The Philippines has no shortage of morons. This is evident in the number people who defy logic or facts without using any empirical evidence to support their stand. This is also evident in the number of people who are supposedly free to choose their leader but continually choose instead someone based solely on his pedigree. However, if you believe a claim by a so-called intellectual, there is no shortage of smart Filipinos in our society either.
Last December 2010, I read a news item that reported that “Pisay may surpass schools abroad in advanced math.” Pisay refers to Philippine Science High School (PSHS) and the article claimed that “ Students from the Philippine Science High School (PSHS) come at par — and may even surpass — students from other countries when it comes to algebra, geometry and calculus.”
The article from ABS-CBN News further states the following:
This is according to the 2008 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study-Advanced (TIMSS-Advanced), which revealed that students from PSHS, more popularly known as Pisay, seem to “be able to compete internationally, surpassing students from some countries.”
Dr. Ester Ogena, who wrote a paper on the performance of Philippine science high schools in the 2008 TIMSS-Advanced, said that overall PSHS students got 47% correct in the TIMSS-Advanced examination, higher than the international average of 40%.
They got a score of 52% in algebra, 52% in geometry, and 43% in calculus, going beyond the international averages of 42%, 44% and 37%, respectively.
I don’t doubt for a moment the result of the study that says Pisay students are good with their numbers. After all, the result was based on scores that were taken from examinations. I also don’t doubt our abilities in surpassing students from other countries. Frankly, the above article is hardly news at all if you ask me.
What I would like to know is, since most of the students who graduate from such prestigious schools such as Pisay obviously use their analytical skills in the fields of mathematics, why can’t they use the same skills in dealing with their day-to-day activities? I mean, I really don’t understand what happens to students who did very well at school. What happens after graduation? Where have all the smart people gone?
Did all the smart Filipinos join the corporate world and lose themselves in the system? Or have they all left for abroad where what they have to offer is better appreciated? Or even worse, are they still here in the country but are just dumbing themselves down just to fit-in with the rest of the average anti-intellectual Filipinos? I do believe that even though “brain drain” is part of the reason behind the reduced number of intellectuals in the country, there are also many more Filipinos who are still in the country but are just trying to fit in or trying to stay under the radar just to avoid being ostracized by the moronic horde.
It is not hard to imagine how smart Filipinos can feel alienated in our society. The sheer number of morons can actually make intellectuals feel bullied into thinking that there is something wrong with them. Smart people who can potentially solve the problems of our society tend to shy away from voicing their opinions and simply blend in with the rest. Sadly, they can actually use their training and expertise in dealing with some of the most important life-changing decisions in their lives and the lives of millions of people if only regular folks allow them.
The biggest problem with our society is that young people are taught what to think, but not how to think.
From a young age, we are told not to question authority, with an emphasis on giving deference to our elders. Young kids are to be seen but not heard. This was evident in the last election when some young adults who did not see the relevance of “People Power” anymore were voicing their disgust at how some Filipinos are still beholden to the Aquino family.
But these young Filipino adults were quickly silenced by threats from the family elders even short of being banished from the family tree. Scared of being ostracized, young Filipino adults have no choice but to follow what their elders say, never mind if what the elders say defies what they had learned at school. This is because smart people somehow know that it is impossible to defeat an ignorant man in an argument. Someone once said that one moron can ask more questions than ten wise men can answer and that ignorant people rely on insults instead of facts.
I personally think that young Filipino adults are the key to the Philippines’ future. Young adults have fresh ideas and fresh perspectives. Adults should listen to them more often because they can see what grown ups cannot see because of their relative lack of prejudices or biases. Fresh out of school, young Filipino adults still know by heart the theories and skills from their school lessons. Young adults can tell the Emperor that he has no clothes on.
I also think that the older generations of Filipinos have lost their credibility when it comes to running the country. They have had their turn and they just used their time to run the country aground. The older generation of Filipinos who have lost credibility includes grown up members of our own family who are not open minded (or those who supported PNoy), old people in the community (who supported PNoy) and most especially, old people still serving as public servants. If they have been in their posts for the last 10 years but have not done anything significant, they need to go.
As a writer, I have personally experienced being bullied so many times for writing about the obvious dysfunction of our society. A lot of people mistakenly think that the reason why I write articles critical of President Noynoy Aquino (PNoy) is because I hate him. Nothing can be further from the truth. I don’t want PNoy to fail. I want him to change. But I doubt very much if PNoy can change because I have been told that even though beauty fades, dumb is forever.
Once PNoy starts recognizing the areas where he needs to improve, he can deliver on his promise to uplift the lives of millions of Filipinos who still live in poverty despite his ascension to power as the “non-thief.” Unfortunately, Filipinos who are still beholden to the Aquino legacy are still of the belief that PNoy will eventually deliver on his promise. PNoy is not even visibly concerned about what is going on in the flooded areas of Sulu province at the moment. As usual, he is probably wishing the problems would just go down the drain. One thing that PNoy’s supporters can’t seem to get a grip of is that, faith is a poor substitute for logic and reason.
During the election campaign, I used to get angry with Filipinos who shamelessly pander to other people’s weakness; those who created all the magic behind PNoy. These days I’m angrier with the Filipinos who fall for their nonsense.
All the talk about morons lead me to one conclusion. The moronic horde won the election because of their sheer numbers. It had nothing to do with them being right. All the mathematical skills we acquired in school should have taught us that we can defeat bullies when we increase the tribe of the smart people or the intellectuals. I now realize that there is strength in numbers.
At the moment, there is something amazing happening in the relatively small community of Filipinos who meet in cyberspace. These people are currently communicating and venting their frustration over the Philippine government and the current administration under PNoy. They band together because they are looking for an alternative answer to the present system.
What is remarkable is that, this small Filipino community on the Net can communicate effectively using the English language. It doesn’t matter if one is from Cebu or one is from Davao, they can understand each other because they all know how to write English properly. The most important ingredient for success is being able to communicate effectively.
Alas, the solution to our country’s dysfunction might just be as simple as having an effective communication tool. The beauty of communicating via the Net is that people can be less conscious of the status symbols that can distract people from bringing their message across when they deal with each other in person. The Net can actually unite us when we discard any of the inhibitions that gets in the way of our being one people.
I hope you can join the conversation with this growing community at the Get Real Philippines Community and the GRP Network. Please bear in mind that smart people or intellectuals need to lead the country. The morons haven’t got a clue about what they are doing. Smart people or intellectuals need to take over. Good luck is the result of good planning.
Get Real Philippines 
However, there are also some members of the moronic horde THAT (purposefully avoided using who), surprisingly, know how to use the net. They have followed suit with the intellectual Filipinos, ensuring none escapes their Talangka System. If the battleground is going to be cyberspace, I believe we should be wary about these so-called “Internet Tough Guys” declaring war against the world behind the safety of their keyboards
They come here quite often but no one buys their fiction 😉
Math is exclusively, a left-brain activity. True intelligence, however, uses both sides of the brain.
The left brain , which is the mathematical side, is logical. That means everything is Black or White. It is the right brain, which is the creative side, that is necessary to differentiate between shades of grey.
well, as much as there is rationality in everything, there is also creativity. It is possible to compensate the left side with things of value, money being the most evident. But money means nothing to those who have a spring of ideas, though said ideas can be bought. Much like strange ass innovations like facebook, or skype, there is no real monetary value to ideas like that. But only to serve as something that causes some form of chaos to the order of the world that exists now.
I say too much of everything can be bad. Moderation is key. Spending too much time on social networking sites for example, can really skew your view of reality.
What I meant to say really is that there are things that are labored from creativity that don’t have a monetary value to it. Real intelligence is rewarded not by money, but by the expression of powerful ideas. World changing ones.
@Baron
What you are trying to say is: unless the students at Pisay use both sides of their brain, they’ve got nothing to brag about. 😉
There is a machine; that is an Indicator; if, you are using your Right Brain or Left Brain. Advanced Fighter Pilots have mini-computers on their Helmets; that points, where their
Guided Missiles go….right on target…some sort of: look, fire and hit…
Advanced Computer innovations have Computers, that work from your mind…you think…and the computer follows your command…they are researching to unlock:our Subconcious Minds…Subliminal messages are already used by companies to suggest subconciously to buy their products…we are turning to some sort of robots… CyberBorgs can become a possibility. Computers implanted inside your Human Brain, to make you perform like a computer….Like Data in the Star Trek TV series…
Pingback: The Net community: unleashing the Filipino's intellectual potential | Pnoy Talks
We have a lot of intelligent Filipinos here. Most Filipinos working in the call center industry is a good example of such. We have no shortage of smart people actually.
But, smart people tend to shut their mouth when it comes to other areas, such as politics. I really hate it when smart people just tend to “go-with-the-flow”.
It’s the pakikisama mentality at work. There are only a few people in the world who can have their own conviction. The rest follow their lead.
The intellects in this country know when to shut up. If they don’t, the oligarchs kill them for trying to change the status quo. Simple as that. It’s not a matter of who’s stupid or smart. It’s really about who is courageous as opposed to the cowards…and then of course, what Salonga said previously, “action action action.” Reason why things have not really changed after 25 years of People Power is because we have turned into a bunch of cowards, afraid of that powerful oligarch who might just kill us for trying to change things for the better.
I guess knowing when to keep your mouth shut just to stay alive is being smart as well. Which is why some of us prefer to be more vocal online.
But you know, I strongly believe that the mainstream media and the communication team of Malacanang are closely monitoring what the bloggers are saying. This is why I am encouraging more people to be more vocal. If we increase our numbers, they will call us the “noisy majority” and maybe, just maybe, they will listen to us.
Where have all the Philippine Science High School graduates gone?….most of them went as OFWs…where their talents and intellectual abilities are well compensated, in other countries…
The Aquino Regime era, put MEDIOCRITY on the forefront….It made the people glorify the:Wowoowee Mentality…It is because, they are mediocre people. No hope for Noynoy Aquino to deliver us from these problems. He simply lack the: (1) intellectual caliber. (2) leadership caliber. (3) management caliber. So, on with our Wowoowee Mentality…Giling-Giling…Igiling Mo, Baby!!!
Thanks Miss Ilda. This article sure gives us hope. Perhaps PNOYs administration can be a good thing, in that it will rally the intellectuals together. Just as EDSA1 rallied businessmen with vested interests together. 😀
OH yeah…and Happy Bday P-NOY. It seem you have your bday gift as early as 9:00 am…In the form of a dead General Angelo Reyes. Youre media machinery is quite amazing that it can actually kill people.
All hail the president, All hail the Judicial Media.
nagsasaya na ang mga k*mag. Para bang mawawala na yung mga corrupt dahil sa nangyari. One less dirtbag daw.
No problem Kickapoo. That is really what I would like to happen. I hope more people will be encouraged to speak out online. It is a good way to start being brave. It’s like practicing so that when you actually get into a discussion with a bunch of morons in person, you will instantly know what to say to them.
Btw, as your article describes – I am one of those science-high-school-then-UP-grads who moved on to other countries because not being born with a silver spoon, I figured I can’t give to charity when I’m a charity case myself. I have managed to uplift my financial status to being self-supporting thanks to other countries who appreciated my brains much. I feel guilty being part of the brain drain of this country and I would really like to help the Philippines but I figured I can best do it from outside where I get my resources to help.
I sympathize with you Ilda, I’ve been called anti-nationalist for voicing my qualms on corruption, on inefficiency, and on everything else about this government and the too-happy and complacent Filipinos. When I heard about the election results wherein NoyNoy was first and ERAP (seriously!?! him!!?!) came in second I lost 99% of my remaining hope for this country. I feel its such an insult to us as a people to be voting moronic people into power. We had our chance with Gibo and Gordon but we messed up once again.
When I see our SEA neighbors doing better than us I feel depressed. Why can they and not us!? I often go to Malaysia and can’t help but compare it to our country. We must be something like 10 yrs behind Malaysia, 30 yrs. behind Singapore. Its just sad. just sad. They can and we can’t. Just having come from Japan even made it all the more depressing. They’re so 50 yrs. ahead of us!
All I can do now is hope that in my lifetime we will see a leader like Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew rise into power and turn this country upside down.
parang meron po yata nung tinutukoy ninyo last election. Natalo nga lang.
Filipinos are so afraid of a repeat of an authoritarian regime because leaders under this kind of regime always ignore the calls of the people. However, what PNoy’s supporters don’t realise is, PNoy is very good at ignoring criticisms as well and he does this by playing the victim card. His supporters feel sorry for him because he’s got this angelic image but in effect, they are letting him get away with a lot of things.
Critical thinking is taken to the back seat when parents become authoritative. Such parenting model discounts the ability of children to discern right from wrong even at a young age.
The most poignant in the daily operation of a common Filipino family unit is the dependence on the mother or in her absence, the eldest female child or a helper; Discounting the valuable lesson of shared responsibility. It is no wonder that a lot end up as free loaders and would rather have it easy at expense of another.
A sense of responsibility and critical thinking are taken away at an early stage due to our dysfunctional culture.
That’s so true. I think the best way for young people to appreciate what the mothers are doing is to let them help with the chores. That’s the only way they’ll know what the mom go through. This can also apply to the fathers who most often than not can be found drinking alcohol with their buddies and yet still feel so tired to help.
@Ms. Mike Portes
I have read a bit on parenting styles. I think you refer to authoritarian styles. With what I read, authoritative means being strict and yet let the kid explain why he/she did that. Also explain the reason why he/she was scolded.
Authoritarian’s mantra is “basta” more or less.
With what you say about the eldest being the one responsible. Sigh… I have to be responsible for my younger brother to an extreme at times. I love my bro enuf to tell him that you should learn to think on your own and ask me for help when you really don’t know. That’s better right? Than spoonfeeding life’s lessons.
“The biggest problem with our society is that young people are taught what to think, but not how to think.”
============================
I remember that my whole family was amazed that I didn’t jump on the Noynoy bandwagon last year. I could tell he had no clothes and that there were no rational reasons to support him. I remember how they were in disbelief. When I voiced out my reasons on why I found it so silly to go for a guy with no credentials and post-it small resume they charged me with going against their right to voice opinions. B) One of my older relatives told me off along the lines of “Teenager ka lang eh; Si Noynoy dapat ang iboto mo; Out of respect for dead Tita Cory etc. ” I convinced my fellow teenage friends not to vote for him. Akala pa nila para sa “teenagers generation lang” sina Gibo at Gordon. :))
I also remember telling one of my high school teachers that the CBCP was wasting its time focusing so much on “abortion” when fighting the RH Bill to the point na nawawala na sila sa debate since it was a classic strawman’s argument. Sabi pa ng teacher ko (Don’t worry hes a nice, intelligent guy) “ganun ang pag – isip ko dahil bata pa ako”. He told me that the people who were passing the RH Bill were doing it because of the rising number of non whites in Europe or something like that and some oligarchy was promoting it to curb rising immigrants from 3rd world nations.
“What to think and not how to think” I like that. 🙂
Keep up the fighting spirit! We need more people like you. 🙂
“But these young Filipino adults were quickly silenced by threats from the family elders even short of being banished from the family tree.”
This really hit the nail on the head for me. I’m not really close to getting banished but I feel like everything I say that is slightly even contrary to their beliefs, they get offended. So I am verbally abused and who really wants to endure that from anyone especially your parents? I know I’m in a sad sad situation. Part of me doesn’t want to blame them, that it is all up to me. I just have to have the courage to really stand on my own. But not yet, right now.
Which is why I thank AP and GRP because there are actually people who have similar thoughts such as mine.
Unfortunately, part of the inspiration in writing this article is because some of my so-called family and friends are now giving me lukewarm reception due to my views. 😦 But it is not the end of the world for me. I can easily write people off. It is easier nowadays with just a click of a button. 🙂
Frankly, it is easier to function in this world without all the baggage that comes with a large network of family and friends.
Nowadays I get more validation from people I hardly know but who share my views. It’s great! I can only hope that I actually give courage to others who are in a similar situation.
im also have the same situation back then.
i really dont know why my mother and my big brother voted for noynoy
she said that her basis for voting him is being a lesser evil
*sigh* so im already telling her not to vote that guy because he dosen’t have a past and substantial achievement for our country.
her response? “ano ang napatunayan mo?” “popular sya eh” “mas mabuti pang bobo ang presidente kesa sa matalino pero corrupt naman” and other non-substantial views
well im scolded for this, because they think that im forcing them not to vote for noynoy.
maybe this is the price for reading too much articles on anti-pinoy….and im not regretting it.
im glad this kind of blog who looks at our country in a critical perspective exists.
@Ilda: What a way to start the day. First, I like this article you wrote. Permit me to quote below:
“From a young age, we are told not to question authority, with an emphasis on giving deference to our elders. Young kids are to be seen but not heard. This was evident in the last election when some young adults who did not see the relevance of “People Power” anymore were voicing their disgust at how some Filipinos are still beholden to the Aquino family.” –Ilda
Some norms or customs do not have logic as bases. Just because a mind speaking comes from a child, the elders can easily rebuff them off. What a pity. Wisdom has nothing to do with age. An elder person can be an elderly and at the same time, have a mental level that befits an ungrown-up person. Meanwhile, a child can be, well, a child for his age, but his mind can pass for a mentally-mature individual.
And I’m not just speaking about prodigy. There are two kinds of intellectuals, like you said. One who maintains awareness of what is happening around them, and yet, choose to remain silent because they are coward.
Second, these are, may I say, the endangered species because either they are on a brink of being swallowed by the system or they are forced to leave the country and may keep mum about the situation back in the Philippines and which we hope, I hope, will not happen to them because we need them.
Then again, there are the small crowd of people you mentioned with links to their sites, thanks on that by the way, which are frustrated but provides a platform to air their grievances about the present social issues. I’d like to categorize them as the third type of intellectuals.
I agree that intellectuals should run the country. How do we start that? Our Constitution stipulates eligibility requirements that are well, very insulting, shocking even. Look at the qualifications of each ranking position, from the bottom to top. Is there anything that says about intellectuality or intelligence? Hardly. So what’s the solution? I believe we need to amend some parts of the sacred constitution.
The society is changing. And to keep abreast of the changes that are inevitable, we need to change our system as well. The changes call for more enhanced solutions, but how can they be solved if the constitution does not permit them?
The changes are rapidly happening and the conventional solutions have become obsolete. Some parts of the Constitution have become obsolete as well because they lose the ability/capacity/validity to address present and imminent issues in our society.
And yeah, I really hate it that the whole nation has to commemorate Edsa I. I keep on asking myself about this since I was in the university. By then, I didn’t see the reason for that because the revolution happened at a time when my mind was still occupied with toys and fairy tales and becoming either a lawyer or a visual artist However, even after digging the archives at History, I still fail to see their validity because Cory was partly a failure as a head of state.
Edsa I seems a contradictory because the luisita hacienda has been a source of controversies, even death.
How could they almost venerate Cory when she herself resulted to thousands of lives wasted.
It only happens in the Philippines. Customs need to be changed as well. I don’t believe that every country should preserve their culture, if the customs that underlie them are rotten already.
Thanks K.izmet
Well said. I don’t need to add anything more 😉
sadly, one of the fault of “intellectuals” is they left our country, and expect when they comeback, things will be better.
how come things be better when the best and brightest left the country and let the dumb people manage it?
how can we break the cycle of ignorance, when whats left to educate the youth are ignorant themselves?
how can we break the grip of monopoly and oligarchs in our country, when whats left to battle them are only few “intellectuals” who does not have enough numbers to sustain such battle?
battles are won on the battlefield, not on the drawing boards….
off topic; maybe Pnoy is dumb, but i cannot say the same to his handler, propagandist/backers, they manage to beat the crap of what you people says “intellectuals” last election. it only goes to say either those “intellectuals” are not as smart as what you think or they are dumber than “Pnoy” machinery….
You keep forgetting PNoy was backed by his family’s money and supported by the the mainstream media owned and operated by people who are loyal to the Aquino legacy. Even Manny Villar’s money was no match to that. How can you compete with a candidate who spread their subliminal messages using newspapers and television? We were no match to that.
The LP used their resources in badmouthing all the other candidates while uplifting PNoy’s profile. Ano ka ba? Parang ang bilis mo makalimot! Nanalo nga sila pero it’s only a matter of time before people realise that they have been duped. I hope it doesn’t happen but the signs all lead to that direction.
Try reading the article again. I also did say they won by sheer numbers. Konti lang ang nag-iisip pano ka mananalo?
Roman Empire did fall, America despite being a Superpower, lost to a rag tag army of ho chi min… trillanes won a seat in senate despite the fact he is in prison and have little money…
if we cant find a way to beat their machinery, then it proves we are not smarter than them…
what happen in the last election shows that money(villar) alone cant beat them, intellectual superiority(gibo) alone cant beat them, popularity(erap) alone cant beat them.. even technology(blogs and internet) cant beat them….(remember the swarms of yellow army in blogs/fb)
how do we beat them? honestly, i don’t know, im dumber than their propaganda machine(for now) =(
but i cannot accept the reason that only few pinoys are thinking, for a simply reason that if majority pinoys are not thinking, then it is much easier to manipulate them, but how come this oligarchs continue to hold much grip upon them. its either those person capable to surpass their wits and guts had given up in our country, and currently sitting comfortably in a foreign soil or they are working for them for continuous exploitation of the filipino people….
There will always be stupid people all around. Not just here, it’s just stupidity is so rampant that even the government isn’t an aristocracy anymore, it’s an idiocracy, pure tomfoolery in the seat to rule the country. Scum, all of them are scum and that goes to indolent buffoons who feel that it’s in their right to live in a titled land illegally.
Mr Killem
The battle is not over. They just won this round. As long as we are alive, we have to soldier on.
Of course Villar’s money wasn’t enough. We are talking about the Cojuangcos who have influence on the media and whose family is very much revered in Philippine society because of “People Power”. Meanwhile, Villar is just new to the game and have been branded as a thief already.
Why do you sound like you are blaming us for PNoy’s win? There is only so much we can do. People get killed in the Philippines for being too vocal just in case you forget. Blame people who do not use their head and are too apathetic.
I didn’t realise that you are not capable of seeing the big picture. I already said in my article that part of the reason why some were not able to vote for who they wanted to was because of the threats from their own family. I’m not excusing their move, I’m just saying that not everyone can be as courageous as other people.
Which is why, as mentioned in my blog, we need to save the Filipinos who are in danger of being influenced with the wrong kind of mentality by their own family:
Whose side are you on anyway? If you are not for PNoy’s, then I don’t know why you keep making statements that are pointless.
i have loser mentality now, im just asking the question “how” and exposing some often ignore substantial part of the problem…
how can you have a solution when you dont know what problem you are solving?
did not expect the “nega & loser menatality” comment from a self-proclaimed realist…
nwei, i think i proved my point with my comments…. on final note from the art of war “never underestimate your enemy”…
@Killem
You are not making any sense. You’ve been reading AntiPinoy for ages. You should know already what the problem is and how to solve it. You are just being disagreeable.
As I said, there is only so much we can go. You expect so much from us.
Don’t let the door hit you on your way out.
@Ilda: Talaga? Killem is one of your avid readers pala. Ang galing mo talaga!
@ Killem: I a.m a self-proclaimed fan of Ilda. Beat that! And I have only known about this site since her post before this, which by the way was about P-Noy being named as the Filipino of the year by PDI and which FYI is in line with the them of the site. And reading only 1 (count this the 3rd) of her articles already convinced me that I belong to this group because I can see the rotten system we have, the officials running the admin based not on their qualifications.
Anyway, the problem is very obvious around you. Just take a look around. And if you cannot see what is rotten, it must be because you are one of them. 🙂
Erratu
FYI is in line with the THEME of the site.
Erratum:
FYI is in line with the THEME of the site.
Damn this keyboard. 🙂
@ Killem:
I agree we should not underestimate the enemy, hence, the existence and essence of this site! One of the objectives of sites like this is to promote awareness because millions of people choose to remain in oblivion when the problem is right before their faces already.
The AntiPinoy could use a lift with people who are willing to open their eyes to the reality. Maybe you need to get out of your comfort zone. If you have been up high then the rotten view should have been clearer. Nevertheless, if it isn’t, perhaps, it would help if you take a few steps down and see reality up close and personal. 🙂
@Killem
They made it a battle of resources. You talk about a battlefield, how about picking your battles where certain resources matter more? Any genius becomes a regular person in most situations will bow down when it comes to the scheme of raw resources, as opposed to intellect. And certainly nobody said this battle will be quick and decisive.
the battle is lost already as far as 2010 election.. the next front will be 2013, a test case for 2016…
we could whine on various excuses, but does not change the fact that their machinery beat the crap of its opposition on all fronts….
with regards to methods of teaching…. who’s fault is that? we lost most of the best and most qualified educators, who is in the position to answer the “how question”, and not merely the “what question”..
I think you should take your loser mentality and bring it somewhere else killem.
We take the trouble of coming up with articles to encourage more people to continue the fight but here you are trying to spread your negativity. If you want to help “win” then try not to be annoying. The people who left the country can help with the knowledge they learn from overseas. There are still millions of Filipinos who don’t even care about what is happening around them. They only care about the mall, telenovelas and Facebook. They don’t even understand how to solve the problem and they don’t even want to try to understand it. Blame them instead.
While you are at it, blame the parents from the elite members of society who have all the time to teach their kids the right thing but somehow still fail to bring up people with a conscience.
@Killem:
Why are you so nega on the situation today? Look beyond, there’s a silver lining behind the dark clouds.
People like you are not helping because first, you choose not to make a stand. Instead, you see the problem, not the solution.
An old saying says a quitter never wins, likewise, a winner never quits. As long as there is breath, there should be hope. Hope is a backbone of a good future, of a bright life.
Second, you are emitting bad energy among us, people. If you don’t want to make a stand. At least be generous enough not to make the nation a difficult place to live than it already is.
The only problem once people realized they’ve been duped is that it is in our Filipino nature to repeat the mistakes of the past. We are doomed to repeat our own folly. I wouldn’t be surprised if another oligarch or person with vested interests wins the next election. I would like to thank the AP community and other such groups of intellectuals who have banded together for the sake of true and effective change for our country. Keep moving forward.
Thanks concerned_citizen!
It’s not just stupidity. Marcos-era Philippines was described as a country of 40 million cowards and one son of a b!tch. Today, it’s a country of 90 million cowards and one idiot controlled by sons of b!tches.
Count me out of the cowards.
The problem nowadays is that the brave ones come out only in trickles. This small volume is manageable for the sons of b!tches: they can be silenced, ridiculed or killed with relative ease. What is needed is for about a million brave ones to come out all at once. Maybe 90% of them would still be dispatched, but the remaining 10% will be victorious.
“But these young Filipino adults were quickly silenced by threats from the family elders even short of being banished from the family tree. Scared of being ostracized, young Filipino adults have no choice but to follow what their elders say, never mind if what the elders say defies what they had learned at school.”
who are these young people? r u talking about a specific group?
as a young filipino, i’ve never been held back from speaking my mind (except ironically on this site! but its ok, after being called bad names i have learned to accept my lot in life.
@ Hey there. You’re back.
Of course, as a young Filipino, you’ve never been held back from speaking your mind, except ironically, if you start to deviate from the norms you’re accustomed to. The reason why you’re not held back from remarking must be because everyone there seems to have uniformity 😉
Yes. I am talking about a specific group. A group of young Filipinos. Just scroll up and kindly read the comments above from some of them who said that my statement is true.
Just because you were never held back, it does not mean that others had the same experience.
Thank rationale and logic that no one in my family ever thought of voting Aquino.
My mother wanted Villar to win – his business expertise and experience could’ve been put to good use.
My brothers and sisters were split between Villar, Gibo and Gordon. Gibo, for the sake of continuity of projects that have been started, being of the same party, and his intelligence and credentials. Gordon, for his track record, achievements and his strict way of running things.
We never thought of Aquino as a good president. Now we are all saying the same thing: “Ano ba yan Aquino na yan, buti pa si XXX, I bet he would’ve stepped in and handled the situation properly.” Respect for Mrs. Cory Aquino? We all know how she ran the country – we were not blinded by Yellow and L(Laban? Looked more like a LOSER sign to me) hand signs everyone else was doing.
Thank goodness we were not raised in a regular Filipino fashion, owing a lot to my late Brit father. We were never taught what to think, only how to think, and debates and discussions over differing opinions were never turned into threats or personal attack. We’re not afraid of speaking our minds or disagreeing with someone else.
Funny thing is the in-laws of my married siblings have trouble adjusting to how we think and do things – goes to show how different the average Filipino is brought up.
@Birdigator:
I was once an advocate of Gordon. Then, when G1bo decided to run, I opted for him. Now, me thinks that Gordon’s equipment is more complete. 😉
Still, should G1bo run for a seat in the senate, there would be an advantage for the nation, after all, he’s an intellectual.
Good on you Birdigator. You are lucky indeed to have been exposed to that kind of environment. I guess it had to take someone from another culture to introduce the style that breeds independent thinkers in your family.
Nice post, and I do agree that the youth are key the future of the Philippines and there is really a need to make people more aware that they can express their views in the internet and discuss the problems in this country there. But the biggest problem lies with this: does EVERYONE have an internet connection? And even if everyone can access the internet, are they REALLY willing to go to places that allow them to express themselves and engage in intellectual discussion?
Take note that not everyone has the power of the internet. Most of the internet users of the Philippines are probably restricted to major cities and some rural areas. And even in those areas there are still those who do not have access to the internet (and some don’t even have the money to go to an internet shop just to discuss stuff or play DotA lol). Not to mention people have their own reasons to lurk the net and it’s probably not to discuss problems, probably tatambay lang sila sa facebook, maglalaro ng farmville or something similar. And I do think a lot of netizens here in the Philippines just use the internet for that purpose.
It is good that you said that the Net can unite us and can enable us to express ourselves without the fear of being discriminated IRL, however unless we can find ways to nudge people to go to the net and join the discussion or air their own thought about issues, and subsequently open their minds and transform them into intellectuals, then we’ll just end up staying stuck in the prehistoric ages.
Actually the problem here is not “what the solution is”, but rather “how to implement the solution”.
@ Elysia Silvermoon:
Raising awareness across the country precedes knowing how to implement the solution. If you could visit those sites mentioned by Ilda, you could have access to discussions of alternative solutions. How is a solution implemented if not everyone is cognizant of the problem?
Equipping oneself with knowledge and wisdom is a good start and if all else does have these already, then actions on their part become inherent. 🙂
Hi Elysia,
Thank you for taking the time to read my article. Yes, I realise that not everyone has access to the internet. I am actually addressing this to those who have access to the internet. Most of them would be educated and should be able to understand what I am trying to say. Instead of just spending their time on social networking sites looking at other people’s photos or whatever trivial stuff the whole day, they should at least devote some of it to joining the discussions about the state of the nation in forums like AP’s.
The process of enlightening is long but we have to start somewhere.
This article hits the nail on the target perfectly. I still don’t get it. Why can’t many brilliant students assimilate their problem-solving skills into daily life, especially governance. Even Plato insisted on the study of geometry for aspiring Philosopher-kings (although I think that stems from his admiration for Euclid, but that is on the side) probably because geometry not only involves logical movement from one proposition to another, but also a translation of the real to the ideal. The latter is very important in attributing many of our perennial maladies like poverty, crime, indifference, and incompetence into the RIGHT causes. Okay, no triangle has two right angles, not because your friend told you so, or because of the obtrusive will of God, but because (let me DIGRESS a bit into a mathematical cloud):
***
Suppose this is proven true already: From a given point P not on a line L, there can only be one line passing through P that is perpendicular to L. (Draw a line on a piece of paper and label it as L. Plot a point P outside. Then only one line through P is perpendicular to L.)
Why can’t a triangle have two right angles? Because. Suppose a triangle ABC has two right angles (say B and C). Therefore there are two lines perpendicular to line BC passing through A, which is impossible (because of the last proposition). Ergo, a triangle can’t have two right angles. Q.E.D.
Anyway. Side note: Expository subjects on mathematical methods of proof, sadly, are taught only to serious Math students and Math majors. Huhuhuhuhu. =(
***
I once tried this mischievous experiment upon some of my classmates. It’s in the form of a dialogue. (For a while, ignore my bombastic heartaches and my uninterruptible fury.)
Percy: Sana lamunin ng apoy ang kalyeng iyon! Sana sumalpok ang kotse niya sa tren, %&^^*&*(*! Sana bagsakan siya ng malaking bato mula sa mga ulap!
K: Ang bad mo. Bakit ganyan ang iniisip mo?
Percy: Ah basta. Ah eto na lang. Sana mabasag ang bintana ng bahay niya. Porket mayaman siya gaganunin na niya ako?
K: Ang bad mo talaga. Sama-sama mo. Lagi kang nagwiwish ng masama.
Percy: Anyway. Kunwari nabasag nga ang bintana niya. Kasalanan ko ba?
K: Oo.
Percy: Bakit naman?
K: Kasi nagwish ka e.
Percy: OF COURSE NOT! WAHAHAHA! Heto ang dahilan kung bakit nawawasak ang isang babasaging bintana: http://www.physorg.com/news7864.html Parang kung nagwish ako na tamaan siya ng kidlat. Hindi siya tatamaan dahil sa wish ko. It’s because of a sufficiently strong electrical polarity formed between the origin and the target. Yo!
***
Maybe a serious Filipino problem is that they could not attribute the right causes to the effects. Thanks to all the superstitions inherited from our forebears, our idea of cause and effect is muddled. It’s supposed to be something learned from Science classes. Your business goes bankrupt because you saw a black cat in front of you. This prevents you from pinpointing the REAL causes of your being bankrupt in business.
***
“Please bear in mind that smart people or intellectuals need to lead the country. The morons haven’t got a clue about what they are doing. Smart people or intellectuals need to take over.”
This is a curious relic from Plato. Plato insists that those who are fittest to govern, but do not want to, ought to be PENALIZED (but only a bit) because their non-involvement is ruining the nation. I won’t advocate something like it, but that reason still holds true today. The unintelligent get more air-time than the intelligent. And irrational happiness hampers rational happiness, and gives the venomous impression that irrationality is pleasurable.
***
Anyway, ilda. For further reading:
“A System of Logic” by J. S. Mill. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_System_of_Logic – A lucid introduction to inductive reasoning by the great master John Stuart Mill.
“Funes the Memorious” by Jorge Luis Borges. One of his great short stories. What happens to a teenager who never forgets EVERYTHING he sees? Find out here: http://evans-experientialism.freewebspace.com/borges.htm
“The Turning Point of My Life” by Mark Twain. An outrageous exaggeration of the laws of causality, as well as snippets from Mark Twain’s life. http://www.classicliterature.net/mark-twain/the-turning_point-of-my-life
***
P.S. “Don’t let the door hit you on your way out.” Naunahan ako! Just kidding! Anyway. I once read (I forgot from whom) that a good book is something you wish you have written yourself. =)
@Cy: I’m sorry I can’t decipher your identity too. Judging from your comment, I inferred you were Percy, short for Percival and other names.
Though I may not have a consistent motif in commenting, there is a pattern in my sentence structure that can unravel my identity. But I don’t want that to happen because I prefer my confidentiality to be upheld, thus, the kizmet. 🙂 and thus, my attempt to use words and sentences in different structures.
@kizmet
Hay naku. It’s easy to know who I am because of my placeholder at the end.
Peace.
@ Cy:
Forgive me, but I am just new to the site, so I am still learning something about the commenters here. 🙂 But thanks for the heads up.
The abolition of dangerous thought…
Während der Abschaffung des Denkens.
Chau Chat – X.Y. OP.39
Pingback: Rioting in London: How it could happen in the Philippines | Get Real Post
Hey! where’d my comment just go?