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| Twenty years ago I was a third grade elementary student in the University of the Philippines Integrated School. We didn't go school anymore because it was senseless to go to school. Everyone was out in the streets waiting for the counting of the snap election to finish. The whole world was watching. It seemed that the dictator would never be overthrown, but then a sudden turn of events occured. The dictator lost control of the very army that helped him stay in power. Over the next few days, Filipinos will drive over the very same roads that twenty years ago brought freedom back to the Filipino people.
But twenty years on, where is EDSA?
It seems that we never learned anything. In the past twenty years, we've had coup de eta'ts, ousted a president, trying to oust the new one, an economic growth spurt and now we seem to be struggling in the mud. The same politicians that we wanted out in 1986 are the same people in power today. Who elected them? We did! It's just so depressing twenty years on.
It deeply saddens me that young Filipinos have no concern for history, in particular, EDSA. It saddens me that the very freedom that many gave their lives for achieving is merely a holiday for many. The freedom that we have today has meaning and it has worth. There are many things that people are doing today that twenty years ago, you could not.
The news on radio and TV was all prepared. Why bother changing channels when all the channels will only be showing the same news.
Protesting in the streets is enough for some people to mysteriously disappear and never to be seen again.
We do not have government sanctioned curfew.
We can freely travel in and out of the country.
We can freely say what we think and feel (most of time it's too much).
And the list goes on and on.
And we continue to do all of these things, without remembering how we earned this freedom.
The events of EDSA is not just a faded battleground where people gathered. Chances are, we travel on it everyday. We still use the same airport in the very same terminal where Ninoy Aquino died. Cars, buses and trains run on EDSA everyday and there are still signs of 1986. The two military camps are still there. The same intersections where sand bags where piled to stop the incoming tanks. The same streets where millions of Filipinos stood theiur ground against troops and tanks to protect soldiers defecting from the dictator. (Some in the coming months would try to unseat the government through violent means.)
It is there for a reason, so we would not forget.
As a nation, we inspired the world and got their attention. Until now, I still have some people asking what happened there. And what have we done with that? We just trampled on it. Greedy elements lustful for power used and is trying to use any means necessary to gain power. All at the cost of the Filipino.
These are people who are not worth calling Filipinos. For they mean to harm us.
These "so-called youth/ students" who oppose the current administration, those who lie down on the streets to drive their point across have a right to do so. But I too have rights. I also have the right not to listen to them. I have the right to tell them that they are wrong.
These rebel soldiers who are going against the very constituition they swore to protect. They are to protect the presidency, the people and the constituition. But their actions have done nothing but cause us harm. To dilute the seat of the president, to harm the lives of Filipinos, to reduce the freedom of our constituition to a mere military "junta". Not to mention to ally themselves with the very communists that are determined to crush all that the very freedom we have fought for. It is insulting to think that our tax money went to pay for the education of these fools.
Politicians who want to grab power by any means do not deserve our votes, for it is clear they do not represent the people, but only themselves.
And most of all, people who forget why EDSA happened.
If we do not remember the reasons why the people went out to the streets to protect strangers from being killed, if we do not value the very freedom that we have then we do not deserve it.
Is the Filipino worth dying for? If someone had asked me that twenty years ago, I would have said "yes". But ask me that today, I do not know the answer. | | |
| My main blog
I have decided to make my main blog site will be in the address above. Blogger has won over me with ease of domain name and such. Basically it was just the domain name. I could do more in blogger than any other site. I'm trying to produce a podcast which will be hosted on my dot mac site since that has more space. I'll still keep this as some sort of archive but I'm directing everyone to go to that site because that will be the one I'll be updating regularly.
But do not fret. For some of my reviews, I'll place it here for easy access to Amazon.com. And to keep in touch with my friends who check this page out from time to time. Anyway, Happy New Year! | | |
| I don't know where to start anymore. It's just so bad.
Body: Apart from everything that has been happening in the Philippines these past few weeks has been far from dull. I have chosen to remain quiet about this in my blog for a very long time because it is not in my interest to make such political comments. But because of today's events I just have to speak out even if it's just my blog.
I'm currently posting this at two sites where my blogs are placed. Please leave comments and pass it around. I encourage you to.
I was born in 1976. A time when the Philippines was still under Martial Law under the dictatorship of President Ferdinand Marcos. I was in third grade when his reign ended and President Corazon Aquino took office after winning the February snap elections.
It is 2005 today. I have finished my college education. Voted twice in presidential elections and regularly pay my taxes to the government. My entire education has been paid for by the Filipino people and I have remained in the country to serve the nation that put me to school and to serve the country that I was born into. I am lucky enough to have travelled around the world. I could have just left this country and serve some other nation with my God given skills but I did not. Or should I say I have not. Today has given me a reason to not to serve this country anymore.
I have been long disappointed with Filipinos for a very long time now. Other than the fact they cannot follow traffic rules, pay taxes, complain about every single thing that they themselves did not pay taxes for and so on. I am ashamed to be part of a race and to be part of a country that forgets history easily.
For those of you who haven't been watching TV or reading newspapers lately, the President of the Philippines is being accused of cheating in last year's elections. Her family has been accused of profiting from illegal gambling. And because of these accusations some people are asking her to resign. Some people are blackmailing her to resign. People have threatened her to resign. And today people have gathered in the Makati Business District and demanding her to resign.
In light of events today, this is my opinion of the entire situation. The court of law is here to serve justice. Justice is civilized society is done in the courts and not in the streets. Even President Estrada was given more respect than this. He had his day in court. Accusations are being made based on illegally wiretapped conversations of not only the president, but various government officials as well. Conversations that include the president's accusers as well. If they have complaints about the president, take it to court. According to Philippine law, illegally wiretapped conversations are inadmissible. If we allow every here-say and rumor and take it at face value, no individual will be able to do any work done. No president will last long enough to reach a hundred days.
Take a look at the stage on who are there. People of the opposition, movie actors, and children of dictators. Surrounded by leftists and communists, masses of people (many who have been paid to be there) and the world media. Are these the kind of people who we want to lead a nation? It takes more than words to lead a stubborn nation. These are people who are threatening the very constitution that holds this country together. They are asking the President to resign with no clear plan on how to solve the country's problems. None of these problems will go away with the mere resignation of the president. These are problems that will merely pass on the next poor fellow in line.
Those who have not given back to the nation do not deserve to vote. They do not deserve to have an opinion. They did not build this nation. This nation was built by men and women who believed that we were worthy to be a country; who gave their lives for the very freedom that we enjoy today. There are many who have done nothing but take from the government. Not just corrupt officials, but also those who do not pay taxes. They are not worthy of the benefits of citizenship.
Those gathered in the streets today are people who have easily forgotten the lessons of history. They forget that Congresswoman Imee Marcos is the daugther of President Ferdinand Marcos. They forget that Senator Jinggoy Estrada has criminal charges against him and his father. They forget that Susan Roces is a movie actress.
President Aquino has asked the President to resign as well. But I would like to ask her, why did she not resign in the six years she was President of this republic? After many bloody coup attempts, threats to her life, bombing the Presidential Palace, why did she not step down?
Because the presidency cannot be bought, threatened or intimidated. She should know herself the reason why.
The issue here is, who wiretapped the government? That is an issue that should be answered. It takes a lot of money and skills and influence to be able to wiretap the government let alone the president of the country. This is the very threat to our nation. And the fact that Filipinos are willing to be blackmailed into the streets by a mere taped conversation, this is threat to our liberty and our freedom.
Before you go out shouting and asking the president to resign, look around you and see where you are in this nation. Are you a taker? Or a giver? I may stay another couple of years to see if the Filipino is worthy of the freedom and liberties that we currently have. I still have something to give this country and it's just not my tax money. | | |
| Ok I've had a ton of changes in my life. One of them is being parted with my dear powerbook for more than a month. I've changed my blog at my homepage at http://homepage.mac.com/mdelamerced/ . Read about the problems of my computer and my blog there as well. I've made upgrades if you may call it that will allow comments now to be posted at my new blog. Check it out. | | |
| I am forced to update this blog because I just brought my trusty powerbook to the repair shop for a noisy fan issue. They said they might have to replace the motherboard and I'm not the only person to bring my PB in for repairs. So here I am. While backing up my HD, I discovered the blog backup of my other site so it seems I may have another chance to continue my previous blog. Yippeee!
I'm currently starting another project. I'm calling it my K700i project. I'm taking pictures using only my camera phone, the k700i. Check out the site here.
K700i Project | | |
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