Mad Cows or Mass Madness?

From The Times, the best headline ever of the current brouhaha — South Korean internet geeks trigger panic over US 'tainted beef' imports. Only the Brits could come up with copy like this:

Tens of thousands of young internet-obsessed South Koreans, whipped into a frenzy by alarmist television programmes, a complex scientific paper on genetics and a hyperactive online rumour-mill, have held candlelit vigils protesting against imports of American beef.

Believing that the meat carries a high risk of BSE and that Koreans are genetically predisposed to contracting the linked Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, the online masses have taken to the streets, cursing America and demanding that their Government should act to avert catastrophe.

These three stories, one would hope, should put rest to this story.

First, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) has said that it "sees that muscles, the meat itself, are safe whether the cows are under or over 30 months old" — World Body Speaks on U.S. Beef Row for 1st Time.

Second, "GI Korea" links to a report stating there "is no 100-percent assurance that Korean beef, or hanwoo, is completely safe for consumption" and that "Korea has not registered to be classified by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) on the safety of its cattle against mad cow disease, so we don’t know just how safe our beef really is" — Korean Beef Less Safe then American Beef.

Finally, if all else fails, the classic tactic of diversion always works; the trump card of nationalism, even if raised over an "alleged plan," never fails to rally the masses — Seoul Slams Tokyo Over Dokdo.