How Do You Pay Off a Debt ( Utang ) Worth 52.5 Billion US Dollars?

Photo Taken From:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Madoff

The Philippines has a debt, or utang, worth 52.5 BILLION U.S. Dollars ( as of the time of this writing, the first week of July in 2009, 1 US Dollar is equivalent to around 48 Philippine Pesos). If you are a Pinoy, you are one of those obligated to pay it back. Now, how do you do that?

It sounds like an insane amount. We Pinoys can easily imagine taking a Pag-Ibig FUND loan of around 2 Million Philippine Pesos to be able to secure a house and lot for our families. 2 Million PHP is equivalent to around 40,000 or so US Dollars. Can you in your wildest dreams imagine taking a Pag-Ibig FUND loan worth 52.5 Billion US Dollars, or the equivalent of around 2 Trillion 520 Billion PHP? ( Don't bother counting the zeroes ).

If you have that much cash with you, it probably means you won the Lotto each and every day for 2 months in a row. Or maybe 3 months in a row. Or maybe a year. Such an amount is that big. With a Pag-Ibig FUND loan like that, you could probably buy three or more SM Supermalls...including all the merchandise inside.

A 2 Million PHP loan is in itself quite a burden enough to repay, and most Pinoys would even prefer to pay it back within 25 long years, just so's it wouldn't be too much of a burden on the wallet. How much more a TRILLION Pesos worth of utang?

Would any single person be stratospherically mad enough to secure an utang like that?

Hilariously enough, there is. Just search the name "Bernard Madoff" on the Internet, and you'll discover that this stupid person actually has a debt to hundreds, maybe thousands, of people that is said to be worth a total of around 65 BILLION US Dollars. That's even bigger than the utang of the whole Philippine nation! It's so preposterously humongous that Bernard Madoff was recently sentenced to 150 years in prison for not being able to repay that utang. He was condemned as a swindler and a thief for committing the biggest, most unbelievable fraud in human history. To get a sense of how much money 65 Billion US Dollars is, money experts recommend that you imagine stringing together 1 Dollar bills side-by-side lengthwise. That string of money could stretch from the Earth to the Moon and back to Earth again 12 times.

Photo Taken From:

http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/image/s_full-moon.jpg

Well, the Philippines seems to be better off than Mr. Madoff, because instead of just one Pinoy having the 52.5 Billion US Dollar-utang, it's the whole population that shoulders it. That means we are 60 or 80 million souls who are supposed to pay it back to our creditors. If it's also any consolation, that much money strung together in 1 Dollar bills might only stretch from the Earth to the Moon and back to Earth again only 10 times instead of 12. Perhaps.

But how can we repay an amount like that? Would it be as simple as paying for a typical Pag-Ibig FUND loan? Can we settle it in 25 years? It is imminent that each and every Pinoy is obligated to pay this loan back, so we'd better find a way to do it.

Do we raise taxes? Do we send more OFW's abroad, so that their remittances grow exponentially? Do we sell all SM Supermalls in the Philippines on E-Bay? Can we just simply tell our creditors, "Oh Hell! That's a stupid amount! I refuse to pay it back!"

The floor is open to suggestions! Again, how do we pay off an utang worth 52.5 Billion US Dollars?

Photo Taken From:

http://news.holidayhypermarket.co.uk/Images/18446944/Weak_US_Dollar_Will_Benefit_UK_Tourists_large.jpg

To Kill Sons and Daughters--An Effective Way to Stop Corruption In The Government?

Photo Taken From:

http://www.worldemergency.org/images/alisto_photo_06.jpg

Corruption and graft among our Pinoy politicians could be stopped completely by eradicating their sons and daughters...to be a bit more formal about it. Might this extreme measure perhaps be the only way?

The killing of sons and daughters for bringing about positive change is easily seen as reprehensible, reckless, and outright barbaric. It could be argued as another example of the "means" not justifying the "ends". Would such acts be better off dismissed as "unimaginable"? Perhaps. Would such acts have been performed in the past? Some tidbits of history seem to suggest so.

Photo Taken From:

http://www.thebricktestament.com/exodus/the_tenth_plague/ex11_01.jpg

The Christian Bible itself tells of how "spirit of God" killed all the "firstborn" of the Egyptians--both human and animal--in order to force the hand of the Egyptian Pharaoh of ancient times to release from slavery and bondage the Israelites, God's "chosen people". The story is found in the Book of Exodus in the Bible, and was all the more made popular by the movie "Cecille B. DeMille's The Ten Commandments". Although the truthfulness of the Bible account is debatable, some pre-eminent scholars argue that such an event may have been possible. In any case, it would be hard to imagine the Pharaoh of Egypt not capitulating to demands that the people of Israel be given unconditional freedom after seeing his most favored heir having died.

In this instance, the most dreadful of tragedies seems to have been induced in order to achieve the emancipation of a slave nation.

Photo Taken From:

http://www.myninjaplease.com/politricks/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/iraq_saddam_hussein_222.jpg

In the modern era, the freedom of a nation also carried the price of having every one of its former leader's progeny, well...neutralized, to put it mildly. Every Pinoy by now knows of the 21st-century story concerning the dictator Saddam Hussein of Iraq. After US forces invaded Iraq under the presidency of George W. Bush, Mr. Hussein was eventually tracked down to his hiding place, and was later subsequently executed by hanging--a punishment brought about by his outrageous "crimes against humanity".

What most Pinoys might not know about is that Mr. Hussein's eleven sons ( and, presumably, his heirs ) were each already dead--most presumably killed--by the time he was captured. On the one hand, something like this could be viewed as tragic beyond all measure. On the other hand, it totally guaranteed against any reprisals for Mr. Hussein's punishment. As anyone can see by now, Iraq might well be free of any Saddam Hussein-wannabe's in the near future.

Photo Taken From:

http://www.brutallyhonest.org/photos/saddam_husseins_demise/saddamshirt3.jpg

We Pinoys are aware that our country is in the perpetual grip of nearly unfettered corruption and plunder by the officials in its government. Stealing is a criminal act in every way, and yet the mantle of political office protects government officials from any legal sanctions when they perform it. The proposal might seem very radical--and admittedly morbid...and yet, a scenario in which the punishment for any government official found guilty of graft and corruption went so far and so grave as to involve their sons and daughters could be argued as, well, effective.

It would be effective as a deterrent because any official would rather lose money than lose sons and daughters. It would also be effective as a way of recovering the public funds stolen if it were somehow carried out. Any President would absolutely think twice about using public taxes for self-enrichment if the penalty were to go home to a house empty of all his or her sons and daughters.

Photo Taken From:

http://image14.webshots.com/15/4/92/37/333749237RIWVxr_ph.jpg

If one were to be matter-of-fact about it, perhaps government officials who steal billions of pesos from the public's own money do deserve to lose all their inheritors...if the trade-off is that the millions upon millions of us Pinoys--the powerless, the disenfranchised, the oppressed--are to enjoy a country free of corruption, which generally ensures a better future for all our sons and daughters.

Hmmmm. Would killing certain sons and daughters be the solution to the problem of corruption? Why or why not?

Yes, We Are A Nation Of Slaves...Aren't We?

Photo Taken From:

http://media.photobucket.com/image/Overseas%20Filipino%20Worker/firenyc/paperdolls/IMG_4452.jpg

Slave-like labor rendered by Pinoys in different countries around the world is mostly what keeps us Pinoys in the Philippines alive. It is an unavoidable truth.

An article from The Philippine Daily Inquirer which came out on June 17, 2009 states that:

...findings from the annual Survey on Overseas Filipinos have always shown that female domestic workers and male production workers are the top overseas Filipino remitters...

...from 2001 to 2007, except for 2006, male plant and machine operators and assemblers were the top remitters (P7.92 in 2001, P8.73 billion in 2002, P9.55 billion in 2003, P11.7 billion in 2004, P10.4 billion in 2005, and P14.5 billion in 2007).

...The same survey shows that female laborers and unskilled workers, which is the category of household services, dominated the top remitters list from 2001 to 2007: P6.45 billion in 2001, P7.322 billion in 2002, P7.434 billion in 2003, P9.32 billion in 2004, P9.73 billion in 2005, P12.674 billion in 2006, and P13.08 billion in 2007.

In contrast, male and female “officials of government and special interest organizations, corporate executives, managers, managing proprietors, and supervisors” were remitting only between P46 million and P4 billion through the same period.

...low- and semi-skilled OFWs contribute the biggest amount of remittances because they comprise the biggest number of migrant Filipino workers.

Quoted From:

http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20090617-210987/Low-skilled-OFWs-top-dollar-remitters

The money sent back to the Philippines--these "remittances"--by Pinoys working in other countries is what makes possible the subsistence of almost everybody in our country. Remittances enable Pinoys in the Philippines to purchase goods and services, thereby ensuring that the local economy would sustain employment for most Pinoys who stay in the country.

And now it turns out that a great volume of these remittances are sent by "low- and semi-skilled OFWs", which is just another euphemism for OFWs who work in deplorable and slave-like conditions.

This reality is further confirmed by a US Department of State report on the "state of human trafficking" in the Philippines, as also revealed by an article in The Philippine Daily Inquirer dated June 17, 2009, to wit:

“A significant number of Filipino men and women who migrate abroad for work are subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude in Bahrain, Brunei, Canada, Cote d’Ivoire, Cyprus, Hong Kong, Japan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Malaysia, Palau, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Taiwan, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates,” the report said.

“Filipinas are also trafficked abroad..., primarily to Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and countries in Africa, the Middle East, and Western Europe,” it added.

The report further elaborates that:

“Migrant workers were often subject to violence, threats, inhumane living conditions, non-payment of salaries, and withholding of travel and identity documents...”

Quoted From:

http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20090617-210998/Philippines-drops-in-US-trafficking-ranking

It turns out that should these Pinoys working like slaves--domestic helpers, laborers, janitors, waiters, etc.--all stopped sending money back to the Philippines, the whole country and everybody in it would practically come to a standstill and go flat-out broke.

Are we Pinoys, therefore, a whole nation of slaves? Is there any other perspective which could mean otherwise?

Will there ever come a time in the future when Pinoys who go to work overseas will not have to put up with oppression and exploitation? Or is the next generation--our very own children-- destined to simply just be another batch of...slaves?

Photo Taken From:

http://www.actyl.com/Websites/actyl/Images/Filipino_Family_thumb.jpg

Who Was The Better State Leader: Ferdinand Marcos or Deng Xiaoping?

Photo Taken From:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_Marcos

Ferdinand Edralin Marcos - 10th President of the Philippines

Term of Office - 1965 to 1986   ( 20 years )

Presided over more or less 60 million Filipinos

Photo Taken From:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deng_Xiaoping

Deng Xiaoping - 5th General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, 3rd Chairman of the Central Military Commission of CCP

Terms of Office - 1956 to 1966, General Secretary of the Communist Party of China; 1977 to 1989, de-facto leader of China ( 22 years )

Presided over more or less 1 billion Chinese

Mr. Marcos and Mr. Deng were both dictators who held power for about the same length of time.  They were the undisputed strongmen over the Philippines and China, respectively, for the better part of two decades.  During their terms of office, they instituted reforms in their jurisdictions which would greatly influence the destinies of two nations. 

Ferdinand Marcos commands a large following among Pinoys as "the greatest President of the Republic of the Philippines".  He was possessed of acute intelligence, charisma, and political savvy.  According to Wikipedia,  "As Philippine president and strongman, his greatest achievement was in the fields of infrastructure development and international diplomacy."  Millions upon millions of Pinoys grow nostalgic over Marcos presidency, tirelessly repeating anecdotes about how it was the best period in the Philippines' history.  

Photo Taken From:

http://j.bdbphotos.com/pictures/Y/8/Y8D1O1P.jpg

Mr. Deng is equally revered in his native China as a spectacularly influential personality.  According to Wikipedia:  "Inheriting a China wrought with social and institutional woes left over from the devastating Cultural Revolution and other mass political movements of the Mao era, Deng was the core of the second generation Chinese leadership. He was instrumental in introducing a new brand of socialist thinking, having developed Socialism with Chinese characteristics and Chinese economic reform, also known as the socialist market economy and partially opened China to the global market. He is generally credited with advancing China into becoming one of the fastest growing economies in the world and vastly raising the standard of living. "

Obviously, Mr. Deng had ushered in an unprecedented period of progress in China.

Photo Taken From:

http://www.ruzikejiao.com/wp-content/themes/nycreds-30/images/TIME%20Deng%20Xiaoping.jpg

Both of them had their own share of the blunt criticisms.  Wikipedia states that the Marcos administration "was marred by massive authoritarian government corruption, despotism, nepotism, political repression and human rights violations".

Mr. Deng, on the other hand, was recently the subject of an inflammatory essay by Bao Tong, a high-ranking Chinese official.  According to an article that appeared on the British news website TimesOnline, Mr. Bao indicates that "Deng turned against political liberalism and backed rule by a strong state.  He [ Bao ] argues that the party has merely transferred economic privilege to a corrupt bureaucratic elite.  'The price we have paid for it today has been too steep: a cheap labor force, added to massive plunder of natural resources, poisoned air and polluted water,' Bao writes. "  Mr. Deng is also perceived, perhaps correctly, as the highest official who gave the go-ahead for the Chinese military to kill thousands of civilians during the infamous Tiananmen Square Massacre.  

It seems that both leaders had promulgated policies which were both highly praised by some quarters and reviled by others.  

Could it be reasoned that Mr. Marcos and Mr. Deng were somehow on the same league?  

And yet, there is a marked difference between how the Philippines has floundered after Mr. Marcos relinquished his stewardship, and how China emerged as a world superpower after Mr. Deng stepped down from power. 

In an article by CNN's Beijing Bureau Chief Jaime FlorCruz, he states that:  "China now is nothing short of an economic miracle. Its economy has grown at an average of 9.8 percent since 1978, making it the fourth largest economy in the world. Incredibly, China has pulled off the equivalent of reform, renaissance and industrial revolution in 30 years.  It's incredible because only three decades ago China was so poor and isolated."

Article Excerpt From:

http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/12/18/china.reform.florcruz/index.html

The Philippines, on the other hand, is described in less savory terms by the British Broadcasting Corporation.  According to an article from bbc.com:

"Though it once boasted one of the region's best-performing economies, the Philippines is saddled with a large national debt and tens of millions of people live in poverty. The economy is heavily dependent on the billions of dollars sent home each year by the huge Filipino overseas workforce." 

Article Excerpt From:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/country_profiles/1262783.stm

It would seem that Mr. Marcos left quite a more bitter legacy for his people, while Mr. Deng's pioneering efforts stayed on bearing fruit in China long after he left.

Would this mean that Mr. Deng was the better state leader?  Or do the achievements of Mr. Marcos remain over and above those of Mr. Deng's?

What do you think?

Are Pinoys Racist Bigots?

Photo Taken From:

http://img2.travelblog.org/Photos/11737/114378/f/776234-Another-big-filipino-lunch-with-family-0.jpg

We Pinoys say that we are always hospitable towards foreigners of all races, creeds, and colour. Sadly enough, the only race of people we can't seem to get along with is our own.

Photo Taken From:

http://www.mynetbizz.com/travelweb/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/sofitel-philippine-plaza-manila1.jpg

Metro Manila, in the middle of a glitzy tourist district. "NO SANDALS, SLIPPERS, OR SHORTS ALLOWED", the sign on the glass doors of restaurant-cum-bar-and-nightspot right beside the swanky five-star hotel graciously warned the prospective patron. A Pinoy with the gall to stroll right up to the entrance wearing a collared shirt, khaki shorts, and hiking shoes--the essential wear of a tropical backpacker--is politely refused entry by the Pinay waitress manning the door because of violating the dress code set by the management. The Pinoy realizes this and agrees to search for another restaurant where he can be allowed to go inside.

Then, a whole group of foreign tourists clad only in beachwear comes along...and the waitress has no trouble letting the dudes go in--even when these guys are apparently dressed in beach shorts and slippers.

Photo Taken From:

http://www.menseye.com/wp-content/uploads/beach-wear.jpg

It appears that foreign tourists can come in whatever fashion they please into this restaurant, never mind the rules. This is a factual incident. It is only one of countless others which illustrate how other races are accorded preferential treatment by Pinoys over their own.

A convicted rapist who happens to be an American is given a speedy appeals trial while thousands of wrongly accused Pinoys languish in prisons without having been convicted in the first place. Pinoys struggle hard to converse with foreigners in English, for the sake of courtesy, while they laugh at Bisayans who are simply talking in one of the Philippines' major languages, mocking the speakers with the jocular phrase "Bisaya ka man, gid, ha?" Drunken Pinoys walking along the street can always be reported to the authorities for social misdemeanors, while foreigners just as inebriated can race their motorcycles or cars down public roads without being penalized. Crooked policemen find it easier to extort money from fellow Pinoys than victimize our dearly beloved visitors. When the Abu Sayyaf abducts foreigners and Pinoys to hold them for ransom, the foreigners are the ones prioritized to be rescued first, while Pinoys are beheaded and are forgotten as casualties.

Photo Taken From:

http://img5.travelblog.org/Photos/39951/197996/t/1478700-Happy-fellas--Panglao-Bohol-0.jpg

Then again, perhaps foreigners do deserve to be treated better. After all, what are fellow Pinoys anyway but simply a worthless bunch of riffraff? It will not be of any benefit to any Pinoy of he or she treats and regards fellow Pinoys with the same respect, courtesy, and...well, reverence which foreigners are showered with. Why would anybody want to treat their own Pinay maid with the same civility as they would a foreign visitor at their own house--no matter that the foreign visitor was also a maid in his or her homeland?

Photo Taken From:

http://www.maryland-maid-cleaning-service.com/images/Maid-Services.jpg

One of the definitions of the word "racist", according to http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/racist?qsrc=2889 is "Discrimination or prejudice based on race".

Pinoys appear to be innocent of being racist since they don't actually treat any other race besides their own as inferior. Then again...maybe there are some things Pinoys neglect to ponder about with regards to their own?

So--are we or aren't we racist bigots?

Do Pinoy Males Look Like Toilet Bowls?

Photo Taken From:

http://www.gambling911.com/files/publisher/Manny-Pacquiao-Oscar-De-La-Hoya-120708S.jpg

Admit it.  Pinoy guys are indescribably ugly.  Standing next to a hunky athlete like Oscar dela Hoya, Manny Pacquiao looks more like a lackey, or maybe even a dog scavenging for scraps, rather than a consummate boxer--perhaps one of the best boxers of all time.

Pinay women would certainly prefer to date or even marry foreign guys.  Imagine a scenario where Manny Pacquiao and Oscar dela Hoya were both trying to set up a date with a Pinay, say, by sending her text messages on her cellular phone, and then using MMS to send her their pictures.  Most surely the Pinay will choose the dashing and debonaire Oscar over ugly Manny.

It is fair to say that Manny Pacquiao has the facial features of the typical Pinoy guy walking on the street.  In essence, he is from his face down to the very fibre of his bones purely of Pinoy breed.  He does not have a surname like "Geisler", "Taulava", "Jones", "Bektaz", "Anderson", "Young", or any other surname which sounds as if the person was born in the United States or Australia or Korea--wherever else.  "Pacquiao" can easily sound like "Benipayo" or "Malibay".  His mother and father are of Pinoy genetic origins.  He is not "half-" German, Swiss, Japanese, Bulgarian--any of hundreds of other countries of origin.  

Pinay women simply relish the thought of walking arm-in-arm inside a shopping mall with a foreign-looking dude at her side, which makes the both of them get noticed by everybody else.  The experience would be surely close to enjoying a certain instant celebrity status.

Photo Taken From:

http://proudlypinay.files.wordpress.com/2006/02/NYE%20St%20Kilda.jpg

Perhaps there are numerous justifiable reasons why Pinays would like it better to be paired with foreigners.  They are certainly more handsome than the typical Pinoy on the street.  Some people simply generalize that Pinays favor foreigners because they have more money.   However, this would mean, too, that Pinays are nothing more than gold-digging leeches, insatiable seekers of financial gain no matter what--something which Pinays themselves might not agree with.

Isn't it, after all, a fact that Pinay showbiz actresses and celebrities--women who arguably enjoy a high level of financial security--also date and/or marry foreigners?  

Photo Taken From:

http://www.abante-tonite.com/issue/june1107/Pictures/t-11-YilmazRuffa.jpg

Maybe foreigners are simply the better choice.  They probably work harder and are the best providers.  A Pinay and a foreigner union could also result in children which are "half-" this and that, progeny which would definitely be better looking compared to children looking like Manny Pacquiao.

Maybe Pinoy guys truly deserve to be labelled as the pickings at the bottom of the barrel, scrapings which are only chosen when there are no other alternatives available.  Maybe Pinoy guys simply look like toilet bowls.

What do you think?

Would You Give the Philippines an A-Grade?

(Photo taken from http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/thumb_334/122698095815R9y2.jpg)

Let us just suppose that the whole world was a classroom and that each country is a student in that class.  

The class attendance sheet would contain names such as Mr. USA,  Mr. Russia,  Mr. China,  Mr. Finland...and so on.  Of course, we should not forget that somewhere in that list would also be a Mr. Philippines.  

We are all aware that in any class, there would be top performing students and, well...less than stellar ones.  If the world were a classroom, the student who would rank the highest in all curricular ( and perhaps, even extra-curricular ) activities, the student who serves as the yardstick by which all the other members in class are evaluated, would arguably be Mr. USA.  This particular genius excels in science and technology, in the arts, in the fields of commerce and industry, as well as economics. Why, Mr. USA would also fare outstandingly well in sports and military studies.  In short, it doesn't take a genius to think of Mr. USA as the Top Dog.  He might as well be the class President, too.

However, it would also be apparent that some other students are also eagerly competing with Top Dog Mr. USA.  These students distinguish themselves as a fervent group that, in their own respective ways, strive to at least achieve merits that could rival some abilities of Mr. USA.  Mr. Japan, for one, would probably be neck-and-neck with Mr. USA in the field of science and technology.  Mr. China has recently emerged as a brilliant economic tactician.  There would also be the erstwhile presence of Mr. Russia, Mr. UK, Mr. Germany, Mr. South Korea, Mr. Finland, Mr. Brazil, along with a host of others who unabashedly display flashes of ability which give them a fair amount of class "honors".

(Photo taken from http://library.thinkquest.org/20117/media/medal.jpg)

Perhaps, like in any other typical class, this "classroom of the world" would have three groups of students.  First, the Elite Top 10 Students, each of whom typifies the ever assiduous student vying for Top Dog position, and who also virtually exert the most significant influence over the classroom.  

( Photo taken from http://www.hull.ac.uk/scg/Cavendish%20Medal%20Award1_files/image002.jpg)

Below the Top 10 would be the mid-performers, who are mediocre or run-of-the-mill--these students would simply be content with obtaining the minimum "passing grades" on their "subjects".  

(Photo taken from http://www.kuyper.edu/uploadedImages/Website/Academics/1RBCD7GZ8250%20academics%20students%20in%20classroom.jpg)

Way below would be the bottom feeders--students who are forever tardy in class, totally uninterested in self-improvement, and would most likely disrupt any class discussion with rambunctiuous demonstrations of hooliganism.  Some people may classify them as students who don't care about their own future.  Some people dismiss them as worthless members of the class, which the classroom could do well without.  

 

( Photo taken from http://www.gabrielwoods.com/gab%20highland%20fling.jpg )

We Pinoys are specially fond of students who excel.  Many Pinoy families pride themselves with their one or two family members who receive the most number of academic honors in class.  

Could we as a whole country also be proud of Mr. Philippines as a member of the "world classroom"? Would Mr. Philippines be deserving of a high grade in this class?  Would Mr. Philippines be among the top elite?  Would he be a mediocre student?  Is he an underachiever?  Is he a bottom-feeder, which means that the classroom could do better without him ever being there in the first place?

Would you give Mr. Philippines an A-grade?

Are You "Mukhang Longkatuts"?

(Picture taken from: http://www.eastasiafair.com/wp-contentuploads/2008/12maid-in-malaysia-2.jpg )

Millions, literally millions, of Pinays are branded as "mukhang longkatuts" in the Philippines.  The phrase literally translates to English as "looks like a maid".  

According to widespread perception, a Pinay who is "mukhang longkatuts" possesses certain facial features which would distinguish her as belonging to a category of the Pinay population characterized as, well, primarily ugly and totally unappetizing to discriminating eyes.   This pathetic categorization carries with it the implication that the Pinay in question might actually be a maid employed in some well-to-do household.  

Pinay maids in the Philippines are generally characterized as maleducated, barely literate, and totally incapable of rising above their status as mere servants--i.e., drones of manual labor inside the house. They are said to speak with an accent that many Pinoys mock as--if not painful to the ears somehow, then certainly almost unintelligible in a hilarious way.  It can be said that owing to these qualities attributed to Pinay maids, they are relegated to a social standing far below the mainstream society.  

Perhaps at one time in US history, African-American slaves were suffering under the same burden of...unequal treatment and regard.  Up to now, African-Americans tirelessly speak of the discrimination their ancestors had to endure under the white folk.  One can imagine that for a person to look like a black servant back then would attract scorn and avoidance.  They even say that remnants of the same attitudes remain today.

Then again, what is a "mukhang longkatuts" person, anyway?  Are there any definite and empirical parameters for this?  Granted that the person above is an actual Pinay maid, and that she can be said to look the part, then perhaps maids of foreign nationalities must also have a facial appearance that distinguishes them from, well, the not "mukhang longkatuts". Consider the two maids below:

 

(Picture taken from:http://images.google.com.phimgresimgurl=httpwwwdelivery.superstock.com/WI2231433/PreviewCompSuperStock_1433R-946897.jpg&imgrefurl=httpwww.superstock.comstock-)

 

Both are maids, and yet it would be apparent that the woman on the left would not be "mukhang longkatuts".  

In any case, the Americans recently elected a president who perfectly looks like an African-American slave. Could it be said that, for Americans somehow, he is a "mukhang longkatuts"?

(Picture taken from http://neftriplecrunch.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/barack-obama1.jpg)

Perhaps someone would be kind enough to truly differentiate what is "mukhang longkatuts" from what is not?  And by the way, do the longkatuts and those who look like them deserve their treatment?  

What Is Wrong With My Bisayan Accent?

Photo Taken From:

http://www.pep.ph/images/news/3b79aa117.jpg

Bisaya is perhaps the most prevalent language spoken by Pinoys aside from Filipino. Bisayans, or Pinoys who speak this language, are often ( if not always ) derided for their peculiar accent when talking in English.  For example, Bisayans are known for pronouncing the word "battle" as "bah-tol" or the word "apple" as "ah-pol".  Pinoys regard the Bisayan accent in spoken English as irrepressibly comical, so much so that numerous jokes allude to how Bisayans end up in hilarious situations because of their perceived mispronunciation of English words.  Thus, we would hear jokes where Bisayans say "Amen" and the listener understands it as "Hey man!", among other contrived anecdotes.

Among Pinoys, a person who speaks English with a marked Bisayan accent is an object of mockery.  To talk in English with this accent places a stigma on the speaker as someone who belongs to the maleducated class, an individual of "low breeding" or "second-rate" social standing.  Precisely why Pinoys poke fun at such persons.  The Bisayan accent of spoken English, in short, is one of the most undesirable traits a Pinoy could have, especially when a Pinoy seeks legitimate recognition as a "person of breeding".

Pinoys would prefer that fellow Pinoys speak English with an American accent.  If you are Pinoy and you sound like an American when talking in English, you are accorded a higher and more admired status.  

The question begs to be asked, however, whether speaking English with a Bisayan accent ought to lessen one's respect for the speaker.  Should we Pinoys constantly mock and decry the accent as "second-rate" and "unacceptable"?  Even the most recognizable Pinoy in the planet today, the extraordinarily talented boxer Manny Pacquiao, is often taunted about how he speaks English with his "Bisaya" phonetics. Shouldn't Pinoys be proud of their own unique accent when speaking English, whether it is Bisayan or not?  

Americans perpetually poke fun at how Indians mangle their pronunciation of English.  The British, in turn ( from whom the English language originated ), also regard the American accent with contempt as being improper.  Even among native English speakers, there is disagreement as to what the proper accent should be.

And yet, Indians themselves don't see their own accent of spoken English as hilarious.  The Americans are proud of their accent, even if the Texans have a twang that defies belief ( just listen to former US President George Bush ).  The Australians, who pronounce "today" as "to die", are perfectly comfortable with their own accent.  

Shouldn't we Pinoys also be proud of our Bisayan accent in English?  Shouldn't we regard our peculiar accent as part of our identity, something we can unabashedly display to everybody?

Or, conversely, should the Bisayan accent be forever imputed with its less than favorable reputation?

    

Will The Philippines Ever Be a First World Country?

Could you ever imagine the Philippines becoming a First World country some time in the future?  

Can you ever envision us Pinoys enjoying the same standard of living found in First World countries ( e.g. The U.S., Canada, The U.K., Japan, Australia, South Korea--places where Pinoys normally migrate to ) right here in our own soil?  Think of Pinoy janitors, construction and factory workers, or many other kinds of blue-collar employees being able to purchase their own cars.  Think of Pinoy policemen enjoying Starbucks coffee on their spare time.  Think of Pinoys being able to avail of most medical services in hospitals and clinics for free.  Think of almost all Pinoy households having their own desktop computers, HD television sets, airconditioning, washing machines, vacuum cleaners, microwave ovens--all of those other state-of-the-art appliances we would prefer to possess.  Imagine a majority of Pinoy families employing foreigners as maids or babysitters at home ( say, Pakistanis, Indians, Cambodians, Somalis, or whoever else ).  Imagine Pinoy companies manufacturing cars, airplanes, electronic gadgets, robots--a plethora of products which are exported regularly for consumption by other countries...

Imagine...having to enjoy lives in other countries without having to leave our country to do so.  

Could this be ever possible?  Why would you think so?  Conversely, why would you think that such a vision like this would remain as a figment of the imagination?