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JAPAN
Nov 27, 2001

Minister seeks proposals on revamping education law

Education chief Atsuko Toyama asked her advisory panel Monday to recommend within a year whether Japan's "education constitution" aimed at creating a democratic and peaceful nation should be revised, officials said.
JAPAN
Nov 27, 2001

Japan's 5,000th 'Cats' show staged

OSAKA -- Shiki Theater Co. has staged the landmark 5,000th performance in Japan of the popular musical "Cats," the third-longest run worldwide for the masterpiece from Britain's Andrew Lloyd Webber.
EDITORIALS
Nov 27, 2001

Belated Lower House reform

Much has been said about the need for parliamentary reform, but so far little effective action has been taken. The Diet -- the supreme organ of the state -- appears to stand aloof from the wave of restructuring sweeping the nation's economic and industrial society. The national legislature's apparent...
JAPAN
Nov 27, 2001

Late Kankeiren chief's estate priced at 1 billion yen

OSAKA -- The late Osamu Uno, former chairman of the Kansai Economic Federation (Kankeiren), left a taxable estate worth 1 billion yen, tax administrators said Monday.
BUSINESS
Nov 26, 2001

'Flying geese' must face onset of global 'megacompetition'

The "flying geese" theory of development has long served as the basis of policy formulation and analysis of post-World War II economic relations between industrialized nations and developing countries. The fundamental idea is that both sides benefit from a vertical division of labor across national borders....
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Nov 26, 2001

Looking back on life in Stalinist Russia

NEW YORK -- My friend Lenore Parker threw a party for Mary M. Leder, who has just published her first book, at age 86. The book is an autobiography, "My Life in Stalinist Russia: An American Woman Looks Back" (Indiana University Press).
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Nov 25, 2001

High style for high rollers

Over the last few years, most mainstream fashion -- in London, Paris, New York or wherever -- has tended toward a softer, more casual look, and taking inspiration from various genres like streetwear has become the norm.
LIFE / Food & Drink / THE WAY OF WASHOKU
Nov 25, 2001

A hodgepodge that really hits the spot

It's a cold evening and the salarymen are stopping off on their home from a long day of work at open-air stalls to down a cup or two of warm sake and a few pieces of oden — slowly simmered daikon, hard-boiled eggs and tofu, among other things.
LIFE / Food & Drink / BEST BAR NONE
Nov 25, 2001

I'd like to teach the world to karaoke

If, like me, you cannot sing, karaoke is a curse. One of the first things I learned to say in Japanese was, "If I sing, all your customers will leave."
JAPAN
Nov 25, 2001

Creator of the Z car returns with his revived brainchild

Yutaka Katayama has witnessed Japan's automobile industry grow from the ashes of devastation in World War II to become the best in the world by the end of the 20th century.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / CHANNEL SURF
Nov 25, 2001

Only the garbage knows

One of the things all single-episode TV mysteries have in common besides being single-episode TV mysteries is ridiculous titles. The title of this week's "Monday Mystery Theatre" (TBS, 9 p.m.) is "Obasan Kaicho Murasaki no Hanzai Seiso Nikki: Gomi wa Koroshi wo Shitte Iru," which translates as "Middle-aged...
EDITORIALS
Nov 24, 2001

Find the mad-cow infection route

The specter of mad cow disease (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) continues to haunt the nation despite official assurances of safety. On Wednesday another cow tested positive at a meat inspection center in Hokkaido, even as the source of infection in the first case, confirmed in September in Chiba Prefecture,...
JAPAN
Nov 24, 2001

149 artisans, tech wizards get awards

The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry has announced the names of 149 people to be given awards as contemporary artisans and technicians for their excellence in traditional handicrafts and industrial technology.
COMMENTARY
Nov 24, 2001

German lessons for Korea

SEOUL -- Koreans have come to cherish Germany's experiences, as many see this country's unification saga as an important, if not the most important, point of reference. Korea's unification will probably be more difficult and complex than Germany's unification in October 1990. Koreans have one major advantage,...
JAPAN
Nov 24, 2001

Debate over female on throne muted as nation awaits baby

As Japan awaits the long-anticipated birth of a child to the Crown Prince and Princess, debate over revising the law to allow women to assume the Imperial throne remains somewhat subdued.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Nov 24, 2001

Amy Jorrisch

"From my grandparents I always had an avid interest in theater. They took me to everything they could get tickets for. I have vivid memories of my grandfather's phenomenal singing voice, that seemed to send me a message to follow my dreams. But I intended to stay away from theater as a profession," said...
BUSINESS
Nov 24, 2001

NTT seeking to boost regional earnings

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. will try to boost earnings at its two regional carriers by 265 billion yen on a pretax basis next business year, partly through transfers of employees to lower-paid subsidiaries, NTT sources said Friday.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 24, 2001

Thank God it's Fwaiday

This morning I taught English at the Shiraishi kindergarten. Nothing like a little chaos for breakfast. This class is so active, I recommend teaching kindergartners as a way to lose weight. Just walking into the classroom, I can feel the calories leap from my thighs as they realize I will soon be engaged...
JAPAN
Nov 24, 2001

149 artisans, tech wizards get awards

The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry has announced the names of 149 people to be given awards as contemporary artisans and technicians for their excellence in traditional handicrafts and industrial technology.
JAPAN
Nov 24, 2001

Tottori mountain-top restrooms get 70 million yen upgrade

YONAGO, Tottori Pref. -- Weary climbers will be able to relieve themselves in style after local authorities shelled out some 70 million yen for two environment-friendly toilets on a mountain top.
JAPAN
Nov 23, 2001

Koizumi turns blind eye to reform of farm sector

When he roared into office in April, the maverick Junichiro Koizumi vowed to die hard in a fight against old guard forces within his own Liberal Democratic Party. His proclaimed mission was clear: to turn around the decade-long economic slump in the medium and long terms through "bold structural reforms...
JAPAN
Nov 23, 2001

Volunteer architects build school in north Nepal village

OSAKA -- The Asian Architecture Friendship, an Osaka-based group of volunteers, is helping to build a school in a mountain village in northern Nepal, a project official said.
BUSINESS
Nov 23, 2001

Ministers defend budget-finance plan

Several Cabinet ministers on Thursday defended a plan to use funds from the sale of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. shares to finance a 2.5 trillion yen second supplementary budget for fiscal 2001.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 23, 2001

Over 5,000 suspect cows to be destroyed

The farm ministry said Thursday that all cows nationwide that have been fed meat-and-bone meal and other suspected sources of mad cow disease will be disposed of, after the nation's second case of the brain-wasting illness was confirmed Wednesday in Hokkaido, ministry officials said.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 23, 2001

Juvenile correction system feeling strain

Teenagers in uniform tank tops and shorts, their hair all cropped in the same manner, march in lines at an athletic field. It looks like a military boot camp, but in actuality is an athletic festival at a juvenile reformatory in Hachioji, western Tokyo.
JAPAN
Nov 23, 2001

Koizumi turns blind eye to reform of farm sector

When he roared into office in April, the maverick Junichiro Koizumi vowed to die hard in a fight against old guard forces within his own Liberal Democratic Party. His proclaimed mission was clear: to turn around the decade-long economic slump in the medium and long terms through "bold structural reforms...
JAPAN
Nov 22, 2001

Happy ecology-economy medium urged at confab

NAGANO -- Adoption of more environmental economic indicators and accounting measures is necessary to keep the economy from outpacing the environment, according to proposals put forth at a recent environmental conference held in Nagano Prefecture.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 22, 2001

Banker sees smooth euro cash start, no 'black fund'

FRANKFURT -- Japanese investors should have full confidence in the stability and strength of the euro as the currency is launched in its physical form at the start of next year, according to the European central banker coordinating the project.

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