan there has been Shinto: the "way of the gods." Shintoism is not organized around any central religious text or authority. It is perhaps best described as an amalgam of thousands of local deities (kami) and beliefs observed within a base framework of rituals and customs....
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Nov 10, 1999

Homage to an image maker

HAYAO MIYAZAKI: Master of Japanese Animation, by Helen McCarthy. Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press, 1999, 240 pp., 8 pages in color and 60 b/w images. $18.95. The biggest domestic movie hit of all in Japan was the 1997 "Princess Mononoke," an animated film created by Hayao Miyazaki and his Studio Ghibli....
COMMUNITY / How-tos / GETTING THINGS DONE
Nov 10, 1999

Pre-holiday planning

It seems a bit early to be writing about Christmas, but there is a lot of planning to do if you must ship things home, or even pack them to take with you. That's why the Tokyo charity-oriented International Ladies Benevolent Society now schedules its ILBS Christmas Fair even before we have ordered the...
JAPAN
Nov 10, 1999

The Asahara Trial: Guru ordered cult to make guns

Aum Shinrikyo founder Shoko Asahara on Wednesday told the Tokyo District Court that he ordered cult members to manufacture 1,000 automatic rifles.
JAPAN
Nov 10, 1999

Health Minister defends nursing-care plan

Neither the principles nor the framework of the government-proposed nursing-care insurance system have been altered, Health and Welfare Minister Yuya Niwa asserted Wednesday.
CULTURE / Music / MUSIC NOMAD
Nov 10, 1999

Soaring voice of modern Africa unifies the world music scene

Youssou N'Dour, one of Africa's (and the world's) greatest singers, makes a welcome return to Japan this month. The last time he was in Japan was for the 1994 WOMAD festival in Yokohama. World music was still on a roll back then, with some African artists such as Papa Wemba becoming genuinely "big in...
ENVIRONMENT / GARDENING FOR ALL
Nov 10, 1999

Brighten up your balcony with spring bulbs

No garden, no matter how small, is complete unless it has some spring bulbs, and this is the time to buy and plant your garden or container with your favorites. Bulbs are inexpensive, especially considering the joy they give. In recent years more and more bulb varieties have become available in garden...
JAPAN
Nov 10, 1999

Three awarded annual Kyoto Prize

KYOTO -- Two Americans, a material scientist and an oceanographer, and a French choreographer were awarded the 1999 Kyoto Prize during a special ceremony Wednesday at the Kyoto International Conference Hall for their contributions to the scientific, cultural and spiritual development of mankind.
CULTURE / Books
Nov 10, 1999

Putting Japan on the psychologist's couch

POLITICAL PSYCHOLOGY IN JAPAN: Behind the Nails That Sometimes Stick Out (and Get Hammered Down), edited by Ofer Feldman. Commack, N.Y.: Nova Science Publishers, 1999, 340 pp., (cloth). Political psychology is a tricky business. Plain old psychology is difficult enough, digging down as it does in the...
JAPAN
Nov 9, 1999

In and around Kanto

Dining show to boost refugee cause>Refugees International Japan is staging its 10th annual Art of Dining Exhibition at the Westin Tokyo hotel in Yebisu Garden Place on Monday to raise funds for needy refugees all over the world.

Longform

Dul Saroth (left) and Soeum Samrach, deminers with the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority, practice using the Advanced Landmine Imaging System in Cambodia’s Siem Reap province in August.
The Japanese tech that could one day make Southeast Asia landmine-free