The latest news is C-4 bomb component used in Glorietta blast – PNP chemist and Glorietta death toll rises to 9. For its part, Makati blast a ‘terror act,’ military says: Leftists, rightists, extremists eyed.
After 24 hours of no groups coming forward to claim responsibility for the blast, ‘RSM spokesman’ owns up to Glorietta 2 blast although it’s far from being confirmed. What have come in, prior to this news, were denials: Abu Sayyaf denies hand in Makati bomb attack while MILF offers help in deadly blast probe.
All we know are slender clues to a whole that has yet to be literally pieced together: Investigators to scour Glorietta underground for blast clues.
The past is now. Perhaps it’s the part of me that constantly refers to the past, to make sense of the present, that draws me at this time, to the eyewitness accounts being published on line. The point when eyewitness bear witness to what they saw, where testimony makes the transition from an oral story to one written down, and thus, becomes a story that can enter history, is the point where journalism and history connect. Or perhaps it’s the need to keep yesterday’s events on a human scale, knowing it’s that scale that is the best antidote to whoever perpetrated the bombing.
So let us begin with the testimony.
Of Law and Badminton was there:
True enough, when we were on the third floor of Glorietta 2, we were able to find Toby’s. I told my friend to go there and make her purchase, while I would be browsing at the tiangge stores right outside. I was looking at the latest fashionable blouses, muttering to myself that I would never be able to pull them off. I still tried on one blouse, but to no avail. Hindi talaga bagay…shucks.
I received a text message from my friend at around 1:25 P.M., telling me that she was near Timezone waiting for me, but urging me to take my time. Immediately after I got her text, I tried to locate her. Not able to find her, I decided to call her up.
Just when the phone was ringing, I heard a very loud explosion nearby coupled with a very intense shake which felt like an Intensity 10 earthquake. I almost fell to the ground because of the impact! I felt like I was in twilight zone or something, as I watched debris falling everywhere and smoke billowing from behind. Suddenly, people were screaming and shouting and pushing me. I had no choice but to follow the crowd. I began to wonder whether my friend was safe and as I was about to call her up, I heard what seemed like another explosion. I froze for a second, terrified, not knowing where to go. At that very second, I felt terror grip my body, wondering if there were still several bombs about to go off, and wondering if we were running headlong into another bomb. I don’t know how my legs were able to function but before I knew it, I was walking straight into Landmark.
Thankfully, the guards removed the table and opened the doors wide in order to receive the big crowd emanating from Glorietta 2. As I stepped into what felt like safe ground, I received a call from my friend asking me where I was. I was relieved upon hearing her voice knowing that at least she was OK. I told her I was at Landmark and not to worry about me. I called up my husband to tell him what happened. Fortunately he was just nearby and that he would pick me up immediately. I couldn’t contact my friend anymore since the network (Globe) was already busy. Good thing there was no traffic in sending text messages. After texting her and knowing she was ok, and that her driver was about to pick her up, it was only at that moment that I suddenly felt relieved.
Cindy.cIndy.ciNdy.cinDy.cindY also relates,
Earlier that day we agreed to dine in Pizza Hut which was in the second floor of Glorietta 2. We proceeded to Pizza Hut and placed our orders. Moments later a loud bang was heard. I didn’t move thinking that it was nothing serious. I actually thought that it was some activity prepared by Glorietta. But the whole Glorietta trembled like there was an earthquake. The ceiling almost fell but luckily only small debris fell from the ceiling. My friend was pushing me to stand. Immediately I packed my things. We turned our heads and saw heavy white smoke outside the establishment. People were screaming and running away from the smoke. That was the time that I realized that it was an explosion and that it might not be the only one. We panicked! I grabbed my friend’s hand and we ran toward the escalators in the activity area. Pizza Hut was just about 20 meters away where the bombing happened. We were lucky that the direction of the bomb explosion was in the direction of Park Square and not toward the activity area. At the bottom of the escalator, some insulators of the mall can be found. Debris kept falling inside and the smoke was approaching the activity area. I told my friend to ran headed for SM. We ran and never looked back. People from SM didn’t know that there was a bombing incident at Glorietta. Later a group of women and security guards were screaming and running toward us. At that instant we ran to MRT station, bought tickets and finally got out of the place.
Welcome to my life! published her mother’s story:
On the way back to office, while on board the escalator, we heard a loud blast. I was stunned as I watched the ceiling of the floor below me collapse like domino tiles and orange plastic pipes started to fall too. I saw the sales girls from the collapsed stores running for their lives. I was thinking someone must have been killed down there. I was stunned and stood still on the moving escalator until my friend Milette hugged me and shouted, “RUN!”. It jolted me and made me realize that the floor in which we were in could also collapse. I grabbed her hand and ran as fast as I could to Landmark department store which is connected to the mall we came from. My heart was pounding. Our other friends got separated from us but we all made ourway safely back to office on foot.
flipflopping my way around town recounts that “there, but for the grace of God, go I,” feeling many people had:
Apparently, Mommy was also at Glorietta looking for the Baby Couture stall as she was supposed to buy a bag for her god daughter. Thank God for Mommy’s bad sense of direction, she somehow got lost and went the other way from where the stall was. (note: the Baby Couture is located at Glorietta 2 together with the other baby/kiddie shops at the 2nd floor). Then she heard a loud bang and felt the vibration. Thinking it must be an earthquake she entered Abensons and asked the salesman if she can stay there for safety. What scared her was when she saw a lot of people rushing out from the mall, some were hysterical, some were crying… then she heard some screaming “may bomba may bomba!” (there’s a bomb! there’s a bomb!).
There were those in the vicinity of the blast, as Bryanton Post relates:
Melissa, a friend whom I was supposed to meet last night, was eating in Via Mare in Landmark when the blast occurred. Had she decided to eat in Glorietta after a physical exam in one of the clinics there, she later told me, she would have been included among the casualties. The impact, she said, was so strong that it was even felt in Landmark. An earthquake, people around her kept saying. No, she said to herself. It felt more like the whole mall had just taken a roller coaster ride, she told me.
If that was even felt in Landmark, I can’t simply imagine the impact in Glorietta.
Another account is by O-C Mumzie, who was in a gym in the area:
Ten minutes behind schedule now, I focused on the remaining tasks on my to-do list. I hurried to the locker room to change, gather my things and check-out. And then it happened… the building rocked and the sound of exploding glass and screams rang out. Glorietta 2 had just been bombed. And then a second blast.
At that point, we didn’t know what it was. For some reason though, I feared the worse. My friend, Maricar, asked me what happened and I just said “I think it was a bomb”. I guess it was the screams that told me. We peered though the 3rd floor gym lobby and saw the security guard rolling down the steel partitions. Beyond, we could see thick clouds of smoke (we learned later was pulverized cement) billowing from inside the mall and the screams of terror became more audible. I heard the receptionist say the blast came from nearby Timezone. My God! The children! With that thought, I knew I had to focus and look after my own safety. It was a mother’s instinct in me that suddenly took control of my every move– I needed to be safe for my own children.
Immediately I helped Maricar take control. After gathering my things, I helped her clean out her locker and carried one of her bags. I told her we should exit though the ground floor of the gym that would lead us directly outside the mall and into an open park. In seconds, we were out and joined the hundreds already gathered in the safety of open ground. I called my husband, my kids, my sisters and friends who mattered to me most just to let them know I’m okay. My car was stranded ar the car park with my driver so my husband sent his driver to pick me up at the packed Starbucks at 6750.
But here’s a curious thing, which to me, will gain significance as the various eyewitness accounts are cross-checked and the specific circumstances begin to emerge. Take this account by As the world turns, who was there in Glorietta 2 at the time of the blast:
For the life of me, I couldn’t understand how I failed to feel the earthquake-like blast, as described by those interviewed in TV newscasts, in Glorietta 2 yesterday, when the rest of the people beside who were also there, watching from the second floor, not very far from the scene of the blast, those at the activity center below, running, scampering towards the exit doors. We were looking at each other wondering what was going on! We weren’t panicky, we were simply bewildered. What I heard were the ear-splitting squeaks of shutters and doors of shops and stores being shot and hurled down in hurried succession.
I took the escalator studiedly. I stayed and waited for a while at the ground floor where some mall security people were gathered trying to piece the information they got from their receivers, for news because I was curious. I wanted to know what was going on. I wanted to know if there was a fire because smoke filled the area. I asked a security guard what was that all about. He simply replied, “Ma’am, I do not have an official word yet, you are safe, please stay calm and walk towards the exit door carefully.” When I got out of the exit door facing the Shangri-la Hotel, all the people were politely and courteously requested by the security guards to cross towards the tent because they were sealing the perimeters off in and around Glorietta.
The smoke wafting out of the door smelled of gunpowder or firecrackers, I distinctly remember. I couldn’t leave the tent because it rained. Besides, the immediate surroundings were filled with cars – firetrucks, ambulance, private cars, police cars, news companies’, etc. The paths towards Landmark were completely sealed off.
gimmepeanutbutter wasn’t as close to the scene:
Kuya Tim and I arrived at the venue earlier than my calltime so we had to wait for a while. After around 30 minutes of staring into space, I suddenly heard something that sounded like thunder. I didn’t mind it at first–until people started running out of Glorietta. At this point I kinda got scared. I got even more nervous when the prod team started asking us if we were ready to run. Fortunately, we didn’t have to.
Meet Joebacs recounts,
Immediately after most of the food we ordered were already on our table, tragedy struck a few meters away. We didn’t actually hear anything. The glass window of the restaurant didn’t shake, no abnormal audible sound caught our ear. We only learned that something was amiss when throngs of people, literally, poured out onto the streets.
A lot of stories swirled, different accounts of what happened. The alleged location of the blast were quite varied. We thought the ceiling in one of the stores just caved in. We only learned about the seriousness of what transpired when we saw a teenager still in schock with a gash on her feet…
Some, like Yugatech, were spared the worst of it but were left bewildered like the Mall employees they encountered:
Since my car was parked at the underground of 6750, most of my encounters where with Glorietta employees still busy doing their jobs despite the rush and ensuing panic.
I asked the lady at the parking gate why they haven’t been let go for the day considering the imminent danger. She was wondering of the same thing too.
When I got out on the street, it was packed with people - shoppers, employees, policemen, traffic enforcers and tons of vehicles trying to drive away from the scene. So was I.
Lost In My Headspace provides not only an account of what it was like in Glorietta, but among the most famous amateur videos of the event, too. This haunting photo by noelldeg says it all, for the survivors. My Mobile Blog — blogging minus the PC has photos of some of the casualties. See the Glorietta Blast mutlimedia photo, too.
Behind the Stories relates what it’s like for reporters to be alerted of a breaking story and then rushing to cover it:
I was about to eat my lunch when the day desk editor called, and was panicking when he told me that an explosion happened at Glorietta. And much as I wanted to panic too, I merely stayed calm. I immediately got out of the Crame press office, left my just-to-be-eaten yummy lunch and took the MRT.
Fifteen minutes later I was at the scene, and as usual engaged myself in a brief word war with security guards. Hohohoho hahaha while I tried to get to the other side of Glorietta, with all luck..my heels broke. So I went back to SM and bought a pair of cheap flipflops to get me through.
Finally arriving at the scene moments later, I saw how the Glorietta 2 entrance was reduced in rubble, and all those shattered glasses, and the cadavers yet to be brought to the morgue. Sure, this one was a very memorable coverage for me. It was I witnessing yet another part of history unfold.
But it was really devastating. I held back tears. I knew I had to work. I knew I had to do away with emotions. I knew I had to accept that this world is cruel.
A tragedy also results in questions being asked. And tough questions need to be asked. Not later, but now. To postpone them out of a misplaced sense of compassion for the victims will do more harm than good in the long run.The security measures of the Ayala Malls (and malls in general) comes in for criticism by The Banker’s Council:
Ah, those large doorway-detectors. Those that beep incessantly when we the general public pass through them. And what do the guards do when the big gray machine sounds out that it has detected a metallic object? NOTHING.
I have passed by that area many times. Sometimes I bring my backpack and laptop. Other times I just have my Pacsafe wallet around my neck. And everytime, the machine sounds its alarm. And everytime, the guards do not ask me (or anyone else) to “please empty your pockets and go through the machine again.”
And to think that they have a secondary security-cum-detection device – the handheld metal detector, such as this.
So what are those machines for in the first place?
Come to think of it, if the damage was caused by an exploding LPG tank, wouldn’t a fire break out?
Come to think of it (again), if the damage was caused by an exploding LPG tank, I’d probably agree that there was no security lapse and that the incident, unfortunate as it was, could have been an accident, though magnified many many times.
Anyway, back to the security situation.
The other news reports say that the blast site had traces of components used in the making of plastic explosives such as the military-use C4. So I guess the metal detectors would have been of no help.
Are the security guards, metal detectors and other high-tech gadgets enough of a deterrent to those who would intentionally cause havoc in such a place filled with civilians?
Similar thoughts are in Prudence and Madness and in A Day in the Life.. In IndioSign, there’s an observation about the limitations of modern buildings. In her blog, Stella Arnaldo who also has no love lost for Ayala Malls security, points to security shortcomings but also discusses something that no one can ignore:
Even before Sen. Trillanes pointed his fingers at the Presidentita GMA and her henchmen being behind the Glorietta blasts, the man on the street and your friendly neighborhood cab drivers were already thinking the same. I spoke to a few later in the evening. Pinoys aren’t stupid although our politicians make us out to be. (If this was the handiwork of terrorists, by yesterday evening, they would have claimed responsibility for the blast already because they are a proud bunch.)
Of course you can say it’s just another conspiracy theory but really, the public, especially the masa have come to distrust the Presidentita and her people. We can’t put anything past her. Almost everyone believes she is capable of doing anything just to perpetuate herself in power and refocus the public’s attention away from her government’s latest foibles. As usual, the Presidentita’s text brigade (Hello NTC: Check out 0905-346-8994) is actively trying to spin the bombings against her critics especially politicians in the opposition. While she tells them to stop politicking and taking advantage of the incident, her handlers are doing it for her. Amateurs talaga!
Mind you, these thoughts have entered the minds of people normally not inclined to have a say, either way, when it comes to politics. zalveen-ice’s Site, I think, is an example of a skeptical public. See, also, A Pinoy Investment Banker’s Homepage (I take it that the blogger is representative of the core constituency of the administration, the upper and professional classes):
Do you know what our consensus was as we speculated on the incident? It was probably the handiwork of people loyal to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (GMA) to divert media attention away from her in the light of a series of scandals which had rocked her administration. Since our initial feedback was that it was simply a LPG explosion, we even thought that whoever planned the thing was hare-brained and stupid to begin with. (Of course, we know now that it was not exploding LPG tanks which caused the damage but more like C-4). We have become cynical of GMA to have thought this way, rightly or wrongly. She really has a serious credibility problem with her constituency.
See The Warrior Lawyer and The Four-eyed Journal and Tongue in, Anew and Do my stories piss you off? as well as Random Thoughts.
From New Philippine Revolution comes an effort to whittle down the (large) list of suspects, and his list has the American CIA and a rogue group from the AFP at the top. On the other hand, Philippine Commentary is firmly convinced that the prime suspect remains Muslim groups. As he puts it,
I for one cannot even imagine the possibility of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo ordering such a thing, much less some rogue supporters who would act without her knowledge. She may be corrupt as events have proven, and craven enough to try to hold onto power by almost any means. But I just don’t believe she, or any of her people would be ruthless enough to do this. If anything she would rather run away than fight, as shown in the Angelo dela Cruz incident in Iraq, and in her pusillanimous handling of the Mindanao situation, both of which were actually determined by the civil society uproar against showing any kind of spine against the terrorists.
Still, you would expect people to instinctively rally around the flag. I see very little of that taking place.
But with the need to experience what other people went through, comes another pressing human need -to understand and make sense of a tragedy. Akomismo puts the blast in the context of previous terrorist attacks. So does Touched by an Angel. People will grasp at anything to try to find a pattern.
Take a look at pine for pine analyzing the list of casualties. Take this text message quoted by rockersworld.com:
13 days after Pacquiao’s victory against Eric Morales, naganap ang WoWowee Stampede.
13 days after Pacquiao’s victory against Larios, Mayon Volcano erupted, many died in mudflow.
13 days after Pacquiao’s victory against Barrera, Glorietta explosion..
We are all part of a process of national grieving, which echoes the manner in which individuals come to terms with a loved one’s demise.
Mon Casiple’s analysis is the most chilling. Remember, this is a person not given to off-the-cuff statements or for letting his emotions veto his circumspection. He goes through the list of potential suspects and the implications if any specific group is proven to be behind the blast:
The Glorietta bombing basically creates an atmosphere of unease, tension, and fear among the populace. If there are others that followed, it may create panic or cause cumulative harm on the body politic. Such a situation puts pressure on a target political opponent and/or derails its normal activities. It may precede a decisive extra-constitutional move.
A convenient culprit remains the Abu Sayyaf or some other Moro rebel group. This is possible but military offensives against them have led to disarrays in their organization and capabilities. Small bombings in the South can be expected of these groups but a massive bombing in Metro Manila–such as the one in Glorietta–raises questions.
Two other groups have the capability for such an obviously carefully-planned bombing. One is the rebel group in the military. The other is the military itself.
Their engaging in the Glorietta bombing would mean a political connection or an incursion into the political arena by the rebel military. Assuming a political motive, the bombing would represent a demonstration of political strength–and nothing else. It flies against the logic of the present stage of the political crisis where the pressure is on the president and not on the opposition. Such a move can only weaken the political momentum of the opposition. The only logical reason–not necessarily tenable politically–is to prepare for a much more decisive strike at the center of power.
Involvement of military elements in the chain of command in the Glorietta bombing would mean that a section of the military has taken sides in the political conflict on the side of the president. The logic is to create a reason for an imposition of martial or some form of national emergency. There is a precedent in the past–that of the series of bombings Marcos did to justify martial rule in 1972.
The Glorietta bombing will not immediately produce any clear indication as to the motive(s) of the perpetrator. Succeeding incidents will create the patterns that make clear a decisive political–albeit extra-constitutional–strategy. Whatever happens, we have entered the final stretch of the political crisis.
An appeal for collective action comes from Iniibig ko ang Pilipinas!:
There are many ways where we can take a collective action to show our unity in expressing our disgust over the bombing. We can make a call on every Filipino homes to display a Philippine flag. Or we can all wear a black shirt on a particular day. Or we can ask the church to toll the bells, honk our cars, hit the pan, make a noise on a particular time. Or we can all just go to Glorietta, no speaches, no banners, no placards, just a show of numbers. Or we can spread the slogan, Iniibig ko ang Pilipinas (too self serving), to express our sentiment on our love for our country. The point is, we have experienced a collective wound. To bring about a positive outcome from this incident, we, the citizens minus the politicians, have to make a collective action.
I only disagree insofar as anyone would think it’s possible to move one way, without the politicians. Even saints had assholes. But Welcome to my World, a Filipino overseas, says it well:
This incident reminds me of the time when the good people of London also became victims of terrorist bombings. Instead of calling for arms and declaring war, then Prime Minister Tony Blair actually called out for all British citizens to remain vigilant and not to cower to the cowardice acts of these misleaded uneducated individuals. To not sink to their level. To not change one’s way of life, for if we succumb to these senseless barbaric acts then they have truly won. For their goal is not to simply kill a huge number of our countrymen, but to create fear to change our way of life. To terrorize a society is to instill fear, regardless of the means, may it be through the taking of lives or through a simple perceived threat.
Again, to my mind, we would do better focusing on the physical and emotional scars of a national trauma barely 24 hours old; and formulating, in our minds, the questions that must be answered, frankly and completely, for we, the people, to be satisfied that the explanations we are getting are genuine.
Technorati Tags: media, military, philippines, politics, president, society
Thanks for the link manolo. I still keep hearing the sound of explosion in my head and reliving every horrifying moment. Grabe talaga. My take on this is that we always hear about explosions in the south or buses being detonated…parang malayo sa atin. I always thought “hindi naman tayo aabutan eh.” Putting a bomb inside Glorietta sends a message to the government that no one is safe from the terrorists….not even the mall owned by the wealthiest Filipino family and frequented by the affluent and Makati professionals. Hope you had a peaceful weekend.
Ayala should hire a foreign and independent investigators? Pwede rin. Pero teka, the MBC is getting involved by donating to the cash reward. Why not the MBC use that money and work with the Ayalas to hire a an independent foreign experts .
How can all of you GMA haters able to convince us who are in the middle when all accusations thrown at her are all based on speculations devoid of any solid evidence. Cabinet ministers have come and go and yet they have not come up with any smokingun, so the talk of her government falling or getting impeach is a little premature since a significant number of people do not just buy all things she is accused of.
So….that’s precisely the point…nobody CARES anymore…because we make an issue out of EVERYTHING…remember the boy who cried wolf story….yan ang nangyari sa ating mamamayang pilipino. The government, the rebels, the as*h*le politicians, nobody ever cared. So why should THEY care anymore….all it’s about is who gets to get on the gravy train…..Mind you, I am not one of them (that’s why I still comment here) but it really is a very sad situation for our beloved country….
the Hutus and Tutsis fought bec of apartheid. same thing. Israelis and Palestinians’ fight abt land? again if it was purely land, it could’ve been settled with good mediation. but it took a life of its own when religion colored the issue. The IRA and the Brits? protestantism against orthodox christianity.
then how did the French revolution and the American civil war ended?
it was pursued to its logical end. and the bloodlust sated (in the case of the French)
The Ayala Group is one of the most respected business groups in the country.The “Ayala†brand name has been nurtured by decades of “above the board†business.
They will NOT allow an intellectual pgymy to destroy the work of seven generations of decent business leaders.
I’m sure that they will do something.I don’t think the Pidals can afford to “bribe†this very respected business house.LOL
Que barbaridad!
PTBT, first of all, it’s not true that *nobody* cares because as you point out, there are still people who do, namely you and the other commenters in this blog. On your use of “everything”, that’s also not true because it is technically impossible to make “everything” an issue. No one has the time or the space to do that.
Take this specific blog, what happens is our blog host writes about an issue (or issues), and other people respond to it. Right now, the issue of this thread is the Glorietta bombing. Before that, it was the cash gifts given to Gov Panlilio and members of Congress. Before that it was the Pulido-initiated impeachment. Before that it was the investigation of the NBN. Before that is a whole list of specific issues, the earliest of which is Hello Garci.
So your proposition that NOBODY cares and we make an issue out of EVERYTHING is not true. The above are specific issues brought up by people (not just politicians) who care.
Devils,
In the case of the French, didn’t end with the decapitation of the monarchs. Republic came at a slow pace. Political maturity was slow.
Napoléon’s exile to St Helena didn’t end the problems in France. Very long story…
Let’s put it this way…I can also say that the anti GMA folks decided to have somebody sympathetic to them plant a C4 bomb so that they can blame the military and GMA….of course the anti GMA peeps won’t buy that story right???? Point is…does it always have to be about politics….at the end of the day, why don’t we really help by commiserating with the families of the victims of this tragedy? Ilagay sa Luneta ang lahat ng politiko at i -firing squad sila! Para may clean slate ang Pilipinas…but wait….lahat pala sa Pilipinas, Politiko! Ha ha ha…..
“So your proposition that NOBODY cares and we make an issue out of EVERYTHING is not true. The above are specific issues brought up by people (not just politicians) who care.CVJ”
agree 100%
I am not saying WE don’t care…I am saying the average Filipino DOES NOT CARE anymore because EVRYTHING becomes an issue such that they became numb……
ALso, I am not talking about us making an issue out of everything…I am talking about the politicians and the media making an issue out of everything…I won;t be surprise if one day, they’ll even make an issue of somebody’s toupee in COngress…..
The average Pinoy I suppose has become tired of all these inanities they see and hear daily in their lives.. not realizing they get affected or worse, knowing they are affected but not caring because whoever replaces the Dame in the Palace will probably be the same shark politician who we’ll probably proclaim as even worse than Marcos, Erap and GMA combined…..and THAT is why they really don’t care anymore…..
Trivializing Hunger!
france :Qu’ils mangent de la brioche(“let them eat cake!” by m.a.
philippines: “Even I have missed one meal in the last three months!†by g.m.a
Shaman, well taken. I do not wish to quarrel with the feelings of a grieving mother. And yes, it is out of line to make a judgment.
I just meant to say that good things can be done purposely with a bad conscience, in the same way as bad things can be done inadvertently in good conscience. Specific actions can only be rightly judged on the face of it, lets leave it to God to judge consciences.
To the savants of this blog:
So whatever happened to the tapes of the security cameras at G2?
Anyone?
Heh! Equalizer, historians say it was La Dauphine who said “Qu’ils mangent de la brioche” and not La Reine Marie Antoinette.
La Reine Marie Antoinette was a foreigner in France.
When the sans culotte finally joined the middle and the intellectuals of France in the revolt, the first target of their ire was the foreign queen.
Poor Marie Antoinette, she stood no chance. Her father Emperor Francis 1er left her to her sort too (just like what the King Ferdinand did to his daughter, Queen Catherine of Aragon, first wife of despicable King Henry the 8th — Ferdinand left Catherine to her sort).
MBW: i learned something from you today!
It is a tragedy indeed, that a word such as politics carry such a negative image when defined simply, politics is just thus:
furthermore
it used to be that before, politics in relation to government is about census building. today, politics is anything but that.
today, politicking is taken to be bad.
“tigilan na natin ang pamumulitika!”
“kaya di tayo umaasenso dahil panay pulitika!”
“wag nating lagyan ng kulay pulitika…”
can it be that such beliefs are what permeates the vicious cycle of bad politics?
if ordinary citizens view politics not as an evil entity but as a process, if people treats politicking as a good way of threshing out ideas, if people actually had a good, healthy attitude abt politics – would we be in this mess?
would citizens who are good leaders then come forward and offer their services to the people? (wag ka na pumasok dyan. magulo ang buhay pulitika) hence, we are presented with choices bet lesser evils. the good choices shying away from politics and going into more “healthy” endeavors.
if people see politics as a solution, not as a problem – would we have lesser apathy and more citizen interaction with nation building?
the corrupt politicians’ greatest success in retaining power is not in widening their base of support, but rather in disillusioning more and more people over time.
how many of those counted votes in the last election are actually cast by a warm body? i bet more than half of the registered voters didn’t vote due to cynicism. and yet their registration and votes are ripe for use.
that’s why not voting aids cheating.
Devils, the key negotiating points in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the status of Jerusalem and the ‘right of return’ (of Palestinians displaced during the Arab-Israeli wars). These are territorial issues. AFAIK, religion does not figure as one of the negotiation points.
Similarly, the negotiating points between Irish Republicans and the Unionist did not concern religion. Rather it was about the issue of reuniting Northern Ireland with the Irish Republic or remaining within the United Kingdom. Although the Irish were readily identifiable by their religion, the Irish as a people (distinct from the English) preceded such religious identification. As per E.J. Hobsbawm:
You can see the similarities between the indigeneous people of Mindanao (who happen to be Muslims) and the arrival of the Christian settlers from the north who took much of the land.
In Rwanda, there was inequality between the Tutsis and Hutus (but it was not termed apartheid) and this is similar to the stark inequality between the rich and poor majority although the ethnic divide is not that clear (except in the case of the Tsinoys).
I accept that religion is a key source of conflict but as the above examples show, it’s not necessarily the factor that sustains conflicts. Historic injustice oftentimes caused by earlier episodes of violence) and inequality are also drivers of conflict so i wouldn’t take any false comfort that because Filipinos are largely Christian, the cycle of violence, once started will not be sustained.
You have to remember that the American Civil War costs 600K lives. In the French Revolution, the Reign of terror alone costs 20K to 40K lives (per wikipedia). That’s a lot more than the Glorietta bombings for what you admit above is a coin toss.
MBW, but the catalyst was the revolution. from stagnation came – change.
yah, right. she missed a meal not bec of poverty. missing a meal bec you were either too busy or you were dieting is quite diff from missing a meal bec you were too poor to buy one.
wanna see how stark the gap is bet the have and have-nots? the haves diet, go on binge-eating and then purging, and thinks eating at carinderias is being thrifty.
wanna know how starker it is now?
there’s now the have-mores. and the gap bet the haves and have-mores is also widening.
the haves thinks 5 star hotels are luxury. have-mores treat them as rest houses for the paupers.
haves treats mass produced luxury cars as “in.” have-mores will only settle for limited editions.
haves still count in thousands. have-mores count in millions.
haves own more than one house. have-mores more than one island.
haves have personal drivers. have-mores, personal pilots.
think and reflect how lucky you are. born into the station you are in right now. as Manolo put it: social mobility indeed.
No argument there. As one of the parents of the victims said, they want justice for their son. Pressuring the government to get at the truth is one way of commiserating with the families.
I’d be more circumspect with such a scenario. Once the firing squads start, can the businessmen be far behind? As Devils has alluded to, there is such a thing as bloodlust.
True, and this is the best defense of GMA. It is up to us who care to show them that apathy is not a virtue. Don’t you think so?
why not add honasan and lacson into the mix? they’re both capable of such an act and they both have retained their strong connections with those still in the armed forces. moreover, they’re both itching to take GMA’s position.
the bomb material may be from the military but we all know how easy it is to buy weapons from unscrupulous military men (or steal, if you’re stupid enough to be used by those who hunger for power). besides, seeing how the trust rating of GMA is at an all-time low, an act like this would be more of a liability rather than a tactical advantage. if the people around her were indeed responsible for that blast, then they made a serious miscalculation.
filipinos may be apathetic when it comes to politics in general but i doubt they’d take a martial law declaration sitting down.
as for that garci tapes, i still wonder why it came out only after FPJ died. it made me think that someone else wanted to benefit from it.
Sparks, sorry but i don’t think anyone here who’s awake knows. The savants are in bed (probably sleeping).
People looking at political angles in times like this are way much better than the “leader” who had the gall the clap and laugh while “visiting” the injured.
The question here if the Government is capable at getting the Truth? As we have experienced there is no truth in so many issues in the past..where is the truth about “garci”, about joc-joc and now the zte and the bribery scandal may have gone with the fate of the others.
But whatever this one truth that is needed to be brought into surface, but how do we know if it is “the truth” coming from the government that has lost most of its credibility? questions to wake up to…
in the case of the Irish and the British, religion morphed the conflict into a cycle of violence. in fact, peace talks broke down regularly bec the protestants who had acquired the lands feared that a treaty would reduce their power. in the case of tutsi and hutus, it may not be apartheid bec they were of the same race, but persecution due to a diff ethnicity is jz the same, dnt u think?
and one enduring example of religion as the “accelerant” and sustenance to and of violence, is the fight over the Holy Land. and bec religion is largely inherited, so too is the conflict. it never ends.
our being Christians is not what I’m banking on to stop the cycle of violence. our aversion to bloodshed is. just the horror of such an experience will make sure generations after take steps to avoid another civil war. and that means in effect, reforms.
JIW, very true, but it shouldn’t stop us from trying as government is not monolithic. Hopefully, there are professionals left in the PNP, AFP and other departments and agencies. And maybe even the Gloria-loyalists have had enough.
you know cvj. my attraction for a civil war is not coz i’m such a bloodthirsty man. i jz believe that such a war will prod the apathetic and those in stupor to take a stand.
our country is in such a mess bec the leaders leading us lack conviction. no one believes something is worth fighting for. no one believes that social reform is worth dying for. everyone is content for “change” to happen on its own.
the perfect depiction of the Filipino? Juan Tamad waiting for the apple to fall on his head.
and you cited figures of death in thousands due to wars? how many more due to hunger?
a thousand now in war vs a million more in hunger. is that such a choice?
machiavellian? have other alternatives worked?
This is getting confusing now. They try to shift the theory, from bombing to accident.This is interesting and also ridiculous. I bet in few days, there will be stupid statement coming out from police, mentioning that it was not a bomb attack but it was an accident from basement.
Previously, they said they found RDX, now they said there is no residual material from explosives in ground zero.
Obviously, they try to hide something here. They seem to change the scenario now.
Just 2-3 days ago, Malacanang offered 2 Million for information on this bombing. Makati City offered 1 Million. Military said it was a terrorist act. Police said it was a bomb.
Now, they said, no residual material of explosives found in ground zero. It might be accident due to the presence of a volatile mixture of fumes emanating from the blast site.
This is really sad. It’s either we really have stupid policemen/government there or they just want to fool us again..again and again. This is really sad.
Hopeless….
Devils, i think were we differ is on whether the Irish were fighting as Irish Catholics or Irish Catholics. From what i recall, the peace talks broke down regularly on the issue of IRA disarmament. In the case of Tutsis and Hutus, i’m not sure if they are the same race but yes, they are ethnically different. However, it was inequality that fueled ethnic tensions.
I don’t see the logic in starting a civil war to avoid another civil war, i.e. experiencing bloodshed to avoid future bloodshed. Why can’t we just go directly to the genuine reforms phase?
By whom? Perhaps just by the GMA haters. Other people are not that narrow minded.
Do you suppose GMA should wear that mournful image until the time you say so. Even relatives of deceased people take time out from grief to attend to the living.
I will worry more if GMA starts ordering the confiscation of cameras and videos and allow pictures she authorizeto be published.
Devils,
That was an excellent clarifications ( or is it lecture?) on the real essence of politics. I totally agree.
I believe, one way to address this conern on apathy is to do just that, explain to the pathetic crowd, that everybody needs to be involve in politics. Becuase liek it or not our lives depends so much on it.
you know deVil, that could be well true. during the U.S. civil war, brothers and relatives each took a stand and some in the opposite sides, but stand it was. it was bloody, but where would have been the U.S. if not for that conflict? but ours is not to that point where we are fighting a very contentious issue, like the breaking of the union by force or the abolition of slavery, but just something that could be with sincere intentions on all side is better settled on the table..but we have to start from the top..the cleaning of the national government and pretty sure it will filter down the bottom and the insurgencies, the terrorism could be dealt with one resolve, together….
On trillanes, if he really wanted to help in pinpointing out the culprits of this recent bombings. why dont he just come forward and give us all the info that he had?
Enough of those alibis about an impartial investigating body etc etc. If he doesn’t trust the govt appointed investigating body, heck ,he can go to any anti GMA media or anti GMA columnist like Manolo or any Civil society group that he trust and provide us with info.
That is if he really have something with him that would connect Gloria and the government to the the bombing.
Di naman kaya, he is using the same, tactic that Cayetano used against the Arroyos. Now ,I wonder where are those boxes and boxes of evidence the he paraded and claimed to contain mountains and mountains of proofs against Gloria.
cvj, yes. we’re definitely arguing whether the Irish fought as nationals, or as a religious group. on Tutsis and Hutus, yes they are of same race but different tribes. it’s a tribal war actually. cannot be strictly classified as apartheid but more of genocide.
it’s not starting civil war to avoid a future one. it’s starting one to catalyze change. aversion to another one would jz be a consequent effect of starting one.
and why can’t we go directly to genuine reforms phase?
bcoz too many people are apathetic. a lack of conviction. people only appreciate things when it is hard-won. a civil war would form national unity. after the event, that is. survivors will have something to rally to. Filipinos would be deeply emotional, and extremely protective of their hard-won victory. for what? for a nation that they will build with their own sweat and blood.
people could care less abt a cross stitch work if it isn’t their own. they would easily be able to tear it or throw it away. but the one who made it would value it.
which is what we lack now. emotional attachment to our country. and which is what a civil war would cure.
“but just something that could be with sincere intentions on all side is better settled on the table..but we have to start from the top..the cleaning of the national government and pretty sure it will filter down the bottom and the insurgencies, the terrorism could be dealt with one resolve, together….”-JIW
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But why not stop from the bottom from the very peopel themselves elected these people “in the top”
Devils, from your reaction to the Glorietta bombings, i know you’re not bloodthirsty. As you have said above, “using the death of the victims for political purposes is detestable“, which makes me wonder why a part of you favors “culling the apathetic” to facilitate the desired reforms which is as political an objective as they come. In any case, i’m not as optimistic as you on the outcome of any civil war. At the very least, many more people would go hungry in times of war than in peace time.
Augustine, as Manolo said the other day, i think one of the keys would be the smell of gunpowder reported right after the blast. Does a gas explosion result in the smell of gunpowder? For that matter, will a C4 explosion smell like gunpowder? Ramrod, when you wake up, i appreciate if you can enlighten us on the above.
Hey CVJ,
I tried using that
ha ha ha. obviously it work
rego, thanks. people seem not to realize that removing politics in our life is virtually impossible. it is interwoven into everything we do as a society. unless you want anarchy, politics is what hold our society together.
jiw, we are moving slowly into that contentious issue. in 2010, federalism would be proposed. it would succeed. it would only be later on when successive districts fail financially that a clamor for a return to the Republic would ensue. by then, rich districts would refuse to be sucked back into poverty by leeches eager to siphon the riches of their districts. civil war would erupt.
Devils, in some of the past blog entries of Manolo (and some commenters), they said that the breakdown of Philippine society started during World War 2 with all its deprivations. My Dad, who experienced the war, says that he was so disgusted with all the collaborators who claimed that they were guerillas. That was not even a Civil War, but a war against foreign aggression where all Filipinos are supposed to be united. It did not result in the sense of country that you would expect. I think war brings out the best or the worst depending on who you are, but i believe the effects cancel each other.
Rego, that’s good to see.
From inquirer headlines…
The bombing could be an accident that happened in the fully enclosed basement…
Another “eggs on the face” ? ( Note its question mark huh )
rego, i think belief in a top-down reform rather than the other way around is bec it seems so powerless to try to initiate change on your own w/o any assurance others would do the same. while reforming those “at the top” seems so attractive bec we only need to change a few others, and not ourselves.
it’s like riding the MRT. you won’t survive if you believe that if you try to initiate a line, others would fall in.
it takes a greater resolve to stick to doing what is right, even when everyone around you isn’t. it seems hopeless. but only bec people succumb to that hopelessness.
True Devils but n the other hand, its on our selves that we have the most influence on. So wouldn’t that be more easier than “starting from the top”
Eh do it at the same time kaya”
But I say that people who look at other angles may be more broadminded than those who just zeroed in politics as the cause of the bombing.
First, why is it that is Glorietta which has bombing incident among the malls.
Remember 2000 when a bomb explosion also happened in the same shopping mall.
One angle could be business rivalry. Another may be business bankruptcy where explosion and fire could indemnify the insured from these loses.
Authorities should keep their mouth shut investigate first before giving a statement to the press.
We are a nation that is so dependent on gossips and speculations. We create our own ghosts. We terrorize ourselves.
i think there wasn’t even a Philippine society to begin with in world war 2. there was a country called the Philippines. but not a Philippine nation. our disunity is an effect of a colonial power deciding on its own to draw our territorial borders for us, and call those mesh of islands as Filipinas. world war 2 wasn’t abt defending our nation. it was abt helping the americans return. why, if the Japanese governed us well, and committed no atrocities, i don’t think we’d have MacArthur “liberating” us.
in the case of a civil war, all of us would be confronted with the question of where we want our destinies to go. it would be a fight between who gets the right to build the nation based on what they see is fit.
civil war is diff from war agst a foreign power. it’s an internal struggle. and much like a conflict of the conscience, the nation would emerge whole – if the good side won.
rego, picture this. an enormous garbage dump at the front of your brgy’s market. this is the accepted dumping ground of your brgy. everyone knows its bad for everyone’s health. yet bec it’s a long-time practice, no one bothers to challenge it bec it’s too “bothersome.” residents assign blame and responsibility altogether to brgy officials. and appease their conscience by rationalizing that everyone is doing it anyway, and besides, if only a sensible brgy official would appear and “clean up this mess” for your brgy.
then comes one man who starts proper waste disposal on his own. starts recycling, composting. people continue to dump their garbage at the marketplace anyway. at times, this man almost gave up with his advocacy, and yet he held firm with his belief. a neighbor noticed what he was doing and found it to be good. this neighbor soon imitated this man. but bec people continued to throw garbage at the market front, this neighbor soon fell back into his old ways. others also noticed what the man was doing and copied him as well. but as with the neighbor, some went back to their old ways of dumping trash at the market. but a few others persevered, just like the man. in time, this group reach a critical mass to start their own cleanliness drive. and then, the whole brgy just followed.
you see how staying steadfast is impt and how turning cynical is bad? all persons have the capacity to do good. but it is in the steadfast belief that others would come around to your pov that in starting change within urself, you inevitably change society if you jz stay patient and wait for everyone to come around to your thinking.
Devils, i don’t know what to you qualifies as a Society, but even before World War 2, Filipinos fought and died for the idea of an independent Philippine nation in the revolutions against Spain and the United States. Maybe an accommodation with Japan would have been reached if Macarthur did not return, but even in that hypothetical scenario, the ones who would have made such an accommodation would be Filipinos who are members of Philippine Society. After all, as recounted by Mabini, the same sort of compromise took place when it was clear that the Americans cannot be ejected by force.
You’re right to point out that “In the case of civil war, all of us will be confronted with the question of where we want our destinies to go“. Unfortunately, in case of civil war, more likely than not, that question would be settled by force and not by reason so that would not be an improvement from the current state of affairs. Whether or not the nation will emerge whole or permanently divided is something no one can guarantee as the outcome depends on too many variables. Once such a war gets going, it would also be simplistic to label one side ‘good’ and the other ‘bad’. When the savagery starts, there will be murderers and rapists on both sides so it may turn out that there won’t be any good side. “Culling the apathetic” is a war crime so whoever does that cannot be considered to belong to the ‘good side’. In the end, after all the lives lost, the promise of a nation that emerges whole can turn out to be as empty as those made by the politicians today. I don’t think you can guarantee otherwise.
Agustine:
I still think it was C-4 bomb strategically located over the basement where there was diesel. As I know diesel is not combustible at present atmospheric pressures. It was even used in submarines because of its relative safe characterictics. It won’t even explode in the presence of fire, it’s got to be under pressure.
So how does diesel explode. Simply by putting it in a chamber under pressure and applying heat. That’s how a diesel engine works. My take is that the C-4 blast provided the pressure, hence , caused the diesel to explode causing a secondary explosion in the basement.
If the basement is considered as ground zero, which I think was not, then indeed no traces of RDX would be found.
I know these all from common sense. Let’s hope our investigators have the same common sense.