We beg to differ.
Ah, to be Filipino. No other time of the year clarifies this term better than the Christmas season. Tis’ the season for giving indeed and to be Filipino is to take the initiative to remind people of this fact. Namamasko po. To be Filipino is to wish people a “Merry Christmas” with an open palm…
The trouble with Filipinos is that they don’t see any meaning in their lives that is bigger than themselves. At best there is, like most warm-blooded mammals with bulges in their heads wider than their brainstems, that instinctive altruism for his own immediate family. But even that one is often brought to question on account…
Imagine for a moment that the Philippines was suddenly swallowed up by the seas leaving no trace of it, its culture, and its people. Then ask yourself this question: Will the rest of the world miss the Philippines? What a confronting question, right?! It may be true, of course, that the Philippines is a source…
Read More “Is the Philippines of any value to the rest of the world?” »
When I posted that photo tweeted by former Bureau of Customs chief Ruffy Biazon of the rubbish mess left by passengers in a lounge at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3, I didn’t realise what a big wave it was going to make. Indeed it was interesting to note how deeply-revolted many Filipinos…
Read More “Rubbish at the Manila International Airport: Nakakahiya sa mga Kano!” »
The epic failure that was the 5th State of the Nation Address (SONA) of Philippine President Benigno Simeon ‘BS’ Aquino III this week highlights a pressing need for Filipinos to come up with a new — more modern — form of nationalistic drive. What President BS Aquino essentially did this week was break the proverbial…
Read More “Filipinos need a radically NEW kind of nationalism” »
Craig Nelson introduces his book Rocketmen, with the story of a 1969 United States Senate briefing (shortly after Apollo 11 landed Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon) where Fermilab physicist Robert Wilson is asked how a $250 million atom smasher he proposes be built will contribute to the security of the United States….
Take stock of the current political landscape today and one stark reality jumps out of the picture: There is no one great leader who stands out as one who possesses a coherent enough strategic vision for the Philippines. Instead of true leaders and statesmen all we have is more of the usual bozos: politicians. Filipino…
Read More “Business 101: Stop wasting your breath BEGGING the ‘best and brightest’ to stay” »
At the coffee shop where I routinely get my morning fix, customers mill around the counter in a way that often makes it difficult to distinguish those who are (a) in the process of ordering and paying, or (2) waiting for a concluded order to be served. So it is a normal and routine courtesy…
Read More “Filipinos desperately need a shared sense of belonging” »