We beg to differ.
Now it’s getting interesting (as it does for people like me who’ve made it a career to point out why the Philippines persists as such a chronic basketcase). For people seeing it from the outside who are in the best position to filter out the noise surrounding this “issue”, the situation now is quite simple……
The “shocking” news that the Philippines is actually one of the worst countries in Asia to do business in continues to reverberate among the chattering classes. Yes, personally I’m still getting over the “shock” of such a revelation. It made me re-think investing my personal fortune in a country where the only thing that I’d…
“Congrats to manny pacquiao!! pinoy pride yeah!!!!” That was one twitter message from a Manny Pacquiao fan after the boxing champion’s controversial win over Mexican boxer, Juan Manuel Marquez. Pacquiao was the aggressor throughout, and landed some sharp punches of his own. But when the decision was announced, the crowd booed roundly and, once again…
It already irks me to keep hearing Filipinos complain about other Filipinos using skin whitening products or liking foreign shows and products, saying it’s a sign that Filipinos are ashamed of themselves. I disagree with that view. I think loving white skin has nothing to do with shame. It’s just common sense. When something is…
The other day, I got pulled over for turning into a U-turn slot on Metro Manila’s Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) at a time when I shouldn’t have. Unlike Chris Lao, however, I was in no position to go around stomping my feet claiming that I was not informed. There were signs leading to…
Read More “Metro Manila’s EDSA: laboratory of Filipino dysfunction” »
A word or a sentence from someone can dramatically change our life; that is, if we are strong enough to take it in stride. Let’s take a slice from history and use Alexander the Great as an example. His tutor was no less than the famous philosopher, Aristotle. Surely what Alexander got from one of…
Any motorist who’s spent enough time negotiating Manila’s potholed streets will attest to how the Philippines’ surreal complex of culturally-ingrained bad manners, ill-thought-out road layouts, inconsistent law enforcement, and the overall unsightliness that blankets the Philippines’ capital cities contributes to an experience like no other. At the root of the banal dysfunction of Philippine-style motoring…
Read More “Road rage and the Filipino ego – like navigating a bubble through a forest of pins” »
Of course the best policy is to shut up when faced with an awkward situation. Thus the term awkward silence. The Wikileaks-facilitated expose on what the United States really thinks of the Philippines is one awkward situation indeed. Of course it does not take a genius to work out how a bumbling basket case such…