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After Koizumi, whither Japan? - Four key questions investors should be asking Japan's next prime minister, August 7, 2006 Memo to Japan: Relax! - Japan's savvy entrepreneurs have started providing time and space for a little shut-eye during business hours, Wall St. Journal, April 21, 2006 Land of the Rising Gaijin Chief Executive - New conventional wisdom in Japan: When a company really needs a shake-up, it calls in a gaijin, or foreigner, New York Times. March 27, 2005 History Repeats Itself in Japan - Japan has a unique talent for killing economic recoveries just as they get going, Bloomberg News, March 21, 2005 Old Wounds May Infect Japan's Economic Future - Japan needs to think far more seriously about geopolitical issues, Bloomberg News, Aug. 5, 2004 (Still) Made in Japan - How are Japan's manufacturers faring against low-cost competition from China, The Economist, April 7, 2004 Japan's Cartel of the Mind - Rarely do comments by a central banker cause a person to spit out his morning coffee in surprise, Bloomberg News, July 21, 2003 Japanese Spirit, Western Things - 150 years after Commodore Perry, The Economist, July 10, 2003 Despite Downturn, Pachinko King Thrives in Japan - As the world's second-largest economy struggles to regain its footing, Japan's largest chain of pachinko parlors is growing by leaps and bounds, The New York Times, April 18, 2003 Japan's Phoenix Economy - A detailed review of where the Japanese economy may be going, The New York Times, Jan. 29, 2003 Millions of Japanese Sucked into World of 'Dark Money' - How "yamikin" and consumer credit firms are pushing millions into bankruptcy, Korea Herald, January 28, 2003 Why reforming Japan's banks could ruin the U.S. - The dollar dilemma, The New York Times - International Herald Tribune, November 2, 2002 Nasdaq Misjudged Japan, Financially and Culturally - Nasdaq underestimated securities markets, overestimated its ability to change things, The Wall Street Journal, Aug. 19, 2002 Koizumi Tones Down Plans To Privatize Postal Service - Bowing to the powerful interest groups that have plagued him since he came to power a year ago, has agreed to water down a plan to privatize Japan's mammoth postal system, Wall St. Journal, July 8, 2002 How to Be Successful in Japan - 1) do something that no one has ever done before, or 2) do something that everyone else says is impossible, Japan Internet Report, summer 2002 Fearing Japan - The rest of the world can't let Tokyo keep storing up trouble, The Wall St. Journal, April 24, 2002 What ails Japan? - Twelve years in the economic doldrums: what does that say about the political system? It's almost impossible to reform, argues John Grimond, The Economist, April 18, 2002 North Korean Ties Complicate Japan's Efforts to Clean Up Banks - To the U.S., North Korea is a member of the "axis of evil," but to Tokyo, Pyongyang is also part of Japan's huge banking mess, The Wall St. Journal, April 4, 2002 Japan's Premier Muses on a Recovery-Proof Economy - Koizumi does not know why the nation's economy shows no sign of revival, New York Times, March 29, 2002 Alarmism Paralyzes Japan - The danger is not a cataclysm but relentless corrosion, not a meltdown but fear of a meltdown, The Oriental Economist, February 27, 2002 The Non-performing Country - If Japan does not write off its bad loans, will the world write off Japan? The Economist, Feb. 14, 2002 Japan Will Muddle Through . . . Again - Despite rumors of a final reckoning, a crisis will likely be averted. The Japanese government simply has too much control over the rules of the game and Japan's financial market is too insulated from external pressures, The Wall Street Journal, January 29, 2002 The Yakuza Recession - Investigations reveal the astonishing role of organized crime in prolonging Japan's bad-debt crisis, Far East Economic Review, January 17, 2002 The War for Bad-Loan Recovery has Started - The struggle for regaining control of the Japanese financial system from the Yakuza, Tokyo Kaleidoscoop magazine, February 1996 Who got Yakuza into Our Banking System? by Hajime Takano, Editor-in-Chief, Insider, February 5, 1996 Sokaiya Scandal - Editorial against the increasing control of the Yakuza on the Japanese economy, Mainichi Daily, September 12, 1999 Master List of Marketing Mistakes - The top six errors by foreign high tech companies, Japan Internet Report No. 63, December 2001 Roger Boisvert, Top Japanese Internet Pioneer, Slain in Robbery (6 articles) How the thundering herd went astray in Japan - Merrill Lynch: The investment bank thought it had a golden opportunity to build a retail brokerage in a difficult country. But bad luck and cultural differences stood in its way, Financial Times, Oct 26, 2001 DoCoMo Unfolded - In the deferential tradition of Japanese conglomerates, NTT DoCoMo straddles the Japanese telecommunications industry like a behemoth, Mobile Commerce World, August 20, 2001 Accelerating Decline in Japan Evokes Rust Belt Comparisons - Global technology bust has sent manufacturing here into a precipitous decline that seems to be leading the chronically sick economy into another recession, The New York Times, August 30, 2001 No Pain, No Gucci - A decade of economic stagnation has changed the country in many ways. But for most middle-class Japanese, recession is no cause for crisis, Far East Economic Review, July 12, 2001 In Japan, Layoffs Don't Stop Some Workers From Working - Trying to survive via traditional values in current times, The Wall Street Journal, July 5, 2001 Japanese Firms' New Push for English Shakes Up a Stodgy Corporate Culture - Wall Street Journal, June 11, 2001 Japan's Seven-Eleven - Over the counter e-commerce: How to blend e-commerce with traditional retailing, The Economist, May 24, 2001 Why Japan Needs the Net - Embracing it may be the only way its hidebound industries can become efficient, BusinessWeek, April 18, 2001 The Benefits of a Weaker Yen - If managed properly, depreciation could help restore growth in Japan and the rest of Asia, Financial Times, April 17, 2001 The Bush Administration's Japan Problem - Putting its moribund economy back on a path toward growth, will require Japan to undergo draconian reforms in public and private finance, AEI On The Issues, March 2001 Japan: Population Aging and the Fiscal Challenge - With Japan facing a demographic crisis, government finances have to cope with the rising strain on public pension and health systems, IMF, March 2001 Once Asia's Top Tech Rainmaker, Masayoshi Son's Role Is Shrinking - choice deals have started to dry up for Asia's top tech rainmaker, The Wall St. Journal, March 29, 2001 Japan's Long Economic Downturn Alters the Work Force Landscape - Women assume new roles in the depressed economy, The Wall St. Journal, March 26, 2001 Japan: What Went Wrong - By Michael E. Porter - What went wrong in Japan? Why have the reforms of the past several years failed? The answers to these questions are crucial to any effort to arrive at a prognosis for Japan, The Wall St. Journal, March 21, 2001 The Incredible Puzzle of Slowly-Fading Japan - An in-depth conversation with one of America’s most experienced diplomats from Asia, Asia Comment, March 2001 Japan's Dilemma - To regain its economic vigor, Japan must jettison the weak companies at the heart of its political and social system, AsiaWeek, March 16, 2001 Execs chastise Japanese chip makers - This article deals with much more than the chip industry, EE Times, Feb. 16, 2001 In Stagnant Japan, Economic and Social Ills Match - after more than a decade of slow growth, bankruptcy and record unemployment in Japan, the change in the views about Japan is as revealing as any statistic, The New York Times, Feb. 6, 2001 Buried in the books - The mysterious deaths of Japanese financial executives, Forbes Global, January 8, 2001 Masayoshi Son, Businessman of the Year - Suspend disbelief. There's greatness in him, Forbes Global, Dec.25,2000 Japan’s Mobile-Internet lead - Japan has put its millions of Internet-ready mobile phones to good use. The next step is expansion abroad, The Economist, Nov. 30, 2000 Internet Warrior On the Defensive - Son's Softbank is the world's boldest attempt to create a New Age empire of Internet businesses. But these days Son looks less like a conquering hero, Far East Economic Review, Nov. 16, 2000 Asia’s So Slow Express - Japan’s economic recovery appears still to be on track. But the risks of a derailment are rising, The Economist, Nov. 4th 2000 Japan's Battered Department Stores - The question now is whether they can wrest back control of their operations to make them more profitable, The Economist, Oct 28th 2000 Japanese Companies - Another Shopping Trip - Japanese companies are once again expanding abroad. But motives and methods have changed dramatically, Oct 21st 2000, The Economist, The Slow Death of Japan Inc - One by one, Japan’s most sickly firms are going bust. But not fast enough, Oct 12th 2000, The Economist Japanese Bureaucrats Seek a Role In the Emerging High-Speed Internet - The Wall St. Journal, September 25, 2000 Chasing Pokemon - Japan's pocket monsters have won the hearts of children worldwide--now animators are racing to produce the next big cartoon craze, Far East Economic Review, August 10, 2000 E-Commerce Tsunami - Japan catches the Internet wave, Smartbusinessmag.com, August 2000 Japan Accentuates A Bit of Positive - The health of Japan's economy, Washington Post, July 22, 2000 Japan's Economic Muddle - Do the Japanese voters have the stomach for reform? BBC News Online, June 21, 2000 Japan's Troubled Bank Mergers - The skies are darkening over Japan’s big bank mergers, The Economist, May 27, 2000 Stranger in a Strange Land - How Homer Sarasohn Brought Industrial Quality to Japan and Why It Took Japan So Long to Learn by Robert X. Cringely, PBS Big Japan Contractor Asks Banks to Forgive Billions in Debts -New York Times, May 25, 2000 Japan Assailed for Omitting Data in Growth Calculations -AP, May 23, 2000 Don't Look Now, but a New Japan Is Taking Shape -BusinessWeek, May 29, 2000 Japan Inc. Was One Big Happy Family, But Now It Has Become Dysfunctional - The Wall Street Journal, April 27, 2000 The Lessons of DoCoMo - Japanese mobile communications' i-modest success, The Economist, Mar. 11, 2000 Local Governments Seize Economic Initiative in Japan - Global Intelligence Update, Feb. 17, 2000 Banking at Your Convenience- How the Internet is helping Japan’s corner shops become banks, The Economist, Jan. 22, 2000 Japanese Retailer Bucks a Trend by Selling Cheap - LA Times, Jan. 8, 2000 Technical Adjustment -A new economy is emerging in Japan, sending hi-tech and Internet stocks soaring, Far East Economic Review, Jan. 13, 2000 Who Needs NTT? - Japanese Internet users are finally getting real alternatives, The Economist, Dec. 18, 1999 The Amazing Portable Sarariman - Japan’s big firms are at last getting rid of older workers. The hard part will be to attract the young. Nov. 20, 1999, The Economist Pork-Barrel Express -Tokyo is pumping billions of dollars into bullet-train lines to far-flung places, Far East Economic Review, Nov. 11, 1999 Blame Aimed at Japan's leaders - aftermath of radiation leak at a uranium-processing plant, Oct. 2, 1999, San Jose Mercury News Not So Fast - If Japan's economy is growing, did someone forget to tell business? - 9/30/99 Far East Economic Review Econoclast - Karl van Wolferen - his latest on Japan's economic-political system, WIRED - October 1999 Japan Bets on a Wired World to Win Back Its Global Niche - New York Times, August 30, 1999 Buying Again - Japan's consumers are heading back to the shops, Far East Economic Review, September 2, 1999 Japan's Costly Connection Steep Phone Fees - add up for Internet users, Washington Post, 8/16/99 Foot in the Door - Japan's portals and e-commerce update, 8/7/99, The Economist Wading in the Yen - Ronald McKinnon writes his analysis in 7/24/99, The Economist Japan's Lack of Readiness May Harm US- update on Japan's Y2K preparations from June 15, 1999 LA Times E-Commerce, Japanese Style - from June 11, 1999 online version of Wired Intel Wary of Japan's Y2K Efforts - from May 26, 1999 Japan Times Staggering Giants - Japan's Big Five electronics corporations, April 1, 1999, Far East Economic Review Japan's Tender Spring - March 27, 1999 The Economist Mitsubishi - Fall of a Keiretsu- March 15, 1999 Businessweek cover story Who Prints the Money?- Japanese ministries battle control of the printing presses without consensus on economic policy - 2/20/99 The Economist Moment of Truth - Japan Readies a $60 Billion Bailout-from 2/18/99 Far East Economic Review Japan's "Printing Money" Solution Poses Risks - from Feb. 3, 1999 Reuters Japanese Unemployment Rises; will free money help? - from the January 29, 1999 San Jose Mercury News Euphoria: The Next Phase of the Asian Crisis by Robert A. Manning- from the January 21, 1999 intellectualcapital.com A Day in the Life of Japan Inc.- an illustrative fiction by a foreign investment bank president, Japan's Worry About Work - from 1/23/99 The Economist "Excess Capacity Slowing Japan's Recovery"- from 12/25/98 Washington Post Ties That Meant to Bind Now Strangle- powerful keiretsu system stalls nation's recovery, Washington Post, 10/16/98 Setting Sun Japan: What went wrong? Partners in Suicide - Japanese Crisis Takes a Lethal Toll - as reported in the 10/7/98 Washington Post Reviving Japan - Time to wake up - Japan finally faces financial reality, as reported by the 9/28/98 Economist "Land of Dispair" - a Tokyo neighborhood fights back - from 9/24/98 Far East Economic Review "Flush with Failure"- the current toils of the Toto toilet firm - from the September 1998 Economist "The Gist of Japan's 'Bridge Bank' Plan" - bullet point summation with flow chart, Kyodo News - July 3, 1998 The Daily Yomiuri "Big Bang - or small puff?"- Coyner's presentation to the USC "Doing Business in Japan" seminar, Los Angeles, June 17, 1998. "Japan's Economic Plight"- a current analysis byJune 20, 1998 The Economist "Betting on Outsiders" - a report on Kyushu during the current recession from the June 6-12, 1998 The Economist "Five Strong Signals of Japan's Coming Crash"- Kenichi Ohmae's current assessment, July 3, 1998,The Washington Post "Roll The Presses"Paul Krugman's radical solution for the Japanese economy - from the May 28, 1998 Far East Economic Review "Resuscitating the Japanese Economy"- Sam Jameson's report in the JuneAsian Business "Prescription for the Japanese Economy"an April 1998 editorial by the Yomiuri Newspaper, Tokyo "Japan in Recession" - on the town in Hokkaido, from a May 1998The Economist "Leo-san"- a review of how Japanese advertisers cash in on use of Western celebrates - from The Economist "Breaking into the Japanese E-Commerce Marketplace - two case studies" - Coyner's presentation to the USC "Doing Business in Japan" seminar, Los Angeles, June 17, 1998. "Needed: a Real Big Bang"If Japan is to avert a further economic slump - from the April 16, 1998 Far East Economic Review "Keeping Nintendo Competitive"- a 3D accelerator chip that powers Starfox, a space-based dogfight game, has been a huge seller for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. A report from HotWired "Sega's Plan for World Domination"- an in-depth report on the origins and future plans of Kyoto's Sega Corporation - originally published in WIRED |
Cult in All-White Caravan Unsettles Japanese - A nonviolent confrontation between police and a dying cult brings back frightening memories, AP, May 4, 2003 Japanese cults -Apocalypse tomorrow? The Economist, Dec. 18, 1999 In Fury, Japan Invades a Cult's Rights - New York Times, August 27, 1999 Quakerism in Japan - 1885~1943- an illustrated account Save Kim Hwa Yong web site - our personal effort to save the life of a North Korean refugee in Japan "The Crown Prince and His Quaker Tutor"- 1946/1952 accounts by Elizabeth Gray Vining "Christianity In Japan"- a history of the struggles of Christianity in Japan from 1549 and persecution from 1597 to the present day situation - from Kondansha's Encyclopedia of Japan "Keeping the Faith"- a review of the traditions up through modern times of Japan's original Christian community - the kakure Kirishitan from The Economist "What is Shinto?"-an in-depth review of the origins, mythologies, symbologies of Japan's native religion plus a discussion of how it provides the foundation of Aikido.
The Emperor and I - Former Newsweek Bureau Chief Bernard Krisher recalls how he got the scoop of a lifetime, Metropolis, Tokyo, March 24, 2006 Only in Japan, only on St. Valentine's Day - Sky.com, Feb. 14, 2001 Bathroom Blues - culture clash in Japan, Feb. 8, 2001, The Economist "Cows from Heaven"- well, would you believe just one cow? - from Reuters "Small Earthquake in Japan"- the fattest sumo wrestler, a naturalized Hawaiian, retires from the sport of emperors - from The Economist "Fear of Tidlewaves in the Tokyo Subway"- a true story from Associated Press. "Toshiro Mifune Dies at 77" "W.W.II Hold Out Yokoi Dies" "Pig Riders Won the East"- a CNN description of how one town in Japan emulates the Wild, Wild West via its own unique bareback sport "Japanese Mouths" - (probably not a true story; but still entertaining) Dr. Hamaguchi argues that the Japanese mouth is a unique anatomical structure peculiar to the Japanese people
Japan Spirals Into Insecurity - N Korea's nuclear and missile brinkmanship might lead Tokyo to develop its own nuclear weapons in response, Far East Economic Review, September 2006 Jun and George: The State of the U.S.-Japan Alliance and Its Future by Sam Jameson - Koizumi is both a strange and different kind of person, Japan National Press Club, June 22, 2006 The Youthful Face of Japanese Nationalism - It is time for a change that can be a positive one that enables Japan to regain its confidence and become more proactive in regional security roles, Far East Economic Review, November 2005 Tokyo Teacher Embattled Over War History - City official said Japan never invaded Korea. Teacher demurs. Tom Coyner includes a short essay on his trip to Yasukuni Shrine, The Christian Science Monitor, November 22, 2005 Tokyo Teacher Is Punished for Pacifist Stance - Refusal to sing wartime anthem comes as Japanese schools push national pride, Washington Post, August 30, 2005 Japan's Foreign Policy - From Pacifism to Populism - As Japan begins to stretch its long-unused military muscles, how far does it want to go and what can it do? The Economist, July 8, 2004 The Looting of Asia - What the US did with Japan's war loot once it discovered how much of it there was, the form it took, and how little influence its original owners had - a review by Chalmers Johnson, London Review of Books, November 20, 2003 Japan rolls out missile shield plan - Hours after N Korea threatened to test a nuclear bomb, the Japanese Parliament was asked to spend $1 billion a year through 2007 to build a missile shield to defend Japanese cities, The New York Times, August 30, 2003 Ishihara's Rise Could Mean 'No' to Economic Reform - Japan's leading candidate as next prime minister inspires little hope in the international community, Bloomberg News, Thursday, April 10, 2003, Maj. Michael J. Brown v. U.S.A. - An Emergency Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus exposes the Japanese daiyo kangoku, "substitute prison," that necessitates SOFA protection of US military in Japan, March 7, 2003 For Japan's Would-Be Reformer, Little Traction - Every government ministry and agency is fighting regulatory reform tooth and nail, including the ministers themselves, The New York Times, December 26, 2001 Recovering Japan's Wartime Past - and Ours - Dulles's and Japan's strategy to eliminate any possibility of war reparations also fostered a deliberate forgetfulness whose consequences haunt us today, New York Times, September 4, 2001 Japan is not Innately Militaristic- nor is it pacifistic, The Japan Times, Aug. 23, 2001 The Nuclear August of 1945 - An account and reconsideration of Hiroshima, The Wall St. Journal, Aug. 6, 2001 A Bold Plan: Pain First and Then Gain for Japan - The global leader who is playing the world's most interesting poker game right now is Japan's new prime minister, Junichiro Koizumi, International Herald Tribune/The Washington Post, July 9, 2001 Japan Must Confront Its Culture of Lies - By David Roche, President of Independent Strategy, a London-based investment consultancy, Wall St. Journal, June 29, 2001 Will Japan Re-Arm? - Newly elected Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has vowed to expand Japan's military. But can he and, more importantly, will he? Stratfor.com, June 26,2001 Textbook controversy: Analysis of Korea's requests to Japan - In-depth analysis of the major historical discrepancies, The Korea Herald, May 9, 2001 Despite China, Okinawans Tire of U.S. Military - The New York Times, April 17, 2001 Sorry Is the Hardest Word - The failure of Japanese leaders to come to terms with the country's wartime past mystifies many. But the reason is surprisingly straightforward: old-fashioned politics, Far East Economic Review, March 8, 2001 Caution Rules in Japan - While most of the major industrialized nations are governed by vigorous, relatively young figures, Japan continues to be tightly controlled by a generation of gray and cautious conformists, UPI, Dec. 5, 2000, Sunset for The Men in Suits - Japan is changing rapidly, for better and worse. Its politics remains eternally the same. How long can that last? The Economist, July 1, 2000 Signs of Life in Japan - an opposition party has awakened the country to the possibility of political change, New York Times, June 27, 2000 .Dynasties vs. Democracy in Japan - AP, May 23, 2000 Japanese Question Obuchi's Sickness, AP, May 16, 2000 Can Japan Find Its Voice? - The Economist, May 6, 2000 Local Governments Seize Economic Initiative in Japan - Global Intelligence Update, Feb. 17, 2000 Japan Carries Out Executions in Near-Secrecy - a major concern of human rights activists, New York Times, December 20, 1999 Econoclast - Karl van Wolferen - his latest on Japan's economic-political system, WIRED - October 1999 'Nationalism' frenzy created by U.S. media - The Daily Yomiuri, August 30, 1999 Japan and North Korea Missiles Countdown - The Economist, August 21, 1999 World War II Atrocities: Comparing the Unspeakable to the Unthinkable - Japan ignores Unit 731 and other biological warfare detachments; March 7, 1999 New York Times Let Japan Sail Forth - The Economist's call for expansion of Japan's military role, Feb. 27, 1999 Japan's Constitution: The Call to Arms from Feb. 27, 1999 The Economist Japanese Factions Accept Expanded Role for Military - Global Intelligence Update, Feb. 26, 1999 Japan's Sakakibara Takes Aim at Washington - Reuters,Feb. 2, 1999 Dream Deferred- A young media strategist nearly ruined opposition leader Naoto Kan - Far East Economic Review, Feb. 4, 1999 Obuchi's Staying Power- from 1/29/99Far East Economic Review "Turncoat Technocrat"- former Japanese insider criticizes government waste - from the April 30, 1998 Far East Economic Review Japan Sees Itself as Scapegoat of Washington in Asia Crisis- a 9/21/98 update from the New York Times "Officials lack punch, but remain confident firms can handle Year 2000 computer woe"- from the5/25/98 Nikkei Weekly "Arthritic Nation"- as summarized in the Far East Economic Review "The Magic Bullet"- the collapse of the police investigation into the shooting of Takaji Kunimatsu is starting to unravel the official cover-up of the Aum Shinrikyo affair. Though Japan's mass media blamed Aum for the assassination attempt against the national police chief, the facts of the case tell a different story about the "gentlemen of the underworld" who have controlled Japan for more than a half-century.- from Archipelago Magazine on the Internet "Japan and American - Friends in Need" - the alliance between America and Japan--the cornerstone of East Asia's security--is in even worse trouble than it looks - an article from the April 13, 1996 The Economist
Creation! Invention! Certainly More than Mere Imitation - Is Japan's reputation as imitator partially the result of Western perception? The Japan Times Weekly, February 23, 1991 Japan's Technological Woes - The Economist -March 5, 2000 Softbank Chief Warns Japan Losing Edge in New Era - Reuters, 2/9/99, reports Masayoshi Son's grave assessment "Using Japanese in English Windows" - great suggestions with hot links from Global OnLine "The Right Mind-set for Managing Information Technology"- Japanese companies rarely experience the IT problems so common in the United States and Europe; from the Sept/Oct. 1998 Harvard Business Review "Net domains doled out by Japan `cartel'"- from the San Jose Mercury New "Wiring Japan"- a bitter culture clash that has reduced Japan to a third-rate power in networking. An in-depth report from HotWired "Japanese Rules"- Let's speak Japanese - a review of a Mac CD-ROM language tutor, Japanese for Everyone, from HotWired "Kanji and Kana on the Internet" - an update on Japan's dramatic increase of Internet use - from The Economist "Japan: A Hungry Market That's Internet-Ready" - companies that are Internet-related would be wise to take an early look at opportunities in Japan, with its rapidly growing Internet user base, is ready for new technologies - an article from the May 1996 Upside Magazine
To See Japan, Try Rail Pass and Ryokan - Serendipity, and a high sense of adventure, lead a family of five to Tokyo and points beyond. Trains and budget hotels reduce the bill, The New York Times, July 23, 2000 33 Reasons You Know You're an Expat Kid in Asia or Have Been When... Virtual Edo Walking Tour - if you are interested in Japanese history, Tokyo or excellent web site design, this site is very much worth the visit. "Japanese National Holidays" - - an annual schedule of national holidays plus a rule of thumb and a few pointers in planning your schedule around those days. Edo-Tokyo Architectural Museum - what it is, why you should check it out, how to get there "Hot Links for Understanding Japan" - A collection of hot links to other web sites to assist your knowledge about living in Japan as well as understanding its religions and philosophies.
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The Sumo Champion, the Sickie and the Story that Shook Japan - The sight of Mongolian-born Asashoryu playing football when he was on sick leave, and rumours that he wants to retire, have caused uproar, The Independent, August 7, 2007 Japan's Subtle Etiquette Code
Suicide in Japan You've Been Living in Japan a Long Time When... a very long check list for long-time expats Developing Nation: Japanese Clothiers Update Their Lines - Changes in diet produce curvier bodies in women, Asia Wall St. Journal, May 7, 2007 Cute is Cool in Japan - As cute-worship is rapidly becoming Japan's global image, the Japanese are wondering what is making them gravitate towards cuteness, Associated Press, June 15, 2006 The Award for Best Satanic Rabbit Goes to ... Report from the Tokyo International Anime Fair, The New York Times, April 2, 2006 Japanese fad: Comics that degrade Chinese and Koreans - Today's rise of China and South Korea to challenge Japan's position as Asia's economic, diplomatic and cultural leader is inspiring renewed xenophobia against them in Japan, The New York Times, November 20, 2005 Anime-ted Japan - Japanese culture vibrates with the energy of anime, an art form that's giving American pop culture a run for its money, The Christian Science Monitor, June 24, 2005 Sorting Trash the Japanese Way - In a national drive to reduce waste and increase recycling, the Japanese are raising the number of trash categories - sometimes to dizzying heights, The New York Times, May 12, 2005 Japanese used to swear by code of good manners. Now they just swear - Young Japanese are abandoning the sometimes stifling codes of politeness for which their country is famous, while older people look on in horror, Times of London, May 07, 2005 In Japan, Frugal Goodbyes - Budget funeral service tries to lay to rest a costly ceremony, The Wall Street Journal, July 6, 2004 Japanese are Cold to Freed Hostages - Nation views them as troublemakers, The New York Times, April 23, 2004 Kidnappings Strain Japan's Pacifist Role - Tokyo's Iraq ordeal shows delicate balance in aiding U.S.-led security efforts, The Wall Street Journal, April 12, 2004 Japan Crosses the Rubicon - with surprisingly little opposition at home or abroad, by starting to dispatch armed soldiers to Iraq in their first deployment to a combat zone since World War II, Korea Herald, Feb. 6, 2004 The Quirky Japan Home Page - A web site dedicated to a wild look at Japanese pop culture On the Trail of Japan's Crime Fiction Queen - One of Japan's best female writers critiques the current status of women in Japan, International Herald Tribune, June 26, 2003 Love in the Age of Spam - Online dating sites are slashing the sleaze to help grownups find mates, J@pan Inc Magazine, February 2003 The Homeless in Japan Find A Place in Cities' Public Parks - Long economic slump, tolerance allow shantytowns to take root, The Wall Street Journal, June 18, 2003 Women Turn to Selling Sexual Favors in Japan - Japan's 'assisted' bathhouses have decreased in number while the more overt sex clubs are booming, AP, Taipei Times, December 9, 2002 Hold the Mayora, Please - Critics in Japan say a flood of foreign words makes the language incomprehensible at times and is threatening the nation's identity, Los Angeles Times, Nov. 30, 2002 Something Fishy Is Going On In Japan in the Ice-Cream Biz - Eels, clams, salmon eggs, saury - all are flavors savored by local economies, Wall Street Journal, Sept. 4, 2002 A Psychedelic Summer - Japan’s drug culture is experiencing a dizzying new high, Newsweek International, Aug. 19, 2002 The Death Of Sushi? Japan's passion for sushi is fuelling a huge trade in illegally caught seafood that's endangering fish stocks and enriching organized crime, Far East Economic Review, August 15, 2002 No Nosy Questions if You Please. We're Japanese - Emperor Akihito gives a rare "press conference," New York Times, June 21, 2002 King Con - Would-be tycoon Genta Ogami claimed he was out to save the world, but disciples who bought his outlandish image are the ones needing to be saved, TIME Asia Magazine, June 2, 2002 For Tourists and Soccer Rooters, Japan Arenas Are the Real Stars - If there is one World Cup stadium that really stands out from the bunch with lessons for the future, then it's in Sapporo, The Wall St. Journal, May 31, 2002 What Soccer Hath Joined: The Rockiest Match - After more than two millennia of tightly intertwined history, Korea and Japan still stand out as Asia's pre-eminent odd couple - New York Times, May 12, 2002 Youth Let Their Thumbs Do the Talking in Japan - Young Japanese are thumbing out e-mail messages on cellphone key pads, The New York Times, April 30, 2002 By Leaps and Bounds, Monkeys Overrun Japan - Inter-primate harmony is fraying year by year with the territorial advance of monkeys, New York Times, April 12, 2002 Sexy Seer Says More to Fellatio than Meets the Eye - Nagoya sex shop worker who doubles as an oral oracle whose readings garnered through performing fellatio not only blow the mind, but something else in the process, Mainichi Daily News, January 7, 2002 Ya-ku-za, the Japanese Mafia - an edited essay on the background of Japan's organized crime Beatings Among Young Baseball Players Reveal a Japan Riven by Old Militarism - It's very much alive but parents are now starting to fight back, The Wall St. Journal, January 10, 2002 Nissan's Carlos Ghosn Becomes Unlikely Star of Japaneicse Com - Japan's latest cartoon sensation is Carlos Ghosn, the non-Japanese chief executive officer, and savior, of Nissan Motor Corp., The Wall Street Journal, December 27, 2001 Japan's Government Caught Off Guard By Mad-Cow Crisis - Ministries fumble in effort to reassure jittery public, The Asian Wall Street Journal, December 3, 2001 Japan's Red Light 'Scouts' and Their Gullible Discoveries - Men ply the rush-hour crowds, stealthily approaching young women outside the world's busiest train station to see if they can be enticed to work in what is by reputation the richest red-light district anywhere, New York Times, November 15, 2001 Crime and The City - Police in Yokohama are struggling to cope with rising crime. But they will soon face a still-bigger challenge--the final of the soccer World Cup, Far East Economic Review, November 15, 2001 Blokes Bust into Their Bra Fantasies - Japanese men and their bras, Mainichi Daily News, Oct. 26, 2001 The Latest Stain on Japan's Health Record: Mad Cow - State mandarins have again turned a blind eye to a health disaster, Businessweek, October 29, 2001 With a Wave of God’s Hand - An amateur paleontologist is discredited, and Japan loses a million years of human prehistory, Newsweek International, October 22, 2001 From We to Me - A survey of Japanese youth, Time Asia edition, May 3, 1999 Divorce, Japanese Style - In a nation where joint custody doesn't exist and visitation rights are rare, the prime minister--who has a son he's never met--is no exception - LA Times, Oct. 2, 2001 Dancing Into Exile - If you’re a world-class talent in Japan and want support, move abroad. How the brain drain hurts a nation in need of reform, Newsweek International, July 2, 2001 Why Japan Cares What You Think - This is a nation obsessed with outsiders' perceptions of it. And that's one of its biggest problems, TIME Asia.com, April 30, 2001 Poor Little Rich Kids - The Japanese call them freeters, the swelling ranks of permanent part-timers, The Economist, Apr 19, 2001 From Tokyo, a Film of Us vs. Them - A refreshing take on growing up as a Korean Japanese, International Herald Tribune, March 24, 2001 Case Focuses on Japan Justice, Sex - Systemic prejudices are placed in the spotlight, Associated Press, March 20, 2001 Japan Citizens, Sour on Consensus, Look to Themselves for Success - The Wall St. Journal, Dec. 29, 2000 Meet a 'Stone Age' Man So Original, He's a Hoax - A town, known as the cradle of "Japanese man," no longer deserves its fame, New York Times, December 7, 2000 Japan Confronts Homeless Problem - The Japanese government, recognizing that the economic slump has created a growing underclass, is moving to subsidize shelters for the homeless, Washington Post Foreign Service, Nov. 29, 2000 Japan Explained -Author Karel van Wolferen's insights are appreciated by the Japanese themselves, Business Week, Nov. 27, 2000 Taking Care Of Business - One yakuza gang has beaten off recession and tougher anticrime laws, Far East Economic Review, Nov. 30, 2000 The Ringing in Their Ears Causes a Japanese Revolt - Japan has put cellular phones to the mouths of the masses. Now it wishes they would shut up, Washington Post, Oct. 20, 2000 Targeting Japan Inc. - Amid a series of product scandals, the nation's consumers are using new laws to fight at last for their rights, TIME ASIA, Sept. 25, 2000 Original Memes from the Tokyo Underground - by Todd Boyle Japan's Defense of Whaling - The Japanese feel they are being unfairly treated, The Economist, Sept. 9, 2000 Japan Flounders without Goals -The Japan Times, Sept. 4, 2000 Japan Eases Immigration - Out of painful necessity, changes are taking place, The Economist, September 2, 2000 Looking for Lucie - Distraught British father seeks leads in the mysterious disappearance of his daughter, Tokyo Weekender, Sept. 1, 2000 with Reuters grisly update, Feb. 26, 2001 Enough With the Kompyuta! Let's Makuru! - update on Japan's ongoing adoption of English into daily Japanese conversation, New York Times, August 26, 2000 Japanese Way of Death - The country's attitudes toward suicide -- now at epidemic levels -- illustrate the limits of a common global culture, BusinessWeek, August 22, 2000 Book Reveals Hirohito the Militarist - U.S. helped create the late emperor’s passive image, which belied his part in aggression, LA Times, Aug. 21, 2000 'I was a Japanese soldier' - Why a Taiwanese war veteran feels let down by the country he served, Daily Yomiuri, August 12, 2000 Japan, Feasting on Whale, Sniffs at 'Culinary Imperialism' of U.S. - New York Times, August 10, 2000 As Japan Deregulates, Quality-of-Life Laments - New York Times, August 8, 2000 Take My Samurai . . . Please -The Japanese do have a sense of humor well hidden behind a dour reputation and straight-faced facade, Washington Post, August 1, 2000 New Pressures Alter Japanese Family's Geometry - Modern demographics impacting on ancient traditions, The New York Times, July 27, 2000 Human Trafficking - Criminals smuggle thousands of women into Japan life of sexual slavery, Far East Economic Review, August 3, 2000 Okinawan Women Fighting for Support From U.S. Servicemen - New York Times, July 23, 2000 Advance of the Amazonesu - Japanese pop culture is turning into a money spinner across Asia, The Economist, July 22, 2000 Japan Sets Standard for How People Use Net on Cellphones - USA Today, July 7, 2000 Lone Voice No Longer, Japan Gadfly Catches On - a sidewalk crusader berates Japan's leaders, New York Times, June 18, 2000 A Woman Scorned - Mineko Iwasaki inspired 'Memoirs of a Geisha,' but now she fears the book will tarnish her profession's legacy, Far East Economic Review, June 22, 2000 In E-Mail Wrinkle, Cell Phones Are Chatterboxes, The New York Times, June 8, 2000 Japanese Trains Try to Shed a Gruesome Appeal -for suicide, New York Times, June 6, 2000 The Little White Ball That Put Japan in the Red - Is golf the responsible for Japan's financial fiasco? Tokyo Journal & The New York Times, June 1, 2000 Murder Shines a Light on the Lives of Koreans in Japan - A critic of the North Korean regime found with a bloody kitchen knife beside his corpse has left a murder mystery for the Japanese police: Was it a lovers' quarrel or the cloak-and-dagger work of a North Korean agent? Washington Post, June 1, 2000 Japan That Can Say Yes - Japan inches toward immigration liberalization, Newsweek, June 5, 2000 Reflections on Japan - "The Boulder Boys," an elite group of World War II recruits who gained special knowledge about Japan, talk about modern Japan, May 25, 2000, News Hour with Jim Lerher, PBS Exit the Ninja - The last master of the Japanese assassins' art faces a dearth of interest at home, but an upsurge overseas, Far East Economic Review, May 18, 2000 Reflection of Ishihara Mentality - Korea Times, Apr. 25, 2000 Sumo's Dirty Secret - alleged match fixing, Feb, 28, 2000, Time Asia The Sky Is Falling - Faulty concrete exposes cracks in Japan's once-vaunted rail system, Time, Jan. 24, 2000 Japan Is Flush With Obsession - the country has an enduring fascination with the toilet, Dec. 13, 1999, LA Times Emperor's Ex-tutor Passes Away at 97 - The Daily Yomiuri, Nov. 30, 1999, and The Economist, Dec. 11, 1999, a quiet influence of an American Quaker on the Imperial Household Beer-belly Dancers Buck the Trend - Sept. 16, 1999, Daily Yomiuri Punk Version of Japan Anthem Sacked - AP, August 17, 1999 Obesity Tests for Sumo Wrestlers - AP, April 27, 1999 15 months in a tiny room almost drove Nasubi nuts - Yomiuri Shimbun, April 29, 1999 Medical Errors Outrage Japan - AP, April 17, 1999 Learning Japanese Online - Do you want to improve your Japanese skills? The Web can help; from Global OnLine Show Them the Money-- Japanese entrepreneurs are not born-from Feb. 13, 1999 The Economist From a Lifetime Job to No Job at All - from New York Times, Feb. 3, 1999 Japan OKs Viagra in record time - published January 26, 1999, San Jose Mercury News In Japan Schools, Discipline in Recess - Old Order Making Way for Disorder in Formerly Rigid Classrooms, Washington Post, January 24, 1999 What's Hot on Japanese Television - the teeming masses get their unique form of entertainment Tokyo Subway Gets the Highest Marks- AP story comparing subways of Tokyo, London, Paris and New York
"Director Kurosawa Dies" -Reuters Sept. 6, 1998 obituary "Richard Curtis has Learned His Services Aren't Wanted" - from the Wall Street Journal "The Party is Over" - a shift in business ethics as noted by Asia Business "In Tokyo, Viagra Is One Hot Commodity"- as reported by the Washington Post Foreign Service "Japanese Business Etiquette" -some pointers from Asia Pulse "A Star is Porn" - the in's and out's of Japan's AV porno industry, July 1992 Tokyo Journal magazine. Japan Undergoing Shock Treatment"- The year is not even half over, and Japan's annual "quota" for sensational crimes has already been filled, Asia TimesO-bon Festival" - - Tom's photo essay of the August 1995 O-bon matsuri festival in Nippori, one of Tokyo's oldest neighborhoods. "Pachinko Uber Alles"- the real story behind your neighborhood gambling establishment - originally published in WIRED Japan "Nihongo ga ojozu, desu ne!"Fluent in Japanese, anyone? - by Jack Seward, from May 15, 1998 Tokyo Weekender "Japan's Un-salarimen"- there is a thriving alternative culture in Japan, and Karl Taro Greenfeld's Speed Tribes lets you get up close and personal with it - from the pages of WIRED Japan "Tokyo Alphabet"- a listing that lists it as it is starting with,"A" is for Aum Shinrikyo, the doomsday cult that..." from Planet Wired "Itchiku Kubota - Kimono Textile Master" - the Japanese master has devoted his life to reviving a long-lost technique of fabric design and to creating handcrafted kimonos of lyrical and lasting beauty - an article from the December 1995 Smithsonian Magazine "The Yakuza: Past and Present"- a group that has been around for over 300 years, that has as much honor and principle as the Mafia, and is just as strong, if not stronger - a study from The Yakuza Page on the Internet "A Drink From Japan - Brewed for the gods" "You've Been in Japan Too Long When..."- a hundred endings to that phrase as compiled by TWICS online services "Secrets Behind Japanese Gestures"- an introduction to the sign and body language of the Japanese by Jack Seward - from Tokyo Weekender "Masami Teraoka"- an illustrated review of one of Japan's most famous contemporary artists who is notable for his parody, from Japan Insight "The Fine Art of Interpreting"- an overview by one of the post-W.W.II pioneers in Japanese/English interpreting, Jack Seward, Tokyo Weekender "Very Clean People, The Japanese"- a history and update on the Japanese obsession of cleanliness and the enjoyments of bathing- from The Economist | ||
