We beg to differ.
We already know the answer to that question. Back in 1991, Philippine Congress voted to boot Uncle Sam’s boys out of her shores for good. Since then, the Philippines had undergone a steep decline to irrelevance in the world stage. Along with that came tumbling her ability to defend herself. Indeed, one would have thought…
Read More “What will the Philippines do if America walks away?” »
If I were a businessman of any sort in the Philippines, I’d be fuming. In most NORMAL countries, the arrival of shiploads of young, cashed-up, and physically vigorous American military personnel would be greeted with joy and eyes flashing with $$ signs. Not in the Philippines though. The other day, the United States aircraft carrier…
Read More “Sorry, Joe. No more boom-boom in Manila and Olongapo City” »
Why?? Why should the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) be named after Corazon “Cory” Aquino, former president of the Philippines and mother of current President Benigno Simeon ‘BS’ Aquino III? According to Nueva Ecija Rep. Magnolia Rosa Antonio-Nadres, author of House Bill 4820 which aims to do just that, naming the NLEX after Cory will “constantly…
A photo of a waiting lounge littered with rubbish in Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) has caught the attention of many people and is making the rounds on social media. The photo was originally posted by former Philippine Bureau of Customs Commissioner Ruffy Biazon on Twitter with the caption: NAIA 3…trash left behind by…
Read More “Rubbish-littered Manila NAIA Terminal 3 airport lounge tells the real story” »
Literally! No really. As of this writing there are reportedly 50 container vans containing toxic waste imported from Canada sitting on a yard at the Manila International Container Terminal. Somebody in Canada must have finally worked it out in their head. Manila is the place to dump stuff. Metro Manilans have been doing it for…
Read More “The Canadians finally got it right: Manila IS a dump!” »
It has been becoming increasingly apparent that “natural” disasters are now a routine occurrence all over the Philippines. The idea that Filipinos ought to be more “prepared” for such calamities — whilst something one would think ought to have been an obvious national priority — is only now resonating across the broader public. To the…
Read More “‘Disaster preparedness’ has become an oxymoron in the #Philippines” »
Former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos passed away in 1989 but seeing the way people are talking about him lately, it’s as if he is still alive today. This is evident in the way some members of mainstream media keep reliving the “horrors” of the Marcos years. There are quite a number of articles highlighting the…
Read More “Filipinos give Philippine history’s ‘bad’ guy a second look due to lack of progress” »
It helps to recall one of the tongue-in-cheek comments I heard when I was much younger: In Italy, they have the Mafia. In Japan, they have the Yakuza. In the Philippines, they have the national police! It shouldn’t be that hard to deduce that the above passage is referring to each country’s organized crime syndicate….
Read More “Unarrested: the decline of the Philippine National Police’s image and reputation” »