A time of rest

Posted by JoeAm on March 29, 2019 · 126 Comments 

  By JoeAm When I was in the US, I grew roses. Roses there are different than the resilient Philippine variety, which are scrawny as if wracked by poverty, yet still beautiful when a cluster of them erupt in bloom. American roses are bushier, lusher, bigger of bloom, and more strongly aromatic. Roses love two … Continue reading →

Category Blogging/Journalism, Citizenship/Patriotism, Literature

Yellow “elitism” is a myth created by trolls

Posted by JoeAm on March 28, 2019 · 55 Comments 

By JoeAm Former President Aquino, and Yellows in general . . . who today include any critic of the Duterte Administration, most of them being advocates of the Constitution, democracy, human rights, and civility . . . are often labeled as “elitist”. This is meant to suggest that they are arrogant and out of touch … Continue reading →

Category Citizenship/Patriotism, Ecology/Global Warming, Laws and Ethics, Philippine Government, Philippine Politics, Technology/Internet

Filipino exceptionalism, Filipino moral courage

Posted by JoeAm on March 25, 2019 · 70 Comments 

By JoeAm We normally hear of “American exceptionalism”, meant to characterize the economic, moral, and global power of the United States. And we might imagine the term “Chinese exceptionalism” to mean that nation’s historical claim to global prominence, or “Swiss exceptionalism” to mean determined neutrality, or “Japanese exceptionalism” to mean racial purity and discipline. How … Continue reading →

Category Citizenship/Patriotism, Laws and Ethics, Philippine Government

Do you see the difference?

Posted by JoeAm on March 22, 2019 · 171 Comments 

By JoeAm A lot of Filipinos are space cadets. They are children watching cartoons on TV all day, or scaredy cat scouts sitting around the campfire listening to stories about snipes and dreaming of catching one. They are the subject of Kafka’s novels about absurdity, the people doing nonsense because it is simply what they … Continue reading →

Category Citizenship/Patriotism, Education, Laws and Ethics, Philippine Government

We are “Plac’d on this isthmus of a middle state” . . .

Posted by JoeAm on March 20, 2019 · 56 Comments 

By JoeAm One of my sources, those spread across the globe like a spider’s web, each node a listening post, today entrusted me with the wisdom of Alexander Pope, which I shall reproduce in a moment. Do you read poetry? Not many do, I think. Anyone who reads poetry has undoubtedly tried, and maybe succeeded, … Continue reading →

Category Citizenship/Patriotism, Culture and Arts, Education, Laws and Ethics