Author Archives: admin

Miseducation in the 21st Century

By admin | July 18, 2012

Part 1: K-12: Education reform for whom? Through K-12, the Noynoy Aquino government plans to equip Filipino students with ‘21st century skills’. This seems a lofty goal considering that majority of public schools are stuck in the 20th century twilight zone. Even the commendable plan to integrate ICT starting Grade 1 seems unrealistic given the […]

Posted in education | Tagged | 4 Comments

More Pork, Doleouts, Bonuses in 2013 Budget

By admin | July 10, 2012

Initial review of the 2013 budget based on the DBM presentation The Noynoy Aquino government is calling the P2.006 trillion proposed budget an ‘empowerment budget’ that will benefit the people, especially the poor. But since the budget (based on the Department of Budget and Management presentation) is loaded with more pork, doleouts, and fat bonuses, […]

Posted in nation | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Burma’s Surprising Protests

By admin | July 7, 2012

News about the protests that spread through several Burma towns last week over power shortages should be welcomed as a positive development in the country’s bid to achieve a full democratic transition. The series of peaceful protests started in Mandalay, where hundreds of residents gathered in front of a government electricity agency to condemn the […]

Posted in east asia | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Dead End and Deadened

By admin | July 5, 2012

The obligatory canned applause to celebrate President Noynoy Aquino’s second year in office will be delivered by the crazed Yellow Gang. They are expected to highlight the visible and quantifiable – though empty and boring – so-called achievements of the government like credit rating, GDP, and investor confidence. The hypnotized herd will probably echo Pnoy’s […]

Posted in nation | Tagged | 1 Comment

Poverty and Children

By admin | June 26, 2012

There are 27.6 million poor Filipinos in 2006, 12.8 million or 47 percent are children 15 years old and below. This was revealed in a study commissioned by the United Nations Children’s Fund and conducted by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies, a government agency. The results of the study were reported to the public […]

Posted in youth | Tagged | 2 Comments

Scarborough Shoal a Precursor?

By admin | June 25, 2012

French philosopher Voltaire once wrote a story about the mad behavior of men going to war over a “few lumps of earth.” In Southeast Asia, there are numerous small and midsize conflicts between countries over temples, borders, islets, reefs, shoals, and even puny rock formations that disappear during high tide. For example, Thailand and Cambodia […]

Posted in east asia | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Rallies and Marathons

By admin | June 22, 2012

Rallies and most marathons for a cause have many things in common. They both require a massive gathering of warm bodies in order to succeed. After converging at a certain point, the participants will soon march to reach the finish line, the target destination. The sheer number of the crowd is eclipsed only by the […]

Posted in reds | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

K-12: Education reform for whom?

By admin | June 13, 2012

Part 1: Politics of education reforms Everybody agrees that big reforms are necessary to reverse the decline of Philippine education. This consensus, however, was hijacked by the government to force the implementation of the so-called K-12 program despite the absence of an authoritative study that it will raise the quality of learning in the country. […]

Posted in education | Tagged , | 13 Comments

No To Higher Sin Taxes

By admin | June 9, 2012

Speech delivered on June 6, 2012 at the House of Representatives I vote ‘NO’ because this measure will only impose higher taxes in the country. The bigger sin is not the act of smoking but the negligence on the part of the government to implement a more comprehensive plan to prevent or discourage people from […]

Posted in speeches | Tagged | 2 Comments

Don’t Lower Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility

By admin | June 7, 2012

On June 4, 2012, Monday, the House of Representatives passed on third reading House Bill 6052 which seeks to amend RA9344 or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006. Kabataan Partylist Representative Raymond Palatino was one of the 9 legislators who opposed the measure which would lower the minimum age for criminal responsibility from […]

Posted in youth | Tagged | 7 Comments