An accidental achievement: Independence

  • Featured Article

    This is today's featured story. Please click on the picture to read the article.

    You are invited to join the discussion following the article. Great enrichment is typically found there. It is a place where people meet to validate or oppose the views expressed in the article, share their own knowledge and experience, or bring in additional information and wisdom. It is a respectful place, so please leave mud-caked shoes at the door . . .

  • If You Like It, Share It!

    There is a "share" button at the bottom of each article. It is an easy way to promote healthy discussion without typing a word.

Democracy in the Philippines will be run by power families forever

By JoeAm I ran a little poll on Twitter to get a sense of how those who inhabit the place and follow me, generally well-read people, see the Philippines developing in the future. There were four choices as shown in the results profile to the right. The fourth choice, translated, read “A Chinese Province”. The … Continue reading →

Filed under China, Citizenship/Patriotism, Crime/Corruption, Culture and Arts, Laws and Ethics, Philippine Government

Can Filipinos use a “People’s Initiative” to take government back from the corrupt?

By JoeAm The Problem The Philippines is a corrupt land. It is corrupt in matters of finance and in matters of deed. It is corrupt of values. Legislators plaster their annual budget with lavish funds they can use to gain kickbacks. Local governments hold local construction projects hostage to commissions. Corrupt officials are not fired … Continue reading →

Filed under Citizenship/Patriotism, Laws and Ethics, Philippine Government

US senators speak. Philippine senators and DDS have apoplexy.

By JoeAm A few US senators have been critical of the Philippines for keeping Senator De Lima in jail. They proposed legislation banning from the US those responsible for her jailing. The law may never see the light of day but the reaction in the Philippines offers a striking lesson. It does not take much … Continue reading →

Filed under China, Citizenship/Patriotism, Foreign Affairs and Defense, Laws and Ethics, Philippine Government, USA/Americans

Modern societies are ignoring laws. That leads to raw power.

By JoeAm Have you noticed, laws no longer mean much? They are ignored (EJKs) or trashed (good bye to early prison release) or weaponized (opposition is ‘seditious’ and tax laws are used to silence troublesome journalists). What are laws, really? Laws are contracts between people. They define what is right, what is allowable, what is … Continue reading →

Filed under Crime/Corruption, Laws and Ethics, Philippine Government, Philippine Politics

To solve Manila’s traffic, start with facts and goals, not the well-being of interest groups

By JoeAm The Philippines is a nation run by interest groups, not ideas. So solutions are seldom found. Interest groups get in the way. Well, we need to crack through that barrier with a 10 pound sledge hammer. Here is my solution to Manila traffic, starting with a few facts . . . which are … Continue reading →

Filed under Ecology/Global Warming, Economy, Philippine Government