Category: Culture

Template disasters, the backhoe and why Andal Ampatuan is like Typhoon Sendong

December 22, 2011December 22, 2011 benign0 5 Comments

A lot of people who have followed the investigation, apprehension, and building of a case against accused mass-murderer former Datu Unsay Mayor Andal Ampatuan Jr had made that topic the epicentre of everything about the Philippines that has to do with impunity. Ampatuan is accused of masterminding the massacre of 57 people in Maguindanao province,…

Culture, Environment, Government, Media, Society, The South

PNoy wouldn’t need spin doctors if he took his job seriously

December 21, 2011June 15, 2013 Ilda 162 Comments

A spin-doctor is a person who publicizes favorable interpretations of the words and actions of a public figure, specially a politician. When another person has to speak on behalf of a public servant, it may be because the public servant is having a hard time responding to critics, which can also mean that whatever people…

Culture, Government, Media, Politics, Society

Burying Filipinos like garbage – Typhoon Sendong need not have been as deadly as it was

December 20, 2011September 18, 2018 benign0 45 Comments

The Philippines has now become renowned for template disasters. These are disasters that are caused by systemic issues that are profoundly inherent to the country. They are templates and therefore, by design, are highly repeatable. They happen again and again. Here’s the template for the sort of tragedy unfolding in northern Mindanao today… Heavy rains…

Culture, Development, Environment, Government, Politics

Valerie Concepcion allegedly wows PNoy as Sendong strikes Mindanao

December 19, 2011November 1, 2022 benign0 101 Comments

The last thing a nation needs in time of extreme crisis is more political intrigue. It seems however, that the administration of President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III simply attracts that scourge of useless chatter and even fans its flames. The other night as, reportedly, “the nation mourns”, Noynoy was apparently busy “laughing at [the] jokes”…

Culture, Development, Environment, Glitz and Glamour, Media, Society

Hypocrisy at a national scale: The bid to impeach Philippine Chief Justice Renato Corona

December 13, 2011 benign0 68 Comments

Last week, in one of my very rare fits of writer’s block, I said to myself, “Not to worry. The next Philippine political circus is just around the corner.” I kinda admit, it gets boring when I’m always right. Filipinos have so far proven that they are great at using the awesome power of democracy…

Civics, Culture, Government, Media, Politics

Three really appalling ideas being spread by prominent Filipino opinion shapers

December 12, 2011December 12, 2011 benign0 26 Comments

Consider the reality of democratic politics. Just about anyone can be President. Guys like former President Joseph “Erap” Estrada and current President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III are a testament to this truth. For that matter, any position in government that only requires that its occupant be elected by popular vote is subject to the tyranny…

Civics, Crime, Culture, Government, Politics

Tarzan King of the Apes versus the Inquirer Dot Net ‘columnists’

December 8, 2011 benign0 19 Comments

Posted by “flax” in a comment on Get Real Post: “The early step of all dictators is to inflame the majority in common cause against some scapegoat minority..” â€“ Friedrich Hayek [Cue in theme from the movie Jaws…] Poor Philippine President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III — crazed by regret and now on a spectacular tililing…

Culture, Government, Media, Politics

Korina Sanchez and why Philippine presidents ultimately don’t matter

December 8, 2011 benign0 13 Comments

In Korina Sanchez’s opinion, the Philippine Supreme Court is “still beholden to the gods of the past, and not to the people”. Well who isn’t anyway? This is the Philippines we are talking about — world-renowned for being a nation of people who remain fixated on the past and clueless about their future; focused on…

Culture, Media, Society