We beg to differ.
(From The Manila Times, Saturday, June 1. Apparently, the link to this article has been giving some readers a bit of trouble, which is probably attributable to the Times’ website upgrade being only a couple days old. Please bear with us.) While President Aquino and the presumptive new Senate President Franklin Drilon have both expressed…
Read More “Political, economic reform: Best left to the grown-ups” »
This article is substantially based on an article I originally wrote in November, 2010 entitled “Applying the Right Fix: Charter Change and the Philippine Condition.” While the essential points made in the original article are still valid today, the Philippines is not exactly the same country it was two-and-a-half years ago, for better or worse;…
Read More “The Impractical Elitism of an Incorrect Perspective on Reform” »
I beg to differ to some of the hysterics I’m seeing and hearing. I think the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) did a great job within the scope of its ability to influence outcomes. That last phrase is key. You can’t really worry about things that are clearly beyond the scope of your control once you’ve…
Read More “Kudos to the COMELEC for a job well done in the 2013 Philippine midterm elections!” »
Can a change in system of government really change the development trajectory of an entire nation? Perhaps so, but the complexity of any causal link that might exist between a system of government and the future success — or failure — of a country does not allow us a straightforward way of determining just how…
Read More “Will the Philippines prosper if we change its system of government?” »
Election Day approaches. Question is So what? It’s a big deal only as far as the Media and a handful of ‘social media practitioners’ say it is. Other than that what is really at stake for the ordinary Pinoy schmoe? In support of one manok or another, some “experts” will warn the average voter to…
From the little window through which I take stock of the landscape of issues that describe the lead up to the May 2013 elections, I’d say — surprise surprise — things haven’t changed much. A lot of developments have supposedly further liberalised and democratised democracy as it is practiced in the Philippines. The two new…
Read More “Lead up to fiesta elections: Has Philippine democratic politics changed at all?” »
Two days after April Fools’ Day and I am still reeling in from the bitter truth that we are living in the days of a perpetual practical joke, with the general public being its perennial victims. Where jokes usually end in laughter, the Filipinos are on apparent overdose. It is a subtle and addictive substance…
Just when we think “civil society” has gotten up to speed with regard to the concept of regarding politics and our politicians with a critical mind, we are still arrested by the familiar sight of the lemming-like behaviour of people who merely follow self-described “heroes” and dance to the tune of those who beat the…
Read More “Social media circus acts: Filipino ‘New Media’ gone traditional” »