1.24.2002 the case for a lower yen.

10.29.2001 one giant step for japan, one small leap for the war effort.

9.17.2001 in the aftermath of the recent tragedy on the east coast, we should all remind ourselves that abuse of innocent arab-americans puts us in the same league as last week's culprit.

9.5.2001 "since the vast majority of chinese do not think of AIDS as a sexually transmitted disease, they will be resistant to the idea of practicing safe sex." aids in china is not only a misunderstood disease, it is a "shameful" disease, at least in the government's eyes: "in 1996, dr. gao yaojie discovered that many rural residents of henan province had become infected by selling blood to government-sanctioned collecting stations that then pooled the blood, extracted plasma and reinjected the donors. in some villages in henan, 65 percent of residents are infected. for her efforts to help the sick and expose the system dr. gao was harassed by the government."

8.30.2001 whatever day it was, koizumi's visit to yasukuni is just not that important. the fact that other asians as well as moderates/leftists and koreans in japan still make such a big fuss over such an issue just stalls the healing process. on the other hand, yes, it is wrong for japanese prime ministers to keep going there at all. they of course should be a bit more clever, too.

ever get the feeling that chinese efforts to block contact with the outside world is like putting up sand bags in the face of a tidal wave? voice of america would surely like to think so, and isn't hesitating in its efforts to ride that wave.

7.14.2001 seku-hara in japan reaches the front page of the new york times.

7.11.2001 in a move that has angered South Korea and earned a sharp rebuke from China, Japan rejected calls for major revisions to a history textbook that critics say whitewashes Tokyo's wartime atrocities. now why on earth would japan want to continue the charade?