Category: Development

Repeat after me: I am the Philippines and I am home to a dysfunctional society

March 26, 2014March 26, 2014 benign0 37 Comments

I realised the whole problem with the prevailing discourse within the social media space I inhabit: there is too much discussion about politics and not enough about the underlying issue with Philippine society that I have long highlighted is the real deal here — Filipino culture. Fact is, the Philippines is beset by a really…

Crime, Culture, Development, Government, Media, Politics, Society

The country we’ve made for ourselves: why we need an outsider’s perspective

March 25, 2014November 22, 2017 benign0 2 Comments

The following is a copy of the Foreword I wrote for my friend Ben Kritz’s new book Same Planet, Different World: An Outsider’s Inside View of the Philippines. You can download the book from Amazon here onto Kindle or any of a variety of apps also supported by Amazon. We in our clique of the…

Civics, Development, Economy, Government, Money Talks, Politics, Society

Much of Philippine history was motivated by Filipinos’ kneejerk butthurt reactions

March 24, 2014March 24, 2014 benign0 24 Comments

I’ve come to realise that much of Philippine history was really all about a monumental effort to counter centuries of butthurt. The Philippine “revolution” of 1898 was an epic reaction to 400 years of butthurt in the hands of Spain. The arbitrary re-defining of the 4th of July, 1946 from “Philippine Independence Day” to “Philippine-American…

Culture, Development, Politics, Society

What Could Go Right With Manila Bay Reclamation

March 22, 2014 P. Farol 13 Comments

One thing that could go right for Manila Bay Reclamation is that it could pave the way for a new start, without the burden and limitations of a once glorious past that will never be reclaimed. Reclamation is actually a part of a plan for Manila’s growth that was started by the Americans when they…

Development, Economy, Environment

The Philippines: an Ampaw Republic governed by an Ampaw President

March 15, 2014 benign0 7 Comments

It all started with former Congressman Teddy Casiño’s morning greeting on Twitter… Good morning citizens of the Ampaw Republic! That pretty much made our morning. Within minutes, hordes of Pinoy Pridists descended upon the hapless activist, denouncing his likening of the Philippines to the no-substance low-nutrition Filipino dessert ampaw. Ampaw is made of puffed-up grain…

Culture, Development, Government, Politics, Society

Honor is not a strong part of Filipino tradition

March 14, 2014January 15, 2022 benign0 42 Comments

You don’t need to look far. The current political tele-dramas that have rivetted Filipinos lately point to it. Thievery on such an unprecedented vast scale perpetrated by the elected officials of a society are proof in itself. Many of them were not elected once but twice — and their offspring and kin elected despite all…

Civics, Culture, Development, Government, Society

Manila’s Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) stations: Disasters waiting to happen?

February 27, 2014 benign0 27 Comments

It seems MRT-3 stations are becoming potential death traps as dangerous crowd control practices are now being used to “manage” the increasing volumes of passengers using the line. As seen in the following photo, passengers are made to queue on stairs leading to the train platforms packed like sardines. The photo was posted by a…

Development, Government, Lifestyle

It’s time Filipinos start recognizing the true builders of their country

February 25, 2014March 13, 2014 benign0 26 Comments

With political airspace in the Philippines currently congested by allegations, accusations, and speculations of thievery flying back and forth between political cliques, factions, and camps, one couldn’t be blamed for losing any remaining semblance of faith in the old idealistic notion that a stint in government office grants one a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to “make a…

Development, Economy, Featured, Government, Politics