A world gone mad

> The global weirdness quotient is rising fast, if some of the shenanigans in recent news stories are any indication

I wonder what the bankers would say if you put a headless corpse in front of them?

“So, you refuse to talk, or even stay upright in the seat? The deal’s off, Mr Headless Corpse.”

Even in placid, drama-free places like Canada, irrationality is the new norm.

Officials in Toronto recently decided to discuss the importance of making facilities accessible for wheelchairs – and you guessed it, they chose a venue only reachable by stairs.

Perhaps, the saddest recent tale in this regard was that of Shoga Takeda, a Japanese man of 24 who wanted to get his life together. He applied for a job.

Halfway through the interview, the boss left the room for a moment, and Takeda stole his wallet.

And following the dumb criminal stereotype, he left behind his application form, complete with his name, address and numerous ways to contact him.

My colleague has a theory that Destiny has upped the weirdness quotient of real life so as to combat all that fake news circulating these days.

“That couldn’t happen in real life,” we will say to each other as we scan the clickbait headlines. “It’s not weird enough.”

Meanwhile, if any female reader were to draw one eyebrow higher than the other on her face, I would be grateful if she reported back to me on the general effect.

But just don’t try to get a bank loan in China: “So, you’re sceptical about everything, applicant? The deal’s off.”

Nury Vittachi is an Asia-based frequent traveller. Send ideas and comments to lifestyle. nury@thesundaily.com.