Stories about Japan from April, 2008
Japan and China: Nationalistic Language Learning
Ampontan noticed the nationalistic rhetorics in Li Yang's crazy English teaching approach.
Japan: Nagano red for Olympic torch relay
The Japanese leg of the Olympic torch relay came to an end on Saturday without serious incident, but many Japanese bloggers who attended the event were left with lasting -- and often bitter -- impressions. With all the red flags, many bloggers pointed out how Nagano, for one day, seemed to transform into China.
Japan: Olympic Torch Protest in Nagano
Mousan has posted images from the largely peaceful protests that met the Olympic torch in Nagano, Japan.
Japan: Japan Today supports Scientology
Ken at What Japan Thinks writes about opposition from readers of Japan Today to video ads for the Church of Scientology.
Japan: Yomiuri article on Japanese chemical weapons buried in Chinese land
Sayonara, Mata Ashita comments on an article in Yomiuri shimbun, Japan's largest newspaper, about chemical weapons buried in Chinese land at the end of the Second World War.
Japan: Folding Arts
Ryoko from Pingmag wrote a feature on Japanese folding arts.
Japan: Public Intellectuals
Shisaku proposed to list out 100 Japanese public intellectuals and he produced an initial list of 50 names.
Japan: Suicide Phenomenon
Asiajin blogs a new suicide phenomenon by creating lethal hydrogen sulfide gas in Japan. The method is widely spread in the Internet.
Japan: Twitter in Japanese, with ads
The new localized version of Twitter in Japanese has been launched, as reported by Joi Ito, Asiajin, and the Polar Bear Blog. The Japanese version, unlike the current English one, includes advertisements, and there is a plan to eventually export these ads back to the English version.
Japan: Where has all the butter gone?
Where is the butter? — cry Japanese consumers who have been hunting everywhere for the dairy product. The drastic reduction in raw milk production, complicated by hikes in the price of grain as well as changes in the global patterns of dairy product consumption, have caused a serious butter shortage...
Japan: Love and Hate Story of the Mascot Character, “Sento-kun”
Creepy?! Ugly?! Sacrilegious?! Not many people are happy about the mascot character for the Commemorative Events of the 1300th Anniversary of the Nara-Heijyoko Capital to be held in 2010. The character was designed by a sculptor and professor at Tokyo University of the Arts, Satoshi Yabuuchi, who is one of...
Japan: Comfort Women Video Calls Attention to a Still Unresolved Issue.
More than 60 years have passed since the World War II, but women who claim to have been abducted under Japanese Military's orders to serve as sexual slaves on military “Comfort Stations” are still waiting for the government's public apologies and material compensation even as the government still denies the...
Japan: Shadow Pictures
Edo from Pink Tentacle introduces the traditional Japanese shadow pictures art form to the readers.
Japan: Food Shortage
Shisaku talked about his frustration about food shortage.
Japan: Food Crisis added to G8 Agenda
The GLOCOM blog reports that the world food crisis will be placed on the agenda at the G8 Summit in Hokkaido, Japan this summer.
Japan: About40, and what next?
Changing times in Japan are opening the door for a new style of television. "About40", aired for the first time on April 11th, has done something novel for a Japanese TV drama: aim at the age bracket of 35 to 45 year old women, and hit it big. The new drama targets the late-thirties demographic of single women who entered the work force during the 80s bubble, captured in the newly-coined term "arafo". Bloggers give their initial thoughts on the show, and provide their perspectives on being "arafo" in modern Japan.
Japan: Why can't I be an anarchist?
Japanese university student Hasan at hasanhujairi[dot]com describes a class in which his professor, outlining the progression of the study of Economic History in Japanese academia, ends by telling his students: “Just don’t be Anarchists; we can’t have rebellious Anarchists running amok on campus.”
Japan: Mona Lisa Mutants
Edo from Pink Tentacle introduces another Japanese artist Naoto Hattori. Edo has selected Mona Lisa Mutants collection in his post.
Japan: Thoughts on the Tachikawa flier case
Japanese blogger Dr-Seton describes an urban legend [ja] about children in public housing who were kept inside, only allowed out to play in a small park. When one day the children were let free outside, rather than run around, they stuck to a very small space. He uses this story...
Japan: Footage of Tibet and East Turkestan
Japanese podcaster Morley Robertson at i-morley makes an appeal to the global press to take up video footage from Tibet and East Turkestan. Part of the footage is of the home of the Dalai Lama, shot in 2007, a building which he explains was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution (later...
Japan: Fertility Festival
Gimmeabreakman posted a video about the Tagata Fertility Festival at Japundit.
About our Japan coverage
Nevin Thompson is our Japan editor. Email him story ideas or volunteer to write.
