Three pillars of Philippine corruption in the House

Analysis and Opinion By Joe America I was struck by the power of the Philippine House Quad Committee findings as presented by the head of the effort, Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, in the following Inquirer article: “Quad comm: Chinese-led crimes akin to ‘rape’ of PH“. The focus was on President Duterte’s works … Continue reading

Leni Robredo is a model, not a goddess

Analysis and Opinion By Joe America Here’s the best way forward. Detach your ego from personalities and attach your brain to concepts. Let me explain. Pinks are good people at about the 98% level. Thoughtful, patriotic, compassionate, constructive. Engaged. A very small share are arrogant, obnoxious, or stupid. But a large share is attached to … Continue reading

Are you a lover, a hater, or a teacher?

Analysis and Opinion By Joe America Social media are undermining civility and sense. We are there, so we are parties to the creation of the data dirtstreams that give us nonsense instead of solutions. My interactions with people on X, Facebook, Blue Sky, and this blog make clear that there are three types of people … Continue reading

The Philippines is healthy, not hopeless and not helpless

Analysis and Opinion By Joe America The Philippines is a power-based democracy, by which I mean it is fundamentally democratic but with a strong layer of entitlement and impunity the higher one gets in its various dynastic bubbles. The top dynasts these days are the Marcos and Duterte dynasties. Interestingly, Duterte used his presidency to … Continue reading

Proposed: The Maria Ressa Social Media Ethics Board of the Philippines

Analysis and Opinion By Joe America Bloggers and individuals on social media have no ethical standards by which to operate, and no monitoring agency other than the Legislature and a Cybercrime Law that was concocted by thin-skinned politicians to suppress criticism that demeaned them. The House has recently done fine work to reveal and rein … Continue reading