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Japan
Japan’s Non-Nuclear Principles, Revenge in Nigeria, Sargent and Velazquez at the Prado
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On this week’s history podcast we look at the reality of Japan’s “non-nuclear” policy; we discuss the possible role of revenge in the massacre in Jos, Nigeria on March 7, and we go behind the scenes at the Prado Museum in Madrid to explore the relationship between a 19th century American masterpiece and a 17th century Spanish one. Download MP3
Toyota boss faces tough questions
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Some Japanese initially criticized the U.S. media coverage of Toyota as “Japan bashing.” But reporter Akiko Fujita reports from Tokyo that now those attitudes are beginning to change. Download MP3 (Photo courtesy of Kaustav Bhattacharya)
Actor George Takei remembers his internment
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The Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbour led, on February 19th, 1942, to Executive Order 9066 being issued by President Roosevelt. It consigned over 100,000 Japanese-Americans to internment camps. Star Trek actor and Japanese-American George Takei was just four-years-old when he, along with his parents and siblings, was removed from the family home. BBC World Service programme Witness interviewed Takei about the experience. Download MP3
Japanese Jazz Opera
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The standard view of Japanese popular culture, at least here in the US, is that it’s wacky, chaotic and impossible to fathom. For instance, there’s a video doing the rounds online that features actors dressed up as peasants singing American jazz standards, with Japanese lyrics. The World’s Alex Gallafent finds out what it all means. Download MP3 What the Toyota recall means to Japan
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Toyota hasn’t stopped selling cars in Japan but the company’s problems in the US and now Europe have made headlines back home. Toyota’s global success is a source of national pride in Japan. In today’s show Akiko Fujita will tells us how the Toyota recall has been playing out in Japan. Download MP3 (AP Photo: Shizuo Kambayashi)World Books Review: Perils of the Pansexual
This novel about a young woman who wakes up to find that her big toe has become a penis was a major bestseller in Japan, and it’s easy to see why. The book is titillating, disturbing without being disgusting, and reads like a self-help guide on the subjects of sex and love.
Japan’s “foreigners”
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Japan’s parliament is considering letting “permanent foreign residents” vote in local elections. That basically means people of Korean descent, some of whom were born in Japan and have lived there their whole lives. It’s a politically sensitive issue and, as Akiko Fujita reports, the bill has sparked a fierce public debate. Download MP3
Birth, Death, and Shopping in Japan
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Prices for real estate are sky high in Tokyo, not just in life, but in death too. It’s not just expensive to die in Japan, it’s expensive to be born. At least there’s deals to be had for New Year’s shopping in Tokyo.
Also on the podcast, Russians, Indians, and Israelis have arrived in Mississippi. And they may no longer be going for Olympic gold in Australia.
“Lucky Bags” in Japan
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New Year’s Day is the most revered holiday in Japan. The Japanese actually celebrate it over a 4 day period. Many start the year by waking up to the first sunrise, they go to a shrine to make a new year wish. It’s a quiet holiday – unless you’re out shopping. Every year, people line up to buy something called a “fukubukuro” or “luck” bag. Akiko Fujita introduces us to a different kind of New Year’s tradition. Download MP3
A Taste of Japan’s Winter Radish Festival
No joke… a giant white radish figures in today’s Geo Quiz. This Asian root vegetable goes by a couple of names: Daikon or the winter radish.
Tokyo Vice
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Marco Werman talks with “Tokyo Vice” author Jake Adelstein. Adelstein’s new book chronicles his years covering Japanese organized crime and vice as a reporter for Japan’s Yomiuri Shinbun newspaper. Download MP3
Jake Adelstein reads an excerpt:
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Kit Kat big in Japan
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American candy lovers know the Kit Kat bar. But few would recognize the varieties sold in Japan. Such as the green tea or soy sauce Kit Kat. Or the pickled plum or mashed edamame edition. 200 kinds of Kit Kat bars have been sold in Japan over the years. Akiko Fujita checked out the candy in Tokyo. Download MP3 (Photo:Fugutabetai Shyashin)
Japan’s first lady
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Miyuki Hatoyama, the wife of Japan’s new Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, is something of a Renaissance woman: designer, former actress, cookbook author, television personality – and perhaps most controversially a self-professed space traveler who claims to have visited Venus with aliens. Akiko Fujita has the story from Tokyo. Download MP3Global Political Cartoons: Aug 29 – Sep 4, 2009
Cartoonists this week are captivated by the upending of Japan’s ruling party after almost 60 years in power. They also have fun with Disney’s purchase of Marvel Comics, and it’s back to school time….amid the specter of the swine flu.
Traveling on fast trains in Europe
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President Obama’s stimulus plan includes $ 8 billion to help jump-start a new network of high-speed trains. But the future of rail is already here in other parts of the world, including Japan, China and as Kathleen Schalch reports, the European Union. (photo: French TGV, Getty Images) Download MP3
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