Blog Title: Digital Dream Chaser : Life in Japan

Man arrested for kicking baby chihuahua to death

AICHI — Police on Tuesday arrested a 44-year-old man for killing a 4-month-old Chihuahua in Chikusa, Aichi Prefecture. Yoshiyuki Tanaka, 44, was arrested in the act of kicking the dog to death on the street around 4:50 p.m. when the 40-year-old owner was walking his dog.

According to police, Tanaka was walking ahead of the owner and the dog, but suddenly turned around, approached the dog and kicked it. He was restrained by the owner and a passerby and handed over to police.

Tanaka reportedly said, “I was scared by the dog.” Police said the Chihuahua was about 20 cm tall and didn’t bark at the time of the incident. Local residents said Tanaka has had trouble with other dogs in the neighborhood

Japan is the No.1 country for blogging

The survey shows that the total number of blog articles reached about 1.35 billion, providing enough information to fill many millions of books.

The number of Internet blogs in Japan stood at about 16.9 million as of January 2008, with about 20 percent of Japan's 88.11 million Internet users involved in blogging, a survey by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications has found.

The survey by the ministry's Institute for Information and Communications Policy found that the total number of blog articles reached about 1.35 billion, providing enough information to fill many millions of books.

It was the first full-scale survey in Japan on blogs, or Web logs, whose numbers have dramatically increased in recent years.

The report also introduced the results of a survey by an American company that included deleted blogs. The number of blogs across the world totaled about 70 million, it was found. By language, Japanese topped the list, accounting for about 37 percent of all blogs. Second was English, at around 36 percent, while Chinese stood in third place at roughly 8 percent. The figures highlight the popularity of blogs in Japan.

The survey was conducted in February, using systems that automatically collected information from the Internet and through a survey of people aged 15 or over who had the experience of starting a blog.

It was found that blogs used for self-expression, in which people listed daily events like a diary to relieve stress, were the most common type in Japan, accounting for 30.9 percent of all blogs. About 40 percent of the people who started these blogs were aged in their teens and 20s.

Another 25.7 percent of blogs were community types in which people sought acquaintances under themes in which they held an interest. Archive-type blogs in which users organized and released information relating to their interests stood in third place, at 25.0 percent. These blogs were used not by young people but also by users in a wide range of age groups, including those in their 30s and 40s.

It was found that slightly under 20 percent of all blogs in Japan (about 3 million blogs) were updated at least once a month. About 400,000 to 500,000 new blogs appeared each month. Viewers posted an average of roughly 1.5 comments per article, showing that information was being actively exchanged.

About 12 percent of the 3 million blogs that were updated at least once a month were "spam blogs." Of these, 38.3 percent encouraged people to buy goods, 17.1 percent were designed to collect advertising revenue, and 7.0 percent directed people to adult or matchmaking sites.

Blogs started to spread widely across the world from about 2004.

25-year-old wife arrested for selling nude photos of herself

She is doing this because she wanted to buy clothes?. Hmm

AICHI-Police on Monday arrested a 25-year-old woman for selling nude photos of herself in Kasugai City, Aichi Prefecture. Yoshimi Yamahashi, 25, was arrested after she was found by police to be in possession of nude photos of herself saved on a SD card of her cell phone.

According to police, Yamahashi, who is married, has sold nude photos and movies taken by her handset to more than 100 people through the Internet since May, 2005. Police said she has earned about 1 million yen so far. In other photos, she was wearing school uniforms at her clients’ requests, she said.

Yamahashi was quoted by police as saying, "I started this business because I wanted to buy clothes."

Softbank announces Japan prices for iPhone

Tokyo-based Softbank Corp., Japan's No. 3 mobile phone company, said people will get a discount in their mobile phone bills that will calculate to their paying 23,040 yen for Apple Inc.'s iPhone over two years.

TOKYO (AP) -- Softbank, the carrier that won the coveted right to sell the iPhone in Japan, said Monday it will sell for 23,040 yen -- comparable to the marked down U.S. price for the hit gadget.

Japan will be among the overseas nations awaiting the global rollout of a new version of the iPhone promised for July 11. That will mark the iPhone's debut in this nation reputed as loving gadgets, including Apple products such as the iPod portable digital-music player.

Tokyo-based Softbank Corp., Japan's No. 3 mobile phone company, said people will get a discount in their mobile phone bills that will calculate to their paying 23,040 yen for Apple Inc.'s iPhone over two years.

Whether the announced price will be seen as a discount by Japanese gadget fans is still unclear.

For years, some mobile phones were practically given away for free as carriers were eager to win market share and earn revenue through phone fees.

But recently, as the market here saturates, mobile phones have gone up in price, and the more sophisticated ones can cost about 50,000 yen. Cheaper models are still also available.

Softbank spokesman Daisuke Muranaga said the iPhone Japan price was comparable to other high-end mobile phones at the carrier.

Apple has given the U.S. price at US$199 for the 8-gigabyte iPhone and US$299 for the 16-gigabyte version. Analysts say that compares favorably to rival products.

In Japan, the 16-gigabyte version will cost 34,560 yen, although consumers won't be buying the phone outright but with the payment being combined with discounts for the fees.

Apple says it has sold about 6 million iPhones so far this year, and has a goal of selling 10 million.

The new iPhone is going on sale in more than 20 countries, including Australia, United Kingdom, Germany, Canada and Hong Kong.

Softbank has been on aggressive push to gain market share from rivals NTT DoCoMo and KDDI Corp. by slashing prices and airing catchy ads as those starring Cameron Diaz. Signing with Apple on the iPhone is a major coup for Softbank.

Japan has long had high-speed Internet-connecting mobile phones, which give restaurant searches, e-mail, electronic shopping, novel and comic book downloads and other services.

Nearly all Japanese mobile phones come with digital cameras, which can also take short video clips. The latest ones also have digital TV broadcast reception, which the iPhone will not have.

Ryuki Omura, 16-year-old crowned pen-spinning king

TOKYO (Reuters) - A pen is spun in the hand, flicked from the little finger to other fingers, then tossed and bounced off the thumb before being twirled in the palm.

Ryuki Omura, a 16-year-old Japanese high school student, has become the first nationwide pen-spinning champion with such slick maneuvers, a group devoted to the pastime said on Monday.

Omura was among the 16 finalists chosen from 276 video entries to showcase his moves in Tokyo on Sunday in a contest organized by the Pen Spinning Association Japan.

"The most important thing is to make the combination of tricks as smooth as possible," said Mitsuhiro Nakamata of the group.

Contestants, performing a 30-second routine in front of a crowd of 400 including journalists and other pen-spinning aficionados, were assessed for technique and artistry.

Toy maker Takara Tomy Corp has even designed a pen specifically for spinning, which is longer than ordinary pens and has adjustable weights on both ends.

According to the Pen Spinning Association's Web site, spinning tricks range from "normal" -- resting the pen on the side of the middle finger, then flicking it to writing mode -- to "sonic" -- holding the pen between the middle and ring fingers, and twirling it so it rests between the middle and index fingers.

Champion Omura went a step further, showing off a quick combination of tricks that takes the pen from his little finger to the rest of his fingers, then to his palm and the back of his hand. The video clip he submitted for the contest is posted on the group's Web site (http://ptj2008.pen-spinning.org/).

"Pens are always around, so you can practice and enjoy pen-spinning anytime, anywhere," said Nakamata.

Porn actress, producers arrested for filming in rear of dump truck

TOKYO — Police on Friday arrested seven porn producers, including an actress, for filming a porn movie in the rear of a dump truck in Shibuya on July 20, 2007.

Porn actress Shiori Megumi, 30, who is known as Asahi Miura, Shungo Kaji, 46, who is an adult film director and president of the production agency Hot Entertainment Inc, and five other staff were arrested for allegedly filming a porn film in the rear of the truck for 20 minutes from 2:50 p.m. near Shibuya station. Police said that Megumi was found in possession of cannabis and cocaine at the time of her arrest.

According to police investigations, the rear of the ruck was covered by plastic curtains but people could see them from surrounding buildings. The seven were charged with indecent exposure in a public place.

Tokyo train ‘manner’

Recently Tokyo's subway line - TOKYO METRO has been running a series of posters in the stations and trains to educate the public to have better "Train Manner". Here are some of the interesting posters.

Emergency mask for office safety

In an unsettling sign of the times, the new “Smoke Block” emergency mask by Tokyo-based Rescuenow, Inc. is being touted as an effective means of protection against hydrogen sulfide, the trendy “detergent suicide” gas created by mixing household cleaners, which has claimed hundreds of lives across Japan in recent months. The mask has a special three-layer filter that keeps your lungs clean for up to 20 minutes, allowing you ample time to flee from smoke and/or toxic fumes. A full-face mask sells for 20,000 yen ($185) and a half-face version goes for 14,000 yen ($130).

Japan's New Sex Trend: Elder Porn

Elder Porn is a new trend in Japan even though Japan is repeatedly found to be one of the most sexless societies in the industrialized world.

(TIME) Shigeo Tokuda, 74, is, in fact, his screen name — he prefers not to disclose his real name because, he insists, his wife and daughter have no idea that he has appeared in about 350 porn films over the past 14 years.

Besides his glowing complexion, Shigeo Tokuda looks like any other 74-year-old man in Japan. Despite suffering a heart attack three years ago, the lifelong salaryman now feels healthier, and lives happily with his wife and a daughter in downtown Tokyo. He is, of course, more physically active than most retirees, but that's because he's kept his part-time job — as a porn star.

In his double-life, Tokuda arguably embodies the contemporary state of Japan's sexuality: In surveys conducted by organizations ranging from the World Health Organization (WHO) to the condom-maker Durex, Japan is repeatedly found to be one of the most sexless societies in the industrialized world. A WHO report released in March found that one in four married couples in Japan had not made love in the previous year, while 38% of couples in their 50s no longer have sex at all. These figures were attributed to the stresses of Japanese working life. Yet, at the same time, the country has seen a surge in demand for pornography that has turned adult videos into a billion-dollar industry, with "elder porn" one of its fastest growing genres.

Tokuda is rare among Japanese porn stars in that his name has become a brand. The Shigeo Tokuda series he's just completed portray him as a tactful elderly gentleman who instructs women of different ages in the erotic arts, and he boasts a body of work far more impressive than most actors in their prime.

Tokuda's exploits have proved to be a goldmine for Glory Quest, which first launched an "old-man" series, Maniac Training of Lolitas, in December 2004. Its popularity led the company to follow up with Tokuda starring in Forbidden Elderly Care in August 2006. Other series followed, and soon elder porn had revealed itself as a sustainable new revenue stream for the industry. "The adult video industry is very competitive," says Glory Quest p.r. representative Kayoko Iimura. "If we only make standard fare, we cannot beat other studios. There were already adult videos with Lolitas or themes of incest, so we wanted to make something new. A relationship between wife and an old father-in-law has enough twist to create an atmosphere of mystery and captivate viewers' hearts."

Director Gaichi Kono says the eroticism of their elders is captivating to younger viewers. "I think that as a subject, there is this something that only an older generation has and the young people do not possess. It is because they lived that much more. We should respect them and learn from them," says Kono passionately.

But Tokuda stresses the appeal of his work to an audience of his peers: "Elderly people don't identify with school dramas," he says. "It's easier for them to relate to older men and daughters-in-law series, so they tend to watch adult videos with older people in them." The veteran porn star plans to keep working until he's 80, or older, as long as the industry will cast him — and given the bullish market for his work, he's unlikely to go without work.

"People of my age generally have shame so they are very hesitant to show their private parts," Tokuda says, "but I am proud of myself doing something they cannot." Still, he laughs, "That doesn't mean that I can tell them about my old-age pensioner job."

Japan's adult video industry is believed to be worth as much as $1 billion a year according to industry insiders, with the largest rental video store chain Tsutaya releases about 1,000 new titles monthly, while and the mega adult mail-order site DMM releases about 2,000 titles each month. Although films featuring women in their teens and 20s are the mainstay of the industry, a trend toward "mature women" has become evident over the past five years. Currently, about 300 of the 1,000 adult videos on offer at Tsutaya, and 400 out of the 2,000 at DMM, are "mature women" films.

Ryuichi Kadowaki, director of Ruby Inc. which specializes in "mature women" titles, says that when the company started the genre a few years ago, the term referred to actresses in their late 20s, and last year it was expanded to ladies in their 70s. And the company sees the advantage of the "mature" titles is their enduring appeal: "Adult videos with young actresses sell well only in the first three months after the release," Kadowaki explains. "On the other hand, 'mature women' films enjoy a steady, long-term popularity, which after 10 years or so might lead to a best-seller." And then there are the cost savings — a popular young actress can earn up to $100,000 per film, while a mature actress is paid only $2,000. The market for "elder porn" has doubled over the past decade, according to Kadowaki. "In the view of the aging society," he adds, "I think that in the future we will see a steady increase in demand."

Japan's suicide rate exceeds 30,000 for 10th year

The number of suicides in Japan exceeded 30,000 in 2007 for the 10th year in a row, the National Police Agency said Thursday.

The number of suicides rose 2.9 per cent in 2007 to 33,093, which was the second highest in record, compared to a year before, an agency survey showed. The highest was recorded in 2003 at 34,427.

The agency said 26 per cent of suicides were triggered by depression, while others were caused by physical ailments and financial concerns from mounting debts.

For example this year, Japan's new recipe for killing oneself is being purged from the Internet at police request. Drugstores are pulling ingredients from shelves.

Still, three more young people were found dead over one week earlier this month, part of the latest fad in Japanese suicide -- painless death by stinky detergent fumes. A recent headline in the Weekly Asahi, a respected newsmagazine, noted that "The Remains Turn Green Like Aliens."

(Mainichi) As many as 517 people committed suicide by generating deadly hydrogen sulfide gas between January and May this year, the National Police Agency (NPA) said on Thursday.

The figure is a whopping increase from the 29 fatalities last year due to the same cause, the NPA said.

By age, 232 of the 517 who gassed themselves to death by mixing detergent and generating hydrogen sulfide gas during the January-May period this year were in their 20s.

By gender, 407 were men and 110 were women, the NPA said, based on a survey it hurriedly conducted recently.

Alerted by the severe increase, the NPA in April designated Internet entries that encourage suicide by generating hydrogen sulfide as "harmful information." The NPA also notified police forces across the nation to request Internet service providers to delete such information.

'Tokyo Sky Tree' - New Tokyo Tower

TOKYO — Tobu Railway Co said Tuesday the official name of the new tower to be built in Tokyo’s Sumida Ward by 2012 will be the ‘‘Tokyo Sky Tree.’’ The official name for the new radio and TV transmission tower was chosen after a 10-member panel narrowed down the number of candidate names to six from 18,606 submitted in a nationwide poll conducted online and by mail.

Out of a total of 110,000 votes cast in the poll, ‘‘Tokyo Sky Tree’’ garnered around 33,000. The second most popular name was the ‘‘Tokyo Edo Tower.’’ Tokyo Sky Tree, one of the world’s tallest radio and TV transmission towers, will commence operation in the spring of 2012

Japan Broadcasting Corp, the nation’s sole public broadcaster, known as NHK, and the five major commercial broadcasters are currently using Tokyo Tower in Minato Ward to transmit both analogue and digital TV signals. But Japan plans to switch completely to digital broadcasting and analogue broadcasting will be terminated by July 2011. In view of the change, the six broadcasters have drawn up plans for the new tower to be tall enough to transmit digital signals unobstructed by high-rise buildings.

Akihabara stabbing spree shocks Japan

The suspect in a stabbing spree that left seven people dead in Tokyo's Akihabara electric town on Sunday had posted an advance notice about his plans for the crime on a mobile phone site just hours before the rampage, police said.

TOKYO (AP) -- A man plowed into shoppers with a truck and then stabbed 17 people within minutes, killing at least seven of them in a grisly attack that shocked a country known for its low crime rate.

The lunchtime violence Sunday in the Akihabara district, a popular electronics and video game area, sent thousands of people fleeing.

The assault, which occurred on the seventh anniversary of a mass stabbing at a Japanese elementary school, was the latest in a series of knife attacks that have stoked fears of rising violent crime in Japan.

A 25-year-old man, Tomohiro Kato, was arrested with blood on his face.

"The suspect told police that he came to Akihabara to kill people," said Jiro Akaogi, a spokesman for the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.

"He said he was tired of life. He said he was sick of everything," Akaogi said.

The violence began when a man crashed a rented two-ton truck into pedestrians. He then jumped out and began stabbing the people he had knocked down with the truck before turning on horrified onlookers, police said.

Police confirmed the deaths of six men and one woman, but could not say whether they died of injuries from the truck or stabbing.

Reports said the attacker grunted and roared as he slashed and stabbed at shoppers crowding a street lined with huge stores packed with the latest in computers, electronics, videos and games.

"He was screaming as he was stabbing people at random," a male witness told national broadcaster NHK.

Amateur video showed police overpowering the bloodied suspect.

The attack paralyzed the district known as Electric Town. Amateur video taken five minutes after the rampage showed shoppers helping victims and a man screaming, "Ambulance, Ambulance!"

At least 17 ambulances rushed to the scene, and rescue workers feverishly tended to victims in the blood-pooled street.

As night fell, a bouquet of flowers, bottles of green tea and incense sticks had been placed at the site.

Japan's crime rate is low compared to other industrialized nations and Tokyo, with 12.7 million people, is considered relatively safe. But stabbings, once rare in the country, have become more frequent in recent years.

In March, one person was stabbed to death and at least seven others were hurt by a man with two knives outside a shopping mall in eastern Japan. In January a 16-year-old boy attacked five people in a shopping area, injuring two.

Homeless woman arrested for living in man's closet undetected for a year

Ripley's Believe or Not!.

(AFP) A homeless woman who sneaked into a man's house in Fukuoka Prefecture and lived undetected in his closet for a year was arrested after he became suspicious when food mysteriously began disappearing.

Police found the 58-year-old woman, Tatsuko Horikawa, hiding in the top compartment of the 57-year-old man's closet Thursday and arrested her for trespassing, police spokesman Hiroki Itakura from Kasuya Police Station said Friday.

The resident of the one-story house in Shime, Fukuoka Prefecture, installed security cameras that transmitted images to his mobile phone after becoming puzzled by food disappearing over the past several months.

One of the cameras captured someone inside his home Thursday after he had left, and he called police, fearing a burglary.

"We searched the house . . . checking everywhere someone could possibly hide," police spokesman Itakura said. "When we slid open the shelf closet, there she was, nervously curled up on her side."

The man lived alone in the one-story house and was not using the room with the shelf closet where the women was living. The height of the shelf closet is only 50 cm.

She had moved a mattress into the small closet space and even took showers, Itakura said, calling the woman "neat and clean."

Schoolboy shell-shocked by discovery of Two-Headed Turtle

That’s what a schoolboy was left wondering after he came across this two-headed turtle in his school playground in Moriyama, southern Japan.

Named Takara, after the boy who discovered him and meaning "treasure" in Japanese, it is said to be extremely rare for such an animal to be found alive.

Researchers say the turtle’s two heads are unlikely to have been caused by pollution and instead are a result of a natural phenomenon – possibly a conjoined twin birth.

Japanese Brewery to Launch 'Space Beer' brewed in Space

(AFP) Japanese brewer Sapporo Holdings said Tuesday it’s working on the first “space beer,” using the third generation of barley grown at the International Space Station.

Researchers said the beer project is one of many efforts to prepare for a future where people spend lengthy periods of time in space, the AFP reported.

Sapporo’s partner in the project, biologist Manabu Sugimoto, said they hope their research will someday be “not just about producing food, but about enjoying food and relaxing,” according to the AFP.

The company reportedly hopes to launch the new beer by November and has enough space grain for about 100 bottles. Still, Sapporo officials said there are no immediate plans to make it available to the general public, the AFP reported.

54 sickened at hospital after farmer's chemical-fuelled vomit generates toxic gas

Another suicide case in Japan.

KUMAMOTO -- Fifty-four people were sickened at a hospital here after inhaling toxic gas from the vomit of a man who had apparently swallowed an agricultural chemical to kill himself, police and hospital officials said.

The 34-year-old farmer was admitted to Kumamoto Red Cross Hospital in Kumamoto at around 10:50 p.m. on Wednesday after apparently swallowing an agricultural chemical to commit suicide.

He vomited while undergoing treatment, generating toxic chlorine gas, and died shortly afterward.

A total of 54 people near him, including doctors and patients, fell ill. Of them, 10 were admitted to hospitals including the Red Cross Hospital, while the 44 others who were not in serious condition are steadily recovering.

A bottle of chloropicrin, an agricultural chemical that is legally designated as a poisonous substance, was found at his home in Koshi, Kumamoto Prefecture. Investigators suspect that he swallowed the chemical to kill himself.

Firefighters clad in protective gar took three hours to neutralize the gas from 11:50 p.m.

Lost parrot told his name and address to police to go home

What a smart bird!.

(Times) Japanese police were at a loss for clues after they found an escaped African Grey parrot sitting on a fence.

Until, that is, the bird began to talk - and told everyone its name and address.

The red-tailed parrot was picked up earlier this month in the town of Nagareyama, on the outskirts of Tokyo, after a woman called police to say that it was perched in her backyard.

After a night at the station, where it kept quiet, the parrot was handed over to a local animal clinic, where it soon started greeting people and singing popular children's songs.

Shinjiro Uemura, a local policeman, said that it was not until ten days later that it started repeating its name - "I'm Yosuke Nakamura" - and its full home address down to the street number.

“We checked the address, and what do you know, a Nakamura family really lived there. So we told them we’ve found Yosuke,” Mr Uemura said.

The African Grey parrot is considered one of the most intelligent birds and experts say it has the cognitive ability of a six-year-old. The Nakamura family told police they had been teaching the bird its name and address for about two years.

It is still unclear why Yosuke refused to sing at the police station. “I tried to be friendly and talked to him, but he completely ignored me,” Mr Uemura said.

President of IT firm arrested for stripping on train

HAMAMATSU, Shizuoka -- An Information Technology (IT) company president has been arrested for stripping naked in front of a female crewmember on a bullet train over the weekend, police said.

Ryosuke Okada, 42, president of the Osaka-based Firstserver, Inc., stands accused of indecent exposure. He made unclear statements during questioning, investigators said.

At around 4:50 p.m. on Saturday, Okada stripped naked in front of a female crewmember who was selling food and drinks on the Kodama No. 567 superexpress train while it was traveling between Shin-Fuji and Shizuoka stations, according to police.

Porn producers arrested for filming at McDonald's

Saitama - Police on Wednesday arrested an adult movie producer, two cast members and crew for filming a porn movie at a McDonald’s shop in Higashi-Matsuyama City, Saitama Prefecture, in January.

Producer Kunikazu Ishii, 51, an actress, 21, an actor, 29, and staff were arrested for allegedly shooting a porn film at the McDonald’s outlet around 3 p.m. on Jan 24. A customer noticed them and called police. McDonald’s staff were apparently unaware of what was going on.

One of the suspects was quoted by police as saying, “We didn’t think it would be a problem as long as nobody noticed what we were doing.”

Resort area starts ads on toilet paper

SHIBUKAWA, Gunma -- Tourist resorts around Shibukawa's Ikaho Onsen hot springs will start advertising on toilet paper about the benefits of clean public restrooms, Gunma Prefectural Government officials said.

If the idea is a success, it could spread to tourist destinations across Japan.

"We want people to keep toilets clean, as well as their bottoms," said a spokesman for the Japan Toilet Association, which made the advertisement toilet paper.

The ads being run on the toilet paper include plugs for its stone step district and displays of the mark usually used to signify the presence of a hot spring bath.

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism came up with the idea of using revenue from ads on toilet paper to pay for the maintenance of public restrooms and promote cleanliness in public toilets in tourist areas. It commissioned the Japan Toilet Association to produce the ads.

Officials are using Ikaho Onsen as a test case, and if the ads prove effective they will be used at tourist areas across Japan. Gunma Prefecture has started a campaign to promote safe and clean public toilets with a system that will award clean public toilets with official recognition as such.

Anime Star 'Doraemon' Appointed Japan's Cultural Ambassador

TOKYO (AP) -- Japan has created an unusual government post to promote animation, and named a perfect figure to the position: Doraemon.

Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura appointed the popular cartoon robot cat as "anime ambassador" on Wednesday, handing a human-sized Doraemon doll an official certificate at an inauguration ceremony, along with dozens of "dorayaki" red bean pancakes -- his favorite dessert -- piled on a huge plate.

Komura told the doll, with an unidentified person inside, that he hoped he would widely promote Japanese animated cartoons, or "anime."

"Doraemon, I hope you will travel around the world as an anime ambassador to deepen people's understanding of Japan so they will become friends with Japan," Komura told the blue-and-white cat.

The appointment is part of Japan's recent effort to harness the power of pop culture in diplomacy. Japan also created an International Manga Award last year under comic enthusiast former Foreign Minister Taro Aso, who likened it to a "Nobel Prize" for an artist working abroad.

Manga, the name used for Japanese-syle comic books, often combine complex stories with drawing styles that differ from their overseas superhero counterparts, particularly in their emphasis on cuteness.

This year, the ministry plans to arrange showings of a Doraemon film in Singapore, China, Spain, France, and at other Japanese diplomatic missions around the world.

Doraemon -- through voice actress Wasabi Mizuta, who spoke from behind a sliding paper screen -- promised Komura that "Through my cartoons, I hope to convey to people abroad what ordinary Japanese people think, our lifestyles and what kind of future we want to build."

Created by cartoonist Fujiko F. Fujio, Doraemon is a Japanese cultural icon and is popular around the world, especially in Asia. The robotic cat travels back in time from the 22nd century and uses gadgets such as a "time machine" and an "anywhere door" that come out of a fourth-dimensional pocket on his stomach to help his friends, allowing them to travel anywhere and to any time they wish.

Astro Boy, another cartoon icon, was named last November as ambassador for overseas safety.

ARRESTED : Crazy thief that used boot odor to fantasize about owners

A man arrested for stealing dozens of pairs of women's boots has told investigators that he smelled them to imagine what the women who wore them looked like, police said.

Kazuhiro Watanabe, 33, from Okagaki, Fukuoka Prefecture, admitted to the allegations of theft during questioning. "I got excited when I smelled them and fantasized over what the women who wore them looked like," Watanabe was quoted as telling investigators.

In the specific case for which he was arrested, Watanabe stole a pair of boots belonging to a 42-year-old woman, worth 5,000 yen, from a sports club in Yahatahigashi-ku, Kitakyushu, on Feb. 22, local police said.

Investigators confiscated 27 pairs of women's boots from his home and car. Local police said they suspect that he stole the boots from hospitals and sports clubs while on his way home from work over the past few years. (mdn)

Three single-mother 'cat's eye' burglars caught

This is the so called "copycat" burglars.

OSAKA -- A group of three women burglars who investigators called "Cat's Eye" after a famous manga about robbers have been arrested and now face further charges, police said.

Yoshimi Takeda, Akiko Sakai and Michiko Shinohara have been sent to the Osaka District Public Prosecutors Office accused of trespassing with intent to steal.

The three single mothers who met each other through school or work are suspected of burglarizing at least 50 homes, netting about 10 million yen worth of booty in a spree across the Osaka and Kobe areas that went from February to October last year.

Takeda, 26, Sakai, 27, and Shinohara, 29, all of Osaka's Yodogawa-ku, have already been charged with three counts of theft. Police said that on the afternoon of Oct. 9, they broke into a home in Takaishi, Osaka Prefecture. On March 16 last year, police said the three also broke in to a Nishi Yodogawa-ku home, stealing about 160,000 yen in cash and bags and other valuables worth around 550,000 yen.

Each of the three women is divorced and the mother of one child. They would leave their children at a daycare center and then go around searching for houses to sneak into in the hours from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., police said. Each of the women also had a specific role on heists, with Sakai serving as lookout, Shinohara the driver of their getaway car and Takeda going into the homes.

Each of the women are on welfare, but allegedly took to stealing to get money for entertainment and other lifestyle needs.

Gwailo get Paid to be Fake Priests and Best Men at Weddings

Easy money for just being a foreigner in Japan.

(Telegraph) As with any Westerner working in Japan, it helps to be smart and presentable and to have a grasp of the local language.

But for Kevin Charles, a suave and friendly American living in Tokyo, being "just the man for the job" has involved exactly that. The 32-year-old's regular job is as a translator - but every weekend, he also becomes best man to Japanese bridegrooms.

750,000 weddings performed in Japan last year were "Christian-style"
Japanese couples like Western style

Mr Charles, from Missouri, is part of a bizarre and growing craze among Japanese couples for Western-style wedding ceremonies, widely seen as a fun alternative to their staid, traditional Shinto counterparts.

In the name of authenticity, foreigners stand in as fake reverends and best men, and while the vows over which they officiate are legally worthless, it is providing a lucrative source of income for growing numbers of Westerners.

"I am basically a surrogate best man, and am at the groom's side during the ceremony to make sure it all goes smoothly," said Mr Charles, who has now stood in at more than 350 weddings.

"Working at a wedding is good money. It's common to receive about 10,000 yen (£48) for a single wedding which takes an hour. If you do six a day, you earn double what you'd expect from teaching English."

Such weddings recreate every ritual of the Western ceremony in detail. The bride typically walks down a petal-strewn aisle, accompanied by a singing choir and smiling "priest" clutching a Bible, while the groom often sweats, fluffs his lines and loses the ring. In fact, the only traditions Mr Charles doesn't take part in are the drunken stag-do and the post-wedding dalliance with a bridesmaid.

"People embrace these weddings because they are very romantic and match images from Hollywood movies," he said.

Figures show that numbers of young Japanese couples are shunning Shinto ceremonies, which normally involve only family members and are sealed with sips from a sake cup rather than a romantic kiss.

More than 70 per cent of the 750,000 weddings performed in Japan last year were "Christian-style", despite the fact that only one per cent of the population is Christian.

While a number of those who conduct the Western-style ceremonies are legitimately ordained priests, religious qualifications are not regarded as essential because the service is not binding. As a result, a growing number of academics, actors and teachers boost their incomes by dressing up as vicars.

"Father" James, 52, who is a professor of American culture and history at a Tokyo University, "marries" up to a dozen couples across Tokyo every weekend.

"It doesn't really matter if I'm not a real priest, people don't care, as long as I look the part and read my lines correctly," said James, who asked that his full name be kept secret. "It is also one of the few working environments where everyone is happy and enjoying themselves."

'naked festival' goes ahead despite cries of 'sexual harassment'

OSHU, Iwate -- A traditional festival in which bare-chested men scramble for sacks as they wish for good health was held at Kokusekiji Shrine here between Wednesday and Thursday, amid controversy over whether festival activities constituted public indecency.

The Somin Festival gained attention after East Japan Railway Co. banned its posters on the grounds that displaying chest hair constituted sexual harassment. A total of 172 reporters crowded into the temple, but due to a snowstorm on Wednesday the number of onlookers was limited.

Traditionally, a person playing a central role in the festival appears completely naked. This year, however, Iwate Prefectural Police contacted the temple saying that appearing completely naked was a form of indecent exposure. The temple responded by asking for camera flashes and lights to be turned off when the figure appeared naked, and no trouble was reported.