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COMMUNITY
Jun 23, 2002

Relieving yourself of worldly cares

Freudians would consider French culture to be "oral" due to its emphasis on food and wine, while Swiss culture appears "anal" because of its obsession with time, cleanliness, money and order. So, what do Freudians make of Japan, whose culture has elevated both its oral and anal aspects to the level of...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / PLAY BUTTON
Jun 23, 2002

Ancient didgeridoo adopted by the digital generation

In 1992, Aphex Twin released "Didgeridoo." It was a strange name for an electronica-driven track designed, according to its creator, to be too frenetic for dancing.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jun 23, 2002

Arts of the essential

It is one of those wonderful historical coincidences that Zen Buddhism arrived in Japan at a time when political, economic and social forces converged in such a way as to foster outstanding achievements in the arts.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST
Jun 23, 2002

Chew-well cuisine is the stuff of saucy dreams

Let's call him "Taro."
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jun 23, 2002

Make more babies: by any means necessary

About five years ago, a mother in Kansas City started wondering about the paternity of her twins. Becky Peck had recently divorced, and she became more sensitive to what she perceived as the physical and behavioral differences between herself and her two children, Lindsay and Jeremy. Her ex-husband was...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jun 23, 2002

The nature of the Zen mind

Zen gardens, those wonderful treasures of Japan, can be enjoyed in several ways: as pure abstract works of art; as representations of Zen principles; or as tools to transport one's mind from the cares of everyday life to a higher state of consciousness.
JAPAN / WEEKEND WISDOM
Jun 23, 2002

Scale model maker strives to keep high-tech rivals at bay

SHIZUOKA — Shunsaku Tamiya's great passion is trying to coax today's high-tech savvy kids into embracing the low-tech world of scale models.
CULTURE / Books
Jun 23, 2002

The courage to endure

BAD ELEMENTS: Chinese Rebels from Los Angeles to Beijing, by Ian Buruma. Random House: New York, 2001. 367 pp. $27.95 (cloth) Are the Chinese hard-wired for authoritarian government? Is there a cultural barrier to democracy? Ian Buruma spends more space than warranted in answering these questions with...
JAPAN
Jun 23, 2002

S. Korea makes semifinals

KWANGJU, South Korea — South Korea's World Cup dream continues in incredible fashion.
CULTURE / Books
Jun 23, 2002

Following in the footsteps of Alexander and Marco Polo

AN UNEXPECTED LIGHT: Travels in Afghanistan, by Jason Elliot. Picador, 2001, 473 pp, 3,420 yen (paper) Jason Elliot's "An Unexpected Light" has been pigeon-holed in that genre of literature known as travelogue, but it is a great deal more. An account of the author's two visits to Afghanistan -- the first...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jun 23, 2002

Overcoming the tyranny of distance

TREASON BY THE BOOK: Traitors, Conspirators and Guardians of an Emperor, by Jonathan Spence. London: Penguin Books, 2002, 302 pp. 7.99 UK pounds (paper) In his short story "The Great Wall of China," Franz Kafka wonderfully evokes the enormity and complexity of imperial China by describing the travails...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / NIHONSHU
Jun 23, 2002

Stand me for a cup of sake?

Almost everyone interested in sake wants to know where to drink great sake at cheap prices. Perhaps you don't always want to settle down for the evening in a nice traditional pub. Perhaps you just want to sample a few decent sake on the cheap or have a quick drink on the way home. Well, assuming you...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / THE WAY OF WASHOKU
Jun 23, 2002

You too can take the natto challenge

Several years ago NHK broadcast an exhaustive special on natto, containing more than you ever cared to know about that much-maligned sticky, stinky dish of fermented soybeans. One of the exciting pieces of information that NHK's crack investigative journalism revealed was the number of times required...
EDITORIALS
Jun 22, 2002

Diet apathetic on political ethics

The regular Diet session, which was extended on Wednesday for 42 days through July 31, appears headed for further turmoil. The arrest of Lower House member Muneo Suzuki on the same day, immediately following a unanimous vote accepting a court request for an arrest warrant, has removed a big thorn in...
SOCCER / World cup
Jun 22, 2002

South Korea's composure impresses Pele

YOKOHAMA -- Brazilian soccer legend Pele said that the ability of the South Korean players to handle the pressure from their home fans was one of the reasons that South Korea progressed further than Japan in the World Cup.
COMMENTARY
Jun 22, 2002

Media: bulwark of democracy

LONDON -- The British prime minister's chief of communications has publicly accepted that the overuse of "spin" in government has led to cynicism and that the emphasis should now be on policy and delivery. Most British observers would agree. But government ministers, who have spent much of their life...
JAPAN
Jun 22, 2002

Book offers anecdotal glimpse at those on the bench

Few Japanese outside the legal community may be able to name even a single Supreme Court justice. Lower court judges are equally anonymous.
SOCCER / World cup
Jun 22, 2002

Ronaldinho goal sinks England

SHIZUOKA -- It was billed as the three R's (Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Ronaldinho) of Brazil against the defense and organization of the England side. Fortunately for Brazil, two of the famed R's showed up to send England packing after an absorbing 2-1 come from behind win at the Shizuoka Stadium on Friday....
JAPAN
Jun 22, 2002

Lower House demands that Suzuki quit

The House of Representatives passed a motion Friday demanding the resignation of lawmaker Muneo Suzuki, who was arrested earlier in the week on corruption charges.
Japan Times
JAPAN / MUSEUM MUSINGS
Jun 22, 2002

Sumida venue showcases accessories made from hawksbill turtle shells

Along the Sumida River in Tokyo's old "shitamachi" district, a small, no-frills museum with three generations of tradition behind it is waiting to be discovered.
SOCCER / World cup
Jun 22, 2002

Germany edges past valiant U.S.

ULSAN, South Korea -- A single goal by Michael Ballack was enough to see Germany squeeze past a spirited United States team here Friday evening, although not without several nasty scares from a U.S. side who refused to be over-awed by its opponents' reputation.
BUSINESS
Jun 22, 2002

Honda, Nissan increase sales as rivals' pace slows

Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. posted increases in domestic auto sales in May, while the three other major Japanese automakers saw their sales slip, according to data released Friday by the carmakers.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 22, 2002

Brazilian win provides diversion from hard knocks

OIZUMI, Gunma Pref. — Cheers and car horns echoed through this rural industrial town, home to thousands of Japanese-Brazilian and Latin-American residents, heralding Brazil's 2-1 victory over England on Friday in a World Cup quarterfinal match.
BUSINESS
Jun 22, 2002

Reforms seen weak in short-term

Although a package of reforms finalized by a key government panel on Friday may point Japan's economic and fiscal systems in the right direction in the long term, pundits are skeptical whether it can deliver the boost of confidence necessary now.
JAPAN
Jun 22, 2002

A judiciary ruled by conscience or politics?

The Constitution states that all judges must exercise their conscience in an independent manner and be bound only by the charter and the laws of the land.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jun 22, 2002

Islanders ward off cholera the rite way

Out the window, I caught a glimpse of the yellow silk tails of a Shinto priest's robes. He was walking up the stone staircase behind my house, followed by men in black suits. I grabbed my camera and ran after them.

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