PJW on the "Corona Karens"

Wherefore the freakouts? My own theory is that there's something in the Western mindset that causes people to revert to their five-year-old selves with all the childishly self-righteous "Awwww—I'm telling!" behavior associated with that age group. This something is rooted in an over-literal attitude toward rules and regulations. In non-crisis times, it's actually a good idea to have a healthy respect for law and order, but during a crisis, when everyone is on edge, and people ought to be making allowances for each other, it's a very bad idea to become over-literal. Here in Seoul, if you're on the sidewalk and not wearing a mask, the most that might happen to you is that you'll get a dirty look. There are no Karens here, as far as I can tell, maybe because Koreans live in a low-trust society and are already used to bending and breaking rules and laws. Seoul buses and subways are crowded, and people are dealing with the situation about as maturely as can be expected, usually by wearing masks even if they can't practice social distancing. I shake my head in wonder every time I see one of these Corona Karen incidents occurring in the US and the UK; it's incredible to me that people are acting this way. Meanwhile, Paul Joseph Watson is making good points about the actual science versus the public perception of what's going on. Enjoy the following video.