This was supposed to be my column for today.
Barangay Bansot’s Silent Majority
KAPITAN Calabasa was late, and so, he missed most of the fun. But he got to hear Madam’s thank you remarks.
“Thank you, Eminensh, Your Exshelenshiesh. Thank you fathersh and shishtersh. Here are your love offeringsh, let ush continue to do the Good Lordsh, I mean, my hushband’s, my childrensh, and my, work. We are the Holy Family. God put ush here.
“Thank you, congreshmen. Thank you, governorsh. Thank you, mayorsh. Thank you, kagawadsh. Here ish your fork barrel flush an attendanshe bonush, and yesh, your frojektsh are shafe.
“Thank you, columnishtsh, for your dedicashion to our truth: don’t worry, your hushband will remain in charge of our penshionsh, and you, your board sheat in our bank ish shafe. Oh, and ash for you, shorry, no more readersh shince you moved to our crony fafer but I appreshiate your effortsh anyway, but shtof throwing water in feofle’s fashes, ha? To all of you othersh, fretending to be objective, your veshted intereshts are one with mine!
“Thank you clashmatesh, I don’t regret giving you jobsh in my adminishtrashion.
“Thank you generalsh, thank you bushineshmen, we will all froshfer together. I shay to all of you… We will not be dishtracted by the folitical noishe!”
When everyone was through falling to the floor to demonstrate awe and delight, the hard-working Madam tackled other business.
“And now, we need to work on our meshaging. Shecretary Fabili?”
“Dukutin ang pang matrikula, ituloy ang aming ligaya!”
“I don’t like. Too honesht. Shecretary Calburo?”
“Sa laki ng matrikula, turo ninyo pamumulitika!”
“Good. Plashter along the shcoolsh that hate me. Shec. Madaya, you can charge it to the nutrishion frogram. Nexsht?”
“Itrabaho natin ang panggugulo!”
“No. Shec. Hormiga?”
“Trabaho hindi gulo!”
“Good (give my regardsh to Mala Bihon). Theshe will be the shlogansh of Kashabwit sha Kalokohan. Charge their adsh to the Dishinformashion Agenshy. Nexsht?”
“Patabain natin ang mga pulitiko!”
“Hay nacu. Shec. Nalito? Imfrove, pleashe?”
“Pagkain hindi politika!”
“Clever. Slogansh for Kongresho ng Mambububulong Filipino. Charge the adsh to Metro Gago. Nexsht?”
“Ikuryente ang media, lokohin natin para sa presidente!”
“Too blunt. Shec. Bungi?”
“Ibaba ang kuryente, hindi ang presidente!”
“Good. Slogansh for Fartylisht Kakuntshaba. Charge to Frovidentshal Bashtushang Fambanshang Liaishon Offishe. Nexsht. Our latesht innovashionsh in fromoting the Rule of Lawleshnesh? Shec. Shiraulo?”
“Madam, since we are fighting the Truth, we decided that even if we have to sacrifice Executive Ordure 464 and Mambobola Circular 108, we simply issue new rules accomplishing the same thing.”
“Ish Monkey Gotme drafting them?”
“Yes Madam!”
“Your Eminenshe? Queshtion?”
“Aren’t we insulting the intelligence of our flock in Barangay Bansot?”
“Wait, my shon will anshwer that.”
“You ha. Wait ha. We’re not bastos, ha. Shut up ha? I don’t care what you say, ha? You’re giving daddypoo high blood pressure, ha. Just obey-obey us! We give you na nga eh why are you so demanding pa, ha?”
“But the desert, our sea, the Israelites…”
“Ah. Desshert? Meaty Forflavor will get for you, Eminenshe. Chocolate or vanilla? Anyway. Yesh, Mr. Juramentado?”
“Santa Palanggana! Madam, there are destabilizers from… from… all your alma maters! In Putakti City! Evil, awful… what do you call them, oh, students!”
“We are shafe here in Campo Carne. Yesh, Mareng Meanie? Thank you, by the way, for shuforting me, but (he-he) get real. My darling hushband ish staying.”
“Oh. But. Madam, the young people, their requests?”
” I hereby decree, a No Hover Zshone in Futakti Shity. Becaushe if you don’t shee them, they don’t exshisht. Shimfle! Yesh, Father Imbyernash?”
“But… reform… strengthening… institutions? Help?”
“Tell them to take it uf with my shonsh. They are the youth, too. They are the pillarsh of the inshtitushionsh we’re building.”
“Mommy, only if they’re pretty, ha? I don’t like talking to the pangit-pangit, ha? Or the brainy ones, ha? They can make a date with me in my restaurant, plenty-plenty food there.”
“OK you heard him. Go away. Yesh, Mishish Faidroshash?”
“I bloody support you, eh wot!”
“Cheaf, you shound like your daughter. But I already shaid, thank you columnishtsh.”
“But Madam…”
“Yesh, Shfeaker Jar-Jar?”
“Waza boutda peepol? They issa hates youse!”
“Sho? We have the Shilent Majority shuforting ush! The besht! They don’t need to be bribed, they don’t vote, becaushe they don’t exisht! Ferfect! More for all of ush! Anymore queshtionsh? None? Dishmished!”
***
In an earlier blog, MLQ3 did say the LaSalle-Cavite group made it to Makati, albeit quite late. Now, it is possible that the college kids underestimated the traffic time to get to Makati; do the Cavite-students claim they were detained for longer than an hour?
And there is stil the more important question — were there any groups holding the proper permits who were still prevented by the PNP from continuing on towards the Friday Makati rally?
Groups do not need permits to go to a rally. The on-site rally permit covers everyone there.
What’s the point of this exercise of scrounging around for could-have-been headcount for this obviously fizzled-out “rally”?
It’s one thing to be fixated on the past, but it’s another thing to be fixated on such a trivial relic of said past.
doesn’t the silent majority also include those here who say they are anti-gloria but were not in the rally last friday?
i read the last posts and the comment threads…there are some who said they didn’t go to the rally. i think they’ve just forfeited their right to take digs at the others who comment here…
anthony scalia,
You mentioned “job creation” thats all. Its a noble idea, but then again I’m not satisfied with just ideas, as I never tolerate an “I don’t know” answer. It has to be “I’ll find out” and you scramble to really find out.
In these conditions, with all the political noise and lack of accountability, I doubt that the jobs created can make a dent on the unemployment rate and most importantly underemployment. I doubt that the jobs created will stop our countrymen from working as OFWs. If you’re at all aware, local business efforts can’t even generate the needed revenue level for the country to hit its targets in tax collections. Where would our malls be or any other business for that matter if we take out the OFW remittances? Are you absolutely sure that local entrepreneurs can create enough jobs and jobs that pay enough for the people to afford going to the malls? To a certain extent, yes, but how many of these people can, what percentage to the total population?
Its easy to say PATALSIKIN SI GLORIA is not JOB CREATION, but what job creation are you talking about?
All your empty rhetorics are just that, empty. That is not what we need, we need actions, movers and shakers…we have enough people who can dish out witty remarks or intellectual discourse as you put them – we need results and fast, peoples lives are at stake…
Hilarious!
“It’s one thing to be fixated on the past, but it’s another thing to be fixated on such a trivial relic of said past.” – benigno
I agree. Yes, on to the next one!!!
Hindi mo ramdam ang asenso, Manolo?
istambay_sakalye,
alin ang mauuna – ang masipa si gloria before 2010, o maging NBA champion ang Lakers by 2010?
either way, you’re dreaming!
The Lakers will never get past the Spurs, Suns, and Mavs. Then internal trouble pa – Kobe will feel threatened by Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum.
@ ANthony
I certainly agree with your statement. Kasi si CVJ, ayaw niya yung maging responsible ang Pinoy. Gusto niyo…spoon feed them their daily needs. He really has a problem with people who are ma-abilidad. Kailangan lahat pantay pantay and wallow in the same misery.
Hindi niya nakikita na ang China kaya naging ganun ngayon is because people ARE being allowed to make money unlike before Deng’s time when you’re accused of being a capitalist roader and sent to the farm for indoctrination…akala niya tinanggal ang mga oligarchs…di niya alam, pinalitan lang ng mga neo oligarchs…..but look where it got CHina today…
@ ramrod
I think you’re referring to me…di ako si Anthony Scalia…else I’ll be responding to myself….:-)
”
anthony scalia,
I take it that you’re tsinoy right? and you wear glssses with relatively few white hairs, etc.? Hmmm, my surveillance 101 is slipping… 🙂
“
benign0: deQuiros can be one of the best provocateurs there is, making a case of “police brutality” where maybe there was none. Were any groups prevented from making it to Makati? [I actually do not think so and the under 25,000 is the best of the response given by the madlang people. I’m just guessing based on that it is only deQuiros with his melodramatic way of presenting things had alluded to such police hanky-panky.]
BrianB
There are now innovation hotbeds set up near the UP area by the Ayalas but I think right now they lean more towards the IT aspect.
What we really need to do is to also talk to the inventors. Have you ever seen their inventions? Most of them are low tech inventions, albeit quite innovative. My point is, they’re generally improvements on an existing product or need. Maybe they should also be encouraged to think out of the box and see if they can fill a need that is either non-existent or radically changes the way one would use an existing product (eg. cellphones vs telephones).
The Lakers will never get past the Spurs, Suns, and Mavs. Then internal trouble pa – Kobe will feel threatened by Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum– a.scalia
see the game yesterday? mavs lost to who? damn right LA Lakers! who scored 50 points? damn right again, kobe!
“The need for change is urgent, and the sooner we look beyond the turmoil, the better for all of us and our children. We cannot keep repeating the same mistakes, and learning the wrong lessons from history. Until we come to terms with the fact that we cannot keep changing leaders by taking to the streets, we will forever be digging ourselves deeper and deeper into a hole with very little chance of getting out.”
http://www.philstar.com/archives.php?aid=2008030189&type=2
This is what the silent majority is thinking. If you don’t agree with it, that’s fine. If you are interested at all to understand how the minds of the silent majority work, go ahead, read it.
One thing is for sure people, whatever sides you are on in this blog, the inevitable will happen soon, the Evil Bitch will go down! It is like a tsunami wherein you cannot go against the tide. Now that the youth has been very active in the protest actions, the situation is irreversible.
It will be very hard to change the sentiments of the more than 70% who think Lozada is credible and if you factor the -54 trust rating of GMA.
All of the abuses of this Regime are of their own doing. Nobody else to blame but themselves.
ramrod,
salamat
asus. eh talaga namang di ko alam ang sagot
shades of the great celebrity CEO in you (i don’t take no for an answer! im the man!)
in case you are forgetting – i am not your employee
hope you’re seeing/reading what you wrote.
all i ever said is i choose to focus on job creation. thats all. nothing more, nothing else
kulang pa? whoever said that i have to do it alone? did i ever say that i am the messiah of job creation? whoever said that the quest for job creation is near completion already?
my goodness! you are still asking that question?!?
the great celebrity CEO ramrod at a loss on what ‘job creation’ is?
it takes an empty rhetoric to know another empty rhetoric.
hoy iho, you don’t even have a bird’s eye view of everything. i don’t have time for that ‘patalsikin na now na’ ek ek because im already up to my neck trying to help create jobs!
ako, even modestly, i produce ‘results’. Few people who are previously unemployed now have a means of livelihood, thanks to new businesses established.
yan ang hirap sa Pinoy, messianic proportions ang palaging hinahanap na solusyon!
people’s lives are at stake? wow! you are making it sound like the country is on the verge of being another Rwanda. or a few dollars away from defaulting on foreign debt like Argentina!
nakupo! panahon pa ni Dado Macapagal, ‘people’s lives are at stake’ already!
as if kicking gloria out before 2010 will make people’s lives ‘no longer at stake’
my friend, obviously its your first time to engage someone in an intellectual discussion. anyway, everybody is a starter in any endeavor, including me.
if you really want to be seasoned in intellectual discussions, try engaging benignO and bencard.
mwb, i’d love to apologize to jen if i said something that i have to apologize for. after all, i may not be as young as her but i still appreciate good looks when i see one. here’s to you and jen – PEACE.-benc(ow)ard.
be a man and own up to your actions! you still trying to spin the truth? gimme a break? let us ask everyone’s opinion here with regards to mbw’s claim.
Bencard said…
to jen jen, unless you have direct line from God, your “truth— is your VERSION of truth. your version may be acceptable to society if you can prove it under the “rule of lawâ€Â. otherwise, it’s just a looney musing of a pampered bitch.–mbw
what does everyone think of the above statement? did he just called that person “a pampered bitch”? the he comes here crying that everyone in mbw’s blogs wants his head? now that’s what i call incredible!
As long as you do not go nuts and write expletives here when it does not happen, I wish you good luck. Pramis?
istambay_sakalye,
*ugh* the Mavs lost to the Lakers nga pala. injured siguro si Nowitzki. congrats to you and your Lakers
pero lets wait till the play-offs my friend.
my friend, obviously its your first time to engage someone in an intellectual discussion. anyway, everybody is a starter in any endeavor, including me.
if you really want to be seasoned in intellectual discussions, try engaging benignO and bencard.– scalia
what kind of intellectual discussion would that be? the kind which one comes running here after calling somebody a pamered bitch and refused to apologize after being castigated?
very intellectual indeed.
*ugh* the Mavs lost to the Lakers nga pala. injured siguro si Nowitzki. congrats to you and your Lakers
pero lets wait till the play-offs my friend.–a.scalia
excuses, excuses, same nowitzki who lost to golden state warriors last year’s playoff’s. actually a better term for that was emabarassed.
anthony scalia,
Nah, benigno and bencard are giants in intellectual discussion. You even beat me in it. But thanks, I needed the diversion, like you I’m also neck deep in work and I don’t have the time or knees anymore to play badminton or go to the gym or whatever it is young people do nowadays…and it was an honor to exchange blades with you…you’re doing noble work, keep doing what you love doing…have a good one 🙂
cory + erap = new people power?
kawawang cory, ubos na ang political capital. matakin mo na nasikmura niya na maupo sa tabi ni erap. hintay na lang kayo ng 2010. sige, baka si noli ang maging prez.
buti pa sa states, wala na si bush sa 2009.
Silent Waters,
true. he doesn’t believe in a free market, limited government environment.
di ko nga ma-gets yung insistence nya na ground zero (the starting point towards economic take-off) should be the equality of all – everybody poor! kaya siguro ganun na lang ang kanyang affection towards ‘elites’
tama ka. the secret to China’s success is that it just let the capitalists (businessmen) do their thing (within the limits of law, of course, though corruption is another matter)
the capitalists have taken China’s economy on a blistering speed that government may have to step in – to prevent the economy from overheating!
ramrod,
you too my friend
UP n student
I wish the burning of houses in Washington state will not happen in RP. Our firefighters are less equipped. Remember when JDV’s house “sa Forbes Park yata” was on fire, one of his daughters died.
Silent Waters:
I’ve been to China a couple of times, and from what I can see, they have an orderly society where each person has a sense of place in the hierarchy of things. It is a strictly regimented/controlled society, and people at the bottom implicitly trusts the judgment of those at the top. More than anything, this aspect of their society makes it easier for China to engage in nation-building activities. Give credit where credit is due: the whole Chinese society is responsible for where they are today, not just the party bosses running the show.
The Philippines has a totally different set of dynamics, and what applies in China will not necessarily apply here in the Philippines. I disagree with cvj for a simple reason — Pinoys are masters of small-scale. We made innovations that made cooperativism viable, and the tragedy is that countries like South Korea, Israel and Thailand use our innovations in their cooperatives, small-scale industries, and kibbutzims. I’ve been there, and you’d be surprised at how much praise they heap on UP-Los Banos.
We have core values like kapwa, bayanihan, pakikisama, walang iwanan. What remains to be seen is how Filipino “oligarchs”, those who lead and manage those at the lower sectors, apply these principles to economic productivity. Kung pwede, subukan lang natin makitagay sa kanto para makita natin kung ano ba ang tunay na Pinoy. Huwag lang makikanta ng “My Way”, baka ma-gripo ka sa kalye. 🙂
istambay_sakalye
my prediction – the Lakers will never reach the conference final.
JMCastro,
as one song would put it “saan saan ako nagkamali?”
where did we go wrong? was it a failure to exploit the technology of UPLB? is it our failure to acknowledge that UPLB is to agriculture as Stanford is to Silicon Valley?
it seems agriculture holds even more potential than mining. maybe agriculture export can compensate for the country’s lack of manufacturing prowess
Bencard said:
“maginoo, great questions. apparently, the oust-gloria crowd finds these people “credible†(wonder if they understand what the word truly means).”
So Bencard, what do the words “SOLE OWNERSHIP AND SOVEREIGNTY” truly mean?
Bencard said:
mbw, which part did i say jen-jen is a pampered bitch. read my lips†i said “…if you can prove it under the “rule of lawâ€Â. otherwise, it’s just a looney musing of a pampered bitch.†clearly, “it’s†refers to the “version of truthâ€Â, not jen-jen.
Bencard, this is an example of your (self-)vaunted “lawyerly” capabilities? Lousy parsing skills combined with self-serving distortion of the text. You actually said “your version of truth,” not just “version of truth”. “Your” obviously refers to jen. So yes, you did call her a pampered bitch. God help your clients.
upn you totally misunderstand the requirements for a rally permit. it’s the venue that requires a permit, not the people who want to attend.
upn you can search the blogs to see first hand accounts of how people were harrassed. there were news reports of some clever students who got through military checkpoints by chirpily telling the cops they’re pro gma, they were instantly waved through.
silent, “Wala naman siyang sasaibihin na tama sa inyo and wala kayong sasabihin na tama sa kanila. Yun talaga ang problema. And then one wonders why this thing excalates??”
no, the problem is, kahit bigyan mo siya ng chance na ipagtanggol ang sarili, ayaw niya, di niya kaya, o pag sinusubukan niya, nagkaka-leche-leche ang mga kwento ng mga tauhan niya. o kaya hahanap sila ng switik na paraan upang takpan ang ginawa nila o itago ang mga dokumento.
Brian: JEQ, you realize conservatism in the Philippines is different from conservatism in the U.S.
Yes I do. And Im sure DJB understood that my distinction was between trad-con and neo-con in the US context. We dont have neocons in the Philippine setting. I think here when one says one is a conservative, it means they believe in traditional Roman Catholic family values and is not a political distinction.
cvj,
uh-oh, thats just a premise for your usual main argument – no government assistance at all!
we can’t blame the richest people for engaging in the businesses they’re in now. its their choice, its their money.
and maybe the ones who should be in manufacturing are now citizens of first world countries
I read Mr. Federico’s Pascual’s column to day on truth and that was what I was essentially saying about different versions of the truth…here’s an excerpt from the said column.
“TRUTH RELATIVE?: Let me give another illustration of the problem, aside from that classic story (cited in my Postscript of Feb. 24) of blind men being made to touch an elephant and tell what the behemoth is.
Look at this other illustration of how the phenomenon is actually determined by the point of view taken:
Place a super intelligent mite on a heap of black powder. It will find itself atop a pile of what to it are black stones. To the mite, the truth is black stones, not black powder.
Place a similar mite on a heap of white powder. The truth to the second mite is a pile of white stones, not white powder.
Now get the two mites off their piles, mix thoroughly the black and the white heaps of powder and place the mites on the mixed heap.
From the viewpoint of the two mites, they are on a bigger pile of black and white stones. But from our point of view, there is this heap of gray powder, not black and white randomly mixed stones.”
This is the reason why I really want to here the truth without the histrionics from both sides of the political spectrum.
anthony, re aggie:
two weeks ago i sat down with a professor from up’s business mgt. dept and he was really furious about the aggie/food situation. mass epidemics in the swine population from rampant smuggling and no gov’t support for recuiting vets; no gov’t support for those breeding locally resistant strains of swine; high-yield seeds rotting away in uplb because farmers are in a double bind, gov’t keeps the price of rice low, so farming increasingly non-viable financially, no support for what’s required to use those high-yield seeds; as dr, albas pointed out gov’t changed the way it monitors the use of land so no one really has a clue anymore how much productive farmland’s been turned to industrial/residential use, and the list goes on and on. and the rapaciousness of the national government is being aped by local governments, both cozy in the impunity in they’re enjoying.
Now you have something to fight for. No personalities, no political parties.
it’s a long read, though.
anthony scalia:
Short answer: we lack values-based governance and leadership. I believe that inflexibility in the enforcement of rules is essential. This is because government becomes predictable, because you know that if you play by the rules, it doesn’t matter if you are a small business dealing with a Henry Sy or or a Joe Concepcion or a Manny Pangilinan — you can trust the contracts that you close because you will get paid promptly, you won’t have the local mayor or congressman knocking at your door for funds, cops don’t stop you and get a share of your produce while you’re on your way to Divisoria.
The conduct of GMA and her allies is just the tip of the iceberg. How can you expect everyone to play by the rules if the leaders of the land isn’t playing fair?
I agree with your statement. It’s their government working with their people. Over here, government is working only for the oligarchs (and their political allies). The people in general are left to fend for themselves.
mlq3
I do agree with you regarding the comments you made. Do you know anything I don’t as , who don’t move around in corridors of power, do not know? Kasi all I get are impressions …and second hand impressions at that.
I do believe you because you are a fair minded person based on what I have seen in this blog. But for the others, the stuff they bandied as truth are just stuff they read in the papers or heard from so called witnesses who haven’t offered me any smoking gun as of yet, only circumstantial evidence and their versions of what happened.
Unfortunately, the administration has been remiss in trying to get their version out.
Also, the survey among Metro Manilans is interesting as it is the same stand I am taking…I am certainly not pro GMA (a fence sitter, as what a lot of people who loves to denigrate others say here) and I do not believe in rallies. I still believe in the process and that we should not be lazy to push the process to its conclusion even if its very hard to do.
Just wondering…is it possible the reason why she’s not resigning or giving up power is because…the generals won’t let her? and because she is motivated to not tranish her Father’s good name???? I really don’t know.
Is it also possible that she does have her heart in the right place but the people surrounding her (Kamag-ANak Inc. part 2) is what is causing all these problems? Maybe her complicity is to the extent that she covers them up so as not to tarnish her presidency? I really don’t know.
Hindi naman ito Courte, bakit naman may manga tao dito nagrepresanta na Abogado raw, para palakasin ang manga Argumento nila? tawa lang si mang_kiko. ano kaya kong irepresenta ko ang sarili kong specialista sa Neurology dito at sabihin iba may deperensya sa utak, may maniwala kaya? di wala rin, di ba? yon lang muna, may tawag sa Hospital…
mlq3,
thanks for the input
JM Castro
If you look at the society in China, these concepts of knowing one’s place in the hierarchy is not a new concept. This is very old Confucian doctrine. (Tsinoy ako, I should know…;-) )
In that sense, you are correct that we certainly cannot adapt this to Filipino society.
As I have observed, Filipinos are more independent in the sense that they would like to be able to do what they want without direction from anybody. (this is different from giving the proper respect in case somebody jumps in). Hence, the concept of small scale suits the FIlipino better.
As Tsinoy living in the Philippine setting, we were taught to listen to our parents when we were young, as in their wish is my command type of situation. Of course, as we grew older and this is indoctrinated in our psyche, we tend to also give more deference to other elders and know our place in the hierarchy.
Fortunately or Unfortunately, the next generation is unlike my generation anymore. They are geared more towards the Western way of doing things.
silent,
even those in the corridors of power can only operate on certain assumptions -built on impressions.
i do think the president’s greatest strength is the innate sense of fairness of most people. a lawyer explained it to me best: there is a difference between having advocates pushing your case, say in the senate, and a venue where you, yourself, as the accused, can choose your lawyer who then asks the questions most beneficial to your case. i believed then and still do so, now, that people are still keeping their fingers crossed that the president is not only accorded, but actively makes use of, an impeachment scenario where she can be represented by the finest lawyers money can buy.
which is why i told schumey when we met at the rally that at the very least, i think this thing will drag out until july-october. at that point, public pressure will be such that they won’t be able to use self-innoculation, etc. to defend the president. also, on the other hand, if public pressure wanes or doesn’t escalate, the president will seize the moment and try to ram through constitutional amendments.
if her last gambit fails, going into december, she will truly be a lame duck, and the unpredictable sets in. defections from her camp could happen, as everyone maneuvers to support a candidate for 2010. i do think that the public pressure, even if it flags or fails, will be enough to make it difficult for the president to anoint and support a successor.
either way, it’s a good thing: she will either be impeached, she will be utterly discredited and prevented from succeeding herself, and the experience of 05 onwards will have built up a reform constituency that can start duking it out with the mini-gma’s in the provinces and in national politics.
psychologizing the president’s difficult. cory’s estimation seems the best one. she said, gma is “too pragmatic.” a president’s vast powers are most effective when a certain idealism, both on the part of the leader and the followers, is mobilized. it is what prevents power from being reduced to a transaction. a power base built on cynicism can be formidable, but not triumphant; it’s the reason the president can hold her critics at bay, but makes her unable to reclaim lost ground.
Silent Waters:
I believe that ever since the “Hello Garci” affair and the resignation of the Hyatt 10 (or is it 11?), the GMA administration has been on survival mode. Too many compromises have been made by this administration because there is too little trust in her, and just about the only trust she can get are those she can buy.
Maybe it’s wishful thinking on my part, but if she just held on to the decent people in her cabinet in the past, I think we wouldn’t be in this quandary right now.
MLQ3
Thanks. I needed to hear your input. This is a more sane and logical discussion that some of the things I’ve been seeing so far in this blog.
So do you think then that the reason why people haven’t really pushed for an unconstitutional ouster is because they are hoping that with enough pressure, she will succumb to an impeachment trial ?
Silent Waters (at 10:30am), thanks for explaining the Confucian-orientation of the Chinese. That being said, Confucian doctrine did not prevent the Mainland Chinese from kicking out their Oligarchs. So if those who are supposed to know their place in the hierarchy can do it, i don’t see why we cannot.