Presidential Car - 3 Reasons Why PNoy Deserves a New Car

For the past few days, the debated issue of giving Philippine President Benigno "NoyNoy" Aquino III (or PNoy as he is affectionately known) a new presidential car has been gaining quite a bit of heat from many fellow Filipinos. Granted, any significant expense for a public official automatically raises eyebrows here in the Philippines (who can blame them?) but here is my rundown of reasons why it is perfectly alright to grant PNoy his new presidential car.

President NoyNoy Aquino, probably wondering Y U NO approve his new car.

Old Man Arrested for Chocolates - A (Violent) Reaction

While browsing the news site Inquirer.net a while ago, I saw this news posted from yesterday.

"79-year-old man arrested for stealing chocolates at a grocery store"

The security guard at the grocery store, Ultra Mega Wholesale and Retail Store, said that he saw a bulge in Mr. Ricardo Castro's (the septuagenarian) pocket - the allegedly stolen pack of chocolates. What is appalling with this story is that the man is seventy-nine years old (as in, a hoot short of eighty) and that the pack of chocolates was worth PHP 36.00. 

That's right. Less than a dollar.

Otherwise known as "jail time" in the Philippines.

The man offered to pay for the item, which he claims he forgot to pay for since he was thinking of his son, who was sick. The representatives of the store refused and insisted that he is to be jailed for his 'crime'.

No Mercy

I don't even know where to begin. I know for a fact that the country is experiencing a bit of a downer financially, but to exert this amount (or rather, the non-existence) of mercy to an old man is too much. To put it into perspective, he stole roughly the price equivalent of 25% of a typical Starbucks coffee drink, 50% of the typical McDonald's burger, or three sticks of street-side pork barbecue. I am so disgusted at the morals and values sacrificed in this incident all in the name of pseudo-justice and 100% business. If we have small mom-and-pop wholesale stores willing to destroy the remaining years of a senior citizen, something is very wrong with our business ethics.

Price of Mercy

PHP 36.00. That's the price of mercy, as shown by Ultra Mega store. I reckon, if every single person who reads this blog, the newspaper article, and other concerned citizens raised PHP 36.00 each, we can all either help bail Mr. Ricardo Castro out, or at least assist his family with legal and/or daily needs.

Spread the word if you are concerned that mercy is becoming ever rarer.

Original article can be found here.
Image from reciprocatellc, retrieved on February 8, 2012.

Crying Out For Blood

You know a country has had enough when private citizens actively condone brutal, violent, and very public killings of criminals by law enforcement officials.

I have been in the Philippines for a little over four years now, and the level of violence here make the hardest Malaysian gangsters look amateur. Criminal organizations here have complex systems of organizations and even private armies; granted, these are the ones that present difficulty to the nation as a whole. Understandably, the frustration of the masses would blow over more to the petty criminals, the ones who operate on a much smaller scale and are either too unlucky/dumb/careless and were caught.

Reading the comments on this news report (see the number of "likes" as well!) has made me conclude that yes, many of these criminals have nowhere else to go but six feet under. Before anything else, let's not get anything wrong: I believe in human rights and I support it in principle and in spirit. In so saying, I also believe that individuals who would seek to deny another individual the very precious thing called "life" forfeit their claim to justice and their lives. When I think about it, I do not think that criminals who take away life deserve to keep theirs.

A Vigilante Attitude?
Of course, the public condoning of criminal killing is obviously not a long-term solution. The last thing anybody wants are roving packs of armed private citizens mercilessly serving out a deadly dish of vengeance. No. This will breed disorder, discord, and a false sense of justice for the country. There is also the chance of making grievous errors; an innocent man may fall victim to this witch-hunt. In the case of rooting out and killing known criminals, the means does not justify the end.

All Down to the Individual
In the end, where does this bring us? Crime is still rampant in the Philippines and the death of several criminals, while high-profile, will actually not do much to reduce the level of overall criminal activity in the country. I suppose apart from distancing ourselves from crime, it is far more important to maintain the "us against them" mentality (id est, "us" being non-criminals and "them" being criminals). Also, it is my opinion that we, bring private citizens, should (as much as possible) allow the law enforcement officials to be the ones to enforce the heavy hand of the law - they are much better trained and equipped for "removing" the "unwanted elements" of our society. Our part, I suppose, would be to remain vigilant against threats to our social well-being and security. After all, a private citizen, no matter how good the intention, will be considered a criminal under the rule of law if said citizen commits a crime to avenge/reverse another crime.

A tooth for a tooth would sounds fair, but I know for sure I wouldn't give a tooth for a criminal. Not even a single skin cell.

Jay~

News article linked courtesy of Yahoo! News Philippines.

Everything but an Infidel

An "infidel".

That is the latest alleged characteristic pasted on the Filipino national hero Jose Rizal. Whether true or not, the fact is that a Tweet was published as saying that Dr. Rizal was "an infidel".

The original Tweet actually said:

"@BikMama2U: @datozainab Biasala tu, @anwaribrahim mmg pro-Kristian, pemuja Jose Rizal si Melayu kafir tu! Oh ya, jgn lupa..."

The user @BikMama2U was allegedly claimed by user @datozainab (the wife of the Malaysian ambassador to the Philippines) to be a fake account. Whether this is true or not, the Tweet is very offensive to any Filipino. Why? Because the Tweet translates as:

"@BikMama2U: @datozainab... That’s usual. Anwar Ibrahim is clearly pro-Christian, an admirer of Jose Rizal the infidel Malay! Oh yes, don’t forget..." *

I am not quite sure at which angle I should approach this very sensitive issue. On the one hand, my Filipino blood boils at this rude, inappropriate, and very classless description of a man who helped (in a huge way) bring down an oppressive and unjust Spanish regime more than a hundred years ago. On the other hand, I did spend almost half of my life so far in Malaysia, and my culture and sense is a mix of the two. I do know that racist comments can fly in a very off-hand manner in Malaysia (my Malaysian readers, please do not deny this.. not too vehemently, in any case) but for a racist comment to even be related to an envoy to the Philippines is perhaps a little too much.

As Filipinos, how should we react to this? We are a little notorious for our tempers (admit it; how many of us have witnessed hot-headed violence during inuman sessions?) and therefore, I think it would be wise - not to mention prudent - for us to remain more or less neutral in our reactions. Dato Zainab deserves the benefit of a doubt, as there is a chance that she was really not involved in smearing the good name of Dr. Rizal, and was merely tagged in a bad Tweet. I am sure that there will be due process in investigating this issue because 1.) this is a very sensitive and important topic for Filipinos, especially from a nationalistic, patriotic, and cultural angle, and 2.) because we expect foreign envoys and their families to always hold the utmost and utter respect towards the icons of their host countries. I can only pray that this issue does not get blown out of proportion, and that cooler and more reasonable heads prevail during this incident.

* Anwar Ibrahim was a former candidate for the Prime Minister position until a sex scandal ruined his otherwise illustrious career. He is currently back in the Malaysian political sphere and is currently the leader of the Opposition.

Jay~

Full article and source here.

Class Suspension: A Battle of Perspectives

This is a direct response to the many people - Lasallians and non-Lasallians alike - who have bashed DLSU's decision on delaying class suspensions due to tropical storm Juaning. I hope these would enlighten many minds, because ignorance isn't bliss; it's an avenue for embarrassment.

Earlier today, a storm battered northern Philippines and the capital, Metro Manila, experienced flooding and heavy rain. Beginning around 9.00am up to lunch time, schools from the north (Quezon City) started suspending classes. Southwards, schools followed suit and suspended classes as well. My alma mater/workplace, De La Salle University, refused to suspend classes at this point, thus starting a Twitter brat-fest and online flooding of complaints. I will address this from the point of view of a former student and as someone who is aware of how the school administration functions.

We Care, So Stay
Perhaps the bashing that ticked me off the most was the accusation from many places that the university administration "does not care for the well-being of its students". This is simply silly to the point of stupidity. In the middle of heavy rains, suspending classes (and in turn, closing the campus) would mean thousands of students at and around Taft Avenue - one of the busiest roads in Metro Manila - would be subject to said rain and floods. I suspect that many students were simply lazy to attend classes, due to the well-known fact that many students just do not want to attend their classes YET still hang around the campus or in nearby establishments. I believe that the logical, responsible, and rational action - which we did - was to keep these students in their classrooms, safe, dry, and warm. What about those at home? You are in no pressure to attend your classes if you believe yourself to be in imminent danger from doing so. University students are young, thinking adults, capable of making decisions for themselves. Exercise those brain cells!

Playing Tough
Some have also accused DLSU of "acting tough" as we were one of the last universities to suspend classes (around 2.40pm). The sky was still bright and sunny - though it was still raining) - at around noon-time. I know this because many people, myself included, were still crossing Taft Avenue at lunch time, looking to grab a bite. Calling it off late was not intended to be an "act of toughness" - it was an act of prudence and patience. There's a big difference between the two, as any self-respecting rational human being would know. Suspending classes early when the day was still bright and that there was no direct mandate from the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) would have displayed nothing more than hair-trigger decision-making, something the DLSU administration simply does not do. That's that.

Hypocritical Complaints
This must be the worst of the lot. It is no secret that many students cut their classes. Heck, I used to do it on a regular basis (though in my defense, I had unlimited cuts and absences for 5 terms). I do not understand at all the complaints of many students when they cried out for DLSU to suspend classes when many of them absent themselves from said classes on a regular, non-stormy day. I will have to say that more than half of the students crying out for class suspensions just did NOT want to go to their classes, for whatever lazy and selfish reason. Truth be told, the school is not chaining any one student to their classroom chairs; if you want to leave, then leave. Thinking persons would know if their respective lives are in danger - you are under no obligation to "subject" yourself to any form of "danger". Also, I do not understand why said students feel so pressured to attend their classes when, again, these same students would willingly cut classes for any random reason, from a DoTA session to "just because". Hypocrites.

Also:
Perhaps the worst critical thinking thought process I've seen on Twitter was the following premise rationale:

Premise 1: Heavy storm is directly causing many accidents.
Premise 2: DLSU is not suspending classes even though there is a heavy storm.
Conclusion: DLSU's non-suspension of classes will cause accidents, perhaps injuring Lasallians.

Um, I'm sorry, but your IQ is approximately 22.
No, make that 21.

For those who were genuinely troubled by the rains and the floods (this means you were literally staring danger - heavy rain and floods - in the eye), you would know by now that this is not for you. In fact, from messages to me and several conversations around the campus, I know that many of you are in the same thought-train as myself. Thank you for the non-bashing and supportive comments earlier in the day. It helped that there are thinking people out there :)

With those points said, I just really hope more would understand how difficult it is to suspend classes. There are processes to be followed, because a university's primary function is to provide education to the students within the halls of said university. Suspending classes at the first sign of rain is a decision devoid of rational and informed thought. And just to clarify, yes, it angered me that many acted bratty when it came to the delay in suspending classes. Yes, I know I have offended the delicacy of some students, but you know what? Please use the following checklist:

• What are you paying the university for, if not to attend school?
• Would you receive qualityeducation by hanging around instead of being in class?
• Are you a thinking adult who is able to make rational and logical decisions?
• Are you a thinking adult who is really concerned about your self-preservation?
• Are you aware that you are not obliged to expose yourself to danger?
• Did you know that patience is a virtue?
• Are you really in university, or are you still in high school?
• Do you like peanuts? I love peanuts.
  

If only the mouth (and the fingers) were slower than the brain :)

Oh, and when the university finally suspended classes?
The new complaint was that now, it was much too late. ROFLMAO.


Jay~

Like Mother Like... Daughter?

The recent news on the child dancing like a stripper on national television is beginning to wind down. I thought that was bad, and then at one of the forums where I actively read, I see this pretty recent article:

A mother injecting her 8-year old botox for a beauty pageant. This is wrong on so many levels, I can't even begin to describe it.

Botox. Eight years old.

Yeah. This is way, way up there on the parents-can-be-such-uncaring-dumbasses list for me.

Jay~

Hard Arm of the Law

It was never going to be a pretty incident.

Today, three Filipinos were executed in China for drug smuggling. According to Chinese law, smuggling and trafficking more than 50g of illegal drugs is punishable by death by lethal injection.

The three Filipinos were supposed to have been handed the death penalty a month ago, had not Vice President Binay personally brought a letter from the President to the Chinese authorities requesting a stay of execution. The stay was granted, but earlier today, the fate of the three were released to the public: they have been executed as per Chinese law.

Too harsh?
Amnesty International has continually berated the People's Republic of China over the harsh laws it has, as well as the numerous cases of death penalties meted out on nationals and non-nationals alike. The three Filipinos executed today follow the fate of several other foreigners convicted of drug-related crimes within China. Many online comments on the news posts that I have seen show people expressing sympathy towards the families of the drug mules (people who are hired to smuggle drugs into another country for a fee) and increasing resentment towards the drug syndicates abound. Many are arguing that though Chinese laws are harsh, perhaps it would have been a wiser course of action for both the Philippine and the Chinese governments to have pursued the "head of the snake" instead, as compared to chopping off the "appendages" - the drug mules, in this case.

One thing I do see a problem was the claim that drug syndicates have "duped" these people into smuggling drugs into another country. That may be so, and I honestly believe that these three were probably driven to the point of desperation as to resort to taking huge risks such as the one they all did, in order to provide for their families. It is painful for us Filipinos to admit it, but the three individuals executed were adults capable of weighing decisions; it was a matter of unfortunate circumstance that they were caught, arrested, tried, and found guilty. It was even more unfortunate that all of those happened in a nation-state that still implemented capital punishment. However, I think we also need to understand the point of view of the Chinese government. It was enforcing its laws. Nothing more, nothing less. It was painful to see our countrymen die by the hand of another nation's justice system, and it was also painful to know that these same persons were duped and/or tricked. However, from China's point of view, its laws were broken, and in the spirit of maintaining its sovereignty, it enforced those selfsame laws; the death of three 'criminals' would simply be another case of lawbreakers meeting their fate. Sad? Yes. Fair? Probably not. In accordance to Chinese law? Yes, and that's what matters to the Chinese government.

I hope that this incident serves as a lesson to many Filipinos who are driven to take any and all measures in order to provide for their families. Honest living may not provide the same financial rewards as illegal activities do, but the risk - such as being prosecuted and found guilty in a foreign court - is far too much for our loved ones to handle when worse comes to worse. It is not fair to them, especially if they find out of our fate through television as it had already happened. It is also not right for us to go to another country and break the laws of that country. In the same way that we will never think of smashing our host's windows as they accommodate us in their home, we shouldn't have to take unnecessary risks that could well end up unhealthily.

My favorite author, Michael Crichton, said it best:
"Justice is never about fairness.. It is merely a resolution for conflict."

Jay~

Parents' Prerogative?

There have been recent developments regarding the recent incident involving a minor dancing like seedy entertainer on national television. This particular one is far more disturbing as it shakes the very foundation of common sense and logic.

Jan-Jan's parents are NOT filing charges and they do NOT "see anything wrong" with what transpired on that show.

What??

Yes, that is exactly what is mentioned in this news article. What is even more disgusting was some of the things the parents had to say in that news report:

"That’s what my son wanted, he liked to be famous, become a star...I just supported my kid...that’s what he wanted."
- Jojo Estrada, father of Jan-Jan.

Daddy's issue here is fame. Fame that his six-year old apparently wanted to have, and so, being the "supportive father" that he is, allowed his son to be the object of "entertainment" and ridicule from thousands and thousands of Filipino viewers nationwide. An issue arises here: When does "supporting" your child's "dreams" simply become a parent using his child as a tool for a quick buck and a claim to fame? I do not wish to treat children as if they are second-class citizens, but children are children for a reason: they need the GUIDANCE, DISCIPLINE, and PROTECTION of their parents (barring that, their guardians). What Mr. Estrada did was none of those; I do not claim to be an expert on parenting but no father should presume that being famous is what his child needs right now. Now, his son and his family are famous, true, but for all the wrong reasons.

It's difficult to say which camp is more wrong, but the fact remains that there is something wrong in this incident. If there wasn't, then the national public outrage that this has caused would constitute about the population of a public bathroom. This is not the case though. Thousands are speaking up against this form of "public entertainment"; clearly, it has violated an inner sense of righteousness and fairness among many Filipinos. I admit: I do not watch Willing Willie, but say I was a new viewer (all of you Willie die-hards were once first-time viewers too, so no hypocritical remarks) and this was the first episode I saw (which is true for my case), wouldn't I have the right to be appalled at what I saw? I was, and horrified too. The video brought out emotions of anger at the crass exploitation of a child who literally did NOT know any better, the classless gags and VERY tired jokes, as well as the frustration that real, living human beings are eating up and consuming shows such as these.

Shows with no cultural, societal, and moral values.
NONE WHATSOEVER.

None, as proven by the casual - almost nonchalant - indifference of the child's parents against those seeking to defend their child's rights.

We all need to take a stand. Our national identity and values cannot be a street-side whore for the consumption of many.

Jay~

Willie Revillame and JanJan: A New Low to an Old Show

This was an issue that has been around for a couple of weeks now, but has only come to my attention recently. It's a well-known fact that here in the Philippines, entertainment shows abound (though their methods of "entertaining" are rather dubious at times) and one particular show, hosted by a certain Willie Revillame, takes the cake for appalling "humor".

There is a video of this incident, but I feel it is not necessary to spread it around until the kid's face is obscured to spare him further humiliation, degradation, and loss of respect. Here is a post with a screenshot of the performance. Basically, this is the picture:


The show's host, Willie, has gained some notoriety on certain tasteless and allegedly exploitative acts in order to promote his show. He throws around money like cheap candy (in this particular case, he hands P3,000 to JanJan's aunt for hugging him. Yeah, he needs more of that.) and in the eyes of many viewers "struggling to make ends meet", he's the second Jesus himself. This show featuring JanJan, however, is just horribly wrong.

It starts off innocently enough. A poor kid from a poor family is featured on a show. Fine. He is asked to dance. Fine as well. However, the child's dance was akin to the sort that red-light district performers are prone to do, which wouldn't be as terrible as it became had the kid not been crying during his entire performance. He was clearly distressed, but the show's host, the kid's aunt, and the vast majority of the audience were egging him on. For the next five minutes or so, Willie repeatedly asked JanJan to perform over and over again. The distressed look on the kid's face never disappeared. He was given P10,000 (about $200) for his troubles.

Entertainment vs Morals
The issue that many people such as myself are bringing up in response to this show is not because we "hate" Willie Revillame. For some, that is indeed true. I am indifferent as to who he is. My personal problem is that this man allows unacceptable things to happen; a child of 6 years dancing provocatively on stage for money definitely counts as unacceptable in my books. Aside from that, the fact that many people find this practice "alright" for "poor people" is not only judgmental; it is a display of total dumbf*ckery (pardon the language, I'm pretty mad).

When the host was explaining "how difficult life is... he's [JanJan] doing this for his family..", did any of the viewers stop to think why a child would do this "for his family"? Yes, life is hard, especially in a third-world country like ours, but dignity and self-respect shouldn't be the first two things to be sacrificed for two hundred bloody dollars. In the video, the kid mentioned his dad operated a parlor (a barbershop) and the host was suggestively questioning the father's occupation, which he does not have a right to do. JanJan's family is much better off than many other Filipinos simply because his father has an occupation. Yeah, an occupation but not honor and certainly not the protectiveness expected of a father. Why am I putting so much of the blame on the father? The kid says he learned to dance that way FROM HIM. And of course, the father - along with the mother and the ecstatic aunt - would have given permission for him to appear on television the way he did. This scares me; parents and guardians have no qualms about sacrificing the dignity and self-respect of children for the sake of "providing for the family" and/or "making a living during desperate times".

Oh, and it also did not help that the host, the crowd, and the viewers that day I am sure, were hooting and cheering as a child (who should either be in school, watching cartoons, or playing in the park) showed the country what he is being taught to do all for the sake of making a quick buck.

We have prostituted our society.
All of us are liable, unless we speak up and stand up against this. United, we the people of the Philippines, can topple an institution that has made a mockery of our supposed Christian values and the familial ethics we claim to be so proud of.

Thanks to Definitely Filipino for the picture and some info.

Jay~

Increased Jeep Fare

Just a few weeks ago, I blogged about the increased taxi fares that has already been implemented in many taxis in the Philippines. I've actually ridden one of these "receipt-enabled" cabs (What in hell will you use a cab receipt for? Transportation reimbursement? Tax breaks? Toilet paper?) and the difference is substantial; a cab ride to Global City used to cost me around P80.00 - P90.00 (USD 2.00), and last Saturday, it went up to P130.00 (USD 3.00). Multiply that over a week, and soon enough commuting becomes a big fat burden.

Now jeeps are going to be increasing fares (again). This will be implemented tomorrow, February 2.

Jeeps are the staple of Filipino commuting; cheap, highly abundant, and lets one FULLY experience the country, danger and all. The usual rate is P7.00 for the first 4 kilometers and then it adds up after every click or so. I'm not sure how the drivers calculate, but it is still a very cheap mode of transportation. Another peso might not hit some hard, but it would definitely affect other demographics in our country. In the article mentioned here, one would note that not only is petrol price increase blamed but also "operating expenses".

I sure hope they spend some of the extra money actually INSTALLING BRAKE LIGHTS, WORKING SIGNAL LIGHTS, and as much as many jeep drivers/operators do not care to admit, some form of VENTILATION would be nice as well, especially as jeeps turn into microwave ovens on rainy days when the plastic blinds are drawn.

Jay~

Laptop Thief (Caught on Camera)

I know many people personally who have lost gadgets such as mobile phones and laptops in public places, and it is simply amazing to see a heist in action. In this article from Yahoo! News Philippines, a thieving-ring is caught on the in-store camera executing a quick and flawless job. This happened in Oyster Boy, an eatery at Metrowalk, off Meralco Avenue, Ortigas City.

The video:


So please, be wary of placing your bags with valuables out of sight. Remember, "out of sight, out of mind" sometimes applies in cases such as this one. Personally, I like placing my wallet and mobile phone in a place where it is either on me (a tight pocket, like a shirt pocket) or an inch away from me on the table. As for bags, I always loop a strap around my ankle - which would have prevented this one immediately.

This has been a public service post from me, courtesy of Yahoo! News and YouTube user Teddypork.

Update: Enforcing the Enforcers

The policeman who allegedly raped a detainee has surrendered himself, according to the linked news report.

This is the latest development to my previous blog post located here.

I hope for a fair and just resolution on this one.

Jay~

Enforcing the Enforcers

Read an interesting article here on Inquirer.net. In a nutshell, a live-in couple will be filing charges against a police officer for alleged rape on the woman.
If this is true - and I believe it is still too early to pass judgment - then this could decrease even further the already-low opinion of the general public (source: just ask the person beside you next time) towards our law enforcement officers. Anecdotal tales of police bribing abound in almost every major city in the Philippines that I've been to. In fact, I have already heard of something akin to a "pricing system" with regards to bribery costs! There are yet more stories about law enforcement officers being overly harsh or abusive, as well as being famously corrupt in as many ways as one could be corrupt. Now this presents a very large problem, something that should scare us out of our wits: if we cannot trust our law enforcers, then who can we turn to?

In my opinion, this problem stems from us, the general public of the Philippines.
Firstly, we do not expect much from our cops. This should change. We should expect them to be paragons of law-abiding (even if they're not) in the way that a lesser has a certain expectation of a superior; the superior would be compelled to live up to that standard or risk humiliation from a lesser. Of course, on the side of the police officer, he or she must be willing to accept that he is - not by choice, but by uniform - automatically an example to the general citizenry. Whether or not he accepts this is not the point; he or she must understand that much is expected from him/her, and that the fate of our society vis-a-vis law enforcing and law abiding rests partly on his/her highly accountable shoulders (and the badges attached on them too). In this news report, I am sure (if you have been in the Philippines for a while) that you quickly passed a judgment of "Well, the cops here are really just like that". See? They become what we expect them to be!
Secondly, we already have this mentality that birds of a same feather flock together. In certain examples, I concede; it is a generally well-accepted fact that people of the same creed, interest, or passions do tend to gravitate towards each other. In cases such as in the news report, it was sad - though wholly predictable and rather expected - that the couple felt that the police officers would cover each other's backs. It is difficult to deny that fraternal relationships do produce that sort of relationship between the individuals in said certain group; heck, even in Skittlez, we cover for each all the time. However, law enforcers are expected (there we come full circle to 'expectations') to be impartial upholders of the law, with a certain familiar credo ringing in their ears, ideally: The law applies to all, or none at all. Private citizens, such as yourself and I, should not have to fear law enforcers covering up crimes just because they happen to wear the same uniforms or once swore the same oaths. It shouldn't have to work that way. I believe that if a police officer is wrong, then he or she is wrong; his/her colleagues should in fact be expected to be the first to condemn the law-breaking; after all, their comrade-in-arms broke the same oaths and promises they made, and disgraced the same uniform they wear. In so saying, I think we can help the police force become a much more efficient one by treating their individuals officers as individual units of a larger organization, and not clump them in the "all cops are crooked" category.
Third and finally, we simply need to be a lot more hard-line towards our police force. Perhaps we have built both a low expectation and a tendency to generalize them because the bad apples in the law enforcement basket know that the general public (us) are relative suckers to a little bit of Chewbacca defense (also more popularly known as 'a red herring'). This is simply because bad cops (or good cops gone bad, for that matter) are not made examples of enough; it sounds harsh, and in a sense, authoritarian, but if our police officers know that severe repercussions will arise on the instance that they forget (or forgo) their respective mandates, then I believe they will be less likely to turn into the proverbial bad apples. The truly nasty ones in the police force should be made public examples; hard and desperate measures are called for in hard and desperate times. The times certainly call for it, if such a negative image of our national police force is already the norm in our country. How can our 'disciplinarians' correct us, when some of them suffer from lack of discipline themselves? It's a simple, but vicious cycle.
Going back to the news article, if the cop truly did something against the law (rape is pretty high on the list of not-to-do-to-citizens) then his colleagues are bound - nay, expected - by law and us, the citizens of this state, to be arrested, tried in a court of law, and subsequently receive due and fair punishment. If, however, he is innocent after all, the alleged victims should then face justice themselves. In both cases, it is imperative that our law enforcement agencies understand that they have complete and total control as to how the general public perceives them. The bad rep did not come from thin air, but I truly believe it is not too late for them - and indeed, all of us who may have been guilty of regrettable mistakes - to turn over a new leaf, especially in a new year.

Jay~

Anatomy of a Mistress Mauling

I saw this video on YouTube which happened in a mall here in the Philippines. Watch it first, digest it, and react. Then read my analysis and opinion on it.


The story is supposedly like this: wife goes to a mall with friends, one of which is armed with a video camera, intending to catch her husband in the act, that is, going out with his alleged mistress. Wife sees the husband with the mistress, and she - along with her posse - moves in for the kill. The wife proceeds to beat the living daylights out of the alleged mistress. Mall security personnel rush in intending to break up the beat-down, but the death-grip-from-hell wife manages to inflict a reasonable amount of physical punishment to the alleged mistress. Husband, standing there with his box of donuts, mounts a halfhearted rescue effort. After the whole fiasco, the husband goes after the alleged mistress leaving his wife behind in the hands of mall authorities.

This video highlights a few issues that sadly takes a back seat to the general reaction of the public who have viewed it: justifiable vengeance. However, I opine that no issue or conflict can ever by justified by vengeance, but in so saying, vengeance is, admittedly, a somewhat useful (if oft violent) deterrent.

Infidelity is an issue that has been around since marriages (and relationships for that matter) became commonplace. It has been the cause of countless study and philosophizing, but in the end, no one really has an all-encompassing answer for this social problem, if one sees it as 'a problem'. There are various legal ways of finding resolution to these kinds of conflict, and the option of choice for most is divorce. However, this highlights the difficulty in procuring a divorce here in the Philippines. Most married couples - and I speak from personal observation and opinion only - who wish to "end" their love affair simply stay away from each other and pretend a marriage never happened. In this case, it seems like the wife held her marriage at a high enough value as to pretty much do anything in order to "punish" whoever gets in the way. Props to her, but now this brings about problems.

First of all, even if the husband was cheating on her, the husband and the alleged mistress was clearly on a group outing. It could hardly be said that they went out "alone" as their friends were spoken to by the camera handler. Any notion of exclusivity in this scenario is out of the window. I am not saying he was not cheating, merely that it is difficult for me to see any exclusivity between the husband and the alleged mistress.

Secondly, it has never been easy to justify assault and battery. Every sovereign state on this planet have laws against private citizens hurting each other - no matter the reason bar self-defense. "Self-defense" is clearly not applicable here (unless we take into account that the supposed cheating as an "attack intended to cause bodily harm" towards the wife); actually, the very fact that the wife's party had a video camera suggests that they intended to capture in film some sort of confrontation or - as seen in the video - a downright physical fight. The bottom line is, for whatever intents and purposes, the wife clearly assaulted the alleged mistress. Emotionally justifiable? Perhaps. Ethically justifiable? Personally, I would say yes. Morally justifiable? No, because she did inflict bodily harm on the alleged mistress. Legally justifiable? HARDLY, as far as I am informed. We cannot simply harm (or wish harm) to another person because we were offended or insulted. Infidelity is a serious breach of love and trust, yes, and that is exactly why we have a legal code. The majesty of the law should be our number one back-up in cases of severity such as these.

Finally, it is said that there are two sides to a coin. It takes two to tango. I can rattle on more relevant phrases, but it all underlines a simple point: why did the wife assault the alleged mistress, when her husband - who she is in a legal and consecrated relationship with - was easier to have access to, so to speak? I can understand the anger, insecurity, and mistrust the alleged mistress probably caused to the wife, but attacking her does not solve anything if her husband himself was the instigator of the affair. If I was to justify a beat-down (and I'm not saying I would, in any part of this post), I think that the husband was more deserving of it simply because he either opted to cheat out of his own free will OR he took the bait that the other woman dangled in front of him. Whatever the reason, it was HE, the husband, who should have borne the brunt of the consequences arising from his infidelity.

Having said that, this post is merely a reaction to many comments I have read online regarding this matter. There are so many people who laughed at the alleged mistress, with many egging on more punishment for her in the future. There are some who state that they would inflict even worse damage on her, including enough harm as to cause her her death. DEATH. There are many crimes worthy of the death penalty (I support the death penalty for drug-related crimes, murder, and rape), sure, but infidelity? It is painful, yes, but I doubt that it is necessary to want to take someone's life because of it. Jealousy and envy - no matter how justifiable - should never be the basis of any reaction, opinion, or thought. The sad part is, none of us who have seen the video can truly know the story in its entirety; we are limited by what we see in that video.

From what I've seen, the wife should have just filed for annulment, demanded her fair share of property and assets, and at home, beat her husband silly (she looked capable anyway), and be done with it. There is no need to stoop down to the level that she succumbed to on that one eventful day at the mall.

Jay~

Think Before You Drink

An advocacy project for Citizenship and Governance class.
Please show your support! Spread the link of this post to as many people as you are able to! We are targeting a few thousand views before the month is out. :)

Thank you for supporting!

Jay~

Impossible Radio Show

A few minutes ago, I was having breakfast, and as usual, my kitchen radio was tuned into this station called DZDD. A guest was on air, let's call him Mr. X. They were talking about population control and population boom.

I am mad, seething mad, at the amount of rubbish that fellow was allowed to say on-air. I know for a fact that a lot of people listen to this radio station, and that a lot of them will believe the most ridiculous things I have ever heard on radio in my life.

Claim #1
There is NO population boom.

According to the website Ibiblio, the current world population is 6.9 billion people. Compare those stats with 5 years ago, 10 years ago, and 20 years ago, and it's painfully obvious that there is a population boom.

Claim #2
The entire world can fit in Texas.

This is quite a howler. The former senator Mr. X claims that with a population density of 8000 persons per square kilometer, the world can fit within Texas (thus begging the question of is overpopulation then, really is a problem?). To help understand how foolish the claims of this former senator was, let's do some simple mathematics. Texas has a land area of 696,000 square kilometers. The world has 6.9 billion people. Assuming that 100% of Texas is habitable land, we would come up with a population density of 9913 persons per square kilometer. He claims that this is possible because "8000 persons per square kilometer is half of the population density of Manila". Of course, it's certainly probable, but really, (and I can attest to this), the quality of life was disregarded by Mr. X aka the fact-machine. He fails to regard that people just cannot use every available land on this planet to live on; the land must be habitable, offer a certain quality of life, and of course, convenient for survival. The Sahara desert is a lot of land, but you don't imagine seeing a Saharan metropolis do you?

Claim #3
The first-world countries are selfish.

He claims that the "millions of dollars spent by first-world countries to treat their AIDS sufferers" should be "sent to third-world countries instead, like the Philippines, to help feed people". He also claims that those people will not get AIDS if they "were God-fearing in the first place".

Mr. X, sexual intercourse is not the only way to get AIDS. Quite frankly, why in hell should first-world countries help feed the poor of third-world countries by not taking care of their own citizens first? This is the real world, not some philanthropic dream of yours. Mr. X has also failed to consider that the third-world countries that are suffering are not tackling domestic corruption problems, which bleed the aid money given by first-world countries in the billions of dollars.

Claim #4
God is not dumb.

I agree with this one completely BUT the way Mr. X gave an example was utter foolishness. He claims that studies on overpopulation are done by "Western atheists" who do not believe in God, and assumes God is so dumb as to "create a world that can be overpopulated". This is even beyond stupidity. God may have created the world, but people choose to procreate, people choose to have children irresponsibly, and people choose to pack themselves in dense urban areas. I hate it when a guy shoots his own foot; he accuses others of being non-believers when he lives in a country (my motherland, the Philippines) where AIDS is at an all-time high, teenage pregnancy is a common occurrence, drug abuse is everywhere, an experienced sex industry, and crime levels that are just appalling. You hypocrite. The pot has certainly called the kettle black in this case.

Moral of the story: Do not always believe what you hear in radio (and we should never do) and when in doubt, the Internet has tons of reliable and accurate resources to inform ourselves of what really is happening in the world. Knowledge is more than power; it gives our lives substance.

So go out there, and read up on something, and learn! :)

Jay~