Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Real Reality]

Internet 'witch-hunts' often target innocents
On Monday, the hottest issue on some Korean Web sites was a photo of a woman in her 20s who got off a subway car without cleaning up her dog's droppings. As the photo circulated, the woman was dubbed the "dog dung girl," and some Internet users decided she was a public enemy. They began visiting the Web site of the university they assumed the woman attended, and bombarding it with postings. The site's server went down because of the surge in traffic. Then people began calling the university, where a staff member finally looked at the photo and said there was no such student at the university."This is causing us enormous pain," the staffer said. Some experts say that such "cyber witch-hunts" are becoming a serious problem in Korea, as individuals are harassed by large numbers of Internet users--often based on information that turns out to be wrong.

Last April, relatives of a 30-year-old woman who committed suicide after her boyfriend broke up with her wrote about him online. Soon, the location of his workplace and even his cell phone number were being circulated. He eventually quit his job.
by Sohn Hae-yong and Kwon Ho, JoongAng Ilbo (June 8, 2005)
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/200506/07/200506072236518109900090409041.html

[Hollywoodaction]

Where's the online witchhunt for all those cars that are illegally parked, or for the smokers who throw their cigarette butts everywhere?

[rapier]

[On the other hand]

[Hollywoodaction]

[Derrek]

[Ya-ta Boy]

[chronicpride]

That whole article made me laugh as it captures Korean online culture so well.

[Real Reality]

[periwinkle]

Poor girl- the only reason she probably didn't pick up after her dog was that she forgot a plastic baggie; already used up her supply of baggies due to her dog being very poopie that day; couldn't find anything useful (i.e a wayward piece of trash lying around, like a newspaper), etc. I've been stuck in this situation before, but I usually ask if anyone has any tissue, and the problem is solved. MAYBE she just didn't care, but I have noticed most people are pretty conscientious on the subway (mothers cleaning up after their kid if the kid spills something, etc.)

I just think it's horrible for people to be so self-righteous. Being passive-aggressive and posting on the net is lame.

I recently read an article in People magazine. The writer was a smoker, and she said she was having a smoke outside of a restaurant. The doors and windows to the restaurant were closed, but a patron came out, and threatened to throw his soda in her face because she "completely ruined his lunch and he felt nauseated" due to her smoking. What an ass.

[ulsanchris]

apparently she was also really rude to the old woman who told her to pick up after the dog.


I think the people who posted the stuff about her are worse than the girl for not picking up after her dog

[mithridates]

Ha.

"Execution without trial video in North Korea"
(shrug)

"Girl fails to clean up after dog in park, rude to old woman"
( )





"Over 60% of married women consider having affairs; red-light districts and juicy bars don't need to waste time trying to recruit women anymore as they come to them"
(shrug)

"Wet t-shirt party in Hongdae with young unmarried people"
( )




S. Korea's not the only country that does this sort of thing, of course.

[jaganath69]

[On the other hand]

[joe_doufu]

In Taiwan there is a plague of "pinhole cameras", not the kind you made in junior high school with an actual pin, but small cheap disposable video spycams. Somebody put one in a politician's bedroom when I was in Taiwan, and got video of her having sex with her boyfriend (not an illicit affair or anything) and made a lot of money selling it islandwide. Taiwanese apparently put them in bathrooms, bedrooms, all over the place. Taiwan girls (a little bird told me) are paranoid about undressing in other's homes because of the fear that cameras are watching them.