Classic Christmas

Amiss Universe

So how about that botch?

It was quite a sight to see. It's not everyday you get to see someone's soul crushed on live television. Awkward as hell.

In the end, there were no winners coming out of that, ha!

Climate Spare Change

It's ironic that all that the Paris climate talks produced is a load of hot air.

International Law is a unique beast. As of now, there's no "world police". If something is broken, there's no all-powerful entity to enforce order. It all depends on who can back up his word with action. The powerful do what they want, the weak suffer what they must. You can't really bind a country like, say, China into committing to a plan to handicap its own economy to "save the planet". Who's gonna make 'em? Nothing in the agreement is binding.

It's interesting though; the idea of rich countries paying off developing countries reparations for climate change. The idea being that the rich countries prospered by exploiting the planet and the poor countries are the ones most affected by it. Hey, whatever makes the rich feel less guilty.

I have my doubts with the whole concept until I realized that, as it happens, I'm living in a poor developing country. Whatever I feel about the whole climate shebang, it would be nice to have some dosh sent our way even if there is little chance the people will get to see any of it. It'll probably be filtered into some random bureaucratic organ.

Still, who doesn't like the idea of free money?

Fresh Meat

There sure are a lot of bad things out there in the world that can kill us. Global warming, terrorism, bird flu, viruses etc. Now the alarmist media tell us that processed meat can give us cancer.

Everyone kinda knew processed meats were, in some way, bad for them but were too busy eating sweet crispy bacon to care. A recent issue of Time magazine cited a study finding that processed meat, red meat and fried or grilled meat were bad. Geez, give me a break.

You know what this means? By comparison, Lechon is pretty healthy huh? Granted, it's red meat but hey, no nitrates! So drop those Christmas hams people and just eat them roasted pigs. It's the healthy option!

The best things in life are fattening.

Bill Barwick - Big Iron

The Duterte Code

He caused quite a stir but that's to be expected. Duterte is an extreme personality so naturally, he draws extreme reactions. He's no joke. While it's a given that Mindanao is pretty much in his pocket, the fact that he received a sizable chunk of support in Manila upon filing his candidacy, has the traditional Northern elite a little worried. The thinking is that the boost in support is temporary and as the voters know more about him and Duterte overexposes himself, his support will eventually wane. Hey, whatever helps one sleep at night.

This is gonna be a long post so grab a comfy chair.

I have a theory on why Duterte is enjoying a lot more support than people expected. When the human body is under attack by a virus, it will of course, react by sending antibodies. The Philippines has had years of terrible leadership under PNoy. PNoy is a pantywaist to put it simply. All he does is open his mouth and then promptly put his foot in it. He's incompetent, indecisive, and worst of all, indifferent. Couple all that with the general breakdown of law and order and the demoralizing fact that the Maguindanao massacre trial is still going on, you can see how a man like Duterte could enjoy such widespread support. When people see a strong horse and a weak horse, they will naturally favor the strong horse. People look at PNoy and all they see is weakness. People see in Duterte a man who can get things done. His rise is but a natural response to the seeming inability of our government to do any goddamn thing. Must I go over the many times our President fiddled while the country burned? How are the Yolanda victims doing? Why don't we ask them what they think?

The rise of Duterte is born mainly from anger and frustration. Filipinos of course, are an unusually emotional lot. The arguments for Duterte tend to appeal to feelings about how horrible it is to be victimized by crime and so on. Filipinos are gullible too by the way. Why don't we go over this whole thing, shall we?

Death Squad

One of the selling points of Duterte is that he's tough on crime. "Tough" is an understatement. If you believe in his personal mythology, Duterte solves crime by simply killing the criminals without a trial. Trials are slow but bullets are indeed faster.

Summary executions, eh? I thought Filipinos hated killings and forced disappearances? Oh, that's right, it's OK when it's the correct people who are killed. We're such a bunch of hypocrites. It's alright to slaughter people only if they're criminals because fuck them, right? Well this whole thing with the death squads relies on two major premises: firstly, that Duterte will only use his powers for good and secondly, criminals and ONLY criminals will be killed. To believe in these is to be hopelessly and dangerously naive.

It's ironic that people who decry the justice system as irredeemably flawed (it has its many flaws to be fair) believes that a single man can be so flawless; flawless enough to entrust to him the power to play god. To say he's playing god is apt since it would take nothing but blind faith to believe that Duterte, a politician like any other, could do what he does perfectly and with nothing but warm and fuzzy intentions. Bullshit. If a man has that much power over life and death, it would be so tempting to simply take out your critics, rivals or anyone really, even if they haven't done anything. Wait, I forgot. Duterte is a god and can do no wrong, right? Right. I guess this is why arguing with his most hardened supporters is like arguing with a religious zealot. It's pointless since their trust in Duterte is based on faith and not reason. Well, Filipinos would know a lot about blind faith so it figures.

What if Duterte, as he gets even older, starts going senile and orders the wrong hits? Will anyone stop him? Suppose he dies, who'll be left with the finger on the trigger? Such are the perils of putting your faith in one man rather than an institution.

As to the second premise that only criminals will be killed, there's really no way of knowing with the whole lack of a trial thing. If a person was killed by Duterte's boys, how do we really know he was a criminal? Because they said so? I guess we'll just have to believe them. This is all pretty much a faith-based exercise at this point. Hey, remember the last time in Philippine history when the police and military were given broad and far reaching powers? What a great time that was! The authorities exercised their powers responsibly and there were absolutely no abuses whatsoever. There were definitely no innocent people illegally detained, killed or whisked away to God knows where in the dead of night. Nope, no sir! It's gonna be even better this time around now that we allow them to kill but ONLY the baddies! You see how juvenile this all sounds? You have to have a mind of a child to think roving death squads is the best solution to our problem.

False Options

It should come to no surprise that I'd rather there be due process. I'm a fan of it actually. I'm a fan of being presumed innocent, is that so wrong?

Supporters of Duterte will probably cry that I've never experienced the pain of being victimized by criminals. I have to admit that if a person murdered someone I loved, I'd probably go into such rage and grief. Being human, I would probably want the ones responsible to be killed.

But this isn't about how one feels. It's about society as a whole. This whole law thing with the due process, bill of rights, trial and hearing, evidence and all that? It exists for a reason. When we are ruled by raw emotion, we make mistakes. We gave government the responsibility of settling conflicts so that civil society doesn't descend into anarchy with people slaughtering each other for wrongs, real or imagined. We have trials and all that to make sure there's no screw ups leading to innocent people suffering needlessly.

The thing with Duterte is that he presents a false choice. Since our judicial system is so bad, we should therefore do away with it completely and resort to summary executions. I'm sorry but can I have a third option? Is this a joke? Is there a middle ground somewhere? How about we fix our system instead of scrapping it entirely? Do you burn your whole house to rid it of rats? Ah, fixing our judicial system is too much work, right? Better to just kill people and let God do the work for once.

Call me crazy but I think we should seriously explore how we can fix our judicial system. Of course, this administration won't do anything since they hate the judiciary. PNoy has had it in for the third branch ever since they struck down his Truth Commission and dared to actually (GASP!) disagree with him! None of the other candidates are saying anything about the justice system. Hence, Duterte is winning on this issue since nobody else is addressing it. The judiciary may be important to us mortals but for the politicians of the other two branches, it's an afterthought.

Filipinos are fond of shortcuts. There's an undeniable appeal to the thought of summary executions. Too little thought however, is given to justice and the best way to attain it. Fixing whats ailing with our system won't happen because it takes actual leadership.

Life is Feudal

I mentioned before than I'd support Duterte since he's into federalism. Yes, I support decentralization but I'd rather not have to bargain away my fucking rights for it.

I always assumed that Duterte was actually an intelligent person with a macho facade to fool the dumb masses. The extrajudicial killings, I thought, might just be due to extraordinary circumstances existing in Davao and existing only in that geographical area. Perhaps he was a cerebral Machiavellian type who does what's necessary. However, when Duterte opened his mouth and bragged about his sex life and cursed the Pope, I guess he's not so smart. Don't get me wrong, I'm not that devout, but how wise is it to essentially call the Pope a son of a whore in a nation that is predominantly Roman Catholic? His bragging about his girlfriends and extramarital adventures are negligible, however. It's tastless sure, but the people of this allegedly Catholic country already elected Erap so yeah. I'm beginning to think he's just a vulgar thug who got lucky nobody killed him before he got too powerful.

Sometimes I wish Duterte would talk about issues other than killing but law and order is his biggest card. Can't blame him for playing it.

My Stand

You might think that I'm against Duterte at this point. To be honest, I don't mind if he wins. I've already accepted the fact that our democracy is a sham no matter who wins, the people will lose.

You might think I'm against the idea of summary executions and I am. I, however, concede that there are people who support it and there's nothing wrong with that. People are free to have their own stupid opinions. Perhaps Duterte's greatest asset is Davao itself. There's no greater argument than success. People can elect Duterte if they want. Such is the magic of democracy. Just be careful not to slip on the blood.

A Duterte presidency might be good if he could seriously implement a policy of decentralization. If he wins, it would be fun seeing Philippine society unmasked for what it truly is. The most interesting thing for me however, is seeing the clash of narratives.

On the one hand, you have the human rights crowd who go on and on about due process and morals and all that crap. On the other hand, you have people who have given in to their cynicism so much that they don't mind people being killed and would vote for a monster. I've always wondered which of these points of view were correct. Idealism versus cynicism; a classic.

Always remember that your vote does not matter, it has already been decided and everything is beyond your control.

11/30/15 Home

Finally.

The exam last Sunday was the worst ever but I don't care at this point. It's in God's hands now. I'm just happy to be home, to eat home-cooked food and to sleep on my bed.

It's been a learning experience. There were ups and downs but no matter what happens, I'm kinda glad to have done what I did.

I think I'll sleep well tonight.

11/27/15 Push

One final push until the end and then that's that.

Time flies, huh?

11/25/15 War

So how about that Russian plane, eh?

Wouldn't it be funny if things suddenly started looking up then World War Three happens?

11/24/15 Rimsky-Korsakov - Scheherazade: The Young Prince and The Young Princess

11/23/15 Live

The third Sunday is down and it's just one more to go. It's pretty much downhill from here. Hmm, maybe "downhill" is the wrong word to use.

I don't like doing this but I'm about to get personal here. If you don't like personal, narcissistic diarrhea that's fine, the close button is usually on the top right of the screen so you can go ahead and click that.

I'll be honest, I think I did OK so far. The problem is, "OK" isn't good enough. The passing rate needs an average of seventy five. 

I try to be optimistic but the thought of failure creeps in often. How many Filipinos are there in the Philippines? Ninety-two million or so. How many people are taking the exam? About seven thousand. On average, what's the passing rate? About twenty percent? The odds are slim. People tell me not to talk about failure or even think it. The talking part, I get. People may not want to hear it, especially if that person is a fellow taker. Thoughts are not so easily suppressed.

Don't get me wrong, I'd rather not have to do this bullshit again or come to this stinking place. Perhaps the best course of action is to find new opportunities next year with the thought that this whole Law thing might not pan out.

A few nights ago, I had a nightmare. I dreamt that I was finally back at home in my room but something was terribly wrong. I was standing there but I wasn't moving. I was completely unable to move my body. Everything seemed frozen. Time itself stood still and the daylight from the windows were blinding but night never came.

I believe dreams have meaning. If you're into surrealism, dreams are a window to our subconscious thoughts. After much thought, I think I deciphered it. Perhaps it is not failing the bar I'm afraid of but the idea that my life will stop if I don't pass it. The whole thought of life as a single linear road that admits no deviation: be born, go to school, get diploma, pass exam, get job, raise family, die. If I fail the exam, will everything just...stop? With the exam over, what will I do? If I fail, will I have to do this again and again? Will everything just stop and stagnate? Is this all there is? Will it be this way forever? Where the hell am I really going?

It's all ridiculous of course. This exam should not the be the be all, end all but this exam has done nothing but narrow my worldview. All this hype and inflated importance all for a stupid state sponsored board exam. It's gotten to the point that I cannot fathom what I'm going to do with myself if I don't make it; if I make a wrong turn in this miserable one way street. I guess the thought of actually living life and making the most of what happens instead of following the script is a lot more terrifying than any board exam.

Maybe I'm just so bored of it all. All my life has been sitting in a classroom listening to old people tell me how life works. Some of my fellow classmates have had jobs in the past. Some have families and children. I've got nothing but this fucking exam. What's left of my misspent youthful energy is driving me into impatience. I want to live goddammit. I need to get out there but I know everything in my body will resist it. Part of me is always afraid. There is comfort in staying coddled by educational institutions and living the life of a student on someone else's dime. There is comfort in staying a student forever and just going along believing in the false markers for success society has laid out. There is comfort in routine and just going through the motions again and again. The nightmare must not become a reality.

 I've spent eight years in college and nothing to show for it but pieces of paper.

11/20/15 Fresh

This sounds crazy but I have a sudden craving for fresh fruit.

Mangoes, bananas, oranges, grapes... I've been eating a higher quantity of fast food this month, way more than usual. How pathetic is this. My own body is screaming, "Hey! Eat some fucking fruit you fatass!"

 All that bland crap pretending to be bananas in 7 Eleven do not count.

11/19/15 Value

I've gone to 7 Eleven almost everyday now. The cashier remembered me and suggested that I get a value card. Gee, I wish I thought of that at the start of this whole thing. I could have made good use of it.

Well, it's too late now Goddammit.

11/18/15 Smile

Have you ever been to a stupid social gathering that you didn't want to go to but had to? You go from a foul murderous expression to an upbeat smile because you have to keep appearances and be sociable. The APEC is pretty much this. Manila went from a shithole to pleasantville in no time. It was actually nice to be out and about today and there wasn't even any traffic for me since people were forced to stay home. No street beggars harassing me either. 

I had a funny thought. As soon as this APEC thing is over, is Manila going to instantly relapse in like, a second? Imagine that as soon as the last delegate steps foot on his plane, everything just collapses like a sudden gust of wind to a house of cards.

It's all a house of cards, I tell you.

11/17/15 Edvard Grieg - Piano Concerto in A minor Op. 16

11/16/15 Police

You know what, I'm not even going to talk about the exam.

Police lined the streets all day presumably as security for the APEC. A lot of police officers were just loitering about waiting for something interesting to happen.

What a joke APEC is. What significant thing has APEC ever accomplished anyway? It doesn't have any real power. All it does is waste taxpayer money and effectively halts all production and commerce in the capital city for weeks. 

It's a bit tense given what just happened in Paris. I doubt the government can stop a terrorist plot if the bad guys were really determined to strike. Incompetence has infected the government at every level. The last thing we need is for an international incident to put our ineptitude on display. Anybody remember that bus hostage fiasco?

What an annoyance.

11/13/2015 Vanishing Act

Across from where I'm staying, there's a 7-Eleven. This 7-Eleven, and many others like it, had a bunch of mendicants camping outside its doors. They would ask for money and even any food or drink you were carrying with you. Call me heartless but I think it's rude to ask a person enjoying a cold beverage or tasty snack to essentially hand over all of it just like that. 

And why do beggars have to physically touch you anyway? Since when did they decide this was a socially acceptable thing to do? Who enjoys being touched by people who are, let's face it folks, filthy and smelly? If they disrespect a person enough to invade his personal space, why do they think they're entitled to that person's generosity? I give change if they're not pushy, which is rare so it works for me. Invasion of personal space is where I draw the line.

Anyway, I don't have to worry about them anymore. They're gone! No, I didn't kill them. I suspect their vanishing act had something to do with the upcoming APEC nonsense that Manila is hosting. Just like what Marcos did before, we gotta hide the poor people. We can't let those rich foreigners see the horrible, soul-crushing poverty the people live in.

Thankfully, the government assures us that the street people have been taken care of "humanely". Marcos used the crude method of putting up walls to hide the shantytowns. We've taken it a step further. It's more of an art now really. It takes quite a bit of skill to make people disappear. Where have they gone? Who knows where the government shuffles them around. I remember sometime ago in Cebu, I think, where the poor were hidden away in some fancy resort (all on taxpayer dime). 

For the record, the government never says they're hiding them. They simply say that they relocate the homeless as part of a welfare program. The fact that the relocation is happening just in time for the APEC is purely coincidence! We do this kind of stuff for the homeless "all the time", at least, all the time when an international summit is happening.

They called them "relocations" or "resettlements" of "housing projects" or whatever. I wonder what they're calling it now. I prefer the term "mandatory vacations". It has a nice ring to it, no?

I don't blame the government for doing what it does. I can understand the reasoning. We don't want the street folk harassing the foreign guests. But there's something profoundly dehumanizing about it. Were that all our society's problems could be hidden away in the dark; out of sight therefore, out of mind. Hey, nobody cared who the Lumads were until someone exposed them to the light. Society doesn't really care about the less fortunate. You knew that already. Is it the poor that we're hiding or is it our own cruel indifference?

As the song goes, "Too many people suffer in silence".

11/11/15 Nothing

Nothing much to say today.

11/10/15 Restricted

I just realized that there are two McDonalds within the same walking distance from my place. I live in a corner and there's one McDonalds on each side within fifteen seconds of walking distance. Today, I went to the nearby mall to eat. I could have sworn I saw a Jollibee within a Jollibee. Am I going insane?

Getting around Manila is very difficult. I heard stories from my mother about how well organized and efficient mass transit was in Japan. I imagine her vacation there was very enjoyable since getting from one place to another was so easy. You could fit a lot of activities in a day if movement weren't such an issue.

Manila is another story. The trend is that sections of the city and new developments go for some kind of "self-sufficiency". Everything has to be nearby since going far takes up too much time with all the traffic congestion and whatnot. Hence, we get McDonalds to the left and right, Jollibees within Jollibees and huge malls. 

Ah yes, the malls. What could be more contained than a mall? It has everything. Some even have dedicated chapels where you can attend Sunday mass. Personally, I think it's in profane to hold mass in what is essentially a temple to our own golden calves but the priests must go where they must; where the people are.

I guess that's part of the reason why it feels so oppressive here. I feel constrained in movement like I can't go where I want to. It's not just the traffic. Just a few days ago, a taxi driver tried to put one over on my mother. The driver wouldn't turn on his meter and demanded cash upfront to drive her to the airport and that if she didn't like it, she could just find another cab. What an asshole. Some drivers refuse outright to take you to certain places if they think it's too troublesome. A lot won't even give you back your change. Jeepney drivers are exactly as you would expect. The bus drivers are reckless and double park while waiting forever for more passengers before they leave. The rail system is decrepit and could collapse any minute. Have you seen the rail cars? I saw one chug past and it looked pitiful.

I've been wondering what's been eating me about this place and I think I found part of the reason why I feel so off. I feel restricted. I feel like I can't go anywhere without it unnecessarily eating a lot of my time.

Dan Brown was right. This is the gates of hell and what's worse, there's a really long line too.

It's disturbing to think that Cebu City is essentially going the same direction.

11/09/15 One Down

So there we were at UST that Sunday morning. Grim lines of people shuffling in like pigs being herded into an abattoir. Not even the chants of nearby cheer squads or the sounds of friendly chatter could mask the sense of unease and dread in the air.

It went like the way we practiced in the mock bar exams we had in school. You go to your assigned room and wait an eternity with your thumb shoved up your ass. The questions are the things no amount of mock bar exams can truly prepare you for.

Political Law was a kick in the balls. The questions were difficult and there was barely enough time. There were some questions I wasn't sure of the answers to and I had less than thirty minutes. I ended up just putting the first thing that popped into my head and rushed it at the end. I felt my face was melting and there were live snakes squirming in my stomach. My throat felt like a desert and I had no appetite; had to force myself to eat. Not eating at all would be worse later on.

Labor Law seemed like a dream then swiftly turned to a nightmare. At least I learned to manage time better.

I don't know what to make of all this. It wasn't the total disaster that I feared but it wasn't a clear victory. I can't say with confidence if I did well or not. The anxiety still hasn't gone away to this day.

But it's one down and three more Sundays to go. I want this to be over. This is one of the most stressful things I've ever gone through. I feel isolated and alone. The place and people here are awful. Homesickness is getting worse.

This is one long ass month.

11/06/15 Nostalgia

It's been difficult. So far, I've been oscillating wildly between bouts of cold resignation and unwarranted optimism. Tonight however, it's nostalgia mixed with depression. Looking back at the last five years, it's been quite a ride. I remember when I was still a Law school freshman and how much energy I had. I remember the eagerness to read those brick-like books and the genuine desire to learn. Poof! Gone.

What the hell happened?

11/05/15 Manila

I don't like Manila. It's not a secret. Manila is an overcrowded dump and anyone who thinks otherwise is delusional. It's hard to believe that there are actually people who claim to love this place.

Trips that would normally take ten minutes by simple distance takes forty thanks to traffic. Street after street of nothing but the same stores and fast food chains next to piles of garbage against a backdrop of grey, grimy concrete. The people are indifferent but exude an unmistakable vibe of hostility as they push past the armies of beggars to jaywalk across clogged roads.

I admit I may be overreacting but honestly, I really do hate this place as long as I can remember and nothing can change that.

11/04/15 Bullet

All everyone ever talks about is the bullet-planting scandal in the airport. People can yell all they want but given this administration's record, nothing will happen. Nobody is ever responsible for anything and nobody is ever punished except if you're an enemy of the current ruling class.

Culture of impunity in full effect.

11/03/15 Alien

Full disclosure; I can barely speak Tagalog. Language is learned through constant practice and since I never saw the need for it, I never learned to speak it. I don't watch Tagalog shows too so I didn't pick it up that way..

It's frustrating to be reduced to using very basic and rudimentary Tagalog. People probably think I'm some kind of deficient.

I might as well be an alien from outer space.

11/02/15 My World

I would have blogged yesterday but it's busy work settling in. I'm in Manila waiting for my shot at the Philippines' most overhyped board exam. My laptop won't connect to the internet for some reason so I'm writing on a tablet. It's a pain so I'll keep these things short.

This tiny room is my world now.

Ennio Morricone - Once Upon A TIme In The West

Here

Sometimes I get the feeling that I'm not supposed to be here and I don't mean like in a particular room or something. I don't feel like I should be "here"; in time and place.

Everything is an accident.

Necropolitik

I can't believe it's October already. As we near the days of remembrance, it is good to pause and remember those who have passed on and reflect on the transience of life. There's no time for somber rumination in the Philippines though but there's always time for petty politics.

You know, I'm not ignorant of the fact that majority of my recent posts were about Philippine politics. It's a tedious subject, I know. To the cynical, Philippine politics holds few surprises. It's become banal as it is corrupt and degrading. Still, like one would do to a mental patient, we must examine the goings-on of this Republic to try to analyze and (hopefully) find a cure for the people's many psychoses. On that note, it appears we have a problem... 

Mar Roxas recently chose Leni Robredo as his running mate which saddened me. He should have chosen Vice Ganda in my opinion. Those two clowns would go well together in pandering to the masses. Who is Leni Robredo? Who she actually is is irrelevant. What matters is that she's the widow of the late Jesse Robredo, the former Secretary of the DILG who died in a plane crash.

"Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio." lamented Hamlet. Hamlet indeed knew him well as he painfully recalled happier times with the fool. Alas, poor Jesse! I knew him... not so well, reader. Do you? If Mar hadn't chosen Leni, we wouldn't have remembered that Jesse even existed along with the Chinese tourists, "Mamasapano 44" and the other dead people this government would rather have you forget.

Who Jesse was as a person is irrelevant. You can argue about his accomplishments all you like but it won't matter for two reasons: Firstly, Jesse is fucking dead. Secondly, the idea of who Jesse was is infinitely more important to the media and this administration rather than anything factual. Truth is irrelevant but perception is everything. The powers that be would have you believe that Jesse was the model public servant. He was so good and pure and brave and humble and honest etc. ad infinitum. They would canonize him a saint if they could. The man doesn't matter but a corpse has its uses.

Let me commit some copyright infringement and paint to you the picture the media and yellow acolytes are preparing: Jesse Robredo was a saint and perfect human being. Thank God for people like Jesse and thank God he belonged to our party so we can milk his legacy for what its worth. He's in heaven now, bowling with Jesus Christ himself. It was his time to go but don't be sad! His widow (feel sorry for her now) is here to continue the struggle. Like her husband, she is also good and pure and honest. Don't ask about the logic, or lack thereof, of ascribing one person's traits to another without basis. Just know that a vote for Mar is a vote for Leni and a vote for Jesse and Jesse was so great and wonderful. Have a heart for the widow. Vote Mar!

If all this sounds familiar, it is. If the noontime shows haven't rotted your brain completely yet, you may recall that El Presidente himself got elected for office on a wave of sympathy from his dead mom. The corpse was hardly even cold before they began using it for their ambitions. Again, who Cory was is irrelevant. We are never allowed to question who Jesse, Cory and Ninoy were. All we need to know is that they were completely flawless and good (unlike Marcos who was completely evil am I right?). Their deaths are more important than their lives. The benefit of dead heroes is that they never lived long enough to become the villain. Plus, we can't criticize them since they're fucking dead! Philippine politics is more about storytelling than anything. The power of sympathy is not to be underestimated. Filipinos are a very touchy-feely and overemotional bunch of nutcases. They eat this crap up with smiles on their faces.

Speaking of exploiting the dead, Grace Poe is doing it too! She remarked that she must "finish what her father started", her father being the late action movie star, Fernando Poe Jr. I'm confused. Fernando was never elected to office and died shortly after his loss so what exactly are we going to "finish" here? Maybe she wants to continue his work of making bad movies? Hey, knock yourself out Grace.

Hmm, let's see here.... Morbid fascination with the dead? Check. Using the dead for your own selfish purposes? Check. Idolizing the dead to the point of fetishization? Check. Having your way with the dead? Oh, dear. This is not good, you may want to sit down. It appears that Filipinos have a terrible mental illness, a terrible one indeed. Ladies and gentlemen, I have made my diagnosis: we are suffering from... (drum roll) necrophilia! This is a serious and dreadfully unsanitary mental condition. It's time to get locked up in a padded cell and we'll need a hell of a lot of pills to get better.

It's clear from the patient's history. People power was a flower that rose from a corpse after all. Even our religion makes a big deal about a guy dying on a cross. I worry about Binay. If he wants to win this election cycle, he has to pray that someone he loves dies. That way, he can ride a wave of tears to victory.

The worst thing about having your way with a corpse is the awkward silence.

Assassin's Creed OST - Venice Rooftops

Death and Taxes

There was a move recently to reduce the income tax rate here in the Philippines. In a stunning display of congressmen actually doing their jobs, they determined that the income tax rate was just too high, the highest in the region in fact, and have not been adjusted for the rates of inflation up to today.

Then, showing to everyone yet again what a useless institution it is, congress backed off. El Presidente was not keen on the idea you see. He invited the proponents of the bill to Malacanang, a tasteless display of executive meddling if there ever was one, and wouldn't you know it, now they say that there simply "isn't enough time" for the measure. Not enough time? This is laughable coming from a government that insisted on passing the abomination that was the Bangsamoro Basic Law as fast as possible. This coming from a government that greased the tracks with pork barrel money to railroad an impeachment against the Chief Justice in less than a year. But no, there just isn't enough time. Give me a break.

If I may digress, just how inept and inutile is congress anyway? The power of the purse? It gave that up a long time ago with the pork barrel scandal. It abused its power of impeachment to please the idiot-in-chief and now it can't even muster up the will to pass tax measures; a basic legislative function. What's next? Should it just turn over its lawmaking power to El Presidente? It's clear they're not using it anyway with all the absentees and empty chairs. How low can they go? How much more can they sell out to this administration? They should all just bend over and be done with it, that's all they're good at. It's not the "august body" in the days of yore. It's a filthy brothel and as it turns out, congress seems to attract a lot of would-be pimps and prostitutes. Just ask the MMDA Chairman and his playgirls. No honor. No honor among thieves in the first place. If they're not busy kowtowing to El Presidente, they're busy jumping ships, changing parties and re-positioning themselves for political gain. No integrity. They're all tools and puppets on strings.

Anyway, this was supposed to be about taxes.

Taxation Law was my least favorite subject. It's a jumbled mess of laws and internal regulations, rates, rules, exceptions and exceptions to exceptions. One thing though will always stick and that's because it's a concept and concepts are easier to understand. The "lifeblood doctrine" posits that the collection of taxes is of the utmost importance to the government as it needs taxes to survive, which is why collection of taxes is usually favored and cannot be enjoined at all. But something about this view always rubbed me wrong. Oftentimes, the government's actions go beyond treating taxes as a necessity but rather as something it's entitled to, like a tribute from the lowly peasants.

Let's get something straight. Government does not produce any wealth. It doesn't. Everything that comes out of government is supposed to be for a public purpose. There's no profit motive and it's not their money. People tend to be reckless with money that's not theirs and the government is no exception. The Philippines has the highest income tax rate among its neighbors. It has the highest corporate income tax rate. It also has the highest power costs too boot. Given how much the citizen pays, what have we got to show for it? Ask yourself. What goddamned thing do we have to show for it? It rains a little and our capital city becomes a Kevin Costner movie.  If the Philippine government were a private company, all its customers would have left a long time ago.

Don't think of taxes as the lifeblood of the government but rather, the lifeblood of its people. The state is a vampire and its always hungry.

Why does government insist on taxing its people so much? The answer is obvious. When you look at this government, you'll see a large collection of career politicians. For them, government is the center of everything. It is the end all, be all. To them, only the government is capable of improving the lives of people. Just look at the self-righteous and imperious attitude of this particular administration. It doesn't care about anything outside of itself and its own interests. All it cares about is the revenues. Oh, the revenues! Revenues! We gotta keep up the revenues! Revenues! What about our revenues!? As if wealth exists only to end up in government coffers.

Less taxes mean the people get to keep more of their money. That means a little more food on the table. That means meeting the rent payments. That means getting the medicines for little Juanito. That means more goods and services on demand. If anything, it can still be taxed with the VAT. But no, all the government cares about is its revenues. It can't even comprehend the idea of giving Filipinos a bit more power with their own money. We all know how competent the government is at spending tax money, right? Our government has become too self-centered, using itself as its own measure of success as if to say that if the government has money, that means the Filipinos themselves are wealthy. To the powers that be, only they can help the Filipinos, not the Filipinos themselves. But such is the nature of power to desire more of itself.

In a sane society, this would be a hot button issue but as I said before, there only seems to be resignation now with a little hint of despair. There is a malaise, I sense it. The government doesn't care. The people don't care. Nobody cares. People would rather watch Aldub or whatever nonsense fad is polluting the airwaves at noontime.

Can an earthquake just kill us all already?

NWO

Something is in the air and it ain't love.

The changing of Europe's demographics are accelerating. China builds islands in the middle of the sea. Russia is now bombing targets in the Middle East. What's next?

Where will we be in twenty years?

Do Me A Flavor

Hearthstone, Blizzard's online card game which receives way too much attention than it deserves, recently released its newest expansion pack, The Grand Tournament. It features all new cards with a jousting theme.

I dabble in Hearthstone a little. It's a distraction. While I can't say much about the cards and the current "meta", I will say I am sorely disappointed with the flavor text of these cards.

Flavor text is usually a bunch of extra lines card games put into their cards to add a little fluff, humor or even backstory to their cards. Magic: The Gathering, for example, frequently added flavor text. It ranged from snappy, one-line zingers to quotes from real or fictional people.

With Hearthstone, it's all garbage. Granted, it was never supposed to be serious stuff. It was all supposed to be tongue-in-cheek humor. Still, are these corny or what? With the new cards, they aren't even trying anymore and this from a company that's known for the Blizzard "polish".

I'm nitpicking, I know. Of all the things to complain about, flavor text is the bottom of the list but for God's sake, at least before they were trying to be funny. Now it's just cringe-inducing.

Yeah, it's a slow day.

William Ackerman - Anne's Song

The Bad Old Days

I was born after the People Power Revolution so I have no personal experience of that time period. It was no doubt, a tumultuous time. The repercussions of that episode in  our history echo to this day in the clashing narratives that beat in the public consciousness. There are some who say it wasn't so bad and that it was a time when the Philippines was at the cusp of achieving greatness as a nation while there are others with grim stories of torture and oppression, a Philippines sliding helplessly into totalitarianism.

To be perfectly honest, I don't know who and what to believe exactly. The stories of oppression are just too numerous and documented to be a lie. Yet, I don't believe that it's the entire picture of what happened in those days. I want to know the unfamiliar beginning up to the familiar end. 

Was Marcos completely evil? I think it's impossible for a person to be a hundred percent evil. Was it a matter of good intentions gone wrong? He was ambitious, of that there is no doubt. What plans did he have for the Philippines? Who were the devils on the devil's shoulder? Were our heroes really heroes or were they the right people at the right place and time?

I don't trust anyone to tell me the whole truth, that's just my nature. Everyone has an agenda to push. It is important however that lessons are learned and the big lesson, unanimously agreed upon to teach the kids, is that we should always be on guard for oppression and tyranny. A good lesson but a single dictator isn't the only one who can inflict such suffering on a people.

History is written by the winners. Nobody milks the People Power legacy more than our current President. His shameless exploitation of People Power sometimes borders on the absurd, as if it were he and his parents alone who made it happen. It is as if he has the exclusive, God-given moral authority to continue the struggle and judge for himself what is good and what is bad. But the President is just a child, a child of that revolution as we all are in a way. The people who lived through it, whether they like it or not, were baptized and brought into a new Philippines.

The Philippines today is a mess. There is a general feeling of hopelessness and a descent into our cultural tendency to fatalism and self-resignation or obsession with trivia and frivolity. Now there's regret; a feeling that maybe the old days weren't so bad and that maybe we can get a do-over and make the revolution right this time. No dice. 

What's done is done.

Foundling 2

Grace Poe's rivals have one last chance to torpedo her presidential ambitions and that is to question her citizenship. I've written about this topic before but as the days pass and the elections draw ever closer, they're gonna ramp this issue up. I'll do my best to simplify the issue.

Grace Poe is a foundling. The law is silent when it comes to foundlings whose parents are completely unknown. Since the citizenship of her parents cannot be determined, we cannot say she is a Filipino citizen since we follow the principle of blood ties, not the principle of place of birth.

The answer would have to come from International Law. The Philippines, through the doctrine of incorporation, considers the generally accepted principles of International Law as part of the law of the land. The UN Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness provides the answer and fills in the gaps of our laws. Said convention states that the foundling is presumed to have been born to parents who are citizens of the state where he or she was found. Grace Poe would thus be considered a Filipino citizen.

So no problem, right? Yes, problem. One of the qualifications for President is that one must be a natural born Filipino citizen. There are two kinds of Filipinos: those who are natural born and those who are naturalized. The constitution tells us who is a Filipino by birth but it says nothing of foundlings. The big question is if the list of people who are considered natural born, as stated in the constitution, is exclusive.

It's a tricky question, no doubt. An argument can be made that the list of those who are natural born Filipinos is exclusive and allowing International Law to modify this would be allowing foreign law to amend our constitution, as it were. On the other hand, our hypothetical foundling, whose parents are unknown, has no say in the matter. A foundling didn't commit any positive act to become a Filipino but was just born that way. So somebody else naturalized Poe for her? I think the former argument is more persuasive legally but law often gives way to the fickle temperament of the people who may become sympathetic to an "injustice" against her. If there's one thing I've learned in all my years living in this country, it's that politics trump law all the time.

Fortunately, the solution is quite simple and I offer this solution for Grace Poe free of charge since I'm such a nice guy and I hate Mar. Find the parents. No really, put up a big cash bounty to find Poe's real parents or anyone closely related to them. A DNA test here and some paperwork there, and voila! Problem solved and no need for courtroom time-wasters. You can also milk it for some political mileage. It has potential to make for a nifty drama. Imagine the apologetic parents and Poe's "tearful reunion". It's a made to order TV drama for the emotional Filipino masses. 

It's perfect!

Billy Joel - We Didn't Start the Fire

The Best in German (Social) Engineering

About that migrant crisis, Germany wants the rest of the EU nations to take in their fair share of migrants.

All of the goings on in Europe seem insane to me, who normally takes the realist perspective in international affairs. The proposed solutions just raise more questions.

Just how will these quotas be determined? Is it based on some kind of metric like how much a nation can realistically hold or is it arbitrary amounts? Land size?

Supposing a nation is assigned a certain number of migrants, which migrants will it get? Are they going to shuffle the migrants that have already arrived around or is it new arrivals?

Suppose a migrant wants to stay in Germany but gets assigned in some other country, what's to stop that migrant from just packing up and leaving for his preferred country? Could the EU realistically force migrants to stay put in certain countries to meet a quota?

This is all very interesting. If only something like this happened when I was still in my Political Science days. Globalization was the trend back then and it got pretty stale.

We shall see.

A Human Wave

The migrant crisis in Europe is intriguing. The news stories are all focused on the scale of the human catastrophe; people fleeing and children drowning.

It's surprising that the Europeans are rather tolerant of all of this. You'd think that such a large number of people moving about through the continent would be a huge cause for concern but perhaps the use of force would look bad on TV. Nobody is talking of the consequences. It's naive to think that an event like this won't have grave socio-economic consequences in the future. 

Europe can commit suicide if it wants but it will be very interesting to watch it all unfold.

Church and State

They're still talking about that huge rally the Iglesia ni Cristo had in EDSA. The traffic jam was one for the ages. Traffic seems to be the only thing people in Manila ever talk about. From street traffic to foot traffic to congestion on the rail system...

Gotta hand it to the INC, they sure know how to twist the screws but how did it come to this?

To those not in the know, I'll summarize. The INC is a powerful homegrown religious sect known for its habit of bloc voting. Since the INC's members are very obedient to their church leaders, whoever courts the INC's favor is guaranteed a chunk of votes. As a result, the INC is powerful and government officials are reluctant to step on their toes.

Recently, certain problems within the INC's leadership became public. Some of its ministers were allegedly detained illegally. The facts are murky but from whatever little one can gather, it seems some of its leaders didn't agree with the group spending a large amount of money building some megachurch or something somewhere.

The government decided to investigate the alleged illegal detention and here we are. The INC is throwing a fit claiming that it's being unfairly targeted. The INC decided to hold a rally in one of the busiest thoroughfares of Manila, a move no doubt calculated to piss as many people off as possible.

It is quite ironic that one of the rallying cries of the INC was the call for the government to respect the "separation of church and state". It's quite hypocritical for a group that doesn't hesitate to use it's influence on the government, to champion such a principle. Anyway, separation of church and state... The constitution mentions it but doesn't explain exactly what it is. Case law explains that our understanding of separation of church and state comes from American jurisprudence. The details are lengthy, but it boils down to two things: the state cannot establish its own religion and the state cannot prohibit the free exercise thereof.

I fail to see the logic behind INC's complaints. How is the government investigating a crime a violation of church and state? Is it somehow depriving their free exercise of religion? Does that mean kidnapping is a sacred ritual for the INC?

Nah, it's simple. It's all political as usual. I'm disgusted at such a brazen show of force by the INC. Usually, their mass actions and political muscle flexing have a thin veneer of legitimacy to them such as celebrating the anniversary of their founding or some other significant event. What happened over the weekend was a naked power play; there was nothing noble about it. The INC claims it worked out a deal with the government. The government swiftly denied such claim but the whole thing stinks like a rotting rat corpse already. Nothing new here, just the government conspiring against the people as usual.

Glad I don't live in Manila.

Alien Ant Farm - Wish

Premature Campaigning

One of the funny things about Philippine Election Law is the large gaping hole that is the prohibition of premature campaigning. Campaigning before the start of the official campaign period is forbidden but the loophole is that if you haven't filed your certificate of candidacy, you're not yet considered a candidate. Since you're not a candidate, you can't be considered as "campaigning" since only candidates can be guilty of it. You can appear in the most shameless and blatant ad where you hug  littlest kids and kiss ugly fat girls and it's all alright just as long as you file your certificate later.

Isn't it great?

Another Hitman Movie

Movies based on video games, as a rule, suck horribly. I saw the Max Payne movie. I never thought it was possible to make a movie where you literally got everything wrong, but there it was. Now there's a new Hitman movie. The first one wasn't that great but at least it tried. The next one looks to be just an action movie with "Hitman" slapped onto it. It's a shame. Hitman is one of my favorite video game franchises.

Did they have to butcher Hendrix too? It's bad enough that this trailer basically gave everything away already. Why do movie trailers nowadays do this? I've basically seen the movie already based on this trailer alone. Agent 47 is after a woman not to kill her, but because she was part of the cloning/super soldier program that made Agent 47. Now they're gonna team up and get revenge on Evil Organization X. Why give away the twist that she's a super soldier? Granted, Hitman isn't some thrilling mystery movie but come on, why throw away the only interesting bit that might hook my interest?

I hope, at the very least, this one has some nice tits in it like the first.

Black Stone Cherry - Change

Let Them Eat Cake

I don't know if I've written about this before but many years ago, I had the pleasure of attending a forum on "Good Governance" held in my old college. The guest speaker was no other than Jejomar Binay himself. Of course, he wasn't Vice-President then but the Mayor of Makati City.

Makati is one of the more successful cities of the Philippines due to the fact that it's home to many businesses and firms. It's the commercial hub of the country so to speak. Anyway, I was still a naive young Political Science student then and cynicism hadn't completely eaten out my heart yet. I was expecting an informative speech about governance and how cities could become attractive to investments and other such topics. Imagine my disappointment when, instead of an informative speech, what we got was a campaign speech instead. Binay went on and on about how many welfare programs Makati had for its residents. He went on about free this and free that. One particular slide of note from his self-aggrandizing and insipid presentation, was about how his administration gave free cakes to senior citizens on their birthdays. He spent an unusual amount of time on it too. I thought, "What is it with this man and cakes?"

Needless to say, I came out of that auditorium a slightly dumber person than when I went in. I was disappointed that he thought so little of college students that he'd give a campaign speech, free of any useful information, instead of something meatier for hungry minds. I was disappointed with the audience who lapped it all up with their applause and most of all, I was disappointed in myself for daring to expect something different. At that moment, Binay's character became clear to me. The man's a politician through and through and he thinks we're all stupid and easily impressed with free shit.

About that last bit...

I want to talk about cake; free cakes. Some time ago, the very same cakes Binay boasted about became an issue before the Senate. As usual, there were poorly substantiated allegations about how the cakes were a scam for kickbacks and so on. I didn't think the Senate, that supposed august body, could sink any lower but there they were speculating about the prices of your average cakes.

Recently, the same issue popped up locally. The mayor of the neighboring city of Lapu-Lapu is facing a "scam" regarding free cakes she'd been giving to seniors. Just like with Binay, the scandal was hardly a scandal at all. The defense is that it is within the government's discretion to decide how to spend the people's money and spending money on welfare for the elderly, in this case cakes, is perfectly valid.

I'm not going into the issue of whether there were any anomalies in the cake buying. What I want to talk about is this idea of just giving people free things, like it's what governments are supposed to do.

Governments should promote the people's welfare but when the national and political debates veer into the issue of pastries, you begin to wonder about how far this idea had come. There are priorities. To the average Filipino, the government is "good" when it gives you free stuff. People like Santa Claus and politicians love dressing up as Santa. Who wouldn't want to be the guy giving out gifts and candy to the people.

The Filipino people have become so base and weak that they buy into the what is simply bribery. So little is expected from the government that free gifts and cash is enough to win hearts and minds. Look around. Step out of the goddamn Starbucks for a moment and take a look at how they operate. You know, this is why I was so opposed to the Reproductive Health bill. The government wants to subsidize people's sex lives at the taxpayer's expense. Free cakes, free condoms, free cash, free for everyone! Hooray!

I'm not opposed to the idea of welfare. People need a helping hand once in a while to get on their feet. However, when it gets to a point where you're no longer helping a person up but just tossing stuff at him like throwing a fish at a clapping seal, something is wrong. Civil society has become to weakened and the opportunistic predators in barongs are all too happy to play the giver; like a pusher to a crack addict.

If anyone criticizes, call them heartless. If anyone says that our welfare focused governance is becoming unreasonable, call them "anti-poor". Yes, yes, the poor should be helped. They should be helped. Uplifted? No. We don't want them to not need us anymore. But we should help them. Help, yes.

Whether its "Conditional Cash Transfers" or free cakes, this is how it is now. This is what passes as enlightened leadership now. Maybe Binay was right all along to assume that we're stupid. Maybe all people really want in a leader is a guy who'll take care of everything and give us free stuff. Sounds comfy, not having to worry about where the money is coming from. Anyone can be suckered into the allure of a carefree dependency, even me.

The cold hard truth in all this is that there is no such thing as a free lunch. Government does not produce money; people do. Government taxes people and out of all possible things that tax money could have been used for, from infrastructure to education, it's spent on cakes instead. But cake is so delicious isn't it? 

Cake is bad but it tastes so sweet.

Stuffy

I'm prone to colds and pretty much all manner of sinus-related illnesses. Right now, I feel like some asshole is pressing his fist on my forehead.

I've doubled on the liquids and used those fizzy pop tablets you put in a glass of water to make you feel better. I dunno if its the tablet that works or the fact that you drank lots of water, but I could use a good placebo right now.

Maybe tomorrow won't suck.

Terminal Illness

No sooner had the piece of airplane wreckage been hauled to shore when the folks at CNN were all over it like buzzards on a carcass. Wolf Blitzer was absolutely salivating on screen, obviously overjoyed at the prospect of another week of nonstop speculation and navel-gazing over the missing Malaysian airplane.

I wrote about CNN's mental illness before regarding it's obsession with missing airplanes. It's a shame that its condition seems to have relapsed. Nobody watches CNN except those miserable people stuck in airport terminals waiting for their delayed flights. It makes sense for CNN to obsess over a story that air travelers would no doubt be interested in. It's merely catering to its captive audience.

Maybe one day, we'll obsess over other things.

The Mire - Palmreader

I didn't watch Pnoy's SONA. Why would I? I already ranted that I wanted nothing to do with him anymore. Besides, I already knew what he was gonna say: a bunch of self-serving statements and cheap shots at his predecessor.

Have some music instead.

Running Mates

Equally important to "who's running" in the Philippine elections is "who's he/she running with."

It's understandable that a presidential candidate's choice of running mate is a factor in a voter's choice but it's strange how inflated its importance is in the Philippines. You look at say, America and you'll see the strange combination of a young, African-American named Obama and some old guy named Biden who people barely mention. Here in the Philippines, the choice of running mate can make or break you.

Why? A running mate is a prospective Vice-President. Vice-Presidents are jokingly referred to as "spare tires" in the executive branch. They don't have any real power on their own. They can be assigned a cabinet position free of confirmation hearings but then again, that's entirely optional. Really, they do nothing at all, at least, on paper. Their only job is to make "istambay" until the President croaks or is otherwise unable to do his job which is strange since Pnoy doesn't do his job  yet I don't see Binay stepping in. Historically, it hasn't happened often enough that a Vice-President took the reigns of this crazy horse of a nation even if you include Gloria. 

Maybe there's this assumption that the Vice-President has the ear of the President and that the latter's decisions would necessarily be based on the advice of the former. In short, that they'll work as a team? That's just speculation. Besides, have you seen the current administration? Pnoy and Binay have this passive-aggressive nonsense going on. Since breaking off, Binay has been talking smack about the administration (that he seemed to have no problem with for the past five or so years) and some members of the administration are retaliating. Yet Binay and Pnoy are hands-off with each other directly. It's like telling your lover, "I love you but I hate everything you do and stand for but I still love you!" or as Facebook would put it, "It's complicated." All this duplicity and two-facedness makes me physically ill actually.

It's like alchemy, you know? With the right combination, you might just turn shit into gold! So what combinations are in the works in today's hip, rock-rollin' election scene, man? There's talk that Pnoy would like Grace Poe to be Mar Roxas' running mate. I find this strange. See, people don't normally willingly tie millstones around their necks and jump into a deep ravine. Why on Earth would Grace Poe tie herself to the millstone named "Mar"? Poe seems to be leaning towards a tandem with Escudero. Personally, I can't stand that smug prick but as they say, "the heart has its reasons of which reason does not know" or some such sugary nonsense no sane person would ever put into paper, much less a legal document.

You know who Mar should choose as a running mate? Vice Ganda, that's who. I mean, why not? It's already a circus, why not send in the clowns? Mar's old gimmick was "Mr.Palengke" so why not align him with someone who the uneducated trash in the real palengkes actually watch?

By the way, in case you forget, the future of the Philippines is at stake here but I'm just saying.

Election Crap 2016

Aren't you sick of all the garbage on the news about the upcoming elections? All those asinine questions and tedious predictions are giving me a headache.

The stupidest question so far is: "Who's Pnoy going to endorse?" Isn't it obvious? Pnoy is going to endorse Mar Roxas. Who else? Look at Pnoy's history and you'll learn that he always picks his favorite parasites, close "allies" and shameless sycophants. Mar is the most disgustingly loyal toadie of the yellow brand so of course he's gonna get Pnoy's vote of confidence. Who else can Pnoy rely on to shield his sorry ass from lawsuits after his presidency is over?

Grace Poe... all I heard is that she's popular and that's about it. What does she stand for? What are her major accomplishments? Nobody's asking. All that matters is that she's "popular". Why though? The cynic in me clawed its way out of my chest to tell you that she's only popular because of her famous action movie star father, Fernando Poe.

Binay? "The devil you know" is still a goddamned devil. It'll be amusing to see if he can dig himself out of the hole his rivals have so kindly dug for him. Even better to see if he does win. Imagine the rampage of revenge he'll unleash if he wins.

Duterte? I wish if only just to throw those asshats in Manila for a loop.

The COMELEC is a mess. So we're not doing automated voting anymore and going back to manual? Wait, not manual? Half-automated and half-manual? Jesus Christ. Well I'm sure they're giving it a good effort. I mean, voting is only the central lynchpin of our fragile democracy. It's only the will of the people at stake so no rush guys, take your time.

There's a proposal the geniuses in government have come up with to hold the elections inside malls. Might as well. I mean, Filipinos do everything at the mall nowadays. People even hold mass at the mall. Might as well make our devolution into a materialism-obsessed moral wasteland complete.

What a pain in the ass.

Chopin - Prelude Op.28 No.16

Made in China

A lot of pirated goods come from China but synthetic rice? That's a new one.

Too bad. A lot of the fake crap from China wasn't this bad long ago. Gone were the days when you could sit down on your comfy chair with a nice cup of Lipiton iced tea, watch a bootleg DVD of Taken on your Pensonic player hooked up to your Soby TV set. Now we can enjoy a nice bowl of styrofoam with it.

Mm-mmm...

Sons of the Revolution

I find it amusing that "Bongbong" Marcos is proving to be more intelligent that "Noynoy" Aquino. It's like the late Ferdinand Marcos' vengeance from beyond the grave. The late heroes' have messed up children while the dead dictator has a more competent one.

"Bongbong" is a silly nickname but I suppose you must do what you can to endear yourself to the unwashed masses. To be fair, "Ferdinand Marcos Jr." might not evoke the right feelings with the slower people. Nevertheless, he is not his father. I believe children should not be made to suffer for the sins of their father (or fathers if the case may be). 

I remember this one time when "Bongbong", I'll just call him Marcos Junior from now on or something, gave his speech during the trial of the former Chief Justice, I was actually impressed. He gave his reasons why he would not vote to impeach and said reasons were rooted in legal thinking, which was refreshing since the whole exercise seemed more and more an overdose of politics as usual.

Fate has a cruel sense of humor. The son of the hero is turning out to be the worst thing that's ever happened to us post-revolution. I'm not a big supporter of Junior but what if the savior of the Philippines turns out to be the son of the great villainous dictator?

I don't know whether to laugh or cry sometimes.

Killswitch Engage - My Curse

The "F" Word

I'm a Federalist. I believe that the centralized system we have now in the Philippines should be changed. Geographically, it's inefficient for a central government to impose it's will on thousands of islands scattered across an archipelago. The people who can best determine what should be done and how tax money should be spent in a province, city or barangay are the inhabitants of said political subdivisions themselves. I think it's a bad idea to collect most of the tax money the country produces, put it in a single pot and dole it out based on mere metrics such as population and land area. Such a method is grossly unresponsive to the specific needs that a political subdivision may have.

Culturally, it's difficult. The Philippines is composed of different ethnic groups, many of which have their own language and aspirations. The Muslims are in a perpetual hurry to leave it seems and there's growing resentment towards the inefficiency and callousness ofManila.

But we should avoid using the "F" word.

"Federalism" is a dangerous word. Federalism is the idea of two governments sharing power over an area and its people; specifically a national government and a local government. Immediately, we think of the United States since it is the most prominent example of this set up There's a central government and a local government of each individual state.

The key here is the idea of individual states. Should the government of the Philippines adopt a system wherein it is divided into several independent states but under a national government? Many dream it were so but if the whole Bangsamoro abomination teaches us anything, it's that there's a big danger to the whole idea and that's Secession. What's to stop people from simply leaving? Even a battered wife may eventually leave if pushed to her absolute limit. Either that or she kills her husband. So would the long-abused groups of Filipinos simply opt to leave or attempt rebellion against their government?  Anything is possible.

But we should avoid using the "F" word.

We should avoid it because of the images it may conjure up. I'm a Federalist, not a Secessionist. I don't blame people who want to secede but I believe a literal break up into many completely independent parts would be a disaster and leaves us weak and vulnerable, especially in international politics. The word "federalism" can be used to scare people into thinking that it means the final dissolution of the Philippines. Anarchy? Possible.

So to avoid fear-mongering, I propose a simple solution. We use the "D" word instead. Decentralization has a much more pleasant ring to it. The constitution itself uses this word so it has the advantage of a thin veneer of legitimacy. In fact, the Constitution commands Congress to pursue a policy of decentralization. Sadly, it seems Congress stopped with the woefully inadequate Local Government Code which does its job organizing Local Government Units but doesn't do much in the way of providing meaningful independence. Congress' idea of decentralization seems to be to decentralize more and more responsibilities and plain old bull dung onto the beleaguered LGU but none of the means or power to carry any of it out. Example: You command the Local Government Units to provide "reproductive health" stuff (whatever claptrap the RH Law decrees) but how? They still have to beg the national government for money or "request" generous projects *wink wink* from the elected crooks.

Decentralization... sounds much better, yeah? Of course we still pursue federalism but we shouldn't call it that so as not to scare the little children with the boogieman of Secession. Besides, decentralization is a broad enough term to cover everything a Federalist would want. Economic independence alone is a good start and it doesn't necessarily require a separate state.

I humbly suggest that fellow Federalists avoid using the "F" word. Our goal would be better served if we use the "D" word instead. Language is important in politics and words have powerful meanings. Decentralization is safer and more palatable for modern audiences. It sounds good. It feels good.

Soon, everyone will want the D.

Foundling

There's a joke here in the Philippines: if you ever want to learn about your family history, just run for office. Your opponents will dig all that up for you free of charge!

Philippine elections are about name recall. Binay, Binay, Binay, Binay... Grace? Grace Poe is the Filipina politician second to Binay in the polls so you know what that means. She must be destroyed and step one of that process is to examine her qualifications for a potential presidential run.

The issue is citizenship. However, I'm not interested about her citizenship in the later years of her life and today. I'm more interested in the theories swirling about, on whether or not she can be considered a natural-born Filipino citizen.

Grace Poe was a foundling left inside a church as a baby. As far as origin stories go, her life seems tailor-made for the Philippine audience but I digress. Her biological parents are unknown so there's this argument that we cannot consider her as a natural-born Filipino. The Philippines follows the principle of jus sanguinis, that is, that nationality is determined by blood. Since we have no idea who her parents are, we can't say with absolute confidence that they were Filipinos. There is a possibility, no matter how ridiculously improbable and outlandish, that both her biological parents were foreigners who just happened to be in the Philippines and were too poor to raise a child and so left the very Filipino-looking Grace Poe in a church. Accepting this possibility, Grace Poe could have no Filipino blood in her, couldn't be a Filipino by birth and is thus unqualified to run for President.

The question I find interesting is: What is the nationality of a foundling when the parents are unknown? The law seems to have a blind spot in that in all the ways to acquire Philippine citizenship, it's mum on foundlings; babies appearing out of nowhere. It would be nice to say that we should just presume the foundling is Filipino but from where will we base this presumption?

I'm sure some foreign jurisprudence has already answered this somewhere. For me, the foundling's nationality should be the place where he/she was found. It makes sense although its jus soli. I'm sure Philippine Law can be stretched to make an exception. Our laws have this obsession with children after all, always looking out for their best interests and what not. Parens patriae? The government should just grant foundlings citizenship then. It is rather cruel not to allow abandoned children in this circumstance to have a country to call home.

The "brilliant" legal minds up north sure love to split hairs.

Part 2

Reminisce

I was taking a walk this morning to get the blood flowing. The traffic along Guadalupe's one main road was unusually heavy and then I realized why. Today was the start of classes for elementary and high school students.

It was a beautiful morning too but only I seemed to be enjoying it. The streets were a swarm of motorcycles with gruff-looking fathers and visibly anxious children riding on, clutching their bags. Outside the gates of the school were anxious mothers coaxing their children in and making sure their child could still see them outside from the classroom window.

The blood was flowing but old memories too, came flooding back. I remember the first day of elementary school. It was a ridiculous sight to see such small children carry such heavy bags and pull those cumbersome old strollers. I remember the anxiety of entering a new classroom, a whole new environment with other kids you didn't know yet. I remember the fear of waiting for the first bell and hoping that the teachers were kind. They always peddle horror stories to the new meat about which teacher was the "terror".

The same story could be said for high school and college when I think about it. It's stressful at first then you lapse into depression induced by the monotony of routine. Eventually you get burned out then summer vacation comes.

The whole system was miserable yet once you get over it, you look back with a sense of longing. In retrospect, the troubles that a young me worried about were infinitesimally small compared to the troubles of today. Wasn't it great when you're biggest worry was making a presentation in front of the class or leading the class prayer instead of more adult worries like paying of debts, getting a job or supporting a family?

Calmed me a little; I felt less depressed today. Kinda puts things in perspective. Today seems terrible but there will probably come a time when looking back, now wasn't so bad after all.

I'm not used to such feelings of optimism so right now, I jabbing my thigh with a pen as hard as I can.

Witcher 2 OST - The End is Never the Same

About Duterte

A lot of people want current Mayor of Davao City, Rodrigo Duterte, to make a run for the presidency. A lot of people too voted for the current clown-in-chief so who cares what "a lot of people" think.

Duterte is an infamous figure. It's always just assumed that he's behind the "Davao Death Squads" that allegedly prowl the streets of his city and summarily execute criminals. He denies personal involvement of course but let's just say that he's "tough on crime", alright?

Vigilante justice is another topic for another time. For now, I think that the people who want Duterte to run for President are naive. The common idea is that Duterte will bring his toughness and brutality to Malacanang and whip this country into shape. The more delusional of his followers think that he'll bring his penchant for vigilantism with him and start rounding up criminals nationwide to be shot.

Let's go over how this might not work:

1. A single city is not the country contrary to what Manila folk like to believe. This applies to Duterte. Duterte may be able to impose his will on a number of people in a limited area but I doubt he can do that on an entire nation of millions, over thousands of islands.

2. He will meet his match. Duterte is the big boss man of Davao because he's entrenched there and nobody has the will to oppose him. Put him in Malacanang and he'll be out of his element. He'll be up against the worst of the worst of Philippine politics; backstabbers, power brokers, murderers and thieves. They won't give two shits about some guy from Davao and will most definitely have the means to retaliate and take care of Duterte if they have to.

3. Duterte is not as well known as his supporters think. People in the South and people connected to Davao know of him. I doubt people in Manila care about places other than Manila. The same goes to the more far flung areas. Duterte even getting close to the number of votes he needs to be a legitimate threat is itself doubtful.

4. No fear factor. Citizens of Davao may fear him but that's the extent of his influence. You can't grip an entire nation in terror by yourself unless you're North Korean.

All of these have to do with his reputation as a strongman. I don't like strongman politics but there is something that I like about Duterte. It's not explored by the media as much as his reputation but Duterte is a federalist. That's something I can agree on.

If he runs on that, I think that's a broader and more appealing message.