Who’s YOUR Daddy? Haha!
Analysis and Opinion
By Joe America
We all see that dynasts run the Philippines, or friends of dynasts like that Bong Go fellow. A dynasty is more than the immediate family. It’s all the followers, like DDS, who took pride in promoting a murderer as good for the nation. And it is a sequencing of power at the top, to keep power in line and momentum going.
Marcos dynasty. Arroyo dynasty. Aquino dynasty. Cayetano dynasty. Binay dynasty. Robredo dynasty.
Huh?
Power at the top, loyalists as the base. Extend the power and momentum. Well, Leni, bless her heart and mind, has laid down rules that say effectively “my immediate family will not prosper because of my success in service.”
But Leni has a following. It is a group power dynamic not unlike DDS but with a whole different value set. LP used to have a following until Duterte revealed the top tier to be butterfly politicians moving on to the next flower with pork in the pistils. LP power died with the Roxas election loss. We can imagine Leni designating someone responsible to carry on with the power she emotes..
So who is your power Daddy? Who inspires you? Most of my readers are pink, yellow, or cerebral, with Knowledge as their Daddy. There are a few leftists, I suppose. I’m not aware of any serious Marcos followers here or on social media, just occasional trolls. And there are few young people. They seem to follow the Daddy of abject apathy and unread judgment.
Who’s your Daddy, really?
Mine is the god of Freedom which permits me to think, divorce, move around, eat all kinds of foods, write different than most, and otherwise remain unconstrained by the artifices of human collectives. Or maybe Liberal Dogma is another Daddy, because I’m totally woke and opposed to about everything Trump does. I love DEI and despise petulant white men. But I’m not opposed to everything Marcos does. Amusing, that.
A long-time on-line friend, Leila de Lima’s brother actually, said my blog is “The Society of Irony”. Hilarious,.
Who’s your Daddy?
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Cover photo generated by Word Press image generator using the article as its promp.
The Society of Honor by Joe America 
Haha. Good one!
I first came here under Gloria’s term, and witnessed from my hotel tv the row in congress over her validity culminate in a fist fight with opposing members. By my third visit, which solidified my decision to move she was still in power with Roxas supposedly on the way. But he suddenly gave in to Aquino (people I met gave me different reason for that), and I still had high hopes for the country. Then I watched what followed and came to see that what is about to happen in America (maybe it already has) happening here and followed the madness up to this point with the return of a Marcos. What’s next for both countries depends largely, I think, on what turn America takes going forward. But so far it’s better to be here now than back in the U.S. where who knows what will unfold next.
Yeah, but who’s your Daddy, Stephen? My guess “Beer and Chilling Out”, 🤣😂🤣🍻🍻🍻
ps, the Philippines is sane, Marcos is not a disaster, and it’s an oasis here compared to chaos America.
I hope Trump succeeds in convincing hopefuls from countries like the Philippines that the US is no oasis. We’re too crowded here. Some National Parks require you to make an appointment months in advance because of the crowds that try to get in. My neighbor is from Colombia. They are renting a small (1,000 sqft) home for $4K/ month. At last count, we have 13 cars connected to that one house! They hardly speak English. They deal with their landlord using translators on their phone. Maybe they should go to the Philippines instead of here in USA.
I don’t know who my daddy is…I am big on things like virtue and learning or knowledge. Probably because I am lacking in both. 🙂 Like even here in the US, I am not registered for either of the 2 parties. I look at the candidates. I’ve even said that if Liz Cheney were to run, I might even vote for her, even if I don’t care for what the Republican Party now stands for, i.e. Party above country.
speaking of parks, the united states of america used to have the smallest park in the world and even have the guinness world of record to show for it.
though the japanese did one better and beat the americans in their own game, having wrestled the guiness book of record from them. the japanese’s pocket park is this year’s smallest.
https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2022/3/worlds-smallest-park-in-portland-usa-ready-for-st-patricks-day-695623
the japanese pocket park, would be nice to have a selfie taken while sitting on the lone bench. something to brag home about.
we should have smaller parks in philippines too, something to confused tourists with. the way we are building high rises and reclaiming lands, we may well end up having small parks too.
heto pic of japanese pocket park that I forgot to link above.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-14489625/Worlds-smallest-park-japan-nagaizumi-town.html
It seems there is a new park on top of Mall of Asia now. Is that true? In the Philippines, nearly everything that works properly is privatized. Luneta seems nice but unruly, seen from afar. Especially during New Year’s Eve.
mall of asia has rooftop amusement and park. I rarely go to mall of asia now, made me feel like a lilliput, inconsequential and out of place. I still like luneta though, poor people go there to meet and greet, bringing baon with them, food to share with everyone. sometimes they bring tents with them. people who cannot afford vacationing to high end resorts but can shell out few pesos fare from the nearby villages, just to go and see the big city manila, the statue of rizal, and the soldiers with somber faces guarding it. love the free entertainment at luneta, free concerts and fireworks. I like disappearing in the crowd, and the street food sold there. balut is fave. and then, to practice what I have learned from street kids, how to make the traffic light changed quicker to green, sometimes to the annoyance of everybody!
The daddy of “Learning Stuff” is perhaps the best possible. It assures continued growth no matter the place or age. Terrific.
Parks are crowded because Americans are rich and can afford vacations. Blaming it on poor people seems odd to me, or wishing they exterminate themselves from inconveniencing the rich. Yosemite is one of my favorite parks. When we visited in the spring of 2017, we stayed at a nice hotel in Fishcamp and bussed in, a totally delightful visit. Water was flowing so strong we could not get to Bridalveil Falls. We didn’t have rain slickers for the water spraying over the whole area. I’ve also hiked the back trails up on the Meadows. That place will be gorgeous forever, long after humans are done punishing one another for personal gain.
As I reflect, it seems the Big Daddy for most of us is Greed at some level. A moderate amount is good, as it drives progress, but too much is destructive. The best parentage is the Papa Greed and the Mother Generosity.
greed has hit a wall. schools both private and public that have ghost numerous students enrolled were asked to give back the money, and edu dept apparently got back 68 millions. pity, the names of the schools were suppressed.
as well, finance dept under finance sec recto has been ordered by supreme court to return the 89.3 billions philhealth funds that it transferred to national treasury to pay for govt debts and infras. it was ruled philhealth’s mandate is to oversee and pay for the health needs of its contributors, not to provide funds to prop up the goals of the govt.
Thanks for the update on the PhilHealth ruling. I listened to the hearing for a time but it got tedious. The ruling seems right to me. The citizens paid into their accounts for health services, not to build roads.
When the Phil. Supreme Court orders the Dept. of Finance to return money to Phil Health, does the money get returned? Or does Phil Health just get an I.O.U. which is merely an acknowledgement of debt, not even a promise to pay, let alone payment? Just curious how it works in the Philippines.
I’d have to google that and am inclined not to worry about it. I presume the money goes back to PhilHealth, no IOU.
Thanks, JoeAm. Here is what ChatGPT says:
>>In theory, when the Philippine Supreme Court orders the Department of Finance (DOF) to return money to PhilHealth, that decision is binding and executory. The DOF is legally obligated to comply. But in practice, things can get murkier, and this is where your question hits the heart of governance issues in the country.
Here’s how it typically plays out in practice:1. Court Order Is Final and Executory
2. In Practice: Delays or Partial Compliance
3. Political and Bureaucratic Wrangling
4. Weak Enforcement Mechanisms
Summary:
Thanks for the summary, CV. I’m impressed that the computer recognizes the weak enforcement mechanisms here. Seems 100% spot on to what I see.
so long as philhealth make a commitment to pay, contributors can have peace of mind that payment will come. like any health insurance claims everywhere, claims against philhealth take time to process as there are quite a number of claimants at any one day.
and this is not AI but just from the top of my head, the allegation that there are hospitals that might have charged philhealth the cost of dialysis from patients thought long dead. someone really ought to cross check data as the long dead cannot possibly be racking up medical expenses.
as well, it has also been alleged that hospitals are maybe fudging records, like patients diagnosed with bronchitis are written as having pneumonia which is costlier than bronchitis to cure. hence the head scratching at epidemiology dept as epidemiological studies in morbidity and mortality (for stats purposes) point out localities with higher prevalence of pneumonia have apparently higher number of bronchitis drugs sold.
Then I guess my daddy is the beer and chill 😂🍺👌🏾
I am hopelessly faithless! and serial heckler. and my daddy is antipathy. tomorrow it will be whoever makes my day. and I am partial to high heels. and I wish kris aquino will undergo the new age medically proven fecal transplant. we should have the therapy approved by fda. premium gut health may just be what is needed.
an·tip·a·thy
/anˈtēpəTHē/
noun
a deep-seated feeling of dislike; aversion.
That’s a responsible Daddy for sure, steering you clear of all the rogues who infest the planet, and diseases. My wife adores the goddess Shopping as well, which has to be a goddess because men hold a bit of antipathy to the task. Affection is also a wonderful guiding power, the yin to antipathy’s yang. Kris read one of my blogs to President Aquino, and thus I became “known”. I care as well. She’s cool, and I hope she gets well.
I miss president noy and his goofy smile. and like you, joeam, I hope kris aquino gets well and soon. had she had her health, she would have been on the campaign trail already, cold calling.
bimby is an incredible kid, looking after mum. josh too.
In the vernacular: Antipatico/a
Lost in translation?
Haha, translates fine.
I’d like to ask about a statement from Beijing on Phil-US Defense ties, asking “who is fueling military confrontation in the WPS?” Is it a fact or BS?
“who’s ur daddy?” reminds me my age and to behave when with the pinks. 🙂
China frequently accuses the Philippines of stoking tensions. The recent bringing in of US anti-ship missiles generated a lot of squawking about it. The best response was when Sec Teodoro told China they could get the missiles out by vacating Philippine seas. China has several propaganda outlets that print stories, and her foreign ministers accuse the Philippines of stirring up trouble. Nonsense.
Ha, age does introduce new daddies, for sure. The god of Health is one of mine now that you mention it. Joining any group creates a new daddy, as well. Pink is a good one.
not just in west phil sea that china is fueling tension, china is also at odds with australia, taiwan, vietnam, etc. and sending in not only its patrol boats, spy ships, but its airforce as well, in its acts of intimidation. its bogus claim of the nine dash line is highly contested. though unclos rules with finality that disproves the nine dash lines. but china is being a creep and back channeling its nine dash claim. pati pa naman ang mga laruan ng mga bata ay dinamay at may mga chinese propaganda na, gaya ng chinese tree dolls that got banned in vietnam. in the movie filthy rich asians, the nine dash lines was also featured in the ladies bag, same in the barbie movie that also got banned in vietnam.
philippines is a bit slow to ban the back channeling chinese propaganda. if we go on this way of not contesting further this chinese creeping menace thinking it not relevant, we could end up losing more and more of our territory and our eez will shrink. usurped by china via the rule of adverse possession.
unclos ruling is fine, and we really ought to reinforce it by our vehement refusal to the accept the back channeling chinese propaganda, and maybe create a propaganda of our own thus countering the chinese menace.
I see strong pushback on Twitter, and think China shows itself to be bullies with each inane propaganda piece. The Phil authorities invite the press to go on ships and planes with them, so press coverage is real-time dramatic.
You’re right. It’s a global problem.
the bully has struck again. three filipinos are now detained in china for espionage. three scholars invited by china to study there only to become convenient espionage fodder later. many thought the filipino detainees will be used for exchange prisoner purposes, them in exchange for the chinese spies now in our jail.
China is waging a soft war with the Philippines. I’d not even go to Hong Kong. The Philippines is not waging war back as strongly as it could.
Leni’s power dynamic grassroots movement need time to rebuild momentum. If they want a Leni 2028, they should act now. I know the political landscape is still fluid and it’s too early to discount the Dutertes. The oligarchs will always hedge their bets, they won’t go all-in unless they see a real chance of winning. Any chance the movement finds a “daddy” for support and what’s Leni’s fighting chance?
daddy as in tatay, tatay as in tatay digong! I prefer parents po. and why not who is your mother, your parent or your guardian. this who is your daddy thing can easily be, I dont know, diverted and tweaked back to tatay digong only to gather momentum in social media when time comes. and it may well all be about tatay digong.
but like I said, I am hopelessly antipathico. and have an uber dislike to tatay digong.
I think you are correct, 2028 elections are already in play. Arriving late, as was done last time, is a losing strategy. I’ve recently written a series of articles dealing with 2028, and the lack of leadership is a huge problem. You can review these articles in the “2028 Coalition” tab: https://joeam.com/2028-coalition/
voters who want a better government in place by 2028 need not wait for leaders to put their hands up now rather than later.
they can surely start the process now by electing public officials endorsed by leni and co. myself will not vote for those in the top ten senatorial candidates. they already have so much promised votes that excess votes are not likely to make any difference. hence I will vote for those not in the top ten and needed more votes. imee may not be in the top ten, but I wont be voting for her.
Without leadership, voters are unlikely to change voting preferences. Populists win, or rich people who buy advertising.
Pink didn’t totally lack resources in 2022, and VP Leni had artistas around her who usually guarantee sold-out venues. Except for VP Leni, Barry Gutierrez, and a few others, many, including Bam Aquino, were out of touch with the masses. Kasambahay, as one of the literal foot soldiers going house to house, wasn’t out of touch, but I heard that many others were, though as kb wrote there was also a hate campaign and ground level obstacles to volunteers.
My impression of Bam Aquino today: he has grown due to challenges. Kiko Pangilinan never was in doubt. Being married to an artista, he gets the popular pulse. They both have a chance of getting into the Senate, so the worst case of a total Section E doesn’t happen.
I don’t know what media they use. I hope they win.
ahem, pinoy voters have already showed their displeasure and maybe preferences even without any leaders putting their snouts into it. I am talking about voters backlash vs atty ian sia and his uber lapse of judgement. the wannabe gigolo has hit a wall and blamed netizens for his fall from grace. his fault really, for a lawyer, he failed to provide a codicil warning his audience not to post his sleaze without his consent. and the post duly became viral.
voters can be quite discerning and may use conscience vote. and have already shown preferences for candidates not to be sleazy, sans input from any leaders.
though other candidates are quick to join the fray and also pile on atty sia, pointing accusatory finger at him.
The lead candidates for Senate are old retreads and populists. It’s depressing. I have my doubts about the quality of data most voters receive.
just my jokey take on lead candidates for senate.
a, bong go, super dynast supporter, digong’s.
b, erwin tulfo, dynast in the making, he and his brother.
c, ben tulfo, sabi ko na nga ba, dynasty ito. going to monopolize the senate yata, brother in tow.
d, sotto, another dynast.
e, lapid, dynast supporter, brother in arms ni sotto
f, bong revilla, his signature could be faked
g, pia cayetano, dynast, cayetano dynasty
h, lacson, if get together with sotto, gangbanger.
i, bato, super dynast supporter, digong’s, gone hiding, scared of ICC arrest.
j, revillarame, is he serious!
k, abi binay, dynast, binay dynasty
l, pakyaw, dynast, his close relatives already have jobs in lgus. often absent sa senado, dahil sa kabi-visit kuno sa mga constituents kahit ang trabahong yan ay hawak na ng lgu. needed more at the senate, not hanging around in lgu. if past action is indicator of future action, expect more absences from him. if elected.
m, camille villar, dynast, villar super dynasty.
Thanks, k, that is an excellent and accurate brief. Name recall for old senators means a lot. Then populists. Really horrid bunch.
It isn’t nice, but obviously, a lot of Filipinos see them as their own kind. And the liberals as others. kb has experienced that firsthand.
Even Sia of Pasig might win. “These humorless elitists, that morality police!”
Yes, not wise.
mayor of pasig vico sotto probly did not think aspirant sia is not worth the sweat, so nonchallant si vico sotto when he could have impressed safe sex noting that aids and hiv is on the rise, or sotto could have insisted sia be tested for sexually transmissible diseases to make sure he is not spreading disease among his constituents. awful to think pasig may well become the hub of stds (sexually transmissible diseases)!
A lot of dirty politics in Pasig. Vico Sotto said a few months ago that good governance politicians receive a lot of hate. I think I’ll not second-guess him.
https://www.inquirer.net/435373/dswd-probes-forcing-of-pwd-to-badmouth-vico-sotto/
All signs point to a strategic resignation being the cleanest escape hatch for Sara Duterte. Is that a fair assessment?
That is a fair assessment. Thanks for bringing it up. She has no use for the job and the job has no use for her.
OT, interesting X thread, I had a similar idea as the different tariffs make arbitrage lucrative. Kinda 1930s business model, when there were similar trade restrictions. Just finalize assembly in the Philippine to make sure it isn’t smuggling, that’s all.
https://x.com/futilityfunc/status/1908402248851284211
“If we do have a competent and rational elite, then they will see the relatively low 17% US tariffs to Philippine products as an opportunity for a transshipping boom in the country. Quick and dirty way to make a windfall that can be used to invest in actual manufacturing.
Vietnam knew what had to be done in 2018 and they profited well from it from close to a decade already, and now they used the dollars they accumulated to build a proper globally-competitive EV industry.
Maybe Enrique Razon’s clan – with their logistics and ports dominance – can execute this? They do have the NUP to grease the wheels in Congress. Then perhaps Razon can challenge Ayala’s IMI and unleash domestic rivalry-led boom in Philippine semiconductors.”
I followed through on the Twitter link. Interesting premise he has, though I think fundamentally flawed. Transshipment without adding much value is just another way of origin engineering, which would be hit by tariffs anyway. He also seems to think what Vietnam (and Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand before that) accomplished is easy peasy. It’s not. Then I noticed the guy posts a lot of communist stuff, and I guess that explains everything, so I stopped reading more of his posts. I suppose today’s far leftists have never actually read the manifestos they claim to espouse, which may be the main factor in their unrealistic ideas.
However, the Philippines can definitely follow the playbook other regional countries have done, perhaps even at a favorable position, as it seems Trump’s advisors have publicly recognized the importance of the Philippines militarily. The Philippines even got a good (supposedly discounted) sale on the newest version of the F-16 the other day, another strong indicator. Segway that into an economic importance as well, by getting help to plant down manufacturing. Not convinced that the Philippines government will do that sort of obvious move though. Tariffs are only effective as a form of protectionism for fledgling industry when paired with government commitment to building up domestic capacity in the tariffed item(s). Otherwise I feel that tariffs are detrimental to growth.
Transshipping would likely be seen as tariff evasion by destination country authorities. Historically the US and EU have been quite harsh when transshipping for tariff evasion purposes is detected. But the Philippines does have a big opportunity to do something more economically impactful — substantial transformation. In other words, “value added” with additional manufacturing steps to create a more valuable component or end product. I’ll have to ask an attorney friend that specializes in these matters to confirm, but my understanding is even simple assemblage from kits cannot evade tariffs. Here in the US, products are marked as “assembled in X country with majority components from Y country” by law if the product isn’t majority made in X country (in which case it would carry a “Made in X country” label).
There’s still ample supply lines that are shifting out of China that the Philippines can get in on. From following developments in Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, many of these companies are even willing to put up 100% investment if the government and regulatory climate is suitable. The problem is the Philippines regulatory environment is not suitable. The government needs to change that, giving as much wiggle room as possible under the current constitution’s limitations of foreign ownership. Companies were willing to play ball with China’s 51% local ownership rules while putting up 100% of the investment in the past, but that was because China was diligent on creating a stable business environment. Boggles my mind why the Philippines government across administrations and congresses takes a very laissez faire attitude towards economic development.
ahem, economic initiatives under pbbm has summat hit a wall, and now, his finance sec recto has been ordered to return 89.9billions commandeered from philhealth. as well pbbm’s maharlika investment has stalled, tanked and planked, and not for lack of trying. they are just fewer investors around local and international willing to take on the philippines. so many starts up and going nowhere. buyers are scant and far in between. philippines dont have the reputation for sound business management. though scams, human trafficking are flourishing.
but still plenty money to go around now that election is fast approaching. AKAP will most probly find its way to voters pocket, more so the bailiwicks of the maroses and romualdez’s for they are likely to hit the jackpot. though it is not guarantee onerous win for those in their party.
Well this is a bit of a simplification, but all these foreign companies uprooting and moving really want is essentially business stability. Business stability mostly comes in two sides of the same coin, business-friendly government policy for that industry and a suitable workforce. So clearly here for whatever reason, foreign businesses don’t see the Philippines as a stable business environment to invest in.
The interesting bit is that usually when local businesses have the capital, but not the expertise, they usually bring in foreign consultants and experts. I made a handsome career out of this type of consultancy for a while before I set down roots back in the US. Age slows one down, and I don’t have as much of a desire to be on a jet plane twice, or even once a week. I’m not familiar with why exactly local Filipino tycoons don’t want to do risky investments with a larger payoff, but it could be that there is a degree of risk adverse behavior which recognizes that a tycoon can just build larger conglomerates in rent seeking areas to earn money from retail and services. A lot of the money spent comes from OFW remittances and BPO salaries. It seems to me that is a risky bet in itself to depend on those income streams, while also draining away abroad the most motivated and talented Filipinos who find a way to migrate.
I’ll simplify it even more. many filipino global business tycoons are not putting their eggs in one basket, they maybe investing in philippines but most are also actively investing in overseas capitalistic ventures (the marcoses invest in singapore, the razons in dubai, etc.) whichever offer more lucrative pickings, their profits apparently got plowed back into it. and often philippines miss out, except as tax offset the filipino global business tycoons are fond of using.
Mexican tycoons around 2 decades ago used to place their eggs across the border, buying big properties in cities like San Diego, Dallas, San Antonio. They shifted capital and investments across the Rio Grande. In the last decade Mexican tycoons have been increasingly investing back home, and the results have been great for the Mexican economy with factories sprouting everywhere and incomes rising. Mexico is now the fourth biggest GDP in the Americas (North + South), having twice the PPP per capita vs Brazil which boasts a twice larger population. Maybe one day, Filipino tycoons will do the same.
Well, a lot of educated Filipinos have cliched thinking, quoting what they read like many less educated Filipinos post Bible verses, with little understanding. Agree that Trump’s tariffs are a bad idea. My idea was more on diskarte than strategic initially, I admit.
BTW, re the Warp Drive, the Philippines still has to develop before we come in like Vulcans and make First Contact (my recent as usual chaotic convos with LCPL_X) are getting a less simplistic understanding of:
1) Foreign affairs. They are NOT like Malay patronage relations, for instance like what the Sultan of Brunei had with the Rajahs of Manila. Even if Spanish rule came close, and US rule in the Tammany Hall area kinda worked.
2) economics. Long topic.
3) governance. One can’t run a country like a barangay was hopefully the lesson of 2016-2022.
Well getting the ball rolling on ideas is never a bad thing, as long as each scenario is analyzed and given a weight as to the defined towards the end goals. God knows in our field, most projects start out with ideas that have varying degrees of realistic value — just need to weed out the worst and cultivate the best ideas.
The Trump “Liberation Day” tariffs are insane, and apparently came from AI chatbots. It’s getting growing pushback from even very far right politicians who realize it’s going to hurt their districts and jeopardize their own re-election chances. Sometimes extreme pain is necessary to wake people up to reality. I don’t see a prolonged Brexit-type situation happening.
I’m happy that Hegseth reaffirmed the alliance, but unhappy that potential allies like Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and existing allies like Thailand, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan were tossed under the bus. Big concern is Trump makes the failing Belt and Road become successful due to an American power vacuum. We will see.
Economics is indeed tricky, but the simplest route I think is the Philippines being more serious about grabbing the supply chains that are fleeing China. Once again, the Philippines government acts like a cargo cult waiting for the coconuts to wash ashore rather than just taking as many of the numerous coconuts that are just drifting nearby. The behavior is sort of like a “waiting for mana to fall down” situation and is incomprehensible to me.
We can’t hope for fundamental change in government as the issues are systemic. “Old parts” whether that be apparatus of government, structures, or politicians need to be changed out for “new parts” and that will take time. I do believe however that Marcos Jr. and Congress have tools they can use right now to at least get some movement. The most powerful tool is simple diplomacy and going out there to advertise that one is “open for business.” Here in the US, serious governors will send state trade missions to attract business and FDI to their states, regardless of US federal action.
„BTW, re the Warp Drive, the Philippines still has to develop before we come in like Vulcans and make First Contact (my recent as usual chaotic convos with LCPL_X) are getting a less simplistic understanding of: foreign affairs; economics and governance.“
In chaos theres always opportunities and chances to synthesize new outcomes and or possibilities. I’ll let you and Joey tackle the details, but i’ve always been hammering at how foreign affairs and economics, thus US governance (as well as world governance, eg. UN, ICC, WB etc. etc.– all bank rolled by the US) is all screwed up and has been for awhile now. Why I was pro Ron Paul and Bernie (two dudes at the opposite end of spectrum but agreed when it came to US is going the wrong path re foreign affairs and economics thus governance). ever since.
Lots of theories as to why, Jekyll Island, WWI, then WWII , Cold War, etc. etc. but for sure the Federal gov’t became bloated under FDR’s watch, and its never been curtailed just kept on getting bigger. and GWOT (i know Joey disagrees here) was a huge part of this, eg. for something to be of value, another has to be of less value. that’s the operating principle it seems. Micha would call it neolib policies. that’s way above my pay grade. For me, I just go back to Ron Paul and Bernie and agree something needs to be redone, or renegotiated. USAID was a good example, then all other cabinet roles being curtailed. theres
a great youtube interview of RFKjr. saying how theres like 9 HR departments for Health, and he was like why is that? no answer. i dunno why that is, but it all started with FDR for sure. i think he meant to downsize after WWII but never did, and succeeding administrations never got around to it. Until Trump. so i dunno whats gonna happen but this renegotiation with the world was a long time coming. its over due.
As to the Philippines part in all this, theres always opportunities in chaos. Trump thrives in it and has been since the 70s, why he’s called Teflon Don, it s in his book Art of the Deal for chrissakes where he outlines chaos as a leverage. But I agree with that dude who said,
„relatively low 17% US tariffs to Philippine products as an opportunity“
the Philippines can take advantage of this chaos, locate opportunities, and end up on top of ASEAN and China. make bets now. I just saw Opus last night with John Malkovich, its an okay movie. but the premise is that creatives will rule the world, he said at the dawn of man, brute strength was needed to survive, then when monarchies and states formed then it was all about the left brain folks (why W. Bush and Obama had to have come from Ivy League schools, but after Obama not no more),
in Opus , Malkovich’s character says now its the right brain ed peoples turn, the left brained people have screwed up the world. Now its our turn, he says. Which is why Ireneo’s research into the Philippines ‚ creatives industry is fruiting or is the most fruitful looksy right now. so I would just add that, the Philippines‘ leverage in all this chaos right now is right brained Filipinos, and theres already a path laid out. so leverage that. when the dust settles, the Philippines should be on top, if Filipinos just follow right brained Filipinos. creatives. the Philippines will be fine.
I do have the keys to the county jail, but I am putting my badge online with letting you out with so many US comments. Just avoid too many further references as Sheriff Joe doesn’t like it.
Yes, actually, I like the balance between order and chaos, which is why my best times were when I talked with Edgar Lores and you. Now Joey is the one speaking to my left brain, and you are talking to my right brain.
most of the Philippine bureaucracy and governance structure is from Quezon’s era and was barely reformed since then, partly in Marcos Sr.’s time as he ruled by decree, and partly just after 1986/7. It needs a severe upgrade.
Totally planned software upgrades don’t work as you can’t plan everything. The project managers in Joey’s, Gian’s, and my field who have never done on the ground stuff go too much by the book, The other extreme is those who go too much by trial and error.
Joey is actually a quite grounded liberal, learned but not bookish, and he has mentioned many liberals nowadays being too bookish. Take many Filipino yellows and pinks. VP Leni, who has been around the entire country, is different.
OK, no US reference in this comment. My badge and shoulder stars are safe. 😉
Agree. balancing act or the mastery therein is key. was just talking on twitter about how to deal with interpretations, eg. when theres no hard evidence to be gleaned with 5 senses, Gettier stuff. and my go to has always been, possibility 50/50, if you can get to 51% meaning it’s possible, then after that its a matter of getting to 52% to 100% which is probability. maybe its just 53% or 89%, but you gauge your level of trust therein. but the first step is getting over that 50/50 hurdle and why all this talk of platforming conspiracy theories is means to quelch that initial weighing, that 50/50, if you leave that 50/50 open and not subdue it then the sky is literally the limit (and this goes for science too, not just military or economics or governance, Ireneo. hell even religion. although i’ve always known quelch to be a military term). that’s the main issue right now. the sooner Filipino liberals (left brain folks) learn this, the sooner they’ll be able to read the Filipino people as a whole and adjust accordingly. just focus on probability of something, that crucial 52% to 100% balancing act. get past that 50/50 stuff. how’s that for right brain thinking, Ireneo?!!! lol. ps. thanks by the way for letting this prisoner out for his morning walk to enjoy the sun. lol. but that’s basically the secret sauce right there, don’t curtail yourself at the start with 50/50. as habit get to 51% already. then rationalize from there.
Well, there was also the idea of Apollonian vs. Dionysian and Nietzsche’s ideas of reconciling the two (Edgar, who was clearly Apollonian, saw me as Dionysian initially);
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Birth_of_Tragedy
“..Nietzsche argues that the tragedy of Ancient Greece was the highest form of art due to its mixture of both Apollonian and Dionysian elements into one seamless whole, allowing the spectator to experience the full spectrum of the human condition. The Dionysian element was to be found in the music of the chorus, while the Apollonian element was found in the dialogue which gave a concrete symbolism that balanced the Dionysian revelry. Basically, the Apollonian abstract forms were able to give shape to the passionate Dionysian experience.
Before the tragedy, there was an era of static, idealized plastic art in the form of sculpture that represented the Apollonian view of the world. The Dionysian element was to be found in the wild revelry of festivals and drunkenness, but, most importantly, in music. The combination of these elements in one art form gave birth to tragedy..”
I tried to explore that here, but the echo was muted, a few like Karl had a response.
Probably On The Job, the miniseries, was still the best tragedy (with hope at the end) that the Philippines has produced. The movie Neomanila by Mikhail Red is also great.
Actually, the idea of the Renaissance Man was that one should look beyond the surface of things by watching theater. Probably, the Roman decline was when they converted Greek theaters into Roman circuses. Their Wowowee period was their undoing.
„The Dionysian element was to be found in the music of the chorus, while the Apollonian element was found in the dialogue which gave a concrete symbolism that balanced the Dionysian revelry.“
That makes perfect sense to me, Ireneo.
Being grounded requires formal knowledge through education tempered with real world experience, and vice versa. In a way, it is being ambidextrous, utilizing both the left and right brain. I will disclose here that actually, I can be quite artistic too, painting with various mediums, drawing, sculpture and laquerware. Getting into a highly technical and numbers based field like IT and business was a fluke, originally to pay for university tuition then I just got “stuck,” hah.
What I call societal “decadence” is a certain level of personal comfort, usually by what some would call “privilege,” that removes most physical and even mental challenges. That’s what I believe causes people like my former high school classmate, the son of a well-heeled corporate lawyer, to take the lazy route and latch onto seemingly easy solutions like communism, which he still apparently doesn’t fully understand even in manifesto form of various schools of communism despite being a major movement leader in the Anglosphere with a following.
Beyond the far left those adjacent such as progressives (that I identify with) are always at risk of taking the lazy way out, which creates conscious or unconscious authoritarian yearnings because why should one even deign to do a bit of civic responsibility? These authoritarian yearnings is why some have proposed the Horseshoe Theory to explain why the further left an ideology goes, the ideology seems to come into closer congruence with far right ideology in seeking authoritarian daddies. In a way, this is a regression in human thinking to times prior to the Enlightenment ideas of liberalism; indeed, it seems to be a default human way of thinking going back to the first sedentary societies where a semblance of personal comfort was introduced by agriculture.
Now as pertains to the Philippines, there is an undercurrent of the same seeking authoritarian daddy tendencies; perhaps even stronger as sometimes it seems that the Philippines doesn’t quite know who she collectively is yet. Of course, people anywhere want and should have strong leaders, but when civic society recedes due to this or that pressure (e.g. barely surviving economically) people often turn towards demagogues who claim “they alone can fix it.” The most obvious solution to me is to strengthen civic society, which I believe is the aim of Angat Buhay. On a strong foundation of civic responsibility, the Philippines would become a stronger society and country. Sadly, my historical read informs that too often “decadent” society needs to experience extreme pain in order to wake up, something asleep and resentful Americans in red states are starting to quickly wise up to. Extreme pain requires self-damage, which is what the UK before, and the US now, is experiencing. Let’s hope that the Philippines takes in lessons from abroad, rather than insisting on reinventing the wheel again each turn.
I disagree with this geopolitical view. The current unipolar system in the West/West-adjacent countries was set up by the US firstly to prevent world wars, and it has benefited the world greatly, benefiting the US even more. Ron Paul is, to be generous, an idiot, while Bernie seems to have recognized his mistake of recruiting a non voter bloc that turned out to be nihilists in 2016 which contributed to the current toxic environment in the US.
If I were a Filipino living in the Philippines, I would not accept “fine.” The status quo in the Philippines is not bad, yes, but it is also far from decent, and very far from great. The Philippines can, and must, catch up to neighbors to the point where domestic production (and thus good jobs providing higher family economic security) creates more value than the OFW remittances and BPO industry that is propping up the Philippines economy now. There is great opportunity as corporations flee production chains in China. The Philippines government should’ve recognized that 4 years ago, but it’s not too late now. Still big pieces left to have on the Philippines’ plate. But if the Philippines waits too long, all the juicy pieces of the proverbial lechon will be gone, and the Philippines will end up with scraps, sucking the bones once again.
“Ron Paul is, to be generous, an idiot,”
I think you’d agree with Ron Paul here though, Joey:
You are moving astray, bubba. There is a step beyond moderation, and that’s to put you where chempo has gone and the sun don’t shine. Find a way to be relevant to Filipinos. Sleep on that. Dont just mention the Philippines. Be relevant.
I will sleep on it, Joe.
Man I feel terrible that every time I engage with you LCpl, you get in trouble. I said it before, you’re a really smart guy. Perhaps the problem is gathering information via watching videos instead of seeking data and ingesting it to come up with your own conclusions. Often when watching algorithm delivered videos, one can end up subconsciously repeating what was heard. Sometimes if I feel overloaded by information, I recognize that not all information is true, and make a conscious effort to focus one few things rather than trying to take everything in. You can try that strategy buddy.
I was indirectly influenced by pro-Duterte hogwash when I entered this blog and persisted in being pro-Duterte until late 2015. The feeds of my high school batchmates were full of intense hate against PNoy that I kinda absorbed.
Learned to reflect, and yes, pause when I see stuff, also dose what I see and take enough breaks from socmed. My German grandmother must have meant this when she told me what kind of devil’s stuff are those computers. She wasn’t Amish BTW if one is tempted to think that as that statement sounded Luddite to me then, she was Lutheran, and the stuff she found demonic was in the 80s. AI was at most “LISA” and Turing tests then. Semantic networks.
My ex, who is still a friend, laughs when I point out how hardcore DDS she was back in 2015. We had a lot of arguments at that time. Her family later transitioned to being pro BBM, while I was pro Roxas, then Pink. Becoming more independent rather than depending on me, or on the local kapitan, mayor, or party leader changed her perspectives. Though we also saw many “New Middle Class” go Duterte then Marcos Jr. The “New New” Middle Class of Millennial professionals seemed to go the other way once disillusioned by disruption to their fledgling careers.
Interestingly those who remain encapsulated in their comfortable bubbles have a hard time transitioning to open minds that can filter the world through a critical lens. It matters not that they came from the Big Four (especially UP), or more humble beginnings. Somehow many of both demographics voted for both Duterte and Marcos Jr. rather than an actual positive change candidate. Staying in one’s informational bubbles seems to have that effect of negative reinforcement. That is a conservative mindset that risks falling to reactionary feeling when perceived threats (real or not) are added to the equation. It always seemed silly that me, a foreigner, didn’t feel the least threatened walking along the streets of pre-redeveloped Tondo, while friends and associates warned me with wide eyes to steer clear. Ultimately it will be (human) bridges that can connect separate sections of society so that we all reconnect to our shared humanity.
On Vietnam’s trade with the US = import at $13 B , export at $ 137 B, Trade surplus of $ 124 B
Vietnam’s trade with China = import at $ 144 B, export at $ 61 B, Trade surplus of $ 83 B
Question: Is Vietnam importing goods from China and exporting those goods to the US ? Rerouting ?
Vietnam itself isn’t importing Chinese “over capacity” goods then transshipping those goods (aka “dumping”) in an attempt to change the “origin” from China to another country (technical term in trade agreement/rule of origin law). But shady fly-by-night Chinese companies do operate in Vietnam that engages in this form of tariff evasion. The issue is that it’s often hard to track down the ownership structure of these companies, which are set up, dismantled, and set up again under different entities, hence the fly-by-night nature. Vietnam is probably one of the lesser destinations for this activity though, as there are other countries with more lax customs control that China takes advantage for dumping purposes. Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, UAE, and Oman come to mind in the case of dumped cold-rolled steel.
Thanks Joey.
Welcome istambay!
I’m add that border and customs control in Vietnam at the northern border is likely quite vigilant, with the 1,000 year history of China invading and all. Especially since the 1979 invasion there’s a high anti-China sentiment. The PRC are officially Maoist while Vietnam is officially Leninist, so they don’t like each other on that point as well. In the other countries mentioned, China dumps via rebadging the contents of container ships themselves.
I posted about it a few days ago and the headline made it appear that Vietnam was repackaging made in China goods to made in Vietnam
Likely not to be the action of the government of Vietnam, but rather, the shady fly-by-night Chinese companies operating in Vietnam (as those companies do in the other countries I mentioned). Usually these companies shift small amounts of product at a time, close shop, pop up elsewhere and rinse/repeat. It should be noted that customs and border control in the other countries are much weaker than between Vietnam and China though, given the 1,000 year history of China constantly invading Vietnam.
Re beliefs, I do see that societies have to maintain a balance between order, freedom, and fairness. Too much freedom is bad for order and vice versa. Fairness is difficult to quantify.
How free do you make healthcare and education, how much welfare do you give, in all that how do you avoid freeloading or the issue that made Eastern European Communism fail, that if a professor and a streetsweeper earn the same, why exert effort? Need is one of our drivers too.
I do believe in Constitution and institutions like I believe houses need a roof and walls, BTW.
I had read some historical accounts that implied that Eastern European communism failed once the Soviet Union’s subsidies lessened due to the economic difficulties that led to perestroika and glasnost.
The interesting thing about balancing order, freedom, and fairness is that these are human constructs. Over time, and catalyzed in the Enlightenment, starting in the West humans decided that these constructed concepts are a societal good. Democracies in that liberal mold, whether that democracy is in the form of republicanism, constitutional monarchy, or direct democracy, gather these constructed concepts into the Social Contract. But the social contract derives from a delegation of the citizen’s inherent powers, from which the social contract depends on.
Another word for the social contract is “constitution” and “laws.” If we liken the body politic to have the constitution be the roof, then we citizens are the walls that holds up the roof.
Hmm, a house where I have to hold up the roof is uncomfortable, but maybe we in Western Europe got too comfortable with the government institutions holding up the roof for us. Unlike the Eastern Europeans with their civic society and historically deep distrust of apparatchiks.
Getting too comfortable made every Republic weak. Our comfort zone behavior in Europe and the Karen mindset so prevalent in today’s USA are maybe related. Though the Karens of yesterday might be waking up while the comfie Euros of yesterday might yet leave their sofas..
I wouldn’t blame you if your arms feel tired if you felt like you need to help hold up the roof. In today’s Western societies there are too few citizens doing their part, and the burden feels greater. But I think, as more citizens are activated from formerly taking their freedoms for granted, the burden will feel less once distributed. I took part in the local rally here in LA today, and the fledgling re-connection of solidarity was palpable. A White man next to me said he was a Trumper who woke up when his social security was delayed. And that’s ok too — now it is the time in the West to rebuild civic alliances in the spirit of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense, as in the common bonds that bring people together.
In the Philippines, perhaps the provincial and national level governance can be a mess. However I believe there is a subconscious application of a variety of Paine’s Common Sense at the local, friendship and kinship level. Nations usually evolve out of localities, to regional conglomerations, then finally a national consciousness awakens out of ideas rather than local and ethnic identity once society has the capacity to absorb ideas making the idea their own. Unfortunately the Philippines never had a chance to fully complete that evolution, which I feel explains much of the disjointed mess we can clearly observe. However, the positive interpretation is that the Philippines has a chance to build something new and uniquely Filipino (as opposed to Spanish, American, Tagalog, etc.). But it is up to the Filipino people to create that social contract among themselves. A strong civic society giving people purpose and a sense of community helps. I hope more organizations like Angat Buhay arise.
Irineo calls that Common Weal. (Common wealth )
I can’t resist the linguistics, which is one of the academic areas I’m actually trained in… haha… Commonwealth and commonweal actually mean the same thing. Germanic languages (like English) have quite a few words describing the same concept… but a popular concept that has numerous words to describe it is wellbeing as in wellbeing being prosperity.
Gemeinwohl in German, the little I know of linguistics is that two major shifts and French word borrowing made English branch out from old Germanic.
Kaginhawaan in Tagalog, the catch being that the datu allegedly was the one who brought that to the people. I have queried Dr. Xiao on this and asked doesn’t that justify birthday cake politics, well he has portrayed Jesse Robredo as a modern datu, but still..
Commonwealth/commonweal goes back to Old English, which is closer to Old Saxon than the later Anglo-Norman influenced Middle English. Originally the term meant the collective responsibility for public goods, for which representatives were appointed to oversee. The term evolved a bit due to influence from Aquinian views on the common good (“bonum commune”) to take on some aspects of Social Catholicism came to the Germanic peoples in the 13th century. I don’t know German, and haven’t seriously studied Old English in years, but I can see that the etymological roots in gemeinwohl to translate to “common good.”
I had previously considered the concept of kaginhawaan, which seems to me to denote more of a sense of ease or relief from pain (as in the word root, ginhawa). Not sure if the concept of kaginhawaan is directly comparable to commonwealth/commonweal. To go back to Aristotle, who described the common good as something only attainable by the community, but shared by all members, kaginhawaan doesn’t seem to have a requirement of communal care; rather kaginhawaan seems to be more describing of a recipient relationship not requiring but not exclusive of personal effort. I may be wrong here in this understanding, so please expound if that’s the case.
I see