Were we consulted? On the fourth of July, 1946, we sentenced generations of Filipinos to live their entire lives in a country run like hell by their compatriots. How does pride in self-rule stack up to the reality that in the more than 50 years of independence, the majority of Filipinos lived in absolute poverty and countless others suffered, died, or disappeared as a result of the greed and lust for power of our leaders.
Our country is sick in every sense of the word and we are a morally, intellectually, and spiritually bankrupt people. Our virtues, once comforting when invoked, now, at best, point out disturbing ironies about us: packed Sunday masses and images of presidents, mayors and congressmen knelt in prayer, ‘third largest English-speaking country in the world’, ‘where Asia wears a smile’, ‘Asia’s most vibrant democracy’, etcetera, etcetera.
It’s time we face the truth about Filipinos.
Culture is the collective character of a people who have given themselves a collective identity.
What is it about the Filipino character that dooms us to chronic failure at worst or consistent mediocre performance at best? Hang around and find out.
“I would rather have a Philippines run like hell by Filipinos than a Philippines run like heaven by the Americans” — Manuel L. Quezon
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Hey, Benign0, If Mr. Quezon is still alive today, I’ll utter a quote that I hope he’ll never forget, and will also make him regret uttering the “run like hell by Filipinos” statement – “Why independence, if the slaves of today will be the tyrants of tomorrow?” – from Dr. Jose Rizal’s El filibusterismo.
To be fair to Quezon, nobody had any idea at all at the time how big a capacity for mediocrity Filipinos possessed. Independence at the time was seen as the magic wand that would give Pinoys wings to fly just as the Edsa “People Power Revolution” was seen to be a cure-all for injustice and corruption back in 1986.
BTW, I’m just an upcoming 4th year HS student from CamSur; I never knew that our cultural dysfunction is one of the reasons, if not THE reason, why our country fails to prosper within the last 65 years; I dunno if this cultural dysfunction here will last forever or not.
Corporations rely on deep cultural change to get them to the next level of competitiveness. They invest millions in implementing stuff like that. If we want a world-class Philippines Inc, then we need to run it with shrewd business sense.
This dysfunction, indeed, will “last forever” if nothing is done about it. So recognising that it exists is the first step.
Hi just stumbled into your site here I can say it warms my hart to know that statist Tyrant Pnoy’s propaganda does not convince everybody. But if I may have one quip about the site is that you don’t go all the way.
Without Pnoy here we would simply have another Statist Tyrant in charge holding back the creativity and freedoms of People here in the Philipenas. Why don’t you also go after the Government it self? I mean do we really need it? seems to me it needs us more. Stealing from us Via Taxes and claiming the right to Jail us or Kill us if we don’t comply.
Even now they Kill and Jail thousands of Filipinos everyday for victim-less crimes People who chose to consume Marijuana To Gamble ect..
Making us go to war against these Imaginary Foes. They sent some 10k troops here in Ilio-Ilio to go after the NPA who has around 50 so callled “FIGHTERS” And don’t get me started on Mindanao….
In short I’d like to see Articles going after the source of the problem That gang of Crooks and Murders write large Aka The Republic of the Philippines. Not the just the Symptoms(Pnoy)
Just to sympathize with the GRP bloggers.
If you are thinking “Crooks and Murderers” meaning corrupt and abusive goverment officials and that eliminating them would ensure a better future for our country. You are highly mistaken, my friend.
I worked abroad before and it is known that in any country, there are always corrupt and abusive officials. But still, a lot of those countries are better than the Philippines. So, corruption and abuse is not the actual problem. Rather, it is something in the Filipino society that makes our majority display stupidity, inaction and mediocrity (a cycle of it getting worse and worse).
http://getrealphilippines.com/blog/2011/11/it-is-not-noynoy-aquinos-fault-that-the-philippines-is-the-worst-place-to-do-business-in/
Ditto with bulutongboy.
Welcome to GRP. Happy reading.
“I would rather have a Philippines run like hell by Filipinos than a Philippines run like heaven by the Americans” — Manuel L. Quezon
“..of course, it would be nice to be on top of the Philippine hierarchy once Hell breaks loose, yes?…” – Manuel L. Quezon whispering to himself
I think that is what most oligarchs and, for that matter, the Philippine elite for the most part harbour in their heads.
If we accept, what a past leader, who is long dead…what he had told us as our “Truth”…then, it is our fault…We can work to amend, not to live in this Hellish conditions…
We live with this kind of condition…because we allowed it; by leting ourselves be deluded by our incompetent leaders…
“Culture is the collective character of a people who have given themselves a collective identity.”
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Culture = anything that affects how a certain group is known to others.
@benigno, did filipinos have a choice in 1946? it was obvious that the americans were not exactly enamored with the idea of holding on to the “islands” either as a state, a colony, or a protectorate. it was not up to us whether or not to accept “independence” and be responsible for our own destiny. like a child, we were given opportunity to grow up, but we blew it and still wasting it. the fact that we cannot run our country like “heaven” is beside the point.
That highlights an even more pathetic point then; that Quezon would carry on with all that ‘we don’t need no American guidance’ rhetoric when in reality we did not come across to the US as an asset worth keeping to begin with.
but benigno, in 1946, who in the world would think that filipinos were not capable of governing themselves, or of LEARNING how to govern themselves? afterall, they were, even before then, talking big already – e.g., bonifacio, aguinaldo, and the rest of them. the only possible exception was rizal, who had real doubts about the capacity of his own people.
Which is why I said in my blog:
“We don’t have to be stuck with a form of government that doesn’t work just because this is what our forefathers wanted us to have during their time. We need to look at what will work for us as a people and be open to the possibility of changing something even if it is too daunting a task. We need to constantly evolve otherwise our society will not grow.”
@Bencard: Indeed, I concede that. There was no way at the time anybody would’ve known the extent of ineptitude at self-governance, self-guidance, and self-stewardship that Pinoys would go on to subsequently exhibit.
You guys will LOVE this one! It’s a brutally honest masterpiece of truth about the Philippines posted in my forum by one of my advisors.
http://www.happierabroad.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=65846#65846
“Our country is sick in every sense of the word and we are a morally, intellectually, and spiritually bankrupt people.”
>>> PLEASE do not make a hasty generalization of our country. MAYBE, it is the bloggers of this pretentious, unrealistic, and run-of-the-mill blog who are suffering from such sickness!
Then why don’t you propose your own version of what we might generalise about the Philippines then. Otherwise, you will most likely just go on stomping your feet over something without proposing any credible alternative.
AGREED.
@A Fine Jologs:
If the facts are on your side, pound on the facts. If the law is on your side, pound on the law. If neither are on your side, pound the table. Don’t blame us if your hand hurts eventually, though.
Hmmm…. Isn’t it true A Fine Jologs?
Majority claim to be “Close to God” yet do these acts such as cheat/steal & tolerate among us those who do? (This is of course not limited to just those in power, but to the general masses) They use “His” name for their benefit without regard for what is being taught, in principle, by the faith (I do not like to use the word religion as it is already subject to respective church(es) interpretation, which is by man)
And with that arguement, we can already trace it back to how it has become sick/twisted in its morals and what becomes important, which affects the intellectual decision making of the majority.
It is a sad reality, that I hope will change, but sadly, as long as there are things that continually stay in the picture, I don’t it would be coming anytime soon.
I would like to say what those elements are, but I know I’d get a beating from the “loyal/faithful” because I think there is something wrong with it.