"...the way the West constructs itself underwrite and animate its constructions of the other…the stories the West most often tells itself about itself are indeed stories of self-production, a practice that does induce blindness. They are myths of self-sufficiency in which ‘the West’ reaches out only to bring to others the fruits of progress that would otherwise be beyond their grasp." Derek Gregory, The Colonial Present
"They cannot represent themselves, they must be represented." Karl Marx, 18th Brumaire
I can understand why R. was upset that every time Africa was mentioned, the words "poverty," "AIDS," and " "corruption" almost always followed. Africa is more than just the sum of poverty, AIDS and corruption, but this is the continent's only known face in rich nations. To them, Africa is what they see on TV and read on the news. Africa, like most of the Third World, is a zone perpetually in turmoil, ravaged by all sorts of natural calamities. It is a land where evil men perpetrate unspeakable atrocities on others - such as militias hacking off hands of the enemies, and even breasts of innocent women. The Third and Fourth worlds, most of which were once colonies of the First World, are the dirty, smelly, open sore of humanity.
It sounds like a harsh existence indeed. But people manage to survive and live despite their troubles. In the poor and very poor nations, people still go to each other's houses and have barbecues and dinners. They congregate in kitchens and tell each other stories. In the Third World people go and see movies. As a denizen of Manila, a well-connected city in the Asian movie piracy hub, one might say our choices in films are even more abundant.
People in the Third and Fourth Worlds still go to restaurants, sit down and eat. They look at each other over the table and talk about their work, their families, their concerns. They call each other on the phone and gossip about who slept with whom, who got promoted over whom, who got married to which cousin. They ride cars and other forms of transportation, so they are just as concerned as everyone on the planet over the price of petrol. They laugh, they smile, they bleed, they cry.
2/3 of the planet's population are more than just poverty, AIDS and corruption. More than floods, volcano eruptions and earthquakes. More than chaos, more than crime, more than terrorism, more than hell on Earth. Sure, the poor and the poorest struggle to live, but this is also why so many live to struggle. Africa is not just a hapless victim of misfortune, whose people are in constant need of interference and salvation by (largely clueless) external forces. They are human beings too. They have brains. They can think of solutions to their own problems.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Getting to know you
Many thanks to those who have responded to my tag. I was curious to know more about these people beyond the things they write about on their blogs. I mean, I know there are human beings behind the blogs, but its nice to know the little personal details.
Here are some (to me) surprising responses.
Coffee With Amee reveals she doesn't drink coffee anymore! What a shame. Haha. She writes:
Jego admits to his inability to fart silently.
Placeholder says he has difficulties sleeping even as a kid, and so he lets the TV lull him to sleep.
Belishabeacon is just as orally fixated as I am:
I got a kick out my friend parody & pastiche revealing drinking establishments still ask for her ID.
Lastly, I am not at all surprised expectorants, who did this tagging thing a few months back, likes to collect things. And he says he also loves pollutants:
I'm still waiting for responses from amateurmisanthrope and big mango!
----
Edited to add:
Better late than never! I agree with amateurmisanthrope. There is much to recommend about gay porn. Haha.
Oh, and I would love to one day hear big mango's Yoda impression. :)
Here are some (to me) surprising responses.
Coffee With Amee reveals she doesn't drink coffee anymore! What a shame. Haha. She writes:
I stopped completely from the occasional cappuccino drinking I did when I was in the Philippines. Now, when I go to coffee shops, I just order tea or a frothy drink.
Jego admits to his inability to fart silently.
I suppose my sphincter isnt built that way. If I try to stealth-fart, I do not end up with a silent whoosh like normal people. I end up with something like putt-putt-putt-putt as I try to let loose a soundless one, fail, stop in mid fart, then try again, until all the gases are expelled. It takes too much effort so I gave up trying and head for the bathroom instead or if outdoors, walk a reasonable distance away from populated areas, preferably downwind.
Placeholder says he has difficulties sleeping even as a kid, and so he lets the TV lull him to sleep.
Belishabeacon is just as orally fixated as I am:
I used to eat chalk, erasers and air fresheners. But I was really young then. I was around 6 or 7. It was the 80’s. But I don’t mean that everyone in the 80’s ate chalk. And in my defense, I only ate the red or pink ones.
I got a kick out my friend parody & pastiche revealing drinking establishments still ask for her ID.
In fact, last night I was denied entrance at a bar since I couldn’t produce any identification with my birthdate on it. My friend came to rescue me and tried to plead with the bouncer to let me in. She told him Come on, she doesn’t look 18. He turned to her and said Yes, she does. Boo.
Lastly, I am not at all surprised expectorants, who did this tagging thing a few months back, likes to collect things. And he says he also loves pollutants:
I love certain pollutants. Other forms of pollution I like, other than those blue bathroom cleaners: matchstick burning and gasoline stations.
I'm still waiting for responses from amateurmisanthrope and big mango!
----
Edited to add:
Better late than never! I agree with amateurmisanthrope. There is much to recommend about gay porn. Haha.
I like gay porn. Am actually viewing one as I write/edit this, haha. Not to be defensive, but gay male porn is very different from its straight counterpart. Well, sure there are no women in gay porn! What I mean is, gay porn has none of the issues that haunt heterosexual pornography—misogyny, exploitation, rape, abuse, to name a few.
Oh, and I would love to one day hear big mango's Yoda impression. :)
Monday, July 30, 2007
Freudian Sleep
You know when you're a teen-ager and you're looking for a sense of who you are, you begin to distance yourself from your parents and your immediate family. More and more you spend your time with your peers. Your parents no longer have the monopoly of influencing you and shaping your views, your attitudes, your values. You think, well now that you're on your way to becoming an adult, you're free to become who you want to be. You can pick and choose among the array of lifestyles and ideas you encounter.
But then you grow older and you get over that selfish "me, me, me" phase. Now you are a bit more assured of your identity and so there is less need for self-assertion. You no longer feel as strongly about setting boundaries between yourself and your parents.
All grown up, I am still amazed at how I see so much of my mother and father in me, and how much I credit who I am to how my parents were. Unconsciously, I learned which values to appropriate, which mistakes not to make, which attitudes serve which occasion best. They never gave us lectures, we weren't that kind of family. I must have learned it all just by being around them.
Even when I was very young I knew my mother was no ordinary woman. Growing up, she was the model to which I unconsciously aspired. I always knew, she was a woman before her time, unafraid to be ambitious, she had grand dreams. For a woman who had to make do with three pairs of knickers in college, and who occasionally had to hide from the kunduktor because she didn't always have bus fare, her dreams seemed far-fetched indeed. But she dared. I honestly don't know how she could have come to be herself, to have formed her ideas considering my grandparents' humble rural background. She could have just easily been one of the girls I see every time I work on our dating website - a nubile probinsiyana looking to get the good life by hooking big fish. But my mother had very radical ideas about what it meant to be a woman, even when she didn't consciously articulate this to herself.
From my mother I learned it doesn't matter how you look, but it matters the way you dress. Although once crowned Ms. Waling-Waling when she was younger, I never thought my mother "beautiful." I think its because all her other traits outshone her looks. From my mother I learned that a woman can not show emotion, that women don't necessarily cry, that women can be clear-headed in times of crisis. From her I learned to think "clingy" women were weak and that a woman shouldn't just be an appendage of her man. From her I learned not to be intimidated by social status and other people's riches. I wonder how she came to be like this, when she didn't have enough money to buy hifalutin' books and read of social equality. Maybe because she lived, rather than read, of something for we she didn't even have a name. My mother must have thought very highly of herself indeed. Now I wonder at her self-confidence when she had no "pedigree," not even elite schooling as I do, to prop her ego growing up.
I was still in my rebellious "me, me, me" phase when my father died unexpectedly. We never had the chance to heal the rift of not speaking for almost two years. Because my mother was the star, my father always seemed to pale in comparison. I thought I had an arduous childhood and adolescence, just because my parents fought often. Forced to choose sides, my mother won over my father every time, and so he never had a chance to gain much credit or sympathy. In their battles I learned to be kind, to be tolerant, to be patient. I learned not saying anything, the dance of bodies, of gazes avoiding, of declining touch, hurt just as much as words.
My father wasn't quite the visionary, but from him I learned single-mindedness and hard work. From him I learned to be comfortable not being the centre of attention, and that there is contentment to be had from sitting on the sidelines - watching, observing. As one not given to tooting his own horn, or talking much for that matter, my father taught me how to listen, and to give others my undivided attention. While my mother's confidence verged on arrogance at times, my father taught me humility and the strength of self-deprecation. From my father I learned to express kindness the way my mother never could just because she always needed to be hard. My father taught me how to be pragmatic and realistic, how to be grounded when my mother knew only flight.
From my father I learned men can not be arrogant, that men don't always need to make the final decision, that family things are always up for negotiation. He showed me how men can be more fragile because they can't cry. He taught me how not having words to express emotions can be devastating to the self and to others. One must always find the words and one must always find the courage to say them.
My father taught me there is no shame in saying your mother sold fish at the palengke, and that her earnings weren't enough to see you finish your schooling. From him I learned to see the hypocrisy of pretension.
I never once heard my parents complain. I never once heard my parents ask for help from other people. Fiercely independent they were and they expected the same from other people. Now I know this is the reason why my friend M. once said I was freakishly prideful, and that I would rather get helplessly lost or waste time poring over a map before it occurs to me to ask for directions.
I never thought my parents wasteful or frivolous. Every expense always had a function, nothing was taken lightly, nothing was just for kicks. This was because they both had to arrive at a compromise as my mother liked to spend and my father liked to save.
I learned, from both of them, to be introspective and to focus. I learned, from both, to laugh heartily, even at corny jokes. I learned from both that your spine is what you make of it, and that one must not wallow in the frivolity of self-pity. One must soldier on despite life's tragedies. Because really, the drama is in the doing, not the telling.
But then you grow older and you get over that selfish "me, me, me" phase. Now you are a bit more assured of your identity and so there is less need for self-assertion. You no longer feel as strongly about setting boundaries between yourself and your parents.
All grown up, I am still amazed at how I see so much of my mother and father in me, and how much I credit who I am to how my parents were. Unconsciously, I learned which values to appropriate, which mistakes not to make, which attitudes serve which occasion best. They never gave us lectures, we weren't that kind of family. I must have learned it all just by being around them.
Even when I was very young I knew my mother was no ordinary woman. Growing up, she was the model to which I unconsciously aspired. I always knew, she was a woman before her time, unafraid to be ambitious, she had grand dreams. For a woman who had to make do with three pairs of knickers in college, and who occasionally had to hide from the kunduktor because she didn't always have bus fare, her dreams seemed far-fetched indeed. But she dared. I honestly don't know how she could have come to be herself, to have formed her ideas considering my grandparents' humble rural background. She could have just easily been one of the girls I see every time I work on our dating website - a nubile probinsiyana looking to get the good life by hooking big fish. But my mother had very radical ideas about what it meant to be a woman, even when she didn't consciously articulate this to herself.
From my mother I learned it doesn't matter how you look, but it matters the way you dress. Although once crowned Ms. Waling-Waling when she was younger, I never thought my mother "beautiful." I think its because all her other traits outshone her looks. From my mother I learned that a woman can not show emotion, that women don't necessarily cry, that women can be clear-headed in times of crisis. From her I learned to think "clingy" women were weak and that a woman shouldn't just be an appendage of her man. From her I learned not to be intimidated by social status and other people's riches. I wonder how she came to be like this, when she didn't have enough money to buy hifalutin' books and read of social equality. Maybe because she lived, rather than read, of something for we she didn't even have a name. My mother must have thought very highly of herself indeed. Now I wonder at her self-confidence when she had no "pedigree," not even elite schooling as I do, to prop her ego growing up.
I was still in my rebellious "me, me, me" phase when my father died unexpectedly. We never had the chance to heal the rift of not speaking for almost two years. Because my mother was the star, my father always seemed to pale in comparison. I thought I had an arduous childhood and adolescence, just because my parents fought often. Forced to choose sides, my mother won over my father every time, and so he never had a chance to gain much credit or sympathy. In their battles I learned to be kind, to be tolerant, to be patient. I learned not saying anything, the dance of bodies, of gazes avoiding, of declining touch, hurt just as much as words.
My father wasn't quite the visionary, but from him I learned single-mindedness and hard work. From him I learned to be comfortable not being the centre of attention, and that there is contentment to be had from sitting on the sidelines - watching, observing. As one not given to tooting his own horn, or talking much for that matter, my father taught me how to listen, and to give others my undivided attention. While my mother's confidence verged on arrogance at times, my father taught me humility and the strength of self-deprecation. From my father I learned to express kindness the way my mother never could just because she always needed to be hard. My father taught me how to be pragmatic and realistic, how to be grounded when my mother knew only flight.
From my father I learned men can not be arrogant, that men don't always need to make the final decision, that family things are always up for negotiation. He showed me how men can be more fragile because they can't cry. He taught me how not having words to express emotions can be devastating to the self and to others. One must always find the words and one must always find the courage to say them.
My father taught me there is no shame in saying your mother sold fish at the palengke, and that her earnings weren't enough to see you finish your schooling. From him I learned to see the hypocrisy of pretension.
I never once heard my parents complain. I never once heard my parents ask for help from other people. Fiercely independent they were and they expected the same from other people. Now I know this is the reason why my friend M. once said I was freakishly prideful, and that I would rather get helplessly lost or waste time poring over a map before it occurs to me to ask for directions.
I never thought my parents wasteful or frivolous. Every expense always had a function, nothing was taken lightly, nothing was just for kicks. This was because they both had to arrive at a compromise as my mother liked to spend and my father liked to save.
I learned, from both of them, to be introspective and to focus. I learned, from both, to laugh heartily, even at corny jokes. I learned from both that your spine is what you make of it, and that one must not wallow in the frivolity of self-pity. One must soldier on despite life's tragedies. Because really, the drama is in the doing, not the telling.
It IS a small world
We talked about People Power and low-violence strategies of social movements last week, and the Philippines was the model. I was there, so you could say the class had me as an actual source. Today we talked about the masalimuot role of international financial institutions in Africa, focusing on one of the HIPCs (heavily-indebted poor countries), Malawi. My friend S. was there. A few weeks back we talked about some success stories such as Botswana, R. was there. We talk about Iraq, M. is there. We talked about the gulf nations in the Middle East, E. is there. We talk about Islam, two Muslims in class. We talk about terrorism, a terrorist police expert is there. We talk about migration, some migrants are there. We talk about American foreign policy, plenty of Americans are there. Sometimes people can get really involved and sometimes people take their government's policies very personally. A smaller world we have don't we?
Friday, July 27, 2007
8 Facts About Me?
Wely has tagged me to reveal 8 facts about myself. I think I answered one of these a couple of years back. But hemingway, let's do it again shall we?
Here are the rules for “8 facts”:
1.)In the 8 facts about [name], you share 8 things that your readers don’t know about you. At the end, you tag 8 other bloggers to keep the fun going. Each blogger must post these rules first.
2.) Each blogger starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3.) At the end of the post, a blogger needs to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
4.) Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.
Fact no. 1. I've probably read over 3 thousand romance novels. That's just my guesstimate. I don't usually read fiction, but I read historical romances. That's right. My favourite are the ones with half-naked people on the cover. Unfortunately, I haven't read a single one since I got here because the choices are limited (no Booksale) and the prices are waaay too steep.
Fact no. 2. I trained six weeks and was on air for 4 days at NU 107 as a news caster. They wanted me to basically work for free, so I quit.
Fact no. 3. I'm afraid of frogs. Seriously. It's a psychological thing. Happily, I've yet to see a frog here in G.Coast, even when cane toads are supposed to be a major pest. I've yet to see them!
Fact no. 4. Books make me feel good. They're my happy pill. If I feel down or stressed I buy one. I don't necessarily need to read them, just touching them....smelling them is enough. Unfortunately, I haven't bought any here since my last visit at Carrara Markets. Its only open weekends and I now work all day on weekends. But inihaw, I've no time to read for leisure anyway! But the sem break is coming...3 more weeks.
Fact no. 5. I was a bad student. I guess I'm what you call a late-blooming nerd. I never studied in grade school or high school, although I was in the pilot section all the way. I only studied enough in my undergrad to pass. I was one of those who sometimes came to class drunk. Haha. I only really started to "study" in postgrad.
Fact no. 6. Speaking of alcohol, I once outdrank a group of young men in a Tequila drinking contest. 10 shots straight. I was the last one standing. I don't think I can do it anymore though. Woefully out of practice.
Fact no. 7. I will drink a bottle of Tabasco if you pay me..a thousand pesos. I've been daring people these past years and no one! No one will take me up on the dare. That's 'cause they know they'd lose their money.
Fact no. 8. I'm still thinking of getting that tattoo. Something in alibata maybe. I probably will before I head home.
I'm tagging the following eight people:
amateurmisanthrope
coffee with amee
expectorants
big mango
jego
placeholder
belishabeacon
parody & pastiche
Here are the rules for “8 facts”:
1.)In the 8 facts about [name], you share 8 things that your readers don’t know about you. At the end, you tag 8 other bloggers to keep the fun going. Each blogger must post these rules first.
2.) Each blogger starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3.) At the end of the post, a blogger needs to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
4.) Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.
Fact no. 1. I've probably read over 3 thousand romance novels. That's just my guesstimate. I don't usually read fiction, but I read historical romances. That's right. My favourite are the ones with half-naked people on the cover. Unfortunately, I haven't read a single one since I got here because the choices are limited (no Booksale) and the prices are waaay too steep.
Fact no. 2. I trained six weeks and was on air for 4 days at NU 107 as a news caster. They wanted me to basically work for free, so I quit.
Fact no. 3. I'm afraid of frogs. Seriously. It's a psychological thing. Happily, I've yet to see a frog here in G.Coast, even when cane toads are supposed to be a major pest. I've yet to see them!
Fact no. 4. Books make me feel good. They're my happy pill. If I feel down or stressed I buy one. I don't necessarily need to read them, just touching them....smelling them is enough. Unfortunately, I haven't bought any here since my last visit at Carrara Markets. Its only open weekends and I now work all day on weekends. But inihaw, I've no time to read for leisure anyway! But the sem break is coming...3 more weeks.
Fact no. 5. I was a bad student. I guess I'm what you call a late-blooming nerd. I never studied in grade school or high school, although I was in the pilot section all the way. I only studied enough in my undergrad to pass. I was one of those who sometimes came to class drunk. Haha. I only really started to "study" in postgrad.
Fact no. 6. Speaking of alcohol, I once outdrank a group of young men in a Tequila drinking contest. 10 shots straight. I was the last one standing. I don't think I can do it anymore though. Woefully out of practice.
Fact no. 7. I will drink a bottle of Tabasco if you pay me..a thousand pesos. I've been daring people these past years and no one! No one will take me up on the dare. That's 'cause they know they'd lose their money.
Fact no. 8. I'm still thinking of getting that tattoo. Something in alibata maybe. I probably will before I head home.
I'm tagging the following eight people:
amateurmisanthrope
coffee with amee
expectorants
big mango
jego
placeholder
belishabeacon
parody & pastiche
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Chronicles of Sparks
'Di ko namalayan nagdaan na pala ang 4th anniversary ng {caffeine_sparks}. Higit apat na taon na pala ako'ng nagba-blog. Huwaw. 4 years. Buong high school ko na yun. O di kaya buong undergrad. Kung may ipinanganak nu'ng February 2003, lumalakad at tumatakbo na ngayon. Hanggang kailan ko kaya ito magagawa? Biro mo, in theory, pwede ako'ng mag-blog hanggang sa mamaalam sa mundong ibabaw. So kahit matagal na'kong wala, ang talambuhay ko ay patuloy na maglalangoy-langoy sa kalawakan ng cyberspace. In theory, pwede'ng basahin ng mga anak ng anak ng anak ng anak ko. Yikes.
Ayaw ko na'ng basahin yung mga naisulat ko na, kasi mate-tempt lang ako'ng i-delete. Hindi ba palaging para'ng ang tanga mo nu'ng bata ka? Haha. Siguro 2-3 years from now, babasahin ko yung mga naisulat ko ngayon, ta's iisipin ko rin; "how naive" o "how stupid" o "how absurd." Siguro yun nga ang kagandahan ng blog, pwede mo'ng burahin at i-edit. Pwede mo'ng i-sanitise ang sarili mo. Pero ayoko'ng gawin, kasi hindi naman ganu'n ang buhay. Kaya nga, payo ko sa mga matagal na rito, 'wag n'yong na'ng i-review ang naisulat n'yo nu'ng bata-bata pa kayo. It simply isn't being fair to yourself. Obviously hindi na ikaw ngayon yung ikaw noon.
Ayaw ko na'ng basahin yung mga naisulat ko na, kasi mate-tempt lang ako'ng i-delete. Hindi ba palaging para'ng ang tanga mo nu'ng bata ka? Haha. Siguro 2-3 years from now, babasahin ko yung mga naisulat ko ngayon, ta's iisipin ko rin; "how naive" o "how stupid" o "how absurd." Siguro yun nga ang kagandahan ng blog, pwede mo'ng burahin at i-edit. Pwede mo'ng i-sanitise ang sarili mo. Pero ayoko'ng gawin, kasi hindi naman ganu'n ang buhay. Kaya nga, payo ko sa mga matagal na rito, 'wag n'yong na'ng i-review ang naisulat n'yo nu'ng bata-bata pa kayo. It simply isn't being fair to yourself. Obviously hindi na ikaw ngayon yung ikaw noon.
Bloggers Unite!
I'd like to thank Jego for recommending me on his blog. To pay it forward, I'd like to recommend Philippines Without Borders (Dave Llorito) if you haven't discovered him already. I think I found him at Mlq3. Many thanks to Manolo, for always being on the look out for great reads.
Also, I'm a recent convert to Google Reader!!! It makes it so much easier to keep track of new posts from blogs. We must link. We must network. Pinoy bloggers unite!
Also, I'm a recent convert to Google Reader!!! It makes it so much easier to keep track of new posts from blogs. We must link. We must network. Pinoy bloggers unite!
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
10 Things I Didn't Know About America and Americans a.k.a Postcolonial Projections of Paradise Elsewhere
1. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, America is the land of unlimited opportunities and wealth. I grew up believing it is a country where everyone is 'middle class,' i.e. everyone can own a house with white picket fences, a washing machine, a microwave oven, two cars and raise 2.3 children. I now know that poverty exists in America, painfully illustrated by Hurricane Katrina. Some Americans literally live in hovels. Some have no homes at all.
2. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, American values are always superior to our own. Values such as individualism, the lack of 'shame' (hiya), assertiveness, initiative, competitiveness, privacy and absolute 'freedom.' I now know that there is nothing wrong with collectivism, a sense of shame, deferring to others, wanting consensus, cooperation, openness and some restrictions to freedom.
3. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans made a decent living - even labourers, that's why not everyone goes to college. I now know that a copywriter for a newspaper in Texas earns less than than an employee at Mc Donald's here in Australia. The college-educated copywriter earns $12USD/hour, a pimply teenager who takes your order earns $17.50 AUD/hour (roughly, $15.50 USD). Now I know the reason why not everyone
goes to college is that tertiary education in the US can be very expensive.
4. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans were smart. Now I know only certain portions of the elite are smart. However, if you're not so smart but rich, you can still become President. The rest who are not so smart are a result of declining standards of public education. If you watch this video, you will see this for yourself.
5. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans were good-looking. I thought all white people were good-looking. The whiter your skin, the more good-looking you are. But I have since realised, that some white people can be plain-looking, even ugly.
6. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans were tall. But not all of them are, some are quite short.
7. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans were extraordinarily hard-working. Not only do they maintain a job, some even have two or three! Now I know this is because some simply don't make enough doing one job. And some are only allowed a certain number of hours because it is government policy to keep the American labour market "flexible." I now know that not all folks in rich countries need to work themselves to death. For example, here in Australia, most businesses close by four or five. Malls are dead by 6pm on weekdays, even earlier on weekends! Australians put a premium on leisure time, time to "not work," time to pursue other interests. This is why I tend to believe Canadian author John Ralston Saul, that America is a Third World country, masquerading as an developed economy.
8. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans were not religious. Now I know some of them, especially those living in the middle part, can be quite rabidly fanatic. These fundamentalist Christians are so influential, certain policies are contested in deference to their beliefs. For example, some contested stem-cell research and some opposed teaching evolution in schools!
9. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought other peoples had their version of English. For example, I thought the Japanese had to learn both Nippongo as well as their version of "English" in schools. I didn't know that English was a foreign language altogether. In grade school, I wondered why we needed to learn English at all if the Japanese didn't.
10. Growing up in postcolonial Philipines, I thought America was the best place in the world. This explained why so many people wanted to move there. This explained why, in the local movies, everyone went on vacations in "the States." When a character wanted to take a break from it all, or wanted to improve themselves, they always went to "the States." Their imported things were always "nice" because they were from "the States." So, in my young mind, I thought - "the States" must be great.
But now I now, America is not the best place in the world. Now I know Americans are the most indebted, with their government having a public debt of over $6 trillion. Americans have to pay taxes to launch wars that kill people abroad. Americans have to work more hours to pay for their things. This is because Americans suffer from hyperconsumption. Americans are the fattest people in the world, while paradoxically, those they admire on TV are getting thinner and thinner. Non-white Americans still suffer discrimination. Non-white Americans do not have the same upward economic mobility as white ones. Women are induced to get bigger boobs, even when they are so young. Girls are sexualised so young.
Now I know that America is not the paradise of our postcolonial mind. Americans have their own problems as we do.
2. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, American values are always superior to our own. Values such as individualism, the lack of 'shame' (hiya), assertiveness, initiative, competitiveness, privacy and absolute 'freedom.' I now know that there is nothing wrong with collectivism, a sense of shame, deferring to others, wanting consensus, cooperation, openness and some restrictions to freedom.
3. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans made a decent living - even labourers, that's why not everyone goes to college. I now know that a copywriter for a newspaper in Texas earns less than than an employee at Mc Donald's here in Australia. The college-educated copywriter earns $12USD/hour, a pimply teenager who takes your order earns $17.50 AUD/hour (roughly, $15.50 USD). Now I know the reason why not everyone
goes to college is that tertiary education in the US can be very expensive.
4. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans were smart. Now I know only certain portions of the elite are smart. However, if you're not so smart but rich, you can still become President. The rest who are not so smart are a result of declining standards of public education. If you watch this video, you will see this for yourself.
5. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans were good-looking. I thought all white people were good-looking. The whiter your skin, the more good-looking you are. But I have since realised, that some white people can be plain-looking, even ugly.
6. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans were tall. But not all of them are, some are quite short.
7. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans were extraordinarily hard-working. Not only do they maintain a job, some even have two or three! Now I know this is because some simply don't make enough doing one job. And some are only allowed a certain number of hours because it is government policy to keep the American labour market "flexible." I now know that not all folks in rich countries need to work themselves to death. For example, here in Australia, most businesses close by four or five. Malls are dead by 6pm on weekdays, even earlier on weekends! Australians put a premium on leisure time, time to "not work," time to pursue other interests. This is why I tend to believe Canadian author John Ralston Saul, that America is a Third World country, masquerading as an developed economy.
8. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought all Americans were not religious. Now I know some of them, especially those living in the middle part, can be quite rabidly fanatic. These fundamentalist Christians are so influential, certain policies are contested in deference to their beliefs. For example, some contested stem-cell research and some opposed teaching evolution in schools!
9. Growing up in postcolonial Philippines, I thought other peoples had their version of English. For example, I thought the Japanese had to learn both Nippongo as well as their version of "English" in schools. I didn't know that English was a foreign language altogether. In grade school, I wondered why we needed to learn English at all if the Japanese didn't.
10. Growing up in postcolonial Philipines, I thought America was the best place in the world. This explained why so many people wanted to move there. This explained why, in the local movies, everyone went on vacations in "the States." When a character wanted to take a break from it all, or wanted to improve themselves, they always went to "the States." Their imported things were always "nice" because they were from "the States." So, in my young mind, I thought - "the States" must be great.
But now I now, America is not the best place in the world. Now I know Americans are the most indebted, with their government having a public debt of over $6 trillion. Americans have to pay taxes to launch wars that kill people abroad. Americans have to work more hours to pay for their things. This is because Americans suffer from hyperconsumption. Americans are the fattest people in the world, while paradoxically, those they admire on TV are getting thinner and thinner. Non-white Americans still suffer discrimination. Non-white Americans do not have the same upward economic mobility as white ones. Women are induced to get bigger boobs, even when they are so young. Girls are sexualised so young.
Now I know that America is not the paradise of our postcolonial mind. Americans have their own problems as we do.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
The Girls in My Mind
There I was last night, bright young faces reflected on my lenses. I was cruising for young girls. Girls who looked barely in their teens - round cheeks, flat chests. I was angered as I read their masterfully written self-descriptions, calculated to attract attention. Long, silky hair, meek and submissive, loves to cook, virgin. How could the others have approved them?
Bits and scraps of news read in the past and friends’ and strangers’ anecdotes filled the blanks in my head. I imagined their life stories. Were they real? Were they mere pictures posted by scam artists to lure the depraved and the perverted? Here I am, sitting in the library of a rich university, surrounded by shiny books, shiny tables and shiny people. Here I am, paranoiacally running pictures of the seedy underbelly of transnational prostitution and human trafficking.
At work I delete and delete but they keep coming. They were supposed to be 18, but until I saw their uploaded photo, I had no way of knowing. And so at night, in the safety of my room, I cruise for young girls and note their member numbers to delete. If they were real would I be saving them? If they were real, would I be depriving them and their parents of riches? If they weren’t real, would I be saving some decrepit old man of his dollars or euros? If they weren’t real, would I be depriving a scam artist of his/her daily bread?
This was supposed to be a no-brainer job. I was supposed to save the thinking for the classroom. But I can’t help thinking the worst. When I click, delete and scan, when hundreds of lives pass through my hands, I feel sullied.
Bits and scraps of news read in the past and friends’ and strangers’ anecdotes filled the blanks in my head. I imagined their life stories. Were they real? Were they mere pictures posted by scam artists to lure the depraved and the perverted? Here I am, sitting in the library of a rich university, surrounded by shiny books, shiny tables and shiny people. Here I am, paranoiacally running pictures of the seedy underbelly of transnational prostitution and human trafficking.
At work I delete and delete but they keep coming. They were supposed to be 18, but until I saw their uploaded photo, I had no way of knowing. And so at night, in the safety of my room, I cruise for young girls and note their member numbers to delete. If they were real would I be saving them? If they were real, would I be depriving them and their parents of riches? If they weren’t real, would I be saving some decrepit old man of his dollars or euros? If they weren’t real, would I be depriving a scam artist of his/her daily bread?
This was supposed to be a no-brainer job. I was supposed to save the thinking for the classroom. But I can’t help thinking the worst. When I click, delete and scan, when hundreds of lives pass through my hands, I feel sullied.
10 things I didn't know about Australia and Australians
1. I knew beforehand that they spelled English the British way. Therefore realize is realise and color is colour. What I didn't know was that in Australia traveling is travelling. I predict this will confuse my internal spell-checking system more than it already has (i.e., I sometimes confuse development vs. developpement, address vs. adresse, for the past few years I've been spelling appartment with two p's because that is how it is spelled in French).2. Aussies like to go about barefoot, weather permitting. Permiting? Permitting. They would like to be rid of as many items of clothing where appropriate. For example, it is not uncommon for Aussies to take off their shoes in the classroom or walk about shoeless in campus (especially when it is raining). You will also see barefoot kids and younglings walk about in malls and other public spaces not remotely close to the beach.
3. They don't like Americans much. This is a barely suppressed sentiment that surprised me when I first got here. When I asked my housemate from Melbourne why there is this not-so-apparent dislike of Yanks despite sharing an Anglo-Saxon culture, he says, "They think the world revolves around them." The Canadians go out of their way to say they're Canadian.
4. Every Australian of age is required by law to vote. The fine for not voting is pretty steep at $180(?). Imagine that. At 20 million, it is a smaller population, and so I imagine it wouldn't be that difficult to make sure everyone does their democratic duty.
5. The political ads can be very personal. Since this is an election year and politicians are jockeying for position, you can see some pretty nasty political ads on TV. The government has also caught flack for spending so much on information campaigns. The ones most commonly seen on the tube are about quitting smoking, work relations, women's abuse and drink (yes, not drunk) driving.
6. Like the Philippines, Australia is saturated by American culture. 99% of movies screened are Hollywood, and prime-time TV shows are also dominated by Hollywood. Most of the gossip glossies feature the life and times of Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan.
7. I knew that Australia was skin cancer capital of the world before coming over, but I didn't know just how...powerful the sun can be. Being from the tropics, I am no stranger to sunshine, but the sun here is weird. Maybe its because the angle of the rays hitting the ground is more oblique? Because the air is purer? Because the island-continent is closer to the hole in the ozone layer? I don't know. But the sky can be so frighteningly blue at times. And the brightness can be literally blinding.
8. It's cold in winter. Damn fricking cold. I didn't think it snowed, but apparently down in Victoria it does. Up here in Queensland, it isn't so bad, but 6 degrees celsius at night is 6 degrees closer to freezing point. Brrrr.
9. At risk of making sweeping ethnographic observations, it seems the colder the clime, the colder the people. When we went down to Sydney and Melboure during school break, it amazed us how so few people seemed as friendly as folks up here in Gold Coast.
10. If the newscasts of the past few days are to be believed, blue collar workers (at least up here in Gold Coast) have the potential to earn more than white collar workers. They call electricians, plumbers, bricklayers etc. "trades." One other thing I noticed since I got here - where people who do manual labour in the Philippine strive to be as invisible (i.e. unnoticeable) as possible, folks here who round up trolleys (grocery pushcarts), sweep grounds, cut trees, clean windows, take out the trash etc. etc. are loud. They don't care if they make as much noise as needed to get the job done.
Two Pinoy Indiefilm Makers in France
Omigod. One of my former students won first prize in the Festival International du Film in Marseille. I feel so old. Haha. I almost failed this kid. But while he wasn't good with words, apparently he's good with telling stories in images. Bravo.
Works of Filipino filmmakers Sherad Anthony Sanchez and Raya Martin have now been recognized in Europe.
Huling Balyan ng Buhi (international title: The Woven Stories of the Other) bagged the Prix Premiere or The First Film Prize Award in the First Film and Sound Competition at the recent 18th FID (Festival International du Film) or the Marseille Documentary Film Festival in France.
This indie film, which was named Best Picture in the 2006 Cinema One Originals Film Festival, tells the story of a priestess' conception of stigmata.
Monday, July 23, 2007
SONA 2007
I was hoping for a webcast or something on YT. Maybe someone will upload soon. In the meanwhile, DJB's recorded podcast is the next best thing. Thanks DJB.
Edited to add:
For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV
Edited to add:
For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV
Sunday, July 22, 2007
UP Forum's "Gloria’s Economy: More Than Meets the Eye"
Via uniffors a.k.a the snarky diplomats' blog. Check out their cartoon. Somebody must've seen Transformers when they thought of this forum's title. Tongue in cheek or just plain cheeky?
Regina Bengco of The Malaya reports:
Just a reality check to keep in mind when La Gloria addresses the nation tomorrow. Wish there were a webcast. Somebody please tape it and upload to YouTube!
Some of the points Diokno addresses in the forum:
1. The Arroyo administration "has consistently failed to meet its own gross domestic product growth target, except in 2004 and that further reforms are 'highly unlikely' because of what he said was her government’s weakness."
2. The "misery index" (inflation rate plus unemployment rate) has progressively increased in recent years.
3. "Filipinos are paying more taxes but most of these are being spent by government on debt service while it is spending less for education and basic health care."
4. "The Arroyo administration incurred the highest budget deficits in recent history, as measured in terms of national government deficit, public sector borrowing requirements and consolidated public sector deficit."
5. "Debt servicing has become the government’s top priority, with interest payments at 26.8 percent of government spending from 2001-2004, and rising to 31 percent lately, compared to 19.5 percent during the Estrada administration and 20.7 percent in the Ramos administration."
6. "Interest payments as percentage of GDP rose to 4.8 percent in 2001 and peaked at 5.5 percent in 2006. He said the amount needed to service the government’s debt, both interest and principal, in 2006 is 'almost equal' to the P785.2 billion in taxes that it collected from January to November."
7. "Social services in 2001-2004 dropped to 29.8 percent, as compared to 32.2 percent in the Estrada administration and 28 percent during the Ramos administration."
8. "Arroyo neglected education and basic health care, spending P5,467 per pupil in 2001-2004 (based on 2000 prices), as compared to Estrada’s P5,830. He said public expenditure on education in the Philippines is only slightly better than Indonesia’s."
9. "High school dropout rate peaked at 15.81 percent and at 10.57 percent for elementary in school year 2005-2006 and the completion rate is dropping. He said Indonesia has outpaced the Philippines in terms of quality high school education."
10. "More kids are dying young, at a mortality rate of 34 percent for those under 5 years old and 26 percent for infants."
Diokno asks, "What profit would it be to balance the budget if you are killing kids and neglecting education and infrastructure?"
The UP School of Economics is probably the second most conservative college in UP (after CBA). Again, very strong language from the centre. When they ring the alarm bell, something really wrong must be happening.
Regina Bengco of The Malaya reports:
Prof. Benjamin Diokno of the UP School of Economics, Prof. Leonor Briones of the UP National College of Public Administration and Governance, and FDC president Ana Maria Nemenzo were the presenters in the UP Forum "Gloria’s Economy: More Than Meets the Eye," which was held in anticipation of Arroyo’s seventh State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday.
Diokno was the budget secretary and Briones the national treasurer of President Joseph Estrada.
Diokno, in his presentation on "The Real State of the Nation," said the real per capita growth in the past six years is "not enough to make a significant difference in the lives of most Filipinos."
Just a reality check to keep in mind when La Gloria addresses the nation tomorrow. Wish there were a webcast. Somebody please tape it and upload to YouTube!
Some of the points Diokno addresses in the forum:
1. The Arroyo administration "has consistently failed to meet its own gross domestic product growth target, except in 2004 and that further reforms are 'highly unlikely' because of what he said was her government’s weakness."
2. The "misery index" (inflation rate plus unemployment rate) has progressively increased in recent years.
3. "Filipinos are paying more taxes but most of these are being spent by government on debt service while it is spending less for education and basic health care."
4. "The Arroyo administration incurred the highest budget deficits in recent history, as measured in terms of national government deficit, public sector borrowing requirements and consolidated public sector deficit."
5. "Debt servicing has become the government’s top priority, with interest payments at 26.8 percent of government spending from 2001-2004, and rising to 31 percent lately, compared to 19.5 percent during the Estrada administration and 20.7 percent in the Ramos administration."
6. "Interest payments as percentage of GDP rose to 4.8 percent in 2001 and peaked at 5.5 percent in 2006. He said the amount needed to service the government’s debt, both interest and principal, in 2006 is 'almost equal' to the P785.2 billion in taxes that it collected from January to November."
7. "Social services in 2001-2004 dropped to 29.8 percent, as compared to 32.2 percent in the Estrada administration and 28 percent during the Ramos administration."
8. "Arroyo neglected education and basic health care, spending P5,467 per pupil in 2001-2004 (based on 2000 prices), as compared to Estrada’s P5,830. He said public expenditure on education in the Philippines is only slightly better than Indonesia’s."
9. "High school dropout rate peaked at 15.81 percent and at 10.57 percent for elementary in school year 2005-2006 and the completion rate is dropping. He said Indonesia has outpaced the Philippines in terms of quality high school education."
10. "More kids are dying young, at a mortality rate of 34 percent for those under 5 years old and 26 percent for infants."
Diokno asks, "What profit would it be to balance the budget if you are killing kids and neglecting education and infrastructure?"
The UP School of Economics is probably the second most conservative college in UP (after CBA). Again, very strong language from the centre. When they ring the alarm bell, something really wrong must be happening.
Cebu Prison Inmates De-stress
Via cvj, I came across these videos of inmates from the Cebu Prison and Detention Rehabilitation Centre. Gave me a big smile waking up today. :)
Here they do their rendition of Michael Jackson's thriller.
And Jumbo Hotdog by the Masculados.
Here they do their rendition of Michael Jackson's thriller.
And Jumbo Hotdog by the Masculados.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Lungs and Taxes
If I stay in Australia much longer, I'm going broke. Cigarettes cost an arm and a leg. The cheapest I've found so far costs $13 per pack of 30 sticks. That's 16.50 Pesos per stick. Ouch. You can only buy ciggies in certain places. I suppose the most common are in the news shops and in the grocery. I found it curious that in the grocery the ciggies are hidden from view. They keep them behind an opaque glass case. The case is covered with a Quit Smoking hotline. You never see cigarette ads on TV. There are plenty of Quit Smoking ad reminders from the government and Nicabate (the Aussie Nicorette version) commercials. They REALLY want you to quit so they have all these helpful reminders and they tax cigs to the heavens.
Speaking of taxes, my favourite economist and TV personality Winnie Monsod writes in her column how the Tax Amnesty Bill surreptitiously passed into law:
If you're curious, read the Senate Bill 2479 for yourself here. Don't you just looove the internet?
Speaking of taxes, my favourite economist and TV personality Winnie Monsod writes in her column how the Tax Amnesty Bill surreptitiously passed into law:
It took them nine years, but they did it. They finally succeeded in pushing a tax amnesty bill into law. And it was so quietly (the more accurate word may be “sneakily”) done that I didn’t even know it until I read it in one of the newspapers a couple of days ago—the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for the tax amnesty law are already being prepared and will be released very soon.Winnie must have been very upset by this news because this is the strongest language I've read from her column so far:
Yet another example of the common good being sacrificed for personal interests. Another example of tax-paying Juan de la Cruz getting the short end of the stick in favor of the cheats and evaders—with no more white knights in the Senate to save him.Nine years these tax evaders lobbied government to be "forgiven" their debt to the Filipino. They must be very happy their "investments" paid off. In the meantime, we of the salaried-about-t0-be-extinct Middle Class have no such recourse. I think its bizarre how they named it "An Act Enhancing Revenue Administration and Collection By Granting an Amnesty on All Unpaid Internal Revenue Taxes Imposed by the National Government For Taxable Year 2005 and Prior Years." How does it enhance revenue collection when you let tax evaders get away? This government must really love George Orwell.
If you're curious, read the Senate Bill 2479 for yourself here. Don't you just looove the internet?
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