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SOCCER / J. League / ON THE BALL
Jul 3, 2001

Time for Japan to take a lesson from Seoul

"Are you from Japan?"
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jul 1, 2001

Summertime -- and the swimming is easy

In the summertime, when the living's easy but the coast seems just that bit too far away, there's no shortage of pools for a cooling plunge or freshening frolic.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jul 1, 2001

Men in suits spell air-con office woe

It's summer. Get ready for the big chill.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Jul 1, 2001

Oh, the places they'll go and the people they'll be

Ultraman, Japan's original TV superhero, first appeared 35 years ago, and since then there has been a string of Ultramen who adhere to the same cosmic rules (he can only remain on Earth for three minutes maximum) but who have embodied different values in line with the changing times.
COMMUNITY
Jul 1, 2001

If you can't stand the heat . . .

It's that time of year again.
COMMENTARY
Jun 30, 2001

Koizumi: a new type of leader

Two months have passed since the inauguration of the popular administration of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. Thanks to the prime minister's enormous popularity, the Liberal Democratic Party easily triumphed in this week's election for the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly, which was the first test for...
JAPAN
Jun 30, 2001

Mbeki to get invitation for October visit

Reflecting a recent foreign-policy focus on Africa, Japan plans to invite South African President Thabo Mbeki as a state guest in early October, government sources said Friday.
JAPAN
Jun 30, 2001

Bullying bars Osaka baseball team

OSAKA — Osaka's PL Gakuen has been barred from participating in this year's prefectural championship after revelations that older team members had bullied younger players, the Japan High School Baseball Federation ruled Friday.
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2001

F-4 jets to stay on alert despite unarmed guns

The Defense Agency has no plan to replace Air Self-Defense Force F-4 fighters on standby against possible airspace violations, even though their 20mm cannons are empty after a jet accidentally strafed a city in Hokkaido earlier this week, agency Vice Minister Ken Sato said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Jun 28, 2001

Yen awaits reform showtime

A series of imminent events seem likely to presage future developments on the currency market.
CULTURE / Film
Jun 27, 2001

Lang enters the sophomore class

It comes as no surprise to hear that the most inspiring film in Samantha Lang's life was "Hiroshima, Mon Amour." "I saw it when I was 16 and must have watched it at least 10 times," says Lang. "I know that film shot by shot, line by line." Echoes of that film's free-spirited and independent heroine,...
JAPAN
Jun 27, 2001

Green drive may boost economy

More efficient use of resources and better waste policies could boost the economy as well as reaping manifold environmental benefits, according to an inaugural white paper on waste-reduction approved by the Cabinet on Tuesday.
CULTURE / Film
Jun 27, 2001

Stop me if you've heard this one before

Nadie Conoce a Nadie Rating: * * Japanese Title: PuzzleDirector: Mateo Gil Running time: 108 minutes Language: SpanishOpens June 30 at Cine La Sept in Yurakcho At this point in time, we, as an audience, have learned to expect things from the psycho-killer genre: elaborate mutilation; a hip and queasy...
CULTURE / Music / J-POPSICLE
Jun 27, 2001

Love on the dance floor

Talk about good timing. Just as the enervating ennui of tsuyu set in, reggae singer Mikidozan released "Lifetime Respect," whose mellow vibe and infectious melody have taken it to the top of the charts. (It's No. 1 on the July 2 Oricon singles chart). With its loping, steady groove and positive message...
CULTURE / Stage
Jun 27, 2001

Noda weaves another fantastical web

Hideki Noda, head of the cutting-edge theater company Noda Map, wrote and directs its latest production, "Nisesaku: Sakura no Mori no Mankai no Shita (A Fake: Under the Cherry Trees in Full Bloom)." He also acts, as the King of Hida, often running with all his considerable force along the sakura-draped...
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Jun 27, 2001

Maria Muldaur

Maria Muldaur's 1973 debut album remains, for better or worse, the template for all those eclectic SoCal songbird collections by people like Linda Ronstadt and Valerie Carter; albums that included a little jazz, a little blues, one or two country songs (written by Dolly Parton, usually) and a familiar...
JAPAN
Jun 26, 2001

Nest of endangered goshawk found at Imperial Palace

A goshawk nest has been found on the grounds of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, the Imperial Household Agency has said.
SOCCER / J. League
Jun 26, 2001

Akita returns to Japan squad

Experienced defenders Yutaka Akita and Tsuneyasu Miyamoto have won recalls to the Japan squad in place of the injured Kenichi Uemura and Tomokazu Myojin for the upcoming Kirin Cup tournament, the Japan Football Association announced Monday.
JAPAN
Jun 26, 2001

'Koizumi effect' credited for LDP's big Tokyo win

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi expressed hope Monday that his Liberal Democratic Party's strong showing in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election would lead to another victory in the Upper House election next month.
COMMENTARY
Jun 25, 2001

Another blast from Mr. Bix

To more than 80 percent of Japanese voters, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi looks like a populist reformer. But to the American winner of the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for non-fiction, Koizumi is a "rightwing nationalist."
JAPAN
Jun 25, 2001

LDP wins big in Tokyo assembly election

Tokyo voters rescued Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's Liberal Democratic Party on Sunday, giving the battered party 53 seats in the metropolitan assembly and a new lease on life.
EDITORIALS
Jun 25, 2001

Supporting the nation's scientists

Professor Shuji Nakamura, of the University of California, Santa Barbara, is known as the inventor of a semiconductor diode, an electronic element that emits a bluish purple color. Of course, he is one of the most noted Japanese scientists in the world. He is also the hero of the scientific equivalent...
COMMENTARY
Jun 25, 2001

Textbook criticism on target

China and South Korea are demanding revisions in Japanese history textbooks approved by the government for use at middle schools, arguing that they contain distortions of facts. In making the demands, China singled out a textbook compiled by the Society for History Textbook Reform; South Korea directed...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 24, 2001

More than words are needed in Myanmar

Myanmar is no longer a closed-door country and people who have an interest in it and its people now enjoy much greater access than in the past. Information that would have remained secret in the past quickly becomes public knowledge in today's global village. The old adage "Honesty is the best policy"...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jun 24, 2001

All in a (24-hour) day's work

I've barely sat down with Ken Joseph Jr. and taken a sip of my coffee when his cellphone rings.
LIFE / Food & Drink / THE WAY OF WASHOKU
Jun 24, 2001

Hiyashi somen: the cool slurp of summer

On a hot summer day nothing refreshes like cold, wet noodles. Japan eats a rice-based diet most of the year, but in the summertime, to lighten the hot-weather menu and relieve pressure on dwindling rice storage from the previous fall, the population turns to cold noodles.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jun 24, 2001

Help is on the way

At the mega-corporation Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. there is a standing offer to all employees: the option of taking three months to two years of unpaid leave for "social welfare" volunteer activities.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jun 24, 2001

Soft toys are us

Lightweight soft toys made of colorful fabrics are not only fun for small children to play with, but they are safe as well. They won't break even though children throw them around and won't hurt if they hit them.
CULTURE / Books
Jun 24, 2001

Japan's endless search for identity

HEGEMONY OF HOMOGENEITY: An Anthropological Analysis of Nihonjinron, by Harumi Befu. Melbourne: Trans Pacific Press, 2001, 181 pp., A$44.95 (US$29.95) Nihonjinron, the discourse on "Japaneseness," has been with us for quite some time.

Longform

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.
Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat