I think my first train-related entry was back in 2005, in Debating solutions to squatting, I pointed to this entry by Torn and frayed in Manila on how our country possesses “one of the most ramshackle railways in the world.” That’s putting it politely. Torn was reacting to a report by Howie Severino (and The Unlawyer also commented on it, including detailing the extremely low fares charged by the railroad).
One major problem, as recalled in Pain On The Train, was that squatters had encroached on the tracks and were, at times, hostile to train passengers. There was once a haunting post by Pulsar in 2006 (well, who says once on the Interweb, something’s forever? The blog’s gone!). Or sometimes, the problem were the passengers themselves, see Test-Riding The Metro-Tren:
But there were dreadfully more — and this was what made me uneasy and had second thoughts about using this mode of transpo on a regular basis or asking friends and family to patronize it. Dark thoughts ran in my mind thinking if I can actually still get out of this situation alive! Here we go:
Amongst the passengers in my coach were shirtless dudes who were not even drunk but were just as dangerously rowdy. Okay, to be fair, not all of them were topless. Two were wearing sando, one did not even have a footwear, and all of them did have confidently loud voices enough for anyone to understand that they are the “masters” in this place. They were huddled on two right-side doors. Some were standing and some were seated on the floor and the little steps that people use when boarding or getting off via those doors. Obviously, no one passed by those two doors. They were not just rowdy in the normal kind of kid things. They had very foul language offensive to many.
These folks were not young kids either. They were men probably in their 20s up to late 40s and they seemed to know just about every person who lived along those rail tracks as they often had a lewd or foul comment at everyone they saw. Samples? Here we go… “Hoy hostess, bihis ka na! Rampa ka ng maaga nang makarami”, or — Tangina! Nakaw ang cellphone na yan, kahapon lang”! And they most certainly elicited equally shouted responses from those they were shouting at. Some of the younger kids they teased even ran with wooden sticks or little stones attempting to catch and whack or pelt them as the train chugged along. And you guessed it, these men would run scampering towards the inner portions of the train (which was naturally a commotion that would make you panic). When kids on the ground can’t keep up with the train, these men would be back at the two doors and back to their usual shouting spree at people we passed by. I even saw two women-passengers stand up and walk further front — obviously to get away from this.
I’d be a liar if I said I was not alarmed. I was actually more than frightened! Then again, I could have been over-reacting, right?
Now hear this: As the train went a chugging slowly after that Espana Station going towards Blumentritt, a guy came walking from the front coaches who seemed to be looking for nothing but trouble. As he passed where I was seated and just about to pass the rowdy men by the door, someone shouted on top of his voice saying “o kayong lahat, ingatan nyo mga gamit nyo, yan naglalakad na yan isnatcher yan… The walking man did not even look back but shouted equally loud saying “tangina mo, hindi ako isnatcher, naghahanap ako ng masasaksak” and as he said that he lashed out a knife in mid-air. I looked at the faces of many passengers and almost all had the same facial expression — they pretended to have not heard that and they all did not look at the knife-brandishing man — and so I did not dare look at him too! This time I felt my balls were already above my forehead.
After having gone to the end part of the train, that knife-wielding man returned to the men perched by the doorway and he joined in the laughter, banter and dirty shouts at people we passed by. I clearly heard him telling the group that it was too unusual the week was almost over and he has not had a fight yet. As if to emphasize that, he said “kahit asawa ko ayaw akong patulan, nakakainip pare”!
This is a Wikipedia map of the NorthRail and SouthRail lines of the Philippine National Railways -theoretically, at least. I happen to like trains very much (perhaps not to the extent of being a trainspotter) and really wish rehabilitating our railways will be accomplished: just getting NorthRail and SouthRail functioning will actually merely return us to where we were prior to World War II, the last major extension having been accomplished with the inauguration of the Manila-Legazpi Line in May, 1938. That still marks the last major addition to our railway network. However, Marcos’ obsession with highways had led to the deterioration of the railroad.
The result? See photos in A Ride On Philippine National Railways Part I and A Ride On Philippine National Railways Part II. See also RILES in Digital Phtographer Philippines. In response to this sad state of affairs, an ambitious program of modernization has started.
One sad side-effect of modernization, however, is the destruction of heritage sites: see Las Estaciones Ferrocarril Manila-Dagupan in the ICOMOS Philippines site.
There are some extremely informative railroad enthusiasts’ blogs out there, which combine a strong historical sense with efforts to document the rehabilitation of the Philippine National Railways. See their mother organization, Railways and Industrial Heritage Society of the Phils. (and its Reese Blog), and these enthusiasts’ blogs: Philippine Railways S.I.G., Philippine Railways, and Laguna Railways,
Courtesy of Augusto de Viana is The railways in Philippine history which, however, so compresses the most interesting years, the 20s to the 50s, as to render that section meaningless. Oh well. Viviana overlooks the ambivalence and even hostility American officials felt towards railways, since it would affect the Philippine market for automobiles (see The Colonial Iron Horse: Railroads and Regional Development in the Philippines, 1875- 1935). When autonomy was achieved, railroad development accelerated. And the policy debate on highways versus railways also began, along with still-unrealized plans such as a railroad for Mindanao (the development of Maria Cristina Fall’s hydroelectric power was originally envisioned as primarily powering the Mindanao railways: there are interesting snippets on these debates in F.B. Harrison’s diary: as an Anglophile, he was pro-railways, pointing with envy to Britain’s not altogether altruistic promotion of its own steam engine industry in its colonies; as for its biggest handiwork in that regard, here’s an interesting item on accomplishing transport reform: Things Looking Up for India’s Trains).
I remember when I was still new in the Inquirer, the President had a dinner with editors and spent much of her time discussing the Strong Republic Nautical Highway (this will be one of her lasting achievements, I think). Along the way, she discussed trains and how she wanted to eliminate the old PNR lines, and have new railroad lines simply feed the metropolis, with intra-city travel done on the LRT. At the time I remember remarking that her strong grasp of detail was one of the President’s most impressive qualities, but one little-seen by the public: just as the overall schemes fed by her grasp of detail failed to be grasped, in turn, by the public: and government is at fault for this.
Today’s Inquirer editorial, Derailed, looks at the possible permutations of the ongoing problem with NorthRail: Even as our government insists that NorthRail project to push thru the reality seems to be Gov’t scrambles to save NorthRail: China threatens withdrawal, legal suit over a situation caused by the sad reality that Northrail ‘mobilization’ ate up 23% of total loan. (Here’s a helpful Northrail timeline.)
See Target for Northrail: ‘substantial’ completion by 2010:
As things stand now, the most realistic assumption is to have a partially – or at least, substantially – completed stretch of rail road some kilometers short of the first section of the 80.2-kilometer distance between Caloocan City in Metro Manila and Clark in Pampanga.
Officials familiar with the twists and turns of the project told abs-cbnnews.com/Newsbreak that the initial goal to complete at least the first phase, or the first 32 kilometers up to Malolos in Bulacan province, is not realistic anymore…
A year since the project’s 36-month construction period kicked off in February 2007, clearing the tracks, acquiring right-of-way, and relocation works are still to be crossed out from the list of pre-construction must-do’s.
No civil works on the actual railway have commenced nor has a project design been finalized, yet the designated contractor, the Chinese National Machinery & Equipment Group (CNMEG), wanted to add almost $300 million on top of the current $421 million agreed upon and signed construction cost…
According to various sources, including correspondences from NLRC and the demand letters from CNMEG, the latter unilaterally suspended work on the Northrail in February 1, 2008, with CNMEG’s Chinese engineers returning home.
Pamintuan explained that the engineers have run out of things to do since the project design has yet to be finalized.
But that was only part of the story. Apparently, while the design plan is still pending, CNMEG has been verbally demanding to increase the project cost. In succeeding correspondences, CNMEG has pegged the additional cost, based on computations as of March, 2008, at $299 million.
That would increase the project cost of the 32-kilometer Caloocan to Malolos stretch from $421 million to $720 million. That means the cost of the entire 80-kilometer Manila to Clark distance, which has no financing in place yet, will increase from $1 billion to $1.39 billion…
…After President Arroyo thumbed down CNMEG’s verbal demand in February to increase the construction price by $299 million, CNMEG formalized its demand in their May 13 notice of claim and in their June 3 demand letter to Northrail.
Of that amount, $88.63 million was due to variations in the original scope of work, such as the need to build viaducts instead of embankments in Valenzuela and Marilao areas.
The remaining $211 million was mainly due to foreign exchange losses ($106 million), inflation ($71 million), and cost of the delay in construction. CNMEG pointed fingers at Northrail’s inability to clear obstacles within the right-of-way areas and its non- completion of squatter relocations…
…In the April 24, 2008 letter of resigned Northrail president Arsenio Bartolome III to President Arroyo, he referred to a “presidential directive” regarding the completion of the Caloocan-to-Clark phase.
The directive emphasized two things: that it should be finished by 2010, the end of President Arroyo’s term, and that it should be within the project cost of $1.008 billion.
Construction cost for the 32-kilometer Section 1 from Caloocan to Malolos is $421 million, while Section 2 from Malolos to Clark is $673 million.
The design, supply, construct contract with CNMEG, for Section 1, Caloocan to Malolos, stipulates a construction period of 36 months, or 3 years, after Notice to Proceed was issued in Feb 19, 2007. It was meant to be completed by February 2010, perfect timing for the national election in May 2010.
The relocation of urban poor residents (one day, perhaps, destined to be only immortalized in photos or some videos) has proven expensive but relatively successful (most recently: an amazed foreign friend who had done some filming for a documentary in Blumentritt, Manila, and then saw how the community he’d filmed has been relocated and disappeared) see From ‘Home Along Da Riles’ to ‘Dreamland‘) Of course, not every delay is due to gross inefficiency or corruption on the part of government:
The report also says,
Unlike other controversial projects that were also cancelled, like the NAIA-3 airport terminal, where there is already a massive building that just needs a few months worth of repair and remediation work, the Northrail project’s railway construction has not even started.
I’m not sure if this is accurate.
The thing is, if you look at the reports and photos in the railroad enthusiasts’ blogs, you’ll see that a tremendous amount has been accomplished in terms of rehabilitating the railways (see Northrail-Southrail Linkage Project Update and Rail Lifting at Paco Station for example) though perhaps it’s fair to say no real laying down of track has taken place.
The question is to what extent the whole gigantic effort -and it is gigantic, you’re reversing the deterioration of the past forty years while at the same time laying down an entirely new railway system- has been marred by inefficiency or even corruption. These things take a toll on ongoing projects, as the headlines make pretty obvious, but it also raises another problem: even if hounded by corruption and inefficiency, is the solution to simply tear up contracts and scrap the project?
I once heard someone explain Romulo Neri Jr.’s pragmatism as follows. First question: does the country need a modern railway system? Yes. Since it does, can it be built without corruption? No. If it cannot be built without corruption, then whether major or minor corruption takes place, what is essential is for the railway to be built, because the economic benefits of the project dwarfs whatever corruption will take place.
And pragmatically speaking, Neri is correct and was thinking in true Southeast Asian fashion. This was the Marcos way: anyone who remembers the ferocious debates on MRT-1 along Taft Avenue (expensive! impractical! will never work!) will realize that despite all the objections, the elevated railway line has become an essential part of metropolitan infrastructure.
And this brings me to Neri, his latest reincarnation as SSS Chief.
The PCIJ in a Special Report reveals that the resignation of Corazon de la Paz and the assumption of the leadership of the SSS by Romulo Neri Jr. has a major policy shift at its core:
De la Paz first intimated how she has not been able to accustom herself to the workings of government, indicating a preference to return to her work in the private sector. But upon further questioning by the media, she eventually relented to a little known fact: she had stood up against the use of SSS members’ funds for the government’s pro-poor agenda, in the process offending the powers that be.
“Using the fund has limits. (It) cannot be used to finance pro-poor projects of the government unless it is defined in the (SSS) Charter,” De la Paz explained, serving up a warning to SSS members and the public of the potential danger of the fund being misused.
With Neri at the helm of the SSS, many have indeed expressed fear that the funds will be used for partisan political interests. Both Malacañang and Neri’s avowal that the funds will not be touched for government’s welfare programs has not helped assuage such concerns for the very reason that the appointment boils down, not so much to the issue of competence, but to Neri’s integrity and credibility - and that of the one who appointed him – as a public official.
Those who insist that the economy in general, or government financial matters in particular, can and ought to be insulated from politics have another lesson coming in why this is neither possible nor desirable. This is a defect that afflicts not just loyalists of the present dispensation, but bureaucrats, too, as the PCIJ report reveals:
Neri also probably felt his detachment that he had to bring along with him to NEDA people whom he could trust. His consultants, many of whom were not known to the NEDA staff, were like a parallel office which acted as his political arm. At first, some at NEDA appreciated the arrangement as it insulated the staff from politics, preferring not to deal with politicians and just continue to do their work professionally. Later, on instructions by Neri himself, NEDA officials had had occasions to interact with his consultants. Even his meetings with them were recorded as part of his official schedule.
The way one director understood it, Neri played politics as a matter of course in public policy. The NEDA Secretariat and other oversight bureaucracies are to exert effort in providing full information to decide policy, he says, and that necessitated engaging with politicians and playing the game of politics.
From his own experience working with him, the CPBO’s Vicerra believes Neri played politics not in the sense of politicking, which he says Neri always tried to avoid. “It’s more of realpolitik,” he explains, “as he always wants to involve himself in policy issues. And he has his advocacies.”
Doing so may have made the NEDA Secretariat more aware of the nature of public policy in their work, but it also made them vulnerable, admits the same director. “It put the organization and employees unprecedently in an unrequitedly bad light,” he says, though maintaining that the Secretariat has remained nonpartisan, its own standard of integrity and professionalism undiminished by this initiation into politics.
But Neri’s pragmatism, the NEDA staff also claim, conflicted with his reformist image. Some would say on hindsight that this probably explains why he is seemingly not appalled by unethical behavior, that is, corruption by way of commissions, extortions, kickbacks and the like, because these make things move or work. Others find it ironic that he wanted reforms yet “still wants to be in the good graces of this government.” Still others comment that since he is a “political animal” himself, it was not surprising that he had been offered bribes as he had admitted.
This is a confusing passage, but then it neatly illustrates the confused, because ignorant, attitudes of bureaucrats themselves about politics and its place in governance.
Government’s policies and management of the economy can be left alone if the public feels officials are capable and trustworthy stewards. If not, then they can and should be guarded every step of the way.
In its editorial, The Business Mirror, not inclined to be an instinctive critic of the administration, advocates retaining the VAT on oil, but points out the essential problem with expectations being built on spending the windfall for the public good:
Removing the oil E-VAT may be akin to a voluntary disarmament at a time when we need all the weapons we can get our hands on to confront grave threats to our economy.
Gordon’s proposals may not be popular – but they make sense. Having said that, the only problem with following his tack is this: Local experience is replete with evidence that, in this country, it’s next to impossible to get a good accounting of where and how precisely special-purpose funds – say, E-VAT “windfall” as used for infrastructure to rebuild disaster-ravaged areas and spur local economies – were applied. For even as critics complain that letting the government use the E-VAT windfall for doles is tantamount to giving more money to crooks, that same peril lies in using the funds instead, as Dick Gordon wants, for infrastructure.
Finally, in a town where a crusading auditor who keeps asking a warlord to “please liquidate” millions of pesos in public funds may easily get what he prays for – that is, be literally liquidated from the face of the earth, his killer(s) never brought to justice – accountability, like honesty in the Billy Joel song, is such a lonely word. So, to Dick Gordon, you may be right on this one, but, good luck.
Which goes to my point about NorthRail, the handling of the economy, and what Yen Macabenta points out: that the economy is coping with increases in the cost of oil pretty well, not least, it seems, to some pretty OK handling of economic matters by the powers-that-be; the problem is that while this redounds to the benefit of big business, ours is Still a jobless-growth economy; and the powers-that-be don’t quite know how to effectively toot their own horns and even if they do, there’s a widespread assumption officialdom’s on a looting spree (made even deeper, I think, because most of the public can’t quite grasp how it’s being done):
The report on Monday that the government kept its first-semester budget deficit at about P18 billion – only half of the programmed ceiling – despite the food and fuel price crises is encouraging. Two points stand out in the report:
First, revenue collection improved during the first semester.
And second, our fiscal managers were concerned that the various agencies of the government have not been able to absorb additional funding to help perk up domestic growth. In other words, the problem is not lack of funds, but projects to spend on.
When the President decided that the government would no longer aim for a zero budget deficit this year, it was for the specific objective of cushioning the impact of high consumer prices on the most vulnerable among our people. The government has the resources to provide subsidies to the needy during these trying times. And just as important, it has the funds to put into infrastructure and social and economic programs that will boost economic growth this year and next year.
Inflation for now is our biggest worry, as it hit a 14-year high of 11.4 percent in June. But Bangko Sentral Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. believes the problem should ease before the end of the year, and the country should fully recover by next year.
If you’re wondering why skyrocketing oil prices – with talk of crude hitting $200 a barrel by the end of the year – are not taking the bottom out of the economy, here are a few reasons:
1. It’s not just the price of crude oil that has soared to record levels this year; the prices of other commodities have hit peak levels, as well. This is the difference between this oil-price shock and the shock of 1974. Higher commodity prices across-the-board are also benefiting the exports of the Philippines and other countries. So our import bill is not as crushing.
2. Oil is not as all-pervasive in our economy as many believe. It affects mainly transport. Most of our electricity needs are fueled by other sources of energy, such as hydropower and geothermal energy.
3. The general prognosis of experts is that oil prices should come down during the second half of the year, though not to the same level as last year. The bubble is simply unsustainable. Demand will ease and supply will rise following the basic law of economics.
But again, the windfall is there. Surely it’s helped fund the following: Government subsidy for cheap rice in first half reaches P8.6B:
Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said the rice stocks were distributed and sold through 3,197 Bigasan ni Gloria sa Palengke, 8,080 Tindahan Natin outlets, 540 Bigasan sa Parokya and 199 rolling stores nationwide.
Government subsidy for cheap rice is expected to rise as the DA said 28 million more bags of rice will be infused into the domestic market from now until December to stabilize prices.
The NFA will be injecting some 6.5 million bags monthly, from now until August.
This volume will be reduced to 5 million bags by September, when palay harvests for the wet or main crop will start coming in.
Yap said the government is confident that it will have more rice to distribute until the end of the year as 900,000 metric tons (MT) will arrive in the country before September 30.
But the questions won’t go away whether the windfall’s economic potential’s being maximized. As it is, the President has announced Round Two of her “Katas ng VAT” program (no mention if it’s part of the commemoration of National Nutrition Month):
Which brings me to something Jarius Bondoc puts forward in his column for today (no link to the Star because it still hasn’t figured out permanent links):
The truth is unraveling, slowly but surely. A clique in the Arroyo admin is capturing the energy sector for kickbacks.
First, there was a sudden flurry to amend the Electric Power Industry Reform Act. Rep. Mikey Arroyo, the presidential son who chairs the House committee on energy, said it was necessary to bring down consumer rates. His congressmen-brother Dato and uncle Iggy assented as committee members. It turns out, however, that the main amendment is to advance the start of open access from the time 70 percent of Napocor generators are privatized to only 50 percent. While speeding up open access is fine on paper, since it will allow big users to pick their own electric retailer earlier, it would be unfair in practice. State-owned Napocor will still control half the power plants, so there won’t be true competition. Worse, the Napocor mafia will continue to dictate, for multimillion-dollar kickbacks, imports of coal to fuel the plants, whether sold or not.
Then, Gloria Arroyo appointed amiga Zenaida Ducut as Energy Regulatory Board chief. Aside from Ducut being the town mate from whom Mikey inherited his congressional seat in 2004, they have a common friend, the oft-named jueteng lord Bong Pineda. Ducut’s posting jolted the industry because of a recent Napocor scam. The state firm last Feb. awarded to a four-month-old, undercapitalized and flighty broker a P956.4-million coal import from Indonesia. There must have been P258-million overprice, since the bid price was $109.50 per ton, although the Indonesian posted rate then was only $77 (at P40.418:$1 for three shiploads of 65,000 tons each).
Among the listed incorporators of broker Transpacific Consolidated Resources Inc. are Leslie and Ressie Ducut, but Zenaida disclaims kinship. Still, there are many inconsistencies. Napocor faxed the bid invitation two weeks prior to TCRI’s only known address then, the nearby Danarra Hotel’s business center, closed since Christmas. Now Napocor insists it awarded the deal when TCRI moved into a real office – in two short weeks. Paid-up capital was only P62,500, but Napocor says “so what?”, in disregard of the Public Bidding Act that requires congruity of capital with contract price. Ducut says the scam does not matter since, as ERC chair, she will have nothing to do with Napocor operations. But Napocor spokesman admits that the ERC, aside from the energy department and NEDA, needs to approve coal imports.
The capture of the electricity sector is complete - from the executive and legislative branches to the quasi-judicial ERC. From there the clique can move to other energy sectors - say, oil exploration - if it has not already.
(Incidentally, a sense of deja vu comes from this article: Lights Out in Indonesia: Jakarta as 1990s Manila? With India, Indonesia, Vietnam,scrambling to put up more power plants, and with the Philippines going to need more power plants soon, those who position themselves in the energy sector now are going to be positively minting their own money in years to come) If you’ve ever read how Ferdinand Marcos squirreled away funds abroad, then the stories -occasionally dribbled out in the press, but more often than not, whispered about in business circles- of what’s going on in the energy sector are equally intriguing -because the money’s come home, unlike most of Marcos’ stash. One day, hopefully, someone will write it all down, from the time money began to leave the country, a hop, skip, and a jump ahead of sleuthing legislators, journalists, and American anti-money-laundering officials, with the money making its way to places as far afield as Austria, then eventually, back home again where it could be used to buy banks, and dummy firms.
Manuel Buencamino looks at the curious story of Homobono Adaza’s alleged attempt to extort money from a Japanese businessman.
Ellen Tordesillas has the skinny on what the President was up to in Washington:
A Malacañang source who was part of Arroyo’s entourage in her recent US visit said there was no mention by Arroyo of any plans to implement martial law or authoritarian measures in her meeting with Bush, the first since she fell out of his grace after she pulled out the Philippine military contingent in Iraq in exchange for the release of kidnapped Filipino truck driver Angelo de la Cruz in July 2004.
But he admitted that increased military assistance was top in her agenda in her talks with American officials.
The source was amused that Philippine media covering Arroyo’s US visit followed Malacañang’s spin about the near passage of the Veterans Equity when they know very well that it has a slim chance of it passing in the House of Representatives despite the approval of the Senate.
He said the real reason Arroyo wanted to meet with American congressmen was to explain to them the government’s side on extra-judicial killings. Like in the Philippines, any appropriation bill originates in the House of Representatives. That’s the reason behind the idea of giving the newly minted Order of the Golden Heart Award, which is different from traditional Order of Sikatuna awards given to diplomats or nationals of other countries who have made outstanding contributions to strengthening of relations with the Philippines. According to press reports, not all awardees showed up during the conferment affair in Washington D.C. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi came very late.
(Just a correction, which I told Ellen: the Order of the Golden Heart was established by President Magsaysay. It was not “newly-minted.” A more relevant question might have been whether the Philippine Legion of Honor might have been more appropriate; but then a lower-ranking Order might be appropriate because no law has been passed yet.)
Foreign Affairs officials lobbied hard to get a meeting for Arroyo with Senator Barbara Boxer (D., Cal.) chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific. It will be recalled that Edith Burgos, widow of press icon Jose Burgos and mother of missing activist Jonas Burgos, met with Boxer last March.
In the hearing that she conducted on alleged extra-judicial killings perpetrated by the military, Boxer said, “We do not want blood on our hands. We do not want to use US taxpayers’ money to train their (Philippine) military and police to kill their own people.”
Arroyo was able to meet with Boxer, the source said. The meeting must have been so insignificant that it didn’t merit a line in Boxer’s website. Not even Malacañang reported it.
It was unfortunate for Malacañang that whatever propaganda it wanted to generate domestically for Arroyo’s US trip was negated by typhoon Frank which struck on the eve of her departure, sank a passenger ship and devastated many parts of the country. Compounding the stigma was the junket of 63 congressmen whom Arroyo brought along with her as part of her pre-2009 impeachment payment.
But the source said, despite the bad press that Arroyo’s US visit got, she feels that she accomplished her main objective which was to impress the military that she still has the support of the US establishment.
It maybe a meeting of lame ducks but it was still a White House meeting, the source said. Add to that was her meeting in Pentagon with Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
She may not have gotten categorical support for the things she might do in case her unpopular administration is shaken by the wrath of a long-suffering people, but it is good enough for Arroyo that she has given the military the illusion that the US is behind her. With that, she believes that her presidency, whatever questions about its legitimacy, is safe.
In the blogosphere, radicalchick aims a broadside at ABS-CBN and its Ces Drilon Kidnap Special.
looks like the wise guy is attacking the malthusian theory as “stupid”. he sees nothing wrong with uncontrolled overpopulation. it seems he is being consistent with his libertarian and anarchist advocacies.
forty years ago when the philipine population was in the the neighborhood of 47 million, there was poverty (mostly in metro manila) but not in the magnitude that it is today, where we have close to 90 million people. hunger, food supply, law and order, health services, public education, housing, were far more manageable. some types of crimes that we have today, e.g., mass murders, drug crimes, petty land-grabbing, akyat-bahay invasions, among other things, were a rarity, if not toally unheard of.
Previously linked by PSI.
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryID=125891
The real power of bishops.
1. Under the pain of excommunications.
2. Denial of communion.
3. Denial of burial mass.
This is applied to workers who distribute condoms to legislators supporting artificial birth controls.
Bishops position against Joson and Lagman’s Bill on Reproductive Health is anchored on:
1. Population growth rate is only 1.61 percent and not unmanageable.
2. Violates the equal protection clause of the Constitution when it grants incentives to smaller families.
3. Restrict religious freedom.
Despite all the sound bites of Bishops arguments, there is the dark reality that 51 percent of 90 million Filipinos lived on less than 100 pesos per day. It simply drive children to prostitution which the Bishops have no solution but prayers.
bencard, we don’t really have to revisit Malthus to see what’s going on. His theory may not have been true in some developed countries, but the Philippine reality is staring at you starkly: Tondo, Baseco, Payatas, and most of the streets of Metro Manila where you see malnourished, homeless street children (getting younger and younger) begging for small change. Some are high with rugby, glue, or cough syrup to stave off hunger, temporarily.
Well, of course doubters will say its because of government’s inadequacy, corruption; but truth is the Philippines is overpopulated given given its resources, straining not only the food supply but the other important resource: land.
Did you know that by 2025, the Philippines would have the same number of people as Russia but the latter has all the land, oil, gas, timber, mineral resources, it could utilize to care for its people.
How about the Philippines? Well, free wheeling, unabated pro-creation. Need we doubt the bishops?
You know how it feels to be a Filipino when a retired American serviceman brags of regularly visiting Philippines every year for very cheap Filipinas and they are getting younger and younger.
It greatly disturbed me and it is something that the Bishops should help answer dire economic realities facing the Church.
The Catholic Church should at least address the overcrowding in church during Sunday mass. Everyone should be able to seat down and relax while hearing mass.
‘very cheap Filipinas and they are getting younger and younger.’
Ilan kaya sa kanila ang anak ng pari?
psi, another reality, i would say, is that most, if not all prosperous countries have small populations in relation to their land area and gdp. e.u., usa, australia, canada, and new zealand are among them. china and india, despite their growing economy, hardly make a dent on their countries’ poor population, evidently because of its sheer size.
could it be that the church is well aware of the correlation between overpopulation and poverty but encourages both because “blessed are the poor for their’s is the kingdom of heaven”?
“blessed are the poor for their’s is the kingdom of heavenâ€Â.
On the other end, it is said it is harder for a rich man to enter heaven than for a camel to pass through the eye of the needle. The message is clear and direct – give up your wealth in exchange of heaven.
Other than the wealth and fortunes in the hands of the elite families, the Roman Catholic in the Philippines is not a pauper by any stretch.
1. The Catholic church is the biggest landowner of the Republic of the Philippines which houses the church, school, convents, seminaries, etc.
2. It owns prestigious schools like Ateneo, DLSU, San Juan De Letran, San Beda, San Sebastian, Don Bosco, St Paul, Maryknoll, St Theresa, and others.
3. It owns big hospitals like San Juan, Cardinal Santos, Perpetual, St Luke and others.
4. It owns the Monte de Piedad Bank.
5. Unlike big corporations and businesses paid income tax, the church is exempt and kept its wealth.
6. It is the biggest corporation the Philippines with branch in every locations and neighborhood with dues paying members including the poor.
7. It also receive donations from international donors like Caritas, and from North America and Europe.
8. It also receive donations from the government through PAGCOR (skipping on separation of church and state) gambling money. It is the primary moral voice against jueteng and other illegal gamblings directly competing with PAGCOR operations.
HUNGER, THE SILENT TSUNAMI
Rice, the main food for nearly half of the world’s population, costs twice as much as in December. The economic policy of the World Bank forced on countries on account of neocolonial trade relations is responsible for the unproductivity, not only the traditional small farmer system.
http://miami.indymedia.org/news/2008/07/11406.php
Cebu Opinion: “OVERPOPULATION IS A MYTH, but politicians can see a great political platform when they see one, especially when food and fuel prices are soaring and the possibility of mass unrest casts a dark shadow on the horizon”
“Mosher foresees that the situation would ultimately lead to the collapse of the public health sector.”
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/cebudailynews/opinion/view/20080721-149793/Propagating-a-myth
in 2007
“Hunger on this scale cannot be addressed by handouts. What is wanted is a growing economy that benefits the people. ”
“The hunger is made worse when the poor can’t grow food because most of the millions of hectares of land are left unused by the rich or turned into housing estates to avoid land reform.”
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2007/apr/01/yehey/opinion/20070401opi4.html
Bu why ? the Elites- The influential Makati Business Club (MBC) has also called on Arroyo to drop the idea. ( chacha). The group, whose actions helped swing business leaders against both Estrada in 2001 and Marcos in 1986, carries considerable influence with the nation’s elite. …
just think about it…
leytenian: here is a worse problem —- public-school tuition is free for elementary- and secondary-school education, yet a huge percentage of Pinas schoolkids are not enrolled. Primary/secondary school education to me is of the “… teach a man how to fish and… “.
The Catholic Church will be a Great Contributor to the country’s development and provider of quality Education if the Church Officials get off their old tired horses and co-operate with Government…
About 35% of Ontario Students attend Catholic Schools up to Grade 12 and get their Religious Education on Top of Standard Curriculum prescribed by the Ministry of Education..Majority of Pilipino Children go to Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools…(Also Publicly Funded, including Bus service)
Of course the Catholic Board will always assert the Church Teachings, like refusing to have their “girl†students getting Vaccine for Cervical cancer as they insists it will encourage Pre-Marital sex, but the parents still have a choice to have their Children get them from Public Health or their Family Doctors. But wonder of wonder, how can they allow the girls to wear short, short uniforms, which some of them intentionally hike a little bit more outside the school and pull it down back as soon as they enter their school Campuses??
They are not good yet in this regards. This past year the Ministry threatened to take over the Board if they still can’t balance their Budget after the Greater Toronto Catholic Board of Trustee(trustees are politicians and are elected by the Parents of supporter of Catholic Schools) were alleged to spend the Board Money for themselves on Vacations, Weddings and sumptuous meals on the Board Credit Cards against the legal advice of their lawyers.
But they are learning and learning Fast, otherwise the Government might withdraw the full funding or take over the Board and they don’t like it…sometimes you get to bring out the stick to put them in line…
Our country continue to be under major stress. Prospects for Political Reform and Charter Change are not well delivered by parties. The process of implementation is what really scares people. As a practical matter, incremental measures of political reform, rather than a wholesale shift to parliamentarism or federalism seem to hold greater promise for success at least in my opinion.
1. Victoria gardens and its concept– magtanim nang kamote, encourage planting organic vegetables and many more.. Department of Agri and Dept of Education must team up to educate…
2. Donating to the school rather than church…
“blessed are the poor for their’s is the kingdom of heaven”. Life is about giving. Giving can be to anybody.
3. My favorite performance ratings to all officials from top to bottom- an independent non profit organization can implement this at low costs by starting a website. The media can collect the data.. then attack. lol
4. Land Reform to continue
5. Silent population control… don’t tell the church, ooppss.
Another well-targeted reform, more relevant to process than to outcomes, relates to electoral administration. COMELEC should be restructured from top to bottomâ€â€from its central office in Manila to its extensive nationwide field structure, in order to develop the capacity to maintain accurate lists of voters and execute an accurate and expeditious vote count. Allegations of election fraud involving politicians and COMELEC officials need to be investigated by INDEPENDENT prosecutors willing and able to press charges for wrongdoing… It’s website must say .. Disqualify Buying of Votes…
sino ba ang in charge nang comelec? dito nag take advantage ang mga elites..
If anyone does not agree with the teachings of the Catholic Church change faiths. The bogey man will not get you. Lightining will not strike you. Politicos in the Phils depend on command votes which they support.
That keeps the electoral autocracy going.
Please note that the ffg. portions on an articel from the Inquirer. Salceda said that the carrying capacity of the earth has been reached. No more people allowed.
But what is ironinc is that the people who are doing the most consuming are the rich countries and the rich in the poor countries. Taken together the consumption of the poor will not come close to the total use of resources on this planet by the rich and middle class. In fact the banker David Ricardo who was a good buddy to Malthus observed that it was necessary then to keep people at least at the subsistence level to guarantee surplus labor to insure costs of labor be kept down. His ideas on marginal rent became the basis for a minimum incomes to keep families growing. More hands more land to till.
That would mean he is saying that the carrying capacity of Philippine resources has been reached?????? But who cut down most of the trees??? Who is still granting timber licenses in virgin forrests ion the Phils???? Who is granting mining rights to foreigners to finish up and extract what is left of precious and basic minerals? Who is allowing foreign vessels to bring their factory ships to local waters to harvest the fish????All this to affect water tables going forward and the supply that will affect local fisherman???? Then when they use dynamite, cyanide and muro ami we complain!!!!!Who is rapidly using up the carrying capacity????
“A census conducted in August 2007 showed that there were 88.6 million Filipinos, with an annual population growth rate of 2.04 percent since 2000.”
“Albay Gov. Joey Salceda, one of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s key economic advisers, said that the growth rate “put 2.6 million babies at risk in view of the evolving and intensifying food crisis.â€Â
“The country’s population is projected to reach 90 million this year, 102 million in 2015, and 110 million in 2020.”
“Besides the risks that babies face, Salceda said that the high growth rate also affected efforts to reduce poverty incidence since the increase tends to be more rapid in the poor families.”
“Salceda also said that a bigger population meant a tremendous impact on the environment which had “reached its carrying capacity.â€Â
OOOOps forgot to mention for those still groping…. The brain is our sexual organ. The limbic acting with our higher consciousness. A lot of people stop at the limbic region….
Leytenian,
with all due respect for your five points.I won’t shoot it down, but it is Victory Gardens.
Di na uso yung go home and plant kamote, at hampas lupa;sinong pag asa ngayon di yung nagtatanim mg kamote at humahampas ng lupa.
donating to the school is nice ,pero sa colleges and universities;na welll off na ito nagyayari eh, like you may have a gokongwei building,yuchenco building,etc.
the catholic church fund raising mahinery is still better than even campaign fund raising activities of politicos; ilan ba represenative ng pinas sa world youth day.
performance ratings are done thru surveys like sws,etc.
already many anti corruption ngos than your number of fingers.
land reform,no comment ; kahit yung mga party list di magkasundo.
Silent population control: teen age abortions,Walang umaamin kahit artista, is that silent enough.
Gloria’s 5 Fatal Mistakes
1) Announcing her decision not to run in the elections of 2004.
2) Reversing her decision not to run in the elections of 2004
3)Calling an election official during the canvassing of votes of the 2004 Presidential elections.
4) Her hasty pardon of ex-President Joseph Estrada who was convicted of plunder.
5) Her order to Romulo Neri to invoke “Executive Privilegeâ€Âduring the Senate investigations on the ZTE deal.
What will be Gloria Arroyo’s sixth and most fatal mistake?
How it could be fatal when her presidency is still alive and well in malacanang?
Come to think of it, what about her best moves?
Oh I know people like you will easily reply she has done nothing better.
Sometimes we do not know that there are syndicates which pimp these young people.
And how do you think these people are lured to come to the Philippines… porn sites which can be accessed all over the world except the Philippines. So there is no way by which the authorities in the Philippines would know.
A friend in the US intimated to me how was able to access some of these websites. He said that the young girls are victims of human trafficking, paid only as much as 2 dollars, pimped to the foreigners for a few pesos and the rest goes to the syndicates.
O di va kung gaano ka moronic ang kaniyang mga suggestion showing she’s out of touch of reality.
donating in schools..sus, private universities are earning much from the high tuition fees.
donations in universities come in the form of professorial chair, grants not for students but for professors who wish to continue their post graduate studies but who do not have the means.
And all of this in exchange for doctorate in honoris causa for the donor. Doctorate in Humanities anyone?
The assistance of the private people to financially challenged students is in the form of scholarships. There are a lot of these which can be availed by families who cannot afford to send their bright students to universitis.
Leytenian thought that it is just simple to give the money to the school and make a difference. For public schools, that will not be spent without going to this accounting processes again.
So you understand me why I hate stupid analyses? Because the suggestions are also moronic.
O di va kung gaano ka moronic ang kaniyang mga suggestion showing she’s out of touch of reality.
donating in schools..sus, private universities are earning much from the high tuition fees.
donations in universities come in the form of professorial chair, grants not for students but for professors who wish to continue their post graduate studies but who do not have the means.
And all of this in exchange for doctorate in honoris causa for the donor. Doctorate in Humanities anyone?
The assistance of the private people to financially challenged students is in the form of scholarships. There are a lot of these which can be availed by families who cannot afford to send their bright students to universities.
Leytenian thought that it is just simple to give the money to the school and make a difference. For public schools, that will not be spent without going to this accounting processes again.
So you understand me why I hate stupid analyses? Because the suggestions are also moronic.
Ok The Cat,
matagal na kitang naintindihan tungkol ke leytenian.
Wala akong kinakampihan. pag malabo naman sya, humihingi naman kami ng clarification, pero minsan wala talaga eh.
matagal ko na kayo pinapanood, kaya I know what you are talking about,nakinig din naman sya kahit papano,she editorializes na,ewan ko lang kung clinick ko yung link kung excerpt pa din. pero some are her own words.
at alam mo naman na madalas ko sya mapansin,kaya lang lumamalabas na para sya lang ang kaya ko eh,so i just leave it to you.
pero, what for,masisira lang beauty mo,The Cat.
You have made your point,and point taken.
kaya natuwa ako na nagkaayos na kayo dati,dahil nga nagcomply na sya sa requirement mo na wag iplagiarize ang quoatation nya,kaya nga ang daming nga syang inacknowledge na “from cut and paste”(ngyeh)
cheers,please!
KAMOTE as an alternative..
iloilo: “Then yesterday after lunch while reading newspapers, I saw one columnist William M. Esposo of Philippine Star writing “The underrated kamote can save our country.†Kamote or purple sweet potato has medicinal value also.”
http://www.iloiloviews.com/lowly-kamote-can-save-us.html
CEBU:
The fertile soil of Majayjay provided the solution. In hills and plains, in backyard lots to plant boxes, we planted all the eatables that we could. Camote (sweet potato), in red and yellow varieties, gabi (taro root), and kamoteng kahoy (cassava) grew aplenty with the minimum of tending. Loaded with carbohydrates (which give extra energy needed for hard, physical work), these amazing root crops were great substitutes for rice.
http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/columns/view/20080705-146689/Whos_afraid_of_a_food_crisis
http://pia.gov.ph/?m=12&sec=reader&rp=4&fi=p070411.htm&no=37&date=
“There is also a focused effort to fast-track commercialization of cheaper alternative raw materials such as cocoflour, camote or cassava as a substitute for wheat flour”
http://www.news.ops.gov.ph/sec_remonde.htm
For American Tradition: “Although sweet potatoes may be part of the Thanksgiving tradition, be sure to add these wonderful naturally sweet vegetables to your meals throughout the year; they are some of the most nutritious vegetables around” Health benefits of sweet potato
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=64
Some folks are not familiar of organic foods.. Health is your only wealth…
it’s not fair for the country to do performance ratings/satisfaction rating just for Gloria. Everybody must be rated…
for school donation: it works in my town and many more… Google search “Philippine school Donation”… if one doesn’t like to donate to their universities then one did not get my point… i’m talking about the poor… think the kamote also as for the poor. donation for education is not for the the universities… OFW borthers and sisters will do that… think of the poor and imagine plans that will help the poor. do not misunderstand me because according to KG i might be rich… ( smiling)
google google search my friends.. read current events, try being independent. short cut your point by providing a link ….. when you read a book… there’s always references… it’s like cut and paste.. words are just not the same… there’s no pliagirism here.. it’s about sharing what you have read…. most articles are considered not copied/ pliagiarized if the whole link is provided…. all are free in the blogosphere.. if you use your own words and practice cannot support it, and you don’t provide support to your statement, you will fail in american universities…
leytenian,
references make arguments more convincing only if you have clear arguments in the first place. your comments, sorry to say, seem like a mishmash of random thoughts. maybe you can confine a single comment to a single point to make it clear what you really want to say.
“…Cabral continued to lobby for a “stronger and more decisive” population management policy to control a swelling population that government experts say is threatening development.
In an earlier interview, Cabral said Arroyo should realize there are other, more effective methods of family planning.”
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20080723-150258/Ermita-Cabinet-should-toe-Arroyo-family-planning-line
As Secretary of Social Welfare and Development, Dr. Cabral knows how poverty is deeply exacerbated by overpopulation.
Government should take heed. Its probably what frustrates her everyday.
The catholic church calls it ‘natural’ family planning.
What is ‘natural’ about observing your vaginal mucus so you can have sex for pleasure when you are not fertile?
Ek-ek chu-chu topak talaga logic our beloved Catholic church..
you are on your own, you loose cannon.
continue with your laundry lists .just look at the other comments, they put quotation marks,and they say something.
I wonder how you passed with the American University you are boasting about, kung ang thesis mo puro references,and laudrylists siguro ang thesis mo how to stuff the most garbage in a garbage compactor, or how to stuff the most laundry in a washing machine.
Cummon we were not born yesterday, Ikaw siguro.
It is your turn to do the underestimating, and you will burn!
The Cat on, “Sometimes we do not know that there are syndicates which pimp these young people.”
In the country where 51% of the 90 million Filipinos are living below 100 pesos a day, the parents are pimping their own children. According to Fr Cullen of rehabilitation center PREDA, “children have become involved in the sex trade with their parents’ approval and use the money to help their families”.
According to Philippine Information Agency, parents in the Bicol region encourage children to work at very young age because of poverty and give them up to traffickers for money which send them to Luzon mainly for prostitution and labor.
There was story of a 12 yr old boy who refused to go with a foreigner pedophile and was told “walang mawawala sa iyo at malaking pera na yan”.
The Cat on, “Leytenian thought that it is just simple to give the money to the school and make a difference. So you understand me why I hate stupid analyses? Because the suggestions are also moronic.”
Donation to private school with specific goal is a special donation and dispose according to such purpose. For proper accounting, you can ask the school for statement of uses of funds for that purpose with the intended recipients if it was scholarship. I have done that. In a larger donations through grants, audited statements are required.
You see Leytenian idea is not that bad. It is your condescending attitude of shooting down ideas of other Filipinos that bring up Filipino crab mentality.
dodong,
i am sensing insecurity , pride and immaturity of hearts. This is common among our politicians. They only think about themselves.
PSI… nice comment… yes, there are lots of alternative methods of family planning. thanks for the link..
PSI link.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20080723-150258/Ermita-Cabinet-should-toe-Arroyo-family-planning-line.
President Arroyo position on birth control is not flexible. It is part of her commitment (along the abolition of death penalty) when she met the Pope personally to rein the bishops.
General Ermita like a good old soldier is opening the salvo for her commander in chief as warning to Social Welfare Secretary Esperanza Cabral. If you don’t toe the line you might get replaced.
Just recently loyalist Romulo Neri replaced SSS chief Corazon dela Paz for resisting Palace attempts of using the SSS members funds on so called pro-poor programs.
There is not a short list of loyalists who can replace those who dare the President. To-date loyalists who were defeated the last senate election were put or in process for various government positions.
1. Sen Ralph Recto as NEDA chief.
2. Sen Vicente Sotto as Dangerous Drug Board head.
3. Michael Defensor oversees NAIA Terminal 3.
4. Teresita Aquino Oreta as Education Secretary.
5. Prospero Pichay Jr to head Overseas Workers Welfare Administration.
mlq3, going back to the subject of trains, i just read your pdi column about the manila – bicol line that was inaugurated in 1938. i didn’t know the last spike that completed the project was embedded right in del gallego, c.s. where i was born 2 years thereafter. i hope to revisit the place which we left after my father died at the hands of the japs.
thanks for your nice historical account. the memories of the old manila railroad trains are very dear to my heart.
Talk about insecurity,pride and maturity.
mali na pinaglalaban pa din.
If you can tell me now that you were allowed to go beyond paraphrasing references or even quoting in your paper ;and it is a norm in the U. S., then I thank you for letting me know that Philippine standards are better.
Glad you were not here when The Devil’s advocate was stict about pretentious commenters.If you were here,then you would know what i mean.
about present company D0d0ng three years ko na kasama dito yan kaya mas kilala ko sya sa yo, and he is an ofw I salute; pero ikaw nabawasan ang natitirang sympathy,empathy at patience ko sa iyo.
KG,
Puso mo, baka naka-paste lang.
Meron akong ISANG bagay na laging kino-quote kay Rod Navarro. “Bakit mo hinahanapan ng tamis, alam mo namang kalamansi?” Hehehe.
As a general rule we should not take ourselves too seriously. Most especially in a country where superstition and mysticism prevail.
The most profitable enterpise in the country has been political entrepreneurship. Big Mike and GMA have rewritten the book on this most insidious practice. All Presidents since Quezon have been indulging in it and have systematized it.
The Catholic Church has been, as all evolving cultures have been, a most willing enabler to this system.
You can see the prevalence of that mindset embedded in most of the pundits to this blog.
Talking about a most private act between two consenting adults (straight or gay)should be kept private. It is MLQ3 most private right to engage in fellatio or anal sex for his and his partners pleasure. That is their personal choice.
Men and women are free to choose too. But both also should realize that pleasure has its responsibilities and that matter is matter for schooling, training and experience that should be the basis of education.
We still have a fairly large number of clergy of the fire and brimstone type. They continue to be the best enablers to the whole system.
GMA is one sharp political entrepreneur. Her whole life experience is living in that world of political entreprenuership.
Right now she is effectively and astutely isolating her most feared sector that can galvanize opposition to her politically. (The Catholic Church)
That opposition mainly coming from the so called educated classes. Forget about the other politicos as they are part of the political entreprenurial system.
The government announced that cash handouts to poor families will be limited to a set number of kids only. That means those families with more kids will not get full support for all their kids schooling. Support will be given for up to two or three only.
A retroactive punishment for those with many kids.
On the business side and this is simply a personal suggestion. Short the dollar now and if you can afford it invest in the yen and borrow against it to lend to Big Mike and GMA. Interest rates will have to rise big time to strengthen the peso to soften prices a bit.
The U.S. government has sent out the implicit message that they will strenghten their dollar through the de facto nationalizing of the investment banking business and the mortgage business in America. Prior to this investment banking was not covered by the authority of the Federal Reserve. The Fed to prevent a systemic breakdown in the finacial markets has effectively legislated by itself new parameters of the term “banks” to include non – deposit taking institutions involved in the financial markets who were creating their own credit.
The New New Deal.
The U.S. government has taken a page from that “commie” President FDR.
W. Bush described Wall Street as a bunch who got drunk and are now suffering from a hangover. John Q. Public to the rescue.
Unfortunately the guys who got drunk live to get drunk for another day…
Kinda reminds one of the Phils…
“Education: the inculcation of the incomprehensible into the indifferent by the incompetent.” JM Keynes
We were already cheated in 2004.
Are we going to allow Gloria to get away with Cha Cha and extend her reign indefinitely?
Always Remember the Palace Spin Doctors’ Motto:
FOOL YOU ONCE SHAME ON ME, FOOL YOU TWICE SHAME ON YOU!
Thanks Tongue,
OK na ako,nalala ko yung sinabi ko ke Cat,masisira lang beauty nya. Thanks for the BrodCaster navarro’s one liner…
dati si Equalizer umaawat sa akin,uy equalizer kamusta na?
hvrds,
Paulson finally realizes an old ambition, to rule the whole investment AND retail banking system, an ambition he failed to accomplish as Goldman Sachs chair. The Glass-Steagall Act prevented it.
In contrast to predecessor John Snow who was obssessed with China’s “unfixing” it’s currency, to the point of announcing such event when there was none, (I remember in 2005 the dollar then rose sharply within minutes of his interview only to fall back the moment he recalled the statement.) Henry or “Hank” Paulson was more accommodating with the chinks, after all, they were his major clients in the previous job, he was so close to them Beijing was second home. Bush probably considers him the goldmine from Goldman. How much does the US owe China nowadays?
Even now that he’s running the whole show with the aid of his Republican friends, no one in Manhattan is surprised. As they say in Wall Street, “Oh, that’s very Goldman”.
You see Leytenian idea is not that bad. It is your condescending attitude of shooting down ideas of other Filipinos that bring up Filipino crab mentality.
did you read my comment, how donations are made? yours is in agreement with mine.
it is not in the form of donations that leytenian was thinking.
by the way, i do not feel insecure. why should I?
it is not the crab mentality to criticise out of this world recommendations , it is the cluelessness that i do not like.
sheesh
ASSUMING there will be 2010 elections,who is your favorite “Presidentiable” candidate?
“ASSUMING there will be 2010 elections,who is your favorite “Presidentiable†candidate?”
GMA, of course.
Or Noli, or Bayani. Perhaps Prospero Nograles.
Only fitting for this masochist society.
mlq3,
This topic/thread is getting overpopulated (at almost 350 comments), pardon the simile to the current raging debate.
But unless our gracious host opens a new thread topic, we will be impoverished from coming out with fresh ideas and quarrel in the process, just like in the real-life competition for limited resources.
Cheers!
Signs that you’ve lost the argument
1. Godwin’s Law
2. Bring up that term ‘crab mentality’
3. Bring up nationality
The Equalizer,
I think the ‘sipag at tiyaga’ guy will be the next president:
V – Victory
I – Is
L – Likely
L – Lakas
A – And
R – Ramos
Need you doubt?
psi, good observation. but i think leytenean will never ran out of links (regardless of relevance) or “profound” truisms that most everybody (who wasn’t born yesterday) knows already (funnyface).