Issue 30: 2020. 11. 12. – “Fatigue”

Dear all,

Greetings from PACOM! We are now less than two months away from consigning this very strange and eventful year to the history books. I personally found it hard to believe that we are in November already--it feels like just yesterday that we were being briefed in the news regarding a strange new virus. Next thing you know, everyone was wearing masks and the government is sending messages regarding the contact tracing of confirmed individuals. I know that us Koreans received a glimpse of how the government can extend its reach into our everyday lives; it remains to be seen whether that can be seen as a good or bad thing. Only the history books written years from now will decide that, I guess.

Regarding PACOM, we have now entered that part of the year where jobs are coming in at a relatively slower pace and we take inventory of the year's performance. On the whole, PACOM has weathered the year as well as we could, I feel. Sure there was some business lost due to the pandemic (especially with clients being unable to visit our facilities), but in comparison to what many other printing companies experienced this year, PACOM has managed to remain competitive and has rewarded the clients who have kept their trust in PACOM in these difficult times with quality products delivered on schedule. We look forward to continuing our relationship with our clients, and eagerly await the new projects that PACOM will be trusted to work on.

As for Korea on the whole, the situation is turning out kind of like when one is suffering from chronic fatigue. There are days when it seems like the fatigue (=the pandemic) has receded quite a bit (= less confirmed cases) and we feel like we're ready to move on, but a few days later, the fatigue settles back in and we face problems again (= more confirmed cases). Perhaps in a bid to break this cycle, starting tomorrow, it will be possible to be fined for not wearing a mask (or wearing an inadequate mask, such as one with an exhalation valve) in public places. A bit of a different world from what we see on the news regarding Europe and the US, as there are plenty of scenes where people are maskless in public areas. For what it's worth, I think that there will be sociological studies done on the year 2020 with the subject of mask-wearing being a primary focus.

Also, at the time of writing, it looks like the US presidential election has been determined, barring some course of action that would shake the foundations of American democracy. It's a new era for the United States, and one that hopefully brings peace and prosperity. Biden and Harris have a large task ahead of them. It will be interesting to see exactly what changes in the new regime.

That's all for today. Stay safe everyone. Until next time!

Best regards,
Yu Bum Kim