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EDITORIALS
Jul 28, 2001

Ms. Megawati gets her chance

The end of Mr. Abdurraham Wahid's term was perfectly in keeping with the 21 months that he spent in office. It was confused, if not surreal. Indonesians, and their friends, are hoping that the new president, Ms. Megawati Sukarnoputri, can end the confusion. Under the best of circumstances, that is a...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 27, 2001

Jihad-inspired bloodletting in Kashmir stifles all peace moves

NEW DELHI -- Recent massacres in Kashmir share one feature: they are massacres of innocents, of men, women and children who have no political affiliations or aspirations. Their only crime was that they chose to live in Kashmir or happen to be passing through the state.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 26, 2001

Legalization: The drug war's best weapon

LONDON -- In Spain, Italy, Portugal, and Switzerland it is practically impossible to get arrested for buying or using "soft drugs." In the Netherlands, users may buy up to five grams of cannabis or hashish for private use at 1,500 licensed "coffee shops," and they are opening two drive-through outlets...
LIFE / Digital / SURFERSPUD
Jul 26, 2001

The next big thing

www.sciam.com/2001/0801issue/0801scicit4.html Back in 1995, the domestic electronics and telecom industries were about to unleash the Pride of Japan on the world: PHS. Ooops. We just went with full cellular handsets instead. A few months later, a big consortium was telling us we wouldn't be able to take...
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Jul 26, 2001

Environmentalist on the stump

Despite the sky-high popularity of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, suspicion remains that his Liberal Democratic Party has simply cloaked its wolfish heart in a soft perm. Many environmentalists fear that after Sunday's election the LDP will step up efforts to stimulate the economy by undertaking the...
CULTURE / Film
Jul 25, 2001

Pick a question, any question

Good news: We members of the Japanese masu-komi were privileged to attend the premiere press conference for Tim Burton's "Planet of the Apes."
ENVIRONMENT
Jul 25, 2001

On the origin of speciesism

That there's something menacing about the title "Planet of the Apes" says more about our ignorance than it does about the writer's ingenuity: Earth is already a planet of apes.
CULTURE / Art
Jul 25, 2001

Gimmickry belies a true phenomenon

A survey of 20th-century art would identify few individuals with as remarkable a story as Frida Kahlo (1907-1954), the Mexican painter whose life was one of those stranger-than-fiction phenomena. Already crippled by polio, the teenage Kahlo was impaled on a steel handrail in a trolley accident that shattered...
SOCCER / J. League
Jul 23, 2001

Grampus star 'Pixy' goes out a winner

Nagoya Grampus Eight star Dragan "Pixy" Stojkovic celebrated his final game at the end of a 20-year professional soccer career with a 3-0 win over Tokyo Verdy 1969 on Saturday night, the final day of the J. League Division One first stage, at Tokyo Stadium.
COMMENTARY
Jul 23, 2001

A textbook lesson for Japan's leaders

HONOLULU -- The controversy over middle school textbooks continues to damage relations between Japan and South Korea. Last week, the Seoul government announced that it was canceling military exchanges and the introduction of Japanese cultural products in retaliation for Tokyo's failure to meet South...
COMMENTARY
Jul 22, 2001

Bush places the country on autopilot

NEW ORLEANS -- The nation is reeling in the aftermath of a startling revelation from the White House: For the first time in its history, the United States is functioning entirely without an executive branch.
COMMUNITY
Jul 22, 2001

When we had heroes

They were voices in the silence, stars in the night they showed the way and they showed what was right
CULTURE / Books
Jul 22, 2001

Thanks to 'doken kokka,' are Japan's best decades behind it?

THE EMPTINESS OF JAPANESE AFFLUENCE, by Gavan McCormack. Armonk, NY: ME Sharpe, 2001 (2nd edition), 311 pp., $27.95 (paperback). What went wrong? A decade ago few would have predicted the sustained malaise that has gripped Japan since the early 1990s.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 22, 2001

It's not always easy to see yourself as others do

On the face of it, the current controversy over Japanese history textbooks is just one more example of Japan not facing up to its militaristic past. On a deeper level, however, Korea's decision to forgo further liberalization of Japanese cultural imports until the offending texts are revised underscores...
COMMUNITY
Jul 22, 2001

The times they were a-changing

The 1960s and '70s were not only the decades of heroes. A look back on news and incidents shows us how rapidly society was changing. Here are some examples.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jul 22, 2001

Fighting the good fight for all

In the pantheon of Japan's fictional action heroes, it would be hard to find one better known or loved than Ultraman.
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Jul 22, 2001

A many-splendored world of tofu

Tofu is cooling, tofu is healthy and, best of all, tofu is cheap. And suddenly this sultry summer season, tofu is also totally trendy. Just like Shigezo Syoutou, in fact. Such is its popularity, it took us three attempts to snare a reservation at this laid-back basement dining-bar, despite the location...
COMMENTARY
Jul 21, 2001

What happens after the Agra summit?

ISLAMABAD -- If India and Pakistan, South Asia's two nuclear-armed neighbors, were conscious of global concerns over the breakdown of the summit between their leaders at the historic city of Agra, they took little time before sending out identical messages.
COMMUNITY
Jul 20, 2001

Anpanman, the gentle hero

We had been warned in advance. It usually comes at around the age of 11/2, we heard, so at 20 months Alena was, if anything, a little late, but when it came it was with the force of religious conversion.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 20, 2001

'Field of Dreams' schemes bleed taxpayers

A good deal of discussion on Japan's economic problems emphasizes the need to trim wasteful public works projects. Critics are quick to zero in on "hard" schemes such as bridges, highways, airports and dams that eat up huge chunks of tax money and are rarely used.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Jul 19, 2001

Fight club: eavesdropping and animal conflict

As any schoolkid in the playground can tell you, fights don't just involve those trading blows, but those watching too. Like spies, these bystanders observe, obtaining useful information about the individuals in the fight that they may be able to use to their advantage in future aggressive situations....
CULTURE / Film
Jul 18, 2001

In praise of older actresses

Gossip Rating: * * * Director: Colin Nutley Running time: 135 minutes Language: SwedishOpens July 28 It's pretty hard to carry on as a woman in this world, but Swedish film "Gossip" tells you it's tougher for actresses. Especially when they are no longer young and must scheme and fight for love,...
CULTURE / Film
Jul 18, 2001

Ms. Tokyo takes a trip to reality

Koko ni Iru Koto Rating: * * * 1/2 Director: Masahiko Nagasawa Running time: 115 minutes Language: JapaneseNow showing The TV trendy drama was a bubble-era phenomenon, with its stories about the love troubles of beautiful young singles working at glamorous "katakana jobs" (such as "event planner"...
CULTURE / Film
Jul 18, 2001

A love affair with languor

a la verticale de l'ete Japanese title: Geshi Rating: * * * * Director: Tran Anh Hung Running time: 112 minutes Language: VietnameseNow showing Tran Anh Hung is a director who effortlessly defies categorization. While his films -- "The Scent of Green Papaya" and "Cyclo" -- are invariably described...
CULTURE / Art
Jul 18, 2001

Spotlight thrown on a killing trade

At the United Nations headquarters in New York, a July 9-20 conference is examining "The Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects." Meanwhile, at the UN Gallery in Tokyo's trendy Omotesando, an exhibition reflecting the grim realities of that subject is running until Aug. 31....
SOCCER / J. League
Jul 18, 2001

Lazaroni for Marinos

Yokohama F. Marinos have agreed on a deal with former Brazil national coach Sebastiao Lazaroni to become manager of the struggling J. League first division side, Yokohama officials said Monday.
CULTURE / Art
Jul 18, 2001

Brushes with the divine

Karma works in mysterious ways.
COMMENTARY
Jul 17, 2001

In search of a new slogan

"Are you an American?""Yes!""What did you think about last night's decision on the Olympics?"
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 16, 2001

Can Japan's 'pied piper' pull it off?

In July 2001, two very different people offer hope to the people of Japan. One is baseball player Ichiro Suzuki, the star of the Seattle Mariners. His cool looks and great hits suggest the possibilities of the sporting dream across the sea. The other is Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, with his wavy...

Longform

Pedestrians commute through Shibuya Station in central Tokyo, an area that is almost never devoid of people.
As the rest of Japan shrinks, Tokyo grows