Honesty in South Korea :) :) :)
Cluso99
Posts: 18,069
How's this for honesty...
My daughter and her husband and their 18 month twin boys live in South Korea. Yesterday my daughter went shopping with her boys (walking with stroller/pram). She met up with friends and their children and they walked to the park. After that they walked back to the shops.
When she arrived back at the shops she had lost her wallet, complete with credit cards, drivers license, etc, and just under $300 ($300,000 local currency). While they traced the journey, it was not found
Friends told her not to worry, as in S.Korea they just remove the cash and post the rest back to the owner. So just wait a few days.
Last night she had a know at the door. A policeman delivered her lost wallet, complete with everything including the cash !!!
You rarely find such honesty in most countries - in fact you are liable to be pick-pocketed for your wallet in many countries!
My daughter and her husband and their 18 month twin boys live in South Korea. Yesterday my daughter went shopping with her boys (walking with stroller/pram). She met up with friends and their children and they walked to the park. After that they walked back to the shops.
When she arrived back at the shops she had lost her wallet, complete with credit cards, drivers license, etc, and just under $300 ($300,000 local currency). While they traced the journey, it was not found
Friends told her not to worry, as in S.Korea they just remove the cash and post the rest back to the owner. So just wait a few days.
Last night she had a know at the door. A policeman delivered her lost wallet, complete with everything including the cash !!!
You rarely find such honesty in most countries - in fact you are liable to be pick-pocketed for your wallet in many countries!
Comments
Market economics, dog-eat-dog, has become the motto for individuals, and organisations alike, since then. Only a more rigid and ever growing list of government regulations has kept any sort of order out of the headlong rush to take what you can.
That's a story that makes me still think there is hope for this world.
The guy dropped it while getting his crew in the truck. I happened upon it just a few minutes later. It was right in the middle of the road, cards fallen out, along with a shirt. Picked it up, tracked him down, and let him know he was good. We could meet up on my way back from work.
So we met and were chatting like two people who have just met do, and he looked inside and paused a long time... Started to fish out some cash, and I said, "no worries, I just want the good feels on this one. The news has been kind of ugly as of late, don't you think?" He agreed, pressured me again, and I finally agreed to a standing discount at the business should I need anything. Just mention "wallet guy" and it's all taken care of. Great! We both feel good and neither is really out anything.
Went home, enjoyed the feels for a while, and all is good.
Lost mine just a month or so back, and right before I had to fly too. Total scare. I got it back that day, and they left the cash in it same as I did.
This kind of thing never happens! It was so cool! They didn't want money either, amazingly. So I told them of my earlier experience, and it was just kind of a neat moment.
My wife has years of experience in Korea and said this would not surprise her at all. That culture really does value the basic human considerations. It's notable. And enviable, but maybe there is hope.
I have this "Karma bucket" theory running for some time now. The theory is I make sure my bucket is filled with good Karma, and that's gotta be worth a break or two in life. It's played out nicely a few times, so who knows? Sometimes I have to explain it when I get caught saying, "nope, this will come back, and I don't want any bad Karma in my Karma bucket..." One guy I was contracting for was Hindu, immigrated over from India, and he thought this was extremely funny! Then he proceeded to outline the rules of Karma for me. Was kind of awesome actually. I like how people of that religion see some things and I really had no clue before.
Every once in a while, we get a chance presented to us. Take it. Enjoy the good feels. Maybe it does more than you know. Worst case, you get a nice little buzz to ride on for the day. And it's legal. (well, in my State one heck of a buzz is legal now, but I digress...)
And of course, it's just a little mental game, but I like that game. Makes me feel and do good. And that is just fine.
Over the last 2 years he has lost his wallet no less than6 times.
Every time, the wallet has been returned, often with just cash removed.
Certainly restores one's faith in humanity, even only if it's was a third world country.
Shame it's something that seems to be lost for advanced countries
And when I find something of value (has happened a couple of times) I find the owner if I can and return the item - and if I can't, I would deliver it to the police station. I haven't had to do the latter yet, but now and then the local newspaper in my home town will report that somebody found a wallet or something and the police found the owner.
Taking the cash from a wallet would be ridiculous, what would I need the money for? I've been able to buy myself a beer without having to think it over (enough cash? Can afford it?) for decades, and that means my economy is sound. Stealing money from a wallet I found (and yes that's stealing) would be very petty indeed.
Of course I have had things stolen from me - a visitor left the front door unlocked many years ago, and somebody went inside and stole my down jacket. Almost 100% certainly a drug addict. (They used to do that before some smart people got them to start selling magazines and keep half of the selling price for themselves.) I found my passport some time later, when the snow outside melted. He or she had dumped the pockets in the snow.
A. Took the dog for a midnight walk and found a ringing pad phone on the side of the road.
B. Walked out the front door one recent morning and spied a wallet sitting on the ground across the street.
Both times, I took each item to the local police station and had to wait while they contacted the owner. I have to use the police as my Chinese is not good enough for this kind of situation. The phone was returned with a cracked screen as it did indeed get dropped from a motor scooter. The wallet with all the cash, ID, and so on was returned in good shape.
Not everyone needs to take advantage of other's misfortune. And now, my local police station is likely to give me the benefit of a doubt if they come across me in a real crisis.
And there are a lot of people that still feel the Golden Rule is just about all one needs to know in terms of ethical conduct.
It is when you hang out in dubious places, like tourist traps -- that you get the low life seeking opportunity.
In fact, I feel quite safe in Asia -- maybe even safer than in the US. But whenever I am a tourist in a tourist venue, I feel as if I have a big target painted on my back saying 'chump'. Travel is a wonderful experience, but being a tourist is horrific. When I lived in San Francisco, I generally stayed away from the tourist venues -- everything costs more and hustlers are seeking a bonanza. Same experience in Thailand, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, and so on.
Bars in distant places are never safe, especially if you get very drunk..
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On the other hand, when the money gets big - everyone has to be very very careful. So-called shrewd business is really cut-throat. Anything over $1000USD, I pretty much don't expect 'honesty' to be present in any great fashion.
It seems to have the 11th largest economy in the world.
I got to chat with one of them quite often as we were having a quick cigarette outside the building. He always used to bow when I arrived. Not a lot, just a little tip of the head.
Eventually I had to say to him "You don't need to bow to me."
He said, "In Korea we show respect for our elders"
I wasn't sure if I was happy about that
Eventually he was called back to Korea, their Samsung office had lost it's major customer, Nokia. He seemed very sad to have to leave.
Frankly, it is just too close to North Korea to really feel 100% comfortable. I suspect many Koreans enjoy living abroad and getting away from the tensions within their own culture.
For the majority of Koreans, honor is a big deal. So I suspect that honesty in terms of returning a lost wallet is a no-brainer. But corporate culture is all about loyalty to family dynasties. In that environment, being completely honest might not get you very far, but looking the other way may assure your career survives.
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From what I hear, Vietnam and Cambodia are places where you have to be very careful as a foreigner. I haven't been to either one. I spent three weeks in Thailand and have mixed feelings about it. Wherever there is a strong tourist venue, one defintely has to be careful... lots of scams. But the time I spent in rural Thailand was truly beautiful and I was fortunate to have a couple of weeks staying at a friend of a friend's home in a small village about an hour north of Chiang Mai. Bangkok can be very dodgy. Phuket and Pattaya are hopelessly pandering to tourism on the dark side.
The most remarkable thing is that Thai elephants can and do behave like big puppy dogs -- full of mischief and loving to clown around. I'd love to have one for a pet, but obviously have no place to put an elephant.