Top 10 follies in coronavirus fight

President Moon Jae-in

By Oh Young-jin

My Top 10 list is not about the best of things but the worst of them in the fight against the coronavirus by Korea and the world.

I don't think anybody will feel upset if they are not included on this list of follies and foibles. But its purpose is to put ourselves into perspective, detaching us from our daily viral battle.

Seriously as we may take this fight and determined as we should be in our collective pursuit of victory, it won't hurt to look back and laugh about deeds we did. Perhaps that is where we can derive our energy to raise ourselves up and get back into fight. If size matters, we are millions of times bigger than that infinitesimal coronavirus. Now, without further ado but with no drum roll, and in no particular order, I begin:

1) It (coronavirus) is not made in China: Xi Jinping

We know that the Chinese are copycats, suspected pilferers of technology that hoover up anything that can make them money. Of course, I am denying the glory of the ancient Chinese civilization but at least modern China has relied on "copy and paste" on an industrial scale to become the world's No. 2 economy and global factory.

That makes the Chinese covet any chance to claim originality. But Chinese President Xi Jinping is trying to pass on the opportunity this time. Is it a stratagem to avoid responsibility for the loss of lives around the world and the suspension of the global economy that is causing misery for hundreds of millions of people?

Chinese President Xi Jinping

Is Xi seeking a scapegoat for his mishandling of the epidemic so as to prolong his hold on power? The burden of proof is on the Chinese leader, who compares himself to Mao Zedong, another mistaken choice of leader that resulted in the death of millions of people.

Xi, please jog your short memory and remember Wuhan, a Hubei city and epicenter of the virus outbreak. And the late Li Wenliang, a Chinese ophthalmologist at Wuhan Central Hospital, who warned of the emergence of the SARS-like virus late last year but was disciplined for speaking out, depriving China and the rest of the world of a precious chance to fight it at an early stage.

When the worst of it is over, Xi should be held responsible for causing the epidemic's spread, with reparations to be in the trillions of dollars, making Gustav Bauer and German signatories to the Treaty of Versailles blanche at the fact that the Chinese will pay more (of course not just in an aggregate sum but also in the amount per head).

2) Buy the dip: Who else ― U.S. President Donald Trump

Trump says the epidemic is just like the flu and it will disappear like magic. But the latest seasonal flu in the U.S. has afflicted hundreds of thousands, with a significant number of casualties. What about the 1918 Spanish flu that decimated the global population? Which version of flu is he talking about?

Then, when he uttered the "M" word, was he thinking of … perhaps the Rat-Catcher of Hamelin? We are fighting the deadly virus and the pivotal weapon of choice is science, not unscientific wishful thinking. Remember, very little is known about it, with at least one expert I know saying it is developing a symbiotic relationship with bacteria, making it an even more potent public health enemy.

Then, he praises U.S. health authorities for their job so far, starting with blocking the onslaught of the disease with the prompt ban on the entry of Chinese. Reports have it that first responders were ill-equipped to deal with confirmed cases and that the U.S. lacks stocks of masks and other basic anti-epidemic tools. Trump's view appears far from reality. Somebody has to get some sense into his head. After all, he is the leader of the U.S., which has served as leader of the free world ― and the rest of the world after the demise of the communists.

A puppet of U.S. President Trump

Lack of knowledge, I understand as his attribute. But his recommendation to buy stocks at low prices brought about by the coronavirus chill is extremely crass, making carpetbaggers out of the world. A couple of observations: 1) He understandably wants to keep the U.S. economy going to avoid a recession or worse. 2) That may be good for the world and will certainly be good for his re-election bid.

But he is a demeaning person and the effect emanating from his high perch is highly contagious in demeaning everyone else as well. We are all too human to succumb to temptations of creature comforts and the tendency to selfishly pursue one's own gains, but sometimes at a time of crisis we go beyond the call of duty or basic instincts to commiserate over others' plight, do something for others and forge common goals. Will Trump compensate for losses made by those following his recommendation, by the way?

3) The worst is over: Korea's president

The present, when it turns into the past, has a peculiar way of catching up with you. President Moon Jae-in gave a pep talk to a nation weary of the onset of the coronavirus epidemic. But that was just before mass infections occurred among members of the religious sect Shincheonji Church of Jesus. The cult, centering on its founder Lee Man-hee, and its close-knit organization proved to be a hotbed for COVID-19, making Korea second only to China in the ignominious global rankings of confirmed cases.

Moon's intentions were no doubt good but the prematurity of his "everything is well" message has haunted him and raised questions about his leadership. However, he is not the first leader to suffer from such a remark. Remember George W. Bush declaring "mission accomplished" in his Iraq war after the 9/11 terror attack on May 1, 2003. He made the comment aboard the U.S. aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln less than two months after the operation began.

The Iraq war remains unfinished. True, Bush may argue that the completion of the war was not the mission he claimed was accomplished but he can't deny that it was a bogus war he sold via the trusted Colin Powell to the rest of the world, as well as the U.S., to mitigate Americans' collective calls for justice. If that doesn't comfort Moon, it shouldn't.

4) WHO ― is it who, like in who the hell, or The Who, the band?

Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, its Ethiopian WHO director-general, has occupational habit (hazard) of praising China. He has done so when there were claims of cover-up by Chinese in the early stage of the Wuhan pneumonia. He was still speaking well of Beijing when China took drastic containment measures, which was only possible in an authoritarian country. His critics wonder that he is in one of China's pocket. The way he delays labeling the coronavirus a pandemic ― as it has already become ― is an act of incompetent vacillation, another word for it being willful negligence. Do we need the WHO as it is under him? Check out Dr. Hakim Djaballah, a contributor to The Korea Times on the current virus epidemic, at https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2020/03/119_285623.html.

World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

With today's column running too long, I will write about the remaining six on the list over the next week or so. They include "Frailty, thy name is Abe" (the Japanese prime minister); "Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha's jilted China love;" "Wear or not" (about masks); "Thumbs up Shincheonji-style;" "Italians asking Quo Vadis?" and "Don't-forget-me-not from North Korea." The subjects and tones may change due to developments. I plan separately to soon revisit the issue of President Moon to talk about his viral politics.

Oh Young-jin (foolsdie@gmail.com, foolsdie5@koreatimes.co.kr) is the director of content at The Korea Times.