North Korea Situation e-mail

Here is a copy of my e-mail to clients regarding the North Korean nuclear test.

Hello,

It's Jason here.

I just wanted to give you a quick e-mail to let you know how things are going. I am currently in South Korea.

I was in a taxi on my way downtown when I heard the news on the radio. I met my wife downtown and we went out for lunch. After lunch, I hopped on a bus to head to a mid-sized city called Jinju to meet with the director of a school there who will require two teachers next month.

The meeting went well. Afterwards, I hopped back on a bus home. Once I arrived at home, my wife and I got ready to go to the gym for 9 PM as we usually do. I had a pretty good workout. Now, I'm back at home catching up on my e-mail before heading off to bed.

So, I guess that's my way of saying it's life as usual in South Korea. Aside from the news broadcasts, you would never know that it's not just another day. In fact, I would suspect that a large amount of people who don't watch the news regularly may not know what's going on.

At this point, it's too early to guess what's going to happen with the situation. I suspect that in a couple of days, things will be back to normal, and CNN will have a new story to report on.

North Korea strives to get attention. They got some attention in July, and then the situation with Lebanon took away the attention.

Now, to add insult to injury, a South Korean is being nominated as the head of the United Nations. This seems to have been a blow to the ego of the North Korean leader, so once again, they scurry to find things to do in order to get attention.

Unfortunately, this time they may have alienated themselves even further from the rest of the world, this time including their only real ally, China. Now they've gone so far as to damage that relationship as well.

The main thing that the North Korean leader wants is to maintain his power. He would not be silly enough to do anything severe enough to risk losing control over his country (ie. starting military action)

If you were to truly analyze the issue of personal safety, you would come to the conclusion that South Korea is a safer place to be than the United States, or Canada for that matter.

Crime rates are lower. There have not been any massive terrorist attacks, and South Korea is not the target for such attacks.

If you were to look at factors such as violent crimes, terrorism, and large scale attacks, South Korea is a much better place to be than the United States, or many other countries.

I suppose it's the lack of knowledge of the area as well as the media attention that conjures up a feeling of fear in regards to the area, but looking at the situation objectively would be better for anyone considering a decision.

I suppose that it's similar to the idea of having a fear of flying. In reality, one is much more likely to be killed in a car accident than in a plane crash. So, why avoid planes while driving around in a car?

Cities such as New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Toronto, London, and San Francisco are all much more likely targets, yet it doesn't seem to stop most people from going there.

Again, I don't want to imply that you don't have a valid concern; I just want to bring forward the big picture.

Please consider this as objectively as you can, and, if in your own best judgment, you believe that going to South Korea would be a bad decision, I will respect that.

If you are basing your decision on some news reports about an event, and you haven't had a chance to really consider it, I would urge you not to risk missing out on a great experience without a strong reason.

So, my advice for now is to keep an eye on things over the next few days or weeks, and see what happens. If history proves to be right, things will calm down and people will be talking about something else.

For now, I will continue to wake up early in the morning, do my job as best I can, and go on with my normal life here in Korea, as will the rest of the people here.

I am in no way the type of person who enjoys taking risks with their life. If I felt even a slight true threat to my safety, I would be on a plane home with family in tow. So, keep an eye on me. If you see me heading for safety, that's a good sign. Otherwise, I look forward to possibly meeting you here in Korea.

Jason Cresswell
ASK Now Inc.
Teach. Learn. Prosper.

I would also like to suggest reading this article by Tracey Stark, a journalist with lots of experience in South Korea. It's great to help people understand the real situation in South Korea.

Tracey Stark Blog