A New Normal or A New Philippines?

What does the new normal look like?  It looks like this:

What is he doing???? This security guard is dumping sanitizer onto a tiny mat that you walk on and....I don't know...sanitize your shoes? Kill the coronavirus on your shoes???  Seriously what the heck?  What else does the new normal look like?  How about this:

This is the new normal? Shutting most of the entrance to the store and having people wait in a line because only 5 are allowed in at a time is now normal?  This is supposed to keep the public healthy??

No!

This new normal is not about keeping people healthy at all. The government's main concern is controlling individual behavior because it allows them to exercise petty authority and gives their otherwise  meaningless existence a sliver of self importance.

We were told that social distancing was necessary for a limited time to flatten the curve and get back to normal. Now we're being told that social distancing is the new normal forever.  Even though it can only ever be selectively enforced because it is totally unfeasible in the real world.

The government has even crafted legislation to enforce this new normal.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1265835/house-execs-define-new-normal-in-newly-filed-bill

“This bill will prepare and educate the Filipino public for life after the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions and to adapt to the new norms of physical distancing. It institutionalizes a new way of life after the Enhanced Community Quarantine and serves as a guide to the public,” it added. 

The bill proposes that among the measures to be imposed in public places are the mandatory wearing of masks, the availability of handwashing or sanitizing stations in public areas, temperature checks, and physical distancing of at least one meter, but preferable two meters, in all public spaces. 

For public transportation, physical distancing shall also apply in ticket queues, and passengers in all types of public transportation vehicles shall be required to wash their hands or sanitize before boarding the vehicle and be seated a seat apart and be at all times in face masks. 

“Contact-less” payment mechanism shall also be implemented.

"It institutionalizes a new way of life." What that means is that it regulates new behaviors and creates a new class of criminals if they do not behave in the approved way such as wearing a face mask in public. People will also have to practice social distancing in public at all times. Everyone is on board with the new normal. From the DOH to the DOT all sectors of Philippine life will have to adjust.  There is no going back as Harry Roque said.

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2020/04/26/2009938/we-cannot-go-back-general-community-quarantine-new-normal-malacaang-says

In an interview with DZMM on Sunday morning, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said that the Philippines cannot return to life as usual because of the overwhelming effects of the global pandemic. 

“We are no longer back to normal as we know it po. The GCQ is already that, it is the new normal. For as long as there is still no vaccine, we cannot go back to normal as we know it,” he said in a mix of English and Filipino.

Meanwhile...

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1262762/diarrhea-leaves-2-dead-42-down-on-maguindanao-island-village

Two children had died while 42 others had been downed by what health officials believed was an outbreak of diarrhea on an island village of Maguindanao, health authorities reported. 

Health Minister Saffrulah Dipatuan of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao confirmed to reporters that the diarrhea was triggered by contaminated water sources. 

Dipatuan said a health team sent to Barangay Bongo Island off the coast of Parang, Maguindanao, traced the contaminated water from two sources tapped by residents, who are mostly Maguindanaon fishermen. 

One of the water sources is an open well, while the other is a closed well, but both have been found to have a high concentration of e-coli, Dipatuan said. 

“One team sent there to treat the sick and investigate had gathered stool samples that confirmed high e-coli bacteria from water sources,” Dipatuan told reporters. 

Many residents have no toilets and dispose of their human wastes elsewhere. 

The dry spell has ushered in, the time when residents rely mainly on open wells as sources of drinking water.

Wearing face masks, washing your hands, and social distancing are not going to help a community whose water supply is contaminated. What the Philippines needs is not a new normal where everyone is forced to wear a face mask at all times or wash their hands every time they enter a store.  Rather the Philippines needs a total make over and a revamping of society at practically every level. A make over which will lead to a healthier and more sanitary nation. 

Where to even begin?  How about the prisons and jails? Overcrowding has long been a problem in the Philippines. It is only now with the threat of COVID-19 that the government has decided alleviate the situation. 

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1266479/govt-expedites-probation-parole-work-to-decongest-jails-amid-health-threat

“I’ve heard from the mouth of (Justice) Sec. Guevarra himself that they are expediting the processing of individuals who may be qualified for probation and parole to decongest our detention facilities,” Palace spokesman Harry Roque said in an interview over ABS-CBN News Channel Wednesday.

Why wait for a crisis to occur before decongesting the jails and prisons? Why not have this be everyday policy? Of course this would also mean speeding up the courts and not having trials last years on end. 

Can you see what a new normal with the goal of making society heathy really entails?  It requires a total revamping of Philippine society at every single level. From the courts down to the way people behave. Not astroturfing society by having people wear face masks and wash their hands or stay 6 feet away from everyone.  

Or covering EVERYTHING in plastic!

Creating a fire hazard won't stop the spread of COVID-19 but that's not stoping Robinson's Supermarket.

Even one local SM Supermarket locked their side door creating a one way in, one way out situation, and a fire hazard.

Why did these stores do this? Now everyone has to enter and exit the same door and that is not social distancing. How is this not illegal? 

Oh wait. It is illegal!

Section 9. Prohibited Acts. The following are declared as prohibited act and omission.  

(f) Locking fire exits during period when people are inside the building; 

https://lawphil.net/statutes/presdecs/pd1977/pd_1185_1977.html

Is anything going to change in the Philippines? No. Not really. Not fundamentally. I have been out and about since ECQ and GCQ was lifted and it's pretty much the same. I have to wear a face mask, get my body scanned, and get spritzed with alcohol if I want to go inside a store but that's rather superficial. Even before COVID-19 people were wearing face masks because the air is so polluted. People are continuing with the same behaviors from all I have seen.

The Philippines needs a lot of changes if it wants to become sanitary and healthy.  To do that the mindset of the people must be changed. Here is a great example of the mindset that has kept the Philippines a polluted wasteland.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1277808/waste-segregation-more-crucial-amid-pandemic

Waste segregation at source has become more critical amid the pandemic as the volume of potentially infectious waste from household sources is growing, an official of the National Solid Waste Management Commission (NSWMC) said on Tuesday. 

Given these circumstances under the “new normal,” reduction in waste generation must be given priority, while garbage collection systems must quickly respond to this growing concern, said Crispian Lao, NSWMC vice chair who represents the private sector in the commission.

A reduction in waste must be given priority? Sure. That is what RA 9003 is about. But no one pays attention to that law and there is no infrastructure in place to implement it. 

Right now the new normal involves a lot of plastic with the intent of separating people. If the Philippines wants to get healthy that is not the way. Running water, toilets, proper sanitation and waste collection, and a mindset against littering is needed. More than that is needed. A whole revamping society is needed.

That change won't come easy.

Insurgency: Suspension of VFA Termination

Big news this week regarding the Visiting Forces Agreement. Duterte has ordered the suspension of it's termination.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/740884/philippines-suspends-abrogation-of-vfa-with-us/story/

The Philippines has informed the United States that it was suspending for six months the termination of the Visiting Forces Agreement, the treaty which governs the presence of US soldiers conducting military exercises in the country. 

Posting a copy of his note verbale to the US Embassy in Manila on Twitter, Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin said the suspension of the military accord was upon President Rodrigo Duterte's instruction and "in light of political and other developments in the region." 

"I issued this diplomatic note to the US Ambassador. It has been received by Washington and well at that," Locsin said. 

The note, dated June 1, said: "The suspension shall start on even date and shall continue for six months, which period is extendible by the Philippines for another six months, after which the tolling of the initial period in Note Verbale No. 20-0463 dated 11 February 2020 shall resume." 

Shortly after Locsin's tweet, the US welcomed the Philippine government’s decision. 

"Our long-standing alliance has benefited both countries, and we look forward to continued close security and defense cooperation with the Philippines," a US Embassy statement said.

This reversal is in contrast to Duterte's previous statements saying his mind is made up and indicating the VFA was gone for good. It is however only a temporary suspension good for six months and extendible for six more months. That's better than nothing.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1104926

“Ang nangyari lang po, nasuspinde ang termination. Hindi pa po niya sinasabing hindi na tuloy ang termination. So wala pong nagbago sa pag-iisip ng ating Pangulo (What happened is the termination was just suspended. He’s not saying that the termination is already lifted. The President has not changed his mind),” Roque said. 

The Philippine government has decided to suspend the abrogation of VFA “in light of political and other developments in the region.” 

Roque said the Philippines is recognizing the US, its long-time ally, as a “friend” who can lend a hand especially in the fight against terrorism. 

“Alam niyo po, bago na ang anyo ng terorismo ngayon. Wala na pong kinikilalang mga border at wala na pong kinikilalang mga bansa. So lahat po ng bansa na ating kaibigan, Amerika, Tsina, Russia, India, Australia, lahat po sila, importante lahat (You know, terrorism now has a new face. It knows no borders and countries. So, countries like America, China, Russia, India, and Australia are important because we consider them as our friends),” he said.

Of all those countries it is America who gives the most. And the Philippines knows that! 

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2020/06/03/2018434/duterte-saw-untimely-abrogation-vfa-us-during-covid-19-pandemic-lorenzana

In a virtual interview with CNN Philippines' "The Source", the Defense chief said he was told that the Philippines needs cooperation from other countries amid the pandemic, which has infected more than 6 million people across the globe. 

"We need to cooperate with other countries to fight the pandemic and I think the president (Duterte) thought that it's untimely to end the VFA at this moment," Lorenzana said in the interview Wednesday morning. 

Asked if he was consulted on Duterte's decision to temporarily halt the termination of the military pact, Lorenzana said the issue came in a meeting with the president about a month ago. 

"We discussed about it... I think he said it's not timely to end the VFA because of what's happening worldwide," Lorenzana said. 

With the six-month suspension of the abrogation of the VFA, Lorenzana said the US may increase its assistance to the Philippines to fight the COVID-19 crisis. 

"They already gave us some help, assistance especially in providing equipment in our quarantine facilities," Lorenzana said. 

Data from the US Embassy as of May 19 show that the US government has provided more than P785 million (nearly $15.5 million) worth of COVID-19 assistance to the Philippines. 

The US government's assistance to the Philippines has so far supported the increase of DOH testing capacity, upgraded laboratories and strengthened specimen transport system.

The US may increase its assistance? So it's all about the freebies! Are they even paying attention? The US has no plans to stop giving assistance to the Philippines. They have already given millions to fight COVID-19. The US military continues to give support of all kinds in the fight against terrorism. The Philippines is a strategic country in the South Pacific and the USA will continue to have a presence here with or without the VFA.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1105005

The United States embassy in the Philippines said on Friday it will give an additional PHP201 million or USD4 million aid to support the vulnerable population in Mindanao affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. 

This brings Washington's total assistance to the Philippines to over PHP978 million or approximately USD19.5 million. 

The funding, to be implemented by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), aims to reach over 100,000 persons with distributions of essential hygiene supplies, handwashing stations as well as promote hygiene to reduce transmission risk. 

The aid agency will also continue providing water supply in transitory sites in Lanao del Sur for families displaced by the Marawi Siege and in North Cotabato for earthquake-affected communities.

Almost a billion pesos in aid to fight COVID-19 through USAID. The Philippines has nothing to worry about in terms of freebies. That means the reason for Duterte's suspension of the termination is likely because he knows terminating it is a bad idea no one in the region wants except China and he is looking for an excuse to reverse his rash decision. I suspect the VFA will ultimately not be terminated but we shall see.

In the meantime it's business as usual with the AFP fighting rebels, rebels surrendering, and rebels being given huge amounts of freebies at taxpayer expense.

https://pia.gov.ph/news/articles/1043867

Forty-seven former rebels (FRs) in South Cotabato received P65,000 financial aid from the government as beneficiaries of the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP). 

The cash aid handed to the FRs in a ceremony at the South Cotabato Gymnasium and Cultural Center on Thursday  included P50,000 livelihood assistance and P15,000 immediate assistance from the Department of the Interior and Local Government. 

In separate events earlier this year, these individuals received P20,000 each from the Provincial Government of South Cotabato as well as technical trainings, such as poultry production, from the Technical Education and Skill Development  Authority (TESDA). 

Josephine Leysa, regional director of DILG XII in a message read by a representative, told the FRs, “I remember Gov. (Reynaldo) Tamayo Jr, mention in one of his speeches for barangay officials who attended a regional gathering where he announced the surrender of rebels who had enough of the difficult life in the mountains and forests. The governor said, ‘the rebels came down dahil ramdam nila ang tulong ng gobyerno.’ Your presence here today is a testimony of that fact.”  

Apart from the P65,000 aid for each of the former rebels,  the government units that received  the FRs also received a total of P987,000  or P21,000 for each FR  as reintegration assistance. 

Reintegration assistance funds  are intended for the subsistence of the FRs as well as for expenses in securing documents such birth certificates and identification cards, and  expenses for mobility. 

These FRs are being cared under the  Regional Intelligence Unit XII of the Philippine National Police and  the 27th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army. 

They surrendered and laid down their arms to government troops in December 2019 and January 2020. 

That's P86,000 for some of these rebels just for surrendering! 18 rebels in Samar recently graduated with new skills.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1104915

At least 18 former rebels in Northern Samar completed on Thursday the skills training program of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA). 

In a statement, TESDA Eastern Visayas Director Dante Navarro said the graduates have undergone a three-month training on bread and pastry production and cookery at Las Navas Agro-Industrial School in Las Navas town. 

TESDA awarded certificates of training to the graduates and distributed starter tool kits consisting of an electric oven, pastry blender, and other cooking and baking materials. 

Each former rebel also received PHP4,900 allowance, Navarro said. 

During the awarding ceremony, 12 of the former rebels, who are farmworkers of the provincial agriculture office, also received their monthly salary. 

Some of them have also got their Philippine Health Insurance Corporation identification cards, which they can use to avail of the government’s universal health care program, the Northern Samar provincial information office reported. 

Meanwhile, the Philippine Army expressed their continued support as the former rebels carry on with their reintegration process in society. 

“We are here to guide and help them as they start living a normal life and become part of the province’s progress,” said Lt. Col. Juan Gullem, commanding officer of the Army’s 20th Infantry Battalion.

From fighting in the revolution to learning how to bake bread and pastries! Actually bread baking seems to be a common career path for former rebels.

https://www.kalinawnews.com/army-tesda-distribute-cash-allowance-to-scholars/

The primary beneficiaries of the program who undergo Technical-Vocational training are those former members of Underground Mass Organizations (UGMO) and Former Rebels within the Army unit’s Area of Operation as a result of the Community Support Program Immersions. While on training, the students are given a daily allowance of Php100. There was a delay on the distribution since the country faced an unexpected pandemic during the past few months. Upon the declaration of Modified General Community Quarantine in the whole Province of Cotabato, TESDA, in partnership with 72IB, was able to reach out to the students in their respective barangays. The distributions took place in barangays of Gayola, Kidapawan City; and New Cebu, Pres Roxas where students took up Nail care/ Bread and Pastry training and Automotive training respectively; while at Brgy Basak, Magpet, the students also took up the Bread and Pastry and Shielded Metal Arc Welding trainings.

Can you imagine a former rebel who probably has blood on their hands giving you a pedicure or a manicure? Or baking your bread?

There is a new anti-terrorism bill awaiting Duterte's signature which has caused a furor among its opponents.  They say that it puts a damper on free speech and lends greatly to Red-tagging.  One of the most famous instances of Red tagging was the Morong 43 back in 2010. 

This was a group of alleged health care workers arrested over possession of firearms and explosives. They were basically all released.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/208580/court-orders-release-of-morong-43-health-workers/story/

A local court on Friday ordered the release of the “Morong 43" – the group of health workers arrested in February on suspicion that they are members of the New People’s Army (NPA). Judge Gina Cenit-Escoto of the Morong Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 78 on Friday granted the health workers’ freedom after 10 months in detention, upon motion of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to withdraw criminal charges filed against them. The charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives, as well as violation of the election gun ban, were originally filed against the Morong 43. 

The presiding judge said in the resolution that the health workers were arrested during an “illegal search," since the warrant used to raid the place where they were nabbed did not satisfy certain constitutional requirements. “The search warrant… should particularly describe the place to be searched… The subject search warrant made mention of an entire barangay where the properties to be seized may be found," Cenit-Escoto said in the resolution. The decision likewise ruled that the Morong 43 cannot be prosecuted since items being used to prove their guilt cannot be admitted by the court. “All the items seized during the illegal search are prohibited from being used as evidence. Absent these items presented by the prosecution, the conviction of accused-appellant for the crime charged loses its basis," the document read.

All evidence was thrown out because the illegal search made it inadmissible! Just goes to show that the authorities must stick to the letter of the law no matter how hard it is. It turns out these people were probably not just "health workers."

https://www.kalinawnews.com/one-of-morong-43-dies-after-2nd-mindoro-encounter-in-four-days/

One female NPA terrorist died after a 10-minute encounter against soldiers at Brgy Mangangan Uno of Baco, Oriental Mindoro on Thursday afternoon. 

The military identified the dead terrorist as Lorelyn Saligumba alias Fara, the Political Instructor of KLG ICM’s Platoon Dos and a member of “Morong 43” whom left-leaning organisations branded as “plain health workers” when they were apprehended in 2010. 

According to Col Jose Augusto Villareal, Commander of the 203rd Infantry Brigade which has operational jurisdiction over Mindoro Island, government troops recovered from the encounter site one firearm, an IED, technical gadgets, personal effects, food stuff, medicines and voluminous enemy documents with high intelligence value. 

He said that “our troops were responding from reports from concerned citizens about the presence of about 10 NPA extortionists who were forcing people to give them food” which, according to him, “is an indicator of the NPA’s crumbling mass base support and the prevailing extreme hunger that they are now suffering in the mountains of Mindoro due to our relentless focused military operations.”

What can we learn from this? That there are indeed communist front groups in the Philippines? Of course that is standard communist tactics having front groups. There are plenty of those in the Philippines. Everyone knows this. What we can really learn is that not all red-tagging is without merit.

You know this insurgency is one more indicator of how backwards the Philippines is. While the rest of the world has moved on as the Cold War ended 30 years ago the Philippines continues to fight a communist revolution! 50 years of fighting a communist revolution!! Just give up already.  It took Mao, Castro, and the Bolsheviks only a few months to win their respective communist revolutions! What is wrong with the Philippines?

According to the AFP it's almost all over.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1104503

"As we come close to the second half of this year, we are proud to report that our internal security operations continue to bring us closer to realizing our vision of a complete victory against the communist scourge in the country,” AFP chief-of-staff Gen. Felimon Santos Jr. said in a statement. 

This came as six members of the New People's Army (NPA) were killed and eight others were captured in joint military and police operations from May 24 to 30. 

“Our troops on the ground continue to prove their operational excellence in neutralizing the threats posed by the communist terrorist group in the countryside. Our strong partnership with local chief executives also helped NPA members to safely return to the fold of the law,” he added.

Seeing as the AFP has been saying this for at least 30 years since Cory Aquino took office I take it with a huge grain of salt. Best to just keep on fighting instead of making predictions.

The Filipino is A Great Race: An Experimental Poem by Sofronio Dulay

Sofronio Dulay has written an experimental poem about the greatness of the Filipino race. Dulay is currently the patriarch of the Royal House of Tondo and the Patriarchate of the Royal Houses of the Philippines. As I wrote before about him he is basically a king. A king wrote an experimental poem about the greatness of the Filipino race. Let's take a look at his verse.

The full poem can be found on his website.

https://sites.google.com/site/totidulay/greatrace

I am not going to post the whole text here. Instead I will dissect it line by line.

"We are the only old Christian nation in Asia.
English speaker."

Indeed the Philippines is the only Christian and English speaking nation in Asia. There are of course other Asian countries that speak English and have been Christianized. But how does having a foreign language and religion thrust upon them make the Filipino race great? Haven't you heard that the Catholic Church is evil and so are the Americans?  I hear that very often. So how does practicing an evil religion and speaking an evil tongue make the Filipino race great?

"Good looking. A mixture of Hispanic and Chinese race…mga tisoy tayo.We take a bath daily, even twice a day, so we smell nice. In cold countries, they take a bath once a week, so, you can imagine how they smell….they envy us….and they like to marry Filipinos…."

The Filipino race looks good because they are a mixture of the Hispanic and Chinese race. Does that mean without that added blood Filipinos would not be so good looking? How does the addition of foreign blood to the Filipino race make the Filipino race great? Isn't that proof of being conquered and thus an inferior race?

Filipinos bathe twice a day while in cold countries they bathe once a week. That's certainly a lie but even if it were true how does that make the Filipino race great? Even a cat bathes himself. Many times  day in fact.

It is true that foreigners do like to marry Filipinos. But how does that make the race great? Miscegenation is a pollution of the gene pool!

"We are the only race on earth that won all the five major beauty contests: Miss World, Miss Universe, Miss International, Miss Earth and Miss Supranational.."

This is not true because there are only four major international beauty pageants. Miss Supranational is not one of those pageants. If we look at the statistics we see that four countries have won each of those contests with Venezuela winning the most times with 23 wins.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Four_international_beauty_pageants

If we look at the winners of Miss Supranational, which has only been around since 2009, there is only one Filipino winner. Mutya Datul won in 2013. This pushes the Philippines to 16 wins in all five contests. That is still seven less wins than Venezuela. 

How does winning a beauty pageant prove the Filipino race is great? Especially when Dulay has admitted the Filipino race is a mixture of Hispanic and Chinese blood and thus impure? How does winning a beauty pageant prove the greatness of anyone? It's a subjective contest and beauty fades. One day all those ladies will be old crones. It's pure vanity.

"We are clean…its part of who we are….."

The Philippines is actually one of the most polluted nations on earth. From the air to the water to the ground there is pollution everywhere. A great race would take pride in their land and keep it clean don't you think? Maybe he is referring to the two baths a day regimen.

"We are good businessmen. 

Our malls are bigger than most malls in the US. We are conservative bankers…"

There are indeed plenty of good businessmen in the Philippines. They are mostly Chinese. What does having a large mall have to do with the greatness of one's race?

The Mall of Asia in Pasay is the 15th largest mall in the world

On the list of the world's largest malls there are 37 Philippine malls and only 19 United States malls. In the top 10 there are 4 Chinese malls, 3 Thailand malls, and only 2 Philippine malls. The largest mall in the world is in New Jersey.

Filipinos have a wide selection of large malls from which to buy overpriced foreign luxury goods. Great. How does the ability to consume imported goods make the Filipino race great? Of those 19 US malls how many are selling Filipino products? And I don't mean products produced in the Philippines for a US owned company.

"We are family oriented. We never dump our parents to the home for the aged.

We never drive away our children from home when they reached 18."

This is simply wrong. Sometimes mom or dad get very sick and they need to stay in a home for the aged. They need professional healthcare 24 hours a day. For many this is a hard decision and it is wrong to say they are dumped in a home for the aged like a bag of garbage. This is also a misunderstanding of the West and it relates to his next line.

In the West Children are not driven away at 18. Rather children are encouraged to leave the nest and become independent adults living their own lives having their own families and homes. In the Philippines the opposite is true. Momma's little baby boy is her little baby boy until she dies and she never wants him to leave the home. That is detrimental to society and to the well-being of her son who will never grow up to be a man because of his overprotective mother. There are many such cases in the Philippines.

With their sense of personal independence people in the West do not want to live with their children when they get old. They don't want to go to the home for the aged. They will do all they can to remain independent. Filipinos do not have this sense of personal independence. Sometimes generations of families will live under one roof. How does a lack of a sense of independence make a race great? It doesn't. It makes a race of leeches.

"Our culture is European. Roman Catholic influenced. Surnames are western…our Kundimans are just like Italian songs." 

Am I reading a poem about the greatness of the Filipino race?? How does having a European culture make the Filipino race great? If the Philippines has a European culture that would make the European race who built that culture the greater race. Only an inferior race adopts a foreign culture.

The Philippines does not have a European culture. European influenced, yes. The government, the economy, even popular culture are all Western influenced. But Filipinos do not even understand those institutions. Human rights, free speech, the function of the government and politicians as servants of the people, none of that is comprehended by Filipinos the way it is in the West. Even with TV the programs are so bottom of the barrel and lowest common denominator it is a joke. You won't find innovative TV in the Philippines.

And what about those Western surnames? How does having a foreign surname make Filipinos a great race? It is a constant reminder that they were conquered by a greater and more powerful race of men. Having a Western surname is not much different from being branded.

The next bit is hilarious. 

"We have easy life. In America “no work, no eat”, not in the Philippines please."

So Filipinos are leeches? In America you can eat without working. Here is what that looks like:

That's called a homeless shelter. Why would being able to eat without working make the Filipino race great especially when the very first item listed in this poem is that the Philippines is a Christian nation? Does Sofronio Dulay not know what the Bible says?

2 Thessalonians 3:10 For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.

Maybe he means the bayanihan spirit? No idea. But no one is going hungry in America unless they want to. Food banks and food kitchens abound. Not to mention food stamps and other types of welfare. America supports her leeches too.

"We are hardworkers…we have double jobs…. and we save money for our family.
The Philippines is a middle income country…If countries are people, we are middle class. As a middle class, we enjoy the indulgence of the rich and we can also feel the adventures of the poor…so, why pin us down on the lower middle class side alone…. pag middle class ka..kumakain ka ng litson at tuyo and you don’t mind…"

Working two jobs does not make one a hard worker. In the Philippines wages are depressed and so is the currency. One might need to work two jobs just to make ends meet. The same happens in the West too. 

Saving money for one's family is nice but that is all tied to the lack of personal independence. Parents should not rely on their children for financial support as so many do. They should be an example of economic thrift and perseverance. Parents should teach their children how to earn, save, and spend their money responsibly. Children should not be expected to give all their money to their family. How are they supposed to build their own family and life if they give all their money away? It's a toxic and neverending cycle.

The Philippines is a lower middle income country according to the World Bank.

https://data.worldbank.org/?locations=PH-XN

What does he mean by "the adventures of the poor?"  Is living in a bamboo shack next to a pile of garbage and polluted water source an adventure? How does that make the Filipino race great?

"We are the only country who fought three world powers and got what we want.

We fought Spain, the Filipino - Spanish War, the world power then…and we won and declared our independence.

We fought the Americans, the Filipino - American War,  the world power then and now, and we won because we got our independence. If Russia defeated Germany thru its long and harsh winter, we defeated the Americans into giving us independence thru eloquence and diplomacy.

We fought Japan, the Filipino - Japanese War, ….and we defeated them by using American support to drive the Japanese in our country out…

We had a lot of rehearsals on this war stuff, and with great powers at that...we can take on any pretender at this point...pag di natin makuha ng patayo, kinukuha natin ng pahiga..di uubra kalokohan nila satin..

now tell me, if this is not greatness as a race, call it football."

Is he serious? The Philippines did not fight the Spanish alone. It was the Americans who won that war. Though the Philippines did declare independence nobody recognized it and the nation was made a colony of the United States. By the way the first constitution and the entire independence movement was Masonic in nature and based on Western ideals of governance and liberty.

"We defeated the Americans into giving us independence thru eloquence and diplomacy." That is complete lie.  As I have documented the USA always intended to give the Philippines independence once they had proven themselves to be capable of self government. Independence came in 1946, eleven years after a plebiscite in which the entire nation voted for it.  

The Philippines defeated the Japanese using American support. How does that make the Filipino race great? They couldn't defeat the Japs on their own so they used the Yanks. Meanwhile the Americans conquered and developed a whole continent defeating all hostile elements with no one's help.

"We can take on any pretender at this point?" What a joke! The insurgency has been going on for 50 years with no end in sight! The Philippines can't even defeat mountain and jungle dwelling communists and Muslims. The Philippines is also using American support to fight that war. Imagine if a real "pretender" stepped up to take over the Philippines. You know like China. 

"We dont like corruption, we jailed two corrupt Presidents so far.."

Is he talking about Estrada and Macapagal? Estrada was convicted and sentenced to life in prison but Macapagal pardoned him! He never paid for his crimes. Later she was arrested but acquitted of all charges by the Supreme Court because the DOJ failed to prepare a sufficient case against her. Meanwhile the Philippines remains one of the most corrupt nations in the world.

https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2020/1/23/Philippines-corruption-worsens.html

"We are superior people, so, come on, let us work harder. And indulge. And enjoy life…because superior people like us work very hard and we deserve indulgence."

Filipinos are superior and work hard so they deserve to indulge? That's not the motto of a great race. That's the motto of a lazy and self-indulgent people. Do you think the British conquered the world and then sat back thinking they deserved a little indulgence? How about the Mongols, the Greeks, or the Romans? Let's quote the Bible again.

Proverbs 6:10 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:11 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.

That's the end of Sofronio Dulay's poem. He shared it with some people on the internet which caused lot of heated discussion for and against. He came to the following conclusion.

Conclusion: if you like this article, you are subconsciously a patriotic Filipino. If you feel bad about this article, in one way or another, you may not know it consciously, but you have a deep - rooted hatred or uneasiness of your being a Filipino or of your Filipino connection. You are a Filipino who can not be expected to defend our country in times of war. Huli ka, bata!!!

His conclusion, like the rest of his poem, is false. Nothing in this poem exemplifies greatness. According to Sofronio Dulay the Filipino race is great because they practice a foreign religion, speak a foreign tongue, have foreign blood mixed with their own, have won foreign beauty contests because of their foreign blood, have large malls where they can buy foreign goods, have no sense of  personal independence, and won a war with the help of foreigners.

That is not greatness. If the Filipino race is a great race then it must be judged by a higher standard than the size of their malls and the dilution of their blood. How about the marks on The Cultural Iceberg?

How does the Filipino race and culture add up compared to the rest of the world in all these categories? Everything Dulay has listed is vain and silly and the opposite of what makes a great race. In fact all the things he listed have to do with the Filipino race adopting other the cultures of other races! Funny that he could not think of anything genuinely Filipino as evidence for the greatness of the Filipino race.

Picture of the Week: PNP Squad Out For a Morning Run

I wake up and go for a run at 4am and have done so more or less every day for 8 years now.  The other day for the first time ever I saw the following sight:

An interesting sight to behold.  I think there were about 21 PNP officers doing morning PT. If I ever see them again I will be surprised.  They were all chanting a cadence and said,"Good morning, sir," but I am not sure if that was directed towards me.  Could have been though.

Retards in the Government 157

It's your weekly compendium of foolishness and corruption in the Philippine government. 

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/regions/740984/lanao-del-sur-town-mayor-hurt-in-ambush-police/story/

The mayor of Lumbaca Unayan in Lanao del Sur and two others were hurt after his vehicle was ambushed in Cagayan De Oro City on Wednesday morning, Police Regional Office X said. 

Police said Mayor Somerado Guro was onboard a Toyota Hilux pick-up with his wife and some bodyguards, traversing along Zone 2, Iponan, when armed men riding a motorcycle fired shots at the car. 

Also hurt in the incident were his wife Rohaifa and driver Ibrahim Gani while Abdul Rafi Guro, one of the mayor's staff, was luckily not hit, police said.

Another mayor shot at by motorcycle gunmen. He made it but his wife did not.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1285443/pnp-charges-301-village-execs-for-corruption-in-sap-cash-aid-payouts-dilg

“The 301 barangay officials facing criminal cases as of June 2 is just the latest figure reported to the DILG, hence, people should expect the filing of more criminal cases in the coming days,” Interior Undersecretary and Spokesperson Jonathan Malaya said in a statement.

"Just the latest figure reported to the DILG."  They say expect more to come.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1285323/crisis-seen-in-absence-of-jeepneys

Anger mounted in Metro Manila on Tuesday over lack of public transportation for workers allowed to return to their jobs after three months of quarantine, with senators calling the situation an emerging crisis and slamming transportation officials for their insensitivity and lack of foresight. 

Jeepneys, UV Express vans, and most public utility buses remain prohibited, even though more businesses were allowed to resume operations. 

Transport officials refused to allow jeepneys and UV Express vans to go back to their routes because these vehicles accept fare only in cash, which is the only way the majority of commuters—the low-income earners who don’t own smartphones—pay for their rides. 

The ban on jeepneys and city buses backfired on the government’s economic reopening plan, with thousands of workers again failing to get to their jobs or begging for rides on Tuesday and transport officials not backing down. 

“Three months under [quarantine] and still they have no clear plan in place. What happened to foresight? It’s good they have air-conditioned vehicles. Why don’t the DOTr officials try to commute from their homes to their offices?” Binay said. 

“[The] DOTr knew that Metro Manila and the rest of the regions will soon be transitioning to the new normal. They knew that 30 percent of those in [Metro Manila] will start going to work by June 1— and then they will deploy trucks for free rides [that] compromise and breach all health protocols, particularly physical distancing,” she said. 

Binay also criticized the ban on jeepneys, describing it as “unrealistic, anticommuter at antiworker.”

The government reopens the economy but bans jeepnies because they do not accept cashless payments. This leaves millions of people stranded and unable to get to their jobs unless they take the free truck ride provided by the DOTr.  This truck ride breaches the social distancing protocols. It's caused a real mess and the MMDA blames it all on the commuters!

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1285288/mmda-commuters-to-blame-for-chaos

MMDA General Manager Jose Arturo Garcia said the people “seemed to have lost focus” that the new coronavirus that causes the severe respiratory disease COVID-19 was still around and could spread wider with the easing of restrictions on public transportation. 

“They were focused on traveling even though they [knew], just as the Department of Transportation said, our first priority is health and safety,” Garcia said in a radio interview. 

He cited the crowding of hordes of commuters along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City on Monday, with no one giving others a wide berth as they waited for rides that never came. 

Garcia also mentioned the crowding on a truck that police deployed to ferry stranded commuters. 

“When they saw the free rides, many commented on social media that commuters fought over these, they were on the road, there were no lines. They were each to his own and forgot that the priority is to stay safe from [the coronavirus],” Garcia said. 

Ariel Inton, head of Lawyers for Commuters’ Safety and Protection, slammed Garcia’s remarks as insensitive, “assuming that people are stupid or stubborn.” 

“The only reason they are outside is because we reopened so many businesses, and they would not have gone [out to go to work] if they [had not been] asked,” Inton said. 

But they banned jeepneys, UV Express vans, and city buses that serve most of the routes through business districts in the metropolis because it would be difficult to implement the cashless fare system on these vehicles, making them risky for virus transmission. 

But without these vehicles, low-income workers, the bulk of Metro Manila’s workforce, cannot go to work. Transport officials encourage the use of bicycles, but don’t say how people can ride bicycles under heavy rain during the rainy season, which is almost here.

What did they expect? And now the government is shuffling blame to the people!

https://www.panaynews.net/hoodlums-in-uniform-2-cops-charged-in-britanico-muller-slays/

After four months of probe, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) charged two policemen and two other unidentified suspects with murder and theft for the Jan. 19, 2020 shooting here of a son of former assemblyman Salvador “Buddy” Britanico and a call center agent. 

The successive killings – just minutes apart – of 36-year-old businessman Delfin Britanico of La Paz district and 42-year-old call center agent and drug surrenderer Alain Muller of Jaro district were initially thought as separate incidents. The NBI, however, discovered they were related by circumstance. 

Charged before the Department of Justice (DOJ) on May 29 were Police Corporal Jerry Villanueva assigned at the Regional Personnel Holding and Accounting Unit of the Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) and Police Corporal Joseph Andrew Joven of the Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO). 

Joven had been AWOL (absent without official leave) since March 12 while Villanueva was immediately placed under restrictive custody at the PRO-6’s Regional Headquarters Support Unit right after the charges were filed by the NBI’s Death Investigation Division.

Two cops charged with the murder of the son of a former Assemblyman and a person involved with drugs who had surrendered.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1104868

A Pasig City policeman was arrested using a motorcycle that was seized October last year from an anti-drug operation. 

In a press statement on Thursday, Brig. Gen. Ronald Lee, chief of the Integrity Monitoring Enforcement Group (IMEG), identified the suspect as Cpl. Esteven Mark Pandi, currently assigned at the Station Drug Enforcement Unit (SDEU) of Pasig City Police Station. 

Pandi was caught using the motorcycle without a plate number and was arrested in a police operation along Evangelista St. in Barangay Santolan on Wednesday afternoon. 

Lee said the motorcycle, a blue Yamaha NMAX, was confiscated from a drug personality during a buy-bust operation in the city on Oct. 4, 2019 — as clearly shown in the inventory of confiscated pieces of evidence. 

Recovered from the suspect are one Colt .45-caliber pistol with one magazine and six live ammunitions with no pertinent documents, and one Beretta 9mm with two magazines and 20 live ammunitions. 

The suspect is now under the custody of the PNP-IMEG for proper disposition and filing of appropriate charges.

This is not the first time a cop has stolen a motorcycle recovered in a drug bust operation.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1286236/pasay-city-govt-orders-probe-of-cop-who-drew-gun-while-evicting-tenants

The Pasay City government on Thursday directed the city police to investigate a police officer who is the subject of a viral video on Facebook for unholstering his handgun while evicting tenants inside a house. 

“I immediately called Pasay Police chief, Col. Ericson Dilag, and directed him to investigate this matter and undertake necessary measures on the involved policeman if the evidence and facts would merit it,” City Mayor Emi Calixto-Rubiano said in a statement. 

Rubiano said the recorded video showed an altercation between a family and the police officer, who is allegedly the landlord of a house in Barangay 145. 

According to Pasay Public Information Office, the uploader of the video said the heated argument happened last April 12 but they managed to publish the video on Facebook this Wednesday. 

The 2-minute controversial video showed the police officer, wearing his uniform and a face mask, as he allegedly slapped one of the tenants and shouted: “Ano ni-re-reklamo mo? (What are you complaining about?).” 

The policeman also drew his firearm while taunting the tenants.

Now he is under investigation. What is he complaining about?

The New Normal Jeepnies, Tricycles, and Taxis

The new normal is here and in Manila that means no jeepnies.  But where I live jeepnies are allowed though they have been modified. Let's take a look.

Each jeepney has its seats partitioned so that only 12-8 people, depending on the size of the vehicle, can ride at a time. This is good because it stops crowding. Having twenty people squished together is dangerous. But with less riders the price has increased. A 7 peso ride is now a 10 peso ride. However payment is still made the same way: in cash! And it's handed down from the passengers to the driver. So in that respect nothing has changed. You're just ensconced in plastic!

To pay the driver you stick your hand through that little slot and physically place your coins in his palm. Sure every one is wearing a mask but money is still literally changing hands. I guess that's why this driver wore gloves.

Every jeepney requires all riders to wear a face mask and some even have bottles of alcohol hanging from the ceiling for passenger's use. Here is what an empty new normal jeepney looks like:

Now if you haven't guessed the new normal for public transportation means partitioning the riders from each other and from the driver. Here is how the tricycles manage this partitioning:

I don't ride tricycles but I have a hunch they don't take cashless payments. You still have to hand the driver your money. Not all tricycles have installed a plastic divider in the back but most have.

The same partitioning is also seen in the new normal taxis.

What good is it to have the plastic installed if the entire driver's seat is not blocked off from the passenger seat? Why allow that little bit of space? Same goes for the front.

What's the point if the whole seat is not blocked off? 

So this is new normal as far as public transport goes. It's not too terrible. In the case of the jeepnies this forced limitation on passengers is a good thing. No more overcrowding!

https://philippinefails.blogspot.com/2017/05/tales-from-jeep.html

Why not allow this jeepney modification in Manila? It might make things a whole lot easier.