The odds are that Mar Roxas will be the next president

Posted by JoeAm on December 14, 2014 · 123 Comments 

Whenever I do forecasts, I check with my bookie Sal, currently of Manila by way of Las Vegas and Macau. He’s a pro at probabilities. He claims he is Sicilian and chances are he is right. The scars are real. It is not commonly known, but Vegas is the place where more people pray than anywhere on … Continue reading →

Category Citizenship/Patriotism, Philippine Politics

Mar Roxas and weaknesses in Filipino character

Posted by JoeAm on December 11, 2014 · 164 Comments 

Let’s get ready to RUMBLE! The recent incident of Mar Roxas being captured in a photograph slipping on a motorcycle while not wearing a helmet is to me representative of bad character. Not for Mar Roxas. But for his critics. Ridicule is a common feature of Philippine character. It is an element of “amoral interdependence”, … Continue reading →

Category Citizenship/Patriotism, Culture and Arts, Philippine Politics

The continuing occupation of the oligarchs

Posted by josephivo on December 5, 2014 · 227 Comments 

  by josephivo (1) Wayang kulit and the Philippine political reality A wayang kulit (= Indonesian shadow theater play) is the political reality we are looking at in the Philippines. Wayang kulit is special because of its double abstraction. First you only see shadows not the live actors. Second, the shadows come from leather puppets … Continue reading →

Category Citizenship/Patriotism, Culture and Arts, Education, Philippine Politics

Binay does not have to be declared guilty to get thrown from the presidential race

Posted by JoeAm on November 30, 2014 · 70 Comments 

One of the great differences between America and the Philippines is the existence in America of what I will call the “community’s force of conscience”. It is a very important difference. Before getting to that, however, let’s start by observing  a similarity: both America and the Philippines have well evolved laws. These are the rules the community … Continue reading →

Category Citizenship/Patriotism, Crime/Corruption, Culture and Arts, Laws and Ethics

The left: why its political parties fail

Posted by JoeAm on November 23, 2014 · 66 Comments 

Thanks to reader Pinoyputi who directed me down this track when he wrote: “I wish that the leftists would grow up, use their brains and start a real Social Democratic Party of importance here.” A LITTLE MATTER OF PRESENTATION The first thing you notice about leftist parties is that they like exclamation points. It is … Continue reading →

Category Citizenship/Patriotism, Laws and Ethics, Philippine Government, Philippine Politics, Uncategorized