In writing this entry, I'm taking a departure from the usual "man has wife killed" and "the narcissism in me" themes to instead send my thoughts to all the people held hostage in Afghanistan -- the Afghans, the Koreans, the Germans, the many of them -- and their families.

I'll be the first to admit my being an ignoramus -- to not use the word autistic, which I find insulting -- when it comes to news -- local, regional, global, you name it. That is, anything other than sports. For instance, I'd known about the Tim Donaghy scandal long before I knew that our Pilkada would take place on Aug 8.

So, it's no wonder that I've come to know about this South Korean hostage thing only recently. And even then, admittedly, it wasn't that big a deal for me. I mean, yes, it's a sad and the most unfortunate thing. But I could hardly relate to it. Some people trapped among a warring nation. I feel sorry for them and that's about it.

Until I read this morning that the latest South Korean victim was Shim Sung-Min, who "had quit his job at a Seoul IT company two months ago to become a teacher to the disabled at a Seoul church which had then sent him to Afghanistan on an aid mission."

OMG, an <