Oblivious to change
July 31, 2008 by mlq3
Filed under Daily Dose
Last week I had a chance to address an international gathering of people affiliated with Liberal parties, on the subject of Asian Values versus Liberal Democracy. My thesis was simple: at the heart of the contention by proponents of “Asian Values” as some sort of superior alternative to Western-style Liberal Democracy, is an appreciation -from long practice by senior-citizen politicians- of the motive power of the anti-colonial struggle. It is no coincidence that Lee Kwan Yew is the primary ideological exponent of “Asian Values” and for the purpose of defending the political heritage shared by the nations that emerged from Western colonialism in our part of the world: the one-party state in which political dynasts coexist cosily with big business. But, I told my audience, former colonies have been independent for close to three generations now (in the case of the first to emerge from colonial status, namely the Philippines and India), and for the rest, at least two (or in Brunei’s case, a full generation). The end of the Cold War also marked the end of our part of the world as one of the battlegrounds of the Cold War, and so, the even the era of neocolonialism can be considered to have passed. The motive power of resisting democracy as part of nationalist reawakening, is fading; and with the passing of the generations who can still recall life before independence, to my mind, so will pass the idea that Liberal Democratic values are an alien concept.
But my talk got me thinking further on how we frame our problems in a manner that dates back to the days prior to independence, with the challenges of getting a newly-independent nation on its feet in mind. One such question is that of Muslim Mindanao, which tends to be framed by neoconservatives in a manner reminiscent of the confrontation between Japanese and European Fascism and the Western democracies; it is no coincidence that if Radical Islam pines for the restoration of the Caliphate that came to an end with the secular Republic of Turkey and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, then Rome on the other hand is fighting a two-front war against secularism and Islamic influence in Europe, and that American neoconservatives and Bin Laden both view their struggle for power from the perspective of the Crusades.
In our own case, the question of Muslim Mindanao continues to be perceived from the point of view of our peaceful struggle for independence: that Muslim Mindanao is in danger of being lost. That the solution must be to contain the Muslims, and if possible, to prevent a power vacuum in Mindanao as a whole, and that can only happen by filling it with Christians. the problem, of course, is that Mindanao’s already filled with Christians; while Muslim Filipinos are now reproducing so vigorously, that their populations have taken to finding living space elsewhere in the archipelago.
Yet most of us, I’d suggest, still think that Muslim Mindanao is one discrete place, and one which can be cordoned off, if only the national government could muster the political will and military might; that we take it for granted that there is an immemorial territory that defines who Muslim Filipinos are, is a mentality to which many of our older exponents of Federalism also subscribe, and what they and the non-traditional Muslim Filipino leaders who’ve emerged since the 1960s have in common, is the belief that the Philippine nation-state must be refashioned as a means to achieve what they believe will be a historical vindication for their sub-nations: with some proposing outright nationhood and secession.
To be sure perhaps as recently as a decade or two ago, this notion remained sound, in that they could speak as advocates of populations who dwelled in defined territories and who shared a common culture defined by a common language; today, I believe it’s increasingly untenable. I’ve mentioned before that the old obediences are being eroded not only by migration and immigration abroad, but migration at home; dynasties must constantly shrink their territories, to hold them, as new residents arrive, devoid of the traditional notions of obedience these dynasts could once upon a time.
Take a look at this Wikipedia map, which divides the country along lingguistic lines. And then bear in mind some observations made to me by former U.P. President Francisco Nemenzo, a Cebuano, when I ran into him in Cebu’s airport some months back.
He said that a kind of mapping project has been taking place, and formerly lingguistically-pure areas have started to change, often quite quickly and usually, remarkably.
The examples I recall are that areas surrounding Iloilo have turned Cebuano-speaking while areas of Mindanao formerly Cebuano-dominated are now turning Ilonggo-speaking; if I recall correctly he even said the growing lingguistic population in Mindanao were the Ilonggos and no longer the Cebuanos; as for Cebu itself, he said, fully ten percent of its population was Muslim, a trend that began with refugees during the Marcos-era Moro Wars, and that the Muslims in Cebu were mainly Tausug. There are growing pockets of Muslim Filipino residents not only in Metro Manila, but up North and even in the Visayas; when I took the fast ferry from San Carlos City in Negros Occidental to Toledo City in Cebu, the ferry service was Muslim-owned.
Add to this snippets I’ve picked up from people as I’ve pursued the topic Nemenzo brought up. In Quezon Province, for example, there are growing pockets of Bicolano speakers; Aurora province, on the other hand, is increasingly marked by an Ilocano presence; the Ilocos itself, in some parts, seems quite depopulated, and a decade ago I experienced an Ilocos Sur tourism official telling off a group of kids from whom we asked directions, because they talked to us in Filipino (from Cebuano educators I hear that Cebu City, at least, now has its first generation of youths who prefer to converse with each other in Filipino). There are, of course, entire areas well known for their populations being composed mainly of immigrants: Imperial Manila has been a Visayan city, for all intents and purposes, for two generations (Why then, I asked Nemenzo, haven’t more Visayan words entered the Tagalog spoken in Manila? His response was interesting: the effect of the Visayans has been not on vocabulary, but on grammar: the simplification of Tagalog, as spoken in Manila, and therefore, used in the media, is a manifestation of Visayans stripping Tagalog of its grammatical encrustations from the time Tagalog itself evolved from Cebuano in the distant past!).
This suggests to me that what we have come to take for granted, has been gradually disappearing for some time and is actually accelerating at present; and among other things, this means that viewing Muslim Mindanao as either a place to be contained, or something that can be lost (or, as I’ve considered in the past, something to consider detaching from the republic) is certainly impossible now if it was ever possible at all in the past.
I told the gathered Liberals (though it’s not too clear to me what the youth represents belonging to variously-named parties have in common, politically) -from the United States, Germany, Belgium, Nepal, Malaysia, Thailand, and of course the Philippines- that the false dichotomy between Asian Values and Liberal Democracy was a problem with a demographic solution: addressing the youth leaders from the two wings of the presently-divided Liberal Party in the Philippines in particular, I urged them to be confident that their decision to maintain solidarity among party mates from their generation, even as their elders squabbled, would be vindicated. But only, I said, when the party elders died and they, by sheer attrition, took over.
The same applies, I think, to many of the seemingly intractable problems we face nationally, with a political scene dominated by increasingly geriatric big shots who long ago abandoned their idealism and who have lost their capacity to be imaginative. It takes some time to understand it, but on the whole, there are signs that when the dinosaurs go, we will find a more highly evolved generation of Filipinos taking their place: one that might be more adept at balancing idealism with pragmatism, in problem solving, in cooperation, in sustained effort and so forth. Whether they are conscious of it, or only instinctively yet dimly aware of it, the elders now ruling the roost in mainstream politics and in the various rebel organization, are fighting the battle everyone eventually loses: against their own mortality. What was fresh, even radical, or even tried, tested, and true for their generation, whether you are Fidel V. Ramos, Juan Ponce Enrile, Joker Arroyo, Jose Ma. Sison, Nur Misuari, Joseph Estrada or even President Arroyo, was forged in the crucible of a Philippines that is dissolving. And so, they are furiously trying to write an appropriately grand epitaph for themselves.
Consider the relevance, however, of achieving a Muslim Federal State, at a time when a remarkable expansion of Muslims into other parts of the Philippines is taking place: or of demanding near-divorce from the Republic for Ilocandia or Cebu, when their own populations have changed drastically: demarcations that ignore changes in demographics, such as the movement of Ilocanos into areas once considered -and dominated by- Tagalog people. As it is, one of the big problems that exists in expanding the current territory of the ARMM, is that while once claimed by the old Sultanate of Sulu, among others, the areas being demanded as an integral homeland for Filipino Muslims takes neither traditional divisions within the Muslim community (Tausug versus Maranao, etc., etc.) into account, or how they ceased being dominated by Muslims long ago; or how, even, in these border areas, claims of Christian settler supremacy is often by means of hair-thin margin.
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PSI on Thu, 31st Jul 2008 11:33 pm
Taking off from you arguments: if the government persists on forging an agreement with the MILF without consulting the local officials, majority of whom are Christians, RP will lose Mindanao not to the Moro nation but to the Christians.
Shades of Rueben Canoy’s Mindanao Republic. Whatever happened to that fellow?
cvj on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 12:15 am
Anecdotally, i find some evidence to support your generational-divide thesis. Here in Singapore, which is supposed to be the home of Asian Values, i find that the locals, especially the younger ones, have an affinity for democratic values. However, i believe that the main threat to democracy today is the elitist values of a significant portion of Civil Society, an example of which is the PAD Thai’s New Politics.
Pedestrian Observer GB on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 12:27 am
Ahhhh, expanding ARRM, secession or status quo is actually a losing proposition until feudal Muslim Mindanao gets past thye feudal stage.
The conduct of fraudulent election in the ARRM region is a window to the bleak future of the “empowered” Muslims and until the majority of Muslims are free from the strangleholds of tribal chieftains of the warlord and political dynasty of the trapo type it will just be a vicious cycle achieving nothing but perpetuation of feudal lords supremacy over the people of Mindanao.
BrianB on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 12:49 am
manolo,
You’re almost there. Conservatism tends towards divisiveness and separation into old pre-Spanish cultures, yes? An untenable political view and should be relegated to the garbage bin of other extremist politics (Filipino purity, tagalog nation, Catholic nation, communism, etc.)
There is another conservatism, on the other hand, based on Catholic and the Spanish-era belief-systems, which I think is in place right now. The problem with the liberal-conservative dichotomy in this country is that though Liberalism seems to be a distinct philosophy, Philippine conservatism has yet to be explained in a satisfying manner, a manner, in other words, that will satisfy the idea of the Philippines as one nation. While liberals can borrow from foreign examples and remain effective as liberals (however derivative some of these idiots may seem to me), Philippine conservatism is a nebulous concept. I doubt sincerely if anyone here can explain what Philippine conservatism is. All we see in politics is criminality and diregard for principles of any kind. Our politicians are chameleons, sometimes espousing liberal ideas 9for the sake of appearing smart) and sometimes forcing conservative beliefs (what feels like conservative beliefs, at least) to the rest of us. They change according to the weather and who they are talking to. The catholic church, necessarily an institution of conservative mindset, have been focusing overmuch on sex and sexual practices of the population, leaving the other parts of a moral and political conservatism open for loose, ad hoc and flip-flopping interpretations.
Political conservatism is more necessary to this country’s progress than liberalism for the simple fact that it does not exist yet, at least not in a functioning form.
UP n student on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 1:03 am
One must not lose sight of two things —- history has cases where “the duly appointed” have acted to purify a geographic area, either with their own ( e.g. Karadzic) or with mercenaries (janjaweed).
Some folk do not wait, they act on your thesis
about the role of death in regards shifting of political winds.
Second : the youth do just as easily assume the mindset of the old, e.g. oft-repeated class war rant (cvj and up-and-coming from Diliman, UST, FEU or UnivSan Carlos) or the thuggery of 14-year olds with guns doing KFR in Mindanao.
Pedestrian Observer GB on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 2:06 am
BrianB,
Exactly…….. the absence of clearly defined ideology much less principles and ideals in Philippine political parties where personal vested interest dictates their political affiliation you expect hooliganism of the Mafiosi type in their political conduct.
What we have is a political system that is dominated by the ruling minority elites and until we have a level political playing field all these liberal and conservative yada yada blah blah blah are just plain hollow posturing whose meaning escapes them or beyond their reach.
Heck this is not even a question of the youth over the old guards as these young guards are cast of the same mold who were propped up by the same vested interest……
supremo on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 3:09 am
‘one of the big problems that exists in expanding the current territory of the ARMM…’
As I’ve said in the previous thread ‘ARMM II then ARMM III. Pretty soon every Muslim tribe will have there own autonomous region. Not that there’s anything wrong with it.’
The 1987 Philippine Constitution did not specify ONE autonomous region in Mindanao. There is no solution to the problem if everyone, including the national government and MILF, insists on this interpretation of ONE autonomous region in Mindanao. Dissolve the provinces in Mindanao and create autonomous communities instead.
KG on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 6:50 am
One thing sticks, because UPN always point to it:
FALSE DICHOTOMY
KG on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 6:56 am
so short, but with grammatical errors,(previous comment)
we are a country where not everyone can speak or write straight english, straight tagalog,straight Bisaya in Visayas,straight bicolano in bicol,ilocano in ilocos and
the list goes on.
KG on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 7:19 am
Have you guys noticed that Supremo’s suggestions can solve our problems in a snap…the problem is people forget that snapping is easy.
Or is this another false dichotomy a choice between snapping is easy or not.
Even True or False;and Yes or No, is becoming a false dichotomy.
I forgot to mention BLACK or WHITE.
our pilosopos already solved that by saying that there are always shades of grey
leytenian on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 8:25 am
“When the government fears the people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny.”
leytenian on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 8:59 am
The key aspects to bridge the gap between our Values and Democracy lies in the management skills of our leaders to address concerns and solve the problem of inequality and safeguards for the poor. It calls for an alternate strategies of knowledge where the values and biases of our leaders are questioned (performance ratings- from bottom to top or vice versa) . Our representatives should ensure that political and social choices are made democratically and not be part of a discourse that the poor and the marginal CANNOT comprehend or NEGOTIATE with. The management strategy should also be focus on a policy framework that is RECEPTIVE to a demand driven approach and can address concerns of poverty alleviation and those related to public goods and human rights. Our current management strategy is limited to the Macro level.
The smaller units are only heard when crisis sets in ( my own definition of tyranny)
DevilsAdvc8 on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 9:09 am
what will happen if government pushes through without serious dialoug with all the groups involved will be ethnic violence like what is happening in Iraq.
frombelow on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 9:11 am
young vs old???
in the philippine politcal setting, there is no such thing ???
The likes of Escudero, (young) propped up by Danding (old) ; Defensor (young) practicing the old but sure way of getting what he likes ( patronage and by force– how he took hold of Mawanay), and others and so on and so forth.
What we need are not young faces but young ideas!!!
anthony scalia on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 12:20 pm
Kevin Garnett,
“we are a country where not everyone can speak or write straight english, straight tagalog,straight Bisaya in Visayas,straight bicolano in bicol,ilocano in ilocos and the list goes on.”
(one way of looking at it) communication is the prime consideration di ba? if you can get a message across clearly in taglish/englog, or a mixture of bisaya and bicol, why not?
hvrds on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 12:23 pm
“My thesis was simple: at the heart of the contention by proponents of “Asian Values†as some sort of superior alternative to Western-style Liberal Democracy, is an appreciation -from long practice by senior-citizen politicians- of the motive power of the anti-colonial struggle. It is no coincidence that Lee Kwan Yew is the primary ideological exponent of “Asian Values†and for the purpose of defending the political heritage shared by the nations that emerged from Western colonialism in our part of the world: the one-party state in which political dynasts coexist cosily with big business. But, I told my audience, former colonies have been independent for close to three generations now (in the case of the first to emerge from colonial status, namely the Philippines and India), and for the rest, at least two (or in Brunei’s case, a full generation). The end of the Cold War also marked the end of our part of the world as one of the battlegrounds of the Cold War, and so, the even the era of neocolonialism can be considered to have passed. ”
Lee Kwan Yew also knows fully well both Marxian and Smithian political /economic theories. He, Lee also knows the era of neo-colonialism is not past.
To consider Lee an ideoloque of Asian values is totally wrong. He is a crafty one who knows that you need symbolism and rationales on the world stage.
China and India both need time for them to first become materially strong before the idea of liberal democracy can prevail in the midst of present global realities.
A lot of leaders of both Singapore, China and India are all students of poltical economy and historical dialectics.
How can former colonies be independent for three generations?
Qualify the degree of indepence. Those former colonies who have and had cut off to a greater degree from their colonial masters have prospered the fastest and the furthest.
The best example is the United States itself. Then you have China and India follwoing behind. it is nothing short of incredible (looking at the material side ) on how China and India have raised the standards of living of their citizens. (not all) But quite a number (500M combined) in a period that took the West hundreds of years.
China by command and India by semi command.
The ongoing WTO debates are part of that break up of the attempt to impose neo-colonial standards on former colonies under the guise of free trade.
With all due respect to MLQ3. You are a member of the lucky sperm club. You probably are a trust fund baby.
You come from one of the most well established landed families in these Islands.
I have the utmost respect for leaders like Lee, Mandela and the like. Deng was another revelation with his one country two systems.
There is no conflict between liberal democracy and the so called Asian vlaues. The oldest organized fedual societies on this planet if India and China. The rest can be found in the M.E. There is actually no contradiction.
The attempt of the West to make one is based on a total ignorance of history. Your attempt is naive.
In one newscast of NBC, Brain Willaims started the introduction while he was in Bagram Air base in Afghanistan. He said that the Amercian army was the third army to have a base in Afghanistan and wer on the site used by the Russians and before them the Greeks under Alexander the great.
The American military today have anthropologists, sociologists in hire in the GWOT.
They know this idea of imposing liberal democracy on the M.E. is crazy. it is difficult to fast track evolution. That is a very Marxist concept. For the one country in the world to take that tack is the most frightening thing the world has seen since Hiltler.
Unwitting or wittingly Bush and Cheney were proving Marx and Lenin right.
hvrds on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 12:33 pm
A very celver quote from the cartoon -”Kung Fu Panda”
“The past is history, the future is a mystery but the present is a gift. ”
Individually we have the capacity to change our own histories if we want to.
But that rerquires direction and a lot of political will to become a leader and take along an entire country with you.
Changing history and not waiting for history to catch up with us.
Which of our leaders will meet this critieria and apply this to the seemingly hybrid realties of these islands?
mindanaoan on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 12:37 pm
i dont know where prof. nemenzo got his figures, but cebu’s population fully 10% muslim? that’s a bigger percentage than in iligan! unlikely. Ilonggo as the growing linguistic population in mindanao? it’s maguindanao according to the 2007 census
Amadeo on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 1:52 pm
Further to Mindanaoan’s comments.
“if I recall correctly he even said the growing linguistic population in Mindanao were the Ilonggos and no longer the Cebuanos; as for Cebu itself, he said, fully ten percent of its population was Muslim, a trend that began with refugees during the Marcos-era Moro Wars, and that the Muslims in Cebu were mainly Tausug.â€
I wonder where the professor visited in Mindanao for him to declare that Illongo is now the growing dialect in Mindanao. No doubt, we have always had Illongos in our midst, but for the dialect to overhaul the Cebuano, or more appropriately, the Bisaya, speakers? That would be quite a stretch, in my opinion.
But then again, the professor may simply believe that the Cebuano dialect is the one spoken only by the people coming from Cebu, but locals typically do not make that distinction. They do however make a distinction when asked about their place of origin. Thus, Cebuano if coming from Cebu, Cagayanon if from Cagayan de Oro, etc. but linguistically, they all speak bisaya, or Visayan,
And 10% of the population of the island of Cebu translates to about 400,000. Are there that many Muslims in that island? Unless, we stretch the definition of who a Muslim is. After all, Lapulapu was a Muslim, thus his descendants could be so defined. The City of Cebu has a population of about 800,000.
Bert on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 6:08 pm
“But that rerquires direction and a lot of political will to become a leader and take along an entire country with you.”-hvrds
Out there is a leader, a Marcos without the corruption and toleration of corrupt cronies…more importantly, a lavish wife, or husband. Let’s find the person.
Ate Glo and Big Mike, tumabi muna po kayo.
UP n student on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 8:23 pm
There are several models of leadership. One of the romantic models is the “I’ll make time for all the constituencies to have a chance to talk, then I will listen, analyze, synthesize….then do what the people have told me” as espoused by cvj, Abe Margallo, blogposters in the EllenTordesillas site, many others.
Whether you call this pandering (as its opponents will be inclined to call it) or however you describe it, there are serious flaws with this non-leadership model of leadership.
cvj on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 9:02 pm
UPn, that’s one of the very rare times i’ve been called ‘romantic’. As for leadership, i know of six styles:
- coercive
- authoritative
- democratic
- affiliative
- pace-setting
- coaching
http://www.mariosalexandrou.com/blog/?p=227
Each of the above has advantages and disadvantages and one can tends to be mistaken for the other (e.g. coercive & authoritative, democratic & affiliative).
As for my style of tolerating discussions, i am aware of its flaws especially when i have to put up with insufferable elitists.
cvj on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 9:20 pm
Here’s a better link on the six leadership styles:
http://www.coachiates.com/leadersip.htm
The Equalizer on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 9:35 pm
Manolo
I consider the Liberal party the only principle-based party in the country.
But current leadership is weak.
Its “presence” seems to be confined to a few press releases from the media office of Mar Roxas.
Where is the party of Ninoy?Jovy? Butch Abad? Drilon?
UP n student on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 9:44 pm
to Equalizer: help me out with a quick review. Pls name three or four of key foundation principles of the Liberal Party.
I don’t know where ancestral domain fits in Liberal party list of principles.
PSI on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 9:58 pm
Not a negative thinker, but I’m not expecting much change to be effected by whover gets elected as the next president from the current crop of possible candidates. Not without a big reform agenda.
Both executive and legislative branches of government have been charged of all possible malfeasance under the sun. Now, comes this revelation about the Court of Appeals judges, putting into disrepute the remaining bastion of government credilibilty.
Indeed, its the system folks. Endemic some others would call it. It’s what mlq3 blogged as ‘gaming the system.’ Ca t also realistically stated that who gets elected as president, the VAT will stay, being the lifeline of government finances .
The next president will be subjected to the same machinations and influence-peddling of traditional politicians(trapos), oligarchic families, catholic bishops, media hype, etc. To be blunt, I do not think De Castro, Escudero, Roxas, Legarda, nor Lacson has got what it takes to do it.
Unless a substantive reform agenda through constituional amendment is implemented, I’m sorry to say, things are not gonna change folks!
UP n student on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 10:06 pm
Is the Liberal Party a party of principles or of personalities???? I think Mar Roxas is current president, isn’t he?
Ferdinand Marcos and Diosdado Macapagal… also Elpidio Quirino —- Liberal Party elders from years ago. Drilon, Atienza, Manny Pacquiao and Michael Defensor also were Liberal Party members.
“Noon at Ngayon, Liberal Marangal”
Bert on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 10:32 pm
“To be blunt, I do not think De Castro, Escudero, Roxas, Legarda, nor Lacson has got what it takes to do it.
Unless a substantive reform agenda through constituional amendment is implemented, I’m sorry to say, things are not gonna change folks!”-PSI
Hmmm, I smell something fishy here…the perrenial one/two combination. Status quo beyond 2010?
anthony scalia on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 11:14 pm
PSI,
“Unless a substantive reform agenda through constituional amendment is implemented, I’m sorry to say, things are not gonna change folks!”
oops, ayaw nina cvj, bert et al nyan
Willy Acuna on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 11:40 pm
Manolo,
Federalism should not be carved primarily on the basis of ethnic languages. Rather, it is all about political equality , cooperation, people empowerment, population’s direct involvement on public policy right at the “state” where they live, government policy decisions not promulgated from imperial Manila, and granting freedom to local population to determine their economic future. With due respect, I am afraid you have “fallen victim” to the “Filipino feudal mentality”. Your Grandfather President Manuel Quezon said, “I’d rather have the Philippines run by Filipinos like hell than run like heaven by Americans!” Well, look, he got what he wanted! Federalism carries the principle and concept that your grandfather had advocated. But then, you, as his grandson seems to be on the opposite side of this thesis. Similar to your Granfather’s conviction is the desire of various ethnic and cultural groups in the Philippines. As an American of Filipino heritage, who sincerely loves the Philippines,but happily residing in the Great Lone Star State of Texas, Texans speak American English here, which is the language Filipinos in the Philippines love to imitate. Does English laguage then, which promotes social harmony and better understanding among people, be a negative factor to a federal set up? I don’t think so! Just like Filipino language, which is based on Tagalog , an official-national language is a positive step towards promoting federalism, while respecting regional/provincial uniqueness of what charaterizes true Filipino diversity. Federalism is the essence of celebrating diversity, and population migration has nothing to do with it. The genius of federalism is what the Philippines needs. Failure to adopt this system in the context of Philippines setting is a failure to recognize the unique diversity of the Filipino nation. Yes, it can be a painful process as local people learn the art of public governance, but we all have to give them the benefit of the doubt that they are as capable as we are who sometimes feel scared that they might not be able to make it. Manolo, the more we trust people to determine their destiny, the more they work hard to prove they are capable. This is the genuine essence of freedom after all, just exactly what your Grandfather deeply and sincerely believed. He did not give up his conviction until his last breath.
Respectfully,
Willy Acuna
Dallas, Texas
USA
Willy Acuna on Fri, 1st Aug 2008 11:44 pm
Manolo,
Federalism should not be carved primarily on the basis of ethnic languages. Rather, federalism is all about political equality , cooperation, people empowerment, population’s direct involvement in public policy right at the “state” where they live, government policy decisions not promulgated from imperial Manila, and granting freedom to local population to determine their economic future. With due respect, I am afraid you have “fallen victim” to the “Filipino feudal mentality”. Your Grandfather President Manuel Quezon said, “I’d rather have the Philippines run by Filipinos like hell than run like heaven by Americans!” Well, look, he got what he wanted! Federalism carries the principle and concept that your grandfather had advocated. But then, you, as his grandson seems to be on the opposite side of this thesis. Similar to your Granfather’s conviction is the desire of various ethnic and cultural groups in the Philippines. As an American of Filipino heritage, who sincerely loves the Philippines,but happily residing in the Great Lone Star State of Texas, Texans speak American English here, which is the language Filipinos in the Philippines love to imitate. Does English laguage then, which promotes social harmony and better understanding among people, be a negative factor to a federal set up? I don’t think so! Just like Filipino language, which is based on Tagalog , an official-national language is a positive step towards promoting federalism, while respecting regional/provincial uniqueness of what charaterizes true Filipino diversity. Federalism is the essence of celebrating diversity, and population migration has nothing to do with it. The genius of federalism is what the Philippines needs. Failure to adopt this system in the context of Philippines setting is a failure to recognize the unique diversity of the Filipino nation. Yes, it can be a painful process as local people learn the art of public governance, but we all have to give them the benefit of the doubt that they are as capable as we are who sometimes feel scared that they might not be able to make it. Manolo, the more we trust people to determine their destiny, the more they work hard to prove they are capable. This is the genuine essence of freedom after all, just exactly what your Grandfather deeply and sincerely believed. He did not give up his conviction until his last breath.
Respectfully,
Willy Acuna
Dallas, Texas
USA
PSI on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 12:28 am
Not to fault-find, but representative liberal democracy never truly worked in the Philippines. Not during the Commonwealth period nor during the first to the present Republics.
Representative democracy is a compromise between elite rule and direct democracy. A principle required is ‘political equality’ which is underpinned by real economic equality.
The situation obtaining in RP where patron-client relationships are still pervasive, where one hundred families control almost ninety percent of the country’s wealth, or where ‘the color of your money’matters in the executive, legislative , and judicial branches of government.
Freedom of expression, another principle required in liberal democracy, is subverted when media delivery is controlled by the interests which captured the state and its institutions, catholic tyranny, and extreme poverty which opens the floodgates for vote buying.
Until these pre-requisites of liberal democracy are met, the country could very well be better off with an Asian or sovereign (as Russia’s) type of democratic (?) government. Or, until we remake the Constitution.
cvj on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 12:51 am
PSI, how do we choose our dictator? of do we let the contenders fight among themselves?
PSI on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 1:22 am
cvj,
Are you being funny?
We don’t choose the dictator. He/She just comes. Kaya nga diktador, ano ka ba?
cvj on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 1:35 am
PSI, so you’re advocating a bahala na approach on the part of the citizenry?
supremo on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 1:36 am
Roman Dictator from wikipedia
‘Dictator was a political office of the Roman Republic. The dictator was above the three branches of government in the constitution of the Roman Republic as no other body or officer could check his power.
…
The reasons which led to the appointment of a dictator required that there should be only one at a time and great power was visited upon them— the imperium magnus, having the ultimate imperium maius (a higher degree of imperium), which was the ability to overrule or remove from office the other curule magistrates upon whom imperium was conferred, including the ability to order their death. The dictators that were appointed for carrying on the business of the state were said to be nominated rei gerundae causa (for the matter to be done), seditionis sedandae causa (for the putting down of rebellion), or ironically in the case of Sulla, considering his actions set precedents that contributed to the end of the Republican system, as “dictator legibus faciendis et rei publicae constituendae causa” (“Dictator for the making of laws and for the settling of the constitution”).’
Framers of the 1987 Constitution forgot to include this great innovation.
Bert on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 3:32 am
“We don’t choose the dictator. He/She just comes. Kaya nga diktador, ano ka ba?”-PSI
It’s a tricky business. In the context of our history our dictators came in sheep’s clothing. The citizenry is always caught flat-footed. Not their fault. Just goes to show you cannot judge a book by its cover. This is not like saying that if you remove the sheep’s clothing the wolf is something else.
UP n student on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 3:44 am
cvj; the “bahala na” approach is always available. A segment of the population has done it before, and is doing it now, by just listening to their music and ignoring politics. Then, there are the citizens who just focus on economics. Focus is on work and livelihood— in Pinas, or overseas as OCW’s. Others mix work and politics by lending themselves out as janjaweeds to political aspirations of others.
At the other end of the spectrum will be the take-action people, like those who call for “surge the gates”-and-bahala-na-wnat-happens next. Of course, there are a few with a bit better action-plan. These are the ones who find surrogates to surge-the-gates for them while they also grease the skids so their agents occupy positions of power when chaos ensues as they move to prove again that “… the citizenry always caught flatfooted”.
Then, there are those with less of an action plan. These include those who are in search of heroes for whom they will surge-the-gates (or distribute leaflets or do one-on-one buttonholing) if their hero (directly or indirectly) asks.
Never to forget those whose actions now are from seeds planted years ago – e.g. the disinterested in local politics because they are energized being only months away from being accepted to Canada or USA or Australia as immigrants or as OCWs or because they have a wedding date set or they anticipate their first child 5 months from now.
Different folks, different strokes. Democracy in action. Kung ano ang magiging resulta eh “bahala na”.
————-
Some of the optimists say that in the end, things will eventually be all right. Or at least, in the reckoning will be justice.
Then there are the optimists who say “bring it on!!” with their belief ” … the better-prepared wins.”
Different folks, different strokes. Democracy in action.
cvj on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 3:50 am
UPn, democracy in action to bring on a dictator? Isn’t that an oxymoron? (or minus the ‘oxy’…)
UP n student on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 4:01 am
cvj: democracy has at least a handful of examples — citizens who later find out they have been morons for using the wrong criteria to choose who to vote for president.
leytenian on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 6:28 am
cvj,
here’ the tax policy by world bank for third world countries:
http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTDEBTDEPT/0,,contentMDK:21387064~menuPK:64166739~pagePK:64166689~piPK:64166646~theSitePK:469043,00.html
“In 1996, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund launched a debt relief program called the Heavily
Indebted Poor Countries initiative. Since that time, 27 countries — representing two-thirds of the world’s most heavily indebted poor nations — have qualified for
debt relief worth $53 billion over the next 20 years.
Spending on poverty reduction in these countries had increased to 8 percent of national income in 2003 from 6 percent in 1999. At about $9 billion, this additional
spending on poverty reduction represents about three-and-a-half times the amount spent on debt service by these countries. ”
Not sure if Philippines is one of those 27 countries. If so, kaya siguro utang nang utang pa rin tayo…
http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTDEBTDEPT/NewsAndEvents/20263626/vikram-nehru-hipc-opinion.pdf
hvrds on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 7:20 am
“Some of the optimists say that in the end, things will eventually be all right. Or at least, in the reckoning will be justice.”
“Then there are the optimists who say “bring it on!!†with their belief †… the better-prepared wins.â€
“Different folks, different strokes. Democracy in action.” pundit blogger and functional literacy.
Optimists are not grounded in reality.
Optimists that are prepared are realists not optimists.
Idealism is dangerous as Mandela, Hitler, Stalin and Gandhi were all believers in idealism.
You can choose which idealism was based on moral ascendancy and the others who were more on the side of evil.
Idealism for morality became dangerous for the guru preaching it.
Idealism that divides became dangerous for humanity.
It is funny but in one post Ricky Carandang said that he is a secularist. We could take it that he is a realist and does not believe in religion.
Synonymous with being an agnostic.
Reactionary. A charter member of the flat earth society.
We all forget that nature is deterministic. Discoveries are simply history being uncovered.
Our ability to observe is the creation process itself.
Unfortunately many are still asleep with their eyes open.
It is like the difference between having sex and making love.
There is magic out there. But we have to be grounded in reality.
hvrds on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 7:31 am
People based democracy is never given, it is taken and fought for.
Using a corrupt dysfunctional political system to gain power thorugh the ballot is an oxymoron in itself.
Trying to ride on the back of a tiger will almost assuredly guarantee the rider will be eventually eaten by the tiger.
Who do you have that can tame this tiger?????
Unfortunately for us the tiger has to be killed but we should have the tiger give birth to tiger cubs and
we could train and defang the cubs while we still can AND CHANGE THE HISTORY OF TIGERS.
cvj on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 9:09 am
UPn, democracy cannot insulate people from making mistakes, but no system can do that. What i find moronic is the indomitable faith of many in the Filipino middle class of a Messiah/philosopher-king coming to fix things. This despite our country’s track record when it comes to philosopher-king(queen) wannabees.
“The people never give up their liberties but under some delusion.” – Edmund Burke
In reality, there is only us folks.
The EQualizer on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 9:52 am
“I know Francis de Borja but I have not authorized him or anybody to make representations for any matter that involves cases of Meralco and the Lopez family,”Manolo Lopez said. “We have retainers and lawyers to handle the legal matters. Further, Francis is not a lawyer nor is he connected with Meralco.”
ONLY LAWYERS KNOW HOW TO BRIBE?
UP n student on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 10:34 am
Equalizer: You focused on the wrong phrase. The more important phrase is “… have not authorized him… to make representations…”
anthony scalia on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 11:13 am
UP n student,
one way of looking at it –
the Chairman just tells his top management – do whatever it takes (leaving implementation to the latter). technically, Manolo Lopez may not have authorized de Borja, but one of his top management guys may have.
another possibility – the Chairman or one of the top management people told their external counsel do whatever it takes (leaving implementation to the latter). then the external counsel dispatches de Borja. so in that situation, Manolo Lopez also did not authorize de Borja. de Borja may not be hired directly by Manolo Lopez, but he may be working for Meralco’s interests
hvrds on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 11:36 am
When discussing things that are uncertain dwell on things that are certain.
This guy de Borja apparently is a well known fixer that has access to the corridors of power.
He is like an invetment banker who packages deals in the game of entrepreneurial politics.
The judicial instituion if a critical part of our political institutions.
We now know for certain that there is a market existing where none should most especially at the highest levels of society that have access to the highest levels of state institutions.
Regulatory and institutional capture.
At the level of a municipal judge you simply match the fixer to the same level. But at the level of the higher ups the fixers are usually also of the same level. Obvioulsy is a case goes higher the stakes are higher. (Price equilibrium)
Sila sila and naglalaro.
Theoretically when a justice is approached he should inform his superior and make it public before a decision comes out.
In cases where judges are hearing litigation any one who approaches a judge ex parte is supposed to be reported to the court hearing the case.
That is the ideal situation but alas reality is always more complicated.
It is similar to Winnie Monsod attacking GSIS without informing her readers that her hubby is well entrenched in the Lopez empire.
When it comes to big money realism on material issues take precedence over idealism.
Winnie Monsod knows that when she is a premier bean counter (equilibrium scientist) teaching (theoretical) efficiencies through price equilibrium.
At what price will it take the buyer or seller to agree?
Mahilig ang mga pinoy sa sabong. You can almost see Korina Sanchez and Karen Davila getting so excited when they discuss these issues between the warring parties.
The media loves political sabong. Money flows from all directions.
mlq3 on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 12:46 pm
nemenzo is a social scientist and he was sharing the results of a proper study. since it was an informal conversation whilke we were in the smoking lounge, i can’t vouch for the exact details -good point for example if he meant cebu province or cebu city- what i recall is that the growing muslim pop. was due to refugees from the 1970s moro wars. anyway cebu residents can confirm or deny this.
magdiwang on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 2:31 pm
if the lopezes dont handle this issue carefully, it will explode in their face. how amazing that they have not learned their lessons in the past where their too aggresive way of doing business makes them look too greedy. easy targets for politicians.
how will we move as a nation when even the highest courts in the land are infiltrated by influence peddlers. the whole situation stinks no matter how you look at it and to add insult to injury there will be an investigation with no conclusion as it will end up their word against his.
Bert on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 3:50 pm
“cvj: democracy has at least a handful of examples — citizens who later find out they have been morons for using the wrong criteria to choose who to vote for president.”-UP n
UP n, how about the smart citizen who is not a moron, used the right criteria, then the president he voted for and won shed the sheep’s clothing then make full use of his fangs and appetite? Do you consider him a ‘bahala na’ citizen even if he wants to ’surge the gate’?
leytenian on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 8:05 pm
“The neophyte senator said instead of sourcing funds for pro-poor programs from VAT, the government should set their eyes on curbing smuggling instead, which reportedly costs the government P142 billion a year in losses.”
“”He said that stopping smuggling would indeed prove more difficult to carry out than collecting VAT…
http://ph.news.yahoo.com/gma/20080728/tph-senators-say-arroyo-s-defense-of-vat-d6cd5cf.html
If Escudero thinks that stopping smuggling will help reduce VAT, then he should provide solutions. Mahirap daw … of course, problem is very difficult to solve if one do not have the “know HOW”…
STOP SMUGGLING then kung ayaw nila sa VAT.
mga news sa atin , backward pa rin. It’s not productive. It’s actually sad.
vic on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 9:55 pm
A case about “trash”
Tracey Tyler
LEGAL AFFAIRS REPORTER
It may be garbage, but a single bag can tell the story of our lives.
Those banana peels, letters, pill bottles and razors can reveal intimate details about the occupants of a home, from their medical and financial health to political or religious affiliations – not to mention fingerprints and DNA.
How would you feel if a neighbour rifled through your refuse to better understand your habits? What if those rummaging were police?
That’s happening already in Canada, with some officers even masquerading as garbage collectors. But not everyone is convinced the practice should continue.
The issue is headed for the Supreme Court of Canada, with federal and provincial prosecutors, criminal lawyers and civil libertarians now preparing for a crucial legal battle this fall over the question of whether our garbage is private.
http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/471609
This is a very interesting case where a former member of the country’s Swim Team was convicted of Drug Trafficking from evidence collected from his garbage leading to executing a search warrant for his residence..His case appeal will be heard by the SC in October and the Canadian Civil Liberties is Intervening on His behalf…
The Challenge: the collections and examinations of his Garbage violated his Charter right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure.
UP n student on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 10:00 pm
to Bert:… on “bahala na“. What do you think of these words from hvrds:
or these from Willy Acuna (Dallas, Texas) :
PSI on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 10:22 pm
Not to disparage hearing all sides as part of democratic process, but the Philippines has similar symptoms of ‘globosclerosis’, or what Mr. David Brook of New York Times defines as the ‘inability to solve problem after problem’ because too many groups have the power to torpedo initiatives.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/01/opinion/01brooks.html?em
“This dispersion should, in theory, be a good thing, but in practice, multipolarity means that more groups have effective veto power over collective action. In practice, this new pluralistic world has given rise to globosclerosis…”
“…all it takes is a few well-placed parochial interests to bring a vast global process tumbling down. ”
Plus the TROs being issued left and right by gung-ho judges and you have complete paralysis.
leytenian on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 10:45 pm
Before SONA:
She pointed out that there is “no room in the development of our country to tolerate smuggling and the corruption that goes with it when so much remains to be done to invest in the nation — we have a lot of room to increase our tax and customs collections through strengthening investments in technology and innovation.â€
http://www.gov.ph/news/default.asp?i=20828
After SONA:
“A large volume of smuggling in the country is done through water and most of this is oil smuggling,†the PASG official said.”
http://www.gov.ph/news/?i=21691
Let’s See if Philippine Coast Guard , Bureau of Customs and Wathdog Bodies can implement Arroyo’s program. If this one fail, it is not Arroyo. It’s the department or units who were given orders. Let’s wait and see result of performance. There should be prosecution and penalty to people who are smugglers at least within 6 months of implementation. If nothing is solved or at least mentioned by the media, then the smugglers are the people who are supposed to implement by way of bribes.
leytenian on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 11:25 pm
One role of media or journalism is to assist or follow up new policies or program if it’s been implemented. And the focus would be- the result of one’s performance.
Few Good programs that need media attention for follow-ups are..
1. Public Schools on Sex education
2. Peace Education on Mindanao
3. Smuggling
4. Price Stability by BSP…
5. My kamote lol
at marami pa. Every executive department and every senator’s program must be scrutinized. Pushing implementation is crucial for our democracy. The ” Bahala Na” attitude is a common reaction due to lack of positive result from non-implementation and poor performance.
Another role of Media/ Journalism/ Articles/Blogs are to encourage majority.
cvj on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 11:52 pm
PSI, since you’re into David Brooks, i think you should read this…
http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/08/david-brooks-rewrites-history.php
Bert on Sat, 2nd Aug 2008 11:52 pm
“Unfortunately for us the tiger has to be killed but we should have the tiger give birth to tiger cubs and
we could train and defang the cubs while we still can AND CHANGE THE HISTORY OF TIGERS.”-hvrds
Too bloody and too risky, evolution will take too long without guarantee of desired ideal outcome.
Taming tiger is not new, been done before. There is no definite choice in sight. Who knows, out there in the multitude of promising citizens might be the answer.
Let’s continue with the process. It’s the practical choice, shorter time element but might take forever, no guarantee of desired result either. But the alternative is bloodcurdling.
Our smart job now is to eliminate the present stagnation, and dispense with the status quo which we found wanting.
According to the law, of course.
BrianB on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 1:25 am
Ordinary reportage,
Hey guys, look at this: http://ordinaryreportage.wordpress.com/
Not the most brainy blog out there but this is what I have been praying for…. i.e “ordinary reportage.”
Pilipinoparin on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 1:34 am
Now GMA has a legacy…..the Balkanization of RP. The first to go is Mindanao, The Moro Republic of Mindanao. What’s next?
Pilipinoparin on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 1:43 am
I am for VAT if….
1, some commodities are are not included such as basic needs like food, clothing for children, etc.
2. increased VAT for all kinds of useless things like diamonds, cigarettes, alcohol. etc.
3. Funds collected from VAT go directly to the National Treasury with full and strict accounting….no dirty hands should touch the funds.
hvrds on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 5:11 am
It is becoming very apparent that the move for Federalism is preparing to move to the starting gate.
If the ARRM polls are postponed that will be the signal that the push can go mainstream.
It is interesting to note that American foreign policy is greatly influenced by the GWOT.
With the American military taking the lead role with it’s many garrisons around the world.
The Americans after the lessons of the Philippine insurgency and the Vietnam War are now fighting smarter. They are not only studying military history but the history of why there are wars.
In Iraq Gen Petreus who started the de facto partition of the various ethnic and sectarian groups in Iraq with the pacification campaign known as the surge with tactics borrowed from the Vietnam war (Phoenix)has succeeded in bringing down the violence.
The tactics are not new. Torture, assasinations hamleting are all part of a counterinsurgency.
The left in the Philippines is all too familiar with it.
Now some of the same tactics are being applied to solve the problem of the Muslim insurgency here in the Philippines.
India and Pakistan, Yugoslavia, Iraq and now the formula for the ARRM. Partition or the more acceptable word Federalism.
“Petraeus’ guys”
Members of the staff assembled by Lt. Gen. David Petraeus, who takes command of U.S. forces in Iraq today:
Col. Michael Meese, a Princeton economist and son of former U.S. Attorney General Edwin Meese, will coordinate security and reconstruction efforts.
Lt. Col. David Kilcullen, an Australian army officer with a Ph.D. in anthropology who studied Islamic extremism in Indonesia, will be chief adviser on counterinsurgency operations
Col. Peter Mansoor, who received a Ph.D. at Ohio State for a dissertation on how Army infantry divisions were developed during World War II, will be Petraeus’ executive officer in Baghdad.
Col. H.R. McMaster’s 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment in northwestern Iraq provided one of the few bright spots for the U.S. military in Iraq by taking back the city of Tall Afar from an insurgent group.
Lt. Col. Douglas Ollivant, who holds a political-science Ph.D. on Thomas Jefferson, caught Petraeus’ attention with an essay scorning the U.S. military’s reliance on big “forward operating bases” in Iraq.
Ahmed Hashim, who holds a Ph.D. from MIT and teaches at the Naval War College, wrote a book criticizing the U.S. military operation in Iraq and advocated partitioning the country along ethnic and sectarian lines.
The Washington Post
“Kilcullen is one of the most influential Australian military minds of his generation. He grew up on Sydney’s north shore, the son of academics. He studied counterinsurgency as a cadet at Duntroon, served for more than 20 years in the Australian Army and was awarded a PhD in political science from the University fo NSW for a thesis on Indonesian insurgent and terrorist groups and counterinsurgency methods. He has been a military adviser to the Indonesian Special Forces in counterinsurgency, taught counterinsurgency tactics at the British School of Infantry, and served in peacekeeping operations in Cyprus and Bougainville. Kilcullen also commanded an Australian infantry company in counterinsurgency operations in East Timor and trained and led East Timorese forces after the independence vote in 1999. He was a special adviser for irregular warfare to the 2005 US Quadrennial Defence Review and is Rice’s chief strategist on counterinsurgency and counter-terrorism, working in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, the Horn of Africa and Southeast Asia.”
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,22263435-31477,00.html
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003565701_petraeus10.html
The Philippine military establishment was one of the founding gurus of U.S. counterinsurgency wars.
It had to take a white guy to essentially teach King Kanuto something the pinoys had already taught them.
Calling Victor Corpus!!!!!!
Ppinoys are being considered as prime candidates for the New U.S. Foreign Legion.
A new primary export for POEA
KG on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 5:20 am
Justice Scalia,
Communications:
come to think of it, sa miss univerese o ibang beauty pageant kaya kung gumamit na lang tayo ng interpreter tulad ng mga ibang bansa. Dito baluktot lang ang dila pagdating sa inggles ng pambato, headline na eh.Its not crab mentality
iniisip agad natin ang sasabihin ng iba, e yung iba naman gumagamit din ng interpreter.
KG on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 5:25 am
Another research activity of mine are the LUMADS.
puro tayo christian musim dichotomy nalimutan na natin ang mga lumad.
gutom na ako kaya gusto ko kumain ng englog.
Scalia, masarap eh.
KG on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 5:47 am
“The Challenge: the collections and examinations of his Garbage violated his Charter right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure.”
Vic,
kung mangyari yan baka macancel ang CSI at House.
hvrds on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 5:53 am
The issues of the WTO/IMF-WB all boil down to one reality-
Self determination or sovereignty. The dollar empire has very serious cracks. Those that can stand versus it have drawn the line. The Phils. well, we have been prostitutes for so long sodomy is normal.
“The battle lines of the new world order were exposed at the World Trade Organization this week. The breakdown of the Doha round of trade negotiations over a clash between the United States and China and India about farm protections underscored how these new economic giants are changing the balance of power. ” NY Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/02/opinion/02sat1.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
KG on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 5:59 am
PSI,
This is not nitpicking.
here is a critique of the David Brook’s NYtimes artcle:
http://www.commentarymagazine.com/blogs/index.php/chang/18941
UP n student on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 8:34 am
hvrds — busy pointing to the wisdom of PMA/Baguio grads. — did not print the aussie’s COunterINsurgency doctrine:
the same doctrine that Pinas Army/Marines/PNP has been employing all these years against the NPA and the MILF.
PSI on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 9:04 am
Bangsomoro to get own state – Philippine Daiy Inquirer
“PRACTICALLY A NEW STATE WITH “A DEFINED TERRITORY†and “a system of governance suitable and acceptable to [the Bangsamoro] as a distinct dominant people†will be established in Mindanao under the proposed Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on Ancestral Domain between the Philippine government and the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front.”
“Under the proposed agreement, which is scheduled to be signed on Tuesday, the planned Bangsamoro homeland will have its own “basic law,†its own police and internal security force, and its own system of banking and finance, civil service, education and legislative and electoral institutions, as well as full authority to develop and dispose of minerals and other natural resources within its territory.”
The report states that constitional amendment is required for the ancestral domain pact.
Now this begs the question:
why were the local communities not consulted? The erudite in Mindanao affairs will declare that such an agreement would foster similar nationalism, inclidng by Mindanao Christians.
On the ARMM elections, international observers from ten countries are coming, except the United States. Did the latter have prior knowledge that the elections are not pushing through?
This lends some substance to Mr. Ricky Carandang’s conspiracy plot. Are events unfolding for a constitutional change, including now to extend PGMA’s term? Things are not what they seem to be.
If they get away with this, she is really one lucky (and smart) queen bee.
leytenian on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 9:15 am
What’s in Charter Change for me?
“Mass media and advertising are proposed to be liberalized as well for greater competitiveness and the uplifting of their standards. It seems illogical that we ban foreigners in these areas of investment but when we turn on our TV sets, for as long as we are subscribers of a cable network, we are greeted by mostly foreign movies or shows. What’s wrong with allowing them to come here, open employment opportunities and pay much-needed taxes to the government?”
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=ritaLindaJimeno_feb27_2006
vic on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 9:18 am
KG, we’ll find out. the SC is quite quick and it does not mean the end of it of Garbage scavengers, but what the intervenor is insisting is like any Search, to be Legal should have a Search Warrants issued by the courts. But this is quite a very interesting case, because it will involve, first the argument when is ownership of Garbage ends, when it is put on the roadside for pick up, dump in the land fill, in the re-cycling plants ready to be melted or crushed or inside the bins in the Garage..the Nine men and women in Robes have a lot of questions to ponder..
Willy Acuña on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 10:35 am
Mr. Leytenian,
I like your perspective! How about a Harvard University branch at Bonifacio Global City?
Those who are scared of competition are a bunch of cowards! The sooner y’all open the Philippine economy to the world, the sooner we can break that economic monopoly and patronage of the Ayalas, Lopezes, and all the rest of such greedy and selfish Filipino aristocrats who own real estate properties and other businesses in the USA, just in case. I can’t stand such hypocrisy among the elite in the Philippines. Their control of the Philippine economy must be broken and destroyed for good , once and for all, and that can only be accomplished if 100% foreign ownership on businesses in the Philippines is allowed! Gosh, I can’t even buy a real estate property in the Philippines, just because I am an American Citizen, even though my blood is pure 100% Filipino( well, a little bit of Spanish blood). Isn’t this ridiculous? Open economies like Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai(UAE) and other progressive countries attract investments. Enough of this nonesense of distorted Filipino patriotism and nationalism, when 60% of Filipinos are wallowing in massive poverty! There is nothing to be proud about that! Open the economy and investments and jobs will flood the market like abundant “milk and honey”!
If we are all really secure of being Filipinos, then what are we afraid about?
It’s time to open the box, welcome everyone, change the constitution and extend freedom to all Filipinos to charter their own destiny. Never allow Gloria to run again in 2010 even when the constitution is changed. Why is everybody scared of Gloria running in 2010? Very simple, include a specific provision not allowing Gloria to run again when the constitution is finally changed! What’s complicated about that! If she still has a sense of decency left in her veins and enough intelligence left in her brain, she better decide to quit when her term is over in 2010. Otherwise history will remember her as the Filipino icon of stupity, along with Marcos and Imelda!
Willy Acuña
Dallas, Texas
USA
hvrds on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 10:50 am
I have just noticed that the likes of Borat from Kazachstan have increased in this blog.
In relative terms the most closed economy is the United States. How come — ????
Open economies are measured based on their openess to labor markets, capital markets and physical goods and services markets…. as based on their ratios to the country’s GDP.
The only country that has an almost privileged position in the world economy as far as capital markets are concerned is the U.S.
They have imposed the dollar standard on the economies of the world. They do not have a foreign exchange risk.
leytenian on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 11:33 am
Hi Willy,
i am a married woman. lol.
magdiwang on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 11:43 am
who said life is fair. the us is also the sole guarantor of world security. make its armed forces a third rate military. the dollar is as good as the peso.
the yuan is appreciating and the euro is depreciating against the greenback in the last four weeks. the cabal in wall street are pulling a fast one again.
so hvrds please educate us what is your prescription for our country to take off economically.
vic on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 6:58 pm
http://www.thestar.com/News/Ideas/article/471758
while waiting for the next thread, here are some good tips on how to avoid being a victim of Lightning as the season is upon us (rainy season).
Only one in 10 die, but most people hit are never quite the same
• Don’t use a landline telephone during a lightning storm – a cell or cordless phone is safe – and don’t take a shower. Electrical charges may be carried through the plumbing and wiring.
• At home during a lightning storm, stay away from doors and windows.
• If you’re caught outdoors during a lightning storm and have nowhere to seek shelter, crouch down on the balls of your feet to make yourself as small as possible and reduce the area of contact with the ground. Do not lie flat.
• Wearing rubber-soled shoes will not protect you from lightning. Lightning has already traveled thousands of metres through the air, which is a poor conductor.
• A car is a safe place in a lightning storm, not because of the rubber tires, but because the metal exterior acts as a pathway for the lightning to flow around the car into the ground. Keep your hands in your lap.
• On a golf course, head for the woods on the edges of the fairways. Stand in the lowest-lying area, under trees of uniform height, avoiding the tallest.
• Playing baseball, stay away from the metal backstop. Remove metal cleats.
• Lightning kills more people in the developed world than any other natural phenomenon.
• More than 50 per cent of lightning deaths occur after a thunderstorm has passed.
• 90 per cent of lightning victims survive.
(Sources: Environment Canada; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
vic on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 7:00 pm
http://www.thestar.com/News/Ideas/article/471758
while waiting for the next thread, here are some
good tips on how to avoid being a victim of Lightning as the season is upon us (rainy season).
Only one in 10 die, but most people hit are never quite the same
• Don’t use a landline telephone during a lightning storm – a cell or cordless phone is safe – and don’t take a shower. Electrical charges may be carried through the plumbing and wiring.
• At home during a lightning storm, stay away from doors and windows.
• If you’re caught outdoors during a lightning storm and have nowhere to seek shelter, crouch down on the balls of your feet to make yourself as small as possible and reduce the area of contact with the ground. Do not lie flat.
• Wearing rubber-soled shoes will not protect you from lightning. Lightning has already traveled thousands of metres through the air, which is a poor conductor.
• A car is a safe place in a lightning storm, not because of the rubber tires, but because the metal exterior acts as a pathway for the lightning to flow around the car into the ground. Keep your hands in your lap.
• On a golf course, head for the woods on the edges of the fairways. Stand in the lowest-lying area, under trees of uniform height, avoiding the tallest.
• Playing baseball, stay away from the metal backstop. Remove metal cleats.
• Lightning kills more people in the developed world than any other natural phenomenon.
• More than 50 per cent of lightning deaths occur after a thunderstorm has passed.
• 90 per cent of lightning victims survive.
(Sources: Environment Canada; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
anthony scalia on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 8:54 pm
Kevin Garnett,
“come to think of it, sa miss univerese o ibang beauty pageant kaya kung gumamit na lang tayo ng interpreter tulad ng mga ibang bansa. Dito baluktot lang ang dila pagdating sa inggles ng pambato, headline na eh.Its not crab mentality
iniisip agad natin ang sasabihin ng iba, e yung iba naman gumagamit din ng interpreter.”
korek! ewan ko ba sa atin, katapusan na ng mundo kapag di nakapag-ingles.
nakakahiya talaga ang Pinoy – ginawang national aspiration ang pag-ingles!
God bless the local call center industry! The Philippines may have surpassed India as the global leader in voice BPO, but voice BPO is at the lower end of the entire BPO spectrum. The real big money is at the higher end – IT, finance and accounting, HR, etc – where India is still the runaway global leader
Willy on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 11:04 pm
Leytenian,
My apology! =)
Willy
Willy on Sun, 3rd Aug 2008 11:59 pm
hvrds,
With due respect, I am so amazed how uneducated you are about the US economy! Check your facts. Your anti-American attitude is an indication of your low self-esteem as a Filipino. Maybe, you should conduct a serious economic research why America is still the world’s strongest economy despite her problems. If you haven’t been to the US, perhaps, you should visit and see the difference. An open economy is not measured solely on local labor market openness and other factors you mentioned, rather it is measured on equal economic playing field and how a country deals with business investments, domestic and foreign alike. The factors you stated based on the percentage of the US GDP were quite misleading. The reason why, is not because the US has a closed economy, it is rather because domestic investments are stronger than that of foreign sources. Ask yourself why America remains the most competitive country in the world? If you dislike America that much, don’t look any farther, just look at your neighborhood, take a serious look at Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and Taiwan.
You can express your opinion without comparing others with Borat. When people express their thoughts and ipinions, it is because they care to contribute in the free market of ideas and share their hope to better the world, and in this case the Philippines.
Your prejudicial attitude towards others is quite disturbing, acting superior and yet deep within there is that feeling of inferiority and the only way to satisfy it is to describe others badly, who are just as “intelligent as you are”. Grow up and learn to respect other opinions. =)
Willy
leytenian on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 12:27 am
hvrds.
US model and its monetary policy can sometimes be used to analyze using closed-economy models. This is clearly a good example in a fixed exchange rate regime where the US is the world’s currency country. As you mention, US has no exchange rate risk. It may also be the case under flexible exchange rate regimes where foreign countries manage their exchange rates by “mimicing” U.S. monetary policy.
Pure close economic model is no longer useful in analyzing real economic problems, if indeed it were.
Article : An open economy, a closed society
http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/08/16/news/edmesquita.php
leytenian on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 12:36 am
the 1987 constitution can be an example of a close economic model in terms of management and decision making. the LGU’s have no autonomy of their region. This type of model is no longer acceptable. Cebu is branded as Cebu and currently marketing as ” the island in the pacific” to Hongkong, Europe, Japan and China. It do not associate the word Philippines in terms of marketing its tourism industry. Manila is known because of its Manila envelope and paper. Why is that? . Where’s our brand name Philippines? Have we been deleted in the map?
leytenian on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 12:44 am
The Philippines is branded as corrupt, young women marrying old white men. Where’s the Pearl of the Orient thing?
common Philippines, wake up…
kaya siguro ” MABUHAY” lol
Willy on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 1:03 am
Leytenian,
No country in the world is required by the US to use American $ as the standard monetary exchange. In fact the Euro is now stronger than the American currency and as a result some rich oil countries in the middle east now are using the Euro. So let’s quit blaming America and accept personal responsibility in chartering Philippine destiny. Blaming others will take us nowhere! The reason why majority of countries in the world stick with the American $ is because whether you like it or not, the American economy is still the biggest and strongest economy in the world in terms of GDP? So let’s look inward into the Philippine economy. For starters, get rid of graft and corruption rampant in Philippines society, from taxi drivers to the lady in Malacanang.
Willy
PSI on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 1:05 am
Talking of oblivious to change:
Things seldom or are slow , if at all, change in these islands of ours.
Filipino corporations it seems are oblivious to the dire things happening in the country. These business people have taken to heart Nobel economist Milton Friedman’s philosophy that the social responsibility of corporations is to maximize profits.
That is s why, the oligarchic-owners of these firms continue with their rent-seeking, inward-looking business models. And that’s why we had this latest Sulpicious sea tragedy again.
But lo and behold. The foremost disciple of Milton Friedman had already a a change of heart. William Bill Gates III, retired CEO of Microsoft, who used the firm’s dominant market posiiotn to amass billionsof profits year-in-and-year-out, and made Microsoft the biggest corporation (in terms of market value) at one time.
Bill Gates is now preaching ‘creative capitalism’ and funneling billions of dollars to benefit the world’s poor and and deadly disease.
What about are corporate titans and industry captains? Well, our own Friedman-disciples are into lower cots SMS texts (state induced), PBA basketball teams, coffee break with Court of Appeals’ judges, etc.
Well, at least some have sponsored Gawad Kalinga housing projects.
leytenian on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 1:18 am
PSI,
Don’t forget Ayala Corporation. They owned most of the BPO centers/building for rent in the Philippines. It’s time for others to get in… ChaCha will open this restriction and allowing others to play…
Also, Don’t forget ABS-CBN….
decentralization, federalism, Chacha- con-ass , con-com or whatever change are keys to breaking the monopoly.
These elites are not trained to compete nor understand social responsibility except train to brainwash our country.
cvj on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 1:18 am
During the inception of the IMF, the economist John Maynard Keynes proposed an international currency…
…so in a way, the United States did require the US Dollar to be the international medium of exchange.
cvj on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 1:20 am
Link where i got the above quote:
http://www.fiohnetwork.org/future/global_money.htm
PSI on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 1:28 am
Leytenian,
Yes, I copy you. Just didn’t want to mention corporate names, that’s why.
A foreign guest recently commented that she was dismayed to see how bad the misery and poverty have become since she last visited five years ago. Especially in the streets of Metro Manila.
But what appalled her now was the seemin indifference of the people who could afford to help. Or so it seemed, she mentioned.
UP n student on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 3:04 am
PSI : I said the same thing to my high school classmates in Pinas. I said “… bakit ang mga Pilipino ngayon, ang tigas ng puso sa mga mahihirap?” and they nodded in agreement. A few minutes later, they began to use my sentence in their own words. Their version — “… Isang problema sa Pilipinas ngayon, ang mga Pilipinong mayayaman, ang tigas ng puso sa mga mahihirap”
grd on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 3:28 am
leytenian,
you’re not married to an old white man, right?
but what’s marrying old white men got to do with corruption? i personally know some decent ladies marrying old white men. and they are even economically well off in the phils. with stable jobs. they made a choice. as for those other poor young ladies, they served well there old white men, right? they’re sometimes even treated as nannies and abused. victims of fraud. so, it’s not funny at all.
leytenian on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 3:55 am
grd,
I was talking about Philippine branding.
” as for those other poor young ladies, they served well there old white men, right? they’re sometimes even treated as nannies and abused. victims of fraud”
this is what I meant about branding-bad publicity. economically, i do admire those young women who have no other choice. it’s a smart thing to do.
of course I understand that some women have made good choices for marrying old men … i will apologize for generalizing. I should have not said it that way. It wasn’t nice.
And.. no- i’m not married to an old white man.
Bencard on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 5:02 am
psi, speaking of social responsibility, the philippine society, from the wealthiest oligarch to the garbage sorters of payatas, are generally concerned only with the welfare of their immediate family. concern for fellowmen or country gets low priority, if at all.
UP n student on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 6:28 am
Side-topic: More indicators on the importance of being a high-productivity country. Reason — oil prices affecting transportation costs.
Globe-spanning supply chains . . . make less sense today than they did a few years ago. To avoid having to ship all its products from abroad, the Swedish furniture manufacturer Ikea opened its first factory in the United States in May. Some electronics companies that left Mexico in recent years for the lower wages in China are now returning to Mexico, because they can lower costs by trucking their output overland to American consumers.
Decisions like those suggest that what some economists call a neighborhood effect — putting factories closer to components suppliers and to consumers, to reduce transportation costs — could grow in importance if oil remains expensive.
Made-in-Canada clothes (and tools, electronics) have always been competitive — the better value compared to made-in-Philippines clothes. Canada’s competitiveness (for the American market) is looking better and better.
hvrds on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 6:39 am
“Otherwise, “citizen of the world” and “global citizenship” are, strictly speaking, nonsense. Citizenship is defined by legal and loyalty attachments to a particular political entity with a distinctive regime and culture. Neither the world nor the globe is such an entity. ” Geroge Will
Reality bites………. fiscal and monetary policies are national in character. There is no such thing as the global economy too. The reason for the stresses for all these years is the contending interests of nations.
Only one country in the world makes it international in reality ….
“Does it make sense for United States Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson to be touring the Middle East supporting the region’s hard dollar exchange-rate pegs, while the Bush administration simultaneously blasts Asian countries for not letting their currencies appreciate faster against the dollar? Unfortunately, this blatant inconsistency stems from the US’s continuing economic and financial vulnerability rather than reflecting any compelling economic logic. Instead of promoting dollar pegs, as Paulson is, the US should be supporting the International Monetary Fund’s behind-the-scenes efforts to promote de-linking of oil currencies and the dollar. ”
“Perhaps the Bush administration worries that if oil countries abandoned the dollar standard, today’s dollar weakness would turn into a rout. But the US should be far more worried about promoting faster adjustment of its still-gaping trade deficit, which in many ways lies at the root of the recent sub-prime mortgage crisis. The administration’s multi-pronged effort to postpone pain to US consumers, including super easy monetary and fiscal policy, only risks a greater crisis in the not-too-distant future. It is not at all hard to imagine the whole strategy boomeranging in early 2009, soon after the next US president takes office. ” K. Rogoff, former chief economist of the IMF
http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/rogoff43
Ignorance can be bliss sometimes but in case of economics and using brands like open and close economies without understanding what the words mean is dangerous.
The trade miniter of Brazil in the last Doha round meetings complained that the West has been repeating the lie so often about trade similar to what Goebbels had proposed. Keep on repeating a lie and people will believe it to be true.
Just ask the BSP why the export of pesos is heavily restricted and why the export of dollars that are in the hands of the public is not?
How can one discuss monetary polcies when most pundits are not even aware of what decontrol means and its implications relative to the Philippine experience.
UP n student on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 6:47 am
And here is another reminder of the importance to have capable citizens elected into the Philippine Lower House and Senate. The GOP-MILF Memorandum of Agreement on the BJE is about to be signed.
Enabling law required
Both Ermita and Esperon contended that the MOA was a “preliminary agreement†and pointed to provisions there stating that nothing would be executory unless there was a law enabling its implementation and everything must be done within the legal framework. Ermita said this meant that any agreement between the government and the MILF had to be in accordance with the Constitution.
Both Ermita and Esperon stressed that the MOA called for the holding of a plebiscite in order to expand the Moro homeland.
“Any plebiscite will be pursuant only to an enabling law enacted by Congress,†Esperon said. “We are not giving away Mindanao.â€
hvrds on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 6:54 am
“the US imposed a system under which the liquidity required for world trade was to be provided by gold and by dollars linked to gold at a fixed rate, $35 an ounce. ”
…so in a way, the United States did require the US Dollar to be the international medium of exchange.
Impeccable pundit logic. Why functional literacy is most important.
The first sentence above confirm that the gold exchange standard was behind the dollar. Dollars were priced based on the value of gold and not gold priced in dollars.
Today the dollar is backed up by a promise and nothing else. From Muhgabe to Bernanke you can simply issue dollars and create inflation to cure deflation. Alas it has been done too many times.
So oil today is not longer priced in dollars but the dollars are priced in oil.
I hope this not too complicated to understand.
leytenian on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 7:45 am
hvrds,
Gold? Dollar? Oil?
“if the dollar had stayed even with the Euro since 2000, then we’d have $57 Oil, not $100 Oil. So an increase, yes, but not nearly as shocking. More importantly, if the dollar was “as good as goldâ€, then literally the price of oil would have just barely risen at all, maybe to $30.
Rising oil prices act like a TAX to American consumers. It offset much of the” stimulus’ from loser money. The Fed will get a lot less bang for its easier buck . ”
http://blog.adamnash.com/2008/01/05/statistics-matter-oil-dollars-euros-gold/
leytenian on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 7:55 am
“How can one discuss monetary polcies when most pundits are not even aware of what decontrol means and its implications relative to the Philippine experience”
i forgot… a TAX to worldwide consumers.
UP n student on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 8:35 am
What is the worth of being a Filipino civil servant noteworthy enough to be commended by GMA for honorable service to the country?
The meaning of “better” may include either (i) gains applause, maybe even the envy of your Filipino peers; or (ii) valuable when looking for a job in Singapore or in Canada; (iii) a significant addition to one’s resume when applying for admission to the London School of Economics, Switerland’s International Institute for Management Development , INSEAD, Cranfield School of Management (near Milton Keyes, greater London). Hong Kong University of Science and Technology or CEIBS – China Europe International Business School (in Shanghai).
leytenian on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 10:43 am
In management : how do we manage all these statements?
1. “Only one country in the world makes it international in reality”
2. “stresses for all these years is the contending interests of nations.”
3. “Ignorance can be bliss sometimes ”
4. “what decontrol means and its implications relative to the Philippine experience.”
anybody?
supremo on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 11:19 am
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20080804-152469/GRP-MILF-draft-pact-on-Bangsamoro-homeland
THERE WILL BE BLOOD!
UP n student on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 11:37 am
leytenian: the first action to managing the statements is to challenge if they are always true. Very quickly, one arrives at the conclusion that a number of the statements are sometimes false.
UP n student on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 11:44 am
second item to remember is that rule of debate — the responsibility to prove things correct is on the person who makes the claim (“only one country in the world…”).
Third item to remember —- how does it play in Peoria? The counterpart is “… can he defend it in Plaza Miranda?”
The other item is …. is it really relevant?
Repeat : is it really relevant?
Do what congressman I forgot-his-last-name already…. he may have read the blogposts, but he does not respond to them all. “Not relevant….”
UP n student on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 11:58 am
supremo: That is a complicated document! Makes me worry about given that the many paragraphs are a lot more complicated than “… thou shalt not use civilians as human shields”
UP n student on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 11:59 am
or beheadings —- not cool!!!
hvrds on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 2:07 pm
I am beginning to suspect that we have a ten year old pundit amongst us.
Which is the positive polarity?
Dollars priced in gold or gold priced in dollars.
“In the case of money, we are dealing with something which is handled in our generation by methods that are extremely different from those in vogue a century or half century ago….we have now reached a stage where something universally needed – namely money, or credit which does duty for money – has become in effect a monopoly…
“The private issue of new credit should be regarded in the modern world in just the same way in which the private minting of money was regarded in earlier times. The banks should be limited in their lending power to the amount deposited by their clients, while the issue of newer credit should be the function of public authority.
“This is not in any way to censure the banks or bankers. They have administered the system entrusted to them with singular uprightness and ability and public spirit. But the system has become anomalous, and, as so often happens when anomaly has persisted through a long period of time, the result is to make into the master what ought to be the servant.†Archbishop of Canterbury’s William Temple in 1942
When the Federal Government of the U.S. took over the direct management of the U.S. economy simply by taking over the banking system through rigid regulations. They in effect took over and monetized the credit system of the U.S. to facilitate trade and industry.
When Johnson and Nixon took the U.S. off the gold exchange standard they reneged on their debt in gold to countries that had wanted to exchange their dollars for gold at the price of $35 an ounce to $1,
That means there would be a physical transfer of the gold then to France that was wanting an exchange.
The dollar simply was a derivative representative of gold bullion.
Bretton Woods was based on gold or dollars backed by gold.
The U.S. was worried then that the other countries would start a run on the gold bullion of the U.S. by exchanging their dollars also for gold.
President Johnson had expanded deficit spending to pay for the war instead of increasing taxes. That was what started the inflationary wave.
You remove that limitations imposed by gold bullion then government can simply print money over and above their bullion.
Banking was entirely based on leveraging bullion assets.
At the least the leverage was based on physical volume of gold.
Without gold as the physical red line banks simply leverage the IOU’s of government which they keep as reserves.
Simply a faith based currency based on the political standard of the state.
That means the world is operating based on a faith based currency.
What is worse is the application of the dollar standard being used as a unit of account like kilos or tons. Dollar like all other currencies are only abstract ideas of value.
If it is not pegged to a physical good whose value is shared by the broad majority of the planet’s inhabitants then it is only a nominal representation of “value”
Anyone who has bought gold certificates that are sold by reputable gold bullion smelters and recognized by financial institutions worldwide know what I am talking about.
The Republic of the Philippines like other countries probably has gold deposits with the Fed which serves as the basis for some of the reserves of the BSP. The rest are IOU’s issued by the U.S. Treasury that form the bulk of the BSP’s reserves.
If anyone would have bothered to read what Rogoff had written. It is simply that it does not matter on whether it is the Euro or dollar that oil is priced in.
The world would be better off if the Saudi’s used their own currency to price their oil.
In essence junking the dollar and asking everyone to buy their oil in their currency.
Prices then would revert to actual production. That would mean that the Philippines then would be forced to produce goods good enough to be accepted for international trade apart from bananas, mangoes and people.
The rule is simple Never, never, never trust government with the power to create money out of thin air like now.
They create inflation which is the worst form of taxation.
Most people on the planet still do not know this.
UP n student on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 10:18 pm
Side-topic :
…..the Philippines, an increasingly popular source of manpower for U.S. school systems.
. . .
To many (US-of-A) school officials, Filipino teachers are ideal job candidates. The mostly female recruits speak English, hold advanced degrees and pass internationally recognized teaching exams.
and later in the news-article, this paragraph:
Perhaps most important, the teachers get a shot at becoming Americans. If they perform well for three years, the county (Prince George’s County, Maryland) will sponsor them for a green card, or permanent residency. It can take years for them to actually get the card and, later, citizenship, because of the government backlog. But theirs is a much easier path to the United States than that of many other immigrants. They don’t have to come here illegally or win a visa lottery. They just have to do their jobs.
There is a few ounces of 24-karat gold in those degrees, work-experience and professional certification.
anthony scalia on Mon, 4th Aug 2008 11:23 pm
leytenian,
“Cebu is branded as Cebu and currently marketing as †the island in the pacific†to Hongkong, Europe, Japan and China. It do not associate the word Philippines in terms of marketing its tourism industry.”
IIRC, ‘island in the Pacific’ was used by Cebu right after the Ninoy Aquino assasination. i doubt it if it is still used now
qwerty on Thu, 7th Aug 2008 7:21 pm
the excesses of liberal democracy will kill it on asian soil, which is not so depraived of fairness and justice as seem may perceive it to be.. it will serve as a footnote to asian values, perhaps even leave a lasting flavor, albeit a light one.
qwerty on Thu, 7th Aug 2008 7:21 pm
the excesses of liberal democracy will kill it on asian soil, which is not so deprived of fairness and justice as some may perceive it to be.. it will serve as a footnote to asian values, perhaps even leave a lasting flavor, albeit a light one.