In today’s Inquirer editorial, the paper thinks the government’s trying to politicize the price of gas; this reflects the attitude of people like Norwegian Would who think we’ve moved forward since the days of subsidized oil:
It is now close to a decade since we finally smashed the old illusion that oil price subsidies were pro-poor, perpetuated for a long time by the middle and upper class leaders of so-called ‘people’s organizations.’ Note that at that time nominal prices were below 20 dollars per barrel. Now the high is about five times. But we don’t hear of any outrageous manifestos that the increase is caused by the local ruling class in conspiracy with foreign capitalists, do we?
Despite its moderate optimism, the Inquirer’s Sunday editorial proved prophetic, in a sense, as it warned of the consequences if politicking intruded into the Batasan bombing investigation too early. The news reported Ermita clears Salapuddin on Batasan blast which led to backpedaling on his part, today: Palace executive says he did not clear Salapuddin. But the damage has been done: as Senator Genaro Magsaysay famously said, “less talk, less mistake.” The dangers of higher-ups saying something were obvious to begin with.
Last Thursday I had a chance to run into Rep. Roilo Golez whose observations, however, made sense to me. He said that if assassination was the aim, then the opportunity presents itself in two places: where the target lives, and where the target works (incidentally, on Wahab Akbar, see Torn and Frayed and Sidetrip with Howie Severino).
Add to this, he said, the fact that we don’t have a suicide bomber culture, and that includes killers intent on killing themselves, too. So an assassin would make saving his own hide a high priority. This limits the opportunities, Golez said. Between home and work, the target’s convoy would make assassination difficult. You’d expect home to be well secured. But work -well, in the case of Akbar, the opportunity was there, particularly as he seemed to have suffered from a false sense of security while at the House, leaving by the same entrance like clockwork. An assassin, Golez observed, would run the risk of being gunned down after shooting his target, unless he was capable of making the 300 meter dash to the main entrance before anyone noticed what had happened. This means, if a getaway is important to the assassin, a bomb would be best. The other possibility, that the bombing was undertaken by a rogue element within the military, is a possibility Golez’s very uncomfortable with. No such inhibitions from Inner Sanctum.
Still, Amando Doronila says Blaming Abus was convenient for probers while Uniffors remains puzzled by the use of a bomb to do something small arms fire could have accomplished.
Scriptorium says the bombing raises three questions (read the whole entry, particularly his belief our society isn’t about to fall apart, just yet):
First, how could they think to do it? For while the legislators are not deemed epitomes of integrity–and in recent years, in fact, the Lower House has seemed lower still, a very expensive rubber stamp fit for a Queen–, they are legislators nonetheless, anointed with the ill-used but still real dignity of representing the nation in its districts and sectors; and an attack on them remains, by constitutional fiction, an attack on us. The bombing was therefore not only an attempt at mass murder–or perhaps at simple murder with multiple collateral casualties–but a national lese majeste, an brazen act of political sacrilege that makes us shudder for its confidence and contempt.
This takes us to the 2nd concern: Who then is safe? If our legislators with their security force and phalanxes of bodyguards can be attacked at the very center of their power, then what of us–who, when we ride the trains and enter the malls, have only private guards to keep us unharmed, searching our bags for bombs they would hardly recognize, shielding us more from comfort than from danger? The Glorietta “gas explosion” was bad enough; and even as we continue our daily routines, we know that we’ve gone back to the second lowest step of Maslow’s hierarchy (if, that is, we ever left it, or ever ascended from the first). One can hardly blame the tourists and investors for staying away, for they have a choice. We have none, and must go as before, though perhaps adding a prayer for safety to our morning rituals.
The 3rd concern proceeds from the foregoing: What next? Was this but the first ledge of a descending cascade of violence, unleashed by maybe Maoists, Islamists, Arroyoists, or random thugs? Will our government seize on it as an excuse to formally impose martial law, which it has proven all-too-willing to do for the most intangible reasons? In this light, though the intentions behind the attack are still uncertain, and its economic and social results remain to be seen, the needed policy response is already clear: For the sake of the nation and its people, the violence must be halted now, and its real perpetrators must be identified and prosecuted as soon as possible–but the means used must not, through excess, threaten to destroy the very ideals they seek to protect. More anon, perhaps, when more facts come to light.
More questions are raised by Postcard Headlines. But Mon Casiple asks the real question on everyone’s mind: are they Coincidences or real political moves? He’s a bit ambiguous on this score:
At the moment, the political situation points to the imperative on the president to make a decisive decision soon on which path she will take to ensure her own survival beyond 2010. The name of the game right now is called “transition management.”
She does not have much time left for her to decide (and make this public) since all the options require long and difficult preparations. All the interested political actors–within and outside her ruling coalition, local as well as foreign–know this. All are exerting pressure to push their own agenda and–the jackpot–to be the one to manage the transition.
Of course, GMA may not really leave the scene–witness her pronouncements on a charter change initiative. There are some in her coalition who wants to use the charter change to extend her term in power (and their own) and they are moving heaven and civil society to make this happen.
However, the chances for this are slim, unless her administration scatters the opposition and unleashes white terror on civil society. The desperate temptation to declare martial law or a state of emergency stem from the reality of a people’s resistance to charter change under GMA’s tutelage.
It is a coincidence that dramatic events such as the Batasan bombing, the Dalaig assassination, or the Glorietta incident occur one after the other in this moment of political conjuncture. Still-unfolding events will show whether these are real coincidences or planned moves in a game of political strategy.
Meanwhile, bureaucratic intramurals: Battle looms over control of Justice.
Overseas, see Malaysia Demos: Sound and Fury, Signifying Little in Asia Sentinel.
My column for today is The future’s bright (and thanks to the San Jose-Recoletos student publications editor-in-chief, who blogs at ~~peAceOuS viCioUs~~ for her kind words). On a Visayas-related note, see Boljoon Dig part 1 and Boljoon Dig part 2, in CAFFiend, on some remarkable archeological diggings there. Interesting entries, on provincial history, in Kanlaon and A Nagueño in the Blogosphere. Interesting notes, too, in The Magnificent Atty. Perez, referring to the Iloilo-Cebu connection.
Elsewhere in the blogosphere, I failed to read Blackshama’s Blog’s reaction to my columns on Marcos. But now that I have, you know, I’m working on a theory. Marcos established a New Society as the dominant discourse: it justified the scrapping of the liberal-democratic order created in 1935; and it was,actually, the justification for Edsa 1 and even Edsa Dos -and explains the refusal of what was once Marcos’ strongest constituency, the middle and upper classes frightened by Communism, to be politically engaged since 2005. Neither Edsa created a New Society, so why bother?
Think of it. Sift through all the reasons people give for not being politically active since 2005 (never mind examples of extreme social alienation, as shown in , or of guilt, as expressed by Hello Tiger Kitty), sift through the things people enumerate as everything wrong with this country (oligarchy, etc.) and then sift through what they want -basically, a Year Zero- and where it might be headed (a swing to the Right, suggests Ren’s Public Notebook) what do you have?
Ang Bagong Lipunan!
Another idea to explore is described in History Unfolding’s entry on Politics and Fourth Turnings:
William Strauss and Neil Howe, who wrote Generations and The Fourth Turning, divided American history into periods of approximately 80 years, called saeculums (Latin for a long human life.) In turn they divided each such period into four “turnings,” a High, an Awakening, an Unraveling and a Crisis. After the civil war crisis, the High lasted approximately from 1867 to 1885, the Awakening from about 1885 to 1905, the Unraveling until 1929 or so, and the crisis through 1945. In our own time the High ran from 1945 to 1965, the Awakening from then until the mid-1980s, the Unraveling from about 1985 until. . .sometime in the last 8 years.
This is a concept that resonates with me, because I approached recent events along similar (though not as intricate) lines in.
The Marocharim Experiment on the sociology of dance moves. It’s sad to note Patsada Karajaw has vanished from the blogosphere.
Technorati Tags: Blogging, books, constitution, economy, Edsa, history, House of Representatives, Marcos, media, military, mindanao, philippines, politics, society
And, CVJ, As to your wish of having a President Trillanes. I have to be very direct to you, it will NEVER EVER happen.
Pinoy
Agree ako sa sinasabi mo. I said the same thing as much a few comments back. DI lang matanggap ni CVJ na that’s what is required for the country to move forward. Gusto niya jingoistic pa rin, go it alone, I am the individual and I have the freedom to do anything I want the hell if I f**ked up the rest of the country basta may freedom ako attitude. (Anyway, he likes to put words in people’s mouth so I might as well do the same).
Silent Waters,
I have beee reading your comments. I just cannot reply much becuase I am in a middle of a very rush projects right now. I actually agree on most if not all you said. Its like I was the one writing them.
So ako dapat ang nagpapasalamt sa you for voicing out my sentiments. Im sure there are lot of people out there who share the same sentiments. And tey too shoudl thank you for that.
Keep it up!
actually, one is in singapore. he is with him in spirit though. and from there he’s trying his darn best to make the system work properly.
Stop defending Trillanes by pulling GMA out of your magic hat. In the end, what he did was a criminal act. No matter how much we don’t like the present regime right now, it doesn’t legitimize whatever criminal acts people employ. Taking over a private building forcibly, scaring local and foreign guests and worst of all, using media as a shield to make sure he won’t be “liquidated” (as if GMA is so dumb to actually do that and make a martyr out of him) are all criminal acts.
What’s even worse is the presence of the so called morally ascendant people like the priests who supported him. ANo ba yan? They support a criminal act because they so hate the regime so much they’re willing to forego DOING THE RIGHT THING?
That’s what this discussion is really all about.
Kaya pala madali i shoot down yung argument ko na free style American democracy doesn’t work for us….eh nandun pala sa Singapore…doesn’t even know what happens on the ground. How do you control 80M people scattered in different islands , all with very feudal systems in place? Oh, let’s try free wheeling American democracy! Ha!
whatever anybody say, at the end of the day, trillianes, et al. are still alive with no strand of hair missing as a result of their folly. to the credit of the government, particularly gma who bears the brunt of every perceived official “overreaction”, not a single life was lost nor any injury occurred. the only casualties were the false “pride” of those self-anointed paragons of freedom who were handcuffed and herded into a bus. this is the best and most convincing argument that the rule of law works in the philippines despite contrary spins of gma’s
detractors. thus, in the aftermath, the likes of ellen tordesillias, et al. can go the rounds of biased t.v. talk shows and boast their on-the-spot account of their own exploits in the lawless exercise.
Trillanes was just doing what others since Marcos had done. Gloria was successful, because she is much smarter than all of these pea brains little would be coup de etaters put together and she planned her moves so carefully with full co-operation of the Military and the post co-operation of the SC chief.
But dying? you kidding? what good is a dead man who is so ambitious to be a Philippine President? You and me and all the smart bloggers and commenters here (are we smart?)do not know what his intentions yet or he is just another messenger by someone behind the scene calling the shots and will just appear when all the smokes clear up and settle the accounts, isn’t that what it’s all about???
The self styled messiah who thinks he will bring the Philippines to the promised land only has himself to blame. Each and everytime, I am sure somebody has promised him the bodies to support him and obvious ba, the bodies weren’t there? For a smart man, he certainly is stupid to fall for those politicos’ crap. (Shattered Dreams playing in the background….)
The opposition must now realize that the Filipino people are tired of all their shenanigans. Jaded na ang pinoy sa people power. If I were in their shoes, (and this is again not to say I also believe in their cause kasi may isa diyan hihirit na naman), they might as well start preparing for the 2010 elections and choose a formidable candidate to go against the administration’s candidate.
coward,
precisely my point. it’s trillanes’ ambition that was revealed for all the world to see — and whoever were behind his “daring” move yesterday. heck, he even wanted his caper to coincide close enough to bonifacio day, nov. 30…he wants everyone to think that he is a hero kuno… now bonifacio might have been not as smart as aguinaldo — but nobody would contest that andres bonifacio was a hero and died for for the Filipino nation.
Trillanes and Lim may be accused of everything and anything for their failed move in Manila Pen but I do think they can hardly be accused of cowardice…
The opposition groups are not united because they have their own agenda and have their own anointed people to put as President.
‘
Just like what happened to Trillanes. No one from the opposition group came to morally support him. Lahat umiwas and now he’s left on his own.
Kasi according to whispers, the script called for his siege as front act but not that day. The other groups now think that he wanted to steal the limelight from those who are planning to make papel on Nov. 30.
Wala siyang planning o plano niya talaga yon. Ambisyoso? Well he thought that the 11 million votes that he gathered would be translated into people power.
Kahit sa mga tradpols, basa na ang papel niya.
Trillanes is just a symptom of a malignant disease. You may mudsling him all you like, but the resentment and the sense of injustice that he personifies still remain and will never be eradicated as long as the status quo is maintained.
The methods that he may have used are puerile if not downright senseless, yet it just gives the millions who share the same sentiments a chance to adopt more effective means.
Public displays of bravado may not suit the present situation, but there are ways, particularly among dissatisfied soldiers, heck nuff said.
“… but i do think they can hardly be accused of cowardice…” mbw.
the gnat who slams itself into the flame and gets roasted in the process cannot be called brave either. not even stupid. just unable to think!
kimosabe, beyond “mudslinging”, i doubt trillianes even understand the import of the “resentment and sense of injustice” you are talking about. i kind of think his problem is psychological. he needs a shrink, badly.
You’re telling me again…
Karah, if that’s you, welcome back 🙂
Bencard,
Quite a sneaky ad hominem you got there. Unless I got my facts wrong, isn’t he the whistleblower on the massive corruption that was happening in the military back then which enabled the conviction of the G4 guy? You know, the selling of AFP armaments and munitions to the “enemies of the state”? And didn’t GMA turned the tables on him and his fellow middle-ranked mistahs despite the assurances? And didn’t this happened after the PMA Christmas party dinner or something? All of these leading to the so-called Oakwood mutiny?
Please enlighten me on this. If you place your trust on your commander in chief, telling her all your grievances, and getting the assurance that everything will be in confidence and that the problems will be effectively addressed, and you get burned in the end, how will you feel? Be in his in shoes for a while, you are in your 30s and you have the prospect of spending the rest of your life behind bars, unless you are taking Prozac, won’t you feel mightily pissed?
no need to jail the dead, silent. ganyan kayo makapagsalita bec the oppression doesn’t strike close to your homes.
people like cvj and me, on the other hand, feel these people’s pain. no matter which way you put it, this admin has refused to answer the questions of legitimacy being raised agst it.
kung magrereklamo rin lang kayo ng double standards, unahin nyo na si Cory at ang EDSA 1 victors, isunod nyo si GMA at ang EDSA 2 beneficiaries.
what Trillanes did was a crime? yeah, taking over the hotel was a crime. but revolting?
GMA didn’t even show her face until it was evident ERAP would be deposed. naki ride-on na lang, sumalo ng grasya, at ngayon ang kapal ng mukhang iwagayway ang rule of law nya. ni hindi nya nga alam ang ibig sabihin nito.
rule of loopholes sya. hindi law.
mali talaga si Trillanes. pero ang tangi nyang pagkakamali ay ang pag takeover sa hotel. at yung oakwood.
but everything this guy has done has been a reaction to all the oppression he’s got from the Arroyo govt. remember where this started.
b4 oakwood, Trillanes talked with GMA. he asked for reforms. nothing going. oakwood. from then on, each step of the way, his trial and Lim’s Trial has been nothing more than a moro-moro. you can recall the same thing with Ninoy’s trial. a farce, as clear as daylight.
he even ran for the senate. and won. but he wasn’t even allowed to serve a single day. not even from his jail cell. (which was accorded to jalosjos the rapist) and you tell me, he should’ve pursued other means?
every peaceful means he’s tried has been blocked by the arroyo admin. well, maybe not all. he hasn’t tried everything yet. which is why he was wrong.
i accept what he did in oakwood and manila pen was wrong. but i believe in what he is fighting for. Gloria out of power.
dahil kung hindi ngayon, kelan pa? kung puti na ang ating mga mata? 2010? masaya kayo, pero di yan mangayayri. 3 taon na lang? sa tingin nyo. tiisin na lang? sige. magtiis kayo hanggang sa wala na kayong magawa kundi magtiis lang.
cvj, this incident has radicalized more people. i hear the word “revolution” more often. and spoken not in the same breath as “peaceful” but “bloody.” do you still doubt my predictions?
it will happen. it’s only a question of how long.
Our dissenters still get away with a hell of a lot more stuff than their counterparts in Singapore. Of course, that’s not to say that our situation is perfect – however, we do get to rock the boat a lot more than is deemed permissible in other countries. (I remember being handed an opposition pamphlet somewhere on Orchard Road, and I recoiled – and looked over my shoulder to see if Big Brother was watching.)
Would a State under the control of Trillanes or his much-vaunted junta promise me a “truer” measure of freedom than is practiced under Arroyo’s Presidency?
One thing these oft attempt of takeovers, coup de etat via posh hotels, reveal to us is we have issues that needed addressed and it should be addressed whichever side of the bondocks we belong to, because one of these days when it will materialize and end up with no good end results like the Edsa Uno and Edsa Dos, then doing it again and again is just a futile exercise and will set the country back further more instead of a little step forward.
That’s true but for self-professed democracies, Singapore isn’t the benchmark when it comes to these matters.
For me, that’s a valid question, but i’m surprised that you also see that as such. After all, it was never a major concern of the move-on crowd when Gloria Arroyo subverted our democracy. I’m sure the junta can get another Bong Austero-type to declare on our behalf that “We are prepared to lose our freedoms and our rights just to move this country forward.“
I would like to doubt it, and will continue to do so since Blogger-types don’t usually fare well under violent and repressive situations. However, the tide of history is in your favor. micketymoc, rego and company have been doing a good job discouraging peaceful people power type revolts. alfred above celebrates the rationale of a Marcosian year zero. Silent waters acknowledges the problem of feudalism and believes that democracy is not for us. That’s plenty of material for revolutionaries to work with so things do seem to be coming together.
devils, i’m surprised at you. after all this time you still cannot comprehend that pgma stepped into the presidency as a duly-elected constitutional successor. anong sinasabi mong naki-ride o sumalo ng grasia? kahit pa may kinalaman ka sa pagpatalsik kay erap, hindi ikaw ang nagbigay ng kapangyarihan kay gma. it was the rule of law that put her into the presidency from which she can only be removed according to the same rule of law. and the same rule of law enables you to say these bad things about her with impunity. para sa mga talunan, the rule of law is always “rule of loopholes”. may alam ka bang ipina salvage si gma? may alam ka bang ipinakulong niya dahil sa personal na atake sa kanya at sa kaniyang pamilya?
btw, as long as there are people like you, cvj and your hero trillianes , there will be attempts against the sitting government, puny and comical though they may be. feel the pain, my foot!
if you meant to say by rule of law as in People Power, then yes I agree. People Power put her into power, and yes, from which she can only be removed by the same way – People Power. 😀
“may alam ka bang ipina salvage si gma?”
maraming sina-salvage. di man sya ang may order, ang silensyo ng kanyang admin sa mga krimeng ito ay isang “tacit” permission para sa mga gumagawa nito.
“may alam ka bang ipinakulong niya dahil sa personal na atake sa kanya at sa kaniyang pamilya?”
ang Batasan 5. gumawa ng moro-moro charges. ayun, di nag-stick.
cvj, search for “wetpaint wiki.” may wiki na pala ang mga revolutionary-leaning..
and so the issue goes back to succession…even if GMA is ousted today…who will take her place? what will become of our country? it was reported that papers were found detailing the coup plotters plans which not name a leader to succeed Arroyo. isn’t it common sense that people will pick the known evil rather than an unknown one?
bobing lang ba si trillanes o ksp? wala nang gusto ng people power – this has been proven so often in the recent past not even Binay came to the rescue….and what is it with this guy and his fixation for going after 5-star establishments to stage his coups and then he has the gall to call on people to come and rally against poverty…DUH….is that a disconnect or what!!!!
my toddler-age nephews were watching the coverage with us and the 2-year old announced that Spiderman was coming to the rescue to get the bad men….it has come to this!!! frankly, nahihiya na ko for Trillanes…
cvj, no matter what bong austero, rego and mickey or whoever says on the internet, which only a handful of pinoys at home read anyway, the people will still make up their own minds about who to rally for or not.
read the writing on the wall already and get it – no one wants people power anymore. it’s called People Power Fatigue Syndrome.
“patience is a virtue”..”2010 is just around the corner”…”everything comes to an end, even this administration’s term.”
you cannot believe the number of times I’ve heard words like these since the incident happened…in short, no one is even listening to what this group of troublemakers (for the hotel establishment, for the hotel guests, for the wage earners working at the hotel, for businessmen, for commuters, for the country in general) are saying…
My mom summed it up best: “What a waste of time and effort!”
“patience is a virtueâ€Â.
mabulunan ka sana ng patience mo hanggang sa ikaw na mismo ang ikinukulong o ipinapapatay.
“2010 is just around the cornerâ€Â…
just as charter change is, and Gloria’s continued stay.
â€Âeverything comes to an end, even this administration’s term.â€Â
i suppose so. after all, Martial Law did end after 17 years. i suppose that can be called an ending. but what damage it did to the country..
“What a waste of time and effort!â€Â
a difference in perspective. people talked like that as well about Ninoy during Martial Law. what a waste of time and effort indeed. i bet you wouldn’t be singing the same tune if it had succeeded.
People power, coup – proven ineffective.
Has the PP1 and pp2 plus the numerous coup in the past proven effective to make the phils a better nation? no.
seriously, we need to try another method rather than keep on using these proven ineffective methods.
oo nga, what’s with hsi fixations with expensive hotels?
siguro kung nangampanya lang siya sa depressed areas, baka higit sa 11 million pa nakuha niya supporta at naging successful siya. aasahan mo bang pupunta sa isang mamahaling five star hotel ang hindi mayayaman?
Devil’s advocate, you’re too dramatic – a very Pinoy trait we should all try to curb cause it’s not good for us and our country.
Please don’t even bring up Ninoy Aquino’s name in reference to this incident. Also remember, during Martial Law, very few people even knew about what was happening to Ninoy Aquino – he had NO voice whatsoever, no access to media…it’s not the same thing. Again, you’re being too dramatic for our own good.
NO man or woman IS ABOVE THE LAW.
Equalizer, I agree. So do something about it LEGALLY, not illegally. Eh kung mas magaling ang lawyers ni GMA, then do some more. Hindi yung we countenance illegal acts just because it serves our own agenda. Marami rito kasi, because they so hate GMA
Equalizer, I agree. So do something about it LEGALLY, not illegally. Eh kung mas magaling ang lawyers ni GMA, then do some more. Hindi yung we countenance illegal acts just because it serves our own agenda. Marami rito kasi, because they so hate GMA, they’d be willing to sell their own souls to do the devil just to take her out. Is that what it has come down to then?
CVJ
SO tell me, what system am I really preventing from work? Free wheeling American style democracy? It’s certainly working as it is right now and look where it’s got us into after 60 LONG YEARS. Nowhere. You keep blaming the elites and the middle class. So why don’t you come back to Manila and lead the way for the masa. Eh ano ba ginagawa ng mga masa? If you believe government stats, they should comprise around 80-90% of the population, a potent force in any language. DI ba kaya magawa ng masa ang maging isang tidal wave to overwhelm the so called denigrated elites and middle class so THEY will be the ones in power? Lets see where that gets the country. SIge na, tanggapin ko na kaming mga elite and middle class kuno ang may problema. Para matahimik na lang konsiyensa mo.
The Philippines is in a state of war, but who created it?
Just a brief background. Impeachment should have been the appropriate process, by which Gloria Arroyo could clear the thickening clouds over her claim to the presidency.
Unfortunately, Arroyo and her allies in the House have chosen to ignore the essence of the Rule of Law in favor of procedural convenience. The House legislators were thus seen to have acted contrary to a power delegated to them by the people, which is to perform their check-and-balance role against the president.
By derailing the constitutional process of impeachment, the House has allowed itself to be bastardized by Arroyo as she by herself, thereby setting the stage for the people to take back what has been delegated.
In plainer terms, what have taken place are a rebellious conspiracy and or overt acts of rebellion on the part of Arroyo and her co-conspirators against the State. As a consequence, a state of war between the Arroyo regime and the Filipino People has been created. The condition of hostilities has thus been ongoing since Arroyo’s aggression against the State.
What are the known principles that support the foregoing propositions?
This paraphrase of John Locke, whose treatises on government became one of the foundations of American democracy, is straightforward: Where an appeal to the law and the courts (in this case the Impeachment Court) lies open, but the remedy is denied by a manifest perverting of justice and a shameless wrestling of the laws to protect the violence of some men, then it would be hard to imagine anything but a state of war.
“Whoever uses force without right – as every one in the society who does it without law – puts himself into a state of war with those against whom he uses it, and in that state all former ties are cancelled, all other ties cease, and every one has the right to defend himself, and to resist the aggressor,†Locke warned aspiring tyrants. By natural right, the people have the power to remove a government if it has rebelled against them.
If the Filipino people opt for a peaceful struggle, that is the Filipino way. But it does not deny the state of war the Arroyo regime has initiated and is prosecuting in various forms.
Arroyo is not ignorant of the rule having been on the opposite side of the fence before: the people have not only the right to get out of an illegitimate regime, but to prevent it from endangering the whole system upon which the people’s rights and liberties depend.
What’s left to be said? Not very much. Gloria Pidal has had a free pass to do as she pleased since 2001.She and her political operators have not been held accountable for any crime against the people of this country. Gloria is above the law.Why?
Mr. Margallo
Iagree with your argument on the state of war. But then again, it is the state of war between the people and the Arroyo government, not Mr. Trillanes and the private citizens who are staying in Manila Pen, isn’t it? If he had gone to Luneta, a public place, he could have made his press conferences and speeches to the high heavens and nobody would have denied him that right. Ang problema, they like to use private citizens and property as a shield. Sila ang bakla. Buti pa nga ang mga rallyists, they go to the streets although unfortunately, these avenues are denied them sometimes.
As for the impeachment, it has always been a political exercise. Kahit sa America, it was always a political, rather than a criminal exercise. So, if you want to change it, go change the constitution. We, as a collective people, agreed to it di ba? Pati rin naman iyun, di kayo pumapayag kasi kesyo baka ma-subvert ng GMA forces yung COnsitution.
Saan niyo ba gusto pumunta? Rebolusyon? My God. If that’s the case, I truly believe you people are really sick. You think the elites and the middle classes will suffer. Ha. History has shown that it’s the masses that have suffered from revolutions, whether from the left or right. Just look at Vietnam, Cambodia, China, USSR, Cuba, North Korea, etc. All the things that you presently have right now and are able to do are products of democracies. Revolutions so far have failed the people.
The real problem is how do we remove personalities who have not lived up to the people’s expectations within the legal framework that we have. How do we take out the patronage politics that have tied these politicians to the imperial powers in Malacanang? How do we ensure that all marginalized sectors are ADEQUATELY represented in government. How do we ensure that our children will become more educated and enlightened so that their generation will choose the right personalities to lead the country and make THEIR children’s world a better place. How do we actually remove poverty in our country? Revolutions do not do those things. in fact, they have just reshuffled the deck and the ones in power made all the economic profits anyway, di ba?
Even before, I have always said that communism in its purest form will never ever work. Why? Because people in general are aspirational. The problem is that people are aspirational in “varying degrees”. Ergo, people will have different levels of contentment. Communism does away with that. Everybody will get equal share. So what does that make of people who are more talented than others? There’s is NO INCENTIVE, di ba? Now, one can argue that you can always be aspirational for the common good. HA. As if every person will be good…unless Big brother plans to brainwash them anyway.
GMA is NOT above the law. GMA, unfortuantely, knows how to make use of the LOOPHOLES in the law. That’s the problem. THe lawyers in the anti-GMA camp SHOULD WORK HARDER to find other laws to counter them.
The irony is, the anti-GMA forces trained the GMA lawyers so well. Maya, maya kasi, kung anu ang binabato….
Hm, someone here has been colluding with magdalo.
BrianB
Who me???? 😉
You still have a full month left to finish up your 2007 New Year’s Resolutions. Stop slacking.
Some suggested ones:
Gloria Pidal: “I will not only be cute and short.I will be honest”
Sergio Apostol(presidential legal counsel): I will believe,really believe that “No man (OR woman) is above the LAW!”
Lady Miriam: “I will not insult again the 1.3 billion Chinese.(My mother -in-law is also Chinese!)”
Iggy Arroyo(Pidal Junior): “I will stick to my domestic problems first before I open my mouth and talk nonsensically about the latest political headlines.”
Mike (PIDAL Senior) :”I will buck off from government deals!”
Ronnie Puno:I will memorize this “Oh Mortal Man, is there nothing you cannot be made to believe?Josef Goebbel, Minister of Popular Enlightenment and Propaganda
Senator Trillanes: “I will accept the purification process.I will be patient as a young leader(Mandela
stayed in prison for 26 years!). ”
Any other suggestions?
Equalizer
That’s so funny! 🙂
But then again, it is the state of war between the people and the Arroyo government, not Mr. Trillanes and the private citizens who are staying in Manila Pen, isn’t it? – Silent Waters
“. . . every one has the right to defend himself, and to resist the aggressor . . . .â€Â
SW, if you also want some answers to your other questions you are welcome to check my handle. tx
I keep blaming the elites because, for more than 60 years, they are the ones who keep getting themselves elected but always fail to represent the interests of the people. They have been subverting the democratic system for their own purposes. I blame the middle class because they are supposed to be the conscience of the country (as in EDSA and EDSA Dos) and we have instead traded what is right for what is expedient.
They are many in number but they don’t have the resources. They have tried to participate in democratic elections to elect their champions, first with Erap and then by FPJ but the elite and middle class vetoed their choice in both cases. So your ‘tidal wave’ may yet happen. Devilsadvc8 is predicting such a tidal wave by 2010 and i have been debating him on this.
I prefer Abe Margallo’s ‘bayanihan pact’ as this has the benefit of preserving and renewing Social Capital hopefully saving us a generation of grief. However, for this to work, we have to start respecting the masa as individuals, and that means respecting their choices, including the one they made in 2004. That also means not being content with the system where people in power exploit legal loopholes because that means reducing the rule of law to a meaningless game.
CVJ
No quarrel with you on the points you made above. Pero the masa have THEIR Resources, if only they are united. YOu have to be in the ground to realize how divided these people are. Each group will have their own agenda. Open your eyes. It’s not the elites’ and middle classes’ fault that the masa could not protect their votes. Granted, the elites and middle class will always do their best to thwart the masa from their choice. ANg tanong, bakit pumayag anag masa? Lack of resources my a*s, if only the masa is willing to give 20 pesos per person, they will easily have 1.2B pesos of resources. That’s only 20 pesos…eh kung 100 pa kaya….kulang lang talaga sila sa imagination. And PULEEZ, don’t use the argument na wala silang pera. Eh kung kaya nga nilang magsugal, mamababae, mangutang para mag party, ano ba naman ang 100 pesos.
The reality is that the each member of the masa have their own agenda and that’s why they go to their respective feudal overlords (aka politicians) as their candidates of choice. Ikaw naman, sobra ka kasing idealistic.
Why don’t you come back home and educate the masa then on what is right (at least in your perspective) ? Hindi yung armchair quarterbacking lang ang ginagawa mo. Useless yun.
Thanks Abe…you have a blogsite I can go check? OK naman ang gusto mo. Logistically hard to do but doable…
“Even before, I have always said that communism in its purest form will never ever work. Why? Because people in general are aspirational. The problem is that people are aspirational in “varying degreesâ€Â. Ergo, people will have different levels of contentment. Communism does away with that.”
Wow someone on this planet actually understands what communism is going to be like. He has seen the future and says that it can never be.
The idea that people will never evolve and remain at the level of nature.
Evolutionary arbitrage will always continue. Natural selection.
j_ag
AM not so sure if you’re taking a dig at me or not but that’s ok. 🙂
People do evolve, but it will never be at the same level or at the same rate…or we’ll all surely become robots. (Or is that what CVJ wants ?..let’s all conform to a utopian equality and stifle creativity.)
In a genuine democracy, it is everyone’s responsibility to protect each other’s votes because it is important to maintain the credibility of the process. Even if i voted for Gloria Arroyo in 2004, it does not mean that i have no stake in protecting the votes of FPJ. That’s how we maintain social capital.
Since i belong to the middle class, that is not the question. Ang tanong, bakit natin hindi nirerespeto ang kapwa nating botante dahil lang kaya natin? Bakit hindi natin gawin ang tama?
As individuals, that’s true. Those who belong to the masa are constrained by the realities of their circumstance, but the fact remains that a genuine democracy should not be decided by guns, goons and gold. People accuse me of being idealistic but i have made my stand as a member of the middle class because i see where this is going. The middle class cannot thrive in an environment where order is dependent on the rule of force, whether it be the rule of gold or the rule of numbers. As i’ve said before, unlike the upper class, we do not have the resources. Unlike the poor, we do not have the numbers. The only thing we can offer are our values. Instead, we have turned our back on these values that sustain us, and have gambled our lot on a leader who relies on thugs. The middle class has mistaken expedience for realism.
As i said, i belong to the middle class so to come home for the purpose of ‘educating’ the masa would be the height of presumptousness. Besides, it is the middle class (and the elite) that needs to be educated. What we need instead is a genuine dialog between the classes.
“Saan niyo ba gusto pumunta? Rebolusyon?
SW,
No, not revolution. Removal of Gloria Arroyo’s illegitimate and morally bankrupt regime is enough.
That was very clear from the demands of Senator Antonio Trillanes and General Danny Lim.