Rubba dub dub, three men in a tub: Albayalde, Lorenzana, and Locsin

By JoeAm There are any number of secretaries I could pick for this little lesson, I suppose. But I chose three whose characters and acts help frame the discussion. There are three forces that define the men and women of government high offices: (1) the people and institutions that shaped them as younger people, (2) … Continue reading →

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

‘We Must Focus on Leni’—Trillanes

by Wilfredo G. Villanueva In jail, he repurposed himself. From someone fighting the system by force of arms calling bloody Katipunan to mind, he ventured into democratic discourse, softening his image, turning sword to ploughshare. He won a Senate seat campaigning from prison with his relaunched brand—dead-center message delivery almost in martial cadence, swoonworthy to … Continue reading →

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

Weaponizing sense

By JoeAm I’d like to build on a prior article that explained how people on Twitter know more about what is happening than people in Philippine government. This is also true to an extent about Facebook, but Facebook mixes in more personal experiences. Twitter is less personal, less emotional, and more fact and concept driven. … Continue reading →

Filed under Blogging/Journalism, Citizenship/Patriotism, Education, Technology/Internet

‘I Will Be Here’ — Sen. de Lima 

by Wilfredo G. Villanueva Duterte times started precisely at the time Sen. Leila de Lima was incarcerated in Camp Crame detention quarters for charges that wouldn’t stick. Her cases have been delayed; judges are unwilling to handle her cases, and witnesses are like Metro Manila traffic, dense and unmoving. We didn’t protest her arrest. We … Continue reading →

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

When people are smarter than their government

By JoeAm People complain a lot about social media. I like the stuff myself. On Facebook, I can keep tabs with the life and adventures of my friends and acquaintances, know their activities, their successes, and their jokes. I can share my own. Still, I don’t use FB for news. It’s unreliable and hard to … Continue reading →

Filed under Blogging/Journalism, China, Education, Foreign Affairs and Defense, Philippine Government