Warning: If you don’t want to read me ranting abou…
Warning: If you don’t want to read me ranting about SARS, leave now.
Now then. As you are no doubt aware, SARS has been spreading fairly rapidly here compared to the first month or so of the virus’ time on our fair island. And it would have gone away eventually had everyone done their fair share and taken reasonable precautions to prevent its spread.
When it seemed we had prevented a major outbreak, I felt surprised but cautiously relieved. But No! I then recalled another meaning for the acronym: The Stupid are Always Ready to Strike. Even now, when it’s become blatantly obvious that this is a major health threat, we’ve got idiots ignoring quarantine. Probably over half of those quarantined have decided that their business meetings, classes, shopping and other trivial social engagements are much more important to cancel just because it might kill a few innocent people. We’re still letting people fly in from China via Hong Kong (hint: this is not just stupid, it’s dangerous.) If it were up to me those who knowingly violate their quarantine in such a flagrant manner, such as a cram-school student who took the freakin’ MRT to class every day, should be charged at the very least with manslaughter if their actions are proven to result in someone else’s death or injury. Just lock ’em up. Ever since martial law was lifted people here have been encouraged to do whatever they wanted. That’s perfectly natural, but the pendulum has swung way too far into the Selfish Bastich zone, and now it looks like we’re all going to pay the price. Assholes. At least we’re not in mainland China.
I’m not trying to be a scaremonger; it just pisses me off to no end when a few mouth breathers put an entire nation at risk just for their own trivial, momentary convenience. I heard that Random Gavin, after being coughed on by a guy on the bus who was obviously ill and yet choose public transportation to get wherever he had to go, promptly smacked the fellow up ‘side the head.
Makes me wonder how many people are out there who need non SARS-related medical attention who aren’t going to get it because of this thing. And we don’t even have a common-use Chinese word for SARS; how embarrassing is that?
If I weren’t in the middle of making a movie, didn’t need two jobs to pay off my debt and were independently wealthy, now might be a good time to hole up in a little mountain cabin or on a small island somewhere. Then again, in that case I’d probably do that anyway, SARS or no. To paraphrase Mindcrime, Sometimes people are just too stupid to be believed.
On the other hand, Indiana Jones is finally coming out on DVD. See? I’m not a total pessimist.
