Skip to main content

MERS, as if anything else mattered...


I picked up the Korea MERS Times, I found that a 5th person has died of MERS. The Korea MERS Times and Korea MERS media overall have been fixated on MERS. It got so bad that I have even bought a mask for the KC Mini-Me at my office.

Meanwhile, also in South MERS Korea...

197 cancer deaths per day (2010 statistic)

40 suicides per day (2013 statistic)

16 traffic related deaths per day

158 die every day from smoking related deaths

60 rapes reported per day

3.7 murders committed daily (2010)

2.4 rapes and sexual assaults committed daily by senior citizens

If the media focused on murders or rapes in South Korea the way it has gone wildin' about MERS, it would seem that this country was on the brink of disaster. The schools would be shut down and dynamited so no one would try to go, women would be afraid to leave home but also afraid to be home alone, husbands would be afraid to leave their wives or children home, and we'd kill ourselves because staying home we'd be afraid we would die of fan death.

Will update this with more recent or relevant statistics from others.
Thanks to Daniel Lee for this precious photo, which he says was probably a joke...

* * *

I'm not a medical professional--or a reporter--so I could be wrong about this, but swine flu, mad cow disease, bird flu, SARS, Ebola, foot-and-mouth disease, West Nile virus, MERS...

Popular posts from this blog

2019-09-06 Interesting Person of the Week

  2019-09-06, I was the "Interesting Person of the Week" on TBSeFM, interviewed by former National Assembly member Jasmine Lee. We  first met about six years ago when she was in the National Assembly, but we lost contact a few years ago when I changed jobs and went through a cell phone change. We were in-studio, live on the air, for the “Interesting Person of the Week” feature on Jasmine Lee’s show, 10 Everyday. Podcast: https://audioclip.naver.com/channels/106/clips/12008 The main thing I liked about it: The interview was interactive. She wasn’t just interviewing by going down a list of questions, then jabbing at me occasionally. She had her own thoughts and experiences and would mention them within the context of what I was saying. When she introduced me, I was tempted to say, “If I’m so interesting, why did you wait to interview me? I didn’t get interesting until this week???” Well, even Michael Jordan wasn't MVP every year even though he is one of the all-time greats!...
Read more

2019-02-18 TNKR media mentions coming soon

  We had two media interviews at our office today.  We also have some media outlets who will be covering our speech contest on Saturday, doing interviews before and after the contest. The two interviews today were with an international media outlet and a prominent Korean one. As usual, the international media outlet didn't want to commit to mentioning TNKR although 1) they had promised that when they first contacted us 2) we found an interviewee for them 3) organized it 4) hosted the interview. Update: Yes, NPR you are terrible, once again using non-profits for stories, then ignoring them when it is time for publication. NPR reporters blame their editors back at headquarters for choosing not to name organizations, I am now used to their process. So after this case, I decided when an NPR (or New York Times) reporter contacts me, I will ask the reporter if I can speak to their editor at the start. Perhaps I should also ask to speak to their mothers. www.lovetnkr.org/donate
Read more

Paperwork versus real work

  Yes, we have fun at Freedom Speakers International! So much fun that some people seem to be surprised to learn that we are an official organization requiring an actual budget, are accountable to our donors and sponsors, and must keep accurate records of our activities. Freedom Speakers International (FSI) has been officially registered as a 501(c)3 tax-deductible organization with the IRS in the USA since mid-2017, and we have had similar status in South Korea since 2016 (tax deductions for individuals, not corporations). And being an official organization means we spend a lot of time on paperwork instead of real work! In the photo, you can see the mountain of paperwork that FSI co-founder Eunkoo Lee and FSI accountant Sharon Jang have kept track of and had me sign today.  My role: being the rascal coming up with the projects and activities causing so much paperwork, then signing it all when they corner me. * * * Some people used to ask why we needed money because we had vol...
Read more

2015-11-12 Case Study of TNKR by Columbia Teachers College

  --New York, New York-- If TNKR can make it here, it can make it anywhere... * Wanna know how good TNKR is? Even great people at Columbia University believe it is great. Teach North Korean Refugees is now being analyzed by graduate students at The Teachers College, Columbia University as part of a case study. TNKR wasn't even an official organization until May 2015, but we have already had many great things happen. With both the professor and students in the class analyzing us--yes, asking some pointed questions, too--then TNKR should be even stronger in 2016 in helping refugees find their way and tell their stories. * Have you ever told someone that you were honored by something they were doing, and they try to convince you that they are even more honored to collaborate with you! That's what happened tonight with the professor at Columbia University who opened her classroom to me. She and the students were asking me plenty of pointed questions about TNKR. Based on their respo...
Read more

Mock Epic

These folks are so impressed with themselves. I hope the rhymes are kept to minimum. Deval Patrick deserves credit for saving the introduction though.
Read more