In Dogs and Demons, Alex Kerr identifies tourism as one of the great failures of modern Japan. He mentions that it was by no accident either, but a “deliberate national policy†that Japan chose to follow. Instead of becoming a service-based economy, national policy was that Japan would shun all industries that didn’t […]
Many of the problems in Japan that Alex Kerr mentions in Dogs and Demons have come up in the news this week.
Kerr mentions how the Forest Agency engaged in a program to clear-cut natural Japanese forests and replace them with mostly cedar trees, which was thought to be much more profitable to industry. It […]
The Financial Times for Friday, April 1 2005 reports in the article Bank warns of ‘1970s’ oil prices that Goldman Sachs has forecast oil prices reaching $105 a barrel. They believe that the world has entered into a period of “super spikes†because of increased demand for oil and a lack of excess supply.
With […]
This is a translation of a Yomiuri On-Line article posted on March 24, 2005.
A religious corporation filed a lawsuit in the Nagoya district court arguing that Buddhist memorial services for pets are the equivalent of a religious act and fees for those services should not be taxed. Chief Justice Kato dismissed the lawsuit on […]
The following is a translation of an article from the Asahi News
NEC announced on the 16th that they have invented “Child Care Robot PaPeRo,†with improved functions to play with and watch over children. It has the ability to help caregivers in places such as kindergartens and nursery schools. It will be exhibited […]