社会問題 (Social Issues in a Land 3000 Miles away)

I had a great trip this past week in Korea and Taiwan, made especially so by being able to spend with MJ and allow ourselves to get a deeper understanding of each other, particularly on some social issues that cropped up during our trip. 

I live in one of the heaviest gay populations in the world, Southern California, specially near West Hollywood in Los Angeles, where there are gay pride parades fairly often and liberalism and homosexuality is generally embraced. Not as much, apparently, in Busan, where we ran into a gay pride parade that was being boycotted by anti-gay protesters. Nothing violent or extreme, but there were definitely more people involved than the dog-rights campaign that was also going on. Gay rights v anti-gay protests prominent in Korea proves that it's the big issue of our time. I think One of the major issues some Christians have trouble with is the belief that homosexuals are just heathen beings doing it for their own pleasure, as opposed to loving each other, which is the "love is love" philosophy some espouse. As an objective human being, I wish anti-gay participants would be a little more understanding and try to put themselves in gay people's shoes but also understand they'll never know what it's like to be gay. On the other hand, I agree that gays should be allowed to do what their body pleases and be with whomever they want to be, but don't be so defiant, understand that it takes people a long time to change and not demand equal understanding right away. it's a delicate issue and one that has vehement supporters (and naturally, opponents) on either side: it's really a zero sum game, you either have equal rights for gays or not. the Bible says either you're in violation of your principles (man and woman = marriage, etc.) or not, which is by the way one of the laws of religion is its intolerance towards other ways of thinking/life, but that's another issue. Understanding is required on both sides, which is unfortunately abnormally difficult in this politically charged climate where the country is so divisive (President calling NFL players sons of bitches, for example). 

One other issue is health issurance. Just as Republicans in US Senate failed today in their latest attempt to repeal Obamacare, MJ was RELEASED from the hospital after a minor surgery due to gallbladder inflammation (cholecystitis). It happened very suddenly, and MJ was in pain for half a day before needing to go to the emergency room late at night. It's a really shocking thing, and surgery on top of that was doubly shocking, but luckily for us it happened in South Korea, a nation of universal health insurance. If it was in the US it would have been very expensive to treat, to go to the emergency room, and then to get surgery, EVEN THOUGH we both have insurance (and pay a pretty high premium per month to maintain). Republicans in Senate make it their mission to repeal Obamacare and reportedly deprive millions of Americans with health insurance, yet our country is one of the only developed nations that doesn't have universal health insurance, AND US pays the most in the world for health insurance. Something's wrong there. It's that feeling of dread when you hear that your loved one has some kind of sickness, that wrenching, devastating feeling is already enough without having to worry about costs, you just want your loved one that get better immediately, no matter how expensive it is. There's certainly more complicated issues than "let's have universal health care! Implement immediately!" but MJ's situation really was a wakeup call that health emergencies can happen to anyone at anytime, even healthy-feeling and looking people. None of us know when we're going to die (I thought I was going to die with the amount of turbulence on the plane back from Taipei to LA), or when we're going to suffer some sort of medical crisis. It's not MJ's fault, it's not the sick person's fault, it's no one's fault, but the sick person can get stuck with a ridiculous medical bill that they can't afford, especially without insurance (and sometimes even with insurance). It's a huge problem that the US faces, and hopefully it'll trend toward the right path of universal healthcare, not repealing for political gain. 



I also was encouraged by the fact that Korea had Japanese and Chinese translations everywhere (on buses, on trains, at various tourist locations), solidifying my theory about the four major languages all interacting with each other. They all have major cities very close to each other, think Los Angeles-Vegas or Los Angeles-San Francisco close, and their cultures and languages, even the way the way people look (hairstyles, makeup) and the cities are built look so close together, and most importantly, how they spend money (big consumer markets). Knowing all 3 Asian languages and cultures, I think is a great way to get into that Golden Triangle of commerce and innovation at some point. In some ways, the 21st century will be defined by whose society prevails over others and finds the more successful path to world leadership, and that might just be the predominant social issue of all. 

Fantasize on, 

Robert Yan