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With more than 99 percent of indictments leading to convictions, Japan has a reputation for being tough on crime. What that figure does not take into account, however, is that prosecutors are hesitant to bring cases to trial unless they can be assured a conviction.
The Ministry of Justice recently released figures for 2007 that showed only 43.6 percent of all criminal cases went to trial. And the figure is even lower — 13.3 percent — for criminal charges against personnel connected to the U.S. military.
The data …

Great news for people who a) own an iPhone or iPod Touch and b) never know what kind of topping to get when eating Sushi: Tokyo-based Shogakukan, known outside Japan for its extensive offerings of manga (Ichi The Killer, Ranma 1/2, Crying Freeman etc). is releasing a virtual sushi guide for these devices.
The sushi neta zukan (illustrated sushi encyclopedia) will become available in Japanese within this month but on the product website[JP], Shogakukan promises foreigners will enjoy the app, too, as it will have an English appendix.  It’s going to …

Zurui: I don’t know if “Made in China” has the same ring to an aircraft carrier but this is one Chinese product other than tainted gyoza that will catch the attention of Tokyo. It should also give Aso and the next prime minister (PM) of Japan (I think a new PM will be in place before Golden Week) firepower to expand the might of Japan’s Self Defense Forces (SDF). With the current fence-sitting and back-and-forth from Tokyo regarding the SDF’s role in combatting piracy off the coast of Somalia, I …

Sankei Digital Inc. began offering for free on Dec. 12 an application by which the entire pages the Sankei Shimbun daily can be downloaded from the internet onto the mobile telephone iPhone 3G and the handheld music player iPod tough, both made by Apple Inc. of the United States.
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Here is a great article on Japanese culture and a recipe for Toshikoshi Soba by Maki at Just Hungry.:
Even though Christmas has become big business in Japan in recent years, the real holiday at this time of year is New Year’s Day. The end of the old year, called shiwasu, is a hectic time, as people are busily celebrating with friends and colleagues at bounenkai, “forget the year” parties - besides wrapping up things at work and getting ready to go home for the holidays.
New Year’s Eve itself, however, is …

Curious to know who is on Twitter or how you, if you use Twitter, rank?
Click here to see Twitter Counter’s Top 10,000.
BTW, Black Tokyo is ranked at 126,264 as of this post date. How long until I crack the Top 100(00)?

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The Japan Times “Readers in Council” Opinion piece below reminded me of my last Tokyo home search: “My wife got a close and personal observation of how gaijin is used in business. We visited a realtor to lease an apartment or a house. The agent made calls to numerous owners and most said no deal in renting to gaijin. Some homeowners would rent to gaijin if my wife (a.k.a. Japanese, safe, and a link to the parents if something went wrong) signed. I said NO to that! However, ONE homeowner …

From Dec. 2, The Japan Times is serializing one of Japan’s early detective novels, “The Curious Casebook of Inspector Hanshichi: Detective Stories of Old Edo,” in which author Kido Okamoto (1872-1939), offers entertaining and thrilling stories set in Edo Period Japan.

The Curious Casebook of Inspector Hanshichi

The Restoration
The Serialization of Hanshichi, 1917 — 1937
A Tale of Two Cities
Hanshichi’s Namesakes
The Influence of Sherlock Holmes
The Origins of the Torimonocho

Although widely read in Japan since its publishing in the years between 1917 and 1937, it wasn’t until 2007 that the book was translated into …

As of October 1, 2007, the population of Tokyo is estimated to be 12.790 million, or about 10% of Japan’s total population, and it has the largest population among all the 47 prefectures.
At 2,187 square kilometers, the area of Tokyo is 0.6% of the total area of Japan, making it the third smallest of Japan’s 47 prefectures. With a population density of 5,847 persons per square kilometer, Tokyo is the most densely populated prefecture in Japan.
The 23 special-ward area is home to 8.653 million persons, the Tama area 4.109 million, …

Japan needs to import some 80% of its energy requirements. 
Its first commercial nuclear power reactor began operating in mid 1966, and nuclear energy has been a national strategic priority since 1973. 
Today 53 reactors provide some 30% of the country’s electricity and this is expected to increase to at least 40% by 2017.
Japan has a full fuel cycle set up, including enrichment and reprocessing used fuel for recycle.
 
Enough highly enriched U.S. uranium to make about 20 nuclear weapons was sneaked back to the United States from Japan over a 12-year period …

Interesting story from James over at Japan Probe:
“Mainichi reports about a new website that uses Google Maps to track the locations of cool and unique manhole covers in Japan:
Contributors can add photos of manhole covers directly from their mobile phones, along with global positioning system (GPS) data to mark its location on the map. The website can be seen here (Japanese).”
I would have never thought that I would (waste) spend 30-minutes looking at manhole covers!

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Americans make New Year’s resolutions. Japanese do osoji, cleaning that is!
Literally, it means free and clean. It refers to the year-end cleaning Japanese do. Not just a little neatening up. Hands-and-knees, sweat-equity scrubbing, sweeping, waxing and buffing so they enter the new year ready for whatever awaits them.
More broadly, it refers to the custom of getting your affairs squared away before Dec. 31. That means paying all overdue bills, performing any obligations yet unmet and metaphorically purifying yourself.
We move, if we follow the Oriental calendar, from the Year of the …

The Stars & Stripes reports that the Japanese government has decided to allocate $689 million during the next fiscal year for projects related to realigning U.S. forces in Japan.
According to an announcement late Wednesday by the Ministry of Defense, about $345 million will be set aside for moving about 8,000 Marines and their families to Guam, a move expected to be complete in 2014.
That’s a sharp increase from the $4 million allocated for the project in the 2008 budget.
Also included in the budget is $93.9 million for construction of a …

I received an email from a college student asking me to recommend books on Japan. Below are five books that I use for research and teaching. 

The African-American Encounter with Japan & China, Black Internationalism in Asia, 1895-1945 (Gallicchio)
African-American Views of the Japanese (Kearney)
Japan Rising (Pyle)
Japan’s Reluctant Realism (Green)
Japanese the Manga Way (Lammers)

Click here for additional recommendations, and my views, on Japan! If you are interested in purchasing any of the books, you can order via Amazon (and help Black Tokyo earn a small commission which will be used to pay …

A long-time Black Tokyo reader offers a few suggestions on stretching your money, and hopefully your stomach, in Japan. Hopefully, those in Japan will take advantage of the yen’s current power!:
Ruby Baby writes, “I think you’ll be better off cooking your own meals. Will you have living arrangements with access to a kitchen? Also, can you cook? If not, choose about five to seven of your favourite foods and learn to make those very well. In any case it’ll probably pay to read up on how to use some of …

Money, money, money! It seems like that what’s on the mind of many recently. Recession, depression, aggression, concessions… Wow! Well here is something to take you to another place, music!
The “Jam JAM Jam” blog by GELATIN SNACK is a great way to listen to some good music and learn Japanese at the same time. The writer has a wealth of music knowledge and insight on the “ura” or behind-the-scenes tidbits. Check out Gelatin Snack’s post here to learn about soul, R&B, funk and jazz music in Japanese. Those on Twitter can …

Nearly 5,000 public school teachers took a leave of absence in the 2007 academic year because of depression or other mental disorders. If these teachers are constantly stressed out and don’t have anyone to take it out on, the Sakebi no Tsufu could come in handy. This “shouting vase” from Japan is able to reduce stress if a person holds it up to the mouth and clearly articulates (a.k.a. yell as loud as you can) his/her troubles. The pot, which is made of thermoplastic, is able to turn yells into whispers through its …

I have a ton of pictures and video on Japan and never took the time to upload them to Flickr. Now that I revised the website, I have a good reason to share my various pictures of life in Japan. I will try to upload new pictures and video a few times a month!
Click here to view the slideshows. Enjoy!

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I am sure that many of you are aware of the “haken-giri,” or temporary worker cutbacks in Japan (and elsewhere). A majority of Japan’s temporary workers live in company dormitories and without a job, forcing them to leave their home. Temporary workers that do not speak Japanese will find their prospects for re-employment very difficult.
Another group of people with struggling employment prospects are the older, middle-aged generation. A quarter of Japan’s temporary workers are over 45-years-old. Not only do they have children and aged parents to support, but their re-employment prospects are …

The Japanese Foreign Ministry distributed to journalists in late November a paper titled: “Dispel five misunderstandings about the incoming Obama administration and Japan-U.S. relations.” The paper lists five growing concerns…

Gaman Shinasai! Be patient! That’s the theme of Loco in Yokohama’s post. Check out what he has to say in number 9 of 10 ways not to go loco in Yokohama: 
“The Christians  say, “Be patient, therefore, brothers, … See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. You too must be patient.” (James 5:7-11)
The Jews say, “The patient man shows much good sense, but the quick-tempered man displays folly at its height.” (Proverbs 14:29)
The …

Here is an old (but informative) article from Danny Choo on the pros and cons of renting/purchasing a home in Tokyo. I know the economy sucks right now but for those that can afford it, it may be a great time to acquire property in Japan!

“I wrote an article on buying a house in Tokyo a while ago and have been getting mail re the subject ever since. Rather can continue to copy and paste my replies, I thought I would write up something with more beef answering many of …

Observing Japan posts a follow-up to “The alliance is dead, long live the alliance.” After seeing the response to my recent post on the US-Japan alliance, I find it necessary to develop a few ideas further…
First, MTC rightly points out that an alliance based on the partnership of Japanese conservatives and their counterparts in Washington is by no means doomed, because the organizations pushing this line “deal death as a matter of course. They will not be deterred by mere logic, economic constraints or human feeling.” I fully grant this point. …

In a special to The Japan Times, Robert Dujarric (Director of the Institute of Contemporary Japanese Studies at Temple University Japan, Tokyo) writes: 
Japan’s ruling establishment hoped that John McCain, surrounded by “friends of Japan,” would win the race to the White House. Conservative commentators fear that President-elect Barack Obama will neglect Japan while paying too much attention to China.
These concerns are unfounded. There is no evidence that the Japan-U.S. alliance fares better under Republicans than Democrats. Although there are real reasons for Tokyo to worry about relations with the United …