We beg to differ.
A typical evaluation, or discussion of the Duterte administration, usually begins with this underlying premise: Rodrigo Duterte was elected because Filipinos wanted change. For sure, Rodrigo Duterte is different in more ways than one. He is the first president who hails from Mindanao; as such, people are expecting a sort of “outsider’s perspective” from him,…
The intellectual DNA of Philippine society is flawed at its most fundamental level. The trouble with the approach to thinking in the Philippines is, more often than not, this activity is retrospective rather than prospective in nature. The word BUTTHURT encapsulates that society-wide malaise. And the sixth and last State of the Nation Address (SONA)…
Read More “Filipinos would rather be butthurt about the past than gung-ho about the future” »
Actually, I’m supposed to be working on the 9th chapter of Deep but again, I find myself writing another article, this time about the recent failure of our representatives in the SEA Games, particularly the diving competition. Heck, I even got an imitator in one of the commentaries. I don’t know if I should be flattered or…
The trouble with Filipinos is that they think that everyone they deal with is guided by “Christian values”. It is no surprise then that the Philippines fails in its efforts to get a solid footing in its management of two external threats currently menacing the homeland — China’s progressive military takeover of the South China…
Regard for sport mirrors society. And nowhere is this more evident than in the Philippines. Last night, Gilas Pilipinas was handily beaten by Puerto Rico in the FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain after literally dropping the ball — losing an early lead it enjoyed over the first half of the game. The game was…
Again, I’m seeing the Happy card being played a lot these days. Filipinos can’t get enough of that card. It’s a poor man’s Ace. You can’t make yourself rich overnight, but you can certainly make yourself “happy” in the next minute. And so that is why “Happy” is de facto the buzzword of the Loser…
Read More “Filipinos’ obssession with ‘happiness’ is what keeps them mired in chronic poverty” »
It’s all so interesting to note. One moment, Filipinos would giddily cheer the successful resupply of Philippine military personnel camped in the derelict BRP Sierra Madre which was purposely run aground in Ayungin Shoal in 1999 to seal the Philippines’ territorial claim there. Then on another, they’d give each other high-fives over what is essentially…
Read More “The Philippines’ Han Solo moment: Why the Ayungin drama made Filipinos ‘proud’” »
To understand the fundamental flaw in the idea of the Philippines’ relying on a strategy of counting on “foreign investment” to rescue its people from their own self-created wretchedness, it is important to understand the equally fundamental definition of poverty. Quite simply: Poverty is a habitual entering into commitments one is inherently unable to honour….
Read More “Loser mentality: Filipinos’ 500-year dependence on foreign investment” »