Dare!

It's June and the first blog for this month is actually a DARE!

I have heard so many comments on Facebook on Noynoy. While I campaigned and voted for him, I have heard so many unsolicited opinions even before he has even been proclaimed president.

My golly, if you look at some of the comments, they are actually uhmm...for a better choice of word - silly!

I guess Noynoy has not realized that he has been elected to the highest position in the land. His answers to comments from media (friendly or unfriendly) and from uzis (usisero, like you and I) are a "what you see is what you get" scenario. They're the kind of answers that do not have a political flair. In short, they're frank and candid. When asked if he would stop smoking, he answers flatly - NO. It may not be the right answer we want to hear, but it's his answer. You cannot make someone change his mind if he does not want to.

Perhaps in time, Noynoy will probably have answers that may be more "politically correct". Like all other politicians, there will come a time when they will learn how to play politics as well, especially when they plan to make a career out of governance and die with a political career in their ass.

Perhaps I don't get the point, as people would put it, that he is a bad example to the youth. Come on. I don't think your kids would even dare touch a cigarette if you didn't want him/her to. It takes the Philippine media to hype something as menial a matter as this. I am not defending Noynoy. Sure he smokes. Is that a big deal that he does? I mean, we didn't even lift an iota of a finger at GMAs apparently cheating and nepotism in politics. Of course Gloria didn't smoke. But the greater sin was looked at the other way. We did not go up in arms on Erap's gambling and womanizing and publicly declaring he has so many families in his life. Did any of you bother to comment on his propensity for cavorting?

I think we are making a big deal out of nothing. Noynoy is a smoker. Period. He has been advised not to smoke. Period. How he deals with this vice is up to him and perhaps his advisers in the future will encourage him to take the right path. But puhleeeeeeeezzzzzzzzzzzz stop nit picking.

This country has bigger problems than the president lighting a cigarette!

But media is helping ignite a flame instead of helping douse that fire. A word of advice to the media - it is time to push what is good, rather than the inane silly nothings.

Let me be blunt about it.

Do you think that if you had a newborn baby now, he would even recognize who his president was at the age of 6? These children have their parents to look up to. Role modeling does not begin with the president, but begins at home. If you're lousy parents to your children, you cannot blame the president of the Philippines if your child grows up to be stupid and idiotic! You can only blame yourselves.

It is media that is directly responsible for all the bad publicity we're getting as a nation. It is media that can help change this country and shape it into what it should be. But a media that runs "free" on the claim of "freedom of the press" is a likely adversary to the road of improvement for the Philippines.

We are not alone. There are a lot of problems in other countries as well. The United States or other countries is not as rosy as what people think they are and that the grass is not always greener on the other side.

Ironically, the local media seems to be just at each others neck in trying to outdo each others ratings. No matter how mundane the situation, it's gotta receive attention. And the controversy is fanned by an irresponsible media that continues to hype what is not of primary importance.

Even Boy Abunda has been dragged into the picture. So Noynoy has probably invited Abunda to join his cabinet. So what? With the many lackeys that have lined up with their curriculum vitae in Times Street, job hunting for a position in government, you'd think that these people ought to get a life!

The Catholic Bishops of the Philippines has asked Aquino to remove the plan to introduce sex education in the schools. Why? Isn't it better that they are aware of it rather than succumb to predators because they have no idea that they are already being molested? Let's not be holier than though. I think even the men in cloaks should look at themselves closely in the mirror at the greater sins that they humanly commit, rather than the greater good that right and correct education provides.

I agree with Noynoy that there are many competent people out there. But the best, the brightest, and the most honest will doubtfully accept a government position, if only for the pay. Unless that person thinks that he can make a gargantuan amount from his public office position (and eventually become richer like Ate Glue and her family whose assets have risen by gazillion percent over her 9 years in public office), then I doubt if there will be serious takers.

A full-time government position requires you to give up many things, including the comfort of making a decent living. It does not assure you that you will last in office as well. Neither does it assure you that you will still have a job waiting for you after 6 years. And those that cling on to government positions and are even willing to kill for the sake of staying on in politics have a different agenda in their portfolio.

My LV, Gucci and Prada bags are more than how much the president of the republic of the Philippines makes. I don't think that I would want to change lanes into a government career because that would make my wants and needs unreachable, at the expense of being honest. I am not that wealthy to go into retirement for the sake of the Filipino people.

I have always said that only the Aquinos believe that the Filipino is worth dying for. It's one reason I voted for Noynoy. He can stake his life to change the path the country is treading.

So this is my blog opinion.

And I will start this month with a dare. I dare Noynoy to change the way the Philippines is - no graft and corruption. I dare his detractors and those who provide solicited and unsolicited opinion to be more positive in attitude as well as prudent in their words of advice. No nit picking and crab mentality. I dare the Filipinos to work and get their act together to make the change this country so direly needs.

After six more years with Noynoy as president, let's review the dare!

Noynoy and the noise around him

Without doubt, Noynoy Aquino won the recent May 10, 2010 Presidential election in the Philippines.

I am not a political analyst and will not pretend to be one in this short blog.

I am a Filipino citizen. I did my duty for my country. I voted for him because I saw in him the essence of change and the reason for continuing to dream on for a better Philippines. I remain cynical about this though. Perhaps, the country will not change overnight, nor in my lifetime, but I would like to believe that ethics and proper moral values can be the agent of change and not remain an elusive dream for this country.

Post-election, however, has not been kind.

While many issues surrounding the sitting president remain and will certainly hound his cabinet and our government, I believe that many things can be resolved amicably.

There are bad seeds that were planted by GMA. That is undeniable. Those will need a lot of work to get weeded.

However, a few good men in the cabinet of GMA should be given a standing ovation because they did not use political mileage in order to further the poison of greed and corruption.

What disturbs me though are the noisemakers around Noynoy. Even when I was in Tokyo after the election, the noisemakers were merrily providing ill-advise to him. While I have nothing against suggestions, opinions, and recommendations, Noynoy must be able to dig deeper into his mind and heart and not just trust all these people.

I am a firm believer that many of these politicians giving him advice, have vested interests as well.

And even before he has sat down as the highest official in the land, there is so much noise coming from them and from the media launching so much hate and animosity from the get go.

All beginnings are hard, but humility is a giant step towards reconciliation. If Noynoy is really bent on changing this country for the better, this step must be taken.

It is difficult to carry a heavy burden even before one has started his career. There will be intrigues, and more greed and corruption.

As evident in the results of the election, the Filipinos have not learned a lesson yet. There are still some dynasties and bad eggs that are in the basket. Animosity only breeds contempt.

I voted for you to become our next leader. All of us have ONE vote. These votes collectively put in your hands the future of our country. You DO NOT OWE any single person anything that you need to pay back in return. I spent money to campaign for you as well. The least I expect is that you serve the people, the country well.

It is time to douse water on these noisemakers. It is time that Noynoy stands up on his own. Only then, can he be a good president.

Concede

A day before my flight to Tokyo, I blog about the May 10, 2010 election.

Yes, I voted first before preparing for my Tokyo trip. It was an obligation as Filipino citizen I wouldn't miss.

This election will go down in history as the FIRST automated election (and hopefully all will be automated from hereon) in the Philippines.

First, let's talk about the automated election. While there are close to 100,000 whiners on the procedure of the election, this was the way to go. If you go by statistics, the complainants on the process of this election should try to understand two things: one is that not all things are expected to go right the first time around. Second is that of the over 50Million Filipino eligible voters, this number or about 0.5% of the voting population is a tiny proportion compared to those that lauded the automation procedure.

Sure the lines were long. This was expected due to the massive turn out of voters AND the consolidation of some precincts so that it could fit the 76,000 machines. Like I said, the process was good enough, but the implementation could be better the next time around.

Enough of the whining.

If there is one thing I laud Ate Glue, it is the fact that it is during her term that automating the elections became a reality. Hats off to her and goodbye. Enough said.

The very quick results as the final endpoint and outcome of the election puts all issues to rest. In 24 hours, we had already about 80% of the returns tallied and verified. Very minimal manual counting. No more waiting for 2 weeks to 2 years for final election returns. Minimal cheating. Why, even the election lawyers seemed to have no jobs for this election.

Some observations from friends and yours truly:
1. The demise of Cory Aquino last year paved the way for a more credible election in the sense that had she not passed away, Noynoy would not have run for president. And had Noynoy not run, well, the obvious is that Erap would return as our president. Dang!!!! Crap! You can never tell how these people think and it's so Filipino. Masochism at the highest degree!!! If Erap had won, we deserve the kind of corruption and greed in government.

2. We clamor for change. With that said, we were busy campaigning for the president and the vice-president. At the senatorial level, we see the old faces (and I mean old). We should have not voted for SOME (if not MANY) of the idiots that should not deserve seats in public office. I was flabbergasted that Lito Lapid, made it to the magic 12!!! Lito Lapid!! Lord help the Filipino people. It is no wonder that the country is in such dire need of more brains. Try to make sense out of common sense? We need a few human brains in public office and not those wherein cockroaches have larger brains than our public servants!!

3. Erap is running a distant second to front runner Noynoy. And he and his camp are whining that he's being cheated in this election. You can obviously see that this guy really is clingy. Can someone please give him a movie project so he can get out of politics? Maybe ABS-CBN can make Erap replace Willie Revillame. After all, they have the same penchant for multiple women.

4. Gordon is such a sourpuss. You can tell because he's complaining as to where Noynoy got the financial support. Darn! Well, for your information, I donated a good amount to the campaign of Noynoy. Any questions Dicky? Face it. Not everyone who posted Go Gordon in Facebook was a fan. As a matter of fact, you're one sore loser. So we didn't support you, so what's the big deal? To my friends who are Gordon fanatics, tsk tsk tsk, Dicky boy is asking where IS THE MONEY? Bakit hanggang Facebook lang daw kayo? Bow!

5. FB is a powerful tool. But 80% of the Pinoys live below the poverty line. Of these, 90% have not even heard of FB. Not even ALL the 20% of those that live above the poverty line are tech-driven. About 50% are techies. Mostly the youth. Which explains why Gibo was driven by fans on Facebook. But FB or Twitter or Friendster does not translate to votes. Many of those on FB are not even of legal age to VOTE.

6. Imagine how democracy works. There are 4 Marcoses that have won seats in government in the time of Aquino. Wow!!! Talk about a comeback. Leading the pack is BongBong Marcos who has won a senatorial seat!

7. The only contest left is the vice-presidential seat. Where Mar Roxas seemed to have the cat in the bag, so to speak, at the beginning of the campaign. But the endorsement of Chiz Escudero on the Noy-Bi tandem on the last few weeks of the campaign had apparently spelled the difference. There was a sudden barrage of balimbings and like a tectonic shift in the earth, the tide suddenly changed. And in the official count, Roxas has been trailing Binay. This has been the most perplexing phenomenon. What happened?

8. Those that did not vote because they were on "vacation or holiday", should shut up! They have no right to complain on anything that happens after this election. You snooze, you lose. You should be ashamed at claiming rights to bantering while enjoying yourselves. Shame shame shame!!! If my 73 year old mom braved the heat, crowd, and technology glitz because of her love for country, I don't see why some people could not postpone their trips to the US of A or anywhere else just because the trip was free or the tickets were dirt cheap at the time of booking or that their kids were whining to go on vacation and the parents felt so obligated to send them to Timbuktu. If your reason for not voting is because you were having a grand time somewhere else and expect to come home and join the party, you should really have a thick face on this kind of attitude. It's the kind that puts the country 10 steps backwards on the scale of progress.

History will treat us well. In the Philippines, the outcome of political events is unpredictable as its weather forecast.

As of this blog, the only one gracious in defeat is Manny Villar, who was the first to concede to Noynoy. Can everyone please just get a grip on reality? For the sore losers, concede. This country, no matter how insane the political system is, needs to move on.

Sino ang baliw?

I don't understand what's all the fuzz about Noynoy Aquino allegedly seeking psychiatric help for depression and melancholia when he was 19 years, then a student at the Ateneo de Manila.

If we are to believe the reports that Noynoy had suffered from depression and melancholia during the time that his father Ninoy was incarcerated during the Marcos regime, and that Noynoy apparently became depressed after each prison visit to his father, and that Noynoy had allegedly sought help for his depression - I think this speaks well of a man who knows how to seek help.

Depression can affect anyone.

When my father passed away, my mom did not take it well. She would have palpitations, headache, symptoms and feeling of suffering from a heart attack, and other somatiform disorders. She underwent various cardiovascular examinations and procedures. She saw the best doctors I knew. There were panic attacks in the middle of the night and I would rush her to the emergency room at least twice a week. After a year, I decided that she should see a psychiatrist.

It was initially a bout of anger. Did I think she was going insane? She would retort that there was nothing wrong with her. She was going to be fine. Then we would all wake up in the middle of night, hear her crying alone, hugging me, then wanting to go to the emergency room. When I explained that sometimes some of the symptoms we feel are actually because the mind is more powerful than the body, she denied that she was losing her mind. To offer reassurance, I said that she was not losing her mind. She was lonely, depressed, and sad. And it was perfectly fine. These things happen. We cannot all have perfect lives. But we need to talk to someone.

And medicines will help us on the path to recovery.

It has been 15 years since Tatay passed away and 13 1/2 years since my mom last saw a psychiatrist. I applaud her for doing the best thing - seeking help.

Only intelligent people seek help when they need to. And there is nothing wrong with someone seeking psychiatric help for various reasons.

It is not only depression with melancholic features that is a psychiatric disorder.

If you go through the whole DSM IV-TR (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental DIsorders, 4th edition, Text Revision), you may consider that probably 7 out of 10 people fall within these various categories. For example, Conduct Disorder is considered in the textbook. I see kids who fulfill the criteria for this disorder and let the parents know. But of course, the parents will always say they have normal kids and that they don't need to see a shrink even if their son/daughter has "deliberately engaged in fire setting with the intention of causing serious damage". Sure. Fine. Whatever. So why bring the kid to my clinic? "Para pagalitan nyo doctor at sabihin huwag ng uulitin" (So that you can castigate him and tell him not to do it again). Duh??

Addiction to nicotine and alcohol are psychiatric disorders. And so are sleepwalking, male erectile dysfunction, exhibitionism, pedophilia, voyeurism, vaginismus, gender identity disorder, female sexual arousal disorder, anorexia, feeding and eating disorders in infancy and childhood, enuresis, kleptomania, obsessive compulsive personalities, antisocial, maladaptive health behaviors, relational problems with siblings, child abuse and neglect, malingering...and I can actually go on and on and on and on.

So what am I trying to drive at?

First, people who need help, seek help. So what's so wrong with that? Seeing a psychiatrist does not mean that you are crazy. It is this kind of misconception that makes you wonder if these people who spread malicious mischief actually need to see a psychiatrist as well. Delusional with persecutory complexes!

Second is that people who go through traumatic events need to get help. Noynoy was a teenager at the time his father was incarcerated. It was difficult for him and his family to go through such tragic events. During those years, posttraumatic stress syndrome was not even in the DSM classification. Everything was simply lumped under depression. If he did get help, what was so wrong with that?

Thirdly, people who seek help with psychiatrists should not be stereotyped and mislabeled. Some seek help from friends or take drugs so forget their problems. Others seek professional help. You can see how misguided and uneducated regarding this matter the Filipinos are.

Finally, let's call a spade a spade. I have friends who tell me they don't like to vote for Noynoy because they don't like "abno" people. Or that they want some other crazy to become the next president.

I respect who you vote for. It's your vote. It's my right to campaign. And I will campaign intelligently, rationally and give people opinions on my choice. It's your right to campaign too. But stick to the issue. Who do you think will make a good president?

There is always a thin line between sanity and insanity that you and I tread. If you can't be intelligent about deciding on the next president, just roll over and die. This country would be better off without the other "crazies" (baliw) that have no reason for existence at all.