Japan: NOVA Union Action Day

Tomorrow (October 15), NOVA Union will organize an action day to give pressure to the President Nozomu Sahashi for filing to the court for bankruptcy protection, so that employees can retrieve 80% of their unpaid waves through government subsidies and start to receive unemployment benefits. Debito has blogged the Union's...

Japan: Blog Action Day

James from Japan Probe joined the Blog Action Day by posting on an environmental experiment on Beijing pollution problem.

Japan: Sports with “no future”

Why do people play sports? Is it out of a love for the game, just for a good time, or is it actually a career choice like any other? 21-year-old Japanese pro-golfer Ueda Momoko sparked a heated debate earlier this week after she remarked that she could not understand young people who play sports which, according to her, have "no future".

Japan: Dreamy concept cars at Tokyo Motor Show 2007

Edo from Pink Tentacle posts some pictures of fascinating car designs to be unveiled at the upcoming 2007 Tokyo Motor Show (October 26 to November 11).

Japan: Can Bread

Lee from Tokyo Times blogs about bread in can sold in vending machine in Japan.

Myanmar: Questioning Yamaguchi's Claims

Jotmain questions a Japanese diplomat's defense of Myanmar junta.

Japan: Sumo Wrestler Bullied To Death

Recently a Sumo wrestler was beaten seriously by his colleague and the wrestler eventually died. W. Anthony Malcolm from Japan Probe tried to give more background on Sumo training in Japan.

Japan: Schoolgirl Sailor Uniform

Nick Kapur from Japan History group blog reports on the recent controversy over the origins of the Japanese schoolgirl sailor uniform.

Blogger Ampontan offers an essay on the history of a matsuri (festival) which changed after the war, and discusses the aims of festivals. Not serious politics, but it's an interesting view of how “traditions” can be born from specific conditions.

Japan: Sumo Wrestling Takes a Beating

It’s been a tough few months in the world of Sumo wrestling, Japan’s “national sport.” First, Mongolian wrestler Asashoryu, one of two yokozuna (the top wrestling class) returned to his homeland to undergo treatment for a mental disorder brought on by criticism that he shirked his duties, pretending to be...

In a new blog, Neojaponisme, W. David Marx reports on suppressed reports of pedophilia against a well-known Japanese producer, Johnny Kitagawa. It's a good read on the state of the media in Japan.

Japan: Nova and Teacher Union

David Markle from Japan Probe picks up the Nova (English school) financial crisis issue and discusses the need for teachers to join union.

Korea and Japan: Comfort Women

Melissa Wabnitz from Ohmynews wrote an article about Korean comfort women and their history in struggling to get an apology from the Japan government.

Japan: Rice Paddy Art

Edo from Pink Tentacle blogs pictures of rice paddy art in Inakadate village.

Japan: Pregnant Foreign Woman Rejected By Hospital

Debito blogs a local news about a pregnant foreign woman rejected by 5 hospitals 7 times. There are some good discussions in the comment session.

Japan: Red Spider Lilies

Overoften from Japundit blogs pictures of red spider lily field from rural Japan.

Who do you trust with your yen? Writing in Liberal Japan, blogger Matt Dioguardi points out an interesting irony: it would appear that the government has concluded that teenagers working in convenience stores are more trustworthy than government bureaucrats working in its own offices.

Japan: New Justice Minister wants “automatic” executions

New Justice Minister Hatoyama Kunio, upon taking office on September 25 (actually at his outgoing press conference, before he was reappointed to the position), stated that he supported creating a “conveyor belt” process for executions, so that the justice minister (meaning himself) wouldn’t have to sign death warrants. In view...