Back to Work / Kimchi Update / Jeju Air
In this issue: South Korea’s deadliest air disaster, AI influencers taking over Asia, and the shift in how Americans work from home.
The Rebel Yellow Issue #13
In this issue: South Korea’s deadliest air disaster, AI influencers taking over Asia, and the shift in how Americans work from home. Plus, how kimchi became a global health trend and a story about Indian American doctors making a difference with stem cell donations. Let’s dive in
South Korea continues investigation on its deadliest air disaster
A Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 crashed at Muan International Airport in South Korea on Dec. 29, 2024, resulting in the deaths of 179 out of the 181 passengers and crew on board. Flight 7C2216, which was arriving from Bangkok, reportedly overshot the runway during an emergency landing attempt, struck a concrete embankment and burst into flames. The incident marks the nation’s worst aviation tragedy on local soil in history.
Investigation underway: Search operations at the Jeju Air crash site concluded on Saturday, with all bodies recovered and reunited with loved ones over the weekend. Investigators are now examining potential causes, including a purported bird strike, a landing gear failure and the aircraft striking a localiser structure near the runway.
The probe is expected to take months, with the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and Boeing are aiding South Korean investigators. Joo Jong-wan, the country's deputy minister for civil aviation, said they have retrieved the aircraft’s cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder, which are being analyzed domestically and in the U.S. due to extensive damage.
Jeju Air and Boeing face scrutiny: As part of the probe, local officials raided Jeju Air’s offices and imposed a travel ban on its chief executive, Kim E-bae. The airline has since faced over 60,000 cancellations and a sharp decline in stock value.
Jeju Air’s maintenance practices are currently under examination, especially after another of its 737-800 planes experienced a landing gear issue the day following the disaster. While Jeju Air argued that pre-flight inspections for flight 7C2216 revealed no anomalies, observers are questioning the thoroughness of these checks. South Korea has since ordered comprehensive inspections of all Boeing 737-800 aircraft operating domestically.
Broader implications for safety: Safety experts are scrutinizing the embankment near the runway that housed a localizer antenna, with University of Southern California professor Najmedin Meshkati, describing the structure as a “catastrophic design flaw.” Unlike typical breakaway structures designed to minimize impact, this rigid installation may have exacerbated the crash. In response, the transport ministry has initiated a review of similar installations at airports nationwide.
Acting President Choi Sang-mok emphasized the need for stringent oversight of maintenance protocols and enhanced training for flight crews to restore public confidence. "As there's great public concern about the same aircraft model involved in the accident, the transport ministry and relevant organisations must conduct a thorough inspection of operation, maintenance, education, and training," he said.
A nation in mourning: The victims, including predominantly South Koreans and two Thai nationals, have all been identified, according to Choi. The nation has declared a week of mourning, with New Year’s celebrations scaled back to honor the lives lost.
Ramaswamy and Musk want federal workers back in the office. Can they actually do it?
As the Trump administration returns to power, one of its top priorities is reshaping the federal workforce by ending remote work. The move, led by Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk through the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), could significantly impact over a million employees approved for telework and their families.
Why this matters: Asian Americans represent 6.7% of the federal workforce. The push to eliminate remote work threatens not just job stability but also work-life balance, which has been a critical factor for families juggling caregiving responsibilities and financial pressures.
The DOGE mission: shrink government
DOGE aims to reduce the federal government’s size through attrition. In a November 2024 op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, Ramaswamy and Musk argued that requiring federal employees to work in-office five days a week would prompt widespread voluntary resignations. “If federal employees don’t want to show up, American taxpayers shouldn’t pay them for the Covid-era privilege of staying home,” they asserted.
Trump, along with other Republicans, has echoed these sentiments. Last month, he called the Biden administration’s remote work agreements through 2029 “ridiculous,” vowing to terminate employees who refuse to return. “If people don't come back to work, come back into the office, they’re gonna be dismissed,” Trump said, adding that he plans to challenge those arrangements in court.
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents over 800,000 workers, has slammed multiple misstatements by Trump’s transition team, including Ramaswamy’s claim that “most people don’t even show up to work.” “Excluding fully remote-eligible workers who do not have an in-person worksite, federal workers are in the office for 79.4% of their working hours,” the union said, citing an August 2024 report from the White House’s Office of Management and Budget.
Why remote work is staying
Experts argue that remote work will live on. While at-home work days have dropped after peaking at over 60% in early 2020, they have remained stable between 25% and 30% since early 2023. And despite high-profile companies like Amazon and Boeing rolling back remote policies, hybrid arrangements remain common due to their cost-efficiency and ability to retain talent. “Working from home is here to stay,” Stanford economist Nick Bloom told CNBC, adding that forcing workers back into the office increases turnover, which would be “hugely costly” for firms.
Allison Shrivastava, an economist at Indeed Hiring Lab, suggested that while remote work has passed its peak, it will continue for companies that have embraced it wholeheartedly. “It holds a particular appeal for both women and younger workers, but it’s clear that a lot of workers really value the flexibility that remote work offers and value having that work-life balance they have from getting things like commute times cut out of their day,” Shrivastava told CBS News.
What’s next
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents over 800,000 workers, is prepared to fight back. “Collective bargaining agreements entered into by the federal government are binding and enforceable under the law,” AFGE National President Everett Kelley said on Dec. 16. “We trust the incoming administration will abide by their obligations to honor lawful union contracts. If they fail to do so, we will be prepared to enforce our rights.”
Affected workers may also be forced to make big decisions. “I am at the point where if I had to commute, I would resign,” an anonymous employee at the General Services Administration told CNN in November. “I would take this as a sign to move on and start a new chapter in my life.”
China’s crackdown on gay erotica could be part of a broader LGBTQ+ sweep
Chinese authorities have targeted dozens of writers in its latest campaign against online gay-themed erotica, reportedly detaining over 50 individuals since June 2024. This crackdown, led by police in Anhui province, has resulted in heavy fines and prison sentences, provoking fears and igniting debates about censorship, LGBTQ+ rights and judicial overreach.
How it’s going
The campaign has primarily focused on contributors to Haitang Culture, a Taiwanese-based platform for fiction, particularly “danmei,” a genre of gay romance that has flourished in China over the past two decades, according to the South China Morning Post. Authorities have charged writers with producing, selling or distributing “pornographic materials,” with penalties determined by the number of clicks and revenue generated. The harshest punishment so far — a four-and-a-half-year sentence — was handed to a popular author under the pseudonym Yunjian.
Social media posts from purported family members of those detained paint a bleak picture. A person who claimed to be Yunjian’s husband posted, “She said, ‘I will work hard in prison and try to get out earlier. By then, I’ll thank my readers in person.’” Others have detailed financial struggles, with families crowd-funding to pay fines in hopes of reducing sentences.
What critics are saying
Critics argue that China’s obscenity laws are overly harsh and outdated. Under these laws, erotic content that garners over 5,000 clicks can result in imprisonment, while revenue exceeding 250,000 yuan ($34,500) could lead to life sentences. Lawyers have pointed out the disproportionate penalties, noting that crimes such as bribery often face lighter sentencing.
In 2018, an author known as Tianyi was sentenced to a whopping 10 and a half years for her homoerotic novel “Occupy,” sparking public outrage. “The author deserves sympathy,” Li Yinhe, a prominent sexologist and sociologist, posted on Weibo at the time. “She did violate criminal law, but even a one-year sentence is too much, not to mention 10 years.”
The crackdown has led to accusations of police overreach, with Anhui authorities targeting writers nationwide. This aligns with broader concerns about local officials leveraging charges for financial gain, a practice criticized by Premier Li Qiang.
A broader LGBTQ+ crackdown?
The timing of these actions coincides with a wider clampdown on LGBTQ+ rights in China. Last year, authorities began targeting LGBTQ+ student groups and activists. In December, celebrated transgender dancer Jin Xing faced abrupt cancellations of her shows without explanation, raising fears that even prominent LGBTQ+ figures are no longer immune to government suppression.
Sam Winter, an associate professor specializing in Asian transgender issues at Australia’s Curtin University, told CNN that Jin’s achievements — which garnered support from authorities during a period of apparent liberalization in China — are now overshadowed by a shift away from that more tolerant atmosphere. “Maybe the earlier shift towards a more liberal atmosphere was the problem,” Winter said.
Why this matters
Homosexuality was decriminalized in China in 1997, and it was removed from the list of mental disorders in 2001. However, this recent wave of censorship signals a return to a more repressive era.
For many in the Asian American diaspora, the crackdown hits close to home, highlighting the tenuous balance between cultural expression and state control in their ancestral homelands. Homosexuality remains taboo in many parts of Asia, and as China tightens its grip on LGBTQ+ narratives, the world will be watching closely.
Kimchi found to combat obesity

Kimchi might just be what the world needs to fight obesity. A recent study by the World Institute of Kimchi in collaboration with Pusan National University Hospital reveals that regular consumption of the fermented dish significantly reduces body fat while promoting gut health.
Published in the October 2024 issue of the Journal of Functional Foods, the study employed a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involving 90 participants aged 20 to 65 with Body Mass Indexes (BMI) ranging from 23 to 30 kilograms per square meter. Participants consumed 60 grams of kimchi daily in capsule form for 12 weeks, while a control group received lactose placebos.
Key findings
Body fat reduction: Kimchi consumption led to a 2.6% decrease in body fat, compared to a 4.7% increase in the placebo group.
Gut microbiota improvements: Intake increased the abundance of Akkermansia muciniphila, a probiotic known for its anti-inflammatory and obesity-mitigating properties, while reducing levels of Proteobacteria, often linked to obesity.
Epidemiological evidence
The clinical trial builds upon years of epidemiological research. An analysis of the Korea Genome and Epidemiology Study, which spanned 13 years and involved over 58,000 adults, revealed that consuming kimchi two to three times daily reduced the risk of obesity by 12% to 15%. Notably, middle-aged men who included kimchi in their diets were significantly less likely to become obese.
Dr. Hae-Choon Chang, director of WiKim, emphasized the global significance of these findings. “The results of a preclinical study and a clinical trial have systematically verified the anti-obesity effects of kimchi, and present scientific evidence that would help to make the excellent properties of kimchi widely known, thereby laying the foundation for the growth of kimchi as a health food well recognized around the world,” Chang said in a statement.
U.S. celebrates Kimchi Day: Interestingly, the study came out just in time for Kimchi Day, which is celebrated every Nov. 22 in South Korea. Symbolizing the unity of kimchi’s 22 health benefits, the day has transcended borders, with countries like the U.K., Argentina and Brazil joining the festivities. The U.S. officially recognized Kimchi Day for the first time in 2024, underscoring the dish’s growing global appeal.
A global solution?
With obesity affecting approximately 16% of the global adult population — about 890 million people — the findings come at a critical time. Kimchi’s anti-obesity properties, alongside its established immune-boosting and antioxidant benefits, position it as a valuable addition to health-conscious diets worldwide. The study affirms the value of traditional diets for many Asian Americans, who often navigate the intersection of cultural heritage and modern health challenges.
“We will continue to devote our time, effort and resources towards scientific research to reinforce the health-functional properties of kimchi, in improving gastrointestinal health in addition to its immune-enhancing and anti-cancer effects, thus firmly establishing the role of kimchi as a global health food,” Chang said.
Indian American doctors launch nationwide stem cell registration drive
The American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI), which represents more than 100,000 doctors, has launched a nationwide drive to boost stem cell and bone marrow registrations in collaboration with the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP). The initiative aims to address the dire need for blood stem cell transplants for patients suffering from leukemia and lymphoma, particularly those of Indian and South Asian descent.
Dr. Satheesh Kathula, president of AAPI, emphasized the importance of expanding the donor pool. “Finding matching donors for cancer patients is difficult, especially for those of Indian and South Asian ethnicity,” Kathula told the Times of India. The drive seeks to enroll more youth and adults, especially those between 18 and 40 who are in good health and willing to register. Donating stem cells can be a life-saving procedure, with NMDP covering all donation-related expenses. Those interested in joining the registry or organizing drives in their communities can contact Dr. Kuppala at sashikuppala@yahoo.com or 502-475-1371.