GRPundit

I was 10 when Edsa 1 took place, classes were suspended,  F-4 jets were flying overhead, but first and foremost, what counted to me and my sister was that there were no classes for that week. We, as a nation had a "bloodless revolution" - we had ousted the Marcose's and put into power Cory Aquino.  Apparently she was robbed of her mandate during the election count, where NAMFREL had declared her as the winner and COMELEC said otherwise, where we saw the walkout happen during the quick count, and the rest was history. I feel that a lot of the things that we went through as a nation during EDSA 1 has taken us nowhere. Most of the key players during the MARCOS regime weren't made accountable for their actions, and the roles they played during the Martial Law period...such as Juan Ponce Enrile and Fidel Valdez Ramos, Defense Minister and Police Constabulary chief respectively. Basic discipline has gone to the dogs - where before we had bit of disc...

If former President Marcos was as bad as they paint him out to be, then why build so many schools that further improved people’s literacy ? Why bother developing the country’s infrastructure that would enhance the economy? With an independent and highly functioning society, the gov’t wouldn’t need to impose Martial Law. And Dictatorship would certainly be resisted. If somebody were a true dictator and as corrupt to the core, he would create conditions that debilitate the country and incapacitate the very people he wants to rule over and steal from– through an unending cycle of poverty, miseducation, dumbing down of the culture through corporate media and depriving them of elevated culture. Is this being a pro-Marcos? It’s just a perspective. No need for labelling and putting things into boxes that only bring discussions to a dead-end. Who knows, maybe the truth might be too complex that even the scholars and historians aren’t ready for it. ------------------------ Thi...

"There were three times more arrests per year under Cory than under Marcos: 3,627 against 1,960. The average of those killed and disappeared during Cory’s watch was 244 annually, which isn’t too far from Marcos’ 296. "Now, as they want Marcos Jr. to apologize for the human rights abuses under his father’s government, shouldn’t they ask President Benigno Aquino 3rd and his sisters to apologize for those during their mother’s time?" -------------------------- Excerpt taken from " Human rights abuses under Cory as bad as dictator’s record – Marcos critics’ own data ", Tiglao Manila Times April 17, 2016

I’m not an attorney but you just need to look at the speed of which our courts prosecutes criminals. It is inherently slow and inefficient. The amount of cases that continue to pile up on our courts is insane. Prosecuting everyone of these addicts, pushers, and lords take time as well as money. You honestly can’t expect our criminal courts to handle these cases at their present volume. It’s no wonder our people are restless and no longer see the point of following rules. Petty crimes such as pickpocketing or theft are rampant because criminals aren’t even afraid of getting caught. If criminals don’t fear the law, then what’s the point? The killings from both parties–cops, vigilantes, and criminals–will stop if they see that pursuing such actions is unworthy of their time. People aren’t afraid to kill. They need to be in order for the bloodshed to cease. We are stuck with a Duterte presidency whether we like it or not. The trick in dealing with leaders you do not like is to all...

Violence IS the Filipino’s preferred solution. It’s the way humanity has solved things since time immemorial in the absence of other solutions. Civilization is the deliberate abrogation of that basic human drive, and it’s not as simple as just writing some laws and paying some people to dress in police uniforms or judge’s robes. Without the underlying ideas, all you end up with is a sham and a money sink – which is indeed what we have here. Filipino society is “backward” in the objective sense of the word: living here is like living in the 17th century. It’s literally like stepping back in time. I recognize the culture and mode of living from descriptions of my own country … 400 years ago. Apart from the weather, and the presence of some pointless anachronisms (eg., tricycles), it’s EXACTLY the same. Duterte’s big mistake, I think, is assuming he’s going to fix 400 years of stalled social evolution in six months, or a year, or whatever he’s promising this week. It’s going t...

On paper, it’s the leaders who are responsible for upholding the law and protecting individual rights. The problem? Apart from not following those oaths, Duterte’s platform has basically been about killing criminals. That’s what got him elected, his populist rhetoric that he will solve our utmost problems by doing this and that. It’s the people who believed in his way of doing things and eventually handed him the reins. It’s the people’s responsibility to elect a leader, therefore, they get what they vote for. You want the killings to stop and the rule of law to be upheld? Fine then convince the majority that the latter option will deliver results. I didn’t vote for Duterte but apparently a lot of people did because they believed in his agenda. When you have successive administrations with the same measly outcomes, you are bound to have a leader with extremist tendencies to solve problems that are deeply entrenched into our society. Don’t simply be against extremism but also sh...

The reason why violence is the preferred solution is because the ‘other’ solution is deemed ineffective. Yap all you want about the benefits of love and compassion as well as upholding the rule of law but if they do not deliver the results, it won’t be the go-to solution. This is why vigilantism exists because the institutions that are supposed to combat these problems are ineffective. You want the violence to lessen? Then do a better job of showing the ‘other’ way works. No, denouncing the current administration by saying you are against their policies isn’t going to work. The trick is to show the people that their way of doing things aren’t any better and that the slower but more effective approach does. This is a problem with the leftist narrative. They harp on about human rights but totally miss the big picture. That people who are affected by these problems aren’t convinced their way is working. You want to sell your version of justice? Prove that it works. Apparently, the...