Category: Culture

Filipinos’ notion of ‘simple life’ makes them look like simple-minded simpletons

June 4, 2014June 4, 2014 FallenAngel 37 Comments

I couldn’t help but notice that after “happiness”and “hope” comes yet another catchword/phrase that Filipinos like to use when making excuses for their chronic poverty and lack of development. It’s called “simple life”. How do these buzzwords fit into things? Why don’t we try using a few examples to illustrate? Happiness: “Life is so hard;…

Culture, Development, Lifestyle, Society

Slender Man: A fearsome product of memetic evolution in its purest form

June 4, 2014 benign0 4 Comments

The case of the stabbing of a 12-year-old girl by two of her friends in Wisconsin has gripped America over the last couple days. The crime is made particularly resonant not only by the age of the victim and perpetrators but by the source of the motive — a demon-like creature called Slender Man that…

Crime, Culture, Media, Society, Tech Talk

Is depicting Filipinos as domestic helpers racist?

June 3, 2014June 4, 2014 FallenAngel 49 Comments

Apparently, quite a few Filipinos seem to think so. Given the highly hypersensitive nature of the Filipinos, it was only natural that they would react with rage to the screenshot below found in certain Hong Kong textbooks. The blog site Hongwrong.com couldn’t help but make a parody of such depiction of “racial harmony” as is…

Culture, Development, Education, Lifestyle

Gwyneth Paltrow versus online haters like Cindy McCain

June 3, 2014 Ilda 27 Comments

Hollywood actress and founder of online lifestyle site Goop.com Gwyneth Paltrow has been receiving some flak for her statements made during a recent tech forum where she was one of the guest speakers. Not that this is the first time she has been the subject of controversy after stating her opinion about something, but this…

Culture, Glitz and Glamour, Lifestyle, Media, Society

Philippines to remain ‘paper’ tech tiger until local tech solutions applied

June 2, 2014June 2, 2014 benign0 2 Comments

The Philippines has “all the ingredients of an emerging tech tiger” — on paper, that is. Despite an enormous population “addicted to social media” and low labour costs, the “patchy at best” mobile internet coverage and “atrocious” internet speeds — a “measly 3.6 megabits per second (Mbps), well below the regional average of 12.4 Mbps”…

Culture, Development, Economy, Lifestyle, Tech Talk

Dear Senator Grace Poe, Your father FPJ wasn’t qualified for the presidency anyway

May 30, 2014May 30, 2014 Ilda 221 Comments

If the Philippines were to hold a Presidential election tomorrow, Senator Grace Poe would win by a landslide. Not only does she have everything the average Filipino voter is looking for in a candidate – a popular last name and connection to showbiz personalities – she also enjoys the privilege of using her late father,…

Culture, Development, Government, Media, Politics

The Philippines’ current situation: nakakapang-init ulo

May 29, 2014May 29, 2014 FallenAngel 6 Comments

As the rainy season draws near, it’s impossible to ignore the fact that the social, economic, and political scenes in the Philippines these past few months brought Filipinos face-to-face with very heated situations. The rise in temperature when talking about the weather in the Philippines is enough to cause one to blow his/her top. We…

Culture, Development, Lifestyle, Politics, Society

Hope is best served with a million dollars

May 29, 2014May 29, 2014 benign0 6 Comments

Like the word “happiness”, another word Filipinos — specially their politicians — like bandying around is “hope”. As long as there is hope, the saying goes, there is life. What the quality of that life will be, however, is an altogether different discussion. The idea that Hope conquers all is as old as the mythology…

Culture, Development, Politics