Yakuza cause stir at sumo match
The Mainichi reported on Jan. 26 about an uproar (if it can be called that) in the sumo world after Sumiyoshi-kai members were spotted occupying ringside tomari-seki seats at the…
Politicians and yakuza, not so different
News of Ichiro Ozawa’s questioning by prosecutors in relation to the Rikuzan-kai campaign fund scandal has flooded the dailies and the news for much of the past few days as…
Failed pick-up line: "I'm a yakuza boss"
Sankei News reported that a 34-year-old man was charged with rape after a rather dodgy incident where he told a woman that he was a yakuza member and forced her…
From historic tales to the morning news: Manga for everyone
There’s likely very few students who haven’t at least paged through one of the manga versions of the classics, like Essays in Idleness or the great Genji Monogatari, to prepare…
Homes and hotels during the recession
The talented Hiroko Tabuchi of the New York Times published an article recently focusing on a group of Japanese people who have been forced out of their homes and into…
Less on livers, more on livelihoods
The Japan Times published in last Sunday’s paper a mammoth of an interview with Jake by Mark Schreiber, stretching almost two entire pages across the Time Out section. While the…
Better late than never: Yakuza play Santa for kids in Kobe
Not the actual Yamaguchi-gumi event. (Taken by nori_n, who is not affiliated with JSRC) As posted on Japan Probe earlier this week, the Yamaguchi-gumi decided to add a little extra…