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Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Jan 3, 2003

Chic eats for the months ahead

It's prognostication time again and, just like Janus (after whom this month is, after all, named), the Food File likes to look ahead by surveying all that lies behind.
COMMENTARY
Jan 1, 2003

Pols are but small cogs in the machine

LONDON -- My God, the shame of it. Prime Minister Tony Blair is a poodle, yapping obediently when U.S. President George W. Bush snaps his fingers. This bitter vein of comedy runs through the thin political culture we have at the moment. But perhaps, muse the bitter critics, this British subservience...
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 1, 2003

Trials of Khmer Rouge must serve true justice

WASHINGTON -- The New Year may finally see the start of trials for Khmer Rouge leaders responsible for the deaths of nearly 2 million Cambodians in the 1970s, if the Cambodian government seizes the opportunity. But it's also possible that the United Nations could be dragged into a flawed process to set...
JAPAN
Jan 1, 2003

Recruiters adapt to a changing job scene

Are the days of the job-offering "recruiter" numbered? In Japan, recruiters are young employees who help their companies woo recent graduates from their alma maters. But the long-standing practice -- criticized for favoring students from a small circle of select universities -- is giving way to more...
BUSINESS
Jan 1, 2003

Dollar expected to fall against yen in first half

For Japanese looking to travel to the United States this year, the best exchange rates for the yen are likely to last until around June -- that is, if market predictions prove to be correct.
CULTURE / Music
Jan 1, 2003

2002: The sound of a year

Chickens Coming Home to Roost Award Last fall, Dr. Dre was sued by an Indian composer who said the producer used a sample of the composer's music in Truth Hurts' hit single "Addictive" without permission and without giving credit. The composer accused Dre of "cultural imperialism" and "perpetuating...
CULTURE / Music
Jan 1, 2003

Heard, but not scene

Only a few years ago, Japanese music was the hype. At South by Southwest, the tony annual music confab, consecutive years saw Cornelius, Number Girl and Ex-Girl wow audiences. Rolling Stone ran a feature on upcoming Japanese bands like The Zoobombs, Takako Minekawa and Buffalo Daughter that heralded...
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Dec 31, 2002

Caveats to help avoid the conmen

Not long ago, while I was out posting a letter, a salesman phoned and told my wife that we had been tabbed to receive a new water filter for our kitchen faucet, absolutely free of charge.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Dec 31, 2002

Don't pay extra for shipping when you move to Japan

Belated greetings
EDITORIALS
Dec 30, 2002

Mr. Koizumi fails to measure up

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is losing his precious political capital: public popularity. He may be likened to a stage actor who no longer strikes a strong chord in his audience. The actor still has many fans, but he is falling short of general expectations. Moreover, his lines lack punch and he...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Dec 29, 2002

A practical politician with his eyes fixed firmly on the stars

SPARKY: Warrior, Peacemaker, Poet, Patriot. A Portrait of Senator Spark M. Matsunaga, by Richard Halloran. Honolulu: Matsunaga Charitable Foundation, 2002, 259 pp., paper ($16.95) At a reception for a visiting Japanese prime minister held at the White House in 1981, Alexander Haig, recently confirmed...
COMMENTARY
Dec 29, 2002

Resist the potions of the past

LONDON -- "Capitulation bottom" is the ugly and inelegant phrase used by financial analysts in London to indicate the low point in the cycle of investor optimism and pessimism -- the point where investors give up in despair, sell their shrunken shareholdings, if they can find a buyer, and start putting...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Dec 29, 2002

Koma Square -- a new years' tale by RK

1997-99 He woke to the sound of a prerecorded voice booming from the nationalists' minitruck rolling through their neighborhood, making the windows rattle. Shirtless on the tatami, his bare back pressed to the ribbed weave, he heard the voice as part of his dream and then part of the day, and then...
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 29, 2002

'Russian spirit' headed down the hatch

MOSCOW -- With the winter holidays upon us, Russians are looking forward to the longest drinking binge of the year. It started with "Western" Christmas, which Russians began celebrating after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Then come New Year's Eve, Russian Orthodox Christmas on Jan. 7 and the old...
COMMENTARY
Dec 28, 2002

Keep a close eye on prisons

LONDON -- The basic objectives of a judicial sentence of imprisonment are deterrence, rehabilitation and punishment. To deter criminals, it is first necessary to arrest them and ensure that those who are guilty are convicted. The criminal must then recognize that imprisonment, which means in the first...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Dec 28, 2002

Japan being led into war again, this time by U.S.

For years, ever since leaving Doshisha University, Shinpei Ishii worked for TV Man Union Inc. Then in 1989, tired of kowtowing to authority and wanting to write and speak out freely, he went freelance. It was a good move. He won an award for a program made for NTV and acclaim for literary translations,...
EDITORIALS
Dec 28, 2002

Playing with human rights

China is once again engaging in human rights diplomacy. This week the government in Beijing released dissident Xu Wenli, one of the country's most famous human rights activists. It is tempting to applaud this long-overdue development, but the truth is that Mr. Xu should not have been in jail in the first...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 28, 2002

Three baas for the year of the sheep!

Baa-aa! Yes, you herd me right -- it's almost the year of the sheep. It's going to be a long year of itchy sweaters and mothballs. So put on your woolies and finish writing those New Year's cards.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Dec 28, 2002

Rosanna Zambon

Many years ago, a Tokyo woman had a house to let in Sengawa. She used to laugh ruefully at the peculiarities of some of her short-term tenants. Then she had a pair who were the best, who she hoped would stay a long time, whom she spoke of affectionately as "a lovely young couple." They were Rosanna Zambon,...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST
Dec 28, 2002

Waiting for the ultimate exchange gift

Perhaps the first disappointment most kids experience while growing up is discovering the truth regarding Santa Claus. For me, it was the same.
EDITORIALS
Dec 27, 2002

Resuscitate local economies

Japan's economy for 2003 poses inevitable questions. Will deflation get worse or better? How far will banks go to shed their dud loans? If the United States goes to war with Iraq, how will it affect the economy? In these increasingly uncertain times, forecasting is a tricky business. Offering stock answers...
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Dec 27, 2002

Roberto Carlos was best player of 2002

LONDON -- As the year winds down we are seeing a plethora of honors being handed out to different soccer players around the globe. Here are my picks for some alternative awards for 2002:
COMMENTARY
Dec 26, 2002

A rising China lifts Asian economies

HONG KONG -- For many years now, a debate has raged over the political and economic implications of a rising China, both for the region and for the world. That China is rising is not a matter of debate.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Dec 26, 2002

Thirty years of environmental progress, but . . .

Yet another year is tugging impatiently at the sleeve of closure and within days will be history.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / NAME OF THE GAME
Dec 26, 2002

Arcade gem returns to glory

This is the time for bringing games back from retirement. Sega came out with new a new "Shinobi." Konami has a new "Contra." And Tecmo has brought back two great blasts from the past: "Ninja Gaiden" and "Rygar."
CULTURE / Stage
Dec 25, 2002

Ennosuke masters Mishima's extravagant vision

The Kabukiza Theater in Ginza concludes the year in style, with outstanding performances by the versatile Ichikawa Ennosuke, 63, and members of his troupe.
EDITORIALS
Dec 24, 2002

Afghan revival depends on security

Sunday marked the first anniversary of the establishment of an interim government in Afghanistan following the collapse of the Islamic fundamentalist Taliban regime. Earlier this month, Mr. Hamid Karzai, head of the transitional government that took over from an interim administration in June, noted...
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 24, 2002

A healthy contrast to politics in Beijing

HONG KONG -- The openness, mutual personal criticism and freedom displayed during the latest Taiwanese election were a refreshing contrast to the secrecy, sycophancy and control displayed before, during and after the Chinese Communist Party's 16th Congress.

Longform

Atsuyoshi Koike, the president and CEO of Rapidus, says there is a “sense of urgency” when it comes to Japan’s efforts in manufacturing semiconductors. “We have to make sure we are successful,” he says.
Atsuyoshi Koike’s big game: Fourth down and 2 nanometers to go