Category: Culture

Fluency in Regional Languages Can Improve the So-Called “Filipino Language”

January 8, 2015January 8, 2015 MidwayHaven 46 Comments

One thing I learned in language education is that, given time, geography and human development, a language would eventually change to suit the needs of communication. That is why I have ultimately very little problems with Tagalog speakers embellishing English into the former, creating a (current) form of portmanteau popularly known as “Taglish.” The premise…

Civics, Culture, Education, Lifestyle, Media, Society

Why it is wrong to spend P100M on a celeb wedding in the #Philippines

January 7, 2015May 6, 2022 benign0 68 Comments

Filipinos’ values are indeed perverted beyond recognition. In many Filipino movies, the bad guys are often pointy-nosed fair-skinned snobs (keeping to the narrow-minded way Philippine cinema’s jeje-culture traditionally portrays the rich) living in obnoxious tacky mansions while the “hero” is an other-side-of-da-riles lad or lass living the Pinoy challenge of scraping together a “decent” life….

Civics, Culture, Economy, Glitz and Glamour, Lifestyle, Society

Vice Ganda interview of PNoy is proof of Filipinos’ obsession with celebrities

January 7, 2015January 23, 2022 Ilda 87 Comments

If the saying is true that the character of the leader of a nation reflects the character of the people, then the character of Philippine President Benigno Simeon (BS) Aquino reflects the character of the Filipino people. BS Aquino’s recent guest appearance in the popular television show Gandang Gabi Vice gave everyone a clue about…

Culture, Government, Media, Politics, Society

Why Anti-English Sentiment is Anti-Filipino

January 6, 2015 ChinoF 100 Comments

While the Constitution (Article XIV, section 7) declares English as an official language of the country, there are still smart-alecks who believe Filipinos should not speak English. For example, there was this troll in a group that tries to say he is more “Filipino” because he doesn’t know English much. Such things are really stupid….

Culture

Is diskarte more important than good English as Marian Rivera says?

January 6, 2015January 24, 2019 Kate Natividad 64 Comments

Don’t look now but Marian Rivera’s come out swinging at her detractors, presumably over the subject of her famous English language skills (or lack of it). I’ve always found Marian fascinating. Her face and physical stature does not match her style of speech. Perhaps this is what endears her to her fans — she physically…

Culture, Education, Glitz and Glamour, Lifestyle

Sarah Geronimo and Kim Chiu star in mystery Disney ‘surprise project’

January 6, 2015January 6, 2015 benign0 No Comments

Philippine media have reported the release of Disney Asia’s “Disney Princesses Southeast Asia Calendar” supposedly after a promo run on Disney Asia’s Facebook Page that remains “unannounced”. According to an ABS-CBN report Filipino starlets, Sarah Geronimo and Kim Chiu have been selected to portray fairy tale characters Rapunzel and Mulan respectively. Photos of Geronimo and…

Culture, Glitz and Glamour

The #Philippines suffers from acute intellectual bankruptcy and a lack of common sense

January 5, 2015 benign0 28 Comments

[The following is a piece originally published in The Manila Bulletin on the 09th April 2000 and featured in Get Real Philippines on the same year. How many of the issues mentioned here remain the same unchanged ones today? Remember, this was written back in 2000.] * * * AN admired Filipino economist, based in…

Crime, Culture, Development, Economy, Government, Politics, Society

The #Philippines is a nation of starstruck ignoramuses

January 4, 2015January 4, 2015 benign0 928 Comments

[The following is an article by Star columnist Don Pedero published in The Philippine Star 29 October 2000 and also featured in Get Real Philippines on the same year.] * * * Last July 23, I wrote about Nasty (short for Anastacio), a balikbayan from Los Angeles, who, while vacationing in Manila, had nothing to…

Civics, Crime, Culture, Development, Education, Government, Lifestyle, Media, Politics, Society