One December afternoon, while walking along the ruined battlements of the Old City, I asked the Teacher how we could have avoided the great Dissolution that tore the country apart in the early years of the last century. The Teacher remained silent for a long time. All around us, the gardeners kept on hunting through […]
03
Dec
Dec
I came across this on Facebook and could not believe my eyes. I am reminded, yet again, that social media – for all its promise and benefit – really does have a dark underbelly. By what perverse definition is this sort of crap good? This child’s parents should be thrown in jail for letting this […]
03
Dec
Dec
I feel like I have to establish some sort of bona fides before I even start to tackle that Coca-Cola ad. I am a Coke fan, alright? In my office fridge, I have more Coke than anything else, water included. I used to wake up and reach for a bottle of Coke first thing in […]
02
Dec
Dec
So the news broke late today, that COMELEC Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. has been getting death threats. Not that this is entirely surprising. Ever since he stepped foot in the COMELEC, the Chairman has been very vocal about his determination to clean up the institution. As they say, every basket will have some rotten eggs. […]
02
Dec
Dec
Last night, I had dinner with a woman named Zhao. Tall and willowy, with skin the color of ivory. She worked as a calligrapher at one of those tiny shops along Tomas Mapua Street, where they make headstones and banners for Chinese funeral marches. She smells faintly of incense. After dinner, we walked along Claro […]
01
Dec
Dec
Coming from a forum on strengthening the political party system, at the House of Reps, the monstrous traffic and the fact that I have another forum at the UP in a couple of hours, convinced me to just stay in the QC area. As we were looking for a place to have lunch, my driver […]
30
Nov
Nov
This is my article in the 30 November 2011 edition of the Business Mirror. THE events of the past week have focused attention on one of the critical functions of the Commission on Elections: the prosecution of electoral offenses. While some would argue for a leaner Comelec that occupies itself exclusively with the administration of […]
30
Nov
Nov
So, the twitter verse was abuzz tonight when the news came out that Pia Hontiveros was leaving ANC and heading on over to SolarTV. Since I’ve been on Strictly Politics at least more than twice, I felt rather strongly that I wanted to write a bit about that program and, naturally, the formidable Ms. Hontiveros […]
30
Nov
Nov
I cracked a big grin when I saw today’s Google doodle. “Norman Rockwell,” I thought with relish. Mark Twain, as it turns out. And no less good.
29
Nov
Nov
Now here, HERE, is a bucket list of the grandest kind: the all-TIME 100 best films, as chosen by Time Magazine’s movie critics, Richard Corliss and Richard Schickel. A – C Aguirre: The Wrath of God The Apu Trilogy The Awful Truth Baby Face Bande à part Barry […]