· May, 2007

Stories about Japan from May, 2007

Estonia: The Emperor's Menu

Nami-Nami examines the menu of the Emperor of Japan during his recent visit to Estonia: “The only ‘outsider’ is the snow crab, which was caught in Kamtchatka.”

31 May 2007

Japan: “Thought Check” Screening for Citizen Judges

While news in Japan this week has been understandably fixated on the sensational suicide of Agriculture Minister Matsuoka Toshikatsu, another story revealed in a blog entry by Diet member Hosaka Nobuto slipped by with little fanfare last weekend. In the post, Hosaka outlines the latest step in moves by the government to implement a "citizen judge system" in Japan. This step, he claims, would allow the prosecution to effectively disqualify, through a "thought check" screening process, all citizens judge candidates who express doubt about the trustworthiness of police investigations.

30 May 2007

Japan: Miss Universe

Marie Mockett from Japundit comments on Miss Japan, Riyo Mori, who has just taken the crown of Miss Universe pagent: As long as the Japanese were sticking to their version...

29 May 2007

Japan: Love Hotels Find a Way

With great photos and a lot of background information, Ampontan explains how, despite many obstacles, love manages to “find a way” in Japan: “Love will find a way […] and...

28 May 2007

Lotto Fever strikes BIG in Japan

People across Japan turned out in large numbers last week to line up and get their hands on tickets for “BIG”, a variation on the soccer lottery “toto” operated by...

26 May 2007

Japan: B-guy

Mari blogs about the changing preference of Japanese women's choice towards their boyfriends from IKEMEN (nice looking guy) to B-otoko (B class guy).

24 May 2007

Japan: Japan Brand

Adamu from Mutantfrog blogs about a new logo “Japan Brand” for promoting exports, boost tourism, and take control of how Japan as a nation is perceived abroad.

24 May 2007

Japan: The Hair Police

Debito writes about the experience of a Brazilian high-school student in Japan's Shizuoka prefecture, apparently “forced by her school to dye her hair weekly because it was not as dark...

23 May 2007

Japan: Bridging the Generation Gap

What with all the news last week of beheadings, shoot-outs and baby dumping — and subsequent soul-searching on the part of Japanese bloggers, at a loss for what to make...

22 May 2007

Japan: Ice Aquarium

Edo from Pink Tentacle introduces an ice aquarium with 40 large ice blocks containing 450 specimens (80 varieties) of local marine life — including squid, crab, bonito and saury —...

22 May 2007

Japan: Mail from Henoko

dr.stonefly reprints an email sent by an activist in Henoko, urging the readers to take direct action in the protest against the marine survey. The email describes a fierce collision...

20 May 2007

Japan: Strange Confession Note

More on the story of the boy who sawed off his mother's head and brought it to the police, courtesy of Mutant Frog Travelogue: “After the crime, he went into...

20 May 2007