Author Archives: admin

Populist Economics in Southeast Asia

By admin | November 11, 2012

Written for The Diplomat Governments are spending vast sums to reduce crushing poverty. While the cause is a noble one the reasoning and approach may be faulty. Populist economics is on the rise in Southeast Asia. Politicians have been actively adopting policies that aim to impress upon the poor that governments are doing something, however […]

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Where do spouses live?

By admin | November 7, 2012

There was a time when La Vista Subdivision in Katipunan, Quezon City had three residents sitting as senators of the Republic compared to none for the whole island of Mindanao. Today La Vista is still home of the powerful and the very rich. In fact, its three most famous residents are all members of the […]

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Tribute to House Secretariat

By admin | November 5, 2012

Talumpati sa flag ceremony ng House of Representatives Magandang umaga sa inyong lahat, mga kapwa ko kawani sa pamahalaan. Una, ako po ay nagpapasalamat sa karangalang magsalita sa ating flag ceremony ngayong araw na ito. Matagal ko na pong iniisip kung matatapos ko ba ang aking termino nang hindi mabibigyan ng pagkakataon na maging panauhin […]

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Politics is the Medium

By admin | November 2, 2012

Jose Rizal wrote Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo in Spanish, a foreign language to most indios in late 19th century Philippines. But Noli and Fili became an instant hit among the masa, and the two novels succeeded in inspiring many people to rise up against Spanish colonialism. It was much later before they were […]

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Sulong Baler

By admin | October 29, 2012

Mensahe sa piyesta ng Baler, Aurora Binabati ng Kabataan Partylist ang mga kababayan natin sa Baler, Aurora na kamakailan lamang ay buong siglang pinagdiwang ang ika-403 taon ng pagkakatatag ng inyong bayan. Isang malaking karangalan ang maging panauhing tagapagsalita sa inyong piyesta. Sa aking unang pagbisita sa Baler, agad kong nasaksihan ang mayamang kultura, kasaysayan, […]

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Radicalism. Reformism

By admin | October 16, 2012

Eschew reformism. Embrace radicalism. Reformism is what we remembered in kindergarten; radicalism is what the school of life teaches us. Reformism is when you expose a school bully to your teacher. Radicalism is when you question the schooling system that breeds bullies; then you move to replace it with a new one. Reformism is the […]

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Southeast Asia’s Internet Dilemma

By admin | October 11, 2012

Written for The Diplomat Surveillance cameras at internet cafés, harsh accountability standards for webmasters and the specter of self-censorship have many questioning the future of Internet freedom. The rise of information and communication technologies has not only revolutionized how people interact with each other but also forced many governments to operate in significantly altered political […]

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Big Brother Obama

By admin | October 10, 2012

Published by the CNN The Obama phenomenon that swept the world in 2008 didn’t end that year. Well, at least in the Philippines anyway, where it continued to inspire my compatriots to look for national leaders in the Obama mold. Indeed, the 2010 Philippine presidential election was quite surreal, what with all the candidates presenting […]

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Malaysia’s Sinister Internet Law

By admin | September 24, 2012

Malaysians are right to protest the recent amendments that the government made to the Evidence Act of 1950. Although they deal specifically with the internet, the amendments could have wider implications on media freedom, democracy, and human rights. Section 114A of the bill seeks “to provide for the presumption of fact in publication in order […]

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Smile as inflight magazine

By admin | September 15, 2012

Review of Smile, inflight magazine of Cebu Pacific Air April 2010 Ink Publishing Singapore To read CebuPac’s Smile magazine is to consume a buffet of consumer ads. Passengers must be forewarned that the magazine is loaded with articles, images, and so-called travel tips which seduce readers into buying things they don’t need in life. For […]

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