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COMMENTARY
Jun 29, 2003

Six lies of Myanmar's junta

HONG KONG -- Myanmar's military junta has reacted to growing international disquiet over its current crackdown on the country's duly elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy by telling lies that only increase fears for her personal survival.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jun 29, 2003

Dishonesty in democracy

JAPAN'S DYSFUNCTIONAL DEMOCRACY: The Liberal Democratic Party and Structural Corruption, by Roger W. Bowen. New York: M.E. Sharpe, 2003, 139 pp. $21.95 (paper). JAPAN'S FAILED REVOLUTION: Koizumi and the Politics of Reform, by Aurelia George Mulgan. Canberra: Asia Pacific Press, 2003, 139 pp. $36 (paper). During...
EDITORIALS
Jun 29, 2003

Harry Potter and the perfect storm

No doubt about it, this past week has been the week of Harry Potter -- a fireworks-and-champagne phenomenon not seen in the publishing industry for three years. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," the long-awaited fifth volume in a series, has been flying off the shelves like so many Firebolts...
SOCCER / J. League
Jun 29, 2003

Jubilo's stadium to get name change

The home stadium of J. League first division club Jubilo Iwata will be renamed Yamaha Stadium next Tuesday, the club's parent company, Yamaha Motor. Co., said Friday.
Events
Jun 29, 2003

KANSAI: Who & What

Guide offers illuminated tour of top Nara spots: English-speaking guide Harry Horii is offering an illuminated night tour of Nara every day from July 1 through Oct. 31.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jun 29, 2003

Furuta rips four home runs

Veteran catcher Atsuya Furuta belted four homers in four at-bats Saturday to lead the Yakult Swallows to a 14-4 victory over the Hiroshima Carp.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2003

Protected lemurs, tortoises stolen from Tokyo research institute cages

Rare lemurs and tortoises were stolen from a research institute in Tokyo's Setagaya Ward on two occasions in May, the police and officials of the institute said Saturday.
COMMENTARY
Jun 29, 2003

Humane results don't justify bad policy

WASHINGTON -- Never mind finding Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, intones U.S. Sen. John McCain, an Arizona Republican: Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein was a bad man and "our war to liberate Iraq was right and just." Liberal pundit Nat Hentoff agrees, calling humanitarianism "the most compelling reason...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2003

Protected lemurs, tortoises stolen from Tokyo research institute cages

Rare lemurs and tortoises were stolen from a research institute in Tokyo's Setagaya Ward on two occasions in May, the police and officials of the institute said Saturday.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jun 29, 2003

History lost and found

THE DIARY OF KOSA PAN, introduction and annotation by Dirk van der Cruysse, translation of diary by Visudh Bysyaklu, translation of introduction and footnotes by Michael Smithies. Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books, 2002, 88 pp., $12.95 (paper). In the early summer of 1686, the Siamese Embassy arrived in France...
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2003

Protected lemurs, tortoises stolen from Tokyo research institute cages

Rare lemurs and tortoises were stolen from a research institute in Tokyo's Setagaya Ward on two occasions in May, the police and officials of the institute said Saturday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 29, 2003

The poetry and power of rock 'n' roll

For an artist as personal as Patti Smith, who once told an interviewer that it wasn't difficult to leave "the limelight and the applause" at the height of her popularity as a rock singer to become a full-time wife and mother, she certainly seems to derive a great deal of spiritual sustenance from direct...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jun 29, 2003

Recipes that 'freak Japanese people out'

The BREAKAWAY JAPANESE KITCHEN: Inspired New Tastes, by Eric Gower, photos by Fumihiko Watanabe. Kodansha International, 2003, 112 pp., 2,900 yen (cloth). "My favorite thing to do with edamame [green soy beans] is to puree a little with some olive oil and fresh shiso leaves, and to add fruit . . . then...
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2003

Few know cities' flood threat plans

Many local authorities in Japan have drawn up flood hazard maps as a guide for local residents in times of flooding, but very few people apparently know of their existence.
COMMENTARY
Jun 29, 2003

China a laggard in preemptive reforms

HONG KONG -- When China sacked its health minister and the mayor of Beijing on Easter Sunday for their mishandling of the SARS crisis, many political analysts predicted that severe acute respiratory syndrome would have the same effect on China that the Chernobyl nuclear disaster of 1986 had on the Soviet...
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2003

Kono drafts law for transplants of children's organs

Taro Kono, a lawmaker of the governing Liberal Democratic Party, has drafted legislation to lift the ban on children under 15 becoming organ donors after being declared brain dead, according to LDP sources.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / NATURE TRAVEL
Jun 29, 2003

Catching the Paris underground

Call us weird, but we've always wanted to explore the sewers of Paris. Perhaps the urge was sparked by Victor Hugo's ghastly descriptions of the fetid underworld in "Les Miserables." Or maybe the image of the "Phantom of the Opera" was responsible: a masked maniac poling about in a gondola in his own...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2003

Photographer, 65, to walk length of Japan this summer

A 65-year-old photographer, known for his coverage of the Vietnam War, plans to walk the length of Japan this summer.
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2003

Few know cities' flood threat plans

Many local authorities in Japan have drawn up flood hazard maps as a guide for local residents in times of flooding, but very few people apparently know of their existence.
COMMUNITY
Jun 29, 2003

Cherchez la femme

Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing. -- Proverbs 18:22
COMMUNITY
Jun 29, 2003

Going it alone 'to lift the gloom'

Reiko Togo has been very dissatisfied with Japan's magazine industry for a very long time. "Magazines have become just vehicles for advertisements, and there are none I want to read," she says.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2003

Photographer, 65, to walk length of Japan this summer

A 65-year-old photographer, known for his coverage of the Vietnam War, plans to walk the length of Japan this summer.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Jun 29, 2003

Those were the days

Part of comedian Beat Takeshi's appeal is his down-to-earth image, which was boosted in the '80s by a famous NHK drama series about his childhood -- growing up in the shitamachi area of Tokyo in the '50s. The series epitomized the sentimental memory of postwar domesticity: an artisan father who's an...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 29, 2003

A rare chance to crank it up

The booking policies of club owners have long had an influence on music. Generally speaking, this influence has not exactly been a nurturing one as those with a financial stake in a venue prefer safe bets to adventurous outings. As such, musicians, especially young ones, wanting to test new ideas have...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jun 29, 2003

The party is over for 'Super Free' sex gang

The hormone-fueled stupidity that characterizes the behavior of your average college student is a fact of life, and people who are bothered by the unsafe sex, nonstop boozing and mindless pranks that typify spring break in the United States usually advocate moderation rather than outright prohibition....

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji