Tag: globalisation

Filipinos’ concern over a depreciating peso is due to a pathetic dependence on imports

April 4, 2018 benign0 39 Comments

A depreciating peso wouldn’t really be an issue if Filipinos are able to produce what they consume and sell what they don’t consume to an export market. The trouble is, the Philippines is not a producer of valuable enough stuff and prefer, instead, the lazy option of “producing” and selling low-value raw stuff. I enclosed…

Economy, Money Talks

Galit sa Gulay – A Case Study

February 6, 2017February 6, 2017 Charles Englund 3 Comments

Suppose I wanted to invest in a fancy, money-losing carinderia–Aling Maria’s Carinderia. I can either lend it money i.e. invest in its DEBT (in which case I become a creditor), or buy its shares i.e. invest in its EQUITY (in which case I become a pro-rata owner). Hmm, ano kaya? I really want to invest…

Development, Economy, Media

Inequality is what makes the world an interesting place to be human

February 2, 2017 benign0 6 Comments

That meme where feminists in other countries are shown dressed in military gear with guns locked and loaded looking really badass while American feminists are shown looking all hip, hedonistic, self-indugent and, well, millennial. Priceless. Open this week’s issue of TIME and get a load of how many pages were devoted to that Women’s March…

Development, Economy, Environment, Society

#Brexit is an opportunity for Britain to re-learn what it means to be British

June 24, 2016June 25, 2016 benign0 69 Comments

Democracy is a bitch when it doesn’t go your way. That’s pretty much the sentiment New Age mouthpieces in corporate media and the broader community of hipsters who parrot the politically-correct taglines of people “outraged” by the British vote to leave the European Union today (trending in social media under the hashtag #Brexit). One commentator…

Culture, Economy, Society

Preparation for #APEC2015 should have included fixing the Philippines’ infrastructure

November 14, 2015November 14, 2015 Ilda 11 Comments

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit is a major event, which strangely enough, will be held in the Philippines, a country with poor facilities and infrastructure. About twenty world leaders are said to be attending including US President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping. The latter requested talks about the ongoing dispute between China…

Development, Economy, Government

APEC 2015: a time for Filipinos to reflect on their place in the global economy

November 12, 2015November 12, 2015 benign0 14 Comments

What do ordinary Filipinos really want to get out of the imperative to “showcase” the Philippines’ best foot to the delegates of the coming Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum that Manila is hosting this year? For many, it will be an opportunity to go on an extended vacation, taking up the “encouragement” coming from…

Development, Media, Society

Filipinos need to get off the loser path and onto the road to real progress

November 10, 2015November 10, 2015 benign0 22 Comments

How did the Philippines get to where it is now? It is a wretched society, unable to defend itself from foreign and natural threats, paralysed by its own enormous population, and staring at a future hobbled by a lack of the infrastructure to get it down the right road. Yet the country, over much of…

Development, Economy, Society

Mass national disruption as APEC Manila 2015 circus comes to town!

November 5, 2015November 5, 2015 benign0 11 Comments

Everything is such a huge drama in the Philippines. The coming Asia Pacific Economic Conference (APEC) is no exception. It promises to effect immense disruption across a vast swath of Philippine society — which makes the very hosting of this forum by the Philippine government quite ironic. Economies rise and fall on the back of…

Development, Economy, Government, Lifestyle